Rewind: Episode 01

Summary

---

Radio Rental: Rewind – Episode 01 (Aired July 24, 2026)

Episode Overview

In this special "Rewind" episode, Radio Rental revisits two of its most chilling real-life horror stories: a firsthand account of the infamous "Shoe Bomber" airline incident, and a harrowing near-miss with a modern-day "Bonnie & Clyde" serial killer team at a truck stop. Set in Radio Rental’s 80s video shop universe, the show blends documentary storytelling with an eerie, nostalgic twist, retaining its signature mix of the surreal, the supernatural, and the all-too-real.

---

Main Stories

1. Chaos on a Flight – The Shoe Bomber Incident

[01:19] – [14:02]

Guest: Mike (Interviewee)
Summary:
Mike recounts his childhood experience as a passenger on a flight that became the target of “The Shoe Bomber,” Richard Reid.

Key Points & Segments

• Setting the Stage (01:19-02:30):
  Mike, his brother, and their father are flying from Paris to Nicaragua. Dad upgrades to business class, Mike and brother sit in economy, surrounded by strangers.

  “Pretty much the worst possible place to be for a nine hour flight.” – Mike (01:50)

• Escalation (03:00-08:00):
  Subtle smell of matches. Tension rises when a flight attendant is heard screaming “No, no, no,” escalating until passengers and crew are in outright panic. Mike describes adrenaline, panic, and the sense of surreal chaos onboard.

  “Everything actually seemed to occur in slow motion.” – Mike (04:10)

• Surreal Violence (08:00–09:30):
  The unruly passenger is restrained by passengers (including Mike’s brother), who use belts and headphones. A fire extinguisher is passed forward and used by crew to subdue the man. Crew manage to isolate the passenger and confiscate his shoes.

  “The visual of seeing somebody swing a butt of a fire extinguisher onto someone's face was just shocking.” – Mike (08:58)

• Flight Detour and Aftermath (09:30–13:00):
  The pilot diverts the flight to Boston, mentions a possible security threat, and fighter jets escort the plane.

  “Those fighter jets are there essentially to shoot down your plane if it's hijacked.” – Mike (11:01)

  SWAT teams storm the plane on landing. Passengers are questioned and held in the baggage claim area for hours, treated almost like suspects.

  “We had been treated like cattle sitting in the baggage claim, and now the FBI agent was talking to me and my brother as if we were somehow in on this.” – Mike (12:07)

• Revelation & Chilling Details (13:00–14:02):
  News reports confirm the passenger was Richard Reid, “The Shoe Bomber.” Mike only learns the true danger after being interviewed by the FBI and hearing the story break in the news.

  “The person who they took off the plane had tried to smuggle a bomb on the plane and we had been completely oblivious.” – Mike (11:36)
  “He had been attempting to light a bomb that he had smuggled in his shoe with a book of matches... if it hadn’t rained that day… he may have been successful.” – Mike (13:26)

Notable Quotes

• “If you don’t believe in ghosts, then ghosts won’t scare you… To me, the scariest monsters are people.” – Jey Uso (15:09)
• “We had spent the rest of that flight… with a bomb, essentially. But instead we were just kind of bored and annoyed watching Legally Blonde. I haven’t seen it since actually. That was the last time.” – Mike (13:45)

---

2. The Trucker and the Bonnie & Clyde Killers

[24:41] – [35:05]

Guest: Mike (Truck Driver/Interviewee)
Summary:
Mike shares the story of how a suspicious encounter at a Zanesville, Ohio, rest stop nearly put him in the crosshairs of a serial killer couple.

Key Points & Segments

• Setting the Scene (25:09-28:30):
  As a new long-haul trucker in 2008, Mike parks for the night at a dark interstate rest area. He describes his caution and routine securement practice.

• Suspicious Encounter (28:30-31:30):
  A disheveled woman approaches Mike’s truck, first asking for money, then for Mike to “walk her to the restroom.” He declines, trusting his instincts. Mike notices a menacing man—tattoos on his head—watching him.

  “He had that little on his face, like, I'm going to get you and I'm just waiting for you to come here… It was like, I'm waiting for you because I'm gonna attack you.” – Mike (29:48)

• Narrow Escape and Realization (31:30-34:00):
  Mike chooses to leave the scene, feeling uneasy. A year later, he sees a true crime show about a couple fitting the description: they’d lured and murdered other truck drivers using the same method.

  “When I read the article… talks about how they killed somebody two weeks before in Zanesville, Ohio, at the same rest area that I had been through. They show a mugshot of the female… I definitely had a sick feeling, and it's the female that came up to me.” – Mike (34:05)

• Reflection on Instincts and Evil (34:00-35:05):
  Mike muses on human intuition, childhood trauma, and evil. He believes some people are simply driven by dark, delusional motives (“I am the Antichrist”) beyond rational explanation.

