Weird Darkness: Stories of the Paranormal, Supernatural, Legends, Lore, Mysterious, Macabre, Unsolved

An English butcher murdered his wife the day his exorcism ended, the Son of Sam blamed his neighbor's dog, and a forked-tongued occultist who called himself Pazuzu buried bodies in his backyard — and every one of them swore it was the demon who did it. | #WDRadio May 10, 2026==========HOUR ONE: “The devil made me do it.” It's an excuse that has been used so often by so many that it has lost its meaning, and its effectiveness. So only a fool or a madman would commit a horrible act and then try to blame it on the devil or a demon… unless, of course, that person truly believes that is exactly what happened to them. (A Demon Made Me Do It) *** The little Norwegian village of Bærum Verk still stands as an old foundry settlement, and is an active place, both as a place to work, and as a place to live – and as a place to keep living even after you're dead. (The Most Haunted Village in Norway) *** There are more than a few stories from upright citizens around the world who claim to have seen tiny humans. I'm not talking about the diminutive human beings we used to classify as dwarves or midgets until we became more enlightened. I'm talking about short, maybe two-foot tall, perfectly proportioned people. (Big Stories About Little People)==========HOUR TWO: Like many desolate places, the Arctic has its share of ghost stories and haunted legends floating around the frigid, wild areas of its domain. It might be the frights rather than the cold that gives you goosebumps. (Ghostly Shivers of the Arctic Circle) *** You never know what might be lurking just out of sight – in the shadows, behind a door. I'll share a few true stories that might make you double-check the locks at night and check the closet before going to bed. (Never Trust The Dark) *** When you think of the Salem Witch Trials, you typically think of women being burned at the stake, innocently accused of witchcraft. There are two incorrect assumption about that mental picture. First, most of the accused were hung, and none have been truly verified to be burned alive. And second, sorcery and Satan worship were not seen to be bound by gender, and so either a man, woman, boy, or girl could be a witch. And one of those unfortunate men was Giles Corey – but his punishment went beyond the norm, and into the gruesome. (The Most Dreadful Execution of The Salem Witch Trials)==========SUDDEN DEATH OVERTIME: When John and Eva were married they told their relatives that they planned to honeymoon on the Atlantic coast, but John had another plan, and it would not be his last deception. But it would be the first act in what ended up being a mystery that has still gone unsolved to this day. (The Lawrenceburg Shanty-Boat Mystery) *** Weirdo family member James Pierce brings a true story that he calls, “It Came Through the Screen Door”. *** A 5-year-old boy having the time of his life at a carnival suddenly goes missing – and when found later there is no evidence whatsoever as to how he got where he was, who took him there, or what happened to him before he was found. (The Disturbing Case of Little Stephen McKerron) *** Weirdo family member Joy Cruz remembers something her mother told her as a child… and it quite possibly saved her soul. (I've Seen The Devil)==========SOURCES AND REFERENCES FROM TONIGHT'S SHOW:“The Genesis of Geraldine” by David Jeremiah for Light Source: https://tinyurl.com/y7t7nuwx“A Demon Made Me Do It” by Jacob Shelton for Ranker: https://tinyurl.com/y2qedyjq, and Orrin Grey for The Line Up: https://tinyurl.com/yb8e6z25“The Most Haunted Village in Norway” from Moon Mausoleum: https://tinyurl.com/ya8nuxur“The Lawrenceburg Shanty-Boat Mystery” by Robert Wilhelm for Murder By Gaslight: https://tinyurl.com/yyod3q3j“Big Stories About Little People” by Nick Redfern for Mysterious Universe: https://tinyurl.com/ycql47wq“It Came Through the Screen Door” by Weirdo family member James Pierce“Ghostly Shivers of the Arctic Circle” by Jodi Smith for Ranker: https://tinyurl.com/yc9ymjyx“The Most Dreadful Execution of The Salem Witch Trials” from Sometimes Interesting: https://tinyurl.com/y979qn8e, and Evan Corey for History: https://tinyurl.com/y7qt45kx“I've Seen The Devil” by Joy Cruz for Weird Darkness: https://WeirdDarkness.com/submit“The Disturbing Case of Little Stephen McKerron” from Strange Company: https://tinyurl.com/ydf4w6ce“Never Trust the Dark” from The Line Up: https://tinyurl.com/y7bgdq5z==========Join the Weird Darkness Syndicate: https://weirddarkness.com//syndicateWeird Darkness theme by Alibi Music Library. Background music provided by Alibi Music Library, EpidemicSound and/or StoryBlocks with paid license. Music from Shadows Symphony (https://tinyurl.com/yyrv987t), Midnight Syndicate (http://amzn.to/2BYCoXZ) Kevin MacLeod (https://tinyurl.com/y2v7fgbu), Tony Longworth (https://tinyurl.com/y2nhnbt7), and Nicolas Gasparini (https://tinyurl.com/lnqpfs8) is used with permission of the artists.==========PODCASTS I HOST:Weird Darkness: https://weirddarkness.com/listenParanormality Magazine: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/paranormalitymagMicro Terrors: Scary Stories for Kids: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/microterrorsRetro Radio – Old Time Radio In The Dark: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/retroradioChurch of the Undead: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/churchoftheundead==========(Over time links seen above 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.)=========="I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness." — John 12:46==========WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.

An archaeology professor fixates on a stranger across the restaurant, his wife admits to a skill she's kept hidden for the twenty years they've been married, and what the two of them overhear at the man's table suggests he isn't from this planet. 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/OTRCHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Show Open00:01:30.028 = CBS Mystery Theater, “The People of Sissora” (October 14, 1977)00:45:53.743 = Murder By Experts, “It's Luck That Counts” (August 29, 1949)01:15:23.858 = Exploring Tomorrow, “Speak No More” (May 07, 1958)01:34:57.034 = Faces In The Window, “Pit And The Pendulum” (January 24, 1953) ***WD02:05:56.415 = Dark Fantasy, “Convoy For Atlantis” (March 27, 1942)02:28:30.890 = BBC Fear on 4, “Survival” (March 19, 1989)02:57:27.374 = Future Tense, “Tunnel Under The World” (May 22, 1974) ***WD03:24:06.381 = BBC Ghosts From The Past, “Mortmain” (April 22, 1992)04:08:08.795 = Ave Maria Hour, “St. Benedict of Nursia VS Poison And Witchcraft” (1939)04:31:51.450 = Hall of Fantasy, “Death In The Bayous” (March 06, 1947)05:01:47.886 = 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/WDRR0655

From morgue freezer alarms tripping with nobody inside to a Scream-masked figure waving at the security camera, twenty-one workers describe the moments they realized empty buildings are rarely as empty as they look.EPISODE BLOG PAGE (includes sources and transcript): https://weirddarkness.com/AloneOnTheJobFEATURED STORIES IN THIS EPISODE: Complete isolation sounds horrifying, but for people who work alone, it just becomes part of the process. *** Fog and mist are a staple of creating a perfect horror atmosphere. In some cases, such as movies like “The Fog” or “The Mist”, it is the creeping haze that is the danger itself. But then there is the true story from the Florida woods of a supernatural fog bank that appeared to eat people alive. *** How did The Devil's footprint get in a rock in North Carolina? *** One of our Weirdo family members didn't used to believe in the supernatural – but that changed when he insisted that the ghost prove it exists. *** Mysterious fires and moving objects have terrified the residents of a house in central Morocco.CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = The Foreboding00:01:03.467 = Show Open00:02:51.044 = Creepy Working Alone Stories00:27:01.430 = A Strange Carnivorous Mist ***00:35:48.414 = Devil's Rock00:39:48.078 = Demanding Proof ***00:41:53.899 = Poltergeist in Morocco00:48:58.487 = Show Close*** = Begins immediately after inserted ad breakLISTEN 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:“Creepy Working Alone Stories” by Stefanie Hammond fore Ranker: https://tinyurl.com/tuxe6zd“A Strange Carnivorous Mist” by Brent Swancer for Mysterious Universe: https://tinyurl.com/vyveg7a“Devil's Rock” posted at North Carolina Ghosts: https://tinyurl.com/trcpobe“Demanding Proof” by Weirdo family member Christopher Gray, submitted directly to WeirdDarkness“Poltergeist in Morocco” originally posted in Hespress of Morocco, translated by The Fortean:https://tinyurl.com/y8s7glte(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.

This week's Church of the Undead (#COTU) pulled me down a rabbit hole. The further I worked on it, the more it asked of me — more material, more questions of my own that needed answers... honestly, if I kept going it could easily become a book, and maybe someday it will. But for now I'm working toward the podcast version, and even that may not be ready for the usual Sunday release. I'll keep at it, but this may be a mid-week episode! Thanks in advance for your understanding! In the meantime, you can hear previous messages from the Church of the Undead series at https://weirddarkness.com/church.

