After playing Dracula hundreds of times on stage and making numerous screen appearances in a variety of roles, Bela Lugosi spent his final years battling addiction, checking himself into a psychiatric ward, accepting charity from strangers, paying his ex-wife one dollar a month in alimony, and watching his career dissolve into Ed Wood's z-grade pictures until his death, after which he was buried in his iconic vampiric cape.

EPISODE BLOG PAGE (includes sources and full transcript): https://weirddarkness.com/BelaLugosi

FEATURED STORIES IN THIS EPISODE: He began as an obscure actor, became a universally loved monster, but ended in destitution. We’ll look at the career of Bela Lugosi. (The Rise and Fall of Bela Lugosi) *** Nearly a century has passed, and the grisly crime committed by two sisters remains as mysterious as ever. We’ll look at the Papin Sisters and the shocking gruesome murder they committed in 1933 that horrified France. (The Murderous Papin Sisters) *** You think you know what Halloween is all about, but you might not—not really. After all, it wasn't always about carving pumpkins and collecting candy. (Why Celebrate Halloween) *** When it comes to murder investigations, the skeletons in everyone’s closets – even those who are only peripheral characters in the drama – can still have their darkest secrets revealed. (The Mystery of the Poisoned Powder) *** And if I was to tell you I had a story called “The Woodchipper Murder” you might think it sounds like something out of the movie “Fargo” - but for Helle Nielsen, it was all too real. (The Woodchipper Murder of Newtown, Connecticut)

CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…
00:00:00.000 = The Foreboding
00:00:42.739 = Show Open
00:02:42.800 = The Rise and Fall of Bela Lugosi
00:20:13.567 = The Murderous Papin Sisters ***
00:27:52.588 = Why Celebrate Halloween?
00:41:44.009 = Mystery of the Poisoned Powder ***
00:49:44.161 = The Woodchipper Murder
01:00:30.443 = Show Close
*** = Begins immediately after inserted ad break

LISTEN ON PODCAST APPS:
Look for this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and other podcast apps. Get a list of free listening apps here: https://weirddarkness.com/wdapps
*No AI Voices Are Used In The Narration Of This Podcast*

SOURCES and RESOURCES:
“The Rise and Fall of Bela Lugosi” by Quinn Armstrong for Ranker’s Entertainment:https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/f3jaaphz
“The Murderous Papin Sisters” by Orrin Grey for The Line Up: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/yhkwymzm
“Why Celebrate Halloween” by Charlotte Hilton Andersen for Reader’s Digest: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/2fyzrarh
“The Mystery of the Poisoned Powder” from Strange Company: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/nrdbvuc5
“The Woodchipper Murder of Newtown, Connecticut” from The Scare Chamber:https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/n2yhsppx
(Over time links may become invalid, disappear, or have different content. I always make sure to give authors credit for the material I use whenever possible. If I somehow overlooked doing so for a story, or if a credit is incorrect, please let me know and I will rectify it in these show notes immediately. Some links included above may benefit me financially through qualifying purchases.)

WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.
Originally aired: October, 2022

Jack, Doc, and Reggie encounter a frightened young woman, Sunny Richards, who believes she is doomed by an old family curse tied to murder, money, and the Richards family fortune. The boys try to prove the “curse” is human-made, not supernatural, while the case spirals into attempted murder, desert danger, hidden motives, and a criminal plot behind the supposed curse. 

Look for this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and other podcast apps. Get a list of free listening apps here: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/OTR

CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…
00:00:00.000 = Show Open
00:01:30.028 = I Love a Mystery, “The Million Dollar Curse, Part 1” (December 12, 1949)
00:14:57.538 = I Love a Mystery, “The Million Dollar Curse, Part 2” (December 13, 1949)
00:28:49.961 = I Love a Mystery, “The Million Dollar Curse, Part 3” (December 14, 1949)
00:41:22.522 = I Love a Mystery, “The Million Dollar Curse, Part 4” (December 15, 1949)
00:53:24.547 = I Love a Mystery, “The Million Dollar Curse, Part 5” (December 16, 1949)
01:06:07.897 = I Love a Mystery, “The Million Dollar Curse, Part 6” (December 19, 1949)
01:18:21.520 = I Love a Mystery, “The Million Dollar Curse, Part 7” (December 20, 1949)
01:30:48.517 = I Love a Mystery, “The Million Dollar Curse, Part 8” (December 21, 1949)
01:43:21.732 = I Love a Mystery, “The Million Dollar Curse, Part 9” (December 22, 1949)
01:55:56.514 = I Love a Mystery, “The Million Dollar Curse, Part 10” (December 26, 1949)
02:08:24.452 = I Love a Mystery, “The Million Dollar Curse, Part 11” (December 27, 1949)
02:20:38.133 = I Love a Mystery, “The Million Dollar Curse, Part 12” (December 28, 1949)
02:33:38.575 = I Love a Mystery, “The Million Dollar Curse, Part 13” (December 29, 1949)
02:46:21.925 = I Love a Mystery, “The Million Dollar Curse, Part 14” (December 30, 1949)
02:59:22.082 = Show Close

