What is at the heart of our fears?  We may be afraid to encounter a supernatural specter or a creature from beyond our reality and understanding, or an agent of evil from a more earthly realm, but in either case, what we actually fear is the potential for harm to come to us or our loved ones.  The deadly violence that visits randomly and one we are powerless to stop.  Ironically, our tendency as humans is also to become fascinated by what scares us.  We seek to glimpse into the darkness not only as a vicarious thrill but also as a means of coping.  It is why we find fun in traditions like Halloween and for some, indulging our curiosity in the exploits of serial killers.  As we put to bed the story of the Villisca ax murders, we find that it is a story that contains all the elements of our primal dread.  Acts so horrible they left scars and echoes in the worlds of the living and the dead.  Our guest tonight, author Troy Taylor, helps us piece together the facts and makes a strong case that the killer who committed the shocking murders in Villisca quite likely left a trail of death throughout the Midwest with as many as 30 victims or more.  In the end, what we learn is that there is more to fear from a monster made of flesh and blood.  This was a monster that randomly and wantonly tore flesh and spilled blood, one who was all too real, and one that was never caught.



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The Ax Murder House in Villisca Part 2

The world is more mysterious than most people are comfortable imagining. We cross paths with the mystical from time to time and may not even notice it. If we do, we quickly return to our usually mundane daily existence. But what if we not only acknowledged the unknown, we investigated it and spoke with those in the know? That’s what co-hosts Scott & Forrest, and their producer Tess Pfeifle do at Astonishing Legends. Over 100 million downloads and hundreds of thousands of listeners have shown that exploring and embracing the wonders of our world can be not only enlightening but exciting.  Welcome to Astonishing Legends!

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Significant poltergeist events often start with a minor incident and incrementally grow with a bit of intensity until they eventually fade.  This is somewhat true about the paranormal activity in a small town in southern Poland in 1983, except in this case, what started as a weird action by an unseen force quickly escalated into one of the most extreme and extraordinary poltergeist cases ever recorded.  Around 3:00 a.m. on April 4th of that year, Marian Tomecki awoke to a decorative straw mat falling on his head.  He tried to fasten it back to the wall when it "tore itself from his hands and danced around." Immediately, glassware and household items erratically fly around the apartment belonging to his daughter and son-in-law where he was staying, smashing into walls and furniture.  Andrzej and Ewa Gajewski's 13-year-old daughter and Marian's grandaughter, Joasia, appeared to be the catalyst for the impossible destruction, consistent with current theories about human conduits in many cases of the phenomena.  As the Gajewski family continued to be terrorized by the violent trashing, neighbors, local authorities, Joasia's school, and even a Japanese news crew became eyewitnesses to the bizarre happenings, becoming national news in Poland.  What also makes the Gajewski case groundbreaking is that it continued for an extended period and with such consistent power that scientists could study it.  Join us for a case of RSPK or "recurrent spontaneous psychokinesis" so disturbing and astonishing it has divided the parapsychologist community.  



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The Elusive Force: A Powerful Polish Poltergeist Part 1


“Whether you believe in ghosts or not—these stories are true.” –Ghosts & Specters by Bruce and Nancy Roberts



Being a kid can be scary.  In the premiere episode of Richard Hatem's Paranormal Bookshelf, Richard takes us on a nostalgic journey back to his childhood discovery of the book that changed everything. 



Travel back to 1974 as he recounts the pivotal moment when Aunt Sally gifted him Ghosts & Specters by Bruce and Nancy Roberts. This slim hardback, filled with haunting tales and eerie photographs, ignited Richard's fear and imagination and sparked a complicated lifelong fascination with the strange and unexplained that would later fuel his screenwriting career.



While Ghosts & Specters by Bruce and Nancy Roberts may seem unlikely to inspire an entire life, to Richard, it is anything but. It started him on a journey into the unknown, and he’s never looked back. Published by Doubleday, this collection of 10 stories describes ghostly apparitions and happenings paired with ghoulish photographs that seem to creep right out of the pages and into reality. Each tale within these pages transports readers to a world where the inexplicable becomes possible, and fear gives way to fascination (and then moves back to fear again). Maybe YOU have a book just like this on your shelf. It terrified you so completely that you couldn't put it down. Or, even stranger, maybe this is the same book that brought you to this podcast.



Join Richard as he reflects on the power of books that act as a beacon into the unknown and the transformative journey that book lovers and librarians can have in our lives. 

Ghosts and Specters

In part two of our exploration of the Third Man Syndrome, we continue recounting harrowing tales of survival in extreme and unusual environments or “EUEs,” such as Christopher Columbus’ 15th-century pilot taking the helm for Joshua Slocum during the first solo circumnavigation of the globe; and Aron Ralston’s excruciating canyon escape after becoming trapped for 127 hours.  We then explore the scientific hypotheses as to why this surprisingly not-so-rare phenomenon occurs.  As researchers and authors Peter Suedfeld and John Geiger stated, theories can range from the mystical to the psychodynamic to the situational and the neurological.  Listeners will also recognize that some proposed causes overlap with past show concepts such as infrasound, the “God Helmet,” and Shadow People.  Whatever the explanation is for an ethereal savior appearing in a desperate moment of need, and like so many paranormal happenings, to the beholder, what matters is that it was real enough.  And the Third Man was real enough to save their lives.



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The Third Man Syndrome Part 2

A strange occurrence often happens to people engaged in an adventurous activity or who fall victim to an unfortunate circumstance.  They find themselves with a companion whose presence would typically be impossible.  Usually, the person is at a critical moment in a life-or-death situation in an extreme and unusual environment.  When they are weakened and dying from exposure, suffering privation of sustenance, lost and alone, when they are about to lose all hope and accept their demise, that’s when this otherworldly friend suddenly appears to render aid and encouragement, giving them a superhuman will or strength to survive.  Psychologists label this a “sensed presence experience” but are at a loss for a simple explanation.  These presences may be seen, heard, and sometimes even touched.  They appear in dire situations to people from all walks of life.  They may materialize as a known friend, a deceased relative, a religious figure, or an indeterminate benefactor.  Still, whatever their form, there is no doubt to the one in danger that this being is real and there with them.  Although this sensed presence appears most often to mountain climbers, sailors, divers, and polar explorers, it can also happen to astronauts, prisoners of war, and disaster survivors.  One of the most intriguing aspects of the sensed presence experience is that the ethereal saviors aren’t just there to provide comforting words; they actually help with knowledgable advice or guidance or can even seemingly take over the actions of the afflicted – whatever is necessary to increase the odds of survival.  Join us as we explore a phenomenon more common than you might think, a syndrome also known as the “Third Man.”



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The Ax Murder House in Villisca Part 2

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