Notable Quotes

• “There’s a whole different level in somebody that takes your wallet and then shoots you in the face, you know… Because if you came prepared with a mental mindset of killing somebody, it’s because you wanted to. It has nothing to do with money.” – Mike (34:30)
• “I just love those kind of stories… people have these sort of gut feeling moments, and there’s not always a really articulate explanation for it. But you know when you know something.” – Jey Uso (36:25)

---

Notable Moments & Host Comments

The Radio Rental Concept and Style

• [15:40] “One of the main goals of Radio Rental was… to have stories that felt sort of supernatural, but the ending was always something much more real… To me, the scariest monsters are people.” – Jey Uso (Producer/Co-Host)
• [24:21] “[The] nostalgia… just the entire esthetic… Stranger Things made it even more popular and they dialed it in perfectly. I just fell in love with the idea of creating a world that real stories lived in.” – Jey Uso

Voicemails & Oddities

• [19:23–22:47] The hosts listen to and riff on listener voicemails—ranging from the hilarious (“I'm bottle feeding the baby right now…”) to the bizarre (“Fred the cat would like to have drinks with Malachi…”).
• [21:20] “So Malachi's got a lot of fans.” – Host

---

Memorable Quotes & Timestamps

| Timestamp | Speaker | Quote | |-----------|------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 04:10 | Mike (Guest) | “Everything actually seemed to occur in slow motion.” | | 08:58 | Mike (Guest) | “The visual of seeing somebody swing a butt of a fire extinguisher onto someone's face was just shocking.” | | 11:01 | Mike (Guest) | “Those fighter jets are there essentially to shoot down your plane if it's hijacked.”| | 13:26 | Mike (Guest) | “If it hadn't rained that day… he may have been successful.” | | 15:09 | Jey Uso (Host) | “To me, the scariest monsters are people.” | | 29:48 | Mike (Trucker) | “He had that little on his face, like, I'm going to get you and I'm just waiting for you to come here.” | | 34:30 | Mike (Trucker) | “There’s a whole different level in somebody that takes your wallet and then shoots you in the face…” |

---

Hosts’ Reflections

• On True vs. Supernatural Horror:
  “If you don’t believe in ghosts, then ghosts won’t scare you… To me, the scariest monsters are people.” – Jey Uso (15:09)

• On Storytelling:
  The hosts discuss their intention to blend genres and the appeal of “gut-feeling” stories with ambiguous, unsettling realism.

• On Listening to Instincts:
  “Trust your gut.” – Both hosts, repeatedly, after the trucker story

---

Final Thoughts

The episode is filled with tension, meme-worthy banter, and unsettling revelations. These first-person, true horror narratives remind listeners that while paranormal tales are chilling, the worst scares are grounded in reality—and in the unpredictability of human beings.

The episode closes with light banter about listener voicemails and teasers for future stories—reaffirming Radio Rental’s blend of nostalgia, weirdness, and real-life horror.

---

For listeners new to Radio Rental, this “Rewind: Episode 01” offers a vivid, unsettling, and entertaining window into the series’ unique approach to storytelling, combining retro flair with true-life suspense and terror.

Transcript

[Tenderfoot Announcer]

Hey, Tenderfoot listeners, we've got a special gift for you this summer for a limited time, when you sign up for a new annual Tenderfoot plus subscription or upgrade from your existing monthly plan, you'll receive a complimentary T shirt of your choosing from the Tenderfoot Shop. We just dropped. New designs for up and Vanished, Culpable and to Live and Die in la, plus new Radio Rental merch, all available for free with annual subscription. Head over to promo.tenderfootplus.com to claim your shirt before we run out. Offer ends July 31st. Thanks for listening.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Hey, what's up, guys? I'm Stephen, producer on Radio Rental and this is Radio Rental Rewind, where we dig into the archives of the greatest hits, the scariest stories. We have the favorites. And today we're going all the way back to the beginning, episode one. This is one of the scariest, craziest stories we got, and it's called Chaos on a Flight. So let's check it out right here.

[Mike (Guest/Interviewee)]

Good, perfect.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

This will be super simple. I'm just gonna ask you some questions, kind of prompt you and take you through it. Obviously it's not live. Our goal is to make it sound good. We'll edit it. So you good, Mike?

[Caller/Listener]

Yeah.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Okay. Usually I just kind of ask people, like, just kind of set the stage for me. Like just where, when did this all go down? What were you doing? What was your job like? To kind of set the stage for me.

[Mike (Guest/Interviewee)]

