BookSpeak Network

Pennsylvania's historical record does not include merely the likes of William Penn and the Founding Fathers. It is also home to folk tales and lore, of ghosts, strange disappearances, dreadful crimes and things that just cannot be explained. Marlin Bressi has chronicled many of these in "Pennsylvania Oddities," Volumes 1, 2, and 3. Among the stories elaborated on with host Lawrence Knorr, The Lykens Triple Axe Murder of 1932, The Connellsville Explosion of 1911, The Clearfield UFO Sightings of 1950, and the mysterious John Wilkes Booth Doppelganger of Northumberland County.Bressi also discusses another Sunbury Press work, "Hairy Men in Caves: True Stories of America's Most Colorful Hermits," a look at the lives of dozens of men (and some women) who opted out of life from the 18th through the 20th century.Marlin Bressi is the creator of the Pennsylvania Oddities blog, plus the paranormal website Journal of the Bizarre. His short stories have appeared in publications such as The Gallery of Curiosities, Weird Darkness and The Storyhouse Weekly Reader.

A self-described "genre-promiscuous" author, Ichabod Ebenezer does just that, with short stories and novels of suspense, mystery and horror, and these appear in standalone works and collections.Joining Tory Gates on the Brown Posey Press Show, Ebenezer discusses the stories in his collection, "Beyond the Rail and Other Nightmares." Among these, "Singalong" tells of the theft of a classic car, and the curse that befalls any who steal it. "Fertile Minds" brings steampunk adventure alive in Victorian England, while "The Raven" delves into crimes in the cyberworld, crytpocurrency and what happens to people's souls.Ebenezer's works include the novels "Bloom and Decay" and "A Shadow Stained in Blood," the latter of which takes the reader to 1930s Seattle and a time with characters both rich and real. A native of Southern California, Ichabod Ebenezer has spent the past two-plus decades in the Pacific Northwest. He currently lives in Redmond, Washington with his family, two cats, a chameleon, and some skeletons in his closet.

Author Merrill Shaffer joins SPB host Lawrence Knorr to discuss his sports-related works. "Roaring Tigers: The History of Southern Columbia Football" chronicles one of the most successful high school football programs in the nation, and its enduring influence on Northern Pennsylvania. Shaffer talks about the coaches, players and the special fondness the people of the region have for the Tigers.While an early New York Jets fan, Shaffer transferred his admiration to a certain team in his home state. The Pittsburgh Steelers of the 1970s were considered by man to be "The Team of the Decade" while reeling off four Super Bowl championships under Head Coach Chuck Noll and a cast of players, and unheard-of (today) 24 who played on all four of those teams. Shaffer tells of the quest to have all those players, plus Noll sign a helmet, and how it took 17 years for one certain player to finally put his name on it!Merrill Shaffer earned a Associate in Arts Degree in Business Management from Harrisburg Area Community College, and a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice from Penn State University, with several years in law enforcement as a probation officer. He lives in Palmyra, PA with his wife and daughter.

Ronald Rand has performed among, but was also trained by giants of the theatre. An actor known around the world for his portrayal of Harold Clurman in the one-man show "Let It Be Art!" Rand outlines not only his own life and career, but that of many of his peers in "Solo Transformation On Stage: A Journey into the Organic Process of the Art of Transformation," his latest release on Brown Posey Press.Rand provides anecdotes of being trained by the likes of Clurman and Stella Adler (whose students included Marlon Brando, Robert DeNiro and many more), and insights from contemporaries into how they create the space necessary to become whom they portray onstage. Contemporaries such as Angelica Page, Christopher Plummer and Ben Vereen share these, and Rand includes photographs of his own transformation, plus Constantin Stanislavski's famous "Method of Physical Actions."In addtion to performing, Rand is a playright, educator and librettist. He is publisher of "The Soul of the American Actor" periodical,  and the books, "Acting Teachers of America" and "Create! How Extraordinary People Live to Create and Create to Live."

Sunbury Press Founder Lawrence Knorr sits down with "Keystone Tombstones" authors Joe Farrell and Joe Farley for a "History Through Biography" discussion on three pivotal figures of the American Revolution.Charles Thomson served as Secretary of the Continental Congress during its existance from 1774 to 1789. The Irish-born native was an early leader in the American Revolution, a key member of the Philadelphia-based Sons of Liberty and credited with co-designing the Great Seal of the United States. Another of the Founding Fathers, Gouvernor Morris was a signatory of the Articles of Confederation, the author of the Preamble to the US Constitution and represented Pennsylvania at the Constitutional Convention in 1787. He also served as a Senator for New York State and a Minister to France, where he was highly critical of that nation's revolution.While it would appear there could be nothing new to tell about Benjamin Franklin, Lawrence and the Joes go into not only his many accomplishments during America's early years and his contributions to science, they also discuss his estrangement with his son, William and aspects of his personal life. The recent Ken Burns Biography of Franklin also comes under review.