A man on our block sat between burning cauldrons in a devil costume every Halloween, and the year I was finally brave enough to trick-or-treat at his house, he gave me something that wasn't candy at all.EPISODE BLOG PAGE (includes sources): https://weirddarkness.com/TrickOrTreatDevilFEATURED STORIES IN THIS EPISODE: A local lake's water turned crystal clear overnight, every fish and plant gone from its depths, and the two university microbiologists who collected a sample to find out why brought something back to the lab that should never have left the water. (Amoeba) *** Two out-of-state hunters were found torn apart in a cabin north of town — one man's leg inside, the other's upper torso on the roof — and the night four friends gathered in a basement in the small mountain town of Linglestown to drink beer and laugh about the creature stalking the local woods, heavy footsteps started crossing the floor above them. (The Cycle) *** A secret modification had pushed Keck Observatory's telescope to 45 billion light-years — the very edge of the known universe — and when they called Caltech's astronomy chief for his opinion, what he saw wasn't a star, a galaxy, or a nebula, but something that appeared to be looking back. (A Scarecrow For God) *** In the 1970s suburban neighborhood where I grew up, every kid measured his bravery by whether he'd ever walked up the lawn of the man who dressed as the devil on Halloween, and the year my best friend and I finally took the dare, what was dropped into my candy bag turned a rite of passage into something far stranger. (Satan's Fall)CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Show Open00:01:15.425 = Amoeba00:18:17.841 = The Cycle00:37:01.840 = A Scarecrow For God00:54:23.851 = Satan's Fall01:29:01.448 = Show Close*** = Begins immediately after inserted ad breakLISTEN 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:“Amoeba” was submitted by Sabby Ray: https://www.facebook.com/ray.saibal“The Cycle” - an original story submitted by Michael Dieb at http://www.WeirdDarkness.com“A Scarecrow For God”: https://www.creepypasta.com/a-scarecrow-for-god/“Satan's Fall”: http://www.creepypasta.org/creepypasta/satans-fall#read(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 15, 2017

Old Alexander Jordan, terrified of being buried alive during one of his cataleptic fits, rigs a bell from his crypt to his nephew's bedroom — so that if he wakes inside the coffin, he can ring for help. But his nephew Ramsey has been waiting a long time to inherit the Jordan place, and a bell that rings in the dead of night can be silenced more than one way.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/OTRCHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Show Open00:01:30.028 = CBS Radio Mystery Theater, “The Case of the Chateau-Margaux” (October 12, 1977) ***WD00:45:49.691 = Creeps By Night, “Strange Burial of Alexander Jordan” (July 13, 1944)01:15:20.185 = The Crime Club, “Cupid Can Be Deadly” (October 16, 1947) ***WD01:43:49.472 = Danger Dr. Danfield, “Mad Men Strike Swiftly” (January 05, 1947)02:08:13.766 = CBC Deep Night, “Birth” (July 08, 2005)02:39:10.152 = The Devil and Mr. O, “Vacation With Death” (November 26, 1971) ***WD03:07:52.353 = Diary of Fate, “Joe Mattuck” (March 16, 1948) ***WD03:36:20.390 = Dimension X, “Potters of Firsk” (July 28, 1950) ***WD04:03:51.650 = The Strange Dr. Weird, “Stand-In For Death” (December 26, 1944) ***WD04:15:18.925 = The Eleventh Hour, “Bad Day for Big Ben” (1960's – Early 1970's) ***WD04:45:09.364 = Escape, “The Day The General Died” (April 16, 1949)05:14:36.099 = 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/WDRR0654

When telephone lineman Sam Yoder picks up an impossible call from himself ten days in the future, the tips start paying off — until future Sam steers him straight into the middle of a bank robbery he's told to watch, but not stop.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/OTRCHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Show Open00:01:30.028 = CBS Radio Mystery Theater, “The Actress” (October 10, 1977) ***WD00:46:36.193 = X Minus One, “Sam This Is You” (October 31, 1956)01:15:29.980 = Zero Hour, “An Arms Length” (May 13, 1940) ***WD01:32:52.045 = ABC Mystery Time, “The Tale” (1956-1957)01:56:19.779 = Strange Adventures, “Malay Magic” (1945) ***WD01:59:34.349 = Appointment With Fear, “The Clock Strikes Eight” (May 18, 1944) ***WD02:28:21.070 = BBC Radio4 Ghost Story, “Lost Hearts” (October 29, 1978)02:42:35.566 = Beyond The Green Door, “Frederick Morton” (1966)02:46:35.493 = The Man In Black, “The Price Of The Head” (February 02, 1952) ***WD03:01:20.239 = Barry Craig, “Ghosts Don't Die In Bed” (September 07, 1954)03:29:53.534 = Box 13, Double Right Cross” (November 28, 1948) ***WD03:56:39.464 = CBC Mystery Theater, “Mr Higginbothom's Catastrophe” (1967) ***WD04:25:34.811 = The Clock, “The Hunter And The Hunted' (November 22, 1955) ***WD04:51:37.696 = 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/WDRR0653

A twelve-year-old takes an easy weekend house-sitting job in a quiet rural neighborhood — until a thunderstorm knocks out the power and something starts scraping its way through an upstairs wall.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/1655277373Find more family-friendly frights and creepy games to play on our website at http://MicroTerrors.com!Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/microterrorsOther stories, novels, and more from author Scott Donnelly: https://amzn.to/3LymHaUOther narrations, podcasts, and audiobooks from voice artist Darren Marlar: https://WeirdDarkness.com= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =Weird Darkness©, 2026Micro Terrors: Scary Stories for Kids™, 2026#MicroTerrors #WeirdDarkness

Ruthie Mae McCoy fought her whole life to escape the violence and fear of Chicago's public housing, but when intruders slipped through her medicine cabinet and into her apartment, her worst nightmare became horrifyingly real.EPISODE BLOG PAGE (includes sources and full transcript): https://weirddarkness.com/TheyCameThroughTheBathroomMirrorFEATURED STORIES IN THIS EPISODE: Ruthie Mae McCoy was the type who talked to herself and cursed strangers on the street. When she called 911 to report that someone was coming through the medicine cabinet of her Abbott Homes apartment, she might have been hallucinating. But she wasn't. (They Came Through The Mirror) *** Who was the mysterious woman who spoke a language no-one could understand? What was inside the box she held in her hands? What was the meaning of the markings on the round metal object she arrived in? Those are just some of the questions no one has been able to answer about a strange encounter near Tokyo in 1803. (The Alien Woman and the Hollow Ship) *** In a well-known area of southwest Texas that many believe to already be haunted, a woman dies in childbirth – but when she is found, her baby is missing, and wolf prints are everywhere. And that's when sightings of The Wolf Girl of Devil's River begin. (The Wolf Girl of Devil's River) *** Throughout early 1800s Delaware and Maryland, Patty Cannon and her gang kidnapped as many as 3,000 Black Americans to sell into bondage in the South… and would often murder those slaves… and those that sold them. (Patty Cannon: The Slave-Trading Serial Killer)CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Show Open00:02:03.759 = Patty Cannon: The Slave-Trading Serial Killer00:12:09.850 = The Alien Woman and the Hollow Ship ***00:15:47.640 = The Wolf Girl of Devil's River00:25:21.261 = They Came In Through The Bathroom Mirror, Part 1 ***00:48:34.358 = They Came In Through The Bathroom Mirror, Part 2 ***01:11:13.860 = They Came In Through The Bathroom Mirror, Part 3 ***01:26:46.822 = Show Close & Bloopers*** = Begins immediately after inserted ad breakLISTEN 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:“Patty Cannon: The Slave-Trading Serial Killer” by Emily Stringer for All That's Interesting:https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/a95a6zaz“The Alien Woman and the Hollow Ship” by Ellen Lloyd for Ancient Pages: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/tvkvddc5“The Wolf Girl of Devil's River” by Brian Haughton: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/5uf2utcc“They Came Through The Mirror” by Steve Bogira for Chicago Reader: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/65pp5y96(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 14, 2021

A New Mexico missile chief and his secretary discover the flying saucers over White Sands aren't curious neighbors — they're a recall notice from something that has been parked on the dark side of the moon for three thousand years, and it has come for them.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/OTRCHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Show Open00:01:30.028 = CBS Radio Mystery Theater, “The Sea Nymph” (October 05, 1977) ***WD00:45:37.293 = Tales Of The Frightened, “Dr. Harvey Cushing” (1957) ***WD00:49:57.029 = The Creaking Door, “Imposter” (July 20, 1964) ***WD01:16:50.797 = The Saint, “Missing Angel” (July 08, 1951) ***WD01:45:36.247 = Theater Five, “A Brand New Life” (November 12, 1964) ***WD02:05:44.156 = 2000 Plus, “Flying Saucers” (August 23, 1950) ***WD02:34:51.114 = The Unexpected, “Counterfeit” (October 10, 1948) ***WD02:46:34.747 = Unsolved Mysteries, “The Witch Doctor” (1936) ***WD03:01:30.997 = Dark Venture, “Chase” (August 03, 1946) ***WD (LQ)03:29:50.533 = Weird Circle, “Goblet” (April 01, 1945)03:57:06.111 = The Whistler, “Murder On Paper” (January 29, 1945) ***WD04:28:30.820 = Witch's Tale, “Boa Goddess” (May 21, 1931) ***WD (LQ)04:53:37.621 = 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/WDRR0652

