Malice in the Mitten

About Malice in the Mitten

Three Michigan shows, one voice. Malice in the Mitten - Michigan-focused True Crime. Round Robin - Upbeat round-table talk. F-Bomb - Michigan folklore and frights. New episodes every Monday, Wednesday & Friday

Publisher

Tracy Preston

Category

true crime

Language

en

Explicit

Yes

First episode

22 Jan 2024

Latest episode

7 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

350 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   7 Oct 2026

   S13 E29 - Round Robin - Malibu, Movie Stars & Money in the Banana Stand

   What do Malibu Beach, surfing, frozen bananas, John Wayne, Shirley Temple and Barbie have in common? More than you'd think. This week on Round Robin, Tracy, Christine and Nina head to Southern California to explore the Chumash origins of Malibu, the Hawaiian roots of modern surfing culture, Duke Kahanamoku, Gidget, Malibu Barbie, Balboa Island's frozen banana wars, John Wayne's surprising connection to bodysurfing, and the famous Shirley Temple drink its namesake couldn't stand. Then Shirley Temple Black takes center stage as Woman of the Week for the remarkable second act of her life as a U.S. diplomat and ambassador. #RoundRobinPodcast #Malibu #SurfingHistory #OldHollywood #CaliforniaHistory Written, recorded, edited & produced by Tracy Preston, featuring Christine & Nina Mulligan Original music created exclusively for Round Robin by Tracy Preston Original artwork by Todd Preston Sources: City of Malibu. “Profile of the City of Malibu.” City of Malibu, www.malibucity.org/DocumentCenter/View/16760. City of Malibu. “Chapter Six: Historic Resources.” City of Malibu, www.malibucity.org/DocumentCenter/View/398/Chapter-Six. City of Malibu. “Cultural Resources.” City of Malibu, Nov. 2014, www.malibucity.org/DocumentCenter/View/10301. City of Malibu. “Malibu Surfing Area Listed in National Register of Historic Places.” City of Malibu, 6 May 2018, www.malibucity.org/DocumentCenter/View/17035. National Museum of American History. “Surfboard Shaped by Duke Kahanamoku on the Beach at Corona Del Mar, California in 1928.” Smithsonian Institution, americanhistory.si.edu/collections/object/nmah_1760837. Sony Pictures Entertainment. “Gidget.” Sony Pictures Entertainment, 1959, www.sonypictures.com/movies/gidget. Mattel. “1970s Barbie Dolls: Malibu Barbie, Superstar Barbie & More.” Mattel Creations, creations.mattel.com/pages/barbie-1970s-malibu-dreams-superstar-style. Smith, K. Annabelle. “The History of the Frozen Banana Stand.” Smithsonian Magazine, 24 May 2013, www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/the-history-of-the-frozen-banana-stand-80551198/. John Wayne Enterprises. “Wayne in LA.” John Wayne, www.johnwayne.com/journal/duke/wayne-in-la/. John Wayne Enterprises. “Big Jake at 50.” John Wayne, www.johnwayne.com/journal/duke/big-jake-at-50/. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. “The 7th Academy Awards: 1935.” Oscars.org, 27 Feb. 1935, www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1935. National Museum of American History. “Shirley Temple Doll.” Smithsonian Institution, americanhistory.si.edu/collections/object/nmah_2034834. United States Department of State, Office of the Historian. “Shirley Jane Temple Black (1928–2014).” Office of the Historian, history.state.gov/departmenthistory/people/black-shirley-jane-temple. Rothman, Lily. “Inside the Shirley Temple: How Did the Mocktail Get Its Name?” TIME, 11 Feb. 2014, time.com/6659/shirley-temple-drink/.

2. 

