The Mothman Part 3

A special announcement regarding Hurricane Helene. https://reddit.com/r/asheville https://www.bpr.org/bpr-news/2024-09-28/list-ways-to-donate-and-help-flood-victims-in-western-north-carolina-after-hurricane-helene https://umcmission.org/ United Way link updated from link in the announcement: https://www.unitedway.org/hurricane-helene#

1 Okt 20243min

In our conclusion to our two-part series on American Bloodfalls, we dive deeper into the mysterious phenomenon that baffled witnesses across 19th-century America. Our special guest, Tom Maxwell, guides us through more perplexing incidents of blood and meat raining from the sky, from the famous Kentucky Meat Shower of 1876 to the final recorded event in 1902. We examine the scientific analyses of the time, which often identified the fallen material as animal tissue yet failed to propose any reasonable theories about its origins. Tom helps us navigate the theories proposed over the years and why they fall short when confronted with eyewitness accounts and the scale of events. We’ll discuss connections to biblical accounts and consider how these events might reflect their time's cultural and spiritual climate. Then, of course, we’ll get to the theories, even though the mundane ones have been tough to identify with this legend. But yes, portals and UFOs will probably make the scene. Tom helps us grapple with how these occurrences challenge humanity’s modern, materialist worldview and why meat showers and bloodfalls seem to have ceased by the early 20th century. Even after all of this time, they continue to defy explanation. However, that won’t stop us from trying to figure it out. Visit our website for a lot more information on this episode.

29 Sep 20242h 19min

Bloodfalls and meat showers - phenomena that sound more like biblical plagues than historical events. Yet, reports of these bizarre occurrences peppered the American landscape for over a century. From Alabama to Massachusetts, Tennessee to California, eyewitnesses sometimes described small red clouds followed by downpours of blood, flesh, and viscera. Some were subjected to the red rain on entirely cloudless days. While many saw divine judgment, skeptics suspected elaborate hoaxes. Scientists proposed numerous theories ranging from vomiting vultures to atmospheric anomalies, while newspapers spread the stories far and wide. But what really happened during these grisly events? Were they connected or separate phenomena with similar descriptions? And why did they seem to stop abruptly at the turn of the 20th century? Join us as we delve into this bloody chapter of American history with our special guest, Tom Maxwell, former frontman of the Squirrel Nut Zippers and bloodfall expert, for Part 1 of this 2-part series. Together, we'll examine not just what fell from the sky, but what these incidents reveal about 19th-century America - its people, its science, and its struggle to make sense of a rapidly changing world. From the fringes of meteorology to the depths of human nature, this is the strange, gruesome, and utterly captivating story of America's reign of blood and meat. Visit our website for a lot more information on this episode.

15 Sep 20241h 55min

Richard & Susan drop in with some important upcoming dates and announcements about all things RHPB, including a couple of SPECIAL UPCOMING EPISODES you’ll want to know about right away… Enjoy!

2 Sep 202424min

The authorities may have finally learned of the man on the moor's identity, yet, as they say, this only raised many more questions than his real name answered.  As police questioned his family, his neighbors, service providers, and even an ex-girlfriend, a picture of a pretty peculiar man emerged.  "Neil Dovestone" went by the name David Lytton.  However, even his legal name was perhaps a privacy screen to hide his emotions and past behind, as his given name was David Keith Lautenberg.  Described as a kind and conscientious man, Lytton also led a very ascetic and minimalist lifestyle, adding to the mystery of his mindset.  Those who knew him in England, even his partner at the time, Maureen Toogood, had no idea he had quietly moved to Pakistan after abruptly cutting off contact to live there for several years.  Even with more pieces to the puzzle now in place, there's still no clue as to what led him to where he chose to end everything and why.  Was it solely his doing, or was someone else involved?  What seems likely is that his body was staged postmortem so it would be found in a more peaceful pose.  Although you may think this story is "Case Closed," the official status from the UK courts is that it's still an "Open Conclusion."  Join us once again for Part 2 as we learn more about a man whose life was as much of an enigma as his death. Visit our website for a lot more information on this episode.

