The Vanishing of Janis Rose | Episode 1: “Like a Ghost”

Podcast: The Binge Crimes: The Vanishing of Janis Rose
Host: Larison Campbell (Sony Music Entertainment)
Release Date: September 2, 2025
Episode: 1 – “Like a Ghost”

Episode Overview

The premiere episode of “The Vanishing of Janis Rose” peers into the unexplained disappearance of Janis Rose Bullock, a young mother of four from small-town Mississippi, who vanished in the 1970s. Host Larison Campbell delves into the social dynamics and secrets of Columbia, MS, unraveling a four-decade-old mystery that spans multiple states, marriages, and brushes with the criminal underworld. Through interviews, personal reflection, and archival research, Campbell introduces Janis’s world, the circumstances of her disappearance, and the enduring consequences for her family and community.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Enigma of Janis Rose (01:01–05:40)

• Campbell opens with reflections on the unknowability of people, quoting Oscar Wilde:

  “The final mystery is oneself. ... Because of course, if we never know ourselves, how can anyone else?” (01:24)

• Janis’s move to Columbia in summer 1970 coincides with a literal and metaphorical storm, suggesting her disappearance may have been foreshadowed by chaos.
• In 1970s Columbia, social norms are strict—stores close midweek, premarital sex is taboo, and everyone knows everyone else.
• Janis’s sudden absence shocks the community; local gossip fills the void as years pass with no answers.

Social Context & Host’s Personal Connection (05:40–06:31)

• The case’s personal resonance for Campbell is clear—she too is from a small Mississippi town, familiar with secrets hidden in plain sight:

  “I know better than most how easy it is to hide darkness where no one is looking for it.” (05:32)

• The search for Janis spans “three states ... two families ... even onto the trail of the most prolific serial killer in history.” (05:51)
• Early narrative teases include possible fraud, identity theft, and serial murder.

The Day Janis Disappeared (06:31–13:32)

• Janis’s best friend since eighth grade, Kathy Ford, recounts the day she received a confusing phone call from Janis’s sister and the unsettling realization:

  “I didn’t think she would have left her children.” (08:42)

• Kathy and Janis’s family become worried when it’s revealed Glenn, Janis’s husband, has all four children, but Janis is gone.
• Various rumors and “ghost stories” emerge—a supposed sighting in a Jackson café where Janis denies her identity (12:12–12:44), sightings of her in a red car, or with a truck driver, adding to the confusion and pain:

  “These encounters sound like ghost stories. And maybe that’s how Janis was starting to seem too. Like a ghost.” (13:19)

Family & Small-Town Dynamics (13:32–15:35)

• Janis’s large, well-known family in Columbia makes her disappearance an especially public and painful affair.
• Eventually, Kathy and Janis’s mother resign themselves to the worst:

  “Somebody had murdered her. ... And her mother said someone must have killed her.” (15:23)

Suspicion Falls on Glenn (15:35–19:34)

• Glenn, Janis’s high school sweetheart and eventual husband, rapidly remarries after Janis’s disappearance—specifically to a much younger woman, possibly the family babysitter:

  “He divorced her for desertion and then he married the babysitter.” (17:30)

• Kathy and others retrospectively analyze Glenn and Janis’s relationship, piecing together his perceived emotional distance and Janis’s lively personality.

Janis’s Attempt to Leave (20:32–23:27)

• Janis once left Glenn and moved into her own apartment, taking some of the children.

  “She’s like, nothing. I’m like, has he hit you? No. Are you sure? I, I’m sure. Does he drink? No. I just don’t want to be married anymore.” (23:03)

• Kathy is shocked; such moves were unheard of in 1970s Mississippi, where legal and social norms heavily favored men.

