01/16/2026
What happens if you discover something so diabolical, so terrifying, and so frankly preposterous that it cannot possibly be true? What if nobody—not your friends, not your family, not the press, not even the entire nation—believes you? Are you simply crazy? Do you need professional help? Maybe even involuntary commitment?
What happens when you’re proven to be right?
This is what happened to Martha Mitchell. She was the wife of John Mitchell, former attorney general under Richard Nixon. This week Scotty tells Amelia about “the Martha Mitchell effect,” i.e. what happens when a person’s seemingly outlandish “delusions” are revealed to be true. Aside from Martha’s tale, they look at fictional examples—particularly the works of writer Ira Levin (“Rosemary’s Baby,” “The Stepford Wives”)—and the harrowing true story of a would-be police whistleblower in New York City.
Sometimes they really are out to get you.
WARNING: This episode contains spoilers for both “Rosemary’s Baby” and “The Stepford Wives.”
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- Socialite and “Mouth of the South” Martha Mitchell
- Author Ira Levin and his acclaimed paranoid masterpieces
- Former NYPD officer and whistleblower Adrian Schoolcraft
- Flower arrangement at Martha Mitchell’s funeral
