Ghost stories on Christmas? Yes, actually. Remember the ghosts in Dickens' A Christmas Story? Turns out ghost stories were big on Christmas in British culture. So today, we are telling ghost stories from around the world: Sweden, Appalachia, and Japan! And don't forget: This is your last chance to get yourself drawn as a comic book character for free in exchange for an honest review before the portraits move to a Patreon model on Jan. 1st!

Become our patron on Patreon at www.patreon.com/deadideaspod.

Maps, pics, references, and more at www.deadideas.net. Music and graphic design by Rachel Westhoff.

Can you be hypnotized to commit a crime? Is the Cabinet of Dr. Caligari a real danger? Hear about this and much more from Dr. Tourette - yes, the man who discovered Tourette's Syndrome - as we read an article of his from 1888, entitled "The Wonders of Animal Magnetism." And don't forget to review us on iTunes, Stitcher, or social media to get yourself drawn as a comic book character!

Become our patron on Patreon at www.patreon.com/deadideaspod.

Maps, pics, references, and more at www.deadideas.net. Music and graphic design by Rachel Westhoff.

Warning: This episode includes frank depiction of sexuality. Who were the women diagnosed with hysteria in Dr. Charcot's 19th-century hospital in Paris? Find out, as we focus in particular on two patients: Blanche, the "Queen of Hysterics", and Genevieve, the Saint-Hysteric. And be sure to review us so you can get your picture drawn in the historical time period and culture of your choosing!

Become our patron on Patreon at www.patreon.com/deadideaspod.

Maps, pics, references, and more at www.deadideas.net. Music and graphic design by Rachel Westhoff.

Warning: This episode includes frank depiction of sexuality. It's one of the oldest diagnoses on record: hysteria, the medical condition that for millennia attributed anything men found uncomfortable about women's behavior to their womb wandering around their body. What was up with that, how was it treated, and how did it reach its zenith in 19th-century France? Find out in this disturbing episode! And be sure to review us so you can get your picture drawn in the historical time period and culture of your choosing!

Become our patron on Patreon at www.patreon.com/deadideaspod.

Maps, pics, references, and more at www.deadideas.net. Music and graphic design by Rachel Westhoff.

What in the h*** was "bicycle face", why were 1890s doctors afraid of it, and what does it have to do with feminism? Find out today in this single-episode series!

Become our patron on Patreon at www.patreon.com/deadideaspod.

Maps, pics, references, and more at www.deadideas.net. Music and graphic design by Rachel Westhoff.

Hear the tale of Miraculous Susan of Quaker Hill! What will this reveal about how people thought about Thanksgiving in 1893? Find out in this special episode featuring new guest co-host Jon! And don't forget to review us on iTunes, Stitcher, or social media to get yourself drawn as a comic book character!

Become our patron on Patreon at www.patreon.com/deadideaspod.

Maps, pics, references, and more at www.deadideas.net. Music and graphic design by Rachel Westhoff.

Can witches make men's junk disappear? Find out as we read the text that started the whole witch-burning craze: The Malleus Maleficarum! Fair warning: This is a complete trainwreck of a book! And don't forget to review us on iTunes, Stitcher, or social media to get yourself drawn as a comic book character!

Become our patron on Patreon at www.patreon.com/deadideaspod.

Maps, pics, references, and more at www.deadideas.net. Music and graphic design by Rachel Westhoff.

In this episode, Nick delivers stories from the inquisition trials of the Benandanti, and also goes into related lore from Livonia, Slovenia, Serbia, and more! Find out why the zduhać, or storm wizard, is the most bad-ass Dungeons & Dragons character class you'll ever play! And be sure to review us so you can get your picture drawn in the historical time period and culture of your choosing!

Become our patron on Patreon at www.patreon.com/deadideaspod.

Maps, pics, references, and more at www.deadideas.net. Music and graphic design by Rachel Westhoff.

Happy Halloween! This new series is related to witches but not witches - it's the Anti-Witches! What was up with the Benandanti of Renaissance Italy? Why did they use fennel stalks to fight witches armed with sorghum sticks? And what did the Inquisition have to do with it? All this and more today on Dead Ideas! And be sure to review us so you can get your picture drawn in the historical time period and culture of your choosing!

Become our patron on Patreon at www.patreon.com/deadideaspod.

Maps, pics, references, and more at www.deadideas.net. Music and graphic design by Rachel Westhoff.

Snap-apple! Dumb cake ceremony! Singeing your hair with candles! Never heard of such customs? Then you better check out this episode, where we get a first-hand account of Irish Halloween customs in 1886. Plus, you don't want to miss the spooky story of Red Mike's Rest. And best of all, we have a new pair of co-hosts joining us for today: Pete and Meagan!

Become our patron on Patreon at www.patreon.com/deadideaspod.

Maps, pics, references, and more at www.deadideas.net. Music and graphic design by Rachel Westhoff.