Snap Judgment

It was both a tragedy and a punchline. The story behind a cult that changed the world. Snap Presents "Heaven's Gate".

Nick Yarris says he was a junkie, a thief, and a liar. So when he was imprisoned on a false charge, no one believed in his innocence. Then he found his only way out. Thank you so much to Nick Yarris. Check out his books, including his latest, “Monsters & Madmen: A Death Row Experiment.” Learn more at nickyarris.org. Thank you also to the Wolfgram Memorial Library at Widener University, and its Reference Librarian & University Archivist Jill M. Borin for her help. And lastly, thank you Nick Yarris’ former attorney, Michael J. Malloy. Producer: Liz Mak Original Score: Leon Morimoto

On January 13th 2018, at exactly 8:07 in the morning, one text message turned the state of Hawaii into a state of emergency. From panic and fear to acceptance and joy, Snap Judgment explores the 38 minutes when the people of Hawaii faced an incoming ballistic missile threat. Lead Producer: Jazmin Aguilera Editor: Anna Sussman Producers: Eliza Smith, Erika Lantz, John Fecile Additional production assistance: Nancy Lopez Original score and Sound design: Renzo Gorrio and Leon Morimoto

A young man has the chance to work on a very secret, very powerful weapon that could put an end to world war II. The project involves no toxins, no chemicals, no shrapnel and no bullets. Instead, the project involves lots and lots of flying mammals. Lots. Producer: John Fecile

On the next Snap...a special presentation: "Look Back 2018." Coming to terms… with events that have happened, but that you don’t want to believe.

Snap Judgment spotlights the amazing podcast Ear Hustle: The Big No No. In this episode we look for love in one of the most difficult places to forge a relationship, San Quentin State Prison.

Kassem Eid had spent two years living in a city under siege. After he and his neighbors took part in the protests during the Arab Spring in 2011, Syrian President Bashar Al Assad began to punish towns like Kassem’s. His forces bombed them, surrounded them, and starved them. That’s when Kassem decided to fight back. Thank you so much to Kassem Eid for sharing his story with us. Kassem was recently accepted into Columbia University. You can check out his new book, “My Country,” out now. Find him on twitter at @qzakarya. My Country: https://www.amazon.com/My-Country-Syrian-Kassem-Eid/dp/1408895129 Kassem's Twitter: https://twitter.com/qzakarya&sa=D&source=hangouts&ust=1544301254388000&usg=AFQjCNGBUwCTY7WnP6cDpq8JEGS1WwYqGg Producer: Liz Mak Original Score: Leon Morimoto

STORIES THE BEST LITTLE SWIMMER Terry Galloway is ten years old and absolutely hot for summer camp. The only problem is, her family can’t afford it. But after she fails a hearing test at school, Terry learns that she is deaf -- and also eligible to attend The Lions Camp for Crippled Children, a summer camp that is free to kids with disabilities. The summer of 1960, just got way more exciting. Terry Galloway is a writer, director, and performer for stage, radio, and film. For more about Terry’s childhood in Texas, check out her book Mean Little Deaf Queer. Producer: Adizah Eghan Original Score: Leon Morimoto THE DOG THAT WENT AROUND THE WORLD The story of the first dog to travel around the world (and refuse a free steak). For more information on Owney's travels, be sure to check out the Post Office Museum's interactive map. But brace yourself, there's a lot of pins... Producer: Joe Rosenberg Original Score: Leon Morimoto QUAKE CITY HERO In 1989, an enormous earthquake struck the Bay Area. One of Oakland’s major arteries, the Cypress Freeway, collapsed. And one guy, a local Oaklander, left his home, and dove into the wreckage to save lives. This story is produced by Liam Donoghue, host and producer of the podcast East Bay Yesterday. If you want to hear about Bruce Lee's most notorious fight, or Oakland's oldest soul food cook, or grizzly bears, you can find the show here. Co-production by Eliza Smith Sound design by Davey Kim Producer: Liam Donoghue and Eliza Smith

When the man in charge of a small, insular northern Ohio town wreaks havoc on his followers, a young boy with a passion for good hair trys to clean up the mess Producer: Shaina Shealy Original Score: Leon Morimoto

What do you do when you are trying to give birth... in the middle of a wildfire? Nicole Veum is interviewed live by producer April Demobosky for "The Fire Tapes" The Fire Tapes is a collaboration between KQED's "The Bay" and Snap Judgment for the Coal + Ice Festival in San Francisco. Producers: Sukey Lewis, Mark Ristich and Jeremy Siegel.

