← Dark History
Loading summary
Transcript47 lines
- [00:02]
Advertiser
Let's be real. Life happens. Kids spill, pets shed and accidents are inevitable. Find a sofa that can keep up@washablesofas.com Starting at just $699, our sofas are fully machine washable inside and out. So you can say goodbye to stains and hello to worry free living. Made with liquid and stain resistant fabrics, they're kid proof, pet friendly and built for everyday life. Plus, changeable fabric covers let you refresh your sofa whenever you want. Need flexibility? Our modular design lets you rearrange your sofa anytime to fit your space, whether it's a growing family room or a cozy apartment. Plus, they're earth friendly and trusted by over 200,000 happy customers. It's time to upgrade to a stress free, mess proof sofa. Visit washablesofas.com today and save that's washablesofas.com offers are subject to change and certain restrictions may apply.
- [01:00]
Bailey Sarian
Did you guys ever watch the show Dinosaurs when we were younger? Did you ever watch that show? So when I was younger, I had such a little crush on Robbie Sinclair. Anyone else? Ah, he was so cute. I loved him. I don't know what it was, the Mohawk, the jacket, he was just cool. So anyways, you know, whenever I drive by a Sinclair gas station, you know the one with the little dinosaur logo, I think of him. The letterman jacket, the spiky hair, the cool personality. And I was like. Was a show based on that? Actually, you know, I don't know, I don't care that he was a puppet. No, I was young and I knew what I wanted. And it was Robbie. I've always been just very distracted by my thoughts about Robbie. That I never really realized that Sinclair Oil, the actual business, had a very dark secret the whole time, hiding in plain sight. Back in the 1920s, I mean, oil was the new gold because out of nowhere, all of a sudden, everything was running on it, literally. Cars and airplanes were taking over. And If World War I taught us anything, it was that we needed an emergency stash of oil for the military just in case. And when there's money on the table, you know someone's going to get greedy. And this is how a huge government scandal happened. I I'm talking corruption, shady deals, and millions of dollars stuffed into like a black briefcase. Today we're diving into one of the dirtiest scandals in US history. Before Watergate, before Enron, before Bill and Monica, there was Teapot Dome. I know it's not a catchy name, you know, and yeah, it does kind of involve a Teapot Anywho, welcome to the dark history of Teapot Dom. Hi friends. I hope you're having a wonderful day today. My name is Bailey Sarian and I'd like to welcome you to my podcast, Dark History. Here we believe history does not have to be boring. It might be tragic. A lot of times it is. Huh? Sometimes it's happy. But either way, it's our dark history. Before we get into it, don't forget to like and subscribe. I'm always posting new content and let me know what you think down below in the comments section. I love hearing from you and we read comments. At the end we might be talking to you and you missed it. Anywho, oil, she's so hot right now. So in the early 1900s, oil was hot. People realized it could power warships, planes, trains, factories, you name it, everything. And by fall of 1921, America was pumping out 80% of the world's oil supply. I mean, oil is everything. Oil is life. So the Navy, they switched their ships from being coal to oil powered. But this made the government nervous about maybe running out. So in 1912, Congress passed a law called the Naval Petroleum Reserves Act. This just meant that the government set aside tons of oil fields that were supposed to be for military emergencies only. Nobody was supposed to touch them unless the country was in serious trouble and they needed oil. So there a couple of reserves in California and one out in Wyoming, and it was called Teapot Dome because there was like this big rock formation in the area and people said it looked like a teapot. Yeah, sometimes the definition is so literal, you know. Yeah, they're like, that's a teapot. Teapot Dome. I don't know, but that's where it gets its name. Anywho, around this time, a guy named Warren G. Harding gets elected to the U.S. senate. Yes. He goes on to become president, but he's not there yet. We're talking about him being a Senate first. You might remember him from our weird president's episode. I recommend watching it if you want, like, you know, some little fun facts about his personal life. For example, he named his penis. He called it Jerry. Yeah. Anyhow, so back then he gets into the Senate, and the Senate was less about governing and more about being in like an exclusive boys club. And Harding, he, you know, he played the game. Harding's house in D.C. became the hotspot for senators to unwind, play poker, eat, and maybe even drink a little bootleg liquor. During this time. It was the, it was prohibition. So like, you're not supposed to have alcohol. But the rules didn't apply to these guys and they would just go to Harding's house and drink. So one of the regulars at Harding's house was a guy named Albert B. Fall. Albert is quite the character. He kind of looked like he stepped off a Wild west movie set. Honestly, when I look at a picture of him, it looks like he's going to solve some mysteries because he's got like this big Hannibal Bar mustache. He, he just looks old timey. I guess he wore cowboy boots. It was a deal, okay? He was a whole deal. So Fall was a lawyer, a landowner, and a former New Mexico Supreme Court justice. And people really respected him for being like self. He was self made, you know, a little fun. Side note, Albert Fall's middle name was Bacon. B, A C O N. Bacon. Albert Bacon Fall. So Fall and Harding become, you know, very close. And when Harding eventually ran for president in 1920, fall was part of his inner circle. The weird thing about Harding's presidential campaign was that it looked like he really wasn't even trying. He kind of, he like, he campaigned from his front porch in Ohio while his opponents, you know, they went around the country giving speeches and like putting themselves out there. And Harding didn't do any of that. He like came outside in his pajamas and was like, yeah, I'm trying to be president. But Harding, he promised to like take the country back to how things were before World War I. His line that he kept repeating was return to normalcy. That's always like a presidential campaign. Return to this, bring us back to this.
- [07:16]
Co-Host
Back, back.
