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The Dark Oak

The Dark Oak

著者: Just Us Gals Productions
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Attention all shiver-seekers! The Dark Oak is a weekly thrill and chill inducing mystery podcast. Every Wednesday, Stefanie and Cynthia will present to you a true tale of the supernatural, the macabre, historical crimes, cryptids, the unexplained and the downright spooky.

To help ease your fears, we also include The Branch of Hope Foundation, which connects you to the human side of our cases by giving back to non-profit organizations related to the first episode of the month.

If you enjoy guilt free listening and your interest falls somewhere between Bigfoot and Jack the Ripper, The Dark Oak has you covered. Throw in some real time reactions including gasps and laughs and you’ve got the perfect podcast. So grab your coffee, sweet tea or tall glass of wine and settle in for your shadowy adventure. The Dark Oak is waiting!Copyright 2023 All rights reserved.
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  • Episode 154: Lauren Spierer - Bloomington’s Coldest Mystery
    2026/06/10
    Lauren Spierer, a 20-year-old sophomore studying textiles merchandising at Indiana University, disappeared in the early morning hours of June 3, 2011, in Bloomington, Indiana. The night before, she had been out drinking heavily with friends using a fake ID; after leaving Kilroy’s Sports Bar barefoot and without her phone or shoes around 2:27 a.m., she walked with Corey Rossman back to the Smallwood Plaza area, got into a brief altercation outside, then spent time in Rossman’s apartment (where his roommate Michael Beth tried to keep her safe) before moving to neighbor Jay Rosenbaum’s townhome. She was last confirmed seen by Rosenbaum around 4:30 a.m., walking alone and intoxicated along College Avenue toward her own apartment. Lauren had a rare heart condition called long QT syndrome that made her especially vulnerable to fatal arrhythmias when combined with alcohol or drugs (trace cocaine was later found in her room, and Rosenbaum reported she had also used cocaine and crushed Klonopin that night). Despite massive searches, landfill excavations, cadaver-dog alerts, and thousands of tips, no trace of her has ever been found; her boyfriend Jesse Wolff and the three friends were named persons of interest but cooperated fully, passed private and FBI polygraphs, and were never named suspects. Civil negligence suits filed by her family against the friends were dismissed in federal court. As of May 2026 the case remains active and unsolved with the Bloomington and IU police departments. Branch of Hope:

    Caroline’s Rainbow Foundation is a UK-registered charity founded in 2002 by the family of Caroline Ann Stuttle, a young British traveler who tragically lost her life while on a gap year in Australia. For more than twenty years, the organization has focused on promoting safer independent travel for young people and backpackers. It offers free educational resources, safety workshops, school presentations, and practical guides that help gap-year students and first-time adventurers prepare responsibly and stay safe on the road. While the foundation now serves primarily as a lasting information archive, its materials remain freely available and continue to support thousands of young travelers each year.

    Sources:

    The search for Lauren Spierer. (n.d.). The Search for Lauren Spierer. https://findlauren.com/index.html

    Runevitch, J. (2024, May 29). Investigative journalist releases new book about Lauren Spierer’s disappearance nearly 13 years since she went missing. wthr.com. https://www.wthr.com/article/news/local/investigative-journalist-releases-new-book-about-lauren-spierer-disappearance-indiana-university/531-16e65e8c-110e-4e09-9ca6-2bfc27843de4

    Ratliff, M. (2025, June 3). WAVE Extra: 14 years later, Lauren Spierer’s loved ones still hold on to hopes of finding the truth. https://www.wave3.com. https://www.wave3.com/2025/06/03/wave-extra-14-years-later-lauren-spierers-loved-ones-still-hold-hopes-finding-truth/

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    This episode of The Dark Oak was created, researched, written, recorded, hosted, edited, published, and marketed by Cynthia and Stefanie of Just Us Gals Productions with artwork by Justyse Himes and Music by Ryan Creep

