My Favorite Murder – Rewind with Karen & Georgia - 60: Jazz It
Release Date: September 3, 2025
Hosts: Karen Kilgariff & Georgia Hardstark
Network: Exactly Right / iHeartPodcasts
Episode Overview
This "Rewind" episode revisits My Favorite Murder #60 ("Jazz It," originally aired March 2017), featuring Karen and Georgia reflecting on the original stories, sharing updates, and weaving in their signature banter. The main stories discussed are the notorious "Axeman of New Orleans" serial killer case and the chilling William Bradford Bishop "family annihilator" mystery. The episode is a blend of murder lore, podcast nostalgia, personal anecdotes, and listener updates—with equal parts horror and humor.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
I. Revisiting Episode #60 ("Jazz It")
[02:18]
- Karen and Georgia kick off with new commentary and corrections on earlier stories, notably about the confusion between Dr. Sam Shepard (the inspiration for The Fugitive) and Dr. Jeffrey MacDonald (Fatal Vision case).
Quote:
"That's why at one point in that episode, I was like, 'what year was it?'... There’s no way there could be two doctors who killed their whole families!" – Karen [04:33]
II. On Live Shows, Audience Etiquette, and Corrections
[03:08]
- The hosts chat about the peculiar energy at live shows, listeners shouting things, and how they handle on-air mistakes.
- Karen admits to frequently "confidently" misspeaking, leading to a segment on self-correction and the importance of nuance (like not treating survivor responses or self-defense as universal advice).
Quote:
"It's those little lies... just as I talk, it's just all like, blah, blah, blah.” – Karen [06:25]
III. The Kelly Herron Update: Survival, Self-Defense & Advocacy
[07:00–08:43, 15:54–17:51]
- A memorable survivor moment from the original episode: Kelly Herron, a Seattle jogger, who famously fought off an attacker in a park bathroom with the phrase “not today, motherfucker.”
- Update: Kelly now co-teaches self-defense in Seattle and founded the Run Buddy safety app for joggers.
Quote:
"At one point she thought, 'this doesn't have to be a fair fight.'... That, to me, kind of hit me... this doesn't have to be civil. This can be fucking out of control.” – Georgia [08:29]
- Karen and Georgia discuss the importance—and reluctance—of taking self-defense classes, and the broader question of how women (especially) balance empowerment, safety advice, and societal expectations.
IV. Anecdotes on Religion, Upbringing, and Bat Mitzvahs
[11:50–14:00]
- Lighthearted comparison of Catholic confession with Jewish traditions, including Georgia’s bat mitzvah with a “lesbian rabbi” (“Nice, mom.") and feeling like an outsider in Orange County.
V. Tour News & Nostalgia
[15:14–15:50]
- The episode drops on the first day of the 2025 MFM live tour—“Who’d have thunk it?”—and the hosts reflect on their journey.
Featured Murder Stories
1. The Axeman of New Orleans
[18:29–68:35] | Main story begins [25:39]
Summary
Karen revisits the infamous Axeman case—a series of grisly, unsolved murders in New Orleans (1918–1919), where an unknown killer broke into homes (typically those of Italian grocers), often killing entire families with their own axes or occasionally straight razors. The details are "chilling":
- Entry by chiseling out back doors
- No robbery; valuables untouched
- Eating food in victims' homes
- Survivors universally remember nothing (due to head trauma)
Most chilling detail:
A taunting letter from the Axeman (published March 1919) claims he’ll spare anyone who "jazzes it" (plays jazz music) on a certain night.
Quote:
"I am very fond of jazz music. And I swear by all the devils... that every person shall be spared in whom a jazz band is in full swing at the time I have just mentioned. If everyone has a jazz band going... well then so much the better..." – The Axeman’s letter [41:58]
- On the appointed night, reportedly, "everyone jazzed it"—no one was killed.
- Theories abound: a supernatural killer, a drifter hopping railroads, even (via local historian Bond Ruggles) a woman who outsmarted everyone.
- Documentary evidence and possible links connect the Axeman to a much wider, decades-spanning American (and even German) axe murder spree—often crossing state lines near railroads, always marked by extreme violence and lack of theft.
Quote:
"They start listing all of the other unrelated unsolved but full family axe murders... all near railroad tracks. So this guy could have just been hopping on a train and just going... You do it. Jump on a train. You were never there." – Karen [64:03]
Notable Moments
- The “not today, motherfucker” survivor story and its new update [15:54–16:57; see above]
- Listener gifts: the handmade “Papin sisters” charm necklace with a clay eyeball [24:08–24:56]
- “Jazz it” as the nickname and cultural legacy of the case [41:58–43:52]
- Bizarre ghost photo on a navy ship—alleged to be the Axeman’s spirit [61:05–63:16]
Theories & Updates
- Possible German immigrant perpetrator (based on language, writing, and evidence left at crime scenes)
- Theory: “The man on the train”—murders follow railroad lines; one killer behind many infamous unsolved axe murders [68:03]
- Bond Ruggles’ alternative theory: “What if the Axeman was a woman?” [66:36]
2. William Bradford Bishop: The Vanishing Family Annihilator
[68:50–94:39] | Main story begins [74:43]
Summary
Georgia covers William Bradford Bishop—a “family annihilator” who, after missing out on a promotion in 1976, bought supplies (gas can, sledgehammer, shovel, pitchfork), bludgeoned his wife, mother, and three sons in Maryland, and transported their bodies for burning in rural North Carolina. Bishop, a Yale graduate, U.S. State Department officer, multilingual and a skilled traveler, disappeared and was never conclusively found.
