Episode 673: Chowchilla Kidnapping: 26 Kids, 28 Hours, 1 School Bus

Explicit content warning

07/28/22 • 79 min

On this episode of the Sofa King Podcast, we talk about a strange case of True Crime known as the Chowchilla Bus Kidnapping. In 1976, three men (Frederick Woods, James Schoenfeld, and Richard Schoenfeld) did the unthinkable. As bus driver Ed Ray was driving 26 children back from a pool outing, the kidnappers boarded their school bus and held them at gunpoint. Then, the children and Ray were forced to endure an 11 hour claustrophobic bus ride and were dumped into a buried moving truck for 16 hours. Everyone from the media to the FBI swarmed the town. So, what did it take for them to escape? Were any of them harmed? How did all the victims end up in a prison? Why weren’t the kidnappers ever able to ask for their ransom demand? Listen, laugh, learn. Visit Our Sources: https://www.cityofchowchilla.org/300/1976-Bus-Kidnapping https://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/chowchilla-bus-kidnapping-frederick-woods-rare-photos-from-one-of-the-largest-kidnappings-in-u-s-history/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1976_Chowchilla_kidnapping https://www.cnn.com/2022/04/02/us/chowchilla-bus-kidnapping-victim-trauma/index.html https://www.vox.com/the-highlight/22570738/chowchilla-school-bus-kidnapping https://www.ranker.com/list/chowchilla-bus-kidnapping-facts/jodi-smith https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/29/us/chowchilla-kidnapping-parole.html

Previous Episode

Episode 672: Solar Flares: The Sun’s 11 Year Itch

On this episode of the Sofa King Podcast, we turn our eyes to the heavens and talk about Solar Flares. These nasty little critters blast off of the sun in eleven year cycles and can wreak havoc with high tech equipment. In the past, people didn’t care much about this phenomenon. For one, they didn’t have telescopes to see them, and even once they did, they just didn’t matter. But now, living in a world of satellites, GPS, cell phones and radio waves, these bursts of electromagnetic energy could really do some damage to our tech and even society at large. What was the biggest solar flare ever detected? Do people on earth die due to the Solar Flares? How much money did a Solar Flare cost Elon Musk when his Starlink satellite program got slammed by a flare? What is the real danger of them, and do you need to become a prepper? Listen, laugh, learn? Visit Our Sources: https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/phenomena/solar-flares-radio-blackouts https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_flare https://www.livemint.com/news/world/solar-storm-to-strike-earth-tomorrow-expect-mobile-gps-satellite-disruptions-11658224464966.html https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/What_are_solar_flares https://www.space.com/solar-flares-effects-classification-formation https://www.spaceanswers.com/solar-system/five-amazing-facts-about-solar-flares/ https://www.space.com/12584-worst-solar-storms-sun-flares-history.html Deaths Per Year Article https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_cycle

Next Episode

Episode 674: Mike Judge: King of the Cult Hit

On this episode of the world famous Sofa King Podcast, we look at the one of the best comedic minds of our generation, Mike Judge. Judge blew up with his smash TV show Beavis and Butthead. It was an anthem to Generation X and a huge hit on MTV, spawning movies, and forcing people to do bad impressions of the main characters for years. He created King of the Hill which was a ratings hit, and he directed live action cult films such as Office Space and Idiocracy. Mike Judge has suffered controversy and success over the years, and has left us with everything from red Swingline staplers to President Camacho. Give this one a listen! Visit Our Sources: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0431918/bio https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/mike-judge-6996.php https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Judge https://www.celebritynetworth.com/richest-businessmen/producers/mike-judge-net-worth/ https://www.ranker.com/list/mike-judge-facts/erik-barnes https://www.cracked.com/article_32961_mike-judge-15-know-you-know-facts.html https://qz.com/work/1575833/how-the-red-stapler-in-office-space-changed-swingline/ https://beavisandbutthead.fandom.com/wiki/Fire_Controversy https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/mike-judge-beavis-butthead-comic-con-1235184504/