On Friday, April 13, 2029, an asteroid named for the Egyptian god of chaos will pass closer to Earth than the satellites overhead, and roughly two billion people will be able to see it without a telescope.EPISODE BLOG PAGE (includes sources and transcript): https://weirddarkness.com/Apophis29LISTEN 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*WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.Originally aired: May 7, 2026

In the summer of 1963, a mysterious crater, eerie lights, and a baffling military response turned the quiet town of Charlton, England into the center of a UFO controversy that still refuses to be neatly explained.EPISODE BLOG PAGE (includes sources and full transcript): https://weirddarkness.com/CharltonCraterFEATURED STORIES IN THIS EPISODE: Did someone steal from you? There's an ancient curse for that. A rival stressing you out? There's a curse for that, too. As it turns out, cursing one's adversaries is pretty timeless, and I'll share a few real curses you might consider using against your own enemies.  (Curses To Use Against Your Foes) *** “I never would have believed that Viola could do such a thing. She never had much to say and always did what she was told. She went to church regular, loved gospel music and was a hard worker.” That's what one of Viola Hyatt's relatives said after she committed a bloody double murder. (The Alabama Ax Murderess) *** In the early morning hours of July 16th, 1963 a Charlton police officer gasped at the sight of an orange light streaking across the sky. At the same time, a farmer heard a loud boom in the distance. Then several hours later another man found a huge crater near his farm. Was the Charlton crater UFO incident a genuine alien landing, or an elaborate hoax? (The Charlton UFO Landing Site)CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Show Open00:01:59.269 = The Charlton UFO Landing Site00:14:58.271 = The Alabama Ax Murderess ***00:38:35.660 = Curses To Use Against Your Foes ***00:48:42.019 = Show Close*** = Begins immediately after inserted ad breakLISTEN 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:“Was The Charlton Crater UFO Incident a Genuine Alien Landing, or An Elaborate Hoax” by Marcus Lowth for UFO Insight: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/4trx23tm“Curses To Use Against Your Foes” by Melissa Sartore for Weird History: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/k2pjf83x“The Alabama Ax Murderess” by Elton Camp for WritingRoom.com: (link no longer available)(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: February 24, 2023

A Wirt County woman allegedly fired three shots at a side-by-side driver after he ran over her chicken in the road outside her home.PRINT VERSION OF THIS STORY: https://weirddarkness.com/car-vs-chickenLook 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

In late-1800s Paris, an eighteen-year-old artist's model named Trilby suffers from headaches no doctor can touch. The cure, when it finally arrives, comes from the eyes of a strange musician named Svengali — and her friends are convinced she should never have let him near her.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/OTRCHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Show Open00:01:30.028 = CBS Mystery Theater, “Trilby” (September 30, 1977)00:47:17.842 = Radio City Playhouse, “Mother” (September 11, 1949)01:17:06.447 = Max Haines Mystery, “Arthur Gusy” (Mid 1940's)01:40:56.965 = The Sealed Book, “Escape By Death” (April 15, 1945) ***WD (LQ)02:11:50.125 = The Shadow, “The Man Who Lived Twice” (February 09, 1941)02:35:04.740 = Sleep No More, “Death of Oliver” and “Fishhead” (December 26, 1956) ***WD03:04:24.816 = BBC Spinechillers, “Cupboard Beneath The Stairs” (April 2006)03:18:28.728 = Strange Wills, “Treasure To Starboard” (July 13, 1946)03:48:08.450 = Strange, “Captain Robinson” (1955)04:01:53.644 = Suspense, “Suspicion” (April 03, 1948)05:00:47.763 = 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/WDRR0651

A portable toilet at a New Jersey construction site detonated Saturday night with enough force to shove a nearby building's wall and ceiling out of position, drawing the State Police Bomb Squad to Holden Square.PRINT VERSION OF THIS STORY: https://weirddarkness.com/lakewood-toilet-blastLook 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

Some say Zozo is just a trick of the mind, but after countless chilling Ouija board encounters and centuries of whispered warnings, maybe it's something far more sinister.EPISODE PAGE (includes sources and transcript): https://weirddarkness.com/SummoningZozoIN THIS EPISODE: The Zozo demon has allegedly harassed hundreds via their Ouija boards. But is this demonic force from the spirit world or from our own minds? *** Citizens of Van Meter, Iowa were confronted with a tall, human-like figure with bat-like wings, a single horn on its head, and it, apparently, was bullet-proof. What was this supernatural creature people were seeing? *** A bride-to-be becomes worried when her fiance disappears – so she contacts a psychic friend to see if she can help. *** Something sinister creeps into a Christian boarding house. *** Bram Stoker wrote his classic novel “Dracula” in 1897… but vampires are much, much older than that. *** A supposedly cursed doll has remained in the protection of one family for over four generations. But why would this family keep hold of such a demonic item? *** They are almost always silent, enigmatic figures usually seen at a distance up on ridges silhouetted against the darkening twilight sky, always at around dusk or dawn, quietly looking over and surveying their domain with unknowable purpose and often vanishing in the blink of an eye. What are the dark watchers of California?CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Disclaimer and Lead-In00:01:12.727 = Show Open00:03:37.878 = Zozo And The Ouija Board00:11:10.107 = The Van Meter Visitor00:21:40.657 = Back To Say Goodbye00:28:17.688 = Spirit Drawn to Teenage Emotions00:33:38.525 = Older Than Dracula00:42:05.860 = Joliet, the Haunted Doll00:45:23.026 = The Dark Watchers of California00:57:43.160 = Show Close00:58:33.668 = Final ThoughtSOURCES AND RESOURCES FROM THE EPISODE…“Zozo and the Ouija Board” by Mark Oliver for All That's Interesting: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/yc2rhvtz“The Van Meter Visitor” by Troy Taylor for American Hauntings Ink: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/2p8kupf3“Spirit Drawn to Teenage Emotions” by Lemurian Emerald, posted at Your Ghost Stories: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/4erh8ezb“Older Than Dracula” by Sam George for Ancient Origins: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/4hv6sdmc“Joliet: The Haunted Doll” by Chris for Real Paranormal Experiences: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/2p9fmmx7“Back to Say Goodbye” by Judy Rad, posted at MyHauntedLifeToo.com: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/3bkkpbjb“The Dark Watchers of California” by Brent Swancer for Mysterious Universe: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/yckxrfkv=====(Over time links seen above 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.)= = = = ="I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness." — John 12:46= = = = =WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.=====Originally aired: June, 2018

A deckhand has just put his captain over the rail in ten fathoms of empty gulf and called it an accident. He thinks the worst is behind him, but he never accounted for the captain's dog.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/OTRCHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Show Open00:01:30.028 = CBS Radio Mystery Theater, “The Solitary” (September 29, 1977) ***WD00:45:58.396 = CBC Nightfall, “Walter's Dog” (April 01, 1983) ***WD01:15:07.573 = Obsession, “The Silver Cord” (December 18, 1950) ***WD01:38:20.761 = Origin of Superstition, “Lose Baby's First Pair” (1935) ***WD01:52:39.682 = Pat Novak For Hire, “Mysterious Set of Books” (August 10, 1947) ***WD02:21:26.963 = Peril, “Wheelchair” (June 14, 1947) ***WD (LQ)02:45:54.810 = Mystery Playhouse, “Adventure of Fallen Angels” (June 14, 1946) ***WD03:10:54.656 = Philip Morris Playhouse, “Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse” (September 18, 1951)03:40:22.498 = Price of Fear, “Family Album” (June 13, 1983) ***WD04:07:31.598 = Adventures of Ellery Queen, “Foul Tip” (July 15, 1944) ***WD04:34:28.750 = Quiet Please, “Summer Goodbye” (January 23, 1949) (LQ)05:03:20.329 = 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/WDRR0650

People have been saying for decades that Paul McCartney died in 1966 and was secretly replaced by a look-alike, but what really keeps the theory alive are the eerie clues hidden in Beatles songs and album covers.EPISODE PAGE: https://weirddarkness.com/NowhereManIN THIS EPISODE: It's one of the strangest conspiracy theories ever created by mortal man. Was Beatles legend Paul McCartney killed in 1966 and replaced with a look-alike? We look at the evidence for and against this bizarre rumor. SOURCES AND RESOURCES FROM THE EPISODE…“Nowhere Man: The Paul McCartney Death Conspiracy” posted at The UnRedacted:https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/paulisdead=====(Over time links seen above 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.)= = = = ="I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness." — John 12:46= = = = =WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.=====Originally aired: November, 2018

