Two Female Assassins and One Strange and Violent Summer: iHeartPodcasts’ “Rip Current” Explores the Lives of the Women Who Tried to Kill Former President Gerald Ford

Listen to episode one now here

WHAT: Today, iHeartPodcasts announced the debut of “Rip Current,” a new podcast series about the only two times in nearly 250 years of U.S. history that a woman has tried to assassinate the sitting president – and the attempts happened 17 days apart in September 1975. The first attempt was by Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme, a protégé of infamous cult leader Charles Manson. She pulled a gun on Ford as he walked to the state capital building in Sacramento, CA, but hadn’t chambered a bullet and the gun did not fire. 17 days later, Sara Jane Moore, a middle-aged housewife, aspiring radical and undercover FBI informant, shot at Ford as he emerged from the St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco, but missed and was wrestled to the ground by a bystander. Fromme and Moore had never met.

This season of “Rip Current” examines how these two women were caught up in the furthest reaches of the radical movements that had emerged from the ‘60s. It asks: What caused them to take to try to kill the president? Why President Gerald Ford? Why California? Why 1975? Why this time and these places? The new series will provide a nuanced look at the tumultuous political climate at the time, their motives and the impact of these random acts of violence.

In telling their stories, the season will also explore:

• The Manson cult and what happened after Charles Manson was imprisoned for life;

• California’s radical prison movement;

• The violent radical underground in San Francisco and the Bay Area;

• The kidnapping of Patty Hearst by the Symbionese Liberation Army.

WHO: “Rip Current” is hosted by Toby Ball, the creator and host of iHeartPodcasts’ “Strange Arrivals,” a look at the psychological, social and scientific issues UFOs and exterritorial lore. He is also a panelist on “Crime Writers On...The Original True Crime Review,” and the author of the critically acclaimed crime novels “The Vaults,” “Scorch City” and “Invisible Streets.”

WHEN: The first episode of “Rip Current” is available today with new episodes every Thursday.

COVER ART: Artwork for “Rip Current” is available here.

AUDIO EMBED CODE: <iframe allow="autoplay" width="100%" height="300" src="https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-rip-current-209322970/?embed=true" frameborder="0"></iframe>

About iHeartMedia, Inc.

iHeartMedia (NASDAQ: IHRT) is the number one audio company in the United States, reaching nine out of 10 Americans every month. It consists of three business groups.

With its quarter of a billion monthly listeners, the iHeartMedia Multiplatform Group has a greater reach than any other media company in the U.S. Its leadership position in audio extends across multiple platforms, including more than 860 live broadcast stations in over 160 markets nationwide; its National Sales organization; and the company’s live and virtual events business. It also includes Premiere Networks, the industry’s largest Networks business, with its Total Traffic and Weather Network (TTWN); and BIN: Black Information Network, the first and only 24/7 national and local all news audio service for the Black community. iHeartMedia also leads the audio industry in analytics, targeting and attribution for its marketing partners with its SmartAudio suite of data targeting and attribution products using data from its massive consumer base.

The iHeartMedia Digital Audio Group includes the company’s fast-growing podcasting business -- iHeartMedia is the number one podcast publisher in downloads, unique listeners, revenue and earnings -- as well as its industry-leading iHeartRadio digital service, available across more than 500 platforms and 2,000 devices; the company’s digital sites, newsletters, digital services and programs; its digital advertising technology companies; and its audio industry-leading social media footprint.

The company’s Audio & Media Services reportable segment includes Katz Media Group, the nation’s largest media representation company, and RCS, the world's leading provider of broadcast and webcast software.

Visit iHeartMedia.com for more company information.