Dreamtown: The Story of Adelanto
5.0/5
Critic Rating
What happens when a city on the verge of collapse tries to reinvent itself? How much will it cost? Who will pay the price? Reporter David Weinberg spent years following one city in California’s Mojave desert as it tried to transform itself from a city of prisons to a city of pot. And it worked…for a while. Until it, spectacularly, didn’t. From Crooked Media, this is Dreamtown: The Story of Adelanto. Coming June 7th wherever you get your podcasts.
Critic Reviews
Score: 4.9
Remy Varga • The Australian • Jul 28, 2023
"Think Mad Max but local government. The town with no entertainment descends into chaos. Bug is a bit of a character, kind of like a conservative hippie. He loves guns and but also loves getting high. Dreamtown is the story of a dying city, a man armed with vision and charm and the brutal politics of local government. It’s a bit kitsch, a bit fun and comes with cowboy music complete with twang."
Score: 5
Nicholas Quah • Vulture • Jul 5, 2023
"Let’s call it civic noir. Dreamtown is a great addition to the mix, equal parts fascinating, sad, frustrating, and in the end, hopeful. …"
Score: 5
Molly Lipson • High Times • Jun 28, 2023
"It’s these comedic moments that break up an otherwise serious story of errant authority and power gone awry. Sprinkled into his storytelling, these moments guide our understanding of small-town politics and the eyebrow-raising nature of local government. In doing this, Weinberg creates the perfect backdrop to the astonishing tale of corruption that follows. This is a podcast about what happened when a city council took on the legal marijuana industry and got burnt, but it’s also a story about hope for a better future, and how we can all be part of making that happen."