The dead girl from Frank Baring's woods comes back every night with the same request, and he's running out of ways to refuse her.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/OTRCHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Show Open00:01:30.028 = CBS Radio Mystery Theater, “The Wintering Place” (September 27, 1977)00:45:49.645 = Tonight At Nine-Thirty, “Black Market Murders” (March 16, 1945)01:15:18.993 = Mystery In The Air, “Queen of Spades” (September 11, 1947)01:42:18.316 = Molle Mystery Theater, “Alibi For Murder” (March 22, 1946)02:11:55.779 = Mr. Keen, “The Moonless Night” (January 06, 1944)02:41:42.870 = Murder at Midnight, “The Line Is Dead” (April 07, 1947)03:08:09.496 = Black Museum, “Length of Sash Cord” (September 02, 1952) ***WD03:31:35.718 = Mysterious Traveler, “Christmas Story” (December 25, 1951)04:00:12.369 = Mystery House, “Nothing But Proof” (January 27, 1946) ***WD04:23:00.581 = Night Beat, “Otto, Music Man – aka Old Baldy” (June 15, 1951) ***WD04:51:18.305 = 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/WDRR0649

Growing up is hard enough, but for the children of serial killers, the weight of their parents' horrific crimes is a shadow that never fades.EPISODE PAGE (includes sources and transcript): https://weirddarkness.com/ChildrenOfSerialKillersIN THIS EPISODE: Many people have claimed to see ghosts near the iconic “Hollywood” sign in California – but one particular ghost is seen more often than the others – and it comes with a sad story. *** Weirdo family member Andrew Horne tells of his ghostly experience in Gettysburg. *** Why did Nellie Blye intentionally check herself into an asylum for a harrowing ten days? *** Statistically speaking, you will walk past a murderer 10.76 times in your life. But what if you didn't just walk past a murderer - what if they were a part of your family and you didn't know it?CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Show Open00:01:32.128 = The Children of Serial Killers00:30:05.441 = Hollywood Sign's Lady in White ***00:33:57.435 = Ghosts In Gettysburg00:38:10.085 = Nellie Bly's Living Nightmare00:42:29.147 = Show CloseSOURCES AND RESOURCES FROM THE EPISODE…“The Children of Serial Killers” by Stefanie Hammond for Ranker: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/557775be“The Hollywood Sign's Lady In White” posted at RealParanormalExperiences.com: (link no longer valid)“Ghosts In Gettysburg” by Weirdo family member Andrew Horne – submitted directly to Weird Darkness.“Nellie Bly's Living Nightmare” by Orrin Grey for The Line Up: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/nellie-bly=====(Over time links seen above 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.)= = = = ="I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness." — John 12:46= = = = =WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.=====Originally aired: November, 2018

A Domino's delivery driver in Fulton, Missouri allegedly reversed out of a customer's driveway, shifted into drive, and accelerated forward into the man who hadn't tipped him.PRINT VERSION OF THIS STORY: https://weirddarkness.com/pizza-tip-assaultLook 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 stranger on a Saturday-morning 7 train walked into Grand Central Terminal with a 17-inch machete and slashed three elderly commuters across two platforms before telling NYPD detectives he was Lucifer.PRINT VERSION OF THIS STORY: https://weirddarkness.com/machete-lucifer-nypdLook for this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and numerous other podcast apps. Get the full list of options 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 magnitude 4.4 earthquake and fifteen aftershocks rattled the desert beside America's most secretive military base in a single day, and the shallow depth left even mainstream geophysicists openly weighing the possibility of covert nuclear testing.PRINT VERSION OF THIS STORY: https://weirddarkness.com/area51-quakesLook for this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and numerous other podcast apps. Get the full list of options 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 man slipped into a Bronx Art Deco landmark at 2 a.m., dragged a $5,000 motorized wheelchair from beneath a stairwell, sat down, and putted away on his stolen ride.Police are asking anyone with information to contact NYPD Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS, or 1-888-57-PISTA for Spanish-speaking tipsters. Tips can also be submitted via the Crime Stoppers website at crimestoppers.nypdonline.org or on X at @NYPDTips.PRINT VERSION OF THIS STORY: https://weirddarkness.com/bronx-wheelchair-heistLook 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

Shadow people slip through the dark in three escalating forms — fleeting glimpses, lingering watchers, and rare physical encounters that defy every rational explanation. But what are they?HOUR ONE: When you think of human sacrifice, you might picture Aztec or Mayan ceremonies, or maybe a Satanic cult standing in a pentagram with a naked woman on an altar – possibly even a volunteer. Personally, I picture Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. While civilizations and groups such as these certainly did (and maybe still do) their share of brutal sacrificing, they are by no means the only ones that conducted death rituals. Some will most certainly surprise, and possibly disturb, you. (Sadistic Sacrificing of Souls) *** A shadow person is a humanoid figure that you perceive in a patch of shadow. Some believe that they are supernatural spirits or extra-dimensional beings. What are they? Paranormal researchers have a theory, neuroscientists have another theory. (Contact With a Shadow Man) *** An astronomy professor says we should begin focusing on space archaeology – starting with our own moon. Why? Well, he believes E.T. might have left a clue there of his existence. (Extraterrestrial Evidence on the Moon) *** Thousands of years ago, people were performing a form of surgery that involved boring holes through a person's skull. Why on earth would they do such a thing? (Trepanation: I Need That Like Another Hole In The Head) *** What Does It Mean To Dream About Aliens?==========HOUR TWO: David Parker Ray is believed to have tortured and killed more than 50 women inside his soundproof trailer. A trailer he referred to as his “toy box”. (The Toy Box Killer) *** Two friends sipping soda and playing pool find the green table stained blood red, with no warning whatsoever. (Murder At The Pool Table) *** Malta, Italy is known for its splendid ruins, historical monuments, and ancient sites, but one of these places stands out; a mysterious underground complex that holds with in it many enigmas and oddities that remain unsolved to this day. (Malta's Cryptic Catacombs) *** Weirdo family member Robert Foster tells of a creepy incident that happened to him while working security at an army depot in Oregon. (The Phantom Truck) *** Imagine opening up the newspaper and reading this paragraph: “If anyone doubts this story in the least… they are reliable men who would under no circumstances lend their names to an untruth.” Newspapers just do not stand by their sources this unwaveringly, at least not anymore… and especially if the subject of the article is a haunted house. (The Ghost Told Them To Move)==========SUDDEN DEATH OVERTIME: What if we were to discover there were aliens still living on the moon – and they were meddling in our affairs? How would you feel about that? Should extraterrestrials interfere in human affairs if they can help our society, or should we refuse that kind of leap in technology and medicine? (Should Aliens Interfere With Earthly Affairs?) *** Those who work nights are already in the creepy position of working what is called the “graveyard shift” - so you have to expect something to go wrong. If you are a security guard actively looking for something out of the ordinary during the graveyard shift, you know you're going to go home with stories to tell. (Tales of Graveyard Shift Security)==========SOURCES AND REFERENCES FROM TONIGHT'S SHOW:“What Does It Mean To Dream About Aliens” from Paranormality Magazine: https://weirddarkness.com/magazineBOOK: “The Secret War: The Heavens Speak of the Battle” by Heidi Holllis: https://amzn.to/3c0oeD7“Trepanation: I Need That Like Another Hole In The Head” by Robin Wylie for the BBC: https://tinyurl.com/yatx2ruu“Sadistic Sacrificing of Souls” by T.L. Perez for Ranker: https://tinyurl.com/y9noz4wz“Contact With a Shadow Man” by Stephen Wagner for Live About: https://tinyurl.com/y8j6j7qb“Extraterrestrial Evidence on the Moon” by Cynthia McKanzie for Message to Eagle: https://tinyurl.com/y86xeukz“Should Aliens Interfere With Earthly Affairs?” by Ellen Lloyd for Message to Eagle: https://tinyurl.com/y9yle3a6“The Toy Box Killer” by Christina Skelton: https://tinyurl.com/yafys82x“Murder At The Pool Table” by Robert Wilhelm for Murder By Gaslight: https://tinyurl.com/y3bzlff6“Malta's Cryptic Catacombs” by Brent Swancer for Mysterious Universe: https://tinyurl.com/ya9pa9je“Tales of Graveyard Shift Security” gathered by Bailey Brown for Ranker: https://tinyurl.com/ycyyuh3w“The Phantom Truck” by Weirdo family member Robert Foster“The Ghost Told Them To Move” from Strange Company: https://tinyurl.com/ycrke6qn==========Join the Weird Darkness Syndicate: https://weirddarkness.com//syndicateWeird Darkness theme by Alibi Music Library. Background music provided by Alibi Music Library, EpidemicSound and/or StoryBlocks with paid license. Music from Shadows Symphony (https://tinyurl.com/yyrv987t), Midnight Syndicate (http://amzn.to/2BYCoXZ) Kevin MacLeod (https://tinyurl.com/y2v7fgbu), Tony Longworth (https://tinyurl.com/y2nhnbt7), and Nicolas Gasparini (https://tinyurl.com/lnqpfs8) is used with permission of the artists.==========PODCASTS I HOST:Weird Darkness: https://weirddarkness.com/listenParanormality Magazine: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/paranormalitymagMicro Terrors: Scary Stories for Kids: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/microterrorsRetro Radio – Old Time Radio In The Dark: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/retroradioChurch of the Undead: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/churchoftheundead==========(Over time links seen above 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.)=========="I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness." — John 12:46==========WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.

