Something Offbeat

Here's an "offbite" from last week's Something Offbeat episode.

We’re getting a little eerie this week with tales of hauntings and infestations.

These include actor Val Kilmer’s artificial intelligence-fueled return in a new film, and an interview with the grandson of paranormal investigators who inspired the Amityville Horror and Conjuring franchises.

Featuring audio from: WWL Radio in New Orleans and Paranormal 360 out of WCCO News Talk in the Twin Cities.

We’re getting a little eerie this week with tales of hauntings and infestations.

These include actor Val Kilmer’s artificial intelligence-fueled return in a new film, and an interview with the grandson of paranormal investigators who inspired the Amityville Horror and Conjuring franchises.

We’ll also dive into a study that reveals how many Americans believe they have psychic abilities and we’ll learn how to avoid being possessed by invasive plants.

Featuring audio from: WWL Radio in New Orleans, Paranormal 360 out of WCCO News Talk in the Twin Cities, the Dana & Parks Show out of KMBZ in Kansas City and WWJ Newsradio in Detroit.

Today, we’re putting on some sparkly slippers and travelling over the rainbow to the land of Oz.

In this episode, we’ll get a preview of a boots on the ground from Audacy podcasters who visited the Oz museum in Wamego, Kansas. Before we do that, well also hear about “zombie fish” that sound like they would be more at home in one of Baum’s tales than in real life and a modern-day invention that’s making us think of the “Emerald Glasses” featured in the first Oz book. And of course, our Oz-themed journey wouldn’t be complete without a tornado.

Featuring audio from the Dana & Parks show out of KMBZ in Kansas City, WWJ Newsradio in Detroit, KCBS Radio in the Bay Area and Own the Road with Kelli and Bob out of KRLD 1080 in Dallas.

This week, things are getting a little intense. We have a playdate with snakes, spiders and bullfrogs, a discussion about flatulence research, questions about robot doctors and a peek into the world of black market fish.

Featuring audio from KCBS Radio in the Bay Area, The Dave Glover Show out of KMOX in St. Louis, the Dana & Parks Show out of Audacy station KMBZ in Kansas City and Tommy Tucker out of WWL in New Orleans.

This week, we’re talking about traditions, from wacky spring rituals like April Fool’s Day and Dyngus Day to funeral bread, New York’s little-known history of fairies and a tradition in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, that recently resulted in a court battle over bird poop.

Featuring audio from Tommy Tucker out of WWL in New Orleans, KRLD 1080 out of Dallas, WBEN out of Buffalo and to the Adam & Jordana show and Paranormal 360, both out of WCCO News Talk in the Twin Cities.

This week, we’re covering reports whether artificial intelligence can replace cowboys, expensive refrigerators that make their owners watch advertisements, Elon Musk’s Boring Company and its plans to construct tunnels under New Orleans and what you might not know about graffiti.

Featuring audio from KCBS Radio’s Bloomberg Tech and Business report in the Bay area, Tommy Tucker and WWL in New Orleans, the Adam & Jordana Show from WCCO in the Twin Cities and The Dave Glover Show out of KMOX in St. Louis.

This week, we cover the story of more than 80 students from a Minnesota high school choir who were trapped in Califronia when their flight was canceled due to a blizzard, whether Shakespeare's works should be taught to young students, how the Savannah Bananas are changing up baseball and meteorites falling on Ohio.

Featuring audio from Drivetime with DeRusha out of WCCO News Talk in the Twin Cities, the Dana & Parks show out of KMBZ in Kansas City, Newell Normand out of WWL in New Orleans and Marty Griffin out of KDKA in Pittsburgh.

This week, we’ll explore the sometimes-treacherous travel habits of baby cows in the Pittsburgh area and of salamanders in the Detroit area. In human transportation news, we’ll hear a lawmaker in Minnesota explain why she took a bike to the hospital to have her baby. Then, to send us out, Georg Papp of Outhouse Americana in Colchester, Conn., is going to explain why he’s dedicated to preserving the history of a vintage way to use the loo. He says that outhouses reveal more about culture than we might realize…

Featuring audio from Drivetime with DeRusha out of WCCO News Talk in the Twin Cities, The Big K Morning Show out of KDKA in Pittsburgh, WWJ Newsradio out of Detroit and Own the Road with Kelli and Bob out of KRLD in Dallas.

This week, we’re getting nostalgic. We’re headed to a photography museum, a toy museum, retro pizza joints and more. We’ll also sit in on an interview with Jon Taffer of the long-running series "Bar Rescue", now entering its 10th season. Featuring audio from Own the Road with Kelly and Bob out of KRLD 1080 in Dallas, the Dana & Parks show out of KMBZ in Kansas City, Drivetime with DeRusha out of WCCO News Talk in Minneapolis and KNX News in Los Angeles.

This week, we’re diving into one of our favorite topics, aliens. While extraterrestrial life is often thought of as a sort of fringe topic, two U.S. presidents have recently been talking about them, so we had to get in on the fun. We’re also going to get a bit darker than usual this week with some talk about death.

Featuring audio from WWJ Newsradio, Tommy Tucker out of WWL and the Dana & Parks Show out of KMBZ.