The Visage: A man is hired to do remodel work on a house with a haunted history. But something inside the house doesn’t want anything to change. Producer: Anna Sussman Original Score: Leon Morimoto

The Taxidermist: When Tracey started doing taxidermy, she assumed all her subjects would be dead. Until she met a squirrel who didn't seem quite right. Producer: Jazmin Aguilera Original Score: Leon Morimoto

The Birds: As a little boy in Richmond Virginia, raising pigeons, Ray Christian made a friend with the same hobby. But there was something mysterious about Ray’s new pal. Producer: Anna Sussman Original Score: Leon Morimoto

The Birds: As a little boy in Richmond Virginia, raising pigeons, Ray Christian made a friend with the same hobby. But there was something mysterious about Ray’s new pal. Producer: Anna Sussman Original Score: Leon Morimoto The Taxidermist: When Tracey started doing taxidermy, she assumed all her subjects would be dead. Until she met a squirrel who didn't seem quite right. Producer: Jazmin Aguilera Original Score: Leon Morimoto The Visage: A man is hired to do remodel work on a house with a haunted history. But something inside the house doesn’t want anything to change. Producer: Anna Sussman Original Score: Leon Morimoto

It's that time of year again. Snap Judgment proudly presents "Spooked IX: Trapped." THE IRON GATE An American sniper shooter takes over an empty house in Baghdad and encounters the one threat he is powerless against. When Dallas Sanchez was stationed in Iraq, he saw danger every single day. But one night on patrol, when his small kill team took over a house in Baghdad, an unseen force had a message for them: Get. Out. Producer: Anna Sussman Original Score: Leon Morimoto Get 13 all-new episodes of Spooked Season 2 at Spookedpodcast.org.

Pro rock climbers Jason Smith and Tommy Caldwell know a thing or two about dangerous even life threatening adventures, but when they go on an expedition to the famous Yellow Wall in Kyrgyzstan, their lives were threatened in a whole new way. Check out more about Jason “Singer” Smith at his website jasonsingersmith.com And be sure to check out Tommy Caldwell’s book “The Push” available now as well as the movie The Dawn Wall. For more details on the kidnapping read Greg Child’s book “Over The Edge." Producer: Jazmin Aguilera and Luke Quinton Original Sound Design: Renzo Gorrio

What if you had two choices. Either risk death, or start over in a completely new life. Now imagine you had to make that decision for your child. Check out more of Amy Roost’s work here and her podcast Fury here.https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/fury/id1420225706 Read Amy Roost’s article on what may have caused each of her children to have brain malformations in Dame Magazine. https://www.damemagazine.com/ Producer:Amy Roost, Anna Sussman. Original Score: Renzo Gorrio

When Mansoor Adayfi was 19 years old, he was shipped to Guantanamo Bay detention center. He had no idea where he was or why he was there. But he was held there for 14 years. During that time, Mansoor attended informal marriage classes held by a fellow inmate and began writing love letters despite never having been in love. Mansoor is currently writing a memoir about his time at Guantanamo. You can read his writing here.https://www.mansooradayfi.com/ This story was produced and edited by Sarah Geis, Cristal Duhaime and Mira Burt-Wintonick for the CBC podcast, Love Me. It was mixed by Cristal Duhaime. Producer: Mira Burt-Wintonick , Cristal Duhaime and Sarah Geis

What if your whole life was reduced to fifteen minute phone calls with the outside world. What would you do? What would you say in those fifteen minutes? Producer: Anna Clausen Original Score: Ingibjörg Friðriksdóttir

At some point in everyone's life, you have to stand up and say something, something from deep inside. On the next all-NEW Snap..."Love Lessons".

In the mid-70s, Conan was hired to direct and produce a nature documentary. But he wanted to do something more ambitious. The film he made became one of the most infamous movies ever, but his success came with deadly consequences. Special thanks to our film consultants, Spencer Parsons and Todd Wieneke. Producer: John Fecile Original Score: Renzo Gorrio

When you’re a safari guide on the Zambezi River, you always know that things could go horribly wrong. You can find Paul Templer’s memoir here.http://www.paultempler.com/pauls-book/ Producer: Erika Lantz Original Score: Renzo Gorrio

Featuring a new story from the "Real Black Klansman" Detective Ron Stallworth. On the next Snap...we're going face to face with "The Klan." Includes a bonus Snap Classic story from boogie-woogie pianist Daryl Davis, author of "Klan-Destine Relationships."

In the late seventies, Ron Stallworth joined the KKK...as a black man. How? Read more about Ron’s undercover operations in his book -- Black Klansman Producer and Sound Design: Davey Kim http://www.amazon.com/Black-Klansman-Ron-Stallworth-ebook/dp/B00KC0GTIA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1417644455&sr=8-1&keywords=black+klansman

"Mirror Touch" - As a medical school student, Joel Salinas was obsessed with the human brain. But as soon as he got to work, his own senses began to turn on him. Joel Salinas is a neurologist at Harvard Medical School and the Massachusetts General Hospital Department of Neurology. He is the author of Mirror Touch: A Memoir of Synesthesia and the Secret Life of the Brain "What Accent?" - When Ellen Spencer was released from the hospital after a mysterious stroke-like episode her voice would never be the same again. "The Bat Boy and the Pine Tar Game" - Every baseball fan has heard of the superstar hitter George Brett and his infamous Pine Tar Game…but have you heard of the bat boy’s version?

