16 Jan / 2018

Apricots & Cyanide

Welcome back Squeamers!

We’re sure you remember our episode about how too much of a good thing can be dangerous.  Perhaps you might recall that everyday foods or plants can be toxic in high concentrations from another of our episodes. Of course, we also talked about some of the dangers of “miracle cures” in another episode… Well, we found an article about an unfortunate Australian man who did not listen to our episodes on those subjects and self-medicated with supplements to prevent his cancer from returning… only to create new problems for himself. You can find that article here. Just remember, no squeam allowed!

 

Slideshow photo credit: what’s_the_frequency take your vitamins via photopin (license)
Blog post photo credit: keepps DSCN5130 via photopin (license)

4 Jan / 2018

It’s Aliiiiive!

Hello Squeamers!

 

Around the conclusion of “Season 1” of our Horrific History Podcast your hardworking co-hosts were forced to take some time off from recording. Thankfully, in the world of squeam and horror, things that first appear dead sometimes come back better than ever (or maybe equally good but different?), like Eric’s beloved Star Wars franchise. He’s taken the time to record a brief teaser to announce our upcoming “Season 2” of your favorite Horrific History Podcast with a familiar blast to the past and some new changes for the future… just remember, no squeam allowed!

 

(And if you disagree with Eric’s take on Star Wars, take it up with him on Twitter @nosqueamallowed!)

 

Blog post photo credit: Thomas Hawk His Pal Frank via photopin (license)

A Belated Squeam-Filled New Year for the Squeamers!

 

Traditionally, the time entering a new calendar year is spent reflecting on the year past and goals for the new year beginning. In February 2017 we were proud to bring the Horrific History Podcast, a passion project of two of our non-profit’s most valued and esteemed volunteers, Eric Slyter and Curtis Bender, to the public. It was a year for gory, disgusting fun while learning about historical subjects. We laughed, we squeamed… and so much of our enjoyment came from sharing our love of history with you. Thanks to you, our loyal listeners, we broke into 50 countries and 47 of the United States without a penny spent on promotion! We also got our first two Patreon supporters!

 

In 2018 we’re bringing to you “Season 2” of our Horrific History Podcast. As with any new program we’re growing, we’re morphing and adapting to our circumstances. Our growing pains may be inconvenient, but we’ll continue to publish the gooey, putrid squeam-filled content you love and stay true to our morbid roots until (hopefully) our stinking corpses rot into the earth. Stay tuned for our upcoming Season 2 trailer… but in the meantime, thank you for helping us grow! Here’s what you’ve helped give us to celebrate….

 

2017 Reach Milestones (as categorized by our hosting provider and in order of listenership in each category):

Countries: United States, Japan, United Kingdom, Canada, […]

What do you see when you look into the face of a child? Do you see innocence or the devil incarnate? Love, or murderous intent? Join Horrific History Podcast as our co-hosts, Eric Slyter and Curtis Bender, examine three cases from history when children have murdered for supernatural reasons.

 

Learn about the 12 year-old goth girl (and her werewolf boyfriend) convicted of the murders of her family members in Canada. It’s a tragic love story or a horror story depending upon one’s perspective, but in one child’s mind sometimes the killing of a little brother can be justified as a compassionate end.

 

A young man who developed an affinity for Dungeons and Dragons, satanism and the occult takes our kindred spirits from the last episode and ups the stakes when he finds his own spiritual doppelgänger. Demon possession or mental illness, this case will have you questioning what distances you’d travel to avoid getting caught up in these circumstances.

 

And finally, learn about the two 12-year old girls who planned a murder for 5 months, and the lucky girl who survived that attack by a literal hair’s breadth after being stabbed 19 times. All of this to appease the mythical “Slender Man,” so they could run away and live in his mansion in the forest.

 

Werewolves, demon possession and the Slender Man, this episode has it all! Whether you like children or consider them evil minions to be avoided, you’ll find something to make your cringe in edition of Horrific History Podcast! So sit back in your forest mansion while listening to this new Horrific History episode and join us again in two weeks when we cover hairy history.

 

If you’d like to hear the commercial-free version of this episode and receive other great perks, become a patron of our podcast on Patreon!
Become a Patron!

 

Some of our favorite resources from this week’s episode:

 

Horrific History Podcast

 

Commercial break music by Dead but Dreaming.

Slideshow photo credit: Silverflame Pictures SAM_2071 b3 via photopin (license)

Blog photo credit: FoxDirectorFR Sortie Cosplay Halloween_0026 V2 via photopin (license)

Ad for Spring Heeled Jack, a penny dreadful (1886)

After a month of horror-themed fun for another of our non-profit’s programs, Haunting Ellensburg, Horrific History Podcast’s co-hosts Eric Slyter and Curtis Bender were in the mood for a change in pace and  a spooky story to share with our favorite listeners (all of you)! Thank you for your patience during our frazzled month of October; we hope you will enjoy this Halloween special episode on Spring-Heeled Jack while you get in the mood for all your holiday festivities.

