Radio Misterioso

Joshua Cutchin has recently completed a manuscript with the working title Thieves In The Night: Paranormal Child Abduction From the Faerie Faith to the UFO Era, due for publication in the next few months. For some reason, we started with a discussion of the recent documentary on Jim Carrey and his portrayal of Andy Kaufman, and this led into reflections about how we find meaning in life. Then we began a recounting of his personal experiences on his vacation/ tour of traditional Irish faerie sites and what it was like to actually visit these legendary places. Josh informed us why he didn’t wear bright colors and brought food offerings at many of the locations. He pointed out the parallel between the history of reports of encounters with “the good people” (as they are sometimes referred to in Ireland) and bigfoot sightings, as well as unsolved disappearances. We also examined the cross-cultural similarities of paranormal “small folk” around the world. Joshua said that some of the most recent and rich reports have been coming from Newfoundland and Labrador in Canada. (Pencil portrait by show friend and listener “Rei Toei.”) DIRECT LINK

(cover design by Red Pill Junkie) Gorightly and I are finishing up a detailed chronicle of UFO contact personalities and cults (entitled A Is For Adamski) which will be released in the next couple of months. It will be a comprehensive overview featuring many previously unpublished and little-seen photos and images. Since Gorightly was in town, we did a “pop-up” show (which are meant to be recorded and posted the same day.) We started off discussing a little-known and fascinating artist named Paulina Peavy, who said she channeled an alien who helped her with her artwork (see above.) We played a few minutes of her January, 1958 appearance on the Long John Nebel radio show, where she went into a trance and channeled what she said were her spirit guides. We also recalled the strange case of Karl Hunrath and Wilbur Wilkinson, who disappeared in 1953 after renting an aircraft from the Los Angeles area, after saying they were going to a remote location to meet up with space people. Gorightly then brought up a little-known character named Raymond Broshears, who was on the fringes of both UFO fandom and the JFK assassination, as well as a close associate of contactee Frank Stranges. We ended with an examination of the 1965 John Reeves case, where the witness claimed that a robot came out of a flying saucer, took pictures of him, and left a paper with strange symbols on it, which was later quickly deciphered by government cryptographers to read: “Planet Mars- Are you coming home soon- We miss you very much- Why did you stay away too long.” The one-to-one relationship of the symbols to the English alphabet was a good clue that source of the message was a little closer to Earth than Reeves claimed. DIRECT LINK

In what has become a tradition, longtime RM friend Tim Binnall joined me for a year-in-review simulcast. Tim gathers and writes some of the news for the Coast To Coast website, so he’s been on top of all the weirdness all year. For example, we started off talking about a supposed picture of lost aviator Amelia Earhart that surfaced early last year, but turned out to be a misidentification.  The big MUFON scandal was next under the lens. The second hour was taken up with a discussion of the elephant in the room: the New York Times UFO article release, which is coming up on its one-month anniversary. In the second 2 hours, we spoke about the hot-and-not conspiracy theories and why they have become so popular and even mainstream. Then, we recapped my trip to speak at Roswell for the 70th anniversary this last year. Tim told us about a possible break in the DB Cooper hijacking case, and we ended with a remembrance of Jim Marrs and other authors and researchers who left us in 2017. At the end of the show, I stumped Tim’s Alexa with a few questions that it was unable to answer. Enjoy the nearly 4 HOUR show. I have inserted a short “beep” at the break between the two segments. DIRECT LINK

After our successful Halloween music show, Courtney and I planned this extravaganza. We both cannot take this holiday season seriously, and it shows in our selection of mostly disrespectful tunes. One is VERY disrespectful and very NSFW or mixed company (1:51:46 to 1:57:09.) Enjoy and happy whatever you have! Here’s the list: Root Boy Slim and the Sex Change Band – Christmas at K-Mart The Count – (All I Want For Christmas Is) My Two Front Teeth The Residents – Santa Dog Jeff St Pierre and Phillip Antoniades – Rubber Clause Is Coming To Town Shittyflute – Frosty The Snowman Portsmouth Sinfonia – Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy Art Carney – Santa and the Doodle-Li-Boop Stan Freberg – The Night Before Christmas Paddy Roberts – Merry Christmas You Suckers Homer and Jethro – Nuttin’ For Christmas Actually Huizenga – Krampus Christmas Mae West – Merry Christmas Baby Jingle Cats – White Christmas in Hell (excerpt) mojochronic – Rudolph (You Don’t Have To Put On The Red Light) The Christmas Chids – Christmas Helmet Yogi Yorgesson – Rusty Chevrolet Lou Monte – Dominick The Italian Christmas Donkey Song Robert Smiegel – Tingles the Christmas Tension Heather Noel – Santa Came On A Nuclear Missile Jack Blanchard – A Weird Little Christmas GG Allin – The 12 Days of Christmas (Skip if easily offended!) Tom Lehrer – Hanukkah in Santa Monica The Monkees – Riu Riu Chiu Shari Lewis and Lambchop – Some Things For Christmas Courtney’s youtube holiday music channel is here. DIRECT LINK

