Bob After Dark

This week we had not one but two guests on this week. First, we talk to Victoria from Wickedly Whiting, a festival held in Whiting, Indiana. It's a two day outdoor event celebrating all things spooky! Bob and Count Panek will be speaking there live on Friday October 1st at 6:00 PM CT. Then, the boys talk to Ed Levin from SPIRE Paranormal, a group whom investigates homes and businesses. Ed has been a paranormal investigator for 14 years, and had many stories to share with us including a ghost lurking in a Chicago basement who made the room smell like beer, and answered on a spirit box that only mustard goes on a hotdog. Ed and SPIRE will be at the Watseka Courthouse/Museum on October 24th. Link to that is here: https://gravesideparanormal.com/upcoming-events/

Fan of Steven King? Even if you aren't, chances are you heard of his famous novel "IT." IT takes place in a city called Derry, Maine. Which is a fictional city, but is based on a real one. Welcome to Bangor, Maine. Home of Steven King himself as he lived there for quite some time. Well, no town would be complete without it's ghost stories, and the town where IT is based on is no exception. Learn about a ghostly encounter in The Bangor Opera house, a haunted YMCA, and the Hammond Senior Center. Count Panek and Bob also have an articulate battle of who can say the words the worst.

You may remember Casey Evans Varady and Pete Ghrist from past episodes of the show. However, Brian Greer is a new voice to the show! This week, we have 3 members of Northwest Indiana Paranormal joining us to talk about their organization. They have traveled all around the country, ranging from The Monroe Demon House to Crown Point Jail and to The Warren House.

This week on Bob After Dark...

The boys interview a long time legend of the paranormal world, Tim Binnall.

Tim Binnall is the senior news editor for Coast to Coast AM as well as the host of the pioneering paranormal podcast Binnall of America. For more than 20 years and over the course of 500+ BoA programs, he has interviewed a vast array of researchers, spanning a wide spectrum of paranormal genres and ranging from bona fide esoteric icons to up-and-coming future players in 'the field.' With Coast to Coast AM, he has spent the last decade chronicling the weird and wondrous events of the world, writing 6,000+ pieces covering every facet of the paranormal and high strangeness. A graduate of Syracuse University, Binnall aims to maintain an outsider's perspective on the paranormal world with a distinct appreciation for its absurdities and a keen interest in the personalities and sociology of esoteric studies.

This one is a stange one, folks. The spooky news of the week went off the rails with the conversation of Summerween, Nicholas Cage not believing in Bigfoot, and satellites making fake daylight. However, when the lore of the week happens? We discuss a strange case out of England. It involves a vampire, mass hysteria hunt, a magicians duel, and exorcisms. This is one episode you won't want to miss.

According to Lorraine Boissoneault, "The circus had just completed two performances in Michigan City, Indiana, and was traveling overnight the 45 miles to nearby Hammond. The first train, carrying workers and many of the circus animals, cruised on to its destination with no problems. But engineers on the second train halted their progress to fix a hotbox. The overheated axle bearing could cause a fire on the train if not deal with immediately. It was around 4 a.m. when the second train pulled off onto a side track, but the last five cars— including four wooden sleeper cars—remained on the main track. As the engineers worked, and the performers slept, an empty train used to transport soldiers to the East Coast for subsequent deployment to the warfront in Europe came barreling down the main track. The driver blew past several stop signals, and then the lamps of several of the circus engineers trying desperately to stop the oncoming train. But the train’s steel-frame Pullman cars smashed into the wooden circus coaches, at speeds between 25 and 60 miles per hour, according to contemporaneous newspaper reports. The sound of the collision was so loud that nearby farmers awoke and hurried to see what had happened." What people came to see was one of the worst train accidents of all time. Many people were injured, and many people died that day. Some were burnt up from the crash so bad they were able to be identified. The dead performers, both identified and not were laid to rest at Woodlawn Cemetery in Chicago. That plot is now known as Showmen's Rest. The ghost stories attached to the area include people hearing ghostly animal noises, and circus music at the cemetery. Our quick investigation lead us to find if the crash site is haunted or not.

