Good morning. Showers are expected throughout the day.
Fifty years ago, a deadly disease at a Philly convention stumped health officials. We go back in time to explore the infamous outbreak, and how it got its name here.
But first, our main Sunday read is about a pornographer’s obsession and criminal past blurring fact and fiction in the mystery surrounding missing women.
Scroll along for these stories and more.
— Paola Pérez (morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
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Dark arts
Note: This article covers sensitive topics, including drug use and violence against women.
In June, a three-story brick twin on a quiet residential street in Olney became the center of a sprawling investigation into the disappearance of at least two women.
The property, owned by Raymond “R.C.” Horsch, has been scoured by hazmat teams and excavation crews looking for clues. Still, key questions remain, and other developments have raised concern about the fates of the missing women.
An Inquirer review of court records and other documents traces the people and events connected to the home, along with dozens of interviews.
Read the detailed investigation by Barbara Laker, Ryan W. Briggs, Max Marin, and Ellie Rushing.
Legionnaires’ legacy
In July 1976, thousands of American Legion members gathered at Philadelphia’s Bellevue-Stratford Hotel for a convention.
Weeks later, dozens would die and others turned gravely ill.
For months, officials couldn’t identify the cause. Fear, paranoia, and frustration spread here and nationwide. Inquirer readers at the time thought everything from pigeon droppings to contaminated ice could have been responsible.
Today, we now know the culprit as Legionnaires’ disease. Caused by Legionella pneumophila bacteria, it has more recently reemerged in a Manhattan outbreak that has claimed at least seven lives.
What you should know today
- Police are searching for a man who fired a gun inside a Walmart store in Delaware County, wounding an employee.
- Resident physicians at Temple and Jefferson hospitals have ratified their first contracts with their health systems after voting to unionize last year.
- Psychiatry’s leading guide to diagnosing mental health conditions is due for a major update. A Penn psychiatrist is heading the effort.
- President Donald Trump denied New Jersey’s request for federal disaster aid. Sen. Andy Kim said he’s concerned about the possible politics behind the decision.
- The fate of an assistant Delco fire chief accused of hurling racist threats at a woman during a tense confrontation in 2024 is now in the hands of a judge.
- Costs for a Tredyffrin park have ballooned to $1.7 million, angering residents. Officials say it’s an investment.
This week in history
🎤 Here’s Tommy Rowan with a look back at the saga of hitchBOT’s decapitation.
To try and better understand human-robot relationships, Canadian researchers in the mid-2010s birthed a child-size figure with robotlike qualities and sent him out into the word.
He was carried across the Northeast by the kindness of strangers who were kept up to date through social media posts. Nicknamed hitchBOT, the oddity developed quite a following, moving through the Netherlands, Germany, and Canada.
When he hit the United States, he safely crossed through the northeastern part of the country over a two-week span.
And then he arrived in Philadelphia.
❓Pop quiz
Temple University, which faces a budget deficit and challenging financial headwinds, received a record amount of donations in the last fiscal year.
How much did the school raise?
A) $100 million
B) $123 million
C) $214 million
D) $321 million
Think you know? Check your answer.
What we’re …
🍅 Hungry for: A savory tomato tart from Market Day Canelé.
🧠 Playing: Pillars, The Inquirer’s new weekly word game, built specifically for Philly.
📖 Browsing: Bookstores with West Philly novelist Emma Copley Eisenberg.
⚽ Discovering: What’s it like to be a player in the “Welcome to Wrexham” fishbowl.
🎞️ Watching: A documentary screening on the life and career of beloved poet Mary Oliver.
🧩 Unscramble the anagram
Hint: Vast green space in Northwest Philadelphia
AIRPLAY LINK SHOCKWAVES
Email us if you know the answer. We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here.
Cheers to Timah Jay, who correctly guessed Saturday’s answer: Quakertown. A local Quaker school closed with little warning after four decades in Bucks County. Parents say they’re still waiting for thousands in tuition refunds.
Photo of the day
🎶 In memory of French electronic DJ and producer Kavinsky, today’s song goes like this: “I’m giving you a night call to tell you how I feel.”
One more musical thing: Oscar-winning Irish singer Glen Hansard also died last week. He loved coming to Philly, where he worked on an album for a year and shoveled snow for the first time.
👋🏽 Have a great Sunday.
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