Unwell, a Midwestern Gothic Mystery

Content warnings: police violence, racial violence, victims of hate crimes, white supremacy, and police violence. Read by: Shariba Rivers, Pat King, Alexander Danner, Ryan Schile, Bilal Dardai, Duo Yang, Eli McIlveen, Amelia Bethel, Joshua K. Harris, Michael Turrentine, Kathleen Hoil, Marsha Harman, Ele Matelan, Jeffrey Nils Gardner, and Eleanor Hyde. ===================  Today is Wednesday, June 10, 2020. There will not be a new episode of Unwell today. Following the example and the words of Black Lives Matter Chicago, we call for an end to the state violence against and criminalization of Black communities through police forces, an unjust legal system, and federal, state, and local political organizations.  As the artists of HartLife NFP, we call on our fellow art makers in positions of institutional power and privilege to take concrete actions to make your institutions and artistic work explicitly and actively anti-racist.   We affirm our commitment to do the same here. We will interrogate ourselves when we have fallen short of this goal and recommit to do better every time.  The United States is a country founded on land stolen from indigenous peoples, built with the stolen labor and lives of enslaved Black people. We call especially on White listeners to reckon with this fact, today and every day.    The following list is both incomplete and horrifyingly long. These people were victims of hate crimes, police officers and of an unjust, white supremacist system. We say their names and we remember their lives.  Tamir Rice Samuel Dubose Walter Scott Jordan Davis Tony McDade Dion Johnson Dante Parker Michelle Cusseax Laquan McDonald Richard Perkins Nathaniel Harris Pickett Benni Lee Tignor Miguel Espinal Michael Noel Kevin Mathews Bettie Jones Quintonio Legrier Keith Childress Jr Janet Wilson Randy Nelson Antronie Scott George Mann John Crawford III Ezell Ford Aaron Bailey Ronell Foster Stephon Clark Antwon Rose II Tanisha Anderson Alton Sterling Philando Castile Botham Jean Pamela Turner Akai Gurley Rumain Brisbon Trayvon Martin Jerame Reid Mathew Ajibade Frank Smart Alexia Christian Brendon Glenn Victor Manuel Larosa Jonathan Sanders Freddie Blue Joseph Mann Salvado Ellswood Albert Joseph Davis Darrius Steward Billy Ray Davis Michael Sabbie Brian Keith Day Christian Taylor Troy Robinson Natahsa McKenna Tony Robinson Anthony Hill Mya Hall Phillip White Eric Harris Walter Scott William Chapman II Asshams Pharoah Manley Felix Kumi Keith Harrison McLeod Junior Prosper LaMontez Jones Patterson Brown Dominic Hutchinson Anthony Ashford Alonzo Smith Tyree Crawford India Kager La’Vante Biggs Michael Lee Marshall Jamar Clark Wendell Celestine David Joseph Calin Roquemore Dyzhawn Perkins Christopher Davis Marco Loud Peter Gaines Torrey Robinson Darius Robinson Kevin Hicks Mary Truxillo Demarcus Semer Willie Tillman Terrill Thomas Sylville Smith Michael Brown Eric Garner Sandra Bland Fredie Gray Terrence Crutcher Paul O’Neal Alteria Woods Jordan Edwards Dominique Clayton Christopher Whitfield Christopher McCorvey Eric Reason Michael Lorenzo Dean Breonna Taylor Atatiana Jefferson Ahmaud Arbery Doug Lewis George Floyd Manuel Ellis Maurice Gordon Black Lives Matter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As we continue to prepare for Season Three of Unwell, launching on February 17, we wanted to share another show we thought you might enjoy: Family Ghosts. Learn more and subscribe to Family Ghosts here: https://familyghostspodcast.com/ Family Ghosts is a (mostly) nonfiction show where real people investigate the truth behind stories that have haunted their families for generations. These aren't ghosts like we see in Mt Absalom- mostly- - rather, they're apocryphal stories that have been repeated over and over for decades - grandmothers who turned out to be jewel smugglers, uncles who vanished without a trace, aunts who stole corpses and hid them in undisclosed locations, parents who started cults, and much, much more. In each episode of the show, someone who feels like they might understand themselves better if they could get to the bottom of one of these mysteries tries to do exactly that, in collaboration with host Sam Dingman. I think you can see why we're so excited to share an episode of Family Ghosts here on the feed- it sounds like Lily could have been part of her own episode of the show. Family Ghosts has just launched their fourth season with a three-episode miniseries about a woman named Kate whose father mysteriously disappeared in the middle of the night in September 1987. From the industrial truck farms of East Baltimore to the newsrooms of New York City to Mount St. Helens, Kate's story has all the twists and turns of a Mt Absalom legend, but the real journey is Kate's own attempt to understand not just what she wants to know, but why she feels like she can't rest until she knows it. If you like the episode you hear today, you can hear all three parts in the Family Ghosts feed. Give it a listen, and go subscribe today! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

During our mid-season break, we are sharing some episodes from other shows we love. First up is Old Gods of Appalachia. Old Gods of Appalachia is an eldritch horror anthology podcast. Subscribe and learn more about Old Gods of Appalachia here: https://www.oldgodsofappalachia.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