I moved a lot growing up. My family's from Central America, from Nicaragua, and we would go back at least once or twice a year. So I had quite a bit of experience flying. And. And we were flying back home to Nicaragua, flying through Paris. I was traveling with my brother, who's a year older than me, and with my dad. My brother and I were pretty comfortable flying. We had actually flown alone a lot. Eventually we started boarding. My dad was in business class, so he cut off at the front of the plane. My brother and I went to the back and we were in the middle two rows of the middle aisle. Pretty much. Much the worst possible place to be for a nine hour flight. My brother and I just kind of sat there and settled in. We had two French people, I think they were members of the same family on either side of us. I spoke a little bit of French, but I didn't understand like everything that they were saying. And they kept talking over us, towards each other. And it was just a little bit uncomfortable, kind of a standard uncomfortable, typical flight. I was just like half dozing off, looking down Reading my book. And then I remember the smell of matches in the air. For me, the sonic memories are the most vivid. I remember somebody saying the word no, no over and over. No. It started really quietly, and then gradually it got, like, a little bit louder until a point where it becomes really pressing, a screaming no. Immediately, I panic. I tensed up, essentially crushed the book. It was a paperback. And I remember grabbing onto it, like, really tight. I look up to my right, and there's a flight attendant just sort of hunched over a row of seats, probably five rows ahead of us. When I heard the urgency in the flight attendant's voice, I remember having this moment of extreme panic, and then I just felt a surge of adrenaline. Everything actually seemed to occur in slow motion. I think young teenage boys think of themselves as rather brave, but at that moment, my first instinct was to try to run away. Maybe if I run to the lavatories in the back of the plane, I can get away from whatever this is. But then you have this realization that you're on a plane and there's actually nowhere to go. My brother, who was sitting to my left, he leaped over me and he jumped into the aisle, ran up to see what was going on. This whole time I was frozen. I didn't react at all. All I could see from that middle row were just, like, the backs of people's heads and shoulders and scuffling and struggling, like a bar fight or something. It just felt like chaos. I heard the. No, that crescendo would just get louder and louder. And I remember seeing just a really tall person sitting on the window seat about six rows in front of me. I could almost see his shoulders sticking up above the back of the seat on the plane. He was very tall. All I saw was the back of his head, long hair, long, curly black hair. And he's struggling with this flight attendant who's kind of hunched over the seat. They were struggling. There was some kind of struggle. What struck me as really unusual was that he wasn't. It almost seemed like he wasn't reacting to what the flight attendant was doing. In any normal circumstance, if somebody yells at you on a flight, you would obviously react and you would respond. There seemed to be a strange passiveness. He was way too calm, way too calm for comfort, really. The flight attendant's screams got more urgent. People started screaming along with her. People were speaking very urgently in multiple different languages, and it just became absolute chaos. In the tiny, claustrophobic cabin. On an airplane, it's not the kind of place that you want to hear that kind of screaming, many things passed through my head. I thought it could be like a cardiac arrest, someone having a health issue. And then eventually we began to realize that this was more likely than not some kind of violent situation or a security breach of some sort. And I remember somebody grabbing, like, a handful of his hair. I just jerked his head back. His neck just snapped backward. And then he let out this really powerful scream. One of the passengers began to ask around for things that they could use to tie him up. They wrapped headphones around him, and my brother took off his belt, and he gave it to one of the passengers, and they used it to help restrain this person. Nobody was really listening to any of the flight attendants. The aisles were completely overcrowded. One of the male flight attendants is standing next to him. He's still struggling. And then I see from behind the back of the plane, they start to pass a fire extinguisher up hand by hand. At that point, I didn't know if there was a fire. I didn't know what was going on. They pass us up. They pass it forward to the flight attendant, and then he just takes a fire extinguisher and hits the person basically on the nose. The visual of seeing somebody swing a butt of a fire extinguisher onto someone's face was just shocking. At one point, I remember seeing a pair of shoes, big tennis shoes. Flight attendant was holding them, and he was running to the back of the plane with this pair of shoes. The pilot announced that there had been a security breach on the flight and that the flight was being diverted from Miami to Boston. The pilot also said that they don't know if the person was working alone. So he suggested that everyone get to know their neighbors, which was really chilling, really terrifying. We were right in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. The flight attendants had this system where people would, like, rotate, keeping an eye on him. There was always somebody sitting behind him. The people that sat behind him actually held his hair. Eventually, actually, the flight attendants put the movie Legally Blonde on. I think they thought it would help calm people down a little bit. But there was this really, really nervous energy. People didn't really know how seriously to take this. The pilot at one point asked if there was a US Marshal on board. The pilot asked a couple times, and nobody ever came forward. If they're asking for the marshal, must be something really serious. As we're approaching the U.S. the pilot announced that we would be escorted by fighter jets. All the little kids on the plane got really excited. They all like Ran to the windows to look at the jets. Those fighter jets are there essentially to shoot down your plane if it's hijacked. It was amazing to watch them. You just see this fighter jet that's going to the same speed as the plane. You know, you kind of knew there was a more sinister reason that they were there. Eventually we do land, and it's a pretty normal, standard landing. We're parked way out in the middle of nowhere on the tarmac, really far from the airport. Then a SWAT team, heavily armored, storms on board. Massive guns. It looked like a Hollywood movie. They knew exactly what they were doing. They cut the passenger loose. He was really groggy still from the drugs that they had given him earlier, and essentially they just drag him off the plane. They also took the shoes that they had taken to the back of the plane earlier. They took those off the plane, took them off the plane as quickly as they could. We waited around for a little while longer, and then we basically disembarked just like normal. And I remember walking past the seat where this guy had been sitting. There's just, like, a mess of plastic and headphones. And, like, the belt that my brother had given to tie him up was cut into a couple little pieces. We were in the middle of the tarmac, so we got off through, like, steps. We didn't get off at a gate they shuttled us to. I believe it was a baggage claim terminal in Boston airport. They had these metal fences lined up to separate us from the rest of the baggage claim area. We waited there for what seemed like hours. Families were getting really uncomfortable. People were getting hungry. Little kids were crying. Some of the passengers began, like, shaking the metal grates. I remember an FBI agent interviewing my brother, myself, and my dad. What had happened on the flight? Where were we going? Where were we coming from? Felt like an interrogation. Actually made me really angry. It pissed me off a lot. We had been treated like cattle sitting in the baggage claim, and now the FBI agent was talking to me and my brother as if we were somehow in on this. They moved us from the baggage claim area to just a normal terminal, and we finally got a chance to make a phone call and talk to my mom. We went to a payphone and made the phone call. Hearing my mom over the phone line, just hysterical. Then she told us that it was all over the news.

[Caller/Listener]

Once passengers were safely at the terminal, the bomb squad boarded the American Airlines

[Sponsor Voice]

plane to retrieve the shoe. In Boston, heightened security now includes asking

about matches and inspecting shoes.