 

This historical character from Victorian England was known for assaults, attacks and pranks. Was he an imp, devil, demon or gremlin? Some thought so, but perhaps they were just primed to believe it. Jumping by leaps and bounds, he might remind you of John Carter of Mars, though some thought he was an alien. This story is full of conspiracy theories, from the “mad Marquis” to extraterrestrials and the occult. But don’t give in to mass hysteria or panic, we’ll give you enough details about this boogeyman to pique your interest, just like the “penny dreadfuls” he inspired.

 

So lock the door, sit down in a dark corner, and grab that bowl of Halloween treats while you join us for this episode; it just might put a spring in your step… just remember, no squeam allowed.

 

Join us again on Tuesday when we get back to our usual schedule and release Part Two of Child’s Play!

 

 

If you’d like to hear the commercial-free version of this episode and receive other great perks, become a patron of our podcast on Patreon!
Become a Patron!

 

Some of our favorite resources from this week’s episode:

 

Horrific History Podcast

 

Commercial break music by Dead but Dreaming.

Slideshow photo credit: Horrific History Podcast, all rights reserved.

Blog post photo credit: Public Domain, Link

What do you think of when you look into a child’s eyes? Do you think of innocence and a world of potential? Or, do you think of torture, murder and evil intent? Join your Horrific History Podcast co-hosts, Eric Slyter and Curtis Bender, as they look at children in history who have tortured or killed in gruesome ways.

 

Learn about the case of a child laborer from Boston, Massachusetts with a love of dime novels who tortured his victims in awful ways and may have had an interest in taking trophies. After a period in reform school, mutilation and murder […]

Our co-hosts needed a few more days to finish editing your newest Horrific History Podcast episode, so we’re giving you a small teaser from our recent Patreon-exclusive episode! Listen to Eric Slyter and Curtis Bender tell you about the exciting non-profit program, Haunting Ellensburg, to which they’ve been dedicating so much of their free time!

This ten minute excerpt is just part of the entire 60-minute episode wherein Eric and Curtis talk about how they met and started working together, other programs that they work together on and more!

Check back at the end of this week to hear […]

Have you ever had the experience of waking up but being unable to move? Did you feel the sensation of “the intruder” in your room restraining you? At least 40% of the population has had this experience and people from different times and places have had different explanations for it. Eric Slyter and Curtis Bender, your Horrific History co-hosts, explore folklore and the paranormal as they dig into the history of sleep paralysis through the ages.

 

Discover how these “waking hallucinations” have taken the form of witches, demons, vampires, fairies, ghost children and more (as well as which new theme only appeared after the space race)! Nightmares such as these have been connected (usually erroneously) to all sorts of things in the waking hours, from the Salem witch trials to UFOs and alien abductions! It all depends upon which dream interpretation (or doctor!) you choose! But, if you see in your life the expected result after such an encounter in your waking dreams, would it be a case of causation or correlation?

 

When people from all parts of the world from all across time have similar experiences but see or interpret it differently depending upon their cultural background and time in history, could it be that it’s all the same thing? If you’re religious you’re likely to experience demons or possession. If you like horror movies, sci-fi or conspiracy theories it might be aliens or monsters. And, those with exposure to fantasy or fairy folklore may see goblins or […]

Listen to our co-hosts describe how they bit off more than they could chew (but thankfully they avoided wolfsbane from our Toxic Plants episode)! As volunteers for the Horrific History Podcast, we suppose we can give them a little leeway. They are, after all, doing a lot of work at the moment for our non-profit’s other programs like Haunting Ellensburg and Knights of Veritas, in addition to maintaining their day jobs! You’ll be able to learn more about them and all that they do in the upcoming behind the scenes Patreon-exclusive episode scheduled to be released at the end of this month.

Come back next week for our sleep paralysis episode and then we’ll go back to our usual publishing schedule and release the regularly scheduled episode the following week! Meanwhile, listen to Eric Slyter and Curtis Bender give you a special preview of what you can look forward to in our next episode… just remember, no squeam allowed!

If you’d like to hear the upcoming Patreon-exclusive episode and receive other great perks, become a patron of our podcast on Patreon!
Become a Patron!

 

Blog post photo credit: col_adamson Brokenness via photopin (license)

Slideshow photo credit: macabrephotographer Parts via photopin (license)

Not Your Garden Variety Episode: Toxic Plants

Can you identify all the plants in your yard or garden pots? After hearing this episode, you may never look at them (or honey products) the same way again! Eric Slyter and Curtis Bender, your Horrific History co-hosts, explore some pretty (and highly toxic)  plants from across the globe. From nightshade to wolfsbane, and rhododendron to barbasco, this episode will have you questioning the biological warfare applications of your garden plants… just remember to watch how much you use!

 

Discover which invading armies might have thought of new territory as the “Lands of Tainted Honey.” While Xenophon weighs in with his thoughts on the matter, discover the awful side effects of the wholly natural (but toxic to mammals) “mad honey” which had a history of being used as a tool of violent conflicts long before Draco Malfoy thought to lace a mead with poison.

 

The “queen of poisons,” derived from […]