When two grave robbers dragged a teenage canoer into their pit on the island the locals called haunted, the petroglyph he'd sketched on his hand began to glow — and something started moving in the trees.EPISODE BLOG PAGE: https://weirddarkness.com/petroglyphs/CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = The Foreboding00:01:41.576 = Show Open00:02:50.162 = The Petroglyphs00:25:53.494 = Lady in White ***00:37:58.580 = Kingdom Come00:52:42.017 = Cyst ***01:03:15.268 = Show Close*** = Begins immediately after inserted ad breakLISTEN ON PODCAST APPS: Look for this podcast on YouTube Music, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and other apps. Get the full list of options here: https://weirddarkness.com/wdapps*No AI Voices Are Used In The Narration Of This Podcast*SOURCES and RESOURCES:“The Petroglyphs” (from the book “4 Strokes to Midnight): http://amzn.to/2iI0ISf“Lady in White” by Paul Spangler“Kingdom Come” by George Contronis“Cyst” by David Greske(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: January 20, 2018

When a lonely backwoods Louisiana man buys a strange pale thing floating in a jar from a carnival sideshow and brings it home to his shabby living room, the neighbors begin gathering night after night to stare at it — and every one of them sees something different in the glass.EPISODE BLOG PAGE: https://weirddarkness.com/TheJarLISTEN ON PODCAST APPS: Look for this podcast on YouTube Music, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and other apps. Get the full list of options here: https://weirddarkness.com/wdapps*No AI Voices Are Used In The Narration Of This Podcast*WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.Originally aired: July 18, 2024

When an airline president comes to the investigator Saladin after a black magician's extortion threat brings down one of his planes in mid-flight, the two old enemies meet again across a battlefield of stolen corpses, radio waves, and a cockpit where the pilot is already dead.Look for this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and numerous other podcast apps. Get the full list of options here: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/OTRCHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Show Open00:01:30.028 = CBS Radio Mystery Theater, “The Guy De Maupassant Murders” (September 26,1977)00:46:24.618 = The Key, “Bank Robbery” (1956)01:10:49.539 = Lights Out, “Battle of the Magicians” (July 27, 1946)01:40:35.719 = Macabre, “The Avenger” (December 18, 1961) ***WD02:09:24.535 = Philip Marlowe, “Covered Bridge” (January 14, 1950)02:38:54.225 = Ranger Bill, “Abominable Snowman” (1957)03:07:55.179 = The Black Mass, “Judgment” (November 16, 1970) ***WD03:32:03.065 = Michael Shayne, “Haunted House” (April 09, 1945) ***WD04:01:34.428 = Beyond Midnight, “The Man Who Sold His Soul” (June 20, 1969) ***WD04:32:38.046 = MindWebs, “Apple” (September 02, 1979)04:58:16.689 = 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/WDRR0648

When Elaine begins seeing a hulking shape that only appears in darkness and dissolves the instant a light comes on, an aging scholar of the supernatural warns her fiancé that something ancient has marked her — and is methodically removing everyone standing between it and her.Look for this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and numerous other podcast apps. Get the full list of options here: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/OTRCHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Show Open00:01:30.028 = CBS Radio Mystery Theater, “The Burning Whirlwind” (September 23, 1977)00:45:38.236 = Arch Oboler's Plays, “History Of A Mug” (August 09, 1945) ***WD01:14:43.988 = Hall of Fantasy, “The Shadow People” (September 21, 1953) ***WD01:39:00.254 = BBC Haunted Tales of the Supernatural, “Mists of Memory” (May 22, 1982)02:05:59.803 = The Haunting Hour, “Old Old Man” (April 07, 1945) ***WD02:30:49.195 = Hermit's Cave, “It Happened On Sunday” (1940) ***WD02:54:04.404 = Mystery Is My Hobby, “Death is 1 3” (December 31, 1947)03:21:36.414 = Sherlock Holmes, “The Elusive Emerald” (December 14, 1946)03:50:53.749 = The House of Mystery, “The Ghost Who Forgot Halloween” (October 27, 1945) ***WD04:22:15.259 = Incredible But True, “Heads Up” (1950-1951)04:25:51.553 = Inner Sanctum, “Death Across The Board” (June 06, 1943) ***WD04:54:26.682 = 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/WDRR0647

When a reclusive miser turns up dead with an axe to the head, his family's buried secrets and bitter rivalries start spilling out, and no one walks away clean.EPISODE BLOG PAGE (includes sources and full transcript): https://weirddarkness.com/CharlesHenryFEATURED STORIES IN THIS EPISODE: Ebeneezer Scrooge had nothing on a man named Charles Henry. Charles was miserly, and cruel. No doubt he had a long list of people who could've been accused of wanting him dead. *** When it comes to B-movie horror, you can't do much better than the 1958 classic “The Blob”. But don't believe it's just science fiction – reports have been coming for years of people in real life actually coming across some type of amorphous creatures very similar to what was originally seen on the big screen. *** The Conjuring, The Amityville Horror, Annabelle, and many other books and films have been based on Ed and Lorraine Warren and the stories they tell. But it appears they may not be as advertised. If fact, they've been shown to be fraudulent on more than one occasion. *** Whether or not you believe in curses, luck, or fate it may be hard to explain away some of the eerie items people have had in their keeping, only to get rid of them as quickly as possible for fear of suffering more calamities. *** A woman describes her home as a child as evil – even on sunny days, the gloom would overtake her. *** In an old cemetery in North Carolina, a young girl is buried – but not in a coffin as you might expect. She was buried while submerged in a keg of rum.CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = The Foreboding00:01:18.836 = Show Open00:03:38.797 = Miser Henry's Murder00:10:39.439 = Unlucky Possessions00:27:00.103 = My Haunted Childhood Home ***00:29:29.674 = The Blobs00:41:55.110 = The Rum Keg Girl00:47:07.349 = When The Warrens Were Exposed As Frauds ***01:14:48.146 = Show Close*** = Begins immediately after inserted ad breakLISTEN ON PODCAST APPS: Look for this podcast on YouTube Music, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and other apps. Get the full list of options here: https://weirddarkness.com/wdapps*No AI Voices Are Used In The Narration Of This Podcast*SOURCES and RESOURCES:“Miser Henry's Murder” by Robert Wilhelm for Murder By Gaslight: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/bdhek2cw“Unlucky Possessions” by T.C. Bridges for Haunted Ohio Books: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/yck36nt7“My Haunted Childhood Home” by Marie Davis, posted at MyHauntedLifeToo.com: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/yc8cbkwm“The Blobs” by Brent Swancer for Mysterious Universe: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/2wu24zca“The Rum Keg Girl” posted at North Carolina Ghosts: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/27ssnbh8“Were The Warrens Exposed as Frauds?” by Christopher Shultz at Ranker.com: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/2p8tyrhr(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 filling station on a lonesome stretch of the Pennsylvania Turnpike, an old man paying with colonial gold, a red-haired traveler asking directions to a town nobody has heard of, and a hitchhiker who has been waiting a hundred and eighty years for a ride.Look for this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and numerous other podcast apps. Get the full list of options here: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/OTRCHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Show Open00:01:30.028 = CBS Radio Mystery Theater, “The Plan” (September 22, 1977)00:45:54.201 = The Strange Dr. Weird, “White Pearls of Terror” (December 19, 1944) ***WD00:57:33.290 = The Eleventh Hour, “Agent” (1941-1946)01:19:17.165 = Escape, “When The Man Comes, Follow Him” (April 09, 1949)01:48:43.375 = Murder By Experts, “Dig Your Own Grave” (August 15, 1949)02:18:39.103 = Exploring Tomorrow, “Cold Equations (The Stowaway)” (April 30, 1958) ***WD02:36:18.577 = Faces In The Window, “Lightning Rod Man” (January 17, 1953) ***WD (LQ)02:59:58.903 = Dark Fantasy, “Pennsylvania Turnpike” (March 20, 1942)03:26:58.808 = BBC Fear on 4, “Green and Pleasant” (1990)03:55:36.858 = Future Tense, “The Old Die Rich” (May 21, 1974) ***WD04:24:30.858 = BBC Ghosts From The Past, “The Boat Hook” (April 15, 1992)05:07:58.359 = 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/WDRR0646

A silent clown stands at the front door clutching old photographs of Dad — and what Mom doesn't know yet is that there's another one waiting in the kitchen.Look for this podcast on YouTube Music, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and numerous other podcast apps. Get the full list of options here: https://pod.link/1655277373Find more family-friendly frights and creepy games to play on our website at http://MicroTerrors.com!Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/microterrorsOther stories, novels, and more from author Scott Donnelly: https://amzn.to/3LymHaUOther narrations, podcasts, and audiobooks from voice artist Darren Marlar: https://WeirdDarkness.com= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =Weird Darkness©, 2026Micro Terrors: Scary Stories for Kids™, 2026#MicroTerrors #WeirdDarkness