- [07:17]
Bailey Sarian
And it's like, was it ever really good though? Why are we always trying to return to something that really wasn't that great? Okay, anyways, moving on. So anyways, return to normalcy. It seemed to work because Harding, he, he won. He became president. Yeah, he won by a lot. As soon as he was elected, Harding, he filled his cabinet with friends and people who were loyal to him. You know, not the ones that were best for the job, just people who liked him and like, wouldn't challenge him at all. And this crew became known as the Ohio Gang, even though not all of them were from Ohio. But okay, so of course, you know, his good friend Albert Fall made the cut. And Harding had a special job just for Albert. Secretary of the Interior. What does it mean? I don't know. It's the person who would now control all of those off limit oil reserves. Oh, I don't know about you, but.
- [08:18]
Co-Host
When I order something online, the shipping experience pretty much decides If I'm ever ordering from that business again, like, if my package shows up late, lost, damaged, like it got into a fight on the way, like to delivery, you know, I'll listen. I'm probably not coming back. Maybe. I don't know. But when the shipping is smooth, fast, and, I don't know, packed. Well, I'm a loyal customer. If you're running an e commerce business, you know exactly what I'm talking about. And that's why smart retailers are using Shipstation. Look how pretty my nails are.
- [08:52]
Bailey Sarian
I know.
- [08:53]
Co-Host
Shipstation is a web based shipping and order management platform designed to help e commerce businesses streamline how they fulfill and ship customer orders. With ShipStation, you can sync orders from everywhere you sell to one dashboard and replace all those tedious manual tasks with custom automations that reduce shipping errors, all for the fraction of the cost.
- [09:17]
Bailey Sarian
Wow.
- [09:18]
Co-Host
And I'll be honest, I didn't realize how much shipping could make or break a business until I tried Shipstation. Oh, you're gonna see it and be like, wow, this is a game changer. So, yeah, one package at a time. Ship stations, helping shoppers everywhere become loyal customers. And if you're serious about growing your business, I'll promise it'll do the same for you. I'm so congested. Still, Covid got me good. Bitch. When shoppers choose to buy your products, turn them into loyal customers with cheaper, faster and better shipping. Go to shipstation.com darkhistory to sign up for your free trial. There's no credit card or contract required and you can Cancel anytime. That's shipstation.com darkhistory so President Warren G.
- [10:11]
Bailey Sarian
Harding is in office because everyone was feeling the return to normalcy vibe that he was selling, Right? Like, that's what everyone wanted. Wrong. It turns out there was actually a reason why Harding didn't feel like he needed to, like, leave his porch during the entire presidential campaign. He already knew he was going to win because he was being secretly funded by oil money. Yes. You see, behind the scenes, two oil tycoons were secretly funding the election. Their names were Harry Sinclair of Sinclair Oil and Jake Hammond from, like, Oklahoma Oil. Man, these guys weren't just donating money out of, like, the kindness of their hearts, you know, they had a motive. They were making sure that Harding would win the election so that in return, this president would give them access to that secret stash of government oil. So Sinclair and Harding, they basically had a little arrangement that once Harding won with Sinclair's money, of course, Jake Hammond would take the job of Secretary of the Interior. That was the plan. From there, Hammond had already promised to lease the Teapot Dome oil to Sinclair, which was worth millions, a lot of money. And Sinclair would return the favor by giving Hammond a third of those profits. So everything went according to plan. But I guess they hit a little snag because in 1920, Jake Hammond, he died. Yeah, and he didn't just, like, die, like from a heart attack or anything. He died from a gunshot wound. Guess who shot him. Any guesses? Joan. You know, his mistress. Yeah. Maybe you shouldn't be cheating on your wife. I don't know. Not that he deserves it or anything. No one should do that anyways. Okay, back to the story. Suddenly, the guy who was supposed to be Interior Secretary and Sinclair's guy on the inside, well, he's. He's gone. He's not around. He's dead. So at this point, they needed someone that they could really trust to fill in, you know, because what they're planning on doing was. It was very much illegal. The oil business was new and a not very well understood or like, regulated space. And those in charge, they knew it. So, you know, who does President Harding call? Well, it's his buddy with the big mustache, Albert Fong. This job was like, kind of. He's like, hey, this job is kind of perfect for you. I got to go. Secretary of Interior typically went to someone from the west, since the job had dealt with public lands and natural resources. I guess that's more so on the West. And Albert Fall was a New Mexico guy, and he lived, you know, that cowboy lawyer life. He understood land, he understood oil, he understood money. And most of all, Harding trusted him. The whole point of Albert Beaconfall becoming Secretary of the Interior was so he could get his hands on that secret government stash of oil. So he's in. Hi, I'm in. And in 1921, he writes up an executive order that gives his department full control of the oil reserves. And President Harding, he signs it. La la la. No questions asked. This means that Albert Fall is now able to secretly lease those oil reserves out to his friends. So on July 12, 1921, Albert Fall gives Edward Doheny Reserve number one in Elk Hills, California. Edward Doheny was the founder of Pan American Petroleum. And he was like, super, super, super rich. Oh, and he was an old mining buddy of Albert Fall. One big circle jerk is what's going on here. Anyhow, so, like, this meant that he got access to cheap oil so he could, like, turn it around and. And sell it at a Higher cost, just making a ton of money off of it. Doheny, that is. Anyway, if you've ever been to Los Angeles and the name Doheny sounds familiar. Yes, it is that same Doheny. There's a couple of streets named after him. A beach, a library. You see the name everywhere. It's after this guy. Later that year, Albert Fall makes good on his promise and he leases the Teapot Dome Reserve in Wyoming to his. His friend Harry Sinclair. And it is a very sweet and completely illegal deal. Okay, Doheny and Sinclair not only get, like, the rights to millions of barrels of oil, they also get to build pipelines, storage facilities, a lot of things. And they don't even have to pay for it. The government has to pay for it. And if anyone asked, Albert Fall was like, you