It’s festival season in Michigan! Tracy, Christine & Nina talk FrankenFest, Halloween energy, people-watching, themed events, finding your weird little tribe. Plus, Best in Show is the movie pick, and Cassandra Peterson — the woman behind Elvira — is honored as Woman of the Week.

Hosted and Produced by Tracy Preston, Featuring Christine and Nina Mulligan.

Original music created exclusively for Round Robin by Tracy Preston

Sound Effects from Uppbeat: Yay-cheerful-crowd-applause-soundroll-1-00-04.mp3

Original artwork by Todd Preston

In this episode of Malice in the Mitten, Tracy Preston and Christine Mulligan tell the story of Michelle Ann Kukulski, a 46-year-old mother, grandmother, daughter, sister, and CNA from Grayling, Michigan. Michelle was killed in December 2017 by John Robert O’Connor, her former partner, who was later convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to 31 years and 3 months to 50 years in prison. Court records show O’Connor claimed he was provoked by concern over Michelle’s boyfriend, Larry Farley, being around their daughter, but the jury rejected a manslaughter framing and convicted him of murder.

This case is often remembered by the shocking phrase “murder by yams,” because court records and reporting state Michelle was repeatedly struck with a can of yams. But this episode centers Michelle — not the object used against her. We examine the relationship, the claimed motive, the concealment of Michelle’s body, the trial, the sentencing, the appeal, and the warning signs of control disguised as concern. Michelle’s obituary remembers her as a CNA at Grayling Nursing and Rehabilitation and as a woman deeply connected to her children, grandchildren, and family.

This is not a story about a strange headline. This is the story of Michelle Kukulski — where the story matters, but the truth matters more.

#MichelleKukulski #MaliceInTheMitten #MichiganTrueCrime #TrueCrimePodcast #VictimCentered

Hosted and Produced by Tracy Preston, Featuring Christine Mulligan

Researched and Written by Tracy Preston

Original music created exclusively for Malice in the Mitten by Tracy Preston

Original artwork by Todd Preston

Sources:

Michigan Court of Appeals. People of Michigan v. John Robert O’Connor. 26 Aug. 2021.

Sorenson-Lockwood Funeral Home. “Michelle Ann Kukulski Obituary.” Sorenson-Lockwood Funeral Home.

UpNorthLive. “Man Sentenced for Killing Long-Time Former Girlfriend.” WPBN/WGTU, 12 July 2019.

UpNorthLive. “Crawford County Man Found Guilty of Girlfriend’s Murder.” WPBN/WGTU, 26 Apr. 2019.

MidMichiganNow. “Suspect Admits to Killing 46-Year-Old Woman with Can of Yams.” MidMichiganNow, 10 Feb. 2018.

Crawford County Avalanche. “Grayling Man Awaits Pending Court Ruling in Crawford County Open Murder Case.” Crawford County Avalanche, 14 Feb. 2018.

On this episode of F-Bomb Friday, we pull the camera back from a single Michigan legend and look at the bigger, stranger pattern hiding inside folklore itself. From the Michigan Dogman to European werewolves, Bigfoot to the Yeti, lake monsters to Nessie, shadow people to the Hat Man, Melon Heads, witches, Wendigo stories, little people, and winged creatures like the Thunderbird and Mothman — cultures across the world have described eerily similar monsters for centuries.

Are these stories simply proof that human fears are universal? Are they warnings passed down through generations? Or do these repeated legends point to something older… something humanity has been encountering in the dark for far longer than we realize?

#FBombFriday #MichiganFolklore #Cryptids #UrbanLegends #MaliceInTheMitten

Hosted and Produced by Tracy Preston, Featuring Todd Preston

Story Researched and Written by Todd Preston

Original score created exclusively for F-Bomb by Tracy Preston

Original artwork by Todd Preston

Sources:

https://www.britannica.com⁠

https://en.wikipedia.org⁠

https://www.legendsofamerica.com⁠

https://www.bfro.net⁠

https://www.mothmanmuseum.com⁠