Twenty-five years after their daughter vanished in Washington, Susan and Bob Levy now say Chandra's curiosity about UFOs — and Congressman Gary Condit's classified work on them — may explain what really happened to her in Rock Creek Park.EPISODE BLOG PAGE (includes sources and full transcript): https://weirddarkness.com/levyufoLISTEN ON PODCAST APPS: Look for this podcast on YouTube Music, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and other apps. Get the full list of options here: https://weirddarkness.com/wdapps*No AI Voices Are Used In The Narration Of This Podcast*WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.Originally aired: May 01, 2026

When journalist Carter follows the trail of a notorious supernatural vigilante, he uncovers a city on the brink, a war in the shadows, and a truth more dangerous than he ever imagined.IN THIS EPISODE: Tonight I'm actually bringing you three separate stories, but they are part of a single series titled “The Supernatural Vigilante Association”. It's a dark story, very well written, and has an interesting noir feel to it that I would not have expected for creepypasta about anti-heroes with superpowers. The author goes by the pen name “Wound Licker”, and I've got a link to his Facebook page in the show description, as well as links to the three individual stories used for this episode. CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Voodoo Priestess, Part 1”00:03:00.742 = Show Open00:03:59.720 = “Voodoo Priestess, Part 2”00:40:02.499 = “The Mentalist, Part 1”00:51:25.657 = “The Mentalist, Part 2”01:22:03.145 = “Time Traveller”02:13:43.459 = Show CloseSOURCES AND RESOURCES FROM THE EPISODE…Episode Page at WeirdDarkness.com: https://weirddarkness.com/SVA“Supernatural Vigilante Association: Voodoo Priestess” by WoundLicker: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/2p8samnj“Supernatural Vigilante Association: The Mentalist” by WoundLicker: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/5n9x6wyx“Supernatural Vigilante Association: Time Traveller” by WoundLicker: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/3jv69m9z=====(Over time links seen above 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.)= = = = ="I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness." — John 12:46= = = = =WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.=====Originally aired: February 07, 2024

A 33-year-old employee at Japan's Asahiyama Zoo admitted to investigators that he carried his wife's body into the facility and ran her through the incinerator built for dead animals.PRINT VERSION OF THIS STORY: https://weirddarkness.com/zoo-incineratorLook for this podcast on YouTube Music, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and numerous other podcast apps. Get the full list of options 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 Washington mother was found dead in her home in 1992, her toddler beside her — and for 33 years, the case went nowhere.PRINT VERSION OF THIS STORY: https://weirddarkness.com/janicerandlecase/Look for this podcast on YouTube Music, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and numerous other podcast apps. Get the full list of options 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 gunman walked to a Skid Row corner in downtown Los Angeles on Thursday night, told three people standing there that this was where he did business, and opened fire before fleeing on foot.PRINT VERSION OF THIS STORY: https://weirddarkness.com/skid-row-shooterLook for this podcast on YouTube Music, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and numerous other podcast apps. Get the full list of options 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 self-styled prophet sits headless at his own desk, his wife and four children butchered in the rooms above, and a basement chapel filled with altars and tagged offerings that no church ever blessed. The Ravenmill police call in a private eye with a taste for the strange — and the only honest witness left in the house is a single bloody fingerprint on the brass. EPISODE PAGE (includes list of sources): https://weirddarkness.com/noir-headlessprophet/THE REAL CASE BEHIND THIS STORY: On July 3, 1929, real estate agent Vincent Elias arrived at the home of Benny Evangelista on Saint Aubin Street in Detroit and found a scene that would baffle investigators for decades. Evangelista — a self-proclaimed Divine Prophet who sold spells, hexes, and spiritual cures from a basement chapel filled with papier-mâché planets and a crude altar — sat decapitated at his desk, his head arranged on the floor among framed post-mortem photographs of his deceased son. Upstairs, his wife Santina and their four children, ages 18 months to seven years, had been slaughtered in their beds with an ax. Police pursued three theories: extortion letters from the fading Black Hand criminal network; a tenant named Umberto Tecchio who had visited the night before and whose barn yielded a suspiciously clean ax and banana knife; and Evangelista's old occult partner Aurelius Angelino, who had murdered his own children with an ax in 1919 and escaped from a Pennsylvania asylum for the criminally insane in 1923, never to be seen again. A bloody fingerprint on the front doorknob was the only physical evidence preserved at the scene, and it never matched any suspect. The case was eventually shelved as cold and remains officially unsolved nearly a century later. The Evangelista house was demolished years ago, but locals still speak of disembodied screams and a headless figure walking the empty lot.WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.Originally aired: May 1, 2026

A father's sins often haunt the son, but in the case of Ion Rimaru—dubbed the Vampire of Bucharest—his brutal killing spree eerily mirrored his father's unsolved crimes, leading to one of Romania's most horrifying true crime sagas.FEATURED STORIES IN THIS EPISODE: Ion Rimaru is a murderer like no other – vampirism, cannibalism, necrophilia – and why shouldn't he? After all, he's taking after his serial killer father. (The Disturbing Crimes of a Father and Son) *** A neural network named "Norman" is disturbingly different from other types of artificial intelligence. How? Well, for one… it's a psychopath. (Meet Norman, The Artificially Intelligent Psychopath) *** Twenty high school students all lost consciousness and collapsed under mysterious circumstances during class on Tuesday, July 3. Was it mass hysteria? Juju in Ghana? Or did the students actually see ghosts as they claim? (Ghana Students Faint After Seeing Ghosts) *** At a young age, Edmund Kemper decapitated his sisters' dolls and even stalked his second-grade teacher with a bayonet. But he was young and just getting started. (Serial Killer Edmund Kemper) *** During the Second World War, in the gruesome world of Unit 731, the unthinkable was done on a daily basis. Prisoners, were subjected to unimaginable horrors. Today, ghostly voices are heard and anomalies frequently appear in photographs. (Unit 731) *** Top Secret CIA files have emerged from the 1950s exposing the explosive truth about alien UFOs visiting earth. (Bigger Than Roswell) *** After the wealthy and prominent Blanche Monnier fell in love with a commoner, her mother did the unthinkable in an attempt to stop it – locking her in her room for years on end. (Locked Away For Falling In Love) *** A similar story to that of Blanche Monnier, is the imprisonment of Elisabeth Fritzl. She spent 24 years in captivity, confined to a makeshift cellar and repeatedly tortured - by her own father. (The Horrifying Case of Elisabeth Fritzl) *** Despite having one husband and two boyfriends over the years, Dolly Oesterreich continued to keep her secret lover hidden in her attic. (Lover In The Attic) *** The Star Gate project. What was it, really? And did the government shut it down? (The Star Gate Project)CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = The Foreboding00:01:10.410 = Show Open00:04:08.300 = The Disturbing Crimes of Father and Son00:16:05.365 = Ghana Students Faint After Seeing Ghosts ***00:19:39.257 = Serial Killer Edmund Kemper00:26:53.894 = Unit 73100:31:10.331 = Meet Norman, The Artificially Intelligent Psychopath ***00:36:09.488 = The Star Gate Project00:48:00.820 = Locked Away For Falling In Love00:53:01.433 = The Horrifying Case of Elisabeth Fritzl01:00:50.103 = Lover In The Attic01:08:23.753 = Bigger Than Roswell ***01:11:51.675 = Show Close*** = Begins immediately after inserted ad breakLISTEN ON PODCAST APPS: Look for this podcast on YouTube Music, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and other apps. Get the full list of options here: https://weirddarkness.com/wdapps*No AI Voices Are Used In The Narration Of This Podcast*SOURCES and RESOURCES:“Ghana Students Faint After Seeing Ghosts” by Sequoya Kennedy for Mysterious Universe: http://bit.ly/2oqghUU“Serial Killer Edmund Kemper” by Gabe Paoletti for All That's Interesting: http://bit.ly/2nDRLiF“Unit 731” posted at Ghost-Story.co.uk: http://bit.ly/2nGqXyg“The Disturbing Crimes of a Father and Son” by Les Hewitt for Historic Mysteries: http://bit.ly/2nG8phK“Meet Norman, The Artificially Intelligent Psychopath” by Mindy Weisberger for Live Science: http://bit.ly/2m8n2d7“The Star Gate Project” by Arjun Walia (link no longer available)“Locked Away For Falling In Love” by Gina Dimuro for All That's Interesting: http://bit.ly/2nDCz57“The Horrifying Case of Elisabeth Fritzl” by Katie Serena for All That's Interesting: http://bit.ly/2mc4h8M“Lover In The Attic” by Erin Kelly for All That's Interesting: http://bit.ly/2ooCN0h“Bigger Than Roswell” by Michael Havis for DailyStar.co.uk: http://bit.ly/2mGGePD(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, 2018EPISODE BLOG PAGE (includes sources and full transcript): https://weirddarkness.com/BeastOfBucharest

