EPISODE 105: CHRISTMAS HAS A DARKSIDE
WHAT ARE YOU AFRAID OF?
HORROR & PARANORMAL SHOW
Christmas has a dark side.
During the holidays in the days before television, people gathered to share food, drink, and a glowing fire, and to entertain themselves by competing through storytelling. Ghost stories won the night. Consider this. When winter came, food ran low, the cold threatened and disease killed many, often taking your loved ones. You missed them at Christmas, so the holidays used to be a mournful time. Eerie tales were popular, and if Halloween was the start of ghost story season then it peaked at Christmas. So what a perfect time for a new episode of What Are You Afraid Of? To celebrate mid-winter, horror authors T. Fox Dunham & Phil Thomas celebrate tales of monsters and the supernatural. Fox has researched several Philadelphia haunted houses and has written an account of a notoriously spooky mansion in Chestnut Hill: The Baleroy Mansion. English folksinger David Walton narrates part one of these stories about the myriad spirits who inhabit this beautiful home including a ghost boy who appears to workers and a mother who refuses to stop giving advice even from the afterlife. Then, the hosts talk about the many horror movies set during Christmas including the classic story of holiday mayhem, Gremlins! Little green monsters torment a small American town, and they burn most of it down on Christmas Eve. This movie is considered a Christmas classic, watched by many. They pay homage by discussing the history and trivia of Gremlins. Remember the three rules? The hosts also play some funny holiday songs including the ballad of a frustrated neighbor forced to look at a hideous blow-up Santa. Then, Fox shares some of the rich history of the mid-winter holidays from the ancient holiday of Yule to the evolution of Christmas in the United States. So, we wish you happy holidays and remind you to indulge this dark and cold season. Christmas has a dark side—or the lights wouldn’t be so bright.
EPISODE 104: HOLIDAY HORROR & NOIR
What Are You Afraid Of? Horror & Paranormal Show with horror authorsT. Fox Dunham and Phil Thomas.
The mid-winter season has a tradition of scary stories and legends, and we’re back to share them! Fox isn’t dead! And he’s not a zombie, we swear. After a forced break while Fox dealt with pneumonia, What Are You Afraid Of? Horror & Paranormal Show returns with a holiday-themed episode, featuring ghost stories, silly tunes and noir fiction. Horror authors T. Fox Dunham & Phil Thomas catch up then discuss the dark legends and customs that evolved in Europe during the mid-winter holidays—and these are some horrible and twisted Christmas stories told to children. Don’t be naughty or else! Cannibals. Giant cats. And trolls just to name a few Yule ghouls. Fox narrates a true ghost story about the classic haunting of an old apartment building. Horror author Todd Keisling, author of The Smile Factory, shares his paranormal experiences at 146 West High Street. We play two silly holiday songs from British musician Simon Panrucker—composer for several cartoons and one of the hosts of The Past Present Future Funcast. We play his holiday carol, Leave My Nuts Alone! The show closes with a holiday noir story written by celebrated crime and horror author, Andy Rausch. Santa’s Little Helper is a sardonic tale about a burglar and a little boy who thinks he’s Santa, narrated by our amazing David Walton. Yeah. We’re terrible people! But as we learned, the mid-winter holidays have always been a time of ghost stories and dark tales, and we invite you to celebrate the creepy side of Yule with us. Or the Krampus will stick you in a sack and beat you with a stick.
Oh . . . and leave his nuts alone!
