The Random Intellectual

A phobia is an uncontrollable, irrational fear of an object or a situation that is usually not life-threatening. Most everyone has a phobia and most of them we know are silly and can't hurt us but they freak us out anyway. On this week's episode we will discuss the types of phobias and tell you about some of the more unusual phobias we've come across. Pretty much anything can have a phobia attached to it. Trust us.

The Amber Room was a real life treasure room. A gift from Prussia to Russia in 1716, the room boasted some 6 tons of amber, semi-precious stones, and gold inlay. Unfortunately, war is destructive, and war with Nazis can be extremely destructive, and during WWII the room was lost. But lost where? Destroyed, on a wrecked ship at the bottom of the ocean, or locked away in some secret catacombs somewhere. On this week's episode, we'll tell you about the history of the Amber Room and the different theories of what actually happened to it.

The Hinterkaifeck farm murders is one of Germany's unsolved murders. Back in March 31st, 1922 the Gruber family and their maid were brutally murdered with a pickax. Although there were about 100 suspects, no one was found guilty. Did we mention the incest angle involved? If this piques your interest then tune in to this week's episode of The Random Intellectual.

On this episode of the Random Intellectual, we will be discussing sleep deprivation. We've all been there, you're probably sleep deprived right now! Go to sleep!  Going without sleep can not only affect your body but your mind. We will introduce you to some wild characters that went without sleep for longer than you can imagine. Also, David Blaine is involved and you know he is always up to some extreme shenanigans.

Who makes crop circles? And also why? On this week's episode we will try to answer those questions, give you a little history on crop circles and tell you about some theories including our own. Don't worry, we think it's aliens too.

There are two things that The Random Intellectual loves to talk about the most: Halloween and murders! We can't wait to tell you the story about the man who poisoned his own son with Halloween candy or the unfortunate final victim of the Toolbox Killers. We may have just missed Halloween but these kinds of spooky stories are always in season!

The Dancing Plague of 1518 was a weird historic event that occurred in Strasbourg, Alsace, which is now modern-day France. Some 50  - 400 people danced uncontrollably for days. A few of these people actually died and nobody really knows why. Don't get us wrong, we have a few theories.

The Taliban has been a group with so much notoriety for the past 20-30 years. But how did they come to be? What historic event occurred that set the wheel in motion to cause a group like the Taliban to exist? Well, it was actually the Saur Revolution of 1978 that started things. On this week's episode we'll tell you a very brief history of how the Taliban came to be and how that affects how things are now.

What do you get when you take an unusual dentist, add a lover with all her teeth removed, combine that with another family that you can't stand, and mix all that with a fake baroness and her two lovers all on a rough and deserted island? If you said the Galapagos Affair, you'd be right!!! This story is crazy and very true!

What do you get when you take an unusual dentist, add a lover with all her teeth removed, combine that with another family that you can't stand, and mix all that with a fake baroness and her two lovers all on a rough and deserted island? If you said the Galapagos Affair, you'd be right!!! This story is crazy and very true!

The Benders were a family of serial killers who lived and killed in Kansas in the 1870's. In fact, they weren't really a family at all and killed at least 10 people including one child that was allegedly buried alive. How did they do it? Did they get away with it? Well, you'll just have to listen to this week's episode to find out. We promise, you're going to want to hear all about this unconventional and murderous family.

Benjamin and Erika Sifrit were young and in love. When they met another couple on the bus on the way to a popular club called Seacrets in Ocean City, MA, it seemed like just another night of fun and partying. What actually ends up happening is that the other couple turn up missing and Benjamin and Erika Sifrit are the main suspects. How did all of this happen? And does the restaurant Hooters play a part in this?

Strange events occurred in room 1046 in the President Hotel in Kansas City, Missouri on January 3-4, 1935. A man, with an alias, was found tortured, stabbed, and strangled in that room. He died shortly afterwards and with him died what actually happened. There's been a lot of theories but after almost 90 years the case is still unsolved. We'll break it all down for you on this week's episode.

The Tunguska Event is the largest impact event on Earth ever recorded. On January 30, 1908, something hit the Earth's atmosphere or ground with a force 185 times greater than that of the atomic bomb that hit Hiroshima. Problem is, it was in such a remote area that nobody could get there to study it until almost 30 years later. What really happened in that forest in Siberia remains a mystery but we have a few theories of what we think happened.

Elmendorf is a tiny town right outside of San Antonio, where this podcast is based. A dangerous man by the name of Joe Ball, lived in this town and caused quite a scandal in the early 1900s. With the bootlegging, the missing people, the murders, oh, and an alligator, there was lots of drama surrounding this man. We can't wait to tell you this crazy story.