(ADU) = Air Date Unknown
(LQ) = Low Quality
***WD = Remastered, edited, or cleaned up by Weird Darkness to make the episode more listenable. Audio may not be pristine, but it will be better than the original file which may have been unusable or more difficult to hear without editing.
CUSTOM WEBPAGE: https://weirddarkness.com/WDRR0671

A frail woman broke a Saginaw man's front window with a metal pipe on a March afternoon, and what she told the responding officers led police to a locked door in a nearby basement.

SOURCES, LINKS, AND PRINT VERSION: https://weirddarkness.com/saginaw-basement-escape

Look for this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and other podcast apps. Get a list of free listening apps here: https://pod.link/1078714736

*No AI Voices Are Used In The Narration Of This Podcast*

WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.
#WeirdDarkness, #WeirdDarkNEWS

At 11:16 p.m. on a Saturday in February, a man inside a luxury Princeton apartment dialed 911 to report a fire and a dead body.

SOURCES, LINKS, AND PRINT VERSION: https://weirddarkness.com/hertgen-brothers/

Look for this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and other podcast apps. Get a list of free listening apps here: https://pod.link/1078714736

*No AI Voices Are Used In The Narration Of This Podcast*

WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.
#WeirdDarkness, #WeirdDarkNEWS

A 37-year-old mother of three left Bristol, Virginia in January 2026 for an assistant manager job 100 miles north — by April her family could not reach her, and by May her sister was filing a missing persons report.

SOURCES, LINKS, AND PRINT VERSION: https://weirddarkness.com/angel-whitaker/
GOFUND ME PAGE: gofundme.com/f/help-us-lay-angel-whitaker-to-rest

Look for this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and other podcast apps. Get a list of free listening apps here: https://pod.link/1078714736

*No AI Voices Are Used In The Narration Of This Podcast*
WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.
#WeirdDarkness, #WeirdDarkNEWS

“A Point of Time”: When a 90-year-old physicist is dragged away by the secret police of a dystopian regime, his frail sister pays a "harmless" visit to the dictator who ordered the arrest — armed with a single handshake that could rewrite history itself.

Look for this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and other podcast apps. Get a list of free listening apps here: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/OTR

CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…
00:00:00.000 = Show Open
00:01:30.028 = CBS Radio Mystery Theater, “A Point of Time” (November 15, 1977)
00:46:35.294 = The Shadow, “The Chess Club Murders” (February 23, 1941)
01:15:46.575 = Sleep No More, “I Am Waiting” and “Browdean Farm” (January 23, 1957)
01:43:59.740 = BBC Radio 4 Spinechillers, “ Mrs. M” (February 21, 1984)
02:28:27.887 = Stay Tuned For Terror, “The Bogey Man Will Get You” (October o1, 1945) ***WD
02:43:00.304 = Strange Wills, “Midnight On The Moor” (July 27, 1946)
03:12:57.607 = Strange, “Deja Vu in France” (1955)
03:27:51.047 = Suspense, “Sorry, Wrong Number” (February 24, 1944) ***WD
03:57:13.825 = Tales of the Frightened, “Just Inside The Cemetery” (December 06, 1957)
04:02:08.487 = Tales of Tomorrow, “The Other Now” (January 22, 1953)
04:32:02.795 = The Creaking Door, “Yesterday You Died” (August 31, 1964) ***WD
05:01:02.446 = Show Close

(ADU) = Air Date Unknown
(LQ) = Low Quality
***WD = Remastered, edited, or cleaned up by Weird Darkness to make the episode more listenable. Audio may not be pristine, but it will be better than the original file which may have been unusable or more difficult to hear without editing.
CUSTOM WEBPAGE: https://weirddarkness.com/WDRR0670

Before the Amityville house became the most famous haunting in America, a family of six was murdered inside it — and the official story of who pulled the trigger has been falling apart for fifty years.