A radiation-scarred inventor has built a submarine that burrows through solid bedrock, parked it beneath the city, and aimed its torpedoes at the fault line — and the planets are sliding into position to help him pull the trigger.Look for this podcast on YouTube Music, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and numerous other podcast apps. Get the full list of options here: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/OTRCHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Show Open00:01:30.028 = CBS Radio Mystery Theater, “The Tunnel Man” (September 20, 1977)00:45:40.665 = CBC Mystery Theater, “Dr. Heidegger's Experiment” (January 1968) ***WD01:14:57.979 = Chet Chetter's Tales From The Morgue, “Elmer Meets Death” (1990-1992) ***WD01:43:03.330 = The Clock, “The Hunter and the Hunted” (November 22, 1955) ***WD02:09:06.215 = Creeps By Night, “The Final Reckoning” (July 12, 1944) ***WD02:37:03.067 = The Crime Club, “Sentence of Death” (October 09, 1947) ***WD03:05:59.992 = Danger Dr. Danfield, “Case of the Counterfeit $10 Bills” (December 22, 1946) ***WD03:31:06.412 = The Devil and Mr. O, “No Escape” (November 19, 1971) ***WD03:56:48.974 = Diary of Fate, “Trina Crowley” (March 09, 1948) ***WD04:25:17.920 = Dimension X, “Beyond Infinity” (July 21, 1950) ***WD04:54:28.084 = 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/WDRR0645

A Lee County deputy on U.S. 41 clocked a red Toyota Supra at 123 mph around 1 a.m., recognized the car from a previous stop, and pulled over a 25-year-old driver who had blown a 0.23 on the breathalyzer.PRINT VERSION OF THIS STORY: https://weirddarkness.com/supra-123-mphLook for this podcast on YouTube Music, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and numerous other podcast apps. Get the full list of options 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 Florida man allegedly shot his girlfriend in the neck, dragged her bleeding back up the street to the house, told her mother her daughter was fine, and then tried to hide from police in the backyard pool.PRINT VERSION OF THIS STORY: https://weirddarkness.com/wildwood-poolLook for this podcast on YouTube Music, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and numerous other podcast apps. Get the full list of options 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

Many celebrate April 30 as “Halfway to Halloween,” but Walpurgis Night is more than just spooky fun — it's a night when witches rise, saints blur into goddesses, and ancient fires still burn.IN THIS EPISODE: “Walpurgis Night was when, according to the belief of millions of people, the devil was abroad—when the graves were opened and the dead came forth and walked. When all evil things of earth and air and water held revel.” – Bram Stoker, from “Dracula's Guest”. Walpurgis Night is something most English-speaking listeners won't know about – but it's being celebrated at this precise moment. While others are currently celebrating “Halfway to Halloween” or “Half-o-ween” for short… in Germany, they're celebrating a second Halloween which they call Walpurgisnacht – or “Walpurgis Night.” Plus, later in the show I'll share a story that was intended specifically to be read on Walpurgis Night – it's called “The Black Bargain” from PJ Hodge!CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate and Only Accurate For the Commercial Version)…00:00:00.000 = Show Open00:01:37.995 = Happy Walpurgisnacht, Everyone00:32:55.468 = The Black Bargain (a Fictional Story To Be Told on Walpurgis Night) ***00:48:10.168 = Show CloseSOURCES AND RESOURCES FROM THE EPISODE…“Happy Walpurgisnacht, Everyone!” by Todd at GothicHorrorStories.com: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/a8svp23c“The Black Bargain” by PJ Hodge, posted at FreakyFolkTales.com: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/j49bd4=====(Over time links seen above 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.)= = = = ="I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness." — John 12:46= = = = =WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.=====Originally aired: April 30, 2021EPISODE PAGE at WeirdDarkness.com (includes list of sources): https://weirddarkness.com/WalpurgisNight

A clown with balloons and carnations knocks on a Florida doorstep one May morning — and what's hiding behind the painted smile may be older and hungrier than any killer the regular dicks would ever dare investigate.THE TRUE CRIME CASE THIS STORY IS BASED ON: On the morning of May 26, 1990, Marlene Warren was eating breakfast with her 21-year-old son Joe at their home in the Aero Club community of Wellington, Florida, when a clown carrying balloons and white carnations rang the doorbell. Marlene answered, remarked on how pretty the gifts were, and was shot in the head at point-blank range. The killer calmly walked back to a waiting white sedan and drove away. Marlene died two days later. She had warned both her son and her mother that if anything ever happened to her, her husband Mike Warren — who co-owned a used car business called Bargain Motors — would be responsible. Mike had an alibi the morning of the shooting, but investigators quickly learned he was having an affair with an employee named Sheila Keen. A novelty shop owner remembered selling a clown costume to a woman matching Keen's description days before the murder, supermarket workers recalled a brunette buying matching balloons and flowers that morning, and the abandoned getaway car contained brown hairs and orange wig fibers — but the forensic science of the era couldn't tie it all together. Mike Warren was arrested four months later on unrelated racketeering and odometer fraud charges and served eight years. After his release, he married Sheila Keen — now bottle-blonde and going by "Debbie" — and the two opened a burger restaurant called the Purple Cow in Tennessee, where Sheila once dressed as a clown for Halloween. The case remained cold for twenty-seven years until a 2014 cold-case grant allowed investigators to retest the evidence using modern DNA technology; a hair recovered from a balloon string matched Sheila Keen. She was arrested on September 26, 2017, and on April 25, 2023, she pleaded guilty in exchange for a 12-year sentence. She was released after serving just 18 months, in November 2024, with Mike still standing by her and insisting on her innocence.ORIGINAL CASE SOURCES…https://allthatsinteresting.com/marlene-warrenWeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2025, Weird Darkness.Originally aired: April 30, 2026

From eerie vanishings and cryptic letters to chilling disappearances that defy explanation, we explore the most baffling unsolved mysteries where people seem to fade into thin air, leaving behind nothing but questions.FEATURED STORIES IN THIS EPISODE: Sometimes people disappear without a trace, while others leave behind evidence that is even stranger than the vanishing itself. (Strange Vanishings and Spooky Letters) *** In the summer of 1989 in the suburbs of Kansas City, three young women went missing – and they are still missing even now, decades later. Their killer refuses to say where they are buried. (The Missing Victims of Richard Grissom) *** Sometimes people disappear without a trace, while others leave behind On a fall evening in 2009, the Jamison family disappeared into the woods of Oklahoma, leaving behind a set of bewildering clues and a case that remains unsolved today. (His Said His House Was Haunted, Then His Family Disappeared) *** On March 19, 2004, 17-year-old Brianna Maitland left her shift at the Black Lantern Inn around 11:20 P.M. What happened next remains a mystery to this day. (The Chilling Disappearance of Brianna Maitland)CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = The Foreboding00:00:55.893 = Show Open00:02:48.146 = The Chilling Disappearance of Brianna Maitland00:10:31.222 = The Disappearance of Sister Aimee ***00:19:01.355 = The Missing Victims of Richard Grissom00:26:11.221 = He Said His House Was Haunted, Then His Family Disappeared (Jamison Family)00:31:56.617 = Strange Vanishings and Spooky Letters ***00:49:49.276 = Show Close*** = Begins immediately after inserted ad breakLISTEN ON PODCAST APPS: Look for this podcast on YouTube Music, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and other apps. Get the full list of options here: https://weirddarkness.com/wdapps*No AI Voices Are Used In The Narration Of This Podcast*SOURCES and RESOURCES:“Strange Vanishings and Spooky Letters” by Brent Swancer for Mysterious Universe: http://bit.ly/2kUp1Bd“The Missing Victims of Richard Grissom” posted at The Line Up: http://bit.ly/ 2m1Qq4x“The Disappearance of Sister Aimee” by Troy Taylor: http://bit.ly/2m0bFDG“The Chilling Disappearance of Brianna Maitland” by Orrin Grey for The Line Up: http://bit .ly/2m2cNqn“He Said His House Was Haunted, Then His Family Disappeared” by Aimee Lamoureux for All That's Interesting: http://bit.ly/2m5lgJg(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, 2018EPISODE BLOG PAGE (includes sources and full transcript): https://weirddarkness.com/MissingPersons

A dollar at a dusty curio shop buys a mummified foot — and the thirty-century-old princess who comes with it.Look for this podcast on YouTube Music, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and numerous other podcast apps. Get the full list of options here: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/OTRCHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Show Open00:01:30.028 = CBS Radio Mystery Theater, “The Wind And The Flame00:46:57.579 = The Weird Circle, “Possessive Dead” (March 25, 1945)01:14:18.931 = The Whistler, “Seascape” (January 22, 1945)01:42:56.945 = Witch's Tale, “Altar of Hate” (November 08, 1933) ***WD02:08:42.316 = X Minus One, “Pictures Don't Lie” (October 24, 1956)02:36:06.053 = The Zero Hour, “The Violation” (May 10, 1974) ***WD02:53:37.216 = ABC Mystery Time, “Suicide Club” (June 07, 1956) ***WD (LQ)03:15:19.752 = Strange Adventure, “A Matter of Salvage” (1945)03:18:35.175 = Appointment With Fear, “Speaking Clock” (April 13, 1944)03:45:58.687 = BBC Radio 4/7 Ghost Story, “Lost Hearts” (December 28, 2007)04:00:13.483 = Beyond The Green Door, “Dillingsworth Diamond Corp” (1966) ***WD04:04:21.110 = The Black Book, “Vagabond Murder” (March 02, 1952) ***WD04:18:50.973 = The Avenger, “The Subway Ghost” (March 07, 1946)04:48:49.580 = Box 13, “Diamond In The Sky” (November 21, 1948) ***WD05:15:38.566 = 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/WDRR0644