There once was a man named Tarrare who lived in France from roughly 1772 to 1798. He had a literal insatiable appetite and would eat anything, and we mean ANYTHING. Cats, dogs, snakes, eels, body parts off the dead, forks, watches….ANYTHING.

A dead man appears on the beach in Australia in the late 40s and no one can identify him. Turns out he is completely unidentifiable and only one tiny clue can lead investigators to his identity the Persian phrase “Tamám shud”. Find out more and hear all the theories on this week's episode!

Are you a stoic and don't even know it? If all you know about Stoicism is that a lot of guys in ancient Greece were stoics and were strong and never showed emotion you're way off. Turns out Modern Stoicism probably isn't what you think it is and chances are you're already one. Interested? We'll explain in this week's episode.

The Yuba County 5 is the strange story of 5 mentally disabled men who went to a basketball game one night in 1978 and vanished on a mountain road. Months later, 4 of the 5 bodies were found, with the 5th one never to be seen again. How did they get there and why?

The Romanov family was the last royal family to rule imperial Russia. We say last because they were executed because of civil unrest aka the Bolshevik Revolution. But were they all killed? There is lots of lore about what really happened to at least some members of the Romanov family and we are here to tell you all about it.

Joseph James De Angelo has been known by many names: The East Area Rapist, The Original Night Stalker, The Visalia Ransacker and finally The Golden State Killer. This predator terrorized California for 10 straight years and then disappeared. Over thirty years later he has been brought to Justice. How did he get away with it for so long? And how did they finally catch him? We'll tell you all about it!

The Cleveland Torso murders were a series of murders that occured in the 1930's in a poor shantytown called Kingsbury Run. There were at least 12 victims, only 2 of which were identified. The serial killer liked to dismember it's victims and oftentimes cut off their heads, of which only a few were found. The killer was never found and the crimes remain unsolved, although there are at least a couple of very good suspects.

The Springfield Three are three women who disappeared June 7, 1992 and have never been found. Two of the women, Suzie and Stacy, had just graduated high school. Suzie's mom, Sherill, was a hair stylist and was also never found.  Clues are few and far between due to evidence tampering, although seemingly innocent, but we have a few theories.

Drugs are bad, ok? We all know about the heavy hitters, cocaine, meth, heroin. But have you ever heard of krokodil or dragonfly? We're going to tell you all about the newest, scariest drugs out there. And they are definitely scary and dangerous.

Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument in Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England. It consists of a ring of vertical standing sandstones with a smaller ring of bluestones inside. The monument is orientated towards the sunrise on the summer solstice and it has been a thing of mystery for thousands of years. Who built it and why?

The Chicago Tylenol murders were a string of deaths by poison brought about by tampering with Tylenol in Chicago in 1982. Seven people died and the case has never been solved. There are some theories as to what happened and we're going to break it all down for you. You'll want to hear all about this, trust us!

Warren Jeffs was the president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints which believes wholeheartedly in polygamy. He had a ton of wives and a ton of kids and was the only one who could perform marriages in their religion. Unfortunately he also sexually assaulted children and is now in prison for life for two felony counts of child sexual assault. Find out all about this guy and what crazy stuff he did on this week's episode.

Anneliese Michel was a German girl who had 67 Catholic exorcisms because she thought she was possessed by demons. She eventually died of malnutrition and her parents and two priests were found guilty of negligent homicide. It's a crazy story and we can't wait to tell you all about it!

The Beast of Gévaudan was a name associated with a killer beast who terrorized a French village in the years 1764-1767. The Beast was responsible for at least a hundred deaths and was one of the first media sensations. What exactly was this beast? Well, you know us, we have some theories.

Asylums, also called mental health hospitals, are hospitals that specialize in the treatment of serious mental disorders. Unfortunately, asylums have also become to be known as places of neglect and abuse. This week we have three asylums where horrible atrocities occurred. We'll tell you about the history, the abuse, and what ultimately happened to these asylums.

The Cecil hotel is a hotel in Los Angeles, California that has had a sorted past to say the least. Murders, suicides, and even serial killers have been a part of its history. The infamous death of Elisa Lam has made the hotel a kind of dark tourist attraction and a Netflix documentary has been made about it. We'll tell you about some of the craziness that has gone on in the hotel throughout the years and we'll tell you exactly what we think of the documentary.

The Jamison family disappeared on October 8, 2009 and were never seen alive again. In fact, partial skeletal remains weren't found until 4 years later. There are many good theories of what possibly happened to them but no real evidence and no suspects. To this day their murders are unsolved with no real leads. We'll tell you what we think happened on this week's episode.