[Mike (Guest/Interviewee)]

The person who they took off the plane had tried to smuggle a bomb on the plane and we had been completely oblivious. He had been attempting to light a bomb that he had smuggled in his shoe with a book of matches that he. That was the smell of matches that my brother and I had smelled. He had been repeatedly trying to light this wick in his shoe. The flight attendant actually passed by once noticed that he was trying to light a match and told him to stop. She assumed he was trying to light a cigarette or something. And then when she came back and saw he was trying to light the match again, she tried to stop him. When she realized that he was trying to light this match and he actually had his shoe on his lap, she tried to reach out to grab the shoe and then he actually bit her on the hand. That's when she started screaming and struggling with him. I remember seeing his shoes being passed to the back of the plane and not really thinking much of it. I didn't realize that there was essentially C4 in those shoes. He had actually tried to get on the same flight the day before, but he was stopped by security because he raised a lot of red flags. He had a one way ticket, he had no luggage. He had paid for the ticket in cash. So they actually stopped and interrogated him. Because of that, he had missed his flight. All the hotels around the airport were all booked. He had to take a hotel room kind of far from the airport. The following day it rained, his shoes got wet. It turned out that the wick he was trying to light had gotten too moist and he was unable to light it. If it hadn't rained that day, or if he had been a little more relaxed, he may have been successful. We actually didn't realize how close we were until afterwards. It was shocking. We had spent the rest of that flight, I don't know how long, four or five hours with a bomb, essentially. But instead we were just kind of bored and annoyed watching Legally Blonde. I haven't seen it since actually. That was the last time.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Perfect.

[Mike (Guest/Interviewee)]

Is it radio rental?

Mm, yeah.

Cool.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

That's perfect. Yeah, that was well told.

[Mike (Guest/Interviewee)]

That was amazing.

Cool, man. Can't wait to hear it. Yeah, it sounds like such a fascinating concept.

Yeah, it's.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

It's something kind of different we're trying to make, man. Yeah, we're excited about it.

[Mike (Guest/Interviewee)]

That's really cool.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

It's kind of a little bit of a departure from what we have been doing, which is more like a deep dive investigative thing. This is more of a. Like a collection of short stories and, and Sometimes you have less sensitive stuff, but kind of more like real life horror stories.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

That's really cool.

[Caller/Listener]

Yeah.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

So Richard Reed, aka the Shoe Bomber, is now serving three consecutive life terms plus 110 years without parole. And he's now chilling in the federal supermax prison in Florence, Colorado. Actually, it's the same prison where El Chapo is at. And if you don't know who that is, I can't help you there.

[Caller/Listener]

All right.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

I'm actually here with the evil mastermind of Radio Rental himself.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Evil parody, that's me.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

You guys can thank him for all the scares and nightmares.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

I mean, I've scared myself making this show, to be honest. This story actually is episode one, the first story in episode one. But it's also the very first story we ever recorded. I didn't know what I was even making at that point. The goal in the beginning, and still is, one of the main goals of Radio Rental was I wanted to have some stories that felt sort of supernatural, but the ending was always something much more real. Oh, my God, there's a terrorist on the plane. To me, the scariest monsters are people. If you don't believe in ghosts, then ghosts won't scare you. Or ghost story won't scare you. I wanted to introduce this fun, creepy world of the video store 80s horror aesthetic, but have almost true crime stories in the show living under a different framework, as if they were supernatural or something.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Right.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

There's a moment I remember editing that first story. He was talking about how the guy was strangely tall and the music kind of gets spacey there. And in my head I'm picturing almost like an alien or something. Absurdly tall person that you're now kind of suspicious of. Just these little subconscious Easter eggs that I'm putting in. If I felt it, I try to pull at that a little bit more. The best part about each episode and each story is that you don't know where it's going to go. That is what we try to play with.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

And you know that question. It'll be like, would you rather encounter a human in the woods at night or a bear? Which is creepier?

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

A bear. You pick.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Bear.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Human in the woods. That's the only description I get.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Obviously.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Bad intentions being a bear. I'm not signing up for random roulette. Human. What do you guys think? Would you rather have a weird, creepy guy in the woods that you meet or a bear?

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

While they think about that, let's go ahead and take a break.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

The Hulu original series Furious is coming to Hulu and Hulu on Disney plus on July 27 from Liz Meriwether, the Emmy nominated executive producer of Dying for Sex and the Dropout comes a gripping psychological thriller starring Emmy Rossum as Alice Black, Furious follows a rookie FBI agent on the hunt for Catherine, played by Lola Petticrew, a mysterious and calculating female serial killer. While Alice upholds justice, Catherine kills for it, terrorizing the rich and powerful men of New York in her pursuit of vengeance. As their twisted game of cat and mouse unfolds, the lines between good and evil begin to blur. With shocking crimes, tangled relationships, and secrets that change everything, Alice discovers there's a thin line between hunter and prey. Watch the Hulu original series Furious on July 27, streaming on Hulu and Hulu on Disney for bundle subscribers. Terms apply.