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    1 時間 8 分
  • Episode 156: The Family That Couldn't Sleep - The Venetian Curse
    2026/06/03
    In the summer of 1983, a stylish Venetian man named Silvano stepped onto a cruise ship and felt his shirt suddenly soak with sweat for no reason. That single moment marked the beginning of a nightmare that would steal his sleep forever. For over 250 years, one Italian family had been haunted by a mysterious curse: a disease that slowly, relentlessly destroys the brain’s ability to sleep. Victims lie awake for months in a living hell of hallucinations and exhaustion, fully conscious as their bodies burn out and die. What began as a whispered “family disease” in 18th-century Venice was finally named Fatal Familial Insomnia — a prion disorder caused by nothing more than a single misfolded protein that turns the brain’s sleep switchboard into a graveyard of crumpled origami cranes. This is the haunting true story of a genetic curse that science still cannot stop, and the quiet courage of the families who choose to live in the shadow of knowing — or not knowing — their fate.

    Sources:

    Max, D.T. The Family That Couldn’t Sleep: A Medical Mystery. Random House, 2006. (The definitive book on the Venetian family’s 250-year saga and Silvano’s story.)

    Prion Alliance. “About Prion Alliance & Our Mission.” prionalliance.org. (Nonprofit founded by FFI patient-scientists Sonia Vallabh and Eric Minikel.)

    CJD Foundation. “Fatal Familial Insomnia (FFI).” cjdfoundation.org/fatal-familial-insomnia-ffi. (Leading U.S. patient-support organization for all prion diseases.)

    Khan, Z. and Bollu, P.C. “Fatal Familial Insomnia.” In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing, 2024. (Most current peer-reviewed medical overview of FFI.)

    National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD). “Fatal Familial Insomnia.” rarediseases.org/rare-diseases/fatal-familial-insomnia. (Clear, family-friendly summary of symptoms, genetics, and history.)

    Mastrianni, J.A. “Genetic Prion Disease.” In: GeneReviews® [Internet]. Seattle (WA): University of Washington, Seattle, 2021. (Gold-standard genetic reference for the PRNP mutation and prion mechanism.)

    Join The Dark Oak Discussion:

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    This episode of The Dark Oak was created, researched, written, recorded, hosted, edited, published, and marketed by Cynthia and Stefanie of Just Us Gals Productions with artwork by Justyse Himes and Music by Ryan Creep

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    59 分
  • Episode 155: Michelle von Emster - Swimming into Darkness
    2026/05/28

    25 year old Michelle Von Emster’s mysterious death in 1994 remains one of San Diego's most notorious mysteries. It was officially ruled a Great White Shark Attack but marine experts disagree with that finding. Why would she have gone swimming in frigid weather? Was it possible that her death was a tragic accident resulting from a fall from nearby cliffs? The most frightening theory of all is that Michelle was a victim of homicide. Years after her death, Michelle’s sister revealed disturbing details from Michelle’s youth that makes the circumstances surrounding her untimely death even more mysterious.

    Branch of Hope:

    Caroline’s Rainbow Foundation is a UK-registered charity founded in 2002 by the family of Caroline Ann Stuttle, a young British traveler who tragically lost her life while on a gap year in Australia. For more than twenty years, the organization has focused on promoting safer independent travel for young people and backpackers. It offers free educational resources, safety workshops, school presentations, and practical guides that help gap-year students and first-time adventurers prepare responsibly and stay safe on the road. While the foundation now serves primarily as a lasting information archive, its materials remain freely available and continue to support thousands of young travelers each year.

    Sources:

    https://coldcaseexplorations.com/california-cold-or-unsolved-cases/was-this-really-a-shark-attack-death-the-troubling-case-of-michelle-von-emster/ - :~:text=Because%20it%E2%80%99s%20been%20over%2030%20years%20since%20Von

    https://allthatsinteresting.com/michelle-von-emster

    Michelle Von Emster: What Really Happened? - HubPages

    Join The Dark Oak Discussion:

    Patreon

    The Dark Oak Podcast Website

    Facebook

    Instagram

    Twitter

    TikTok

    Youtube

    This episode of The Dark Oak was created, researched, written, recorded, hosted, edited, published, and marketed by Cynthia and Stefanie of Just Us Gals Productions with artwork by Justyse Himes and Music by Ryan Creep

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    1 時間 9 分
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