A Sneak Preview of Shadow Kingdom: God’s Banker

Hey guys, Tommy here. It's been a long time since you've heard from us on Crooked Minis.
Well, a lot has changed since 2022 with so much at stake in the next four years. Crooked Media is here to help you break down with sharp analysis, a healthy dose of dumb jokes, and most importantly, ways to take action.
You'll hear from voices across the political spectrum through special Pod Save America episodes, original YouTube content, and more. You can find it all at crooked.com.
But right now we wanted to share our exciting new limited series made in partnership with Campside Media

that we know you're going to love, Shadow Kingdom, God's Banker. Every day, a new political corruption scandal seems to make headlines.
But in Shadow Kingdom, host and lawyer Niccolo Mainoni takes us back to one of the most shocking cases of all. In 1982, Roberto Calvi, chairman of Banco Ambrosiano and financier to the Vatican, was found hanging under a London bridge, sending shockwaves through Italy.
His death exposed a web of organized crime, secret societies, and political manipulation. But 40 years later, Niccolo got a tip that there might be more to the story.
Now he's on a quest to uncover the truth behind the murder of God's banker. God's banker.
The murder of God's banker. Beat that logline, Hollywood.
Beat that fucking logline. I'm excited to bring to you an exclusive clip from episode one.
Make sure you stay tuned for the premiere of Shadow Kingdom on March 17th right here in this feed, or binge all episodes starting March 17th by subscribing to Friends of the Pod at crooked.com slash friends. There's a scene that I have been obsessed with for the past several years.
It took place on a cool summer night in Austria in 1982. Italian banker Roberto Calvi sat in front of a cold fireplace.
For him, it was a rare moment of stillness in what had been a full week on the run. His designer suit was disheveled.
There were sweat stains on his once crisp button-up shirt and dirt on his pants and jacket. He left his home in Rome in such a rush, there wasn't much time to pack.
A couple of suitcases, a forged passport, and the precious item that hadn't left his sight since. His leather briefcase.
Calvi picked up a book of matches and struck, igniting the small cavern of the brick fireplace. One by one, he pulled the documents from the briefcase, dropping them carefully into the fire.
Page after page.

Were these paper trails of illegal wire transfers

maybe blackmail materials on his rich and powerful clients?

I can't be sure.

But Calvey didn't burn everything.

Some papers he stowed back in the case. Maybe he could use them to cut a deal and save himself.
Or perhaps one of those powerful clients might protect him in order to protect their secrets. Among the papers he decided to save was a copy of a letter he'd written just a few weeks earlier.
It was written to one of his most important, most secretive clients, Pope John Paul II. Calvi had done so much work for the Vatican, he'd earned the nickname God's Banker.
But now the Italian financier was in trouble. Santita, Calvi's letter started.

I have concluded that you are my last hope.

Calvi wrote that he'd secretly moved money for the Vatican around the world

and that he'd willingly taken on its, quote, mistakes and faults.

But now, he told the Pope,

I am betrayed and abandoned by the Vatican.

I read this letter as both a cry for help and vaguely threatening.

But why did Calvi carry it with him?

And did the Pope ever respond?

I don't know. But I know what happened next.
Five days later, Roberto Calvi would be found dead. Hanging from a rope over the Thames River in London.
Bricks in his pockets. And his briefcase nowhere to be found.

From Crooked Media and Campside Media,

this is Shadow Kingdom, God's Banker.