[Tenderfoot Announcer]

This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. We talk about mental health more openly now, but asking for help can still feel hard, and BetterHelp's latest research confirms it. BetterHelp's 2026 State of Stigma report surveyed 2,000Americans and revealed that 85% of Americans believe getting support is wise, yet 74% say society discourages people from doing so. This demonstrates a massive gap between our personal values and societal expectations. To close this gap, we need options that respect our privacy and our schedules. BetterHelp provides exactly that. They are the world's largest online therapy platform, connecting over 6 million people globally with a network of over 30,000 fully licensed quality US therapists. BetterHelp utilizes over 12 years of matching experience to find the right therapist for your specific needs, which is why they maintain a 4.9 out of 5 average rating from over 1.7 million client reviews. Don't let stigma stand in your way of support. Start therapy with BetterHelp. Sign up and get 10% [e-mail] RadioRental that's better. H E L P.com RadioRental

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

yo, it's Jey Uso from WWE and I'm Jimmy Uso. Chumba Casino and WWE are hyped for the biggest event of the summer, SummerSlam.

[Mike (Guest/Interviewee)]

I know I can't wait.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

There's nothing better to do while we're waiting than playing Chumba Casino. Sign up today and you could win a VIP experience with Chumba Casino and WWE for SummerSlam. So what are you waiting for? Play Chumba Casino and enter for your chance to win. Let's chomp you purchase necessary bgw group

[Tenderfoot Announcer]

void we're prohibited by long cts and zs 21 sponsored by chumba Casino.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Cool. All right, we're back. So it's the first time we're doing this. We put out a hotline for you guys, and we're just going to hear some weird shit you guys have to say.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

I don't know what to expect.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

All right, first one.

[Caller/Listener]

I'm bottle feeding the baby right now. I didn't think it was an athlete message. Okay, bye.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

I'm sorry.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Bottle feeding a baby.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Why are you calling? You're busy. Yeah. Okay. Next. We knew this was gonna be. Yeah, weird.

[Caller/Listener]

I'm from Portland, Oregon. Me and my friends, we were walking along the trail. We heard a sound that was never heard before. It was like a cross between, like, a dying whale and, like, a robot. Electronic whale robot. It was horrifying. Never heard that sound before. Four months later, my friends were up on the nature reserve, heard the sound again and saw something skinny and taller than the trees. Anyway, bye.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Taller than the trees.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Dude, is that like a Slenderman thing?

[Caller/Listener]

Right?

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

I've always wanted to see a real, real alien.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

What would you do if you met an alien?

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

If I met an alien?

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Yeah.

[Mike (Guest/Interviewee)]

Oh, man.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

What am I allowed to say on this show? Just stuff for science. You know what?

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

All right, let's find some other weird.

[Caller/Listener]

Hey, is this the. The radio rental shop?

[Mike (Guest/Interviewee)]

My name's Luke.

[Caller/Listener]

I'm from Alaska. I just. I gotta tell you, it's been a real long time since I've been scared. And I'm not sure how I feel about this. I just feel very comfortable and I'm not. Not liking it so much. So I'd really like to know when you guys are coming back with some more spooky stories. So. So whenever you get around to it, give me a call back.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

What was his name?

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

His name is Luke from Alaska.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Luke from Alaska says he hasn't been scared in a long time.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Yeah.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

What's his number?

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

He's feeling too comfortable. Yeah, let's hit him up.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Call him right now. I'm scared the out of him. Say it to me.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Nine, zero, seven.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Okay.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Luke.

[Caller/Listener]

Luke.

[Mike (Guest/Interviewee)]

Luke.

[Caller/Listener]

Yes.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Why did you call my number?

[Caller/Listener]

Who's this?

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

You know when this is. You said you'd never been scared. Not in a long time. Did we give it away? You may or may not be on a podcast.

[Caller/Listener]

I really appreciate that.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Happy Saturday.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Thanks for calling us, though.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Later, Luke. See you. All right.

[Caller/Listener]

You show sick.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

You're so sick.

[Caller/Listener]

You're so sick.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Wait, the show is sick.

[Caller/Listener]

You're so sick. I love listening to your stories when I'm taking a shower. And that's pretty much the only time I ever listen to this.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

No other time. That's the only time. Hopefully you shower in between the times that we're not coming out. I feel like I couldn't pay attention to a podcast in the shower. Those are 45 minute showers. Yeah.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Cool.

[Mike (Guest/Interviewee)]

I stopped by the store the other

[Caller/Listener]

day, but there were boards on the windows and a sign that said close for reparations. I don't know how long that's going to be, but get back to me.

[Mike (Guest/Interviewee)]

Reparations?

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

He means restorations. Of course. We're closing it down.

[Caller/Listener]

This message is for Malachi. My cat Fred would like to know if you are available for drinks. Except we live in Illinois, so. Okay, let us know. Text us back. Meow, meow.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Maybe we'll hook them up. Yeah, you know, PSLs. Yeah, yeah, I'm into that.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Yeah. All right. So Malachi's got a lot of fans.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Definitely.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Yeah. Hell yeah. All right, next one.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Why did that actually scare me? It's so annoying.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

So where did, like, the first idea of radio rental come from? Like the initial just spark or creative, whatever.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Several different things. I grew up in the 90s. I was born in 87. I went to Blockbuster. That was the coolest thing to do. Always begging my mom to take me there. Yeah, like, that was the coolest Friday night ever was getting permission to go to Blockbuster, getting candy, and watching a scary movie. Right. One that my mom would let me rent. Yeah. I've always. Just the nostalgia of that time period and just the entire esthetic of it is obviously fun. I mean, Stranger Things made it even more popular and they dialed it in perfectly. I think I just fell in love with the idea of creating a world that real stories lived in. I remember early on I was pitching this show out to different people, and it was so hard for me to describe what it is I was trying to make. There's this video store and there's this guy who's kind of funny in between. He plays these tapes and that's the stories that you hear. Everyone's like, wait, wait, is it real? Is it not real? No, it's both. Like, this is never gonna work. I'm like, maybe it won't, but it did.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Yeah, it adds an element to fun to it, even though it's. Some of these stories are crazy and scary, even traumatic for people. But it adds, like, a levity to it and a bit of fun and entertaining piece to it that just makes it a crazier ride. But it's fun at the end of the day. So Speaking of not so fun things, we got another story.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Oh, boy.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Check out.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Which one is this one?