Meet Jaci and Bill Kousoulas paranormal investigators, mothman enthusiasts, and researchers. Jaci and Bill Kousoulas are the founders of Phenomenology Research Professionals (PRP), a research team dedicated to exploring the intersections of psychology, spirituality, and the paranormal through rigorous qualitative methods. They are the authors of Bridging the Tragedy, a psychological study examining the 1967 Silver Bridge Disaster in Point Pleasant, WV, the Mothman narrative, and the phenomenon of post‑traumatic growth (PTG). Their work highlights how individuals transform trauma into meaning, resilience, and personal evolution.

On March 1, 2024, they launched their next major study, Transcending the Darkness, which investigates the relationship between trauma and paranormal experiences. As with Bridging the Tragedy, the project focuses on the positive outcomes participants report after these events. Interviewees include Gary Osborn (The Rendlesham Enigma), Rev. Michael Carter (Ancient Aliens), Dr. Dean Bertram (director of The Man Who Invented Flying Saucers), and additional experiencers and researchers.

Bill and Jaci live in Sycamore, Illinois—sixty miles northwest of Chicago - but surrounded more by cornfields than skyscrapers.

Learn more from them at: https://www.prpconnect.org/

Everyone, meet Bishop Kristina Rake. The Most Reverend Kristina Rake is the Archbishop of the Catholic Church in Exile—an Inclusive Catholic jurisdiction within the world-wide Independent and Old Catholic Church movement. The Catholic Church in Exile (as it is called) welcomes all people to every sacrament, regardless of age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, or lifestyle.

Brandon Wilkins, affectionately known to many as Uncle Brandon, is a conjure practitioner, cultural preservationist, storyteller, educator, and community leader with more than 30 years of experience in the traditions of African-American folk spirituality. Rooted in the Gullah Geechee traditions of the Carolinas and shaped by generations of inherited wisdom, his work is dedicated to preserving, teaching, and celebrating the rich legacy of Conjure in America.

As the founder and leader of The Haus of Midnite, Brandon has built a thriving community centered on education, cultural preservation, music, storytelling, and spiritual development. Through lectures, workshops, performances, and public events, he shares the history, folklore, customs, and practical traditions that have sustained African-American communities for generations.

A respected voice in contemporary Conjure, Brandon is the author of educational works on folk magic, traditional spiritual practices, dream interpretation, and African-American folklore. He is also the creator of original spiritual tools, classes, and programs designed to make traditional knowledge accessible while honoring the elders and communities from which it came.

Beyond his spiritual work, Brandon is a classically trained chef, accomplished quilter, and keeper of traditional stories. His passion for preserving oral history and cultural memory has made him a sought-after speaker and teacher, known for blending scholarship, lived experience, and engaging storytelling into every presentation.

Through his work, Brandon continues to serve as a bridge between past and present, ensuring that the voices, traditions, and wisdom of African-American ancestors remain alive, respected, and available for future generations.

You can learn more about Uncle Brandon on his website below: https://www.thehausofmidnite.com/

According to Christal herself, "The bestselling author of The Midnight Mask of Nola and soon-to-be-released The Holy Design of Reality. As a Psychic Medium and Metaphysical Educator, she dives into the links between spirituality, consciousness, and healing. Her writing, both fiction and nonfiction, weaves emotional stories with discussions on religion, intuition, and quantum physics. She aims to challenge perspectives while keeping my work relatable and genuine." We talk about her metaphysical background, her spiritual gifts, and of course her book writing. You fan find out more about Christal on her Linktree here: https://linktr.ee/Christalshealingheart?fbclid=IwY2xjawSEArVleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFJbnpBeE5kTUZNS0oxS2Frc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHmh0nnr-aAvJejDFutBnrf1VkZXdjQTWs5KwVZPxdE0VcD95Xa5FjYDKbPwp_aem_OBA4hdMHuudVfTN4nJgHaA