New survey data shows roughly 49 million American adults believe they have psychic abilities, with Gen Z reporting twice as many flashes as boomers.PRINT VERSION OF THIS STORY: https://weirddarkness.com/American-psychicLook for this podcast on YouTube Music, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and numerous other podcast apps. Get the full list of options 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

California's "Operation Bear Claw" nailed three men for staging fake bear attacks on luxury cars using a guy in a costume — and the biologists who watched the footage figured it out almost immediately.PRINT VERSION OF THIS STORY: https://weirddarkness.com/bear-suit-scamLook for this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and numerous other podcast apps. Get the full list of options 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

An accountant on his first field assignment is the only man who can stop a catastrophe, and the project director has a debriefing schedule designed to bury him until it's too late.Look for this podcast on YouTube Music, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and numerous other podcast apps. Get the full list of options here: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/OTRCHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Show Open00:01:30.028 = CBS Radio Mystery Theater, “Death On Project X” (September 16, 1977) ***WD00:46:12.808 = BBC Radio 4 Spinechillers, “Metballs Are Murder” (November 08, 2006)00:59:57.050 = Strange Wills, “Prince of Broadway” (July 06, 1946)01:29:44.479 = Suspense, “Suspicion” (February 10, 1944)01:59:15.319 = Tales of the Frightened, “Don't Lose Your Head” (December 17, 1957)02:03:46.026 = The Creaking Door, “Cat Woman” (December 14, 1964) ***WD02:32:10.595 = The Saint, “Cowboy” (July 01, 1951)03:00:57.876 = Theater Five, “World Enough And Time” (November 10, 1964)03:23:02.258 = Theater 1030, “Two Little Punctures” (July 12, 1953) ***WD03:50:03.008 = Two Thousand Plus, “Veteran Comes Home” (July 05, 1950) ***WD04:18:09.269 = The Unexpected, “Two Of A Kind” (1947-1948) ***WD04:29:57.657 = Unsolved Mysteries, “Rue Morgue Mystery” (June 17, 1942) ***WD04:44:51.349 = Dark Venture, “Ten Dollar Bill” (August 14, 1945)05:13:49.213 = 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/WDRR0643

Long before ‘Twin Peaks' captivated audiences with its eerie small-town secrets, a real-life unsolved murder in Sand Lake, New York — filled with mystery, hidden lives, and a cast of suspicious characters — became the chilling inspiration behind the story of Laura Palmer.FEATURED STORIES IN THIS EPISODE: Did you know that Laura Palmer's death on TV's “Twin Peaks” was inspired by a real-life murder case? (The Real-Life Murder Case That Inspired “Twin Peaks”) *** Most people laugh at, or outright dismiss, the possibility that numerous hair-covered humanoids could exist in the U.K., and without ever getting caught or killed. But, some cases and tales do seem to stand the test of time. Although, many of the creatures that appear in such tales – which date back centuries – may not be what people assume them to be. (Wild Beast Or Wild Man?) *** A mother receives a call from her son – who had been killed by a drunk driver. (Call From The Other Side) *** On a brisk morning, with wind wafting off the Mississippi river across from St. Louis, Missouri, the men faced each other with pistols, at barely more than arm's length. They'd come to shoot at one another because of an ‘offense against honor'. The place, or ‘field of honor', was Bloody Island. (What Happened to Bloody Island?) *** A police officer and his daughter see a large creature jump completely over the two lane road they are driving down – a creature that ran on only two legs. (Leaping Bigfoot) *** Sleep paralysis is one of the most terrifying experiences one can have – and one person's story takes the creeps to a new level. (Confronted by Insectoids) *** One monster that seems to be pervasive in the human psyche across numerous cultures is what we would call the werewolf (although each part of the world has their own name for it). And while most consider it simply a legendary cryptid, there have always been those who believe that these are not merely the product of our imagination, but very real monsters that lurk out beyond our understanding. And they take it very seriously in Haiti. (The Mysterious Werewolves of Haiti)CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = The Foreboding00:01:03.946 = Show Open00:03:44.137 = The Real-Life Murder Case That Inspired ‘Twin Peaks'00:11:35.141 = Wild Beast or Wild Man? ***00:16:01.474 = Call From The Other Side00:16:57.924 = What Happened to Bloody Island?00:22:17.810 = Confronted by Insectoids00:24:13.988 = The Mysterious Werewolves of Haiti ***00:34:04.543 = Leaping Bigfoot00:35:47.297 = Show Close*** = Begins immediately after inserted ad breakLISTEN ON PODCAST APPS: Look for this podcast on YouTube Music, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and other apps. Get the full list of options here: https://weirddarkness.com/wdapps*No AI Voices Are Used In The Narration Of This Podcast*SOURCES and RESOURCES:“The Real-Life Murder Case That Inspired ‘Twin Peaks'” by CWS for The Line Up: http://bit.ly/2mhBMpJ“Wild Beast or Wild Man?” by Nick Redfern for Mysterious Universe: http://bit.ly/2kSeW7UBOOK: “Dark Dorset: Tales of Mystery, Wonder and Terror” https://amzn.to/2IMrqE6“Call From The Other Side” submitted anonymously at WeirdDarkness.com“What Happened to Bloody Island” by John Davis for Mysterious Writings: http://bit.ly/2m2BUct“Confronted by Insectoids” posted at PhantomsAndMonsters.com: (link no longer available)“Leaping Bigfoot” posted at PhantomsAndMonsters.com: (link no longer available)“The Mysterious Werewolves of Haiti” by Brent Swancer for Mysterious Universe: http://bit.ly/2lYCKqP(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 25, 2022EPISODE BLOG PAGE (includes sources and full transcript): https://weirddarkness.com/twinpeaks

Can reading about the paranormal actually open a door to something otherworldly? Some real-life accounts suggest the act of delving into the supernatural may invite more than just stories – it may invite something far darker.FEATURED STORIES IN THIS EPISODE: As long as there has been talk of evil spirits, ghosts, and demons, there have been tales of ways to bind, subdue, and imprison them. (Bizarre Real Demon Traps) *** Is it possible that reading about the world of the paranormal can somehow expose a person to it? (Can Reading A Book Open a Paranormal Door?) *** A truck driver passes a specter on a night road. (Night Driving In Alabama Left Me Speechless) *** The 1964 murder of Kitty Genovese – killed in front of 38 people, yet no one came to her aid - became an American legend. But how much of the story is true? (The Woman Killed In Front Of 38 Witnesses) *** The skeleton of a young boy was found on the side of a road and eventually a man named Marcellus Bunch was arrested for the crime – yet he seemed completely unconcerned about himself, the trial, or his fate. (A Hidden Skeleton) *** You don't have to be sleeping with someone to be the victim of a blanket hog. You only need an invisible entity to give you those chills. (The Phantom Blanket Puller) *** Beloved horror author Edgar Allan Poe was a master of terror and mystery – but his greatest mystery may not have been in the pages of his writings, but in the days immediately before his death. (The Last Mystery of Edgar Allan Poe)CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = The Foreboding00:00:40.612 = Show Open00:02:50.945 = The Last Mystery of Edgar Allan Poe00:06:17.849 = Can Reading a Book Open a Paranormal Door?00:12:47.692 = The Phantom Blanket Puller ***00:14:02.393 = A Hidden Skeleton00:16:43.963 = Night Driving in Alabama Left Me Speechless00:17:48.486 = The Woman Killed In Front of 38 Witnesses00:26:42.524 = Bizarre Demon Traps ***00:34:24.358 = Show Close*** = Begins immediately after inserted ad breakLISTEN ON PODCAST APPS: Look for this podcast on YouTube Music, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and other apps. Get the full list of options here: https://weirddarkness.com/wdapps*No AI Voices Are Used In The Narration Of This Podcast*SOURCES and RESOURCES:“The Last Mystery of Edgar Allan Poe” by Doug MacGowan for Historic Mysteries: http://bit.ly/2lGCHQk“Can Reading A Book Open a Paranormal Door” by Nick Redfern for Mysterious Universe: http://bit.ly/2m414Yk“The Woman Killed In Front of 38 Witnesses” by Stephanie Merry for the UK's Independent: http://bit.ly/2lFt7xe“A Hidden Skeleton” by Robert Wilhelm for Murder By Gaslight: http://bit.ly/2lHB1pI“The Phantom Blanket Puller” by Megan Amos for MyHauntedLifeToo.com: http://bit.ly/2k7NfYf“Night Driving In Alabama Left Me Speechless” by Alan Orr for MyHauntedLifeToo.com: http://bit.ly/2m0IkZI“Bizarre Real Demon Traps” by Brent Swancer for Mysterious Universe: http://bit.ly/2m9HDNZ(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 06, 2022EPISODE BLOG PAGE (includes sources and full transcript): https://weirddarkness.com/ReadingParanormal