Gillian Flynn and Sean Doolittle solve a street meat mystery
This is an excerpt from the latest episode of Everyone & Their Mom, a new show from Wait Wait ... Don't Tell Me! Follow us on Apple Podcasts, or listen on NPR One.
Comedian Hari Kondabolu digs into a ham-based mystery
Someone in New Zealand found a super rare, expensive cured ham worth thousands of dollars. And it was just sitting in the street.
Rafael Fonseca was walking his dog when he saw what looked like a dead animal's leg sticking out of a bag. It turns out it was a fancy ham called jamón ibérico, one of the most expensive meats in the world.
With this type of meat, the pig is fed 100% on acorns and pampered (until the very end). It can only come from a specific region of Spain, and a leg of it can cost as much as $4,500. It's basically meat champagne — anything else is just sparkling ham.
Could Gillian Flynn solve the meat mystery of our lifetime?
Gillian Flynn, the mastermind behind Gone Girl and Sharp Objects, notes that similar hams were found in several other locations around New Zealand.
"Maybe they're leaving the four legs around for us to find and create a new pig somehow. Who's to say what comes next?"
Before she can write a best-seller on it, she wants to know who is killing the world's fanciest pigs, and what do they want? Will they escalate?
She gives us a taste of how the opening scene would unfold and our very own Bill Kurtis lends his voice to help narrate.
Does this found ham have bad vibes or good vibes?
Sean Doolittle, a World Series-winning pitcher for the Washington Nationals, talks with us about superstition, but not before Emma's mom calls to join the conversation.
Then back to Sean, "There was a season where I ate the exact same thing before every game. The chef in the Clubhouse would make me a turkey burger every day, an hour before the game started. It was all season. I haven't really had one since — I'm kind of sick of them now."
He even had a year where his superstition was ... trying not to be superstitious.
We tested his superstitious radar with a game called Good Vibes, Bad Vibes.
Listen to the full episode to hear more about this mystery meat and play along with our quizzes. Follow us on Apple Podcasts or listen on NPR One, and follow us on Instagram!