"Mirror Touch" - As a medical school student, Joel Salinas was obsessed with the human brain. But as soon as he got to work, his own senses began to turn on him. Joel Salinas is a neurologist at Harvard Medical School and the Massachusetts General Hospital Department of Neurology. He is the author of Mirror Touch: A Memoir of Synesthesia and the Secret Life of the Brain "What Accent?" - When Ellen Spencer was released from the hospital after a mysterious stroke-like episode her voice would never be the same again. "The Bat Boy and the Pine Tar Game" - Every baseball fan has heard of the superstar hitter George Brett and his infamous Pine Tar Game…but have you heard of the bat boy’s version?

After a salesman at Oakland’s Lake Merritt disappears, journalist Tammerlin Drummond investigates what happened to him. Video used in story provided by user ritchhazel on YouTube. Producer: Adizah Eghan Original Score: Renzo Gorrio

Dylan Evans had hit a wall. Life was becoming too routine, too mundane. So he did something very few of us would do to change that. For more, check out Dylan Evan’s book: The Utopia Experiment http://www.amazon.com/The-Utopia-Experiment-Dylan-Evans/dp/1447261321 Producer: Nancy Lopez Sound design: Pat Mesiti-Miller

In the 1970s, thousands of Vietnamese refugees were left on the remote Anambas Islands in Indonesia. They were stranded without food, water, and shelter, forced to survive off the land. Now, almost 40 years later, one woman wants to go back to those distant islands, one last time. Snap Judgment: Return to Kuku Island Gallery: https://imgur.com/hIaOcZl Thank you so much to Carina Hoang. Carina is a Special Representative for Australia for UNHCR. Check out her book, “Boat People: Personal Stories from the Vietnamese Exodus 1976-1996,” available in both English and Vietnamese. http://carinahoang.com/ https://www.amazon.com/Boat-People-Personal-Vietnamese-1975-1996/dp/0825306906 Carina is now filming a new Australian Broadcasting Corporation TV series, “The Heights." Be sure to check it out. Our heartfelt thanks to Tony Luu; his mother Truong On, his brother, Daniel, and the rest of the Luu family. Thanks to the Outside Podcast from Outside Magazine, where you can also hear this show. Also, check Public Radio International’s The World for a shorter version of this audio story. This story would not have been possible without the generous support of the International Women’s Media Foundation.

In 2009, Jane Gillooly came across an item on Ebay that piqued her imagination. The picture was of a suitcase filled with old audiotapes. The listing’s title was “Suitcase of Love and Shame.” You can purchase Jane’s feature-length documentary film, Suitcase of Love and Shame, on iTunes and learn more about it at Cinemaguild. http://www.janegillooly.com/ http://store.cinemaguild.com/nontheatrical/product/2471.html Producer: Joe Rosenberg Original Score and Sound Design: Leon Morimoto

The story of The Mirage, the famous undercover Chicago Sun bar, as told by two reporters posing as bartenders. Pam Zekman currently works as an investigative reporter for CBS 2 Chicago. You can find Zay Smith’s book about The Mirage, his humor column and a his novel, at zaysmith.com. A previous version of this story incorrectly referred to the Chicago Sun-Time’s collaborator as the Better Business Bureau. It was the Better Government Association Producers: Joe Rosenberg and Anna Sussman Original Score: Leon Morimoto

An all new season of Spooked, the podcast, is dropping early August. In this episode, we’re featuring some of our favorite stories from Spooked, season one.

Mark Spencer lived in the haunted house with the ghost of Ladell - and we are eternally grateful that he stuck around long enough to bring us his story.

An all new season of Spooked, the podcast, is dropping early August. In this episode, we’re featuring some of our favorite stories from Spooked, season one.

An all new season of Spooked, the podcast, is dropping early August. In this episode, we’re featuring some of our favorite stories from Spooked, season one.

The first rule about fight club is you do not talk about fight club. Ray Christian breaks that rule. You can hear more of Ray on his podcast What's Ray Saying. Producer: Mark Ristich Original Score: Renzo Gorrio

Snap Judgment joins the podcast Ear Hustle, from PRX's Radiotopia, for a look at parenting from inside San Quentin State Prison. In this episode incarcerated fathers share their stories of striving to be present in their children's lives. One inmate reconnects with his son after 20 years. Another stays very involved through letters and visits. And a third gets the opportunity to give his teenage son a haircut. And stay tuned for the exclusive interview with Glynn and the team behind Ear Hustle. Nigel Poor, Earlonne Woods, Antwan Williams, along with Public Information Officer Lt. Sam Robinson discuss family relationships while incarcerated in San Quentin State Prison. Learn More and Subscribe to all that is Ear Hustle at www.EarHustleSQ.com

Snap Judgment joins the podcast Ear Hustle for a look at parenting from inside San Quentin State Prison. In this episode incarcerated fathers share their stories of striving to be present in their children's lives. One inmate reconnects with his son after 20 years. Another stays very involved through letters and visits. And a third gets the opportunity to give his teenage son a haircut.

