Strange

IN THIS EPISODEWhat if the Ouija board was just an early form of AI? What if a cassette tape held a secret no one was supposed to hear? And what if two true believers built a machine they called a telephone to the dead — and it actually worked?Or did it?This episode begins where most conversations end: What happens when we die? It's a question host Christopher Wynn has been circling lately — one that led him down a rabbit hole connecting youthful experiments with the unknown, a crackling 1984 radio broadcast and the strange, controversial invention known as the Spiricom.Guest Richard Hatem knows something about chasing the unexplained. The screenwriter and TV producer behind The Mothman Prophecies (Richard Gere, Laura Linney) has built a career at the edge of the strange. But this is the story of how the strange chased him first.SHOW NOTESGuest: Richard Hatem | Richard Hatem’s Paranormal Bookshelf Referenced: The Ghost of 29 Megacycles: A New Breakthrough in Life After Death? by John G. FullerCREDITSStrange was created by Christopher Wynn and Jason Reimer. Edited and co-produced by Jeff Whittington. Jason composes the music. Additional music by Talented Friends.Artwork and logos by Rob Wilson.WANT MORE? Visit strangepod.com to send Christopher your own strange story — email or voice recording welcome Rate and review wherever you're listening — it genuinely helps others find the show Tell a friend

Taos, New Mexico is a place of wild beauty by day. But things can take a different turn once the sun goes down. Musician and artist Ariel Saldivar, who performs as CAMÍNA, discovered this the hard way. From this episode: — Check out The Shed Project from chef Johnny Ortiz-Concha— Explore the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe — Christopher’s favorite place to stay in Taos: Casa Gallina— Hike the Italianos Canyon trailCredits and contact info: Strange was created by Christopher Wynn and Jason Reimer The show is edited and co-produced by Jeff Whittington Jason Reimer writes our music. Additional music courtesy of Talented FriendsArtwork and logos by Rob WilsonGot a strange story? Email [email protected]. He responds to all messages. He also loves voice memos. Follow Strange on X, Instagram and Threads @strangepodcast  More about the show at strangepod.com 

The Goat-Man, “Satanic panic" and a real life double murder. Welcome to Old Foamy Road in Johnson County. Host Christopher Wynn goes for a drive. ———Strange was created by Christopher Wynn and Jason Reimer The show is edited and co-produced by Jeff Whittington Jason Reimer writes our music. Additional music courtesy of Talented Friends. Artwork and logos by Rob WilsonSpecial thanks to Edward MedelesAdditional audio: – Coverage of the “goat man” and the Lake Worth Goatman courtesy of WFAA Daybreak and  the SMU Jones Film Collection.–  Coverage of the “Satanic panic” courtesy of the KXAS-NBC 5 News Collection provided to The Portal to Texas History by the UNT Libraries Special Collections.– Coverage of the David Wayne Ingram murder trial courtesy of the KXAS-NBC 5 News Collection provided to UNT Digital Library by the UNT Libraries Special Collections.Strange is independent. Support the show and get a T-shirt, coffee mug or ballcap at patreon.com/strangepod. Got a strange story? Email [email protected]. He responds to all messages. He also loves voice memos. Follow Strange on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. More about the show at strangepod.com. 

When Jason Cohen opened Forbidden Books and Video in Dallas, he knew he would meet some strange characters, but nothing prepared him for who actually showed up. Check out Jason’s current shop Curiosities.   Laurie Hertzel, senior editor and books editor for the Star Tribune in Minneapolis, spent a summer living in the historic former home of author, humorist, and New Yorker cartoonist James Thurber in Columbus, Ohio. The ghost made its presence known just three days after her arrival. Performance anthropologist Thomas Riccio accepted a strange invitation to visit Siberia and meet a powerful shaman. Or, was he? Check out Riccio’s Dead White Zombies.———Strange was created by Christopher Wynn and Jason Reimer The show is edited and co-produced by Jeff Whittington Jason Reimer writes our music. Additional audio by Spoke MediaArtwork and logos by Rob WilsonSpecial thanks to Edward MedelesStrange is independent. Support the show and get a T-shirt, coffee mug or ballcap at patreon.com/strangepod. Got a strange story? Email [email protected]. He responds to all messages. He also loves voice memos. Follow Strange on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. More about the show at strangepod.com. 

Relationships are complicated. Sarah Hepola, Davy Rothbart and Robb Armstrong explain why. “Falling in love is wonderful,” says host Christopher Wynn. “And awful.”Sarah Hepola recounts an unlikely romance that is set into motion in New Orleans’ French Quarter at gunpoint. She is the author of the New York Timesbestseller Blackout: Remembering the Things I Drank to Forget, and she created and hosted the Texas Monthly podcast "America's Girls" about the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders. Davy Rothbart faces off with an intruder in the middle of the night. Relationships are complicated. Davy is the editor/publisher of Found magazine, a contributor to This American Life and an Emmy award-winning filmmaker. Check out Davy’s documentary 17 Blocks. Robb Armstrong finds his life — and marriage — begin to unravel the day a strange visitor shows up on the lawn. Robb is the creator of the syndicated cartoon “JumpStart” and he is a mentor for The Armstrong Project from Peanuts Worldwide, which helps develop Black artists. “Peanuts” creator Charles Schulznamed the Black “Peanuts” character “Franklin Armstrong” after Robb.  ———Strange was created by Christopher Wynn and Jason Reimer The show is edited and co-produced by Jeff Whittington Jason Reimer writes our music. Additional music courtesy of Talented Friends. Heard in this episode: Christopher Wynn – “Require”Mauritzio Merli – “Cities on Fire”Majestic Fitzel – “Majestic Theme”Zemog Otrebor – “Light Blonde”Additional audio by Spoke MediaArtwork and logos by Rob WilsonSpecial thanks to Edward MedelesStrange is independent. Support the show and get a T-shirt, coffee mug or ballcap at patreon.com/strangepod. Got a strange story? Email [email protected]. He responds to all messages. He also loves voice memos. Follow Strange on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. More about the show at strangepod.com. 

