Fantastic Transmissions

Episode 8 of Fantastic Transmissions is about Grass Dancer by Owl Goingback. Grass Dancer, a Nebula nominee, weaves a Vietnam war story with American Indian myth and legend. I discuss the craft of the story itself, as well as some background on American Indian soldiers in Vietnam. I also explain why this story first appeared in, of all things, an anthology of King Arthur stories. The intro music is sampled from Clyde Borly and His Percussions, off the album "Music in Five Dimensions." The rest of the music in the podcast was created by Blue Dot Sessions. Their work can be found on the Free Music Archive under a Non-Commercial Attribution License. You can also find all their tracks at www.sessions.blue. References and a complete transcript, as well as links to my other projects, can be found at my blog, Off Michael's Bookshelf. 

Episode 7 of Fantastic Transmissions is about Bloodchild by Octavia E Butler. Bloodchild is a multiple-award-winning story by a multiple-award-winning author about the symbiotic (or parasitic?) relationship between a human colony and their insectoid overlords. We discuss the idea of male pregnancy, and attempt to answer the big question about Bloodchild: is it about slavery? The intro music is sampled from Clyde Borly and His Percussions, off the album "Music in Five Dimensions." The rest of the music in the podcast was created by Blue Dot Sessions. Their work can be found on the Free Music Archive under a Non-Commercial Attribution License. You can also find all their tracks at www.sessions.blue. References and a complete transcript, as well as links to my other projects, can be found at my blog, Off Michael's Bookshelf.   

Episode 6 of Fantastic Transmissions is about Farmer Giles of Ham by J. R. R. Tolkien. Ham is one of Tolkien's forays into fable and comedy, a little-read work with big ideas. I discuss some of the linguistics jokes and historical references in the work, and then talk more broadly about Tolkien's own opinions on language, nationality, and identity.  The intro music is sampled from Clyde Borly and His Percussions, off the album "Music in Five Dimensions." The rest of the music in the podcast was created by Blue Dot Sessions. Their work can be found on the Free Music Archive under a Non-Commercial Attribution License. You can also find all their tracks at www.sessions.blue. References and a complete transcript, as well as links to my other projects, can be found at my blog, Off Michael's Bookshelf. 

Episode 5 of Fantastic Transmissions is about Walk Like a Mountain by Manly Wade Wellman. Walk is a tale of Appalachain fantasy, of a giant who dwells on a cliff over the holler, and how our heroic balladeer John treats with this strange relic. In this episode, I talk about some history of giant folklore - in America and Britain - and also talk about Manly Wade Wellman and some of the myths surrounding white Appalachian identity.  The intro music is sampled from Clyde Borly and His Percussions, off the album "Music in Five Dimensions." The rest of the music in the podcast was created by Blue Dot Sessions. Their work can be found on the Free Music Archive under a Non-Commercial Attribution License. You can also find all their tracks at www.sessions.blue. References and a complete transcript, as well as links to my other projects, can be found at my blog, Off Michael's Bookshelf.     

Episode 4 of Fantastic Transmissions is about Aye, and Gomorrah... by Samuel R. Delany. Gomorrah, first published in the DANGEROUS VISIONS volume in 1967 is a very short story about "Spacers," third-gender asexual astronauts, and "frelkers," the fetishists who lust after the Spacers. In this episode, I talk about the way spacers and frelks connect through their mutual deviations from the norm, and then explore a little of the storied life of Samuel R. Delany, particularly the ways in which his life connects to the story of Gomorrah. The intro music is sampled from Clyde Borly and His Percussions, off the album "Music in Five Dimensions." The rest of the music in the podcast was created by Blue Dot Sessions. Their work can be found on the Free Music Archive under a Non-Commercial Attribution License. You can also find all their tracks at www.sessions.blue. References and a complete transcript, as well as links to my other projects, can be found at my blog, Off Michael's Bookshelf. 

Episode 3 of Fantastic Transmissions is about Daughters of Khaton by Merril Mushroom. Daughters, a 1987 novella published by Lace Publications, is not your typical SFF entry. Merril Mushroom, the author, is and was a lesbian and feminist activist in the South. Daughters comes from a tradition of radical lesbian and feminist thought. We explore the central theme of the story - fear and facing fear - and discuss Merril's background as a lesbian woman growing up during the nightmarish reign of the Johns Committee.  The intro music is sampled from Clyde Borly and His Percussions, off the album "Music in Five Dimensions." The rest of the music in the podcast was created by Blue Dot Sessions. Their work can be found on the Free Music Archive under a Non-Commercial Attribution License. You can also find all their tracks at www.sessions.blue. References and a complete transcript, as well as links to my other projects, can be found at my blog, Off Michael's Bookshelf. 

Episode 2 of Fantastic Transmissions is about Quest of the Starstone by C.L. Moore and Henry Kuttner. Quest is the first collaborative work between queen of sword-and-sorcery C.L. Moore and her eventual husband, Kuttner. We talk about the stylistic quirks of the early days of pulp fiction, examine the collaborative prowess of Moore and Kuttner, and lament for Moore's slip into obscurity.  The intro music is sampled from Clyde Borly and His Percussions, off the album "Music in Five Dimensions." The rest of the musc in the podcast was created by Blue Dot Sessions. Their work can be found on the Free Music Archive under a Non-Commercial Attribution License. You can also find all their tracks at www.sessions.blue. The clip of Green Hills of Earth is from episode 10 of the radio program Dimension X, first broadcasted by NBC on June 10, 1950, and now available from the Smithsonian Institution’s Radio Spirits series.  Fantastic Transmissions is a non-commercial project.  Transcript, links, and my other projects can be found at https://offmichaelsbookshelf.wordpress.com  

Episode 1 of Fantastic Transmissions is about Jerome Bixby's 1953 short story, It's A Good Life. It's A Good Life is the story of a young boy with horrific psychic powers who holds an entire town under his sway. We examine how Bixby's style complements his narrative, compare the story to its Twilight Zone adaptation, and talk about the themes of totalitarianism and narcissism.  The intro music is sampled from Clyde Borly and His Percussions, off the album "Music in Five Dimensions." The rest of the musc in the podcast was created by Blue Dot Sessions. Their work can be found on the Free Music Archive under a Non-Commercial Attribution License. You can also find all their tracks at www.sessions.blue. Audio from episode 73 of The Twilight Zone is the property of CBS.  Fantastic Transmissions is a non-commercial project.  Transcript, links, and my other projects can be found at https://offmichaelsbookshelf.wordpress.com  

This is the pilot episode - not really an episode - of Fantastic Transmissions, a podcast highlighting the greatest and weirdest sci-fi and fantasy yarns of all time! Music is sampled from Clyde Borly and his Percussions, off the album "Music in 5 Dimensions."