know, this is all. This is all for America. You know, we want America to be prepared. So Albert Fall is leasing out secret reserves of oil without the public knowing. Plus, even if you did know, what are you going to do about it, you know? And a big motive for Albert Fall was the cash. Now, at this time, he was drowning in back taxes and, like, scrambling to save his, I guess, a failing ranch in New Mexico so he could use the money. So about five months after he leased the land to Doheny, Albert hits him up and is like, hey, you know, where's my thank you cash for, like, helping you get this oil for cheap? You know, where's my. Where's my little payout? And of course, Doheny was happy to pay, you know, because this oil, having access to this oil has been a huge success for him. He's making a ton of money, and it's just cheap and it's working out, so of course he's going to pay. So In December of 1921, Edward Doheny sends his son, his name is Ned Doheny, to go out and, like, pay Albert Fall. Now, Ned, he's 27 at this point. It said he's handsome, ish, he's tall, and he was super rich, but, you know, he's not exactly built for the boardroom. He was flunking out of college, he was barely getting by at usc, and he was spending most of his time bouncing between parties, clubs, and golf courses in Los Angeles. Technically, he was the VP in his father's oil company, but Ned wasn't actually, like, helping or working, you know, But Daddy Doheny thought it was time for Ned to learn a little something about the family business. So he's like, you can help Me out with money laundering. So Daddy Doheny, he tells his son Ned, hey, go to the bank, take out $100,000 in cash. And then he did, which would be almost like $200 million today. So he takes out all this cash, puts it in a bag, whatever. Then Ned heads to Washington with his best friend slash personal assistant, Hugh Plunkett, with this big black bag of cash. Hugh Plunkett and Ned were always together. They lived together, they traveled together. They were just inseparable. Their relationship raised a lot of eyebrows at the time because, you know, they were close. They were close close, but no one said anything because the Dohenies were very powerful. So Ned has that bag of money, and he tells Hugh, come on, we're going. And the two of them, they go from New York to D.C. and they head straight to the Wardman Park Hotel, where they meet Albert Fall. Albert Fall has an apartment there. Now, picture this. You know, they walk into Fall's suite, and it's like this old cowboy politician. He takes one look at the black bag, and he just lights it. I mean, he knows exactly what's inside. It's all his money. So he opens it up and he starts counting, you know, the money. Untraceable cash. Then Ned and Hugh, they hop back in a cab, head to the train station, and they just go back to New York. Like, no big deal. Just another Tuesday, you know, A few months after this handoff, there's another one. In May of 1922, Albert Fall hits up Harry Sinclair for a little payday. And Sinclair, you know, agrees, of course, and handed over almost $300,000, which today, beep bop, boop, is like $4.8 million. So, like, this was a lot of money, okay? These were not business loans. There were no contracts, no paperwork, no receipts. Just a lot of money for Mr. Albert Fall. So, you know, Albert Fall is loving this deal. He's promising Doheny, like, more oil and special access to all the California reserves. And in return, Doheny is promising Albert Fall a job once he left the government. He's like, yeah, you can come work for me at Pan American Petroleum. Have a nice, like, you know, office job. So everything's going great, okay? Everything's. The bribes are being paid, leases signed. Albert Fall was, like, confident he's gonna get it. He's gonna get away with this. Who's gonna check him? No one. But inside the government, apparently, people were already starting to raise their eyebrows. They're like, who or why is Harry Sinclair always popping into Albert Falls office? Why are the president's closest friends holding thousands of shares of Sinclair stock? Apparently in, like, January of 1922, Sinclair stock was selling at $18 a share. But by April, it had doubled. Some of the guys in President Harding's circle made $33 million in just a few days. So everyone was kind of jealous. Honestly, they were like, damn. What? They were pissed. Everyone was pissed. They knew something was going on. So people are kind of like, catching on that something is happening. And Albert, Albert Fall. He knew he had to do something about it to get everyone to, like, show up. So he came up with a defense strategy. Allegedly, his plan was to announce the Teapot Dome and California leases to the public. I know. I don't. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. He was going to tell people that this was like, a really brilliant national security strategy. Like, look, if America needed oil because of a war or an attack, they would have it available, you guys, thanks to my genius plan. But before he could announce all of this, Albert, he went out of town for a few days. And before he left, he told everyone, keep your mouth shut and don't say anything. When I come back, you know, I'll do my little announcement. Just don't say anything. Okay? So he leaves. So before he can come and, like, make his announcement, the Wall Street Journal was doing some investigating of their own, and they end up breaking the Teapot Dome story.
- [21:16]
Co-Host
All right, confession time. When was the last time you needed to see a doctor but you put it off? Thank you. I know it seems like, you know, for me, I'm always too busy or I just like, where do you start?
- [21:31]
Bailey Sarian
You know?
- [21:31]
Co-Host
Or it's like, when you do have free time, oh, I don't want to go to the doctor. That's the last thing I want to do. Because booking a doctor's appointment, trying to find a doctor, trying to, like, do all that. I'd rather not. But thanks to Zocdoc, there's no reason to delay anymore. Listen, here's how it works. If you are not using ZocDoc, I don't know what you're doing with your life. It's the best because ZocDoc is a free app and website where you can search and compare high quality in network doctors and you can click to instantly book an appointment. All on the system, all on zocdoc. So you don't even have to make a phone call. You don't have to try and figure out anything. It does it all through the app.
- [22:17]
Bailey Sarian
It's incredible.
- [22:18]
Co-Host
I found all of my doctors To Zocdoc. Okay. My eye doctor, I just recently got a new gynecologist. I've been putting that off for a while.
- [22:26]
Bailey Sarian
So I was like, let me just.
- [22:27]
Co-Host
Use Doc, doc, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Hopped on there, found a new gynecologist, booked the appointment, and I showed up. Go me. I didn't cancel.
