What happens when a city on the verge of collapse tries to reinvent itself? How much will it cost? Who will pay the price? Reporter David Weinberg spent years following one city in California’s Mojave desert as it tried to transform itself from a city of prisons to a city of pot. And it worked…for a while. Until it, spectacularly, didn’t. From Crooked Media, this is Dreamtown: The Story of Adelanto. Coming June 7th wherever you get your podcasts.
This is the first episode in Radio Diaries’ new series The Unmarked Graveyard, untangling mysteries from America’s largest public cemetery. Each week, they’re bringing you stories of how people ended up on Hart Island, the lives they lived and the people they left behind.
19 Jul 2023
Chapter 8: Sometimes You Win
Stevevonna announces her candidacy for mayor, challenging a former ally for the top spot on the city council. But as the election nears, a new issue takes center stage – not weed – but the city’s water supply.
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12 Jul 2023
Chapter 7: The Joy of Politics
Stevevonna Evans’ former friends in the city council have turned against her. But a trip to Sacramento and conversations with an unlikely ally convince her to take a big career swing.
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5 Jul 2023
Chapter 6: Ring of Truth
Stevevonna Evans is charting a new path for Adelanto and attempting to put an era of corruption in the past. But just a few months into her term, she finds herself caught up in her own scandal and discovers that in Adelanto it’s difficult to govern without making a mess.
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28 Jun 2023
Chapter 5: The Audit
Stevevonna Evans, now on the city council, discovers multiple millions of dollars are missing from the city budget. She begins to investigate, and with every rock she turns over she learns another bonkers secret about what went down while Mayor Kerr, Jermaine Wright and Bug Woodard were in power.
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21 Jun 2023
Chapter 4: Stevevonna’s Run
With City Hall imploding in scandal, a local resident, Stevevonna Evans, takes it upon herself to run for office, unseat Bug, and clean up the mess he’s left behind. But Evans’ sudden interest in politics isn’t just about solving corruption. She has another, more personal reason for entering the race.
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14 Jun 2023
Chapter 3: The Dead Rat
Bug’s ambitious plan to save Adelanto from bankruptcy by legalizing weed seems to be working. A green rush is on. But soon, strange deals start to go down. When the FBI starts poking around, a new business and multiple politicians are caught in the crosshairs.
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7 Jun 2023
Chapter 2: Going Green
The recent election fills Adelanto’s city council with fresh faces, including the conservative hippie John “Bug” Woodard Jr. But his plan to bring weed to the city is far from complete. He needs to actually pass a cannabis legalization ordinance via City Hall. There’s just one problem: he doesn’t have the votes.
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7 Jun 2023
Chapter 1: Bug’s Plan
It’s 2014. Adelanto is a bankrupt city in the California desert known for its massive detention centers and not much else. Then, a stranger comes to town with a wild idea to make Adelanto great again: Become the first city in Southern California to legalize commercial weed cultivation.
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31 May 2023
Dreamtown… A Primer.
Sometimes out here in the West, a stranger comes to town and saves the city from whatever peril is threatening it. But sometimes a stranger comes to town disguised as a savior and turns out to be a grifter.
From Crooked Media, this is Dreamtown: The Story of Adelanto. Coming June 7th wherever you get your podcasts. For early, ad-free access to episodes, join ‘Friends of the Pod’—Crooked’s new subscription community—at crooked.com/friends.
17 May 2023
Welcome to Dreamtown: The Story of Adelanto
Reporter David Weinberg spent years following one California Mojave desert town’s transformation from a city of prisons to a city of pot. And it worked... Until it didn’t. From Crooked Media, this is Dreamtown: The Story of Adelanto. Coming June 7th wherever you get your podcasts.
26 Apr 2023
Introducing: Dreamtown (premieres June 7)
Welcome to Crooked Media’s newest limited series Dreamtown: The Story of Adelanto - An official Tribeca selection. Subscribe to be the first to hear new Dreamtown content when it drops, and tune in to the official premiere on June 7th.
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