Snap Judgment

Hear how one of Yugoslavia’s top basketball players attempts to escape the Siege of Sarajevo and don't miss The Nocturnists late night meltdown at the morgue.

"The Choice" from the Lucky Podcast

Nada Rothbart thought she’d have plenty of time to get her family out of Sarajevo. Suddenly, it was too late.

This story originally aired on Lucky podcast, listen to part two of Nada’s story "The Choice" here.

"Live At The Morgue" from The Nocturnists Podcast

What do you do when the morgue has a total meltdown. Galen Laserson tells her story live at The Nocturnists.  Its host and creator is Emily Silverman, MD, its executive producer is Ali Block, MD, and its podcast producer is Marina Poole. 

Season 9 Episode 16

In the desert of northern South Africa you come across a little puddle.  If you dive down into that puddle, at the bottom there is a slot.  This is the entrance to third largest freshwater cave in the world. This is where the adventure begins.  

Producer: Julia DeWitt

At the height of the Cold War, Ulrike Poppe just might have been the most surveilled woman in the world. But it was only after the wall fell that things got really interesting.

Producer: Luisa Beck with Production Assistance By Joe Rosenberg

Original Score: Renzo Gorrio

Season 9 Episode 15

For two years, ISIS fought to take over the city of Mosul, killing 40,000 civilians. This is a story about a group of men and women from around the world who packed up their bags, flew into Iraq, and made their way to Mosul to try their hand at fighting ISIS back.

Season 9 Episode 14

When a rising high school track star in Eritrea, East Africa, is arrested under the military dictatorship, he realizes he might have a way out....run.

Season 9 Episode 13

On Atlas Peak there is one way in and one way out.  When wildfire threatened their homes, the only escape route...was up.

Check out KQED's fire investigation.

Producer: Sukey Lewis

Season 9 Episode 12

There is a line, draw it in the sand, shake on it, mark it in blood, but if you cross it... there is no going back.

Season 6 Episode 12

Stories of young people using every trick in their little arsenal to win praise and love, only to find themselves alone in the end.

Season 9 Episode 11 

Paul Berczeller examines the case of Takako Konishi, who died in a frozen forest on the North Dakota/Minnesota border looking for the treasure from the Coen Brother’s film Fargo.  

Producer: Joe Rosenberg

KC was a rising star, improving Detroit’s most troubled public schools. But to do that, she cut some legal corners that put her in prison.

Season 9 Episode 10

Counted: An Oakland Story is a yearlong look at the people lost to Oakland’s violence. During 2017, a team of Snap Judgment producers learned about Oakland’s homicide victims, their families and communities. Visit oaklandstory.org for more interviews, photos, and illustrations.

Season 9 Episode 9

When the going gets tough, the tough make stuff happen. Featuring stories about rattlesnakes pageant queens, Apache orphans, and the legendary Xiao Xiao.

Avraham’s story was included in a 12-part Hebrew webseries called Neviim: Operation Amramby Elad Ben Elul (@Eladbenelul) and Yossi Brauman. Read hundreds more testimonies like Avraham’s at Amram’s website. The Amram association has collected hundreds of saliva samples from people who connected to the kidnapping affair.

Producer: Shaina Shealy

Season 9 Episode 8

In 1989, an enormous earthquake struck the Bay Area. One of Oakland’s major arteries, the Cypress Freeway, collapsed. And one man named Raven left his home and dove into the wreckage to save lives.

This story comes from Liam O'Donoghue, host and producer of the podcast East Bay Yesterday.

Producers: Liam O'Donoghue and Eliza Smith

Original Score: Davey Kim

Season 9 Episode 7

When Snap Judgment producer Davey Kim was in eighth grade, he went to the regional level spelling bee with his best friend...and took R-E-V-E-N-G-E.

The story of how Mokhtar Akhanshali braved a civil war to bring Yemeni coffee to the world.  

Dave Egger’s biography of Mokhtar, The Monk of Mokha, is available wherever books are sold. And be sure to check out the book’s instagram at @themonkofmokha.

Producer: Joe Rosenberg

Original Score: Renzo Gorrio

Season 9 Episode 6

Ear Hustle brings you stories of life inside prison, shared and produced by those living it. The podcast is a partnership between Earlonne Woods and Antwan Williams, currently incarcerated at San Quentin State Prison, and Nigel Poor, a Bay Area artist.

The team works in San Quentin’s media lab to produce stories that are sometimes difficult, often funny, and always honest, offering a nuanced view of people living within the American prison system.

Find out more about Ear Hustle and Subscribe to the podcast on their website, www.EarHustleSQ.com

Season 9 Episode 5

Snap spends a year with three Mission High School seniors Brantin, Damaris, and Alex as they try to make sense of adulthood in a rapidly changing San Francisco.

Producers: Adizah Eghan, Liz Mak, Eliza Smith, Anna Sussman and Mark Ristich.

