The Forgotten Prophet of Los Angeles

Crimes of the Times

L.A. Times Studios

Christopher Goffard, Los Angeles, La Times, Los Angeles Times, True Crime, Chris Goffard, News, Society & Culture

4.6 • 42.8K Ratings

🗓️ 2 June 2026

⏱️ 31 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Aimee Semple McPherson built a religious empire in Los Angeles and became one of the most influential evangelists in America. When she vanished from a California beach and reappeared weeks later with an unbelievable story, the scandal that followed threatened to destroy everything she had built.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	This is an L.A. Times Studios podcast.
0:08.4	When she disappeared in May 1926, Amy Semple McPherson was already one of the most famous women in America.
0:17.1	She was equal parts profit and performer, a charismatic Canadian farm girl who had stormed into
0:23.2	Boomtown Los Angeles with $10 and a tambourine, as she put it.
0:30.1	She built the lavish Angeles Temple in Echo Park, a church that stands today a century later.
0:36.9	It had a spectacular dome. It had a spectacular dome.
0:38.9	It had stately pillars.
0:40.5	It had elements of the Roman Coliseum and a movie palace.
0:44.5	It was the biggest church in the United States,
0:47.2	a precursor of the modern megachurch.
0:50.2	Inside, she preached to 7,000 people a day
0:53.4	with a brass band and an orchestra.
0:56.5	She reenacted the scriptures with live camels, lions, and lambs.
1:01.1	She was flamboyantly draped in robes and gowns.
1:04.8	She topped her church with radio towers to reach the sinning masses.
1:09.5	She wrapped old-time religion in Hollywood Rasmataz.
1:13.6	She made Pentecostalism mainstream in the Bible, a vaudeville show.
1:19.4	She was the biggest spectacle in a town, rapidly building its identity on spectacle.
1:26.3	She would do these illustrated sermons.
1:29.0	She would dress up as a motorcycle cop in order to arrest sin or put sin under arrest.
1:36.8	Gary Christ is the author of a 2018 book called The Mirage Factory, Illusion, Imagination,
1:43.5	and the Invention of Los Angeles.
	...

Transcript will be available on the free plan in 24 days. Upgrade to see the full transcript now.

Previous episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from L.A. Times Studios, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of L.A. Times Studios and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.