Jeffrey Epstein was an American financier and a convicted sex offender. He basically started a prostitution ring where he and his wealthy friends would sexually abuse women and girls. With the help of his friend Ghislaine Maxwell, many young girls were sexually assaulted for years. Eventually Epstein was caught and died in prison. His death does seem suspicious to many. So what happened? Listen to this week's episode and we'll fill you in.

How many times has being drunk got you into trouble? How many times has being drunk saved your life? This week we're going to be talking about people who survived death by being drunk. We'll also tell you how inebriation can sometimes be a life saver!

When we talk about Dr. Death we're talking about assisted suicides. We'll tell you all about Philip Nitschke and Jack Kevorkian and the death machines they used to help kill people who desperately wanted to die. We'll talk about all the moral and ethical dilemmas surrounding assisted suicides and what consequences these two had to deal with for doing what they believed was right. You won't want to miss it.

When you think of nuns, what comes to mind? Strict, older ladies that like to discipline with rulers? Those are not the nuns we are talking about. We are talking about bad ass nuns. The nuns who stand up for what they believe in, spend time in prison rather than betray their beliefs. Nuns that kick ass.

Pablo Escobar and El Chapo were insanely powerful drug lords in the 1980's-1990's. El Chapo's base was Mexico and transported drugs into the U.S. via tunnels while Escobar was in Columbia and used planes to get his drugs to America. Both were ruthless and killed thousands of people to get what they wanted. On this week's episode we'll be telling you all the details in these drug lords lives.

Cryonics is the low-temperature freezing of a human corpse or sometimes just the head in hopes that one day it could be revived with new technology sometime in the future. Some believe that while maybe a body cannot be resurrected perhaps the personality or memory of a person can be uploaded inside of a robot. Skeptics think this is a foolish way to try to outsmart death and will never work. Do you think it's possible? On this week's podcast, we will discuss cryonics, cryogenics, cryotherapy, and a whole bunch of other “cryo” stuff!

Stalking is when a person repeatedly and persistently engages in unwanted communication and sometimes they approach a person in order to invoke fear in them. There are several famous stalker cases we will be talking about as well as talking about the different types of stalkers and what you can do to keep yourself safe. You don't want to miss it!

In this week's episode we'll be talking about all kinds of New Year's Resolutions. We'll talk about this history of resolutions as well as traditions in different cultures and some famous resolutions. Get out of here, 2020!

Secret hidden people are all around if you just look hard enough. On this week's episode, we'll tell you two stories of people hidden for many years in homes where they could and should have been discovered many times. Listen to find out more.

The Fritzl Affair refers to a case in Austria of a girl who was enslaved and held captive by her own father for 24 years in the family's cellar. What's even worse is that the captive woman gave birth to 7 children with no medical care by her own father. How did she escape? How did this even happen?

The lost colony of Roanoke was the first attempt at a permanent colony in North America in 1585. When the governor John White came back with supplies 3 years later he found the settlement abandoned. Only the word “Croatoan” on a wood post. What happened to them? We've got lots of theories. Listen to us to hear them all!

Charles Starkweather and Caril Ann Fugate were just 19 and 14 years old when they went on a road trip killing spree killing 11 victims in December 1957-January 1958. 10 of the 11 killed were killed between January 21-29. They were caught and arrested, and Charles was executed while Caril, who maintained her innocence, was given life in prison. Many movies, books, and songs were inspired by these homicidal teenagers.

Nostradamus is known as a French physician, astrologer, and prophet. His name is still popular to this day, over four hundred years later after his death mostly for a 1555 book he wrote titled "Centuries," In it was a  collection of one thousand quatrains which are thought to have told the future. Do you think he really could see the future? Listen to this week's episode to find out more.

It's our favorite time of year! Halloween!!! On this week's episode we're getting spooky and historic. We'll tell you all about the history and origins of Halloween, some Halloween myths and legends, and our favorite scary stories. You won't want to miss it!

This week's episode is all about witches!  A witch is a woman who is thought to have magical powers. We'll discuss the origins of the witch myth, famous historic witches, the Salem Witch Trials, and of course the modern witch and wicca. You won't want to miss it!

Vampires. Blood suckers. Garlic hating. Sunlight avoiders. The undead. This week's episode is going to be all about vampires. From the history of the myth to modern day vampires.

Ed and Lorraine Warren are probably the world's most famous paranormal researchers. They investigated the conjuring house, Amityville, Annabelle the haunted doll, and so much more.