MonsterTalk

S05E29 - Science of the Supernatural with Melissa Maffeo

04 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Neuroscientist Dr. Melissa Maffeo joins Blake and Karen to discuss her new book Science of the Supernatural: Critical Thinking for the Mind and Brain ...

FLASHBACK BONUS: S01E069 The Key to the Legend of the Map Monsters

01 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

To announce (and celebrate) the Spanish language release of Chet Van Duzer's beautiful and informative book on map monsters, I'm re-releasing episode ...

S05E28 The Cottingley Fairies

27 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Blake and Karen are joined by Matt Baxter to discuss the strange case of the Cottingley Fairies.  https://www.monstertalk.org/?p=2706Hosts: Karen S...

S05E27 - Monsters: Myths, Legends, and Real Encounters with Richard Estep

20 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

🎙️ Blake and Karen welcome back author and paranormal investigator Richard Estep to discuss his new book from Visible Ink Press, Monsters: Myths,...

S05E26 Haunted Cemeteries

13 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In Part 2 of our chat with folklorist Chris Woodyard we talk about the lore of haunted cemeteries.Find Chris on BlueSky, FaceBook, and our back catalo...

S05E25 - Headless Motorcyclist Ghosts

06 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In part 1 of our chat with folklorist Chris Woodyard, we discuss haunted roads and headless motorcycle ghosts.Find Chris on BlueSky, FaceBook, and our...

S05E24 - ParaMormonal Activity with Steve Cuno

30 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

We talk with Karen's friend, author and Ex-Mormon, Steve Cuno about paranormal ideas in the Mormon religion. Steve Cuno: Behind the Mormon Curtain: ...

S05E23 - The Stately Ghosts of England (pt2)

23 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Part two of our discussion of the interesting made-for-TV film The Stately Ghosts of England(1965). Blake and Karen are joined by Matt Baxter and this...

S05E22 - The Stately Ghosts of England (pt1)

16 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Blake and Karen are joined by Matt Baxter to discuss the 1965 made-for-TV film The Stately Ghosts of England. The film stars Margaret Rutherford, her ...

BONUS: Weirdumentary with Gary Rhodes

08 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

I'm excited to be posting this BONUS content - an interview with film historian Gary D. Rhodes. Gary is joining me to talk about his newest book Weird...

S05E21 - Dragons & Trolls of the Marsh

01 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

We are delighted to talk with Dr. Christopher Beatty about his research into Dragonflies. From ancient times these insects have been the subject of wo...

S05E20 - Cults, Corps, and the Culinary with Christina Ward

22 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

We're joined by Christina Ward of Feral House publishing to talk about the intersection of food, culture, belief, control, and the weird as she tells ...

S05E19 A Season of Madness - Old World Carnival with Al Ridenour

16 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Host of Bone & Sickle, Al Ridenour joins us to talk about the traditions of European Carnival season. It's the subject of his latest book, A Seaso...

S05E18 - America Bewitched with Owen Davies (part 2)

09 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In part two of our two-part interview with Owen Davies, we continue the discussion of witches and witch prosecutions with thoughtful considerations of...

S05E17 - America Bewitched with Owen Davies (part 1)

01 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In part one of our two-part interview with Owen Davies, we discuss the history of witch trials, accusations, murder, and other troubles bubbling up fr...

S05E16 Greenland Sharks with Greg Skomal

26 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

We are joined by author and researcher Greg Skomal to talk about the mysterious and long-lived Greenland Shark. Books by Greg:Chasing Shadows: Unrave...

S05E15 Ghosted with Alice Vernon

19 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode we talk with Dr. Alice Vernon about her fascinating look at the history of ghost hunting and psychical research, from the late 19th ce...

S05E14 The Case of the Missing Thunderbird Photo

12 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Blake and Karen discuss the legendary photo said to capture 19th century cowboys or soldiers with a giant bird or pterosaur.SHOW NOTE LINKS:The origin...

S05E13 - Liminal Space Invaders

05 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

We talk with journalist Lana Hall about her piece The Dead Mall Society, which details her journey to decaying malls in the Toronto area in search of ...

