This week, AP is joined by John C. Meyers for a wide-ranging and joke-filled discussion about movies, franchises, and fandoms. John is the co-host of two great movie based podcasts, John and Alexx Hate Stuff and This May Hurt a Bit. On the latter show, John and his co-host James Strayer review every movie in a horror franchise, so having John on was a prime opportunity to discuss sequels, reboots, and remakes, and the many ways those can go wrong. Along the way they get into topics such as what makes horror movies great, trends in movies more broadly, taking franchises into space, and the looming encroachment of AI.

Other topics covered include: the trickiness of making good horror comedy, whether or not M. Night Shyamalan is secretly as serial killer, comic book culture in the movies, the finer points of bouncing decapitated heads, and the evolving nature of the cinema going experience.

Make sure you check out John's podcasts here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/john-and-alexx-hate-stuff/id1241812993
and here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/this-may-hurt-a-bit/id1623226464

This week, Ben Roylance joins AP to discuss the writings, artwork, and paranormal life of Eugenia Macer Story- a fascinating researcher and artist whose insights into the highly weird blur the lines between UFOlogy, the ghostly, and the psychic, and also someone who is often overlooked in discussions about great voices in these strange realms. Ben is the co host of the wonderful podcast Consensus Unreality, and also the owner of Apport Used Books in Emmaus, PA. In conversation here he discusses his journey in discovering the work of Macer Story, and his personal quest to collect and preserve her creations.

This episode serves as a primer for the theories and viewpoints that Macer Story worked toward during her life, and gives the listener places to pull on threads and explore more about her life and work. It also touches on the personal impacts of EMS on Ben, and he talks about how formative her work has been for him as well as how much it has generated crazy synchronicities in his life. In a fun and informative way, listeners who are unfamiliar with her are encouraged to find and celebrate the work of Eugenia Macer Story, and perhaps think a little more fluidly about the nature of reality through the highly strange.

Follow Ben's store, Apport Used Books on instagram @apportusedbooks
...and be sure to check out Consensus Unreality!

As a Christmas treat, this week's episode is a celebration of Patrick Swayze and the movie Road House as well as a love letter to Mystery Science Theater 3000, with Aaron Gulyas and Blackwolf John Oates getting festive with AP. For the uninitiated, non-MSTies in podcast land, this stems from a musical number in the MST3k episode Santa Claus Conquers the Martians in which Crow T. Robot presents a new Christmas song about Road House. Taking the idea and running with it, as is the habit with this show, Gulyas and Blackwolf were the perfect guests to discuss both the movie and the TV show with.

The first half of the show largely concerns itself with Road House, its legacy, Patrick Swayze as a pop culture force and the ethics of ripping throats out. From there the conversation goes to pure geekery over the riffing robots and bad movies of MST3k, its impact and influences, and they joy it brings so many people. 

From Strange HQ, we wish you the Swayze-est Xmas of them all!

As a shorter, solo bonus episode this month AP shares a bit of his writings on the theme of coyotes- one a very old performance poem and the other a more recent meditation on living alongside and communicating with nature. They are very different in character but, as explained in the show, are synchronistically tied to one another...

First, AP shares "Coyote's Lament", a poem he known for in his former life as a weirdo poet musician in Worcester, MA. This was briefly mentioned during his chat with Joe Ledoux in a recent show, and several listeners requested more about it... so if that describes you, Merry Xmas! This is then followed by a piece called Communion With the Critters, which you can find on the blog to see photos of the creatures mentioned in it. Check it out here: https://www.apstrange.com/2024/08/communion-with-critters.html

Enjoy!

This week's show is a journey aboard the virtual Pequod as Joe Matheny and returning guest Leah Prime join AP in a discussion about the Herman Melville classic Moby Dick; or, The Whale- its esoteric qualities, the influence throughout literature and culture, and its personal effects on everyone in conversation here. They discuss works of art and literature as initiation, and the timeless impact of books such as Moby Dick on readers over 150 years after its initial release. The philosophical nature of the text, as a treatise on life, existence, and man's place in the world are less obvious than the titular whale and the attempt to hunt it down, and in the course of talking about it here Joe, Leah, and AP unpack some of the more mystical implications of the book. 

While discussing themes such as monomania, revenge, man vs nature, and fate each of the voices in the show shares a bit about their personal journeys with the text and how it has informed some of their views, inspired them, or led them on paths of discovery. It's a conversation worth listening to whether or not you've read the book.

Joe is the creator of Ong's Hat, and author of several books- follow him on substack here: https://substack.com/@josephmatheny

Leah can be found on bluesky at leahprime.bsky.social

This week, Jeremy Vaeni joins AP to talk about his lifetime of strange experiences and his new book, Kundalini and the Secrets of Silence. Vaeni has a long history within the realms of the paranormal and ufology, having been the co-host of Paratopia and the host of various other podcast and YouTube projects such as Wise Ask and He's so Vaeni. In addition to that, he has authored several other books about his experiences, such as Urgency and I Am to Tell You This, and I Am to Tell You It's Fiction. As an outspoken and often humorous voice within the wide subjects of the weird, he lends a perspective to such concepts as alien abduction that cause one to reconsider what's actually behind the phenomenon-- and this far-ranging conversation opens doors to plenty of such questions.

