Suspiciously in tune with the Halloween season, the popular podcast My Favorite Murder is taking over The Arlington Theatre this weekend, as the dark-minded duo of Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark record episodes live in front of their legions of rabid, true-crime-craving fans. 

Billed as My Favorite Weekend, the Friday-night and all-day-Saturday affair includes cocktail receptions, a brunch, an art exhibit, and multiple tapings/performances, some drawn from Santa Barbara’s own murder files. Full VIP packages, which sold out quickly, commanded nearly $2,000 a ticket.

To better understand why this podcast is enrapturing for so many, we asked contributor Samantha Eve to interview Kilgariff and Hardstark in advance of their appearance. 

And just to amp up that creepy crime ante, we charged our own executive editor, Nick Welsh ​— ​who’s investigated Santa Barbara’s most dastardly deeds as a journalist here for nearly four decades ​— ​to detail his three favorite murders from Santa Barbara’s deep and recent past.

Three Murders That Made Santa Barbara Shiver

Interview with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark