In 2014, Elizabeth Holmes was hailed as the youngest female billionaire in America, promising to revolutionize healthcare with her blood-testing company Theranos. With just a drop of blood from a fingerprick, she claimed her Edison machines could run hundreds of tests faster and cheaper than traditional labs. But behind the black turtlenecks, deep voice, and Steve Jobs comparisons was one of the biggest frauds in Silicon Valley history. The technology never worked, patients received dangerous false results, and investors lost over $900 million. Holmes and her business partner Sunny Balwani were both convicted of fraud, with Holmes sentenced to over 11 years in prison, where she remains today still claiming her innocence.

We give you Just The Gist, but if you want more, there's this:

Bad Blood by John Carreyrou - The definitive book on the Theranos scandal (2018)

Elizabeth Holmes Wikipedia page - Complete biography and timeline

United States v. Elizabeth A. Holmes Wikipedia page - Full trial details and verdict

Sunny Balwani Wikipedia page - Holmes' co-defendant and former partner

BBC News coverage - "Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes loses fraud appeal" (2025)

People Magazine prison interview - Elizabeth Holmes breaks her silence from prison (2025)

People Magazine current status - "Where Is Elizabeth Holmes Now?" (2024)

The Dropout Hulu series - Amanda Seyfried's Emmy-winning portrayal (2022)

The Inventor HBO documentary - "Out for Blood in Silicon Valley" trailer (2019)

ABC News documentary series - "The Story of Elizabeth Holmes, Theranos" complete coverage

Just The Gist is a Just The Network production. Executive Produced and hosted by Rosie Waterland. Produced and edited by James Joseph. Additional production support by Kate Leaver and Hayley Staveley, along with Acast legends Guy Scott Wilson and Simon McDermott. Production Assistant: Pocket

Looking for Breakin’ Nooz? It drops on every Tuesday, along with a whole lot of other bonus audio, video and behind the scenes content, which you can access for just a couple of bucks via the Just The Gist Patreon or Apple Subscriptions.

Follow Just The Gist on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube @JustTheGistPodcast and Rosie at @RosieWaterland

Email us at hello@justthegist.com.au

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In 1912, four-year-old Bobby Dunbar vanished during a family fishing trip to Swayze Lake in Louisiana, sparking a massive eight-month search. When authorities found a boy matching Bobby's description in Mississippi with traveling handyman William Walters, the Dunbar family claimed him as their son. But another woman, Julia Anderson, recognised the boy's picture in the paper and insisted he was actually her son Bruce. After a sensational trial, the court awarded the child to the Dunbars, and he lived his entire life as Bobby Dunbar. But nearly a century later, DNA testing revealed the shocking truth.

We give you Just The Gist, but if you want more, there's this:

Disappearance of Bobby Dunbar Wikipedia page - Complete case details and DNA revelation

This American Life episode - "The Ghost of Bobby Dunbar" comprehensive investigation (2008)

This American Life transcript - Full episode transcript with all details

Medium retrospective - "The Disappearance of Bobby Dunbar: The story of the missing boy who was replaced with another" (2020)

Newspapers.com clipping - "But where is Bobby?" vintage newspaper coverage (2019)

A Case for Solomon book - Tal McThenia and Margaret Dunbar Cutright's definitive account (2012)

BuzzFeed Unsolved episode - "The Bizarre Disappearance of Bobby Dunbar" (2018)

History by Day analysis - "Who Was Bobby Dunbar? A Century-Old Case Finally Solved"

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Remembered for being one of the most famous murderers of the 20th century, there's not many people who don't know about Charles Manson and the Sharon Tate/LaBianca murders. But it tends to be one of those topics everybody assumes they know everything about, until they hear the bizarre details. Did you know that Manson didn't actually kill movie star Sharon Tate himself, or any of the victims that 'The Manson Family' are most known for slaughtering? Or that Charles Manson was good friends with The Beach Boys, to the point where one of his songs even ended up on one of their albums? Or that the public were so fascinated with him that he was put on the cover of Rolling Stone?

It's a famous story that's been told a gazillion times, but there's way more crazy 'impress your friends at a dinner party' details in this one than you think.

We give you Just The Gist, but if you want more, there's this:

The AMAZING 'Charles Manson's Hollywood' series of the 'You Must Remember This' podcast by Karina Longworth: http://www.youmustrememberthispodcast.com/episodes…

This bestselling book considered one of the definitive texts about it all:

'Manson: The Life and Times of Charles Manson' by Jeff Guinn: https://www.amazon.com.au/Manson-Life-Times-Charle…

'Helter Skelter' by Vincent Bugliosi and Curt Gentry - probably the most famous book about Manson, written by the lawyer who prosecuted him:

https://www.amazon.com/Helter-Skelter-Story-Manson…

The Rolling Stone cover story from 1970 'Charles Manson: The Incredible Story of the Most Dangerous Man Alive': https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-news/…

Charles Manson's first televised prison interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbW0agGFv88

Just The Gist is a Just The Network production. Executive Produced and hosted by Rosie Waterland. Produced and edited by James Joseph. Additional production support by Kate Leaver and Hayley Staveley, along with Acast legends Guy Scott Wilson and Simon McDermott. Production Assistant: Pocket

Looking for Breakin’ Nooz? It drops on every Tuesday, along with a whole lot of other bonus audio, video and behind the scenes content, which you can access for just a couple of bucks via the Just The Gist Patreon or Apple Subscriptions.

Follow Just The Gist on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube @JustTheGistPodcast. Follow Rosie in all the places at @RosieWaterland

Want to give us a SuGISTion? Email us at hello@justthegist.com.au

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Thank you, as always, for Gistening. Now go say something impressive at a dinner party.

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