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

It's the trucker.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Oh, I remember this one right here.

[Mike (Guest/Interviewee)]

Good.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Perfect.

[Mike (Guest/Interviewee)]

Yep.

[Caller/Listener]

All right.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

This will be super simple. I'm just going to ask you some questions, kind of prompt you, and take you through it. Obviously, it's not live. Well, our goal is to make it sound good. We'll edit it, so.

[Mike (Guest/Interviewee)]

All right, cool.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

You good, Mike?

[Caller/Listener]

Y.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Okay. Usually I just kind of ask people, like, just kind of set the stage for me. Like, just where. When did this all go down? What were you doing? What was your job like, to kind of set the stage for me?

[Mike (Guest/Interviewee)]

August of 2008, I had just gotten into truck driving, and it was like, second trip out by myself. Like, this is brand new to me. I used to do this thing that they taught me in trucking school where you take a ratchet strap and you'd ratchet through the inside of your door and come back together to keep it so somebody couldn't open your door while you're sleeping. I was just so nervous from everything everybody had said before going into it. So I had been near Zanesville, Ohio, and stopped at a rest area, an actual interstate rest area with the little restrooms and the vending machines. And the rest areas out in Ohio are kind of different in the sense that out there near the toll road, they're like travel plazas where they're one step below a truck stop. They don't have showers, but they're convenience stores. They're a big, long row of trucks. Probably park like 30, 40 trucks there. And who knows how many cars. You know, it's a pretty wide lot. This place that was pulled into was in a more darker area. Like, this area was significantly darker than the front of the store. And I remember when I pulled in, I pulled into the spot, I stopped there, I clicked my brakes, and I'm sitting there looking down at my logbook, doing my deal. And I looked up and I noticed that there was a female walking towards me. Probably like a five foot four, five foot five, blonde gal, looked to be in her late 30s, comes walking up to me, knocks on the door and said, hey, do you have any money? My instant thought was, oh, here we go. She's gonna come to me and she's gonna say, hey, you know, 50 bucks, you wanna have some fun? And I'm thinking, well, even if I wanted to, I ain't got 50 bucks. I just want to get on with my day. You could tell that she was probably in her late 30s, but she looked pretty run down. She's probably in a bad situation in her life. Maybe she's homeless, but if I would have had some spare scrib to buy her dinner, I would've. I said, no, I'm a truck driver. I don't have any money. A lot of the times when somebody asks you for money and you say, no, I ain't got none, they're like, well, come on man, you ain't got a couple bucks? You ain't got some change? Well, hey, can you, can you spot me five bucks or something? Nah, man, I ain't got it. Well, what about 50 cents? You got any change at all? No, I ain't got nothing. Well, what about a cigarette, man? You got a cigarette? She didn't do any of that. She said, okay, well, I need to walk to the restrooms. Do you mind following me to the front? My observational awareness carried out and kind of looking around, I'm like, well, that's a strange question. We were not even a football field away from the travel plaz itself because those truck spots are kind of far back. We weren't really far enough for me to justify needing an escort. I looked at her and I said, you know what? No, I'm not going inside the building. I don't want to go inside the building. Inside my head, something wasn't right. So I got back into the truck and sat there for a second. And there's a guy that's kind of pacing back and forth with a cigarette in his mouth. He came around some sort of like four door beat down car, watching both of us with a cigarette in his mouth real intently, just sitting there staring. And you could tell that he was dart eyeing towards us, doing that slow, nervous gait, back and forth, back and forth, staring at us. He was watching what I was doing and it was watching in a very. He had that little on his face, like, I'm going to get you and I'm just waiting for you to come here. He didn't look front, he didn't look to the side. He just looked straight at us. And you could see because he was standing underneath one of those sodium lights, those orange lights that are real bright. And you could see he had tattoos on his head. You could tell that that was a head tattoo from a mile away. The expression that he had was kind of like a come on guy. Like, come on, motherfucker. Like he was ready for an altercation. It was like, I'm waiting for you because I'm gonna Attack you. She had a good vantage inside my truck, so she knew that I was alone. So I was like, man, I just need to get out of here. I carry a firearm everywhere I go, including that day. One of the things that you train on is always have an escape plan. Always get yourself out of conflict if this guy is going to have a conflict. I'm in Ohio. I really don't want to have to do something bad here in Ohio and have to answer for it. I just need to get out of here. She had walked past him and he stayed staring at me. And I'm like, well, this guy already knows that I'm alone. So I got back in my truck and drove off. I third geared the truck, okay, because big trucks got more gears than standard. So I third geared the truck out of there and I'm pulling out. And I kind of watched the mirror a little bit as she kind of just stood there. Started to stroll up towards the front, not exactly towards old boy, but I could see that he was watching too as I pulled out and I'm driving down the road and I thought. I said, well, that was pretty strange. Called a buddy of mine, he was like, yeah, man, that's pretty weird. Haha. Maybe she was trying to get in your truck and have some fun. And he made some jokes about that. And I thought that's the only thing