Dr. Diana Walsh-Pasulka has just finished what will likely be a groundbreaking book on the UFO subject, which will be released in the spring of 2018. American Cosmic tells the story of her journey from religious scholarship to a seat in the forefront of some of the most groundbreaking research and thought in the subject. She has been embedded with a few researchers who believe that they have anomalous  artifacts that can be dissected to reveal secrets that have real-world applications in aeronautical research. This is of course along the same lines as the recent announcement in the New York Times by the members of the To The Stars group. Some of this research dovetails with a recent trip Diana took to the Vatican libraries and Observatory for documents pertaining to the phenomenon of levitating saints. We spoke about a car trip in New Mexico, where she and a friend were blindfolded so they wouldn’t know where they were going, and then were shown one of these strange artifacts in situ. We also discussed the effect of technology and how it has taken the place of religion for many people, as well as the problem with UFO data mining. Dr. Pasulka also mentions an essay by philosopher Carl Rashcke entitled “UFOs: Ultraterrestrial Agents of Cultural Deconstruction” (which is not online, but I discussed in a post from 2009.) In the last few minutes of the show. we spoke about the recent release of the newest Star Wars film and how it resonates with her work, as well as with all of us. Errata: at 11:05 – Dr. Pasulka says “Post-industrial revolution.” She meant “Pre-industrial revolution.” DIRECT LINK

After the successful run of the program Ghost Cases seven years ago, Paul Kimball was tapped to produce an entirely new series (Haunted) with the same co-host. Using what they learned in the last program, Paul and his ghost-hunting partner Holly Stevens use new tech to go even further in their quest to find the answers behind some baffling and startling occurrences. By proximity and default, Director of Photography Dillon Garland has also been subject to some unexplained phenomena. Paul and Dillon joined me to talk about their adventures, their techniques, and their journey from interested skeptics to, if not “believers,” at least among those willing to consider that there are things that cannot be explained, only experienced. I shared some of these experiences with them on a paranormal investigation a few months ago, and we talked about some of the things that happened that evening. We also played and discussed one of the most eerie examples of an unexplained audio recording that I have ever heard. DIRECT LINK

As many of you may know, Rich and I have been friends for over 25 years. He recently went through a bout with cancer, and we thought a house visit while he recuperates was a good excuse for recording a show. What you may not know is that Rich was a working actor in Hollywood in the 1970s and ’80s, appearing on such shows as Lou Grant and as a recurring character on General Hospital. We talked about those experiences, and the mystical aspects of the acting profession. I had just provided Richard with a copy of the seminal book Morning of the Magicians, and we segued into a short discussion of aspects of alchemy as they relate to the paranormal and UFOs, as suggested in the book. We also talked about the co-creation idea, and his model of how power and influence controls our perceptions. We also spent a long time recalling the work of the late abduction researcher Karla Turner and the strange goings-on around her rural Arkansas home when Richard visited in 1995. He also recalled a UFO sighting he had where a group of lights exhibited the classic “falling leaf” motion. Note: There were a lot of strange noises picked up by the recorder during this session. This has never happened before. A group of owls made an appearance as well. Make of it what you will! Best wishes to Richard for a speedy recovery. DIRECT LINK

