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Seven Deadly Sinners

40: Introducing In God We Lust

Seven Deadly Sinners

Rachael O'Brien

Society & Culture, Religion & Spirituality, True Crime

4.71.2K Ratings

🗓️ 21 April 2021

⏱️ 7 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

A woman named Becki is lounging by the pool at the Fontainebleau Hotel when she decides to proposition a strapping pool attendant. Go on a date with her...and her husband. What begins as an unconventional proposition will soon throw them all into the international spotlight. And that’s because the couple is none other than Jerry Falwell Jr. and his wife Becki, two of the most powerful figures in Evangelical America.

Wondery presents In God We Lust, hosted by Brooke Siffrin and Aricia Skidmore-Williams of Even the Rich. A story of an alluring sex scandal, power, money and a very public fall from grace. When word of their affair fell into the wrong hands it led to political extortion and a public outing that brought Jerry Falwell Jr.’s empire crashing down.

Listen at:  wondery.fm/IGWL_DeadlySins

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

A woman named Becky is lounging by the pool at the Fountain Blue Hotel when a strapping pool attendant catches her eye.

0:08.6

She asks him if he'd like to go on a date with her.

0:11.6

But there's a catch.

0:13.1

Her husband wants in on the action too.

0:16.3

What begins as an unconventional proposition will soon throw them all into the international spotlight.

0:23.2

And that's because the couple is none other than Jerry Falwell Jr. and his wife Becky,

0:29.6

two of the most powerful figures in evangelical America. But as their forbidden fling blossomed into a

0:36.8

full-fledged relationship, the Falwells did much more than break their own rules.

0:43.7

Wondry presents, in God, we lust, a story of an alluring sex scandal, power, money, and a very public fall from grace.

0:53.1

While running Liberty University, a school that strictly enforced abstinence,

0:58.2

I mean, there's even a rule against prolonged eye contact with the opposite sex.

1:03.3

The Falwells lured John Carlo Grande into a love triangle that lasted years.

1:09.4

They promised him the world, paying for a new apartment, treating him to

1:13.4

lavish vacations, and even brokering meetings with the likes of Donald Trump. But when word of their

1:20.2

thruple fell into the wrong hands, it led to political extortion and international headlines

1:26.8

that brought Jerry Falwell Jr.'s empire crashing down.

1:31.9

You're about to hear a preview of In God We Lust, and while you're listening, subscribe to In God We Lust on Apple Podcasts, Amazon music, or listen early and ad free by joining Wondry Plus in the Wondry app.

1:46.0

Or listen to God Be Lust on Spotify today.

1:51.7

So, Eresha, I want you to picture a pool at a luxury hotel on Miami Beach.

1:57.7

Oh, this is perfect. I need a vacation.

2:00.6

Well, it's not just any hotel. It's the

2:03.1

luxurious, historic fountain blue. Back in the 50s, you could catch legends like Frank Sinatra

...

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