that I could be. Because that's what I figured. That's the only thing is that she looked like the type that would probably engage in that activity. So I figured that that's what it was when I left. Actually, I had half a mind to call 911. And when I left, I thought, well, maybe this gal was afraid of this guy. But the problem is when you're by yourself in a state that you're not from, they're gonna rob me. Or maybe this is a guy that's trying to put her out on the street or something like that. And I just didn't want no part of it. The way he was carrying himself was he was there with a purpose that was other than smoking a cigarette. And that's when I made the decision where. I'm not even gonna go to the truck stop to use the restroom. I'll use the restroom on the side of the road down the ways there's. Well, about a year later, probably a little better of a year, about a year and a half, I'm watching a TV show and there's this feller on this TV show where they're talking to him about him killing A truck driver in Missouri. Wow, that's crazy. Like, I gotta watch this because I'm a truck driver by trade. So when I'm watching it, I'm looking at this guy and I kind of scratch my head, and I'm like, this guy looks really familiar. And I see this guy talking, and the first thing I notice is he's got tattoos on his head. He talked about that he wanted to be like Bonnie and Clyde, so they nicknamed them the Bonnie and Clyde Murderers of Missouri. They did the same thing. Asked him for money. Will you go inside the rest area with me, man? Followed her inside the rest area, thinking that he was helping her. Guy was standing there watching him. Came around the corner, shot the truck driver in the face. This guy was out to lunch with himself. He was talking about on how he was the Antichrist. He loves to murder. He wants the death penalty because he'll kill again. That he had actually killed, like, three other people and that he was murdering truck drivers because they were easy targets. These are people that are alone 99% of their time. And when they get attention from anyone, it's kind of like the dog that's never been with its owner in 10 years, and just all of a sudden, it's wagging its tail. By chance, he got arrested in Nebraska for dui, and he had a warrant out for his arrest for the Zanesville, Ohio, murder, first of a truck driver. Then they put two and two together with the one in Missouri, and they were able to DNA trace it back to both of them. When I went to bed, I had, like, kind of a weird dream about the whole deal. And I remember I woke up and I told my wife, I said, those people are the ones that I seen. So I go through and I'm reading this article about these two people that killed a guy at a rest stop in Missouri. And it talks about how they killed somebody two weeks before in Zanesville, Ohio, at the same rest area that I had been through. They show a mugshot of the female, whose name was Dana Tudor. I definitely had a sick feeling, and it's the female that came up to me and asked me if I would go inside the building with her and if I had any money. Not a doubt in my mind. So this prompted me to think, like, maybe if I would have said yes, I'm gonna walk in there, I might have got whacked. Definitely a feeling that situational and observational awareness is, like, a must no matter what you do. I think what happens is that there's people who they're born with mental illness already, and they get exposed to extreme traumatic events, and they don't have the ability to justify what they're doing. And they almost become above godlike, where they think that it's appropriate. In the case of somebody like John Hughes that believes he's the Antichrist, that thinks that he's fulfilling a mission, it gets pretty dangerous. We see it with David Koresh. We see it with Jonestown. We see it with all these major things where these guys think that they're on a mission. And typically when they drop terms like the Antichrist or I'm doing the devil's work or something like that, there are people that fully believe that what they're doing is of such a higher power. I would like to know his background and where he came from. I think that is the kind of guy that we want to know where he came from, because it would tell us a pretty big story. Once I got adopted and came to a foster family out here in Arizona, I got real big in horse co culture. And the. The one things that I've always been taught about horses is they are emotional creatures. They do not react by sight whatsoever. Everything is by emotion. You can sit on a horse and be 100% calm and have a horse act like the best horse on the face of the earth. And I can put somebody that's hostile and that horse will act like she's brand new. So when I re get into a situation and I read the emotion of it and that emotion's hot and tense, I'm like, bye, Felicia. I ain't staying. I come from kind of a weird childhood, in the sense of my childhood was very violent and dark. So coming from that, I have a weird perception that I can almost recognize that where when I see somebody that doesn't look good, I'm not the person that's like, well, maybe he's just confused. I'm like, no, this guy is probably messed up, and I don't want to come near you, so I'm going to stay away, right? Somebody that robbed somebody at the core. If somebody comes up to me and says, man, I got to feed my family, I'm robbing you because I need to feed my family, I'm going to turn over my wallet. I'm going to turn over everything, whatever. Go. I got insurance. Move on, my bank covered. I don't even care. There's a whole different level in somebody that takes your wallet and then shoots you in the face, you know, because that's like, what's the point? You know, like, you didn't want to just rob me. You wanted to kill me. Because if you came prepared with a mental mindset of killing somebody, it's because you wanted to. It has nothing to do with money. You look at his interview. He has no problem alluding to that. That he, quote unquote, says, literally, I am the Antichrist.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

That's crazy.

[Mike (Guest/Interviewee)]

Well, I won't keep you guys.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Appreciated.

[Sponsor Voice]

Nice to meet you, Jon.