The last time Jeff Ritzmann was on the show, he briefly described how almost anyone could initiate their own paranormal (specifically UFO-related) encounter. I wanted him to get more specific, but we ran out of time. This time, he not only got into more detail, he spent much of the program warning those who might try to follow his guidelines that this exercise is not for the faint of heart, and more importantly, not for anyone who doesn’t want their lives completely upset, perhaps beyond repair. This is because, in Jeff’s opinion and experience, the paranormal thrives in an atmosphere is liminality and chaos, and any serious explorer must meet it on it’s own territory. Jeff warned that anyone who wants to tread into this area must be prepared to lose their jobs, relationships with friends and loved ones, and perhaps their sanity. He was serious about this. Caveat emptor in the strongest terms! We also talked about the recent Tom DeLonge announcement (which happened the day of our interview), paranoia and perception, and a strange symbol that appeared with no discernible source on a mirror in Jeff’s home, and what famed researcher of “alien writing,” the late Dr. Mario Pazzaglini had to say about it. Image: Jeff’s amazing design for a Radio Misterioso t-shirt. DIRECT LINK

Erica Lukes has had her own UFO experiences, been through the MUFON wringer as an official for the organization, and conducted original field research over many years, as well as hosting the UFO Classified interview program. On the day that the Tom DeLonge UFO venture announcement event took place, Erica and I talked about the implications of and concerns about the project, which is staffed almost exclusively by former intelligence personnel or those with close connections to the profession. We then launched into a discussion of the most glaring problem in UFO study: giant egos. We agreed that the research and presentation of findings and sharing information should take precedence. We talked about the worth of a truly skeptical viewpoint and how a more inclusive attitude could very well provide a breakthrough. Perhaps the castoffs from the recent MUFON shakeup will surprise us in the near future. Erica was in Los Angeles recently, and we recalled some of the locations we visited, including the world headquarters of the Aetherius Society. We also looked at the intersection between UFO study and other so-called “paranormal” pursuits. We ended with a list of Erica’s favorite books and researchers. We started and ended the show with strange music at Erica’s request. Photo: Erica models the amazing “DO NOT ENGAGE” t-shirt. DIRECT LINK

Courtney is a long-time friend who shares an interest in strange music, and we’ve been pushing each other to discover ever more wonderful and obscure sounds and ideas for many years. We gathered lists of our favorite out-there Halloween songs for this show, and I think we came up with some gems. From yodeling ghosts to folk songs about werewolves to the obligatory songs about the Devil, we ranged over a multitude of themes and a range of about 70 years of history. Enjoy! Rusty Diamond – Skellykins Allan Sherman – My Son The Vampire The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band – Look Out There’s a Monster Coming Patsy Montana – The Yodeling Ghost Bob Ridgley – The Way Out Mummy Fran Allison – Punky Punkin Micheal Hurley – The Werewolf Zeke Manners & His Swing Billies – Mr. Ghost Goes To Town Tiny Tim – People Are Strange Don Hinson – Riboflavin-Flavored, Non-Carbonated, Polyunsaturated Blood Vampires Of Dartmoore – Dance of the Vampires Rod Willis – The Cat The Surapon Alias Fox – Nang Maew Pee (The Ghost Of Cat) The Deviants – Billy The Monster Mick Farren – Bela Lugosi Jack Blanchard – Dance of the Living Dead Chickens Kongress – Eyes of the Witness The Rattles – The Witch Roky Erikson – Don’t Shake Me Lucifer Tool – Die Eier Von Satan Vulgar Deli – In League with Satan Leslie Fish – Carmen Miranda’s Ghost The Voluptuous Horror of Karen Black – I Believe in Halloween DIRECT LINK

Kenn Thomas was in town for the last few days, so we took an hour to make a short “pop-up” interview about the impending release on October 26th of the (supposedly) last secret government files on the JFK assassination. Kenn believes that there will be some new information on Lee Harvey Oswald’s suspected visit to Mexico City as part of his connection to the intel community. We also discussed a new letter from Uri Geller saying he will confirm some of the details if they are forthcoming, as he claims to have done some psychic spying in regards to the events surrounding the killing. We also took the time to discuss Kenn’s new book Trumpocalypse Now! and his contention that the 45th President has used the idea of conspiracies as one of his tools for popularity. He also believes that the idea that Senator Ted Cruz’ father was connected with Oswald actually makes him a patriot rather than a villian (as Trump has suggested) since Kenn thinks they were trying to infiltrate pro-Castro groups, not join them as supporters. We visited Marilyn Monroe’s grave and completed the last 5 minutes of the interview there, talking about an article by Nick Redfern concerning what she might have known about UFOs and Area 51. Photo: Kenn also wanted to visit the grave of actor William Frawley, so I took him there. DIRECT LINK

