One Monday morning in 1958, Nina Lawson, Mistress of Wigs at the Metropolitan Opera, came into work to discover that someone had stolen thirty thousand dollars' worth of wigs from the Met. The theft made national headlines, and the FBI joined the hunt for the culprits. Â Show notes and full transcripts available at www.artofcrimepodcast.com. Â If you'd like to support the show, please consider becoming a patron at www.patreon.com/artofcrimepodcast.Â
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37:11
The Meteoric Rise of Audrey Munson (Crimes of Old New York)
Today, I'm thrilled to share an episode of a wonderful podcast, ArtMuse. This is part one of a two-part episode about Audrey Munson, sometimes referred to as "America's first supermodel." She inspired more than a dozen prominent statues throughout New York. After reaching the height of her fame, she got roped into one of the early twentieth century's most sensational homicide trials, right up there with the trial of Harry Thaw for the murder of Stanford White.  You can learn more about ArtMuse here: https://www.artmusepodcast.com/.  If you'd like to suppor The Art of Crime, please consider becoming a patron at www.patreon.com/artofcrimepodcast.Â
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51:09
To Catch a Book Thief (Crimes of Old New York)
In 1931, a trio of thieves stole a rare book by Edgar Allan Poe worth more than half a million dollars from the New York Public Library. To bring them to justice, the library called in G. William Bergquist, an investigator who specialized in recovering stolen books.
In the Roaring Twenties, Arthur Barry stole millions of dollars' worth of jewels from some of New York's wealthiest residents. Today, we talk about the cat burglar's audacious capers with best-selling author Dean Jobb, whose new biography of Barry is titled A Gentleman and a Thief. For more about Jobb's writing, visit his website at https://www.deanjobb.com/. Â If you'd like to support the show, please consider beocming a patron at www.patreon.com/artofcrimepodcast. Â Â
South Africa