S05E12 The Secret History of Lizard People

29 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Friend of the show Dr. Joe Laycock returns to talk about LIZARD PEOPLE with us. He also has a new book: The Penguin Book of CultsJoe's Books:Penguin ...

Christmas Special #13 - The Mezzotint by M. R. James

22 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It took a minute but I finally managed to read one of these "live" to my own family for the holidays. This is such an evocative story that I wanted to...

S05E11 Ghostly Encounters with Richard Estep

15 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Blake and Karen visit again with Colorado author of paranormal and true crime, Richard Estep. Richard's Booksdiscussed in this episode:Ghostly Encount...

S05E10_Monstertalk

08 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Episode Summary: In this episode, hosts Blake Smith and Dr. Karen Stollznow catch up on recent headlines and new literature. First, Blake discusses a...

S05E09 Flashback: Bad Wolf

02 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

FLASHBACKWe're looking back at October 5, 2011 this week and an interview with Valerius Geist (February 2, 1938 – July 6, 2021) about the myths and ...

S05E08 A Survey of Frogmen Festivals

24 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We're joined by Sydney Davidson - student of Dr. Jeb Card (IRO) - to discuss her research into Frogmen Festivals, and to discuss monster festivals and...

S05E07 A Haunted Chest of Drawers

17 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We're joined by Matt Baxter to watch and discuss another vintage BBC look at the paranormal - this time in the form of an allegedly haunted chest of d...

S05E06 Monster Manual & Mamer

10 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We're joined by host of the Conspiracy Skeptic Podcast, Karl Mamer. Karl's working on a new book in his series of skeptically themed books of lists (T...

S05E05 Why I don't believe in... BIGFOOT

04 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, I talk about why I don't believe in Bigfoot and the core of my basis of doubt. This is part of a new intermittent series wherein we'l...

S05E04 Haunting America Revisited

27 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This week on MonsterTalk, Blake and Karen are joined by Matthew Baxter to revisit Karen’s classic investigation book Haunting America — newly ...

S05E03 So Much for the Show Me State

21 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

UAPs, “Disclosure,” and the Influence Machine 🔦🛰️This episode looks at the latest UAP theater around Rep. Eric Burlison’s congressional ...

S05E02 Autocannibalism Is Not The Answer

13 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This week Blake Smith and Karen Stollznow are joined by clinical psychologist Dr. Brian A. Sharpless, author of Monsters on the Couch, to discuss cann...

S05E01 - Think of the Children!

06 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

🎙 MonsterTalk — The Cult of MolochShow Notes · Hosts: Blake Smith & Karen StollznowIn this episode, Blake Smith and Karen Stollznow explore ...

S04E46 - SciCom and Science Comedy with Brian Malow

29 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We finish up Season 4 of MonsterTalk, not with a bang - but a chuckle, as we welcome Science Comedian Brian Malow to talk about using humor and scienc...

S04E45 - Resurrecting Dire Wolves and Moa Bad Ideas

22 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We discuss the sketchy "science by press release" of Colossal Biosciences and the controversies lurking in the history of its lead scientist. Have the...

S04E44 Ghost Hunting 1975

15 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We take a look at a fascinating slice of paranormal history in the form of a 1975 BBC documentary The Ghost Hunters. How much has changed in paranorma...

S04E43 - Big Foot and Van Meter

08 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Blake catches Karen up on his current research projects: The four-wall tour dates of the PGF, and a contextual look at the Van Meter Visitor. Neither ...

S04E42 You Don't Know Jackalopes

01 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Blake is joined by regular contributor Matt Baxter, and special guest Kara Van Hoose from the Colorado Department of Parks and Wildlife to discuss the...

S04E41 Karen and Matt in Scotland

25 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Karen and Matt are back from their book tour in the UK and they got to have some real MonsterTalk moments! Loch Ness, Boleskine House and more plus Bl...

Flashback: Shaver Mystery Super-cut

18 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It's Hollow Earth, UFOs, the birth of Sci-Fi, and more wierdshit than you can believe as we present a super-cut of our 2-part interview with Jerry Dra...

