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Doggone crime 2023: a true crime dog podcast opinion piece in 2 parts

Marlene Sharp
4 min readDec 25, 2023

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Blanche DuBois Sharp and Marlene Sharp again count down the year in true crime dog-centric podcasts.

Hi, it’s me Blanche. It’s also the 2023 year-end dog true crime podcast episode round-up, and Mama and me are howling mad. Actually, Mama says that we’re mostly nonplussed, because there are poor pooches and pooch people who are slandered, scandalized, scammed, assaulted, stalked, cyber stalked, roughed up, ruffed up, robbed, offed (mafia style!), and, in some really trying cases, vandalized. It is a travesty, but the best way to cope is to make podcasts from it. Podcasts give Mama and me lots of cocktail (and dog tale) conversation topics, plus they turn into TV shows and movies which keep Mama employed and me in treats. Every dog has his/her/their/its day, and everybody wins, except for the dead folks. On the other hand (or paws), we all croak anyway, diamonds are a girl’s best friend (except for her dog), and we might as well turn turds into entertainment. And life’s turds make the best docu-dramas!

The following are our picks of the podcast litter. This means that they are tops in terms of 2023 true crime podcast episodes that feature one or more dogs prominently. These pup stars might be victims, heroes, perpetrators, witnesses, and/or unreliable narrators; all are 100% real and deserve to have their dog voices heard, regardless of halitosis. Every story has three sides: yours, mine, and the dog’s. None is more important than the rest! (unless you ask me . . .)

On with the best in shows!

10) AARP’s THE PERFECT SCAM, Episode 166, DOG HOSPICE VICTIMIZED BY BANK IMPERSONATION FRAUD. Old Dogs Go to Helen is a New Hampshire non-profit geriatric canine care facility. Helen and her husband Jake run it on lots of donations. Sadly, there are crooks that want these funds for no good reason, except to buy stuff; the stinkers probably don’t even have pets! Anyhow, the baddies stage an elaborate cell phone-style swindle, and poor Helen falls for it.

9) DISS AND TELL, Episode 18, JOAN RIVERS AND JOHNNY CARSON. This episode is mostly about an epic feud between two deceased comedians: Joan Rivers and some no-talent big shot who bullied her for decades. There is one really heartwarming part, though, in which Joan Rivers’ beloved Yorkie Spike saves her from suicide.

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Marlene Sharp
Marlene Sharp

Written by Marlene Sharp

Marlene Sharp is a creative and business-savvy entertainment multi-hyphenate who originally hails from New Orleans but is now a (San Fernando) Valley girl.

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