Original Score: Pat Mesiti-Miller and Renzo Gorrio

Special Thanks: Chandra Shivakumar from Mission High

Season 9 Episode 4

What sounds would you want memorize if you were told you were going to be completely deaf before you turned 28?

Producer: April Dembosky

Original Score: Renzo Gorrio

Sound Design: Leon Morimoto and April Dembosky

Season 9 Episode 3

What happens when boy meets girl and… fungus?

Season 9 Episode 2

What if you were born to twerk it, but you didn't know how to work it? Estee Rose grew up in a tight-knit Ultra-Orthodox neighborhood in Brooklyn. Find out how she reclaims her faith after she loses it in a tumultuous series of events. To channel Estee’s tunes, check out producer Shaina Shealy’s Spotify playlist, “Zumba Estee”. 

Season 9 Episode 1

What if one day you found out you look like one of the most famous people in the country -- who everybody hates?

Lynn Harris is an author, commentator, award-winning journalist and mostly-retired comedian. She has a new business, teaching comedy to teenage girls. You can find her performing on stage as Tonya Harding here.

Producer: Liz Mak

There are big stories with weight, little stories with heart, and then the stories that are just STOOPID.

Season 8 Episode 33 

Before there was Zimbabwe, there was the “Heavy” scene. In the 1970’s, Rock music rang out from the black townships in Rhodesia. One band, Wells Fargo, became the voice of the people. Founding members Ebba Chitambo and Never Mpofu tell their story of music and revolution in the face of an oppressive government.Wells Fargo’s new release Watch Out! is available now through Vinyl Me Please.Learn more about the work Matthew Shechmeister and Eothen “Egon” Alapatt are doing to document the Heavy scene at Now-Again Records.  Producer: Pat Mesiti-MillerCorrespondent: Albert NyathiFeaturing Music by Wells FargoCourtesy of Now-Again Records

The Snap Judgment Holiday Special features two good Santas in "Miracle on 22nd Street," a misguided angel in "Preaching to the Choir," and Snap story makers as they look back on their favorite stories of 2017.

Season 8 Episode 32

Let Moss Hills take you on sea cruise…

Producer: Joe Rosenberg

Sound Design: Renzo Gorrio

In 1962, in a very small, very white suburb of Chicago, a young couple set out to adopt a baby girl.

This story was produced in collaboration with The New York Times.

Producers: Amy Roost and Anna Sussman

Season 8 Episode 31

James Vlahos wanted to keep his dad around for as long as possible, so he saved the best part about him in the best way he knew how.

Season 8 Episode 30

Jay J. Armes was a real life superhero ... until real life intruded.   Also be sure to check out Gary Cartwright’s original 1976 article on Jay J. Armes for Texas Monthly. Producer: Vanessa Rancano Sound Design: Leon Morimoto

We're dropping the story-pocalypse...performed LIVE! at San Francisco's Nourse Theater.

Season 5 Episode 21 

"The Outbreak" - What do you do when a life-threatening disease makes it too dangerous to save the person closest to you.

"Grits and Sausages" - When Ray Christian was a young boy, he longed to hear the voice of God.

"The Blue Bear" - For Lynn Schooler grew up in Alaska hearing rumor after rumor about the elusive blue bear. 

Season 8 Episode 29

From Russia With Love

Two women, a tiny boat, the wide-open ocean...and kismet.  

Elena has written a book about their adventure, called Talking to the Moon. You can read the story on the couple’s website.

Producer: Liz Mak

Original Score: Leon Morimoto

Season 8 Episode 28

Tameer is part of an ethnic minority in northern Israel called Druze. When he is struck on the head as a young boy he inherits an entire new lifetime of memories.

Original Score: Renzo Gorrio

Producer: Shaina Shealy

Cowboy Ghost

Valerie is lost in a snowstorm in rural Montana. She thinks she might not be able to get out, when she sees two headlights coming to her through the storm. Help is on the way - she hopes. Valerie’s story comes to us from the book Trucker Ghost Stories, edited by Annie Wilder.

Producer: Eliza Smith

Voice In The Woods

When the voice says "Stop" you stay perfectly still. And when the voice says "Run!" you had better run.

Producer: Eliza Smith 

Season 8 Episode 26

Great Aunt Rose

When Christina McKenna’s cruel aunt comes back from the grave to make amends--she’s not sure if she can forgive. Read more about Christina’s childhood in Ireland in her book, My Mother Wore A Yellow Dress.

Devil’s Water

Attempting to dig the family well in rural Michigan, Glynn's family comes up dry – until Daddy cuts a deal with the Devil.

Season 8 Episode 25

Confessions of a Baby Snatcher

The ‘work’ of social work is a lot more complicated than Katie Leavitt first thought. Luckily, a little voice helps to guide her.

Producer: Anna Sussman

Original Score and Sound Design: Leon Morimoto

Get The Hook Up!