25 Aug 20241h 28min

On Friday, December 11, 2015, at 9:04 a.m., a man started a train journey at Ealing Broadway Station in west London, England.  At 9:50 a.m., he arrived at Euston station to book an over two-hour trip to Manchester.  The next day, at 10:47 a.m., his body was discovered by a cyclist close to the Chew Track near Saddleworth Moor in the Peak District National Park.  The man was 6 feet 1 inch tall, white, of slim build, and had receding grey hair and blue eyes and determined to be between 60 and 70 years of age.  However, this description was the only identifying factor initially discovered about him.  He had no ID, wallet, phone, or keys, nothing to tell who this man was.  He was dressed nicely but inappropriately for a hike in such inclement weather.  The only item found on his person was a container of Pakistani origin labeled for thyroid medication but which now contained strychnine.  This was the poison that led to his death.  The cyclist also found the man in an odd position; his arms crossed over his chest and next to the trail as if peacefully napping.  This was another puzzling clue, as victims of strychnine poisoning are usually writhing in agony before their horrible demise.  The pathology technicians who examined the body gave the unfortunate stranger the name of "Neil Dovestone" after the Dovestone reservoir near his resting place.  So, who was "Neil Dovestone," and why did he travel such a long distance to this particular spot for a careless hike, or was it for a darker purpose?  Who removed his identifying items, and did he take his own life or fall victim to murder?  Join us for part one of our investigation into The Body on the Moor. Visit our website for a lot more information on this episode.

18 Aug 20241h 16min

In Part Two of The Abduction of Betty and Barney Hill, we compare and contrast story elements of the too-close encounter taken from what the couple remembered about the night of the abduction, Betty’s lucid dreams, and regression hypnotherapy.  We also have the pleasure of interviewing researcher and author Kathleen Marden, Betty Hill’s niece, who was present for the contemporary testimony and witness to the physical evidence at the time.  Kathleen has dedicated decades to meticulously investigating her aunt and uncle’s case and the UFO phenomenon in general.  She has held various positions within the Mutual UFO Network from 1991 to 2023, such as Director of Field Investigator Training and Founder/Director of MUFON’s Experiencer Resource Team.  Kathleen was awarded MUFON’s “Researcher of the Year” trophy in 2012.  Join us for a fascinating conversation where we separate fact from fiction and the conscious from the subconscious regarding one of history’s most famous “Close Encounters of the Fourth Kind.” Visit our website for a lot more information on this episode.

21 Juli 20243h 11min

On the night of September 19, 1961, around 10:30 p.m., Betty and Barney Hill drove back to their home in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, after a vacation in Niagara Falls and Montreal.  As they passed the town of Lancaster along U.S. Route 3, Betty saw a bright light in the sky just below the Moon that she initially thought was a falling star, except this light was moving upward and erratically, growing larger and more brilliant.  The Hills pulled over for a closer look through binoculars.  Betty said she saw an oddly shaped craft with multicolored lights that flashed as it traveled across the face of the Moon.  Barney saw what he first reasoned was a commercial jetliner, but when the craft silently descended rapidly in their direction without turning, he realized it was not a plane.  They resumed driving as the object continued its quick descent toward their car until it hovered above the highway about 80 to 100 feet off the ground, causing Barney to stop in the middle of the road.  Using the binoculars again, Barney could now see what he described as eight to eleven humanoid beings staring at him through one of the craft's windows.  Then they all turned away from the window except for one that continued to glare and seemingly sent a telepathic message to Barney, commanding him to "stay where you are and keep looking."  After making further observations about the craft and its occupants, whom Barney described as "somehow not human," the only thing the Hills could recall next from that moment was hearing a buzzing sound, then continuing on their drive.  The Hills arrived home in the early morning the following day, and somehow, the trip took about two hours longer than it should have.  Initially feeling at ease upon arrival, Betty and Barney would soon be troubled by puzzling evidence and unexplainable feelings and urges.  Their watches were permanently stopped.  Betty's dress was ripped around the zipper and lining and dusted with traces of a pinkish powder.  The leather strap for the binoculars was torn, and the tops of the toes of Barney's shoes were scuffed as if he was dragged.  He also developed inexplicable growths.  They felt compelled to take long showers to remove any contamination without fully knowing what had happened to them.  They noticed concentric circular marks on the trunk of their car that had strange magnetic properties.  All of these baffling clues were traces of the extraordinarily terrifying and traumatic experience they endured that night, which scarred them for years, pieced together from their conscious memories, hypnotic regression sessions, and Betty's vividly recurring dreams.  Taken all together, the story of Betty and Barney Hill became one of the most classic and seminal in ufology and is considered the first widely publicized case of alien abduction in the United States. Visit our website for a lot more information on this episode.

14 Juli 20241h 44min