Glynn interviews the team behind Ear Hustle. Nigel Poor, Earlonne Woods, Antwan Williams, along with Public Information Officer Lt. Sam Robinson discuss family relationships while incarcerated in San Quentin State Prison.

In 2006, a wolf was born in Yellowstone who would become a legend in her own time. For more about the 06 Female and the debate surrounding wolves in Yellowstone, be sure to check out Jeff Hull's article in Outside Magazine (http://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/nature/Out-of-Bounds-The-Death-of-832F-Yellowstones-Most-Famous-Wolf.html?page=all) and Nate Rott's special report for NPR (http://apps.npr.org/wolves/) Producer: Joe Rosenberg

When Stephanie Saldana was 27 years old, she thought her calling was to become a nun. But at a monastery in the Syrian desert, she met a monk who made her rethink everything. This story comes to us from Modern Love: The Podcast. It’s a collaboration between The New York Times and WBUR in Boston, where they take pieces from the Modern Love column, and ask actors to perform them. This story is read by Linda Cardellini. Check out WBUR for more on the interview with author Stephanie Saldana, and the interview with Linda Cardellini, the actor who performed this story. Producer: Caitlin O’Keefe Sound Design: John Perotti

What do you do when someone tells you something you know to be false, and yet...you can just tell they're telling the truth? On the next all-NEW Snap..."Beyond Belief."

Malaclypse was part of a dangerous anarchist group. They stole, they killed, they escaped, until one day when Malaclypse could run no further... Dan has been playing and organizing larps for 20 years. He posts bad larp advice on twitter at LarpTips:https: //twitter.com/LarpTips Producer: Jazmin Aguilera Original Score: Renzo Gorrio

An American soldier in Vietnam comes face to face with a sureal, lone North Vietnamese soldier in the jungle one hot afternoon. Decades later, he returns to Vietnam to help put the Vietnamese soldier’s soul to rest. Check out Wayne Karlin’s book “Wandering Souls.” And Homer Steedly’s website here. http://www.swampfox.info/ Producer: Anna Sussman and Eliza Smith Sound Design: Renzo Gorrio

When the fight is over we still have to deal with the pieces of the battle that remain inside. Featuring The Warrior Box and Soul of a Soldier.

Brian is a marine, a war veteran that served in Iraq, but after he was wounded in battle, he was about to face his toughest fight of all. His world felt like it was collapsing until his therapist showed him something that could save his life… a Warrior Box. The Warrior Box Project is a mission that is grounded by a bond of trust and a common goal shared by its co-founders, Dr. Shauna Springer and Brian Vargas. They believe that the same bonds of love that drive Veterans to risk their lives for the people and values they hold sacred can help them stay in the good fight. The Warrior Box Project gives Veterans a tangible way to reconnect with what they vowed to protect: the tribe of those they love and trust and the values they hold most sacred. In creating a Warrior Box, Veterans accept their worth in this world, control the warrior within themselves, and execute an effective action plan that is driven by their deepest values. The Warrior Box is one part of a larger strategic plan that works within the cultural values and language common to many who have served in the military. To learn more, please visit us online: www.warriorcode.org Producer: Jake Halpern and Nancy Lopez

When Avi Steinberg became a prison librarian, he thought his job would be to keep track of the books. Then he started reading between the lines. To learn more about Avi’s time behind bars -- and between the stacks -- be sure to check out his memoir, Running The Books. His latest book, The Lost Book of Mormon, which was nominated for the Thurber Prize for American Humor, will be out in paperback in November. Producer: Joe Rosenberg

What do you do when the morgue has a total meltdown. Galen Laserson tells her story live at The Nocturnist. Its host and creator is Emily Silverman, MD, its executive producer is Ali Block, MD, and its podcast producer is Marina Poole. http://thenocturnists.com/podcast/

Nada Rothbart thought she’d have plenty of time to get her family out of Sarajevo. Suddenly, it was too late. This story originally aired on Lucky podcast, listen to part two of Nada’s story "The Choice" here.https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/lucky-podcast/id1248736230?mt=2 Producer: Briana Breen

Hear how one of Yugoslavia’s top basketball players attempts to escape the Siege of Sarajevo and don't miss The Nocturnists late night meltdown at the morgue.