There are no two Orrs. It’s just one psychopath wearing a mask to conceal his true identity. He was trying to scam the reporter because he was useful, right? Like, “the reporter is useful to me right now, I need him in my orbit. Once the reporter figured out his con, Orr had nothing to say. It was checkmate. Like a flick of the switch, he’s not answering the reporter because the reporter is no longer useful. I dont know why the reporter gave him a chance to think about it. Psychopaths are NOT remorseful, ever.

I, too, remember this case! It was incredible. Thank you!

An excellent podcast; well researched, extremely well presented. Super interesting story. Many podcasters could learn from this one. 2 Thumbs up!

Seems like a great show, but at some point did it change to you had to subscribe? Everything is always a subscription. Is it possible to listen WITH ads for FREE?

I was just about to start the story when I noticed in fine print that only episode 1 is free. There’s too much great free content out there. I’ll go find something else.

I love the show I’ve listened to it at least 3 time and recommend it to a lot of my friends. Now it being released again behind a pay wall. It feels like a money grab I’ve been a subscriber to this series for almost 2 years and know I have to wait to listen to the series I’ve already downloaded unless I pay I’m pretty disappointed.

This story is wild. So worth binging. Listen to it all in a few days and very pleased to have paid for the ad free version. Wild, wild story.

Not sure what happened, downloaded all episodes and started listening, then went to resume episode 5 with 7 mins left and would not play and asked to get a plus whatever, so yeah, bummer. If I didn’t know how it ended I would be more than just slightly annoyed…maybe an algorithm determined I should pay to listen to the episodes I had already downloaded? Not happy.

Ok, I’ve been listening to this podcast with no issue. I have 6 minutes left of episode 4. Today I hit play and it suddenly wants me to pay? What is going on here?

I listen to a lot of podcasts while walking my dogs. Most of them shouldn’t be multiple episodes long and are so biased that they are unlistenable. This show is so well told that the listener wants to keep the story going!

I binged this and do not regret it! The story in itself is wild and Kary did an amazing job telling it. You truly feel the emotions listening to interviews of people close to the victims or people who lived through it. I could not stop listening, Highly recommend ! And Thank you for the hard work you clearly put into this podcast !

This show is phenomenal. I’ve heard this story before on other podcasts, but nowhere near as detailed and with a personal touch. The production and audio are too notch. I couldn’t stop listening and neglected all my other usual podcasts to binge this one start to finish. Please listen!!

I actually did binge listen to this 10 chapter story. Very well told and tightly woven narrative. The voices were also pleasant.

Excellent show, absolutely bizarre story told with great skill.

I appreciate the reporting and pace

Sir, you rode this story from interesting beginning to blazing end. Congratulations and thank you. Thank God for your perseverance! Anyone can present facts and tell a story, it’s a diff type of human who can immerse themselves in another’s story and tell it with such captivating clarity. You have done that and then some! I’m truly grateful for finding your podcast and getting to experience your craft first-hand. Magnificent job! You and your team have succeeded in chronicling a much-needed look at the “firebug”. Hats off to ya’!

This is a great podcast ! I’ve heard this story before this is the best version. 5 stars

I have heard many stories about this man and this podcast was extremely interesting! 5 stars!

You found it. Settle in. Just Listen. One of the best, most complex , most powerful, underrated podcasts I’ve ever heard. Not just a story about an arsonist, it’s a story about mayhem. The producers delicately and respectfully and maybe inadvertently pose questions about trust, justice, truth, fear, and the vulnerable duality we balance within our own minds. The subject is fire but the context is ambiguous and lays somewhere within the realm of the human spirit. Definitely check this podcast out. It’s a work of art. One other thing: the authors of this podcast need to go into movie writing. We are starving for a film with this much complexity.

This was so incredibly interesting! And it just got better & better until the reveals on the last couple episodes. I only listen to podcasts while I’m driving & whenever I remembered that I still had episodes of this to listen to, I couldn’t wait to get into the car and drive! I also was captivated by Crooked City Youngstown. And the guy who narrated this, Kary, the tone & slowness to his voice made this so easy to listen to & the 100% sincerity that came through was goose-bump inducing! Excellent podcast, I learned so much. What an incredible story, thank you for sharing it with us.

Great reporting, super interesting story! Would definitely recommend!

Storytelling at its finest! Even if you know story this podcast will pull you in.

Spoilers ahead: I really enjoyed this series up until the final 2 episodes. The story telling and interviews were great even though it was obvious from episode 2 that John was the arsonist. What bothered me was the whole dual personality theory. I felt that it was obvious that Orr was an egotistical narcissist. From his description of the casualties in the hardware store as “stupid” to his affect and attitude throughout the interviews. He clearly thinks he is more clever than the rest of us and I believe finds enjoyment in proclaiming his innocence and manipulating those who believe him. The whole dueling personalities/wanting to get caught explanation just felt incredibly hollow to me and like a cop out for Orr due to the narrators personal relationship with the subject.