Another in our occasional discussions of the book UFOs: Reframing the Debate was conducted at a park and in a pub in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. I was visiting for a few days and both Susan and Robert were amazing hosts and made sure I had no reason to be alone or bored. We delved into the merits of the criticisms of the book and how our colleague Micah Hanks has called for renewed attention to altered states of consciousness and how this is important to the study of anomalistic experiences. We also talked about the difference between an unexpected, sudden experience and one that might be considered an “altered state.” Continuing the witness-centered theme, we debated the merits of the internal vs. the external narrative of a weird encounter and how language and telling the story changes the initial experience. I was challenged to defend my co-creation hypothesis and how that might change with multiple witnesses. We also looked at the idea that strange encounters may either be encoded in the DNA across generations, or give individuals a propensity for this. We ended with a back-and-forth on liminal states and Susan shared some of her own. This was a very fruitful discussion at the sort of high level that always excites me. Apologies for the occasional quality issues in the first 43 minutes. I tried to filter out all the wind noise, because I felt this interview was too important to lose. DIRECT LINK

When Royce Myers went to a UFO convention in the early 1990s, Mexican UFO promoter Jaime Maussan informed him that stars were parts of vast alien “motherships,” which were moving slowly across the sky every night. This (and other experiences) convinced him that some (or many) of those who are studying and promoting UFO study might not be looking at the subject with a logical mindset. He believes that the situation has gotten worse since then. With that in mind Myers founded the UFO Watchdog site in 1998 to investigate and document abuses of trust and lapses of logic and sanity in the field. In 2003, Myers was sued for libel by UFO personality Sean David Morton. Nothing that Myers had published on his site was found to be untrue and Morton was ultimately ordered to pay Myers’ $16,000 in legal fees. We talked about this and the recent sentencing of Morton and his wife for attempting to defraud the IRS out of $4,800,000 and various private citizens of thousands more. In the 1900s, Myers also investigated UFO sightings and cattle mutilations, and spoke  about some strange and inexplicable situations and reports he received. In the last half of the show, we also talked about other recent scandals and issues in the field, such as the Stan Romanek story and the Peruvian mummy controversy. DIRECT LINK

Time to catch up with Tim Binnall of Binnall of America and a long time friend and supporter of this show. This program was recorded in early August, before fugitive and itinerant psychic and scam artist Sean David Morton was caught and jailed to await sentencing, after his relatively lengthy 61 days on the lam. We discussed that situation and moved on to the mysterious Armen Victorian, who was a peripheral, but noted personality in UFO circles in the 1990s. I recalled the strange phone call I received from him. The late researcher and author Jim Marrs had a distinct influence on Tim’s entry into the field of conspiracy, the paranormal and other aspects of the strange. He was Tim’s first interview and opened this season of his podcast, which is one reason why Tim has decided to stop producing the show and move on to other projects (after Marrs’ recent untimely death.) At the end, we spent a few minutes on the East Coast Paraconference. Photo: Tim at the Aetherius Society world headquarters in Hollywood. DIRECT LINK

My longtime friend Miles Lewis and I always have lots to talk about. This time, we started out with a story I read recently that dealt with people taking megadoses (meaning 1000x the normal amount) of LSD and how they might be short-circuiting their brains. With that out of the way, we discussed the new book on Gef, the Talking Mongoose and our recent trip to the Roswell 70th Anniversary festivities and conferences. The talk roamed through a discussion of faked photos and the Stan Romanek drama before taking a detour into the subject of wishing machines. Then, Miles told me about his experience with a torturous mystery “hum” that plagued him for 26 days, and the community of people who hear various anomalous (and long-term) tones and hums. I asked if he wanted to move on to the MUFON “death spiral” as he calls it. He also talked about his many years of experience with the organization at the local level and how this is sometimes very different than the public perception of the group. There was a bit of talk on the scandal of selling confidential results and records of abductee research. For a bit of hope, we discussed how people can create new networks of detection, reporting, and study of UFOs. Photo: Miles speaks at Roswell, 2017 DIRECT LINK