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The Paranoid Strain
New: Secret Societies I, Part 21 - The Illuminati 1
Season 4, Ep. 21
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Off-schedule, but on-topic, we bring you the first of two Illuminati episodes to wrap up this epic series. This one's the story of the actual, real-life 18th-century group whose brief but influential existence led them, through a bizarre series of twists and turns, to become the "big bad" of all conspiracy thinking. The final boss, if you will. The Kaiser Soze hiding behind the Masons' Verbal Kint (spoilers, we guess). We have a new interviewee, Terry Melanson, the man who wrote the most comprehensive book on the structure of the Illuminati in recent years (at least in English), as well as some returning guests. Hope you like it. Back as soon as we can with the final chapter.
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40. New! Unidentified--Troy McClure and the Close Encounters Man
30:01||Season 6, Ep. 40We move on from abductions with a look back at the greatest educational film host of all time, Phil Hartman. But then, in a more serious vein, we start our discussion of J Allen Hynek, a real and admirable astronomer who started out as the military's in-house scientist debunker, and eventually became one of the most prominent, authoritative, and dare we say it--sane voices in favor of the argument that UFOs deserved more serious attention than they were getting from the dismissive powers-that-be. Next time: more Hynek. He's a really interesting guy!
39. New! Unidentified--Art Bell, John Mack, and Whitley Strieber
43:41||Season 6, Ep. 39This is the second half of our Art Bell abduction coverage--this time, we're handling John Mack's and Whitley Strieber's appearances on the show. Art super-duper believes in this stuff, so there's not much push back, but these interviews really provide a flavor for each man's work and arguments, and I hope you'll agree that this is a great way to cap off our abduction mini-series. Next, we are diving deep into the Cold War. See you in a couple of weeks.
38. New! Unidentified--Alien Abductions and Art Bell
47:14||Season 6, Ep. 38As we wrap the science portion, we also stop into the High Desert, the Kingdom of Nye--in other words, we clip some classic Art Bell episodes to explore how Budd Hopkins promulgated his stories--including the Linda/Manhattan Alien Abduction, with Art as very friendly interviewer. Enjoy. We'll wrap the Art Bell stuff next time.
37. New! Unidentified--Maury says the alien IS the daddy...abductees and their alien hybrid children
30:43||Season 6, Ep. 37Maybe after all of this abduction talk, you've wondered what real scientists have to say about people being taken aboard alien spacecraft. And specifically, what to make of all of their reports of forced reproduction and alien-human hybrids. Fortunately, real, responsible professionals have indeed done the work and gotten to the bottom of these questions. And we're going to hear from them in this episode and the next one. Enjoy!
36. New! Unidentified--So, what really happened with that Manhattan alien abduction?
35:00||Season 6, Ep. 36Oops! Forgot to upload the episode. In this one, we get the denoument of the Budd Hopkins Manhattan alien abduction story. Next time, we hear from more skeptical, but still sympathetic, researchers who have examined abductions and abductees.
35. New! Unidentified--Budd Hopkins and the Manhattan Alien Abduction
34:01||Season 6, Ep. 35In this episode, we wrap with the sad end of John Mack's once-fine career, then dive deeply into the most "important" "alien" "abduction" that pioneering researcher Budd Hopkins ever covered. Yes, this is the story of a woman who was abducted by aliens from a Manhattan apartment tower into a flying saucer in front of 23 witnesses! Except, spoiler alert, maybe not. More Budd and then some sensible people next week.
34. New! Unidentified--John Mack's abduction theories fall apart
32:03||Season 6, Ep. 34In which we review the downfall of a once-respected psychiatrist, as John Mack publishes his findings only to have them completely torn apart by a wide variety of critics. Worse, we learn how he was taken in by an undercover skeptic who fed him a totally unbelievable story which, as you might expect, he believed. Next time--we do a deep dive on the elder statesman of abduction research, Budd Hopkins.
33. New! Unidentified--The Harvard psychiatrist who believed in abductions
34:26||Season 6, Ep. 33In this episode, we wrap up the last bit of Strieber, before turning our attention to John Mack, a celebrated and respected psychiatrist who, late in his career, turned his attention to investigating, and then advocating for alien abductions. We learn why John Mack became obsessed, and how his friends, colleagues, and especially the vaunted institution he worked for tried to deal with this pillar of the psychiatric establishment embracing woo-woo nonsense. More on Mack next time.
32. New! Unidentified--Lightning strikes versus alien abductions
36:22||Season 6, Ep. 32Hearkening back to high school English class, we compare and contrast my and Whitley Strieber's unusual experiences. Also, we hear from my real-life parents, who do their best to recall what really happened with my lightning strike. I hope you find them as adorable as I do.