S04E40 - Catching Up: UK Edition

11 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Karen and Matt check in from the UK! Karen is on tour promoting her new book Bitch: The Journey of a Word.  (affiliate link)Islands are engines of la...

S04E39 - Are Magpies Monsters?

04 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A fascinating chat about Australian Magpies (Gymnorhina tibicen) with Dr. Grainne Cleary in which we talk about the role of stories in creating monste...

S04E38 - Revisiting Robert the Doll

28 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Blake recounts his recent visit to see Robert the Doll, and his findings after a deep dive into newspapers and other literature.   Patrons get follow...

Flashback: Demon Dolls

21 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Flashback to October 2016! Updated content on Robert coming soon.In this week’s episode of MonsterTalk, we talk about demonic or evil dolls, and lo...

Flashback: Alien Intrusion and the UTH

13 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Flashback to January 2018:In this episode of MonsterTalk, we return to discussion of the Ultraterrestrial Hypothesis (UTH) and what seems to be its g...

Flashback: Zombies, Cults & Demons

07 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

FLASHBACK to December 2013:A FAMILIAR VOICE returns to MonsterTalk as Dr. Karen Stollznow joins us to discuss her (then new) book, God Bless Americ...

Flashback: Doctor Atlantis - with Ken Feder

30 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Flashback to May 2015: IS THERE A LOST CITY somewhere that formed the basis of the legend of Atlantis? Dr. Kenny Feder returns, not to praise Atlantis...

Flashback: The Warren Omission

23 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We will be playing some episodes from our archives for a few weeks this Summer - let's kick it off with this classic from October 2013! THE WARREN OMI...

S04E37 High Weirdness with Erik Davis

16 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We're joined by Erik Davis to discuss his book High Weirdness - a history of psychedelics and counterculture as a triptych embodied with three promine...

S04E36 – Nefarious Stealth Evangelicalism?

09 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We’re joined by Matt Baxter to discuss what we thought was a horror film but turned out to be something quite different.Warning: This film and epis...

S04E35 - Dread Bothy and Beyond

02 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Matt Baxter returns to join Karen and Blake in a discussion of allegedly haunted “bothies” in the remote hiking regions of the UK. This episode co...

S04E34 - The Murder that Inspired Twin Peaks

26 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Jerry Drake returns to discuss his new book:Hazel was a Good Girl: The Murder that Inspired Twin PeaksJerry has been with quite a few times to discuss...

S04E33 - BigFootage: The Secret of Bigfoot pt 2

19 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We're back with part two of our 2-part coverage of the 1976 episode of The Six Million Dollar Man that introduced a generation of kids to Bigfoot, and...

S04E32 - BigFootage: The Secret of Bigfoot pt 1

12 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Karen joins Blake to discuss the influential 2-part episodes of The Six Million Dollar Man that introduced a generation of kids to Bigfoot, and the id...

S04E31 - Catching Up May 2025

05 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Blake and Karen take a minute to catch their breath and talk about where things are in their lives and what's up next in MonsterTalk news.Links:Bitch:...

S04E30 Dinos & Dragons - Part 2

28 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This is part two of our two part look at Dragons and how these mythical beasts are being used to promote Creationism. Our guest is Dr. Philip Senter a...

S04E29 - Dinos & Dragons - Part 1

21 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This is part one of our two part look at Dragons and how these mythical beasts are being used to promote Creationism. Our guest is Dr. Philip Senter a...

S04E28 The Victor Hotel Ghost

14 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Matt & Karen went out for a little getaway weekend to Victor, Colorado and ended up investigating the allegedly haunted Victor Hotel. Did Eddie di...

S04E27 - Jewish Mysticism and Dybbuks with Peter Bebergal

07 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We're excited to welcome back Peter Bebergal. This time we're talking about mysticism and dybbuks. Be sure and check out the links below including the...

S04E26 - A Natural History of Sea Serpents with Adrian Shine

31 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We're delighted to get to talk with Adrian Shine, who has worked for decades to raise awareness about Loch Ness and investigated the legendary creatur...

S04E25 - Demon Sex in Medieval Times PT 2

24 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We're back with part 2 of our interview with Dr. Eleanor Janega to discuss Demons in Medieval Europe - and a lot of that has to do with sexy sex.  So...