- [22:39]
Bailey Sarian
Oh. You know, I didn't want to do it.
- [22:40]
Co-Host
They always got some wild, like, harsh lighting in there, right? Take your pants off. It's a wild experience. It's like, can you at least give me a glass of wine and dim the lights? Jeez. On Zocdoc, you can filter for doctors who take your insurance, which is great, right? Who are close by, who fit exactly what you need, whether that's mental health, a dentist, primary care, urgent care gynecologist.
- [23:07]
Bailey Sarian
Foot doctor, I don't know. Whatever you need, they got it.
- [23:10]
Co-Host
And appointments, they usually happen within, like 24 to 72 hours. Sometimes even like, same day. I been using Zotac for years. And you should too. Like right now, I have a migraine and I would just love to go. Just. I don't even know. So listen, if you've been putting off making an appointment, going to the dentist, I know your butt needs to go to the dentist. Yeah. Stop making excuses.
- [23:34]
Bailey Sarian
Okay.
- [23:35]
Co-Host
With Zocdoc, finding the right doctor is actually as easy as booking a manicure. I actually think booking a manicure is kind of harder.
- [23:44]
Bailey Sarian
Yeah.
- [23:44]
Co-Host
Take care of yourself. Who else is going to do it? No one's going to take care of you. You got to do it for yourself.
- [23:49]
Bailey Sarian
Okay?
- [23:49]
Co-Host
And Zocdoc is here to help. You're welcome.
- [23:51]
Bailey Sarian
Stop putting off those doctor's appointments and.
- [23:53]
Co-Host
Go to Zocdoc.com dark history to find and instantly book a top rated doctor today. That's Zocdoc. Z o c d o c dot com dark history zocdoc.com dark history On.
- [24:07]
Bailey Sarian
April 14, 1922, the Wall Street Journal, they released an article about a secret agreement between the Department of the Interior and the private oil companies. It was an expose. So now it's out in the public and it's confusing because it's kind of like, well, why do we care? But think of it like this. This is like if the government owned the only emergency water supply in a drought. And instead of saving it for actual emergencies, you find out that they were, like, quietly handing it out, you know, to their friends, their private golf courses, or just handing it out to their friends. Meanwhile, the, you know, regular people are standing in line, paying full price, kind of rationing every drop just to like stay hydrated or whatever. It's like that. So people are finding out about it. But anything that has to do with the government and stuff is so confusing, huh? I know. So in this little expose thing, they didn't have any information about the bribes. It was just about like the agreements. Still, this news had sparked public outrage and led to a Senate investigation the very next day. Albert Fall, meanwhile, he was like playing it cool. He told reporters, quote, I welcome any investigation, end quote. So then at the end of April, April 29, 1922, the U.S. senate, they approve the Committee of Public Lands and Surveys. I know these names. Huh? To officially investigate the situation, it has to go through so many different people before they can actually do anything. That's very annoying. The President was like, hey, nothing to see here. Like, don't worry about it. I don't know what you guys are talking about. Teapots, Love. Have you been on that ride? Disney Fun? I don't even know if Disney's built yet, but love that ride. That's going to be happening in the future. So honestly, it looked like the Teapot Dome scandal was just going to like fizzle out, you know. And President Harding, he definitely thought like he was in the clear because he just continues doing the same thing in 1923. Oh yeah, Disney's not like alive yet or whatever. Okay, sorry. In 1923, President Harding took like a big PR trip to Alaska. Now he was going to be the first, the first sitting president to ever go to Alaska. He was gonna wrestle bears, he was gonna go fishing, he was gonna do Alaska things. I don't know. But just before leaving, President Harding accepts, you know, another low key bribe of like $500,000 from Harry Sinclair. He's like, thanks. Love you. So regardless of the investigation, you know, they don't care. They're still doing it. I feel like it would have been easier to get away with doing this kind of stuff back then because, like, no cameras, no paper trail, no receipts, no nothing. Okay. So anyways, he's in Alaska. Wow. Alaska. President Harding, he made like a big show about protecting land from oil drilling. And then he would go on about how great oil was. So it was kind of like, okay, the vibe was a little weird, especially because he kept calling Alaska Nebraska. Yeah, they're like, wrong state. I can see the confusion. The A S, K A. I get it. Anyways, not a good look. And honestly, President Harring just looked like crap and he was just kind of Ready to retire. He didn't care. He's like, yeah, it's Nebraska. I don't know, whatever. And like, that was actually the goal. He had his retirement plan all set and ready. He was. He was ready. Yeah. His retirement plan was like a luxury year long cruise around the world with his friends. And it would all be paid for by Sinclair. A big thank you. Honestly, it seemed like since he wasn't going to be president again, he was just trying to, like, get that cash in while he could before retirement. I don't see why not, right? That makes sense. But luckily, karma is real. President Harding never made it to his Cruz era because just one week after getting back From Alaska on August 2, 1923, Harding had a stroke and he died. And Vice President Calvin Coolidge was sworn in as president. So the president dies, you know, and this almost buried the Teapot Dome scandal from ever fully coming to the surface. You know, with the president being dead, it seemed like there was really no point pursuing the story any further. You know, the whole thing just like, disappeared. It was put away in a folder. Just kind of sat in the office gathering dust. There was one person who did seem to care. It was a senator named Thomas J. Walsh from Montana.
- [28:55]
Co-Host
Walsh.