Sometimes, you know your big shot when you see it.

Ayanna Dookie and Seaton Smith are both comedians living in New York.

Producer: Liz Mak

Original Score and Sound Design: Renzo Gorrio

The story of two men who come face to face one night in the canyon lands of southern Utah.

Producer:  Joe Rosenberg

Original Score and Sound Design: Leon Morimoto

Season 8 Episode 23

Time Warp Saloon

The neon sign blinks at the roadhouse bar. The jukebox plays an old tune as the bartender shouts, "Last Call." Just one more. Why not? What could it hurt?

This story came to Spooked from Jim Harold’s Campfire Podcast, hosted by Jim Harold, check it out at JimHarold.com.

Love Letters

Mark Spencer lived in the haunted house with the ghost of Ladell - and we are eternally grateful that he stuck around long enough to bring us his story. Mark Spencer and his family have lived in the Allen House since 2007. Visit him online at AllenHouseTours.com

Season 8 Episode 22

When an immovable object meets an unstoppable force, what is left standing?

Season 7 Episode 14

Goose Justice

Snap storyteller Abdul Kenyatta was taught to be wary of the police. Then one day he found a way to turn the tables.

Benjamin and The Bear

Back when he was kid, Benjamin was a scrawny outcast with a penchant for tinkering. He liked to  go on adventures in the abandoned mining town where he grew up, seeking discarded electronics to repair. One day he goes on an adventure that he will never forget.

Season 8 Episode 21

Luna The Whale

In 2004, a lost baby orca named Luna swam towards Vancouver Island and tried to befriend humans. Then the First Nations and the Department of Oceans and Fisheries got involved.

To learn more about Luna's story, check out Michael Parfit and Suzanne Chisholm's documentary.

Producer: Davey Kim

Season 8 Episode 20

The hardest character to play is the character without a script.

Magic Lamp

Glynn's good luck charm goes missing.

Producer: Mark Ristich

Cassandro El Exotico

Cassandro is an up-and-coming luchador, a professional Mexican wrestler. He wants to get to the big arenas. He's got the talent, no doubt. But because he's also one of the only openly gay fighters, he's got an uphill battle to get the crowd and the press on his side. 

Producer: Eliza SmithSound Design: Leon Morimoto

Gina Gold - The Lusty Lady

Pimps beware! Gina Gold is on superhero duty.

Performed live at Snap LIVE! in Oakland's Paramount TheaterMusic composed by Alex Mandel and performed by Alex Mandel, David Brandt, and Tim Frick

Neal Brennan - Three Mics

Neal Brennan writer, director, comedian and co-creator of Chappelle's Show is in the studio telling a story from his one-man show Three Mics.

Performed by: Neal BrennanProducer: Lina Misitzis and Mark Ristich

Season 7 Episode 10

Supernatural Storytelling. Experience Snap's new haunted podcast, "Spooked!"

 Featuring "Houdini’s Promise" and "The Night Mother."

BOO! Get the NEW Spooked Podcast now at SpookedPodcast.org. 

Border Bogeyman

Rocky Elmore used to work down by the border during long pitch-black nights in the desert. It was so dark you never knew who or what was out there.

Rocky’s previous story with Snap Judgment was The Phantom Border Patrol Agent.

For more stories of natural and supernatural happenings on the border, be sure to check out Rocky’s book, Out On Foot: Nightly Patrols and Ghostly Tales of A U.S. Border Patrol Agent and his website, RockyElmore.com

Tooki Man

Trekking in Indonesia, Ian and Stuart wander off the beaten path.  There, a broken man tells them he knows the way to magic . . .

The Trail of Polaroids

After arriving home from work, Douglas Leach saw a Polaroid lying on his front step. He picked it up. He shouldn't have. . .

Past Life Detective

Detective Bob Snow could never have imagined that the toughest case of his entire career, would be an investigation into his own past....life.  Check out Bob Snow’s books here. 

Season 8 Episode 19

Promises. Some of them are worthless, and some of them have infinite value, and some you will never know how much they are worth... until you have to cash them in.

Season 7 Episode 7

Amazing people wrestling with tough opponents and big decisions. Featuring Anthony Robles, the grappler that could take you down with one leg, and the Von Erich wrestling family whose glitz and fame was riddled with pain and sacrifice.

Season 8 Episode 18

When your back is against the wall and you're all out of options, you don't want to break the law...but it wants to break you. Featuring the story of an imprisoned Iranian fiancee and a personal story from the Daily Show's Hasan Minhaj.

Season 7 Episode 1

Amazing stories from people pushing the limits of their own mortality. Featuring the story of a skeptical journalist turned mountain climber.

Season 8 Episode 17

Fantastic stories from people paid to do our dirty work.

Season 5 Episode 6 

At the Cadillac Hotel, an SRO in San Francisco’s Tenderloin District, a resident has gone missing. Her long time lover and best friend won’t rest until she is found.