S04E24 Demon Sex in Medieval Times

16 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We're joined by the engaging historian Dr. Eleanor Janega to talk about how the people of Europe considered demonic sex during the medieval period of ...

S04E23 Remembering Joe Nickell

10 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A brief remembrance of our friend, Joe Nickell. (December 1, 1944 – March 4, 2025)Joe Nickell's extraordinary life came to an end on Tuesday, March ...

S04E22 Women in the Paranormal

03 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We're joined by Allison Jornlin (paranormalwomen.com) to talk about the footprint of women in the field of parapsychology and paranormal investigation...

S04E21 The Cave of the Winds

24 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Is the cave of the winds near Manitou Springs, CO HAUNTED!? Matt Baxter has investigated and he joins us to talk about what he found.Related Links:S...

S04E20 - Understand Japan's Dan Da Dan [Explicit]

17 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We're joined by Dr. Justin Mullis to get a better understanding of the incredibly lore-dense anime series Dan Da Dan.Justin's academia profileLegend ...

S04E19 - Monsters of the Heart

10 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

As Valentine's day bears down upon us, we turn to the monsters whose origins lie in passion, betrayal, and tragedy. If love is the strongest human emo...

S04E18 - Grave Rubbers from CyberSpace!

03 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Cemeteries Cleaning and Grave Rubbing - Karen and Blake are joined by Matt Baxter to discuss the ethics and best practices around maintaining and pres...

S04E17 The Ghost of Ticonderoga with Joseph Gagne

27 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This week we're welcoming back historian Dr Joseph Gagne to tell us about a ghost story that straddles North America and Scotland.  He was last with ...

S04E16 - The Houdini Seance and Arthur Ford, Spiritualist

20 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Today we're discussing the strange story of The Houdini Seance and Arthur Ford the Spiritualist.    The last Houdini Seance (1936) - Audio + Story ...

S04E15 The Green Eyes Festival

13 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In the mountains of North Georgia on a spooky civil war battlefield there is a legend of a green eyed monster. This is not that story. This is the st...

S04E14 2024 Year In Review

06 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This is the audio from our 2024 livestream (http://youtube.com/monstertalk).  If you saw that live, this is the same audio without the moving pictur...

S04E13_Monstertalk

30 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We're joined by fellow podcaster and friend of the show, Andy Driscoll, to introduce a peculiar region in Massachusetts said to be home to concentrate...

Christmas Special #012 - Smee by A. M. Burrage

24 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

One of the most "Christmas Ghost Story" ghost stories for Christmas that I've ever come across. Smee tells of a night of holiday revelry turned chill...

S04E12 Do You Believe in Magic with Laura Krantz

23 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We're excited to have Laura Krantz back to talk about her latest book - a youth-focused look at how to distinguish between magical and scientific thin...

S04E11 - The Saucer Life with Aaron Gulyas

16 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

An interview with writer, researcher and podcaster Aaron Gulyas - host of the UFO themed history podcast The Saucer Life.Gulyas is also the author of ...

S04E10 - The Wollaton Gnomes with Chris Woodyard

09 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We welcome back Chris Woodyard to discuss the very odd story of the Wollaton Gnomes - a 1979 reported sighting of little men in little cars by a group...

S04E09 - THEM! and The Monster from Newark

02 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We're delighted to celebrate Thanksgiving with the return of Dr. Brian Regal. He's here to talk about a favorite monster film, and announce the releas...

S04E08 CryptidCon 20244

25 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Thanks to your generous support I was able to make it to CryptidCon 2024 and this is a chat with Karen and me, reporting on day one.I'll be heading ou...

GoFundMe - Van Repair Emergency

21 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

I'm sorry to come to you with hat in hand, but our family vehicle's water pump just went out a day before I was to head up to Kentucky to go to Crypti...

S04E07 Nandor Fodor and the Talking Mongoose

18 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Blake and Karen are joined by Matt Baxter to discuss the 2023 film Nandor Fodor and the Talking Mongoose, based on the story of Gef, the talking mongo...

