It’s the Season Finale, and we’re closing things out live from True Crime GenreCon at Woodneath Story Center with one of the strangest stories we’ve ever covered. This time, we head back to 1908, when a man calling himself “Adam God” brought a volatile mix of religious certainty, public spectacle, and gathering tension into Kansas City. What followed was bizarre even by this show’s standards. We won’t spoil the turn, but this one has all the ingredients: a self-proclaimed divine figure, a city losing patience, a confrontation that spins badly out of control, and a story that sounds invented until you realize it isn’t.

Special thanks to the fine folks at True Crime GenreCon and Mid-Continent Public Library for a terrific event, and to the Harry S. Truman Presidential Library & Museum for providing the great prizes for our Truman trivia contest.

And yes, Alex created the killer mocktail for the event: The Fourth & Main. It looked moody and promising. Audience response was... reserved. He did, however, leave with two “doggy bottles,” so not all was lost.

Killer Mocktail: The Fourth & Main

• Show notes, cocktails, and event details: killingcitypod.com
• Email us: killingcitypodATgmail.com
• Follow on Substack: https://substack.com/@kilingcitypod

This episode was recorded live before an audience at J. Rieger's headquarters. Ryan Maybee, the Co-founder and Managing Director of J. RIeger joined Jamie and Alex to discuss his killer cocktail and more.

In June 1928, Kansas City was thrilled to host the Republican Presidential Convention. Herbert Hoover was in town, but also were numerous bank robbers. Their audacious (and ill-advised) daylight bank robbery would lead to tragedy, with one individual murdered and several others injured.

Who were these men, and why were they allowed on the street? The answer might shock you.

This month's killer cocktail - The Pendergast, created by Ryan Maybee:

1 1/2 oz RIeger Kansas City Whiskey

3/4 oz Sweet Vermouth (Dolin)

1/2 oz Benedictine

3 Heavy dashes Angostura Bitters

Long lemon twist

Instructions: combine all the ingredients in a mixing glass and stir until cold and properly diluted. Strain into a cold rocks glass- Garnish with a long lemon twist

On a February afternoon in 1977, a routine lunch break on Kansas City’s Country Club Plaza ended without a return. A car reappeared where it was supposed to be. A woman did not. What followed was a quiet, unresolved disappearance that has lingered for more than four decades, marked by unanswered questions and gaps no investigation has been able to close.

Links & Sources

• Kansas City Star article
• Photo archive:
• Charley Project:
• Eastbound & Doomed:
• Join the Insider Club!

Killer Cocktail - The Mall Grab

Ingredients:

1 ounce rye

1 ounce Cognac

1 ounce Cynar Syrup

2 barspoons Bonal

Arak - to rinse the glass

Garnish: Orange twist (expressed and discarded)

Directions:

1. Rinse a rocks glass with arak then set aside

2. Combine remaining ingredients in a mixing glass with ice and stir until properly chilled and diluted

3. Strain into the prepared glass over fresh ice

4. Garnish with an orange twist expressed over the surface of drink, then discard

5. Cheers!

Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Kansas City Crime Stoppers TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS. Tips can be submitted anonymously.