- [28:55]
Bailey Sarian
Thomas J. Walsh. He knew there was more to the story, and he wasn't going to let it go. Now, Senator Walsh didn't know it, but he wasn't the only one who wanted to know more about this Teapot Dome situation over in New Mexico. Okay, there was a journalist. His name was Carl McGee. Sounds fake, but it was real. He was on the case. Carl. He had made a name for himself as a journalist in Tulsa, Oklahoma. But then his wife got sick, and then they moved to, like, Albuquerque, and he ended up, like, taking over the Albuquerque Journal. He likes to write about scandalous things. He sure does. Okay. I don't know why I'm going like this. Cause I did. They have typewriters then. I don't know where I'm at, what year, it doesn't matter. But he might have been like that. Carl's mission in life was to take down corruption with the power of the newspaper. Love to see it, but this made him. He didn't have a lot of friends. He had a lot of enemies. People didn't like him because he was exposing everyone. And you know who really didn't like him? Yeah. Mr. New Mexico himself, Albert Bacon Fall. Oh, Carl was on his radar. Sure was.
- [30:09]
Co-Host
Carl never trusted Albert Fall.
- [30:11]
Bailey Sarian
Okay. And when this whole thing was going down, he knew something deeper was Going on. Meanwhile, in Denver, a letter ends up on the desk of Frederick Bonfit, a publisher at the Denver Post. In the letter, it suggested that Albert Fall was giving away oil leases, quote, like kisses at a wedding. End quote. Ah. So great. Bonfill is like, oh, this is very interesting information. Now again, he is a. Like a. He could. He could publish the story, but he's thinking to himself, I can maybe do something more with this. I could use it for some good old fashioned blackmail. That's fun, and I'm feeling fun. But before Bonfit can properly blackmail Albert Fall, he needs a little bit more. More dirt. So he sends his star reporter, D.F. stackelbeck, to New Mexico to get evidence. D.F. stackleback. Stackelbeck gets to New Mexico, probably realizes that he needs help, so he hits up Carl McGee. Okay, they're. They're contacts. So at this point, when they get in touch, Carl, he got forced out of the Albuquerque Journal because he was being a little too spicy and, you know, legal and all that stuff. So they're like, we gotta get ready, bro. But when Stackelbeck reaches out to Carl, Carl's really excited. He's like, oh, my gosh, I've got so much information, you know, on Albert Fall, and I want to see this guy get taken down, so I'll give you whatever you want. So Carl shows him Albert Fall's land purchases, proof of his shady rail car meetings. He shows an old unsolved murder connected to Albert fall. Mm. Well, D.F. stecklebeck spends weeks investigating, but he has to, you know, he has to be low key about it because he's on Albert Fall's home turf. And if Albert Fall finds out, you know, he'll get rid of him. So he's scared. Okay, so Stackelbeck, he returns to Denver and he hands over everything to Bonfills. So bonne fille takes all of this evidence and he, you know, he locks it up, he puts it in a safe, and he tells Stecklebeck, or whatever his name is, damn it. He tells him, like, hey, I'm afraid of, like, a lawsuit. You know, this is like really crazy, so we should keep it locked up in a safe. But really, Bonfill is just gathering the info for his blackmail plan. So it's just shadiness on shadiness on shadiness on shadiness. It's exhausting, huh? Okay, so In September of 1922, Bon Fille puts his blackmail plan into action. He calls up Sinclair and he tells him, hey, we're going to meet in a hotel, Kansas City. In Missouri or Kansas. Not sure. But meet me there because he's got some information that Sinclair might want to hear, so you better meet me there. Click. Now, we don't know what the conversation was like at the hotel or whatever, but we know what happened. I'm assuming Bonfit presents his blackmail information and, you know, confronts Sinclair. Like, hey, I'm gonna air all of this unless you pay me off. So Sinclair ends up paying him off. He pays him $250,000 in cash, which would be like $4.5 million today. So, again, the truth stays buried. People are making money and just so much money, you know, so annoying. So you know who can't let it go? Carl McGee. He's like, Nope, I'm not letting this story go. Okay? I'm gonna keep it going. He keeps fighting. So in 1923, all the information Carl has on Albert Fall ends up getting to Thomas Walsh. Thomas Walsh was a senator in Montana, the one who also couldn't let it go. Thomas had been pushing for an investigation into Albert Fall, so he jumped at the opportunity to finally take him down. So Thomas ends up making a phone call to that star reporter guy, Stackleback, and he confirms everything, but he insists on staying anonymous. So then Thomas calls up Carl McGee to come forward and testify, and Carl agrees. So on November 30, 1923, Carl McGee tells Congress everything he knew. Albert Ball has a bunch of money, and, you know, maybe they should be looking at Doheny and Sinclair. So this is when everything just really exploded. Okay? Edward Doheny, he. He admits in a hearing that he had loaned, quote, unquote, loaned Albert fall $100,000 in cash. So after he testified, I mean, this, again, is when everything is now out in the open. It was game over, bitch. On July 1, 1924, Albert Fall, Harry Sinclair, Edward Doheny Sr. And Ned Doheny Jr. Were all indicted for criminal fraud in connection with the Teapot Dome scandal. Okay? So they do an investigation. They're able to confirm all the bribes that happened. You know, that Sinclair and Doheny had paid Albert Fall a lot of fricking money.
- [35:44]
Co-Host
A lot.
