American Heartland | God Told Me to Build a Theme Park

Things I Learned Last Night

Space Tim Media

Comedy, History, Education

4.7 • 717 Ratings

🗓️ 26 May 2026

⏱️ 66 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Discover the shocking true story behind the American Heartland theme park scam that bilked millions from an unsuspecting billionaire. This tale of greed, fake emails from 'God,' and massive construction fraud will leave you stunned. In this deep dive, we investigate the rise and fall of the American Heartland theme park, a project that promised to bring a massive, world-class attraction to Vinita, Oklahoma. What began as a grand vision for a 1,000-acre resort quickly spiraled into a complex web of deception, elder abuse, and financial ruin. We unravel how a group of schemers manipulated an elderly billionaire, Gene Bicknell, by allegedly impersonating God through email to siphon away his life savings. From the bizarre 'triune concept' used to gain control over his assets to the exploitation of local town officials and construction firms, this video exposes the dark side of speculative development. Whether you're interested in true crime, business scams, or the reality behind failed theme park projects, this breakdown offers an eye-opening look at how easily trust can be weaponized for cold, hard cash. Join us as we piece together the court documents, the timeline of the fraud, and the tragic fallout for everyone involved in this incredible, real-life corporate thriller. Things I Learned Last Night is an educational comedy podcast where best friends Jaron Myers and Tim Stone talk about random topics and have fun all along the way. If you like learning, and laughing a whole lot while you do, then you’ll love TILLN. Watch or listen to this episode today! Become a Patron and Get Early Access to Ad-Free Episodes: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://tilln.com/support⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Episode link: https://tilln.com/heartland Support TILLN & Join The Mailing List: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://linktr.ee/tillnpodcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Watch this next: Freedomland USA → https://youtu.be/JCcINKuD4bU?si=Iic0VzulQlxarv11 Text TILLN to 66866 to become a patron and gain access to ad-free episodes, the exclusive discord, and earn discounts on TILLN Merch. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Right, home from work, walk the dog, kids are back.
0:04.4	Mom!
0:05.0	Up the stairs for something.
0:07.8	Ugh, back down, no idea what I went up for.
0:12.0	Mom, what's for dinner?
0:13.6	Chop, sizzle, done.
0:17.1	Hello, fresh, can't slow life down, but it makes bringing everyone together around the table a whole lot easier.
0:23.4	So it's phones down, forks up.
0:25.6	Hello, Fresh. Bring back dinner time.
0:30.0	Uh, hey, man.
0:31.9	What's that, dude?
0:33.1	Oh, wait, I am happy to be here.
0:35.2	Good, good.
0:35.9	Yeah.
0:36.8	Have you ever heard of the American Heartland Theme Park?
0:41.1	The American Heartland Theme Park.
0:43.9	Yes.
0:44.4	This is that, that's, wait, is this a, no, no, no.
0:47.1	Yeah, this is a place that doesn't exist.
0:49.1	Yeah.
0:49.6	This is a rendering.
0:50.5	Yeah.
	...

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