EPISODE BLOG PAGE (includes sources and full transcript): https://weirddarkness.com/AmityvilleSuspect

FEATURED STORIES IN THIS EPISODE: Was there another gunman in the notorious Amityville House murders? (The Defeo Family Massacre) *** We’ve all heard of the Headless Horseman – but Sleepy Hollow's lesser-known ghost will terrify you all the more. (The Bronze Lady of Sleepy Hollow) *** Theodore Roosevelt was so tough, that during one of his speeches he was shot in the chest – but still kept going until his speech was over. And then there was Alice, his daughter – who may have been even tougher than Teddy! (A Bullet And a Voodoo Doll) *** An icy cold hand caresses a girl in the middle of the night. (A Comfort) *** For most people, spotting a UFO would be considered extremely unusual, but for two Ohio women, seeing a UFO was the least surprising part of their experience. (UFOs And Time Distortions) *** AND A WHOLE LOT MORE!

CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…
00:00:00.000 = The Foreboding
00:01:27.901 = Show Open
00:03:10.074 = The Defeo Family Massacre
00:20:40.484 = The Bronze Lady of Sleepy Hollow ***
00:23:39.694 = The Bullet And The Voodoo Doll
00:27:24.088 = A Comfort
00:33:46.979 = UFOs and Time Distortions ***
00:49:56.107 = I Was Born With Superhuman Abilities (Fictional Story) ***
01:00:38.600 = Leaving The Hospital
01:07:52.951 = To The Moon and Back
01:19:16.488 = Don’t Let This Be You (Fictional Story) ***
01:42:21.985 = Grandma’s House ***
01:47:32.156 = Show Close
*** = Begins immediately after inserted ad break

LISTEN ON PODCAST APPS:
Look for this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and other podcast apps. Get a list of free listening apps here: https://weirddarkness.com/wdapps
*No AI Voices Are Used In The Narration Of This Podcast*

SOURCES and RESOURCES:
“The Defeo Family Massacre” posted at The UnRedacted: https://tinyurl.com/uuc9r6c
“The Bronze Lady of Sleepy Hollow” by Jessica Ferri for The Line Up: http://ow.ly/fmVz30mX4TL
“A Bullet And The Voodoo Doll” by Troy Taylor for American Hauntings Ink: https://tinyurl.com/v8v8q7f
“A Comfort” by Lady Madonna, posted at YourGhostStories.com: https://tinyurl.com/yx4y7xvz
“UFOs and Time Distortions” by Tim Swartz at UFO Review: https://tinyurl.com/w4plgq2
FICTION STORY: “I Was Born With Superhuman Abilities” by Alayne Winters – posted at Creepypasta.com: https://tinyurl.com/rlxl9lr
“Leaving the Hospital” by Weirdo family member, Louise Latham – submitted directly to Weird Darkness
“To the Moon and Back” submitted anonymously to Weird Darkness
FICTION STORY: “Don’t Let This Be You” by Hikari Shimizu – posted at Creepypasta.com:https://tinyurl.com/r42rmmm
“Grandma’s House” by Weirdo family member, Rachel West – submitted directly to Weird Darkness
(Over time links may become invalid, disappear, or have different content. I always make sure to give authors credit for the material I use whenever possible. If I somehow overlooked doing so for a story, or if a credit is incorrect, please let me know and I will rectify it in these show notes immediately. Some links included above may benefit me financially through qualifying purchases.)

WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.
Originally aired: November, 2018

A senior U.S. intelligence officer aboard a military helicopter watched orange orbs rise from the ground, close within ten feet of his aircraft, then outrun the fighter jets sent to intercept them.

SOURCES, LINKS, AND PRINT VERSION: https://weirddarkness.com/batch2-uap-files

Look for this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and other podcast apps. Get a list of free listening apps here: https://pod.link/1078714736

*No AI Voices Are Used In The Narration Of This Podcast*
WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.
#WeirdDarkness, #WeirdDarkNEWS

A 22-year-old Virginia Beach librarian was stabbed to death in a field across from her workplace in 1986, and for four decades the man whose DNA was on her body had never crossed a single detective's desk.

SOURCES, LINKS, AND PRINT VERSION: https://weirddarkness.com/roberta-walls

Look for this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and other podcast apps. Get a list of free listening apps here: https://pod.link/1078714736

*No AI Voices Are Used In The Narration Of This Podcast*

WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.
#WeirdDarkness, #WeirdDarkNEWS

A 21-year-old woman died of gunshot wounds inside a Crosby home where deputies had already responded hours earlier to a caller reporting demons.

SOURCES, LINKS, AND PRINT VERSION: https://weirddarkness.com/crosbymurderdemons

Look for this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and other podcast apps. Get a list of free listening apps here: https://pod.link/1078714736

*No AI Voices Are Used In The Narration Of This Podcast*

WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.
#WeirdDarkness, #WeirdDarkNEWS