I Was Never There

Wonder Media Network

In this eight-episode series, take a trip into the countercultural movements swirling through West Virginia in the 1970s and 80s. Jamie Zelermyer and her mother Karen investigate the shocking disappearance of their friend Marsha “Mudd” Ferber and explore her evolution from suburban housewife to back-to-the-land hippie to drug-dealing bar owner. As mother and daughter venture deeper into the mystery of Marsha’s disappearance, the two process their own history: Jamie reflects on her nontraditional upbringing and Karen reckons with the joyful and complicated consequences of her decisions. read less

Our Editor's Take

The protagonist of the true crime podcast I Was Never There went missing in 1988. Over 30 years later, no one still knows what happened to Marsha Ferber. There is no body, witnesses, or new leads to follow. Marsha's disappearance is now a cold case, one that law enforcement has long given up on. But the hosts of the podcast refuse to call it quits. Mother-and-daughter duo Karen and Jamie Zelermyer have made it a mission to solve Marsha's disappearance once and for all.

In the small town of Morgantown, West Virginia, Marsha, nicknamed "Mudd," was almost a local legend. She ran two successful music venues that made the town a source of attraction. Everyone from the Red Hot Chili Peppers to Bo Diddley played there. She also mentored troubled teens, who even referred to her as "Ma." To the hosts of the podcast, she was more than a hero. She was family.

Karen first met Marsha in the suburbs of New Jersey. In the 1970s, they both decided they wanted to live in harmony with the land. So they moved with their husbands and kids to rural West Virginia, where they joined a hippie colony. They both divorced their spouses and raised their children in the counterculture community. That's where Jamie got to know Marsha as a second mother for most of her childhood.

While everyone seemed to adore Marsha, she wasn't without her faults. In that hippie commune, everyone did drugs. It was a sign of the times. But Marsha was into harder substances. This also led to selling and relationships with shady people. That is why many theories were floating around when she disappeared in 1988. People thought that she might have run from the FBI. Others believe the Mafia got her. There are stories about her helping immigrants get into the country. Some think she overdosed.

The hosts of I Was Never There embark on a journey to see which of those probabilities can be true. Along the way, they also explore their own unusual relationship. The podcast has eight main episodes and several crossover episodes.

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True CrimeTrue Crime

Episodes

Bonus: Radical Family Histories (A Crossover with Mother Country Radicals)
Nov 17 2022
Bonus: Radical Family Histories (A Crossover with Mother Country Radicals)
Karen and Jamie sit down with Zayd Ayers Dohrn and his mom Bernardine Dorhn of Crooked Media’s Mother Country Radicals to look back at the process of making a show so deeply rooted in personal family history. Jamie and Zayd interview the moms to learn how they felt reliving their radical pasts and what it was like to make a podcast with their children. And in a time that feels so similar politically to the turbulent decades Karen and Bernardine lived through - how do they find hope? For archival photos, videos, and more, follow I Was Never There on Instagram. For more information on the show and to get in touch with the team, check out our website. For one-of-a-kind merch, shop here. Follow host Jamie Zelermyer on Instagram and Twitter. Follow Wonder Media Network:WebsiteTwitterInstagramIf you have any information concerning Marsha's disappearance, please contact the Morgantown Police Department here or call the tip line: 304-284-7520.I Was Never There is a Wonder Media Network Production. It’s hosted by Jamie and Karen Zelermyer. It’s produced by Allie Wollner, Lindsey Kratochwill, Adesuwa Agbonile , and Liz Smith. It’s edited by Jenny Kaplan and Liz Smith. Our executive producers are Jenny Kaplan, Jamie Zelermyer, and Karen Zelermyer. Production assistance by Alesandra Tejeda. Mother Country Radicals is an original podcast from Audacy and Crooked Media. It’s produced by Dustlight Productions.  Their theme song is by Andy Clausen. Zayd Ayers Dohrn is the host, writer, and executive producer. This episode was produced by Liz Smith.