  “Glen had the upper hand. And from where Kathy was sitting, he intended to keep it.” (24:04)

Community Judgment, Rumors, and Aftermath (24:24–27:00)

• Janis ultimately returns to Glenn for a while, but happiness is evasive. Eventually, Glenn gets custody of the children.
• Glenn never calls Janis’s friends looking for her. Kathy is left convinced Glenn didn’t want Janis found, fueling rumors of foul play:

  “I thought he was glad she was gone and left the children. And I thought if he killed her, it’s because he didn’t want her to take the children.” (26:21)

• Third of women murdered in the U.S. are killed by intimate partners—an ominous statistic.

A New Lead Decades Later (27:00–30:19)

• In 2017, a message from an amateur sleuth revives the investigation. The case is handed to Major Mark Ogden at the Pearl River County Sheriff’s Department.
• Ogden’s investigation reveals that the original disappearance was barely documented—no missing persons report until 2017.

Major Mark Ogden’s Investigation (30:19–35:23)

• Ogden starts his inquiry by interviewing Janis’s daughters—now adults still searching for answers:

  “She said, you know, I don’t know if she’s alive or dead. I want to know. I said, we’ll try.” (30:19)

• Society columns and court filings reconstruct Janis’s life; her last public mention is a 1974 classified ad about divorce proceedings.
• Ultimately, her trail ends in bureaucracy—a lingering custody hearing she never attends.

Eliminating Glenn as a Suspect (33:10–33:59)

• Ogden interviews Glenn and finds “absolutely nothing there that said he did anything other than the right thing.” (Major Mark Ogden, 33:41)
• Ogden is left without suspects and with more questions.

Chilling Discoveries (34:30–35:23)

• Further investigation reveals Janis’s Social Security number hasn’t surfaced since the 1970s—a sign she may have died.

  “No bank account. That means no tax form. ... No use, no nothing. ... I thought we were going to find a headstone if we're lucky.” (34:30)

• Hints emerge of another man in Janis’s life—a murderer—suggesting the story is just beginning.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Identity and the Unknown:

  “Maybe the real self is more elusive. Of all the great Oscar Wilde quotes, there’s this one—‘the final mystery is oneself.’”
  — Larison Campbell (01:08)

• Kathy on Janis Leaving:

  “I didn’t think she would have left her children.” (08:42)

• On Small-Town Life:

  “If you didn’t know Janis, you probably knew one of her sisters, a cousin, or her mom who worked down at the hardware store.”
  — Larison Campbell (10:50)

• Kathy After Decades of Mystery:

  “Somebody had murdered her. ... Her mother said someone must have killed her.” (15:23)

• Major Mark Ogden on Glenn:

  “Absolutely nothing there that said he did anything other than the right thing. ... I did not feel like he had anything to do with it.” (33:41)

• Chilling New Evidence:

  “The Social Security number ... had been used since the seventies. ... No use, no nothing. ... I thought we were going to find a headstone if we’re lucky.”
  — Major Mark Ogden (34:30)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Opening/Theme Framing: 01:01–05:40
• The Disappearance & Initial Reactions: 06:31–13:32
• Community Rumors & Ghost Stories: 13:32–15:35
• Suspicions About Glenn: 15:35–19:34
• Janis’s Attempted Separation & Return: 20:32–25:08
• Town Judgment and Aftermath: 25:08–27:00
• The Revival of the Cold Case: 27:00–30:19
• Major Ogden’s Case Review: 30:19–33:59
• Ogden’s Chilling Discovery: 34:30–35:23

Tone and Style

The episode is investigative yet intimate, mixing methodical unraveling of clues with deep empathy for its subjects. Larison Campbell’s narration is thoughtful, sometimes tinged with melancholy and Southern familiarity.

Summary Takeaways

• Janis Rose’s disappearance is a haunting mystery, intertwining family secrets, small-town dynamics, shifting social expectations, and unresolved grief.
• The narrative explores both the facts and emotional consequences of Janis’s vanishing, placing her daughters, friends, and even skeptical law enforcement at the heart of the investigation.
• As the investigation picks up decades later, rumors and records lead only to more difficult questions—and a final twist points toward possible entanglement with a known murderer.

This first episode lays a rich groundwork for a story filled with emotional complexity, surprising twists, and a search for truth that spans generations.