Details:
- The murders discovered only after a neighbor’s concern; a bloody crime scene, particularly the children’s bedrooms (“hammer marks on the ceiling above the top bunk” [78:29])
- The case rankled investigators and Bishop’s psychiatrist (who quit practice, wracked with guilt)
- The hunt: Bishop’s trail goes cold after his dog is seen alive and his last known credit card purchase is logged.
- Three strong overseas sightings by acquaintances—suggesting he may have survived in Europe.
Quote:
"There's also, of course, been talk of Bishop being a victim of the MK Ultra mind control experiment by the CIA that went awry, causing him to kill his family..." – Georgia [86:38]
Notable Moments
- Hot-button comparison to John List, another family annihilator [90:09–90:23]
- The viral FBI "age progression" bust—“It’s Hugh Hefner’s creepy brother!” [83:38]
- Recurring motif: unbreakable patterns from childhood, “latchkey” loneliness, and the attempts to retroactively soothe your “inner child” with adult rituals [71:41–73:43, 82:02]
Updates
- [93:25] In 2021, DNA testing via 23andMe reveals that a woman, Kathy Gilchrist, is Bishop's biological daughter—born before the slain sons. This twist reopens public interest and FBI hope for closure.
Memorable Quotes & Moments
“Not Today, Motherfucker” Survivor Story
"I started clawing at his face. And I think that to me kind of hit me because it was like, this doesn't have to be civil. This can be fucking out of control." – Georgia [08:29]
Axeman on the Supernatural
"They have never caught me and they never will. They have never seen me, for I am invisible even as the ether that surrounds your earth. I am not a human being, but a spirit and a demon from the hottest hell..." – Axeman's letter [41:58]
Wittiest Food Comparison
_"You go... animal style. Like they serve it In-N-Out. You fucking go it." – Karen [09:12]
"Put that thousand island beat down." – Georgia [09:12]
On Cleaning Walls (Classic Banter)
"There are many walls in my house that look like the end of the Blair Witch, where there's just a bunch of child hands, like dirty fingerprints that look like people are trying to climb in or out of the house." – Karen [22:10]
Childhood & Rituals
"It seems like everything in adult life is just ways of kind of trying to... Give the child at that time a little bit of a bottle and like... somebody should have come and rubbed your back a little bit and made you actual food." – Karen [73:29]
On the Physical Toll of Laying Out in the Sun
"What am I, 37-year-old Georgia, tell her to get the fuck out of the sun. What is she doing? Why? Georgia, no, I'm just going to lay out for four hours... I don’t put any lotion on because you want to get the rays and the b. Georgia, stop it." – Georgia [98:17]
Important Timestamps
- [07:00–08:53] – Self-defense, the “not today motherfucker” runner, and safety discourse
- [15:54–17:51] – Update on Kelly Herron and Run Buddy
- [25:39] – Beginning of the Axeman of New Orleans story
- [41:58–43:52] – Reading of Axeman’s letter, “jazz it or get the axe”
- [61:05] – Ghost photo/Navy ship Axeman theory
- [66:36–68:35] – Alternative theories about the Axeman’s identity
- [74:43–94:39] – William Bradford Bishop case
- [93:25] – DNA/daughter update
Episode Ending: Light & Uplifting Moments
[94:50–99:37]
- Karen and Georgia revive the "good thing of the week" tradition—highlighting Georgia's poolside vitamin D quests and Karen's magical jasmine-scented neighborhood walks.
- Signature product endorsement detour: “magic erasers” for cleaning walls and the comedic speculation about their composition (“asbestos!”).
Quote:
"You are disgusting. And so, so are we. Magic eraser. That’s our promo." – Georgia [99:31]
- Final discussion: Renaming the episode, “Jazz It” holds up (“You're gonna pick Jazz it anyway because it’s the best title.”) [100:44]
- The episode closes with the beloved “stay sexy and don’t get murdered” sign-off... plus attempted pet meows.
Additional Notable Sections
-
Listener Gifts:
Papin sisters–inspired handmade necklace and locket – [24:08–24:56] -
Religion and Confession ([11:50–14:00]):
Anecdotes about Catholic third-grade confession stress and amusing cultural contrasts. -
Meta Moments:
Contemplation of how many “to-do’s” and plans the hosts have made over the years—steeped in self-aware humor about procrastination and ambition [17:53–18:24]
In Summary
This "rewind" balances true crime analysis with the hosts' trademark humor, skepticism, and empathy for victims, survivors, and listeners. The “Jazz It” episode remains a classic: celebrated for the macabre weirdness of the Axeman case, a memorable survivor’s grit, the unsettling Bradford Bishop mystery, and the hosts’ endearing tangents—ranging from childhood neuroses to the joys of a clean house. Whether you’re a diehard murderino or a new arrival, this episode is a perfect gateway to the offbeat brilliance of My Favorite Murder.
Stay sexy, and don’t get murdered.