S04E06 Griffinology

11 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We're joined by author and professor Anne McClannan to discuss her new book Griffinology.  These monsters are visually easily recognized - but how mu...

S04E05 Real Vampires with Joe Laycock

04 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We managed to catch up with Joe Laycock for ONE MORE VAMPIRE EPISODE! This time we're having a look at the world of people who believe they are really...

S04E04 (EXPLICIT) MonsterTalk Live Halloween 2024 - Vampires in Media

28 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Blake and Karen are joined again by Matt Baxter to talk about vampires in books, film, tv, and comics! This episode is EXPLICIT and contains adult lan...

S04E03 - Jiangshi - "Hopping Vampires?"

21 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We’re joined by researcher Katarzyna “Kasia” Ancuta to learn more about the Chinese creature known as the Jiangshi – but more famous in the ...

S04E02 The Pathologies of Vampirism with Dr. Brian Sharpless

14 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We're delighted to have Brian Sharpless (Monsters on the Couch) back with us to discuss some of the Psychology elements of vampirism, as well as some ...

S04E01 Vampires: Dead Paole

07 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We kick off our Vampire October with the story of Arnold Paole and we're joined by Matt Baxter. This story appeared in the 1979 edition of Usborne's H...

S03E53 Vampires with Professor Nick Groom

30 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode we look at the history of the Vampire in folklore and literature with professor Nick Groom - aka "The Prof of Goth."Links related to P...

S03E52 Viral Ghost Photos

23 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Karen and her husband Matt are back from visiting Australia and in this episode we discuss some viral ghost photos. The photos will be in the show not...

S03E51 Operation Mindf*ck part 2 - with Adam Gorightly

16 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Part two of our two-part talk with author Adam Gorightly about his research into the very strange history of Discordianism and The Illuminati. If you...

S03E50 Operation Mindf*ck part 1 - with Adam Gorightly

09 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Part one of our two-part talk with author Adam Gorightly about his research into the very strange history of Discordianism and The Illuminati. If you ...

S03E49 Richard Hatem's Paranormal Bookshelf: pt 2 (Explicit)

02 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode Blake continues his conversation with Richard Hatem (Mothman Prophecies, Titans, Under Siege 2) about his new podcast.  Karen was awa...

S03E48 Richard Hatem's Paranormal Bookshelf: pt 1

26 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode Blake talks with Richard Hatem (Mothman Prophecies, Titans, Under Siege 2) about his new podcast.Additional Links:Spiricom via Encycl...

S03E47 Darren Naish pt 2: The State of Cryptozoology

19 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Part two of a two-part discussion with paleontologist Darren Naish about the history of Dogman lore. In part two, we discuss the current state of cryp...

S03E46 Darren Naish pt 1: The Dogman

12 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Part one of a two-part discussion with paleontologist Darren Naish about the history of Dogman lore. Next week in part two, we discuss the current sta...

S03E45 - Archaeological Frauds & Hoaxes

05 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We're delighted to welcome back Dr. Ken Feder to talk about his new YouTube series that covers many archaeological frauds & hoaxes, and explains h...

S03E44 - Monstrum Talk with Dr. Emily Zarka

29 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We're excited to bring you an interview with Dr. Emily Zarka, host of PBS's Monstrum series on the humanities web channel Storied.Become a supporter ...

S03E43 - Ancient Werewolves

22 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Werewolves are an ancient idea, but the meaning and beliefs around the concept have changed over time. How were they viewed in the classical world and...

S03E42 - From Cryptids to Kaiju with Dr. Justin Mullis

15 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We welcome back Dr. Justin Mullis to tell us about the interesting connection he found between Cryptozoology and the Godzilla franchise. He just appea...

S03E41 - The Real Swamp Monster

08 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We're joined by mosquito and disease expert Dr. Louisa Messenger of the Las Vegas PARAVEC lab. It turns out that gators and snakes aren't the big dang...

S03E40 - Silver Cliff Cemetery Ghost Lights

01 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Karen Stollznow and Matt Baxter recount their journey to solve the mystery of the ghost lights of Silver Cliff Cemetery, in Colorado. Silver Cliff Cem...