   5 Oct 2026

   The Woman They Tried to Erase - The Death of Emily Hal

   In 1895, a young Englishwoman named Emily Hall crossed the Atlantic and arrived at a house on Lincoln Avenue in Detroit while pregnant. Less than two weeks later, she was dead. But Emily Hall wasn't the name written on her death certificate. She became “Myrtle Cook”—a supposedly New York-born woman said to have died of pneumonia at an address where Emily had never lived. Then her embalmed body remained unburied for more than two months. When a newspaper reporter discovered it, the strange death began to unravel. Investigators uncovered letters from England, money sent in Emily's name, conflicting stories, testimony from other women, and evidence surrounding Dr. Dennis J. Seaman and Alice Lane. Seaman's first conviction would eventually reach the Michigan Supreme Court—but even that wasn't the end. This episode of Malice in the Mitten investigates the documented story behind Emily Hall's death, the extraordinary effort surrounding her concealed identity, and the young woman almost lost beneath the name “Myrtle Cook.” More than 130 years later, we say her real name again. Emily Hall #MaliceInTheMitten #MichiganTrueCrime #DetroitHistory #HistoricalTrueCrime #EmilyHall Written, recorded, edited & produced by Tracy Preston, featuring Christine Mulligan Original music created exclusively for Malice in the Mitten by Tracy Preston Original artwork by Todd Preston Sources: People v. Seaman. 107 Mich. 348, 65 N.W. 203. Supreme Court of Michigan, 10 Dec. 1895. Go Syfert, People v. Seaman, 107 Mich. 348. Accessed 5 Oct. 2026. “An Erring Clergyman.” Otago Daily Times, 25 May 1895, p. 3. Papers Past, National Library of New Zealand, Otago Daily Times historical article. Accessed 5 Oct. 2026. “That Detroit Mystery Cleared Up.” The Lowell Ledger, 26 Apr. 1895. Kent District Library Digital Archives, The Lowell Ledger, 26 Apr. 1895. Accessed 5 Oct. 2026. “Arranged for the Murder of Emily Hall.” The North Platte Semi-Weekly Tribune, 7 June 1895. Chronicling America, Library of Congress, North Platte Semi-Weekly Tribune, 7 June 1895. Accessed 5 Oct. 2026. “Rev. Jonathan Bell Located.” The Clinton Republican, June 1895. Clinton County Historical Newspaper Archive, The Clinton Republican historical issue. Accessed 5 Oct. 2026. “Mrs. Lane Is Convicted.” Lowell Journal, 11 Mar. 1896. Kent District Library Digital Archives, Lowell Journal, 11 Mar. 1896. Accessed 5 Oct. 2026. “Mrs. Lane Gets Ten Years.” The Clinton Republican, Mar. 1896. Clinton County Historical Newspaper Archive, The Clinton Republican historical issue. Accessed 5 Oct. 2026.

3. 

   2 Oct 2026

   S13 E27 - F-Bomb - The Friendless Dead - Grave Secrets & Anatomy Lessons

   This week on F-Bomb Friday, we uncover one of Michigan's darkest medical history stories: the resurrectionists, grave robbing, and the unclaimed dead who supplied 19th-century anatomy rooms in Detroit and Ann Arbor.  From Detroit Medical College and Michigan's 1881 Anatomy Act to Willie Brown, the "friendless dead," and the shocking 1893 discovery of two human skeletons in Detroit's garbage, this true story reveals a chilling real-world parallel to Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.  Join Tracy and Todd as they explore the forgotten people behind Michigan's medical progress and ask the unsettling question at the heart of Frankenstein:  Just because science can do something, should it? #DetroitHistory #Frankenstein # Resurrectionists #MedicalHIstory #GraveRobbing Written, edited, hosted & produced by Tracy Preston, featuring Todd Preston Original music created exclusively for F-Bomb by Tracy Preston Original artwork by Todd Preston Sources: Bragg, Amy Elliott. “International Garbage Crime.” Little Detroit History Letter, 2025, littledetroithistoryletter.substack.com/p/international-garbage-crime. Accessed 25 Sept. 2026. “History.” Wayne State University School of Medicine, Wayne State University, med.wayne.edu/about/history. Accessed 25 Sept. 2026. “History of Detroit and Wayne County and Early Michigan: A Chronological Cyclopedia of the Past and Present, Vol. I.” LDS Genealogy, 1890, ldsgenealogy.com/MI/books/History-of-Detroit-and-Wayne-County-and-early-Michigan-A-Chronological-Cyclopedia-of-the-Past-and-Present-Vol-I-part-118.htm. Accessed 25 Sept. 2026. “Anatomist and Janitor.” University of Michigan Human Resources, University of Michigan, hr.umich.edu/anatomist-janitor. Accessed 25 Sept. 2026. Tobin, James. “The Bells of Michigan.” University of Michigan Human Resources, University of Michigan, hr.umich.edu/node/158583. Accessed 25 Sept. 2026. “Historical Events.” Wayne State University Fact Book 2019–20, Wayne State University, gme.med.wayne.edu/pdfs/2019-20_wsu_fact_book.pdf. Accessed 25 Sept. 2026. Shackman, Grace. “In the Archives: The Friendless Dead.” The Ann Arbor Chronicle, 1 Oct. 2013, annarborchronicle.com/2013/10/01/in-the-archives-the-friendless-dead/index.html. Accessed 25 Sept. 2026. Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft. Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. Lackington, Hughes, Harding, Mavor & Jones, 1818.

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.6 / 5

19 ratings

Spotify

4.5 / 5

11 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 47 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

63

Social presence

0

YouTube

0

Engagement

77