- [35:44]
Bailey Sarian
Okay? And you're not supposed to do that. Eventually, Harry Sinclair, he ends up going to jail for, like, contempt. I guess this was for refusing to answer Senate questions. And he also hired a private detective to intimidate jurors. So he gets. He gets sent to jail. And I'm like, yay. Finally, like, justice. They're like, you get six months yeah, that's it. He got six months in jail. So annoying. So the Doheny's father and son, they were charged with inducing Albert fall to commit a, quote, unlawful and felonious act. In other words, giving him a bag of cash in exchange for oil. So Ned, Ned Doheny, the guy who delivered the money with his friend Hugh Plunkett. Well, Ned, you know, he didn't really. He was like, I was just like running an errand for my dad or whatever. But the government saw it way differently. It was not looking good for the Doheny family. Ned was like, fully crashing out. I mean, this was a huge change of pace. He was young, rich, he was having fun. He was like going to parties and stuff and fancy dinners and just having. Just being rich. And now he's like, facing felony charges and his name was getting dragged through the tabloids and the rumor mill, you know, over at usc, where Ned was on the board of trustees, the board threatened to kick him out unless he could prove he was innocent. So he was like, oh, my God, that's so crazy. Don't kick me out. And he did what any, like, rich boy in a crisis would do. And so he donated $200,000 to the university. It's like $3.5 million today. So USC is like, oh, my God, thank you so much. We changed our mind. You can stay for a little bit now. Ned's dad was like, don't worry, this is all gonna blow over. Like, just chill out. Stop acting crazy. But Ned started to, like, just disappear. He was spending more time in New York. He was staying at his private townhouse on 84th Street. And he was, you know, with Hugh Plunkett, just glued to his side. Back in la, Daddy Doheny was going into full damage control mode. So, you know, when you have a lot of money and you do something bad, you can hire a high profile defense attorney. So that's what he did. He got this guy named Frank J. Hogan. And this defense attorney was known for making indictments just disappear. It was his specialty. Hogan once said, quote, the best client is a rich man who is scared. End quote. Yeah. I mean, yeah, that's a good quote. And Doheny was, you know, he was a rich man and he was scared, so it was great. So Mr. Doheny, he gives his defense attorney a million dollar retainer. And he's like, look, I'll give you more money if you can get both me and my son acquitted. I got you. But before Hogan could work his magic, something weird happened. On February 17, 1929, someone got away with murder.
- [39:04]
Co-Host
I know. A little bit of a jump scare here. Coming into me, no makeup on, reading this advertisement. This is what I look like in real life. You know how stressful it is when you're waiting for a phone call all day, like a doctor or something, and then you miss it. Even worse if you run your own business.
- [39:25]
Bailey Sarian
I mean, it's like if you miss.
- [39:27]
Co-Host
An important phone call, it could be like money just walking out the door. Or if you have some kind of household emergency, like your plumbing goes bad. Maybe you have a leak coming through the ceiling and you're waiting for the plumber to call you back. Then you miss the damn call because. I don't know, you just do. That's why you need a phone system that actually keeps up. That's why you need OpenPhone. OpenPhone is the number one business phone system that streamlines and scales your customer communications. And the best part is that it works right through an app on your phone or computer. So no more juggling two phones or being chained to a landline. I do love landline, though.
- [40:14]
Bailey Sarian
Hello. Hello.
- [40:16]
Co-Host
Your team can even share one phone number and collaborate on customer calls and texts, like a shared inbox, which means if you can't answer, someone else on your team can pick up exactly where you left off. So now you can stop panicking every time you miss a phone call, because with Open Phone, you won't have to worry about that anymore. I love. If you're a business owner, you can have your whole team connect to one phone number. So no matter where you are, you know the customers, if they're calling or call comes through, they won't be ignored. Somebody will get to it. So if you're running a business, don't let money slip through the cracks. With Open Phone, you'll never miss a call again. OpenPhone is offering my listeners 20% off your first six months@openphone.com dark history. That's Open Phone. O P N P H o-n e.com darkhistory and if you have an existing number with another service, Open Phone will port them over at no extra charge. Oh, that's so great. Open Phone. No missed calls, no missed customers.
- [41:28]
Bailey Sarian
So the Teapot Dome investigation had been dragging on for years at this point. Okay, we're tired of it. But 2:00am, February 17, 1929, veteran LAPD detective Leslie T. White gets a call from his boss over at the DA's office. Detective White is told, quote, les Young Doheny has just been murdered get out to their Beverly Hills home now. End quote. So Detective White, he know he books it to Greystone mansion. So Greystone Mansion was where Ned Doheny lived. It was a gift from his dad. And let me just tell you, okay, this place was a palace. It's nestled right above Doheny Drive. Named after the family. Geez. I know. So they have this like huge old mansion. It's 46,000 square feet of just opulence. 55 rooms. Yeah, 55. I don't even know. Four people. There was a private movie theater. There was a bowling alley. They had their own fire station. There was a vault for furs and diamonds, of course. Swimming pool with a waterfall. Okay. And then high tech, the pool table. Yeah, it could disappear into the wall. Some kind of house, huh? The security at Greystone was toit. Toit. Like a toyga. I mean, think about like Buckingham Palace. It's like tighter than that, okay? Private guards, locked gates, high walls. Okay, so it was like, hey, how does someone get murdered here? Okay, like what the hell happened that night? So when Detective White arrived, the place was already swarming with private investigators and guards. Some of them tried to actually keep him out. But White finally made it in and he was escorted to the guest suite on the ground floor. This is a house you would want to play clue in. It's one of those. Yeah, that'd be fun. Live action clue. But someone really does die. So he gets to the guest suite on the ground floor and that's where he found Ned Doheny. He was on the floor next to the bed. He was wearing a silk bathrobe, pajamas and slippers. He was lying face up in a pool of blood.
- [43:57]
Co-Host
What?
