Who can forget the classic tale of the mad scientist who creates a gorgeously gruesome Creature, only to become frightened and disgusted by his own creation? Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein is one of the most widely taught examples of Gothic literature, yet most readers don’t know the true story behind Shelley’s most famous work. Was Frankenstein really the product of a writing competition between friends while on summer vacation, as most people believe it to be, or was the story of the scientist and his Monster born out of a much darker mindset?  Episode Highlights:  June 1816: The year without a summer The feminists daughter The twisted love life of Percy Shelley An empty crib in the nursery Vacations in the villa with Lord Byron A ghostly competition between friends Reviving the dead with electricity The waking dream of Mary Shelley Giving birth to Frankenstein's monster Who was the mad scientist? Who was the Monster?  Enjoyed this episode? Please support the show by rating, reviewing, and subscribing on  iTunes. Please visit Pleasing Terrors, the podcast behind Old Charleston’s best ghost tour, on Facebook and Twitter!  

017: A Monster of Many Parts

Join acclaimed ghost storyteller Mike Brown for a bi-weekly tour through the shadows of history. The Pleasing Terrors Podcast features stories about haunted places, creepy history, and forgotten folklore.

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In this episode, we take a look at Edgar Allan Poe's "The Gold Bug," a story about an encrypted map that leads to a buried pirate treasure. We will visit a haunted theater and discuss a play a play about the death of Poe that was first performed there in 1994. The story, the ghosts, and the play are all clues that lead to a hidden treasure that Poe was attempting to find in Charleston in 1828.  This is the first installment of a two-part story.   Works Cited:   Buxton, Julian T.,  The Ghosts of Charleston  , Beaufort Books, 2001   Caskey, James,  Charleston’s Ghosts: Hauntings in the Holy City, Manta Ray Books LLC., 2014   Dawidziak, Mark, A Mystery of Mysteries,  St. Martin's Press, 2023   Downey, Christopher Byrd,  Edgar Allan Poe’s Charleston, History Press, 2020   Downey, Christopher Byrd,  A History Lover’s Guide To Charleston, The History Press, 2023      Hecker, William F., Private Perry and Mister Poe: The West Point Poems, 1831 Louisiana State University Press, 2005   Jacobi, Jolande,  Complex/Archtype/sSymbol in the Psychology of C.G. Jung, Bollingen Foundation Inc., 1959   Main, Roderick  Jung on Synchronicity and the Paranormal, Princeton University Press, 1997   Pitser, Sarah.  Haunted Charleston, Morris Book Publishing, LLC., 2013   Poe, Edgar Allan,   Complete Tales and Poems, Maplewood Books, 2013   Wiles, Julian,  Nevermore, The Dramatic Publishing Company, 1998   Jacobi, Jolande,  Complex/Archtype/sSymbol in the Psychology of C.G. Jung, Bollingen Foundation Inc., 1959   Main, Roderick  Jung on Synchronicity and the Paranormal, Princeton University Press, 1997

Charleston Gothic (Part 1)

The conclusion of the three part series which combines history, ghosts, true crime and fairytales.

The Mermaid Returns: Part 3

The second episode in a three part series about one of Charleston's lost stories. It is a true story that combines history, true crime, ghosts and fairy tales. 

The Mermaid Returns: Part 2

This is the first in a three part series about one of Charleston, South Carolina's lost stories. It combines history, ghosts, true crime,  amd fairytales.

The Mermaid Returns: Part 1

This episode features the untold story of the origin of King Kong.

017: A Monster of Many Parts

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