Goose Chase Podcast

This week we're talking about Synanon, a "therapy" movement devised in the 60s dedicated to curing addicts but which doesn't stay that way for long, if at all. There are some very unique persons at the center of this story, which actually has a pretty happy ending. There is one very sad snake, too. 

This week we take a detour into the world of pop culture mystery. Carly Simon's "You're So Vain" is a mystery that has endured since 1972. Who is the song about? People have their theories, but Carly's never been 100% transparent on the public record, so we sift through the mess to try to put a name to it. What we found was surprising to both of us!

This episode we talk about something we're completely surprised to know nothing about. Falun Gong is a Chinese qigong movement that has fallen far out of favor with the Chinese government. Started in 1992, it is surprisingly revelatory to follow Falun Gong's rise and fall in China, and we came across some deeply unsettling information that should be common knowledge. We talk about what it is, how it got started, how it went sour, and some concerning things that may be happening to this very day. 

Tonight, we're talking about pee.  Really. Fair warning, if you're grossed out now, it's only gonna get worse. People try to treat all kinds of health conditions with urine as a means of therapy, including some really commonly shared folk remedies. But is there anything to it? We try to filter the bad stuff from the good stuff and pass along the remaining material to you. Get it? It's pee. It's all pee. Goose chase!

Tonight we talk about Natalie Wood, an actress of some acclaim who drowned under mysterious circumstances in November of 1981. Despite that being 3 and a half decades ago, people still have lots to say. We do our best to sort the facts from the tabloid gossip and arrive at what may have happened, but it's a tough nut to crack. Things are often not quite as simple as they seem and this story appears to be no different. 

This week we have our special guests Laura and TJ back to talk about the truly unbelievable tale of the North Pond Hermit. What begins as a confusing series of items going missing slowly escalates, causing a small vacation community to look over their shoulders. The mystery, pursuit, and eventual explanation are truly staggering, and made us question the limits of what people are capable of. Henry David Thoreau can suck an egg.  Goose Chase!

This week we talk with special guests Ben and Aubrey about the hype and collapse behind Daikatana, the game by id software's legendary John Romero. Hot on the heels of years of success in making Doom and Quake, John Romero set out to make something big. Too big.  Way too big, it turns out, and the hype machine, delay, and eventual release of Daikatana turn into a cautionary tale for developers for years to come. 

This week we're talking about the Montreal Screwjob, the most definining moment in professional wrestling of our short lifetimes, with our special guest Chris! Chris is one of the biggest wrestling buffs we know and he's here to give us the context, the setup, and the fallout of an event which is still heavily disputed and the echoes of which are still felt in the business today. 

This week we're back to cryptids! Specifically, something called the Michigan Dog Man. A legend from the heart of the mitten, we explore some historical stories, the popularization of the dog man, and another cryptid which may be a close relative. 

This week we talk about an intestinal parasite called the rope worm. By the sounds of some people talking about it, it sounds pretty serious. Causes all kinds of health problems? Literally everyone is infected with one? Gotta get rid of that, right? Maybe not so much, as we find, going down a whole bunch of sidestreets and alleys down a very twisty turny goose chase.