When considering the body of work and legacy of Ernest Hemingway, one might ask, what has not been written? Author Wylie McLallen draws on family connections and insights for his two-volume biography, available on the Oxford Southern imprint of Sunbury Press Books."Unbridled Dreamer: Hemingway and the Rise of Modern Literature" looks at Hemingway's early life, his relationship with his family (partially through the eyes of McLallen's grandparents), and the influence Gertrude Stein and Ezra Pound would have on Hemingway. In Volume Two, "A Man of Modern Letters," McLallen continues with Hemingway's role in the Modern Movement of literature. Growing up in Memphis, Wylie McLallen degreed in History and English at the University of Tennesse, and studied under renowned professor, Dr. Robert Drake. In addition to his works on Hemingway, McLallen is the author of "Tigers By the River," about the early years of professional football and one of the first professional super-teams. He lives with his wife, Nickey Bayne in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Hundreds, if not thousands of books, films, investigations and documents have tried to shed light into not only who assassinated President John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963, but why. The truth lies in ground laid in decades past, and is examined through Walter Herbst's two-volume series, "It Did Not Start With JFK."Lawrence Knorr interviews Herbst on the Sunbury Press Books Show, and we learn about his four-decade investigation into the Kennedy assassination. The history involves elements of the American military-industrial complex and intelligence communities' involvement with assassinations and overthrow of governments. Fears of communism and racial desegregation stoked a radical right that was determined to preserve the American way of life as it saw it, and violence was not off the table.Herbst looks into the roles of characters known and unknown: Lee Harvey Oswald's connections to the group, Jack Ruby's deep involvement with organized crime and why he got the job to kill Oswald, and how figures from adventures in the past and future all had a hand in Kennedy's assassination.Walter Herbst is a retired engineer and entrepreneur, who debuts with the two-volume collection, "It Did Not Start With JFK," on Sunbury Press Books. He lives in Mahwah, New Jersey.

The story of the path Harry Deitz, Senior walked remains a remarkable one, out of the Pennsylvania coal mines, to the US Army and to a long and distinguished career as a photographer and journalist. His son, Harry, Jr. followed in some of his father's footsteps, and has chronicled the man's life and times in "Our Father's Journey: A Path Out of Poverty."In this conversation with Sunbury Press Books Show host Lawrence Knorr, the younger Deitz talks of how his father's passing interest in photography became his ticket out of a hard life. Learning the craft in postwar Japan, Deitz began working in Shamokin, Pennsylvania as a photographer, reporter and editor. He also authored a history of the Knoebels amusement park for its 75th anniversary.Harry Deitz, Jr. also has his own impressive resume, with a 45-year career as an award-winning photographer, sportswriter and editor, and ten years as editor-in-chief of the "Reading Eagle" newspaper before his reitrement in 2018. He is known for his weekly "Editor's Notebook" column, which included many stories about his family, including his three children and six grandchildren, plus the personal tale of serving as his late wife's primary caregiver during her battle with Parkinson's Disease and cancer.Deitz has also served as president and board member of the Pennsylvania Newsmedia Assocation and the Pennsylvania Associated Press Managing Editors.

The famous Chincoteague and Assateague Islands are known the world over. For many, the children's classics "Misty of Chincoteague" and "Stormy: Misty's Foal" brought this part of Virginia's Eastern Shore to mind. Tourists flock to this region annually, not only for the horses, but for the points of interest, the art galleries, and the local cuisine.David Parmelee's latest release for Sunbury Press is "The Traveler's Guide to Chincoteague and Assateague: A Shortcut to the Magic" provides history, insight and stories of the islands, which will prepare the reader for their first visit, or new places repeat visitors might not know about. In this program, Parmelee tells of how the horses (might have) arrived here and includes interviews with local residents and others that tell of the allure of this undeveloped paradise."The Traveler's Guide..." is Parmelee's latest release for Sunbury Press Books. "The Sea is a Thief," an historical romance set during the American Civil War was released in 2013; Parmelee is also the author of the hilarious middle grade books, "Miss Feesenschneesen is Ill" and "Miss Feesenschneesen is Fit." An actor, director and playwright, Parmelee's one-act plays "TOAST," "The Comment Section" and "Three Romances about Macbeth" have been produced by community theaters across Northeast Pennsylvania, where he lives with his wife and four children.

Dustin Nispel is a poet, an artist, and a thinker. "The Road Home: A Collection of Poems" takes the reader on Nispel's personal journey. Themes of life, death, and all in between, with examinations of spirituality, religion and those who have left us, Nispel has granted a deep look into not only his own life, but the process of dealing with it. The collection is self-published through D. E. N. Poetry Publishing.A York, Pennsylvania native, Nispel began writing poetry at age thirteen, and has never stopped. His first collection, "The Tower" was released in 2014 with Community Arts Ink. Nispel is a fixture at poetry slam events, and he represented the US in an international poetry festival in Macedonia. An artist as well, Nispel describes himself as a surrealist painter. He lives in Gardners, PA with his wife Jessica and their three children.