I remember this story from the news here in Los Angeles way back in the 90s. This podcast is so good! It’s a really great telling of a terrible, frightening story.

Great narrative and well-put together!

Grabs you from the first minute. This is truly excellent storytelling, a wild ride that will keep you entertained for hours. Elevated true crime.

Was afraid at first I would miss out on some of the fun, because I’m old enough to recognize which case this was right away. But the storytelling was really engaging, so I was happy to listen anyway because it’s a great one and was being told so well. Then bam! So much more good stuff! Excellent storytelling structure by introducing certain elements at times that make them hit with more impact, rather than just a straight retelling. Amazing insight and perspective and observations from the writer. I could really feel why you wanted to revisit this, and I was right there with you. Was disappointed in the green beret murders series also released by this studio, but Kary: your strong storytelling skills, grueling introspective work, and ultimately trust in letting your editors push you and challenge you (I’m sure that wasn’t easy at a few points) made for an incredibly engaging series. Honestly, I would’ve been happy just hearing you retell the story, I was already enjoying that part so much. But to load the bases and then come in swinging with all the extra work, untold details, new interviews, and of course new content and insight from the subject…knocked it out of the park.

This is one of the best crime shows I have listened to. Kary did a great job. I hope he makes more podcasts.

I kept thinking I knew what would happen next. Nope! This one kept me on edge and addicted the entire time. Get ready to binge, my friends. 😊

Very bring worthy and interesting

The interview with the ex-wife brought up so many new details. I binged this podcast in one night then listened again the following day.

Well written, great cut between interviews and narration. Great story. I’m fussy about podcasts and mr. Antholis absolutely knocks this out of the park. Btw great choice for the voice work in reading parts of the book. Just thright amount of arrogance, narcissism and creepiness. 5 stars!!

In episode 3(?) where John just happens to show up to catch the firebug and I knew we had an arsonist. Good old disgustingly creepy John. This is an addictive listen. I was impressed by your questions of him as they were personal and tough. Thank you for doing this podcast. John’s a perverted freak who lusts after fire. Gross. I would love to know how freaky his love life and the truth of his sexual deviance, but then again would I? You’re right John, sex sells. Blood is on your hands.

Not all of the commercials. While I know I can pay to listen without them, however I don’t mind listening to the commercials because I have gotten some new podcasts to listen to. My only complaint is that the commercials are extremely long - way longer than they should be. Otherwise a really great listen!

An entertaining Podcast by an amazing storyteller

This podcast does such an effective job marching through this 30+ year story in a way that builds suspense over each episode. The overlay of the reading of the creepy, poorly-written Point of Origin novel combined with the final hypothesis had me on the edge of my seat. I suppose it is especially riveting if you can relate to John Orr’s personality disorders and if you are familiar with the area, but I don’t believe those things are necessarily to go along for the ride. The massive interviews scored (investigators, the prosecuting DA, the daughter, and ex-wife) buttressed the story in the best way. Well done.

I Live in Southern California and have never heard The story. The journalism is amazing the production superb and the storytelling top-notch! I binged the entire series in one afternoon. EXCELLENT!

This is a great series! Absolutely everything is top notch! This old story is compelling, to be sure… but everything about this deep dive is fantastic. Love the incredible attention to details, the storytelling, interviews, the production levels, even the formatting. You did not miss a beat! Well done and thank you!!!!

Completely taken by surprise in the best way. Such a great host. I couldn’t stop listening.

I’ve listened to many podcasts that have covered this. This puts every one of them in the dust… incredibly well done & informative. This is actually binge-worthy.

I became ABSOLUTELY OBSESSED with this podcast - totally binge-able content and storytelling here. The pace slows down after the first couple episodes, but the way the story unfolded was masterful and held my attention to the end. Very well done job with this one!

I am a serial podcast listener and this was one of the most interesting, well written and well hosted pods I have given my time to. A unique and informative subject. I’m bummed that it’s over. Well done.

His voice is AWFUL. I can’t stand the cheap theatricality and stagey whisper… couldn’t do more than 10 seconds of this and then had to turn it off before I puked.

This could have been a decent podcast, but it comes off mundane and slow. even as background noise, I struggled to stay engaged. The premise and subject matter left a great opportunity to develop an investigative podcast that captivated listeners, but I left less captivated and more captured by the droll mundane story telling.

Gripping chapters and amazing storytelling.

Digestible chapters, gripping storytelling, great interviews and perfect audio mixing. This held my attention throughout! What a wild story.

Loved this podcast! Kept me hooked the whole time, even though I didn’t think I’d be interested in the topic. Excellent!

Interesting subject and people with great storytelling.

This pod is well told and is unbelievable. I grew up in LA and was not aware of all these fires. What a wild story! -Katherine A Few Bad Apples Podcast

I LOVE Kary’s voice!! That’s a big thing for me with podcasts and he narrates so well. I’m sad to be almost done with the season! Great work!!!