Overview of MFM Minisode 502
This minisode of My Favorite Murder is a rapid-fire collection of listener-submitted family lore, childhood schemes, and unexpectedly delightful celebrity run-ins. Karen and Georgia react to stories about hidden ancestors, funeral mix-ups, a morally dubious kid entrepreneur, a Tinder disaster involving a group chat, an Irish grandmother’s wild past, and a comedy-festival hang with Alan Cumming. The common thread: family history is often stranger, funnier, and more revealing than anyone expects.
Listener Stories Featured
Family secret: a Bathsheba Ruggles Spooner connection
A listener from rural Massachusetts discovered through her grandfather’s genealogy binders that her family is related to Bathsheba Ruggles Spooner, the first woman executed in America after being convicted of murdering her husband. Her grandmother was the one who casually revealed the connection, and they bonded over true crime and family history.
Childhood business venture: selling grasshoppers
One listener shared a hilarious story from childhood when she ran a “lemonade stand” that turned into a grasshopper stand. She caught grasshoppers, priced them by size, and made real money—only to later release many of the insects because she felt bad. The hosts loved the accidental con-artist logic of it all.
Grandpa switcheroo at the funeral
Another listener told a perfectly absurd funeral story: while preparing for her grandfather’s burial, her dad mistakenly sent her uncle’s brand-new suit to the funeral home, thinking it belonged to the deceased. The grandfather ended up buried in the suit, and the family eventually found the error and laughed through their grief.
Mom’s disastrous Tinder group chat
A listener wrote about her divorced mom re-entering the dating world via Tinder, where she met a man named Kevin who somehow added multiple women he’d matched with into a single WhatsApp group called “Tinder.” The women compared notes, trash-talked him, and then went their separate ways. The listener’s mom later got banned from Tinder for reporting too many fake profiles.
Irish grandma, Gordon Lightfoot, and “grand lore”
A listener shared a family legend about her Irish grandmother partying with a young Gordon Lightfoot at a remote cabin in Ontario. The story was framed as a wild, possibly stoned, pre-fame vacation memory that became part of the family’s treasured history.
Comedy festival magic: hanging out with Alan Cumming
The final story came from a Montreal comedian who unexpectedly spent an entire night on the curb at Just for Laughs hanging out with Alan Cumming. He joined her after asking for a rolled cigarette, chatted like an old friend, talked about his partner, Broadway projects, celebrity gossip, and The Good Wife, and ultimately helped her feel more confident by praising her comedy.
Main Themes and Takeaways
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Family history can be full of surprises
The episode emphasizes how genealogy and old family stories can reveal fascinating, bizarre, or even infamous connections. -
Grief and humor often coexist
Several stories deal with death or loss, but the humor helps families process and remember loved ones. -
Kids are natural weird entrepreneurs
The grasshopper story is a perfect example of childhood logic: if something is available and people want it, sell it. -
Modern dating is chaos
The Tinder story is a reminder that dating apps can produce instant, accidental social networks of shared humiliation. -
Unexpected encounters can be confidence-changing
The Alan Cumming story stands out as a sweet example of a celebrity genuinely making someone feel seen and validated.
Notable Host Reactions
- The hosts were especially amused by the idea of a grandfather’s final prank being accidentally buried in someone else’s suit.
- They found the grasshopper business both genius and morally questionable.
- They loved the idea of the Tinder women forming an immediate anti-Kevin support group.
- The Alan Cumming story was a favorite because it turned into a wholesome, affirming “sidewalk party.”
Closing Vibe
The minisode ends with the hosts joking about continuing to receive stories of celebrity hangouts and family lore. As usual, the show blends true crime-adjacent curiosity, family dysfunction, and sincere affection for listeners into a fast, funny, offbeat episode.