This time, I present to you three classic selections of horror-based music. In this episode, you'll groove to the somber sounds of J.S. Bach, Charles-Camille Saint-Saens, and Modest Mussorgsky. You'll waltz with the dead in a French graveyard. Then, you'll hang with witches on Bald Mountain. All the while, I share with you the legends surrounding this music.
To top it all off, you'll tremble at the throne of Fortune, Empress of the World.
As always, you can listen to the macabre goodness here. Or, you can download this episode from Archive.org
Tonight's tales are taken from the torrid trappings of the story tellers, poets, painters, and movers and shakers of 19th century Britain.
I present to you...
The DARK SIDE of English Lit!
How dark is it? Well, you can tell it's really dark because I put the phrase DARK SIDE in all caps! That's how DARK it is!
The stories in this episode are the thing of literary legend. Oddly enough, they are all true. I've heard these stories time and time again over the course of my life. Now, I share them with you.
Tonights tales include...
1. Jane Austen's Lost Brother
2. Rossetti Digs Liz
3. Percy's on Fire for Mary
I also weigh in on the season premiere of The Walking Dead. Who knew that zombies have a taste for woodchucks? Daryl and Sheriff Rick both know. No worries here, no spoilers in this episode.
I also read out some feedback from the talented and bright Miss Justine, of Justine's Halloween Blog. Which you can read here: Justine's Halloween You can also find Justine's Halloween in the LINKS OF DOOM to the left of this post.
As always, you can listen to the DARK LIT goodness here. Or, download from Archive.org
Percy Shelley (Poetic Rebel With a Teenage Lust, er, Lust for Teenage Girls)
D.G. Rossetti (Poet, Painter, Playboy, and Man With a Shovel)
Videos of the Week Some speculate that Jane Austen haunts her old house in Chawton. I suggest she's just a free spirited woman.
Victorians were dead sexy. They had a taste of the morbid, and drank heavily of it. This video is about the seance craze and Elizabeth Siddal's passing.
Courtesy of Justine's Halloween, an audio book reading of one of Schwartz's most gruesome retellings of an urban legend.
Music of the Week Song: Ich Ruf Zu Dir, Herr Jesu Christ - BWV 639
Performer: Anthony La Mort LP: Hauptwerk Organ Pieces One CLICK HERE: To Download from Archive.org
NEXT TIME: The Halloween Reading for 2011!
May your better angels prevail...And may the saints preserve you.
Tonight, I offer you a trilogy of tantilizing tales to tease, taunt, titilate, and terrorize!
And I put guest host The Crypt Keeper back in his tomb for another night.
Tonight, I offer to you an analysis of three classic tales from Alvin Schwartz trilogy of young adult horror anthologies. The Scary Stories trilogy was a highly popular, and controversial, compendium of folklore retold by author Alvin Schwartz. The books were a staple of my adolescence.They introduced me to horror as a literary genre, as opposed to just a filmic one. For that, I am eternally grateful.
I share with you three stories from Alvin Schwartz seminal work.
1. The Girl Who Stood on a Grave 2. The Bus Stop 3. The Appointment
Consider this a primer on folklore, both new and old. While a good bit of Schwartz work deals with urban legends, that great genre of folklore will get its own episode soon.
As always, you can listen to the folkloric goodness here. Or, download from Archive.org
This week, I round out the discussion of the victims of Jack The Ripper.
Mary Kelly was the youngest of the victims. She's also the one we know the least about. Her origins are obscure, but her death is infamous.
WARNING: Listener discretion is advised. I read a large portion of the autopsy report in this episode. In the words of Dr. Praetorious, "Well, we warned you."
As always you can listen to the show on the site. Or, you can download from archive.org
Remember to vote in the Halloween Reading Poll The poll is in the left panel. The choices are... 1. The Hound--H.P. Lovecraft 2. My Own True Ghost Story--Rudyard Kipling 3. Lot 249--Sir Arthur Conan Doyle 4. Dracula's Guest--Bram Stoker
So far, it's a three day tie between The Hound, Lot 249, and Dracula's Guest.
Videos of the Week Morrissey sings...well, you know.
I won't go Emo on you...maybe just this once.
NEXT TIME: Alvin Schwartz's SCARY STORIES TO TELL IN THE DARK
In this episode you will hear the tragic stories of Elizabeth Stride and Catherine Eddowes--both of whom were killed on the same night, only blocks apart. Their deaths came to be known as the Double Event, and have influenced Ripper-lore to this day.
WARNING: Listener discretion is advised.
Podcaster's Note: Correction--The Dear Boss letter is often regarded as the first correspondence from Jack The Ripper. In this week's episode, I claimed the Saucy Jack postcard was the first. By the timethis episode was recorded, it was too late to rectify the innacuracy.
As always, you can listen to the show here. Or, you can download from Archive.org