- [43:58]
Bailey Sarian
Now look, he looked closer and there was a bullet hole straight through his skull from ear to ear. On his left, his left there was a knocked over chair. There was a highball glass to his right. And a few feet away, there was another body. So they walk over there. Who is it? It was Hugh Plunkett. Ned Doheny's bestie. Personal assistant, slash bribe money delivery boy, slash lover, depending on who you ask. He was dead. Poor Hugh. He was face down, sprawled in the doorway of an adjoining room. He had a gunshot wound to the head. The whole thing was brutal. So the Dohenies, they like put out a statement, you know, with their doctor. The official story was that Hugh Plunkett was mentally unstable and that the Dohenies, they had been trying to get him into a hospital for months. They said that earlier that night, Ned and his Wife Lucy allegedly visited Hugh to try and get and convince him to voluntarily check himself into a hospital. Yeah, Ned was married. This is messy, okay? So they try to convince him to check into a hospital, but Hugh refused. He got angry and then he stormed off. Now they said later that night, Hugh shows up at Greystone uninvited and wakes up Lucy and Ned in their bedroom. Now he's pissed off, so Ned takes him downstairs to the guest bedroom to try and calm him down. They pour a drink, try to talk, but according to the family, Hugh just doesn't want to calm down. So Ned, he gets on the phone and he calls the family doctor, Dr. Fishbaugh, he can help. Bling, bling, Dr. Fishbaugh, help me out. So Dr. Fishbaugh shows up to the home around 11pm And Ned's wife Lucy meets him at the door. They head down the hall and that's when Hugh Plunkett appears waving a Colt.45. According to their story, Hugh tells them to leave and slams the guest room door. A second later, they allegedly hear a single gunshot. According to Dr. Fishbaugh and Lucy, Hugh Plunkett had a mental breakdown, shot Ned in a fit of rage, then immediately turned the gun on himself. It was a classic murder suicide. Case closed, mystery solved. Everyone, by the time Ned's wife and the doctor got downstairs, it's believed that Ned had allegedly already been shot. And then Hugh allegedly shot himself like a few minutes later. That's what the family told police and that's what Dr. Fishbaugh swore to. I don't know why Dr. Fishbaugh was there. People had questions, but it didn't matter because within hours the coroner seemed to agree and ruled the case a murder suicide. Almost immediately, there was no inquest, no grand jury, no real investigation. But Detective White, he was not buying it. First of all, the physical evidence just didn't line up. The Doheny story made no sense with the way the bodies and the scene were found. Almost immediately, Detective White notices that Ned Doheny had powder burns around his wound, which meant that the shot was fired at a very close range. And from the angle it was clear he was sitting when he was shot, not standing up. The murder weapon was found in Hugh's right hand and in his left hand he had a half smoked cigarette. It was still there when they found the body. It was like, how was he supposed to be having a mental breakdown? Waving a gun around, shooting his best friend and having a cigarette without dropping it? It just didn't. It was questionable because you can tell me, like, it's possible, but, you know, on top of that, the murder weapon. No. Fingerprints? None. Not Hughes, not Ned's, None. A ghost did it. You know, someone had very clearly wiped it clean. So the Detective White, he takes all this evidence to the DA and he lays it all out, and he's like, listen, I don't believe Hugh Plunkett killed Doheny and then, like, committed suicide. Not in the way that these witnesses described. The DA listens and he's like, oh, my God. Yeah, that's crazy. You're kind of. You're kind of right. The DA even says, quote, there isn't a man in the United States that's big enough to stop me from conducting a criminal investigation. End quote. And for, like, a few hours, it kind of seemed like an investigation might happen. But two days later, on February 19, the DA calls a press conference and says, case closed. He parrots the same story that Doheny's had been telling Hugh Plunkett was mentally disturbed. And he. It was like a murder suicide. It was super sad. But end of story. Detective White is just stunned. But then he remembers, this is Doheny money. They can get away with anything, you know. So what actually happened that night? Some believe that Lucy Doheny, she caught her husband, Ned, and Hugh in bed. Yeah, they were in bed together. And she pulled the trigger herself. Other people say maybe there was an intruder, but again, the security and all that just, like, didn't really make sense. But there is another theory, and it's probably one that chills me the most. So, February 17, two dead bodies are found. Ned Doheny and his buddy slash maybe lover, Hugh Plunkett. The weird thing is, these murders happened just a couple of weeks before Ned and Hugh were supposed to testify in the Teapot Dome trial. Convenient. Hmm. One biographer even said, quote, plunkett was being put under tremendous pressure by the senior Doheny, who wanted him out of the way, end quote. And guess what? Since he was dead now, he was. It's also possible that, you know, Daddy Doheny, he wanted Hugh labeled as insane to keep his son out of jail. And if he was willing to do that, maybe he was even willing to kill Hugh if, you know, he had to. Then he could call the family doctor in to cover up everything. But then why would he kill his son? Maybe he didn't really give a shit. He's like, fuck my son. Or maybe Daddy Doheny was the one who caught his son in bed with another man and said, you know, Two birds, one stone. I don't know. Maybe it was the wife. Maybe it was. I don't know. Either way, two people died in one of the most, like, secure homes at the time, you know? And just weeks before, a federal bribery trial, and then within 48 hours, it was completely swept under the rug. To this day, no one has ever been charged. Now, if you visit Los Angeles or you live here, you can go to Greystone Mansion. It's still there. And you can visit. You can take a tour. You'd be like, where were the dead bodies? Which is kind of dark, but that's what I asked. Sorry. And walk the grounds and stuff. It's huge. It's massive. It's beautiful. And you've actually may have seen it in movies because they film a ton of stuff there. If you ever watched Gilmore Girls, it's like the prep school. I never watched Gilmore Girls. I hear. I just never got into it. They film a ton of stuff there. Whatever happened that night in 1929, someone got away with murder. So daddy Doheny, Ned's dad, he ended up being acquitted in 1930. God damn it. Yeah. His high power attorney, he painted him as like a. A devoted patriot, a grieving father. He just lost his son, and he used the death of his son to sway the jury. It was beautiful, and it worked. He ended up returning to Los Angeles, but people say that