Among the subjects covered are Vaeni's encounters, the usefulness of such terms as "experiencer" and "abductee", how his experiences differed from that of his Paratopia co-host, Jeff Ritzmann, and what it was like to share their respective strange stories at the time. From there, he and AP discuss Kundalini, how it is presented and characterized in his newest book, and what we can learn from the non-human intelligences all around us-- many of whom, in this case, happen to be ducks.

Kundalini and the Secrets of Silence is an engaging read, which shows through examples of nature and heart rather than telling through technical terms how consciousness and mysterious life energies connect us all. It is available for purchase in January of 2026, but is available for pre-order now.

Follow Vaeni on YouTube at @jvaeni
...and check out his website here: https://www.ourundoing.com/

This week, magical artist Joe Ledoux joins AP for a whimsical exploration of stage magic, fine art, and skateboarding- and how Joe combines these interests in his work. They talk about Joe's journey in learning how to skate and how to perform magic, the importance of creativity and persistence, and the actual magical effects of art and performance. They also discuss Muhachi, a companion figure Joe uses to express himself in his zines, animations, and paintings, and Joe's inspiration and mentorship under Ralph Bakshi. If that's not enough, they also discuss sleight of hand in relation to shamanistic magic, Joe's personal synchronicities in his journey as a magical artist, and that time he cast a spell over Boston to summon UFOs, sea serpents, and fairies!

Joe is an accomplished magician from The McBride Magic and Mystery School out of Las Vegas, and performed with Le Grand David, the world's longest-running magic show. In this conversation he and AP dissect why stage magic need not necessarily be distinguished from "real" magic, or from fine art for that matter.

Check out Joe's website here: https://www.joeledoux.com/
...and give him a follow on instagram @joeledouxmagic

This week, Michael M. Hughes returns to the show to talk about the recently released second edition of his book Magic for the Resistance: Rituals and Spells for Change. Hughes is an author, game designer, activist, journalist, and magician, and in this episode he talks about the genesis of his book on magical resistance and the need for a second edition. For listeners unfamiliar with the background, he and AP discuss his original trump-binding spells that went viral online and led to the creation of the book in 2018. From there they discuss the inspiration for some of spells, using historical examples which are covered in the book, and get into the nitty-gritty of what constitutes magic in its most efficacious form.

The conversation also provided an opportunity for no small amount of political venting about the stupidity, cruelty, and evil in our current world. This lends itself to humor but also underlines the necessity for self-care and community, which is also covered in the book in a variety of spells outside of the notable trump binding ritual. From art as magic to humor as a tool against totalitarianism, inflatable frogs and the rippling effects of small acts of kindness, a lot of ground gets covered in this conversation.

Check out Michael's website here: https://www.michaelmhughes.com/
...and order the revised and expanded edition of his book here: https://www.crossedcrowbooks.com/shop-crossed-crow-books/p/magicfortheresistance 

This week, returning guest Charles Lear joins AP and guest co-host Blackwolf John Oates for a lighthearted discussion of the state of UFOlogy in the 1980s, and how it influenced the 90s and beyond. In Charles' first appearance on the show, the focus was on his book The Flying Saucer Investigators, where this one focuses more on Crashed Saucers and Malevolent Aliens: The Emergence of the Popular Modern UFO Mythos in the Late 20th Century. Charles, Blackwolf, and AP discuss figures such as Bill Moore, Richard Doty, Richard Hoagland, Ray Stanford, Art Bell, Whitley Strieber, and many more voices who added to the crazy cacophony of 80s UFOlogy.

Discussed also is the TV special UFO Cover-Up? Live!, early internet forums, Deep Underground Military Bases, Roswell, the legacy of Coast to Coast AM, and controversial figures such as David Jacobs and Wendelle Stevens. It was a fast-paced and joke filled chat, and a celebration of weirdness in the form of conspiracy and UFO cultural relics. 

You can find Charles' books on Amazon, and read his regular blog posts at http://podcastufo.com

This week, multidisciplinary artist and researcher Caitlin Fitzgerald joins AP for a conversation about her art, the stories behind her work in various mediums, and folklore which infuses storytelling down through the ages. Caitlin creates visual art in the form of ceramics, stained glass, illustration, mixed media, and digital art- all of which she does very well, and all are informed by a sense of mystery and inspired by obscure legends. 

In this episode she explains the background and research for some of her subjects, such as the jackalope- for which she creates and sells bedazzled sculptures- and her longtime efforts in reviving the devotions to Saint Guinefort, a 13th century folk saint who just happens to be a dog. She does excellent original illustrations based on the design of illuminated manuscripts of the past, and the particulars of this kind of design as well as her sources are examined in conversation. They also talk about a mermaid saint, snails, and various other marginalia.

If all of that wasn't fascinating enough, Caitlin also talks about her work with the Boleskine House Foundation- a group which has, over the years, built and restored the legendary manor house near Loch Ness which Aleister Crowley once owned. Caitlin talks about her contributions to the restoration and her work with the foundation, which includes a stained glass light fixture which you can view on her instagram!

Check out her work at https://caitlinfitzgeraldart.com/
And for more on Boleskine House look at https://www.boleskinehouse.org