[Mike (Guest/Interviewee)]

Hey, you too, brother. Be safe.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Take care, man.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

John Hughes and his girlfriend, Dana Tudor, who are like a modern day Bonnie and Clyde, except not as cool, were charged with killing a truck driver at a northwest Missouri rest stop in September 2008. Just days earlier, Hughes stabbed a man in Zaneville, Ohio. Then Hughes was apprehended in York County, Nebraska, after being pulled over for a dui. So, yeah, don't drink and drive. Damn.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Yep. Bad dude. Yeah, really bad dude. Yeah, I'm pretty sure he was in jail when he got charged with the second murder. This guy is, I think, a legitimate serial killer. And look him up. He looks like a serial killer. He looks like a bad man.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

He has the outfit, the look.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Yes, it's what you're thinking. Or worse.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

I mean, the trucker has good instincts, though, because he is close to getting, you know, not being here.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Yeah. Which would be a very bizarre thing in hindsight, years later to imagine, man, I. I could have been a victim of a serial killer.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Yeah.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

I don't know a lot of people, or may I guess I. I know some. You know, more than most of us. I know more than most people, which says a lot about me, I guess. We usually don't know a lot of people who can say that they almost died by the hands of a serial killer. That's got to mess with you a little bit, especially when you kind of go back and replay it. And I'm sure there was a moment where you may have questioned your own gut instincts. And I always like those kind of stories because people have these sort of gut feeling moments, and there's not always a really articulate explanation for it. But, you know, when you know something, I think this sort of fight or flight or sensing something is wrong. We all kind of have a different version of that human instinct. And a lot of these stories, like this one, are a prime example of kind of listening to your gut, which I just love those guys stories.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Trust your gut.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Trust your gut.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

So let's take a quick break.

[Sponsor Voice]

What's the business idea you've been putting off because it feels too complicated Shopify is the ultimate excuse killer, designed to help you start your business with every necessary tool ready on day one. Taking the leap is a big deal, but Shopify makes it incredibly simple. You can easily bring your brand's unique style to life using their beautiful templates and AI tools to launch a gorgeous site with zero coding experience. You also get the ultimate peace of mind knowing that Shopify Checkout is already optimized for maximum sales, making it seamless for returning customers to buy in a single click. If you ever feel overwhelmed or hit a snag, Shopify's built in AI Assistant Sidekick answers your toughest questions and keeps you moving forward. You'll be growing your business with the same tools used by the world's biggest brands. All you need is the idea Shopify handles the rest. Go to shopify.com pave to start your free trial today. That's shopify.com pave shopify.com pave do you love your pets?

[Mike (Guest/Interviewee)]

Do you love suspense? Do you love it when your pets keep you in suspense because they ate something mysterious? And who knows what the vet visit will cost if you answered yes twice and then no? You should protect your pet with Lemonade Pet Insurance. It can save you up to 90% on vet bills for checkups, emergencies, diagnostics,

[Sponsor Voice]

all the stuff that leaves you financially

[Mike (Guest/Interviewee)]

on the edge of your seat. Get a quick and Easy [e-mail] pet and get your suspense somewhere else, like from a riveting podcast.

[Tenderfoot Announcer]

I'm Serena Williams and I'm healthier on RO. I've lost 34 pounds in a year with GLP1's diet and exercise on RO. You can access GLP1 options including the first FDA approved GLP1 pill for weight loss. Go to RO CO Journey to see if you qualify. 14 to 20% average weight loss in one year in non diabetics with obesity or overweight with a weight related medical condition versus 2.2% to 3.1% in placebo arm RX only. To stay informed about serious side effects, go to RO Co Safety.

[Sponsor Voice]

The days are longer, the calendar is filling up and I want to feel as good as this beautiful summer weather. That's why I've been loving grooms. It's one daily pack of gummies that covers my greens, vitamins, minerals and even has 6 grams of prebiotic fiber. So so I don't need to juggle a complicated wellness routine on top of everything else. They taste amazing, they're easy to toss in my bag on the go. Plus they're vegan gluten free and HSA. FSA eligible for reimbursement. Save up to 52% off with code podcast@groons co. That's codepodcast@gruns co.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Alright, guys. Appreciate you hanging out with us today. It's been fun. It's been creepy. It's been weird.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

It has been. The voicemails were weird. I'm coming back every week just for that. I'm gonna sit right here just to hear your voicemails.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

And I'll be here every week for the rest of the stuff and the voicemails. But, you know, sounds like you're hooked.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

I'm committed to that part.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Yeah.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Because I feel like this might be just the beginning of something even weirder. And I'm here for that. So. Yeah, let's see if you can scare us or weird us out. That's a challenge.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Yeah. We did our part. Now it's your turn.

[Mike (Guest/Interviewee)]

Yeah.

[Jey Uso (Producer/Co-host)]

Call us. How dare you.

[Host (possibly Payne Lindsey)]

Later.

[Sponsor Voice]

Millions of Americans are looking for effective ways to manage their weight. But finding the right support can feel confusing and time consuming. Orderly Meds offers a convenient online experience that connects you with licensed medical providers to explore GLP1 treatment options from home. The process is simple. Complete your information online, connect with a provider and learn what options may be right for you. No waiting rooms, no complicated scheduling. Just a modern, streamlined experience designed around convenience. Visit orderlymeds.com podcasts to learn more today. That's orderlymeds.com podcasts again. Orderlymeds.com podcasts one more time orderlymeds.com podcasts compounded medications are not FDA approved. Results may vary. Consult a licensed healthcare provider to determine if treatment is appropriate for you. Restrictions apply.