My Favorite Murder

Fandom
Name:	My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark
Abbreviation(s):	MFM
Creator:	Karen Kilgariff & Georgia Hardstark
Date(s):	1/13/2016 to current
Medium:
Country of Origin:
External Links:	My Favorite Murder on Apple Podcasts MFM on Stitcher
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My Favorite Murder (MFM) is a true crime comedy podcast hosted by comedian, writer, and singer Karen Kilgariff and Cooking Channel host and writer Georgia Hardstark. The podcast was created out of their mutual enjoyment of discussing true crime.

The format is that both hosts select a crime that they've researched and then tell the story to the other host. Occasionally they will banter during the course of the discussion, resulting in many funny quotes. The hosts feel it is important to note that in no way are they ever making fun of victims of these crimes, they are making fun of the perpetrators, or situations where the perpetrator could have been stopped but due to inadequate law enforcement or mental health professionals, was allowed to go free.

Since its creation in early 2016, it has gained an army of fans, who call themselves "Murderinos," from around the world.

Fandom

Starting on the central Facebook group, fans have since formed their own regional facebook groups and regularly schedule outings where they may have themed desserts or cocktails. The fandom is typically unified by their shared love of true crime as well as the seemingly ubiquitous phenomenon of having a "Hometown Murder."

Hometown Murders

Hometown Murders in the context of MFM are typically considered to be a crime that may have happened in a person's local vicinity that received media attention and sparked a fascination with true crime. A common trope among murderinos is talking about their Hometown Murder or their Favorite Murder as part of an ice breaker activity.

Mental Health

Another common draw for many fans is the bold and open manner in which the hosts discuss their personal struggles with mental illness and recovery from addiction and invite their listeners to do the same, so as to help remove the stigma associated with those things.

Tropes

Steven

There are several tropes related to the audio producer Steven Ray Morris. Many have to do with the fact that he wears a mustache and for that reason may be up to nefarious deeds. Additional Steven-related tropes are the idea that Steven is going to be fired for doing something wrong. This is in fact, not the case, as both hosts repeatedly credit Steven as being essential to helping keep the show running.

Because Steven is the audio engineer, sometimes when one of them blunders or makes a mistake to hilarious effect, they might just yell, "Steven! Cut it!" as a joke to reference the post-production activity of cutting audio segments that may have poor quality, long silence, etc.

Steven selects the emails that are to be read on the Minisode episodes and is often shouted out in the subject of the email to grab his attention.

Elvis

Elvis is a siamese cat belonging to co-host Georgia Hardstark. When the episode wraps up, Georgia will say "Elvis, want a cookie?" and Elvis will make a loud meow until he receives a treat.

Quotes

• When referencing the American culture of politeness to strangers that is particularly expected of women, the hosts noted that the desire to be polite can often result in women finding themselves in situations where they may be in danger. This resulted in the quotes:

Fuck politeness.

Pepper spray first and apologize later.

• During the episode in which Karen discussed notorious serial killer John Wayne Gacy, Karen referenced that Gacy's father was a violent alcoholic who would often punish Gacy for not conforming to the ascribed gender roles of the time.

  Toxic masculinity ruins the party again!

• When referencing a line from female serial killer Belle Gunness's personal ad, they noted a need to bring back the phrase:

  Triflers need not apply.

• The most famous quote is the podcast's tagline, which they say at the end of every episode.

  Stay sexy! Don't get murdered!

  • You may sometimes see this quote abbreviated as SSDGM

Controversy & Criticism

• The My Favorite Murder Problem by Andrea Denhoed - "The stories we tell about crime too often prop up fantasies about law enforcement and justice."

Example Fanworks

Examples Wanted: Editors are encouraged to add more examples or a wider variety of examples.

Archives & Links

• My Favourite Murder fanworks on Ao3
• /r/myfavoritemurder, on Reddit