The True Story of the Fake Zombies

Hi, Fake Zombie listeners! We're excited to share with you a sneak peek at iHeartPodcasts' latest release, Live Wire: The Loud Life and Shocking Murder of Alan Berg.

Live Wire: The Loud Life and Shocking Murder of Alan Berg: Alan Berg was starting over as a divorcee, disbarred lawyer, and recovering alcoholic when he found his true calling on the radio. His brash and bold on-air persona made him one of the true renegades in a “shock jock” revolution that took over broadcast media in the 1980s. Despite the numerous enemies the brash Berg made through his radio show, the world was stunned when he was assassinated outside his Denver home. The case would languish for months before uncovering the shocking truth about the white-supremacist militia that marked Alan Berg for death.

Listen to Live Wire: The Loud Life and Shocking Murder of Alan Berg on the iHeartRadio App or wherever you get your podcasts!

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Slow Burn's Leon Neyfakh sits down with Daniel to talk about the art of investigations and the pursuit of a good story.

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In a story full of artifacts from music’s past, one looms larger than any other. Doo-wop legend Frankie Lymon’s tombstone lives in Bay City, Michigan. Here’s how it got there. 

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Fake Zombies, Fake Animals, Fake Archies -- oh my! It's the final episode of The True Story of The Fake Zombies and the jig is up. Legendary Rolling Stone writer Ben Fong-Torres, who broke the imposter band story in 1970, shares details of Delta Promotions' downfall. Later, we come face-to-face with "Veronica" from Delta's Fake Archies, a real version of a cartoon band. 

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The penultimate episode finds us face to face with the band that inspired the imposter bands, The Zombies.

Lead singer Colin Blunstone and chief songwriter, Rod Argent discuss their 63 year partnership, their early impressions of the American rock scene and of course, The Fake Zombies. 

Got a Fake Zombies story to share? Get in touch with The True Story of The Fake Zombies at [email protected] or @thefakezombies on TikTok. Like and subscribe on the iHeart app or wherever you get your podcasts.

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Delta Promotions doubles down on their Fake Zombies scheme. We meet the second group of Americans who called themselves "The Zombies" in 1969. Later, we uncover a long-lost video of the imposter group performing on a Memphis television station. Got a Fake Zombies story to share? Get in touch with The True Story of The Fake Zombies at [email protected] or @thefakezombies on TikTok.
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Out of the four young men in The Texas Zombies, only two became famous. This episode chronicles the stories of the other Fake Zombies. First, we uncover the teenage stardom of hot-shot lead guitarist, Seab Meador. Later, a look at the life of Mark Ramsey, the youngest member of The Fake Zombies and the one who started this search.

Got a Fake Zombies story to share? Get in touch with The True Story of The Fake Zombies at [email protected] or @thefakezombies on TikTok.
Like and subscribe on the iHeart app or wherever you get your podcasts.

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Frank Beard and Dusty Hill take center stage as we examine ZZ Top’s self-produced 2019 documentary, “That Little Ol’ Band From Texas,” which leads to more questions about their origins. Plus, music writers Allison Hussey and Nadine Smith drop in to tell us what makes ZZ Top one of the greatest and most original American rock bands of all time.

Got a Fake Zombies story to share? Get in touch with The True Story of The Fake Zombies at [email protected] or @thefakezombies on TikTok.
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We continue the search for the Fake Zombies in Bay City, Michigan, and uncover the roots of the band’s management company, Delta Promotions, all thanks to a chance encounter with the prom date of one of its founders. Later, we introduce the opening act for the Fake Zombies tour, Gordon Thayer and we speak with Mike Campbell, lead guitarist in Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, to follow up on a rumor that he and Tom saw the Fake Zombies as teenagers.

Got a Fake Zombies story to share? Get in touch with The True Story of The Fake Zombies at [email protected] or @thefakezombies on TikTok.
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The search for The Fake Zombies takes us to Bay City, Michigan, the “little smelly town” where the imposter Zombies assembled. The town is home to a Rock and Roll museum that contains details about the band’s history, and the audacious managers who cooked up the scheme. We also talk with Bobby Balderrama, lead guitarist in garage rock pioneers, ? And the Mysterians, who shared a manager with The Fake Zombies.

Got a Fake Zombies story to share? Get in touch with The True Story of The Fake Zombies at [email protected] or @thefakezombies on TikTok. Like and subscribe on the iHeart app or wherever you get your podcasts.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.