Monstertalk

Author Scott Poole (previously with us for Vampira and Monsters in America) joins us to talk about his new biography on American horror writer H. P. Lovecraft, In The Mountains of Madness: The Life and Extraordinary Afterlife of H.P. Lovecraft. What is it about the writing of this peculiar and complicated writer from New England that has cast such an oversized shadow over American literature? Read the episode notesBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support.

What’s in a name? More than you might imagine, if you’re a scientist trying to officially name a new species. In this episode of MonsterTalk, we talk to Ichthyologist Ben Frable about the process (and many challenges) of scientifically identifying and naming new species. Read the episode notes  Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support.

Is the little village of Pluckley truly the most haunted village in England? We interview skeptical ghost hunter Hayley Stevens (The Spooktater) about the curious little town more famous for its dead than its living. Read the episode notesBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support.

From ancient Greece to modern movies, monsters and villains often get their assistance from mindless mobs of maleficent minions. Are they simply plot devices, or do minions tell us something about the real-world role of the follower when loyal obedience is valued more than heroic ethics? In this episode of Monstertalk, David Perlumtter and Cait Mongrain join us to discuss Minions, Mobs and Myrmidons. Read the episode notesBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support.

In this episode, MonsterTalk welcomes back notable skeptic, scientist, researcher and author (and now Podcaster) Sharon Hill. Sharon’s got a new podcast (15 Credibility Street), new science blog (Spooky Geology), and a book coming out later this year. In this discussion we talk about skepticism, science communication and the mysterious phenomena known as The Stone Tape theory of repetitive hauntings. Read the episode notesBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support.

In this episode of MonsterTalk Blake Smith interviews Joe Gisondi, author of Monster Trek: The Obsessive Search for Bigfoot. A journalist professor takes us on a first-hand tour of Bigfoot Hunter culture. Read the episode notesBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support.

Part 2 of our look at the Enfield Poltergeist brings together interviews with Chris French (@ChrisCFrench), Joe Nickell (@RealJoeNickell) and Deborah Hyde (@jourdemayne). We look at why skeptics tend to be so reluctant to accept the existence of poltergeists. Read the episode notesBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support.

In this episode of MonsterTalk, we are joined by folklorist and author Mark Norman to discuss legends of black hounds. Mark is the author of Black Dog Folklore as well as the host of The Folklore Podcast. This is a special cross-over episode with The Folklore Podcast and contains a slightly different edit of the interview audio. Discussion ranges from the legends of dark hounds in European folklore, to the nature of the academic study of folklore. Read the episode notesBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support.

This MonsterTalk is another special literary/pop-culture episode as we take on the biggest topic in monsters: Giant City-Destroying Kaiju! Guests are Ed Godziszewski author of Ishiro Honda: A Life in Film, from Godzilla to Kurosawa (Oct 2017) and Michael Keller, co-author (with Edward Holland) of the magazine Monster Attack Team and the upcoming podcast Area 42. Read the episode notesBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support.

In this episode of MonsterTalk we present an interview with Guy Lyon Playfair, one of the original investigators into perhaps the most famous British poltergeist case in modern times. Read the episode notes  Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support.

In this MonsterTalk, we’re pleased to bring you an interview with psychologist Ray Hyman, a long time skeptical activist and educator, a founding member of CSICOP (now CSI) and one of the key investigators into the US government’s program to develop psychic soldiers. Some of this story was revealed in Jon Ronson’s The Men Who Stare at Goats, but in this interview you’ll hear Ray’s personal recollections about magic, skepticism and the mysterious claims of a famous psychic named Uri Geller. Read the episode notesBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support.

In this episode of MonsterTalk, we continue with Part 2 of our coverage of Zecharia Sitchin and “Planet-X” aka “Nibiru” by talking with astronomer Stuart Robbins, host of the Exposing PseudoAstronomy pocast. We discuss rogue planets, exo-planets, and the curious history of “Planet-X” apocalypse stories. Read the episode notesBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support.

Blake Smith reads a story titled The Thing in the Cellar as 2016’s annual Christmas special. MonsterTalk will return to normal science and skepticism episodes in 2017. This story was first published in Weird Tales magazine issue #360 and is read by the author.  Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support.

Ancient Aliens theorists seem to love the work of Zecharia Sitchin (The 12th Planet). Sitchin proposed that mysterious space beings called Anunnaki visited earth to steal our gold, and passed on their wisdom to the ancient people of Sumer. In this first of a 2-part look at Sitchin’s impact on Ancient Astronaut lore, we talk with Dr. Michael Heiser about the plausibility of Sitchin’s views from an evaluation of the ancient texts Sitchin purports to have used for his source material. Read the episode notesBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support.

Writer and researcher Mike Dash (Spring Heeled Jack) returns to talk about the less famous Scottish lake monster alleged to live in Loch Morar. While not as widely known as Nessie, Morag (as she is known) has her own fascinating history. Read the episode notes  Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support.

What do you get when you combine a love for statistics, a love for biological maritime mysteries and a relentless curiosity? Dr. Charles Paxton has applied biology and math work to produce several papers on the mysterious creatures called “sea monsters.” In this episode of MonsterTalk, we discuss sea monsters, math and naughty ostriches. Read the episode notes  Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support.

The cast of archaeologists from the Archaeological Fantasies podcast join Blake and Karen to talk about fairies, how they’ve evolved culturally, and the ways that archaeology, folklore and the fair folk overlap. Read the episode notesBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support.

In this week’s episode of MonsterTalk, Eugenie Scott, Brian Regal, and Daniel Loxton join Karen Stollznow and Blake Smith to discuss The Yeti. This episode was our first-ever dedicated Yeti talk, as well as our first-ever live streamed show, which aired on YouTube on Sunday, October 23, 2016 at 8 pm EST. Read the episode notesBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support.

A special for the Halloween Season, Robert Price returns to MonsterTalk to give us a raw dripping sample of his podcast The Lovecraft Geek, a kind of secular version of his popular The Bible Geek podcast. Questions from listeners are tossed down into the well of Price’s vast knowledge to see what answers echo back up to drive us mad. Check out our episode notes for lots of links to Lovecraft-inspired books and movies. Read the episode notes  Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support.

In this week’s episode of MonsterTalk, we talk about demonic or evil dolls, and look into the history of one of America’s most famous creepy playthings: Robert the Doll. Our interview is with Dr. Cori Convertito, Curator of the Key West Art and Historical Society, which oversees the Fort East Martello Museum, home of Robert the Doll. Read the episode notes  Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support.