“There are lots of things I don’t want to know,” says host Christopher Wynn. “And sometimes, maybe we’re better off not knowing.” Hollywood actor Stephen Tobolowsky — yes, “Needle-Nose Ned” from the Bill Murray comedy Groundhog Day and the washed-up music teacher in Glee — has a hidden talent, an unexplainable talent. It has changed his life in ways both wonderful and terrifying. Put simply, he hears things. Dallas singer-songwriter Sudie is startled awake in the middle of the night by a pounding fear. There is a strange song — and a warning. ———Strange was created by Christopher Wynn and Jason Reimer The show is edited and co-produced by Jeff Whittington Jason Reimer writes our music. Additional music courtesy of Talented Friends. Heard in this episode: – Myopic’s “As Much As You Can III,” “Playground” – Zemog Otrebor’s “1”[– Mark Ryan’s “Summer Night Highway” and “Sunday Night”  – Majestic Fitzel - Majestic Piano Theme– Sudie: “Heartattack” and “Heartattack II”Additional audio by Spoke MediaArtwork and logos by Rob WilsonSpecial thanks to Edward MedelesMentioned in this episode:  – See Stephen Tobolowsky’s swimming pool in the Talking Heads’ “Road to Nowhere” music video. And order his terrific book, My Adventures with God, from Bookshop. (Please support your local, independent bookstores.) – Read more about Pulitzer-winning playwright Beth Henley and stream the film version of her play Crimes of the Heart on AppleTV. – Watch Sudie’s dreamy music video for “Heartattack” and her riveting Sofar Sounds session performance of it in Fort Worth, Texas. Strange is independent. Support the show and get a T-shirt, coffee mug or ballcap at patreon.com/strangepod. Got a strange story? Email [email protected]. He responds to all messages. He also loves voice memos. Follow Strange on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. More about the show at strangepod.com. 

“I don’t know how else to say this, but I was kind of a weird kid …” Indeed. Host Christopher Wynn digs into his “shoebox of cassette tapes” for this special mini-episode to try and explain his fixation with sound, his love of all things strange and why he grew up to become a professional storyteller and make this podcast. Also, there’s a séance. And some “thirst for blood.” But it will all make sense. ———Strange was created by Christopher Wynn and Jason Reimer The show is edited and co-produced by Jeff Whittington Jason Reimer writes our music. Additional music courtesy of Talented Friends. Heard in this episode: Myopic’s “II Master” and “Home.” The old-time radio shows mentioned in this episode are The Shadow, Suspense and Inner Sanctum Mystery. You can stream compilations on Audible.com. Logo by Rob WilsonStrange is independent. Support the show at patreon.com/strangepod. Got a strange story? Email [email protected]. He responds to all messages. He also loves voice memos. Follow Strange on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. More about the show at strangepod.com. 

In a 'Strange' collaboration with Atlas Obscura, the online magazine about the world's hidden wonders, Atlas’ David Plotz, Joshua Foer, Dylan Thuras and Ella Morton share weird, true tales from across the globe. You’ll hear about the Japanese monks who mummified themselves while still alive; and the deep, booby-trapped pit on Nova Scotia’s Oak Island that may hold secret treasure. You’ll learn how the crew behind the hit ‘70s TV show 'The Six Million Dollar Man' discovered a corpse in Long Beach, California, with a bizarre past; and about an ‘island of the dead’ south of Venice where an allegedly haunted mental hospital still stands. We’ll tell you how you can sleep in the Massachusetts house where Lizzie Borden may have swung her hatchet or get up close to the real 'Amityville Horror' in New York. And, yes, you’ll even hear about the psychoanalyst in Maine who believed orgasmic energy could control the weather. Learn more about 'Strange' at strangepod.com. Find more weird stories from around the world at atlasobscura.com, including information on Atlas' debut book.

Mom-turned-private-investigator Sheila Wysocki helps solve her friend’s murder after a shocking twist. Former Hollywood digital-effects artist Russell Koonce is stalked by a maniac on a lonely Austin road. Whitley Strieber, the best-selling author of 'The Hunger' and 'Communion,' faces unexplained forces in his Manhattan apartment. Music critic Scott Cantrell reveals the bizarre curse afflicting one of the world’s most prestigious piano competitions. And Eli Sanders, the Pulitzer-winning writer and associate editor of 'The Stranger' newspaper, comes full-circle with the shooter who terrorized Eli’s Seattle high school.

In this debut episode, four Texans tell their true stories about an encounter with the strange. Author Virginia Savage McAlester reveals for the first time her chilling brush with the Boston Strangler. Investigative journalist Jeff Guinn takes us “creepy-crawling” with Charles Manson’s deranged Family. Novelist Merritt Tierce meets a very personal threat on her own front porch. And Jeffrey Cranor, co-creator of the hit podcast and novel, 'Welcome to Night Vale,' reminds us why we fear the woods at night.