he was just physically and emotionally broken at this point. He ended up dying five years later in 1935. Sad. Not really. In 1931, Albert Bacon Fall became the first U.S. cabinet Secretary ever to go to prison for corruption. Congratulations, Albert. You did it. That's great. The first one. Way to go. He was sentenced to one whole year in prison and a $100,000 fine. Really gonna teach him. Yeah. So he spends a whole year in prison, whatever, and then, you know, he ends up dying in 1944. And I guess he didn't even have, like, a penny to his name. The funny thing is President Warren G. Harding, the guy who, like, really started this whole thing, he was never directly implicated in the Teapot Dome scandal because he died. And he got out of it by dying. Yep. So the lesson here, and why this is kind of interesting, is like, this is the first time in American history where, like, a major scandal broke, like, within the government type of situation. And, like, they kind of got away with it. And people did go to prison for it, barely. But it wasn't like the biggest guy behind the whole situation. The guy who paid the biggest price, I think, was Albert Fall. And because of this, some say that is where the phrase fall guy comes from. You know, fall guy, not he's not wearing ugg boots and like flannel Fall guy is like that guy that the scapegoat, the one that you blame everything on. He's the fall guy, right? So it's believed that he's the original fall guy, Albert Fall. In the end, Teapot Dome really became the blueprint for future American scandals. And it really was like one of the biggest scandals until Watergate happened. And then we. We kind of forgot about it. Should we do an episode on Watergate? I personally, this might be silly, but I don't really remember what Watergate was about. But I assume it's. It's the same thing. We should do an episode. No. I don't know. It's exhausting. When enough money and power are involved, the system just, it protects itself. It looks out for those people. Huh? We think someone's watching out for us, the normal people. But no, they're looking out for themselves. Always throughout history. Huh? It's exhausting. And sometimes the only reason the truth comes out is because someone couldn't be bullied into silence. Well, one of them was. He was shot and murdered too, actually. If you thought the Teapot Dome scandal was wild, just wait. Because the government isn't the only only one with secrets that have stayed buried for way too long. Next time, we're leaving the oil fields behind and heading somewhere a little more personal. Like your bathroom, your vanity, the drawer where you keep the tools that promise beauty, but may be hiding something way more dangerous. I'm getting into all the unexpected dangers hiding in plain sight at nail salons, tanning beds, and in your hair dryer. Join me next time for the dark history of deadly beauty Tools. Now I'd love to hear your guys reactions to today's story. So make sure to leave a comment down below so I can see what you're saying. Your comment might even be mentioned in a future episode. Have you been to Greystone Mansion Manor? What's it called? I already forget. Have you been? Let me know. Have you ever stole oil or anything? Let me know. Now. Let me read a couple of comments. Comments. You guys have left me Millie Squirrel, great name. Left us a comment on our Eartha Kitt episode saying quote, my nanny became friends with Eartha when they lived in the same neighborhood in England. I never knew until Yzma called my nan's house for their catch up phone calls and I answered. She was so incredibly sweet that's so cool you got to talk to Yzma. I'm sure she got so sick of it. Of people I asking like, can you say pull the lever? Cronk. You know, but it was such a good line. Oh, I love that story. Thanks for sharing a. That's really special. Okay. Thank you. Jesse Gowen, 9020 left us a comment on Spotify saying, quote, joan is literally always bringing it. Joan. Okay, that's fine. Cuz Joan, sure she does. She does well with the wardrobe. Wardrobe, the wigs, the jewels, the purses. She's definitely a bit of a diva. I would love to know. Like, do you? Well, Joan wants to know. Let me be real here. What, what's your favorite look? Your favorite Joan look. I'm trying to think of what my favorite. What about Paul? Paul always shows up. Paul is always looking the best. Paul needs more love today. Paul looks incredible. Incredible. Paul, we are going on a date after for this. I love it. Celestaylor2346 gave us an episode suggestion saying, quote, bestie Bailey, you must do a dark history on Glitter. End quote. I know. I've been hearing about this for years. I know what you're talking about. The whole conspiracy about glitter. Didn't someone solve it recently? I don't know. Okay, listen, Big Glitter doesn't want us to know, like, what it's made of, but also who their biggest client is. It's very bizarre. They've got a whole thing going on that they're trying to hide and they've been hiding it for years and people have been talking about it for years and that could be interesting. I'm not against that idea. Glitter. I mean, who doesn't love glitter? Okay, thank you for the suggestion. I appreciate it. And stay tuned. Did you watch the Mariah Carey movie Glitter? We should do a dark history on that. Yeah. Anyways, I love you guys for watching and keep on commenting because maybe your comment will be featured in a future episode. Wouldn't that be fun? Hey, did you know that you can join me over on my YouTube where you can watch these episodes on Thursday after the podcast airs. And while you're there, you can also catch my murder mystery and makeup. Yeah, you should do that. Hey, don't forget to subscribe. And if you don't know, Dark History is an Audioboom original. A special thank you to our expert, Luke Nichter, professor of history at Chapman University.
- [59:00]
Co-Host
Oh, wow.
- [59:01]
Bailey Sarian
And I'm your host, Bailey Sarian. I hope you have a good day today. You make good choices. Yeah, make good choices, don't be a little shit and I'll be talking to you guys later. Goodbye.
- [59:29]
Advertiser
Tired of spills and stains on your sofa? WashablesOfAs.com has your back featuring the Annabe Collection, the only designer sofa that's machine washable inside and out where designer quality meets budget friendly prices. That's right, sofas start at just $699. Enjoy a no risk experience with pet friendly stain resistant and changeable slipcovers made with performance fabrics. Experience cloud like comfort with high resilience foam that's hypoallergenic and never needs fluffing. The sturdy steel frame ensures longevity and the modular pieces can be rearranged anytime. Check out washablesofas.com and get up to 60% off your Anna Bay sofa backed by a 30 day satisfaction guarantee. If you're not absolutely in love, send it back for a full refund. No return shipping or restocking fees. Every penny back Upgrade now@washablesofas.com Offers are subject to change and certain restrictions may appreciate.