During our mid-season break, we are sharing some favorite episodes from other shows we love. Today's is Greater Boston. Greater Boston is a full-cast audio drama set in the Boston metro area, blending the real and the unreal, the historical and the fantastical. It all begins with the death of Leon Stamatis, a man so enamored of predictability that the least hint of uncertainty makes life unbearable. But by leaving the world, he has irrevocably changed it. The show is written and produced by Alexander Danner and Jeff Van Dreason. Subscribe and learn more here: https://greaterbostonshow.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today we are sharing an episode of Storybound. Storybound is a show where some of our favorite authors and writers read their most impactful stories with powerful and immersive sound design, followed by a truly amazing interview. Subscribe and learn more about Storybound here: https://pod.link/1479333981 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For this week's feed drop, we're excited to bring you the first episode of The Strange Case of the Starship Iris, written by Unwell staff writer Jessica Best! You can find more of the Strange Case of the Starship Iris here: https://www.procyonpodcastnetwork.com/starship-iris You can find a link to a transcript here. Written by JESSICA BEST Sound engineering by ERIN BAUMANN and HANNAH CROSS Directed by JESSICA BEST, PHOEBE SEIDERS, and MARGARET CLARK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We're excited to bring you an episode of Parkdale Haunt, created by Emily Kellog and Alex Nursall! You can learn more about the show at parkdalehaunt.com ==== Judith Antoni’s friend Claire has gone missing. Well, she’s alive, but she’s taken off and no one can track her down. Judith enlists the help of her friend Owen to start digging through the recordings made when Claire took possession of a house in Parkdale and things started to get… kind of weird. CONTENT WARNINGS: Hauntings/the paranormal, cults (mentioned), the occult, alcohol Emily Kellogg as Claire Alex Nursall as Judith Ian Boddy as Owen Caroly Larson as Debbie Taylor Davis as Austin Bird Theme music by Phil Wright Recorded at Pirate Toronto Presented in partnership with the Frequency Podcast Network. You can find us and all the other Frequency podcasts at frequencypodcastnetwork.com. You can find us on Twitter and Instagram @parkdalehaunt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, we're excited to share a show that's very different from Unwell: Starship Tempest! Featuring some longtime HartLife NFP artists, including Unwell Lead Sound Designer Emeritus Ryan Schile, Our Fair City and Unwell star Tara Schile, and HartLife NFP board member Travis Sauder- this show should be a delight for fans of Star Trek and table top RPGs! You can learn more about Starship Tempest on their website at starshiptempest.com. Find them on all social platforms under the handle @StarshipTempest. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on the Unwell feed, we're excited to share the Tapes of King's Chapel- an episode of the horror anthology podcast Bleeder's DIEgest! You can learn more about Bleeder's DIEgest on their website here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hi there- Jeffrey here. We're so close to the return of Unwell Season Four- and we're so excited to have the chance to share one more guest episode- Brimstone Valley Mall, written and directed by Kristen DiMercurio. You'll recognize a bunch of Unwell folks from the credits- including Kristen, Regina Renée Russell, Julia Schifini, and myself- I was one of the sound designers for this delightful show. Brimstone Valley Mall is a dark comedy that sends us back to the Malls of the 90s- a deeply nostalgic setting for me- following a group of demons who not only work at the mall, but...play in a band. It's so much fun. Brimstone Valley Mall has a love for its setting that I think Unwell listeners will appreciate- because let me tell you, the malls of the 90s were a unique and occasionally terrifying place. I hope you enjoy! Learn more and listen to Brimstone Valley Mall here! Read a transcript for the episode here. Written, directed & produced by Kristen DiMercurio, co-written by Talia Rochmann & Mark Wolf Roberts, sound design by Jeffrey Nils Gardner In this episode you heard: Misroch, played by Elliot Gindi Belzagor, played by Susannah Wilson Trainee, played by Regina Russell Hornblas, played by Sheldon Brown And the Mall Announcements, played by Kristen DiMercurio Additional voices were played by Julia Schifini, and Mischa Stanton, Our theme music is written and performed by FM Buller. Our show art is designed by Talia Rochmann. Brimstone Valley Mall is produced by Kristen DiMercurio, with Production Consulting by Julia Schifini. It’s Executive Produced by Mischa Stanton Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hello- Jeffrey here.  Today, we’re excited to share a show from the Fable and Folly Network that we think you might enjoy- Where the Stars fell.  This is another American Gothic show- though set in the Pacific Northwest rather than in the Midwest.  It’s a wonderful story that centers of themes of identity and choice- and for me, I was sold on the imaginative, strange world- a joy to lose yourself in. Enjoy this first episode of the show, and head to your podcatcher of choice to hear the rest of the story!  Now- enjoy the first episode of Where the Stars Fell Where the Stars Fell is a production of Caldera Studios, and is produced and written by Newton Schottelkotte. The voice of Mama Gabe was Kiera Gill. The voice of Lucille Kensington was Madelyn Harvieux. The voice of Dr. Edison Tucker was Newton Schottelkotte. The voice of Mike Elle was Kyle Street. Script edits were done by Lucy Brown, with a sensitivity read by Kit Addams. All sound effects taken from Audio Library, Sound Library, Soundbible dot com, original foley, or used under Creative Commons License. Find transcripts, social media links, and places to listen at wherethestarsfell.com Find a transcript here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hello- Jeffrey here! Over here in Chicago, we’ve just kicked off recording for Season Five of unwell- it is so wonderful to be back in the studio with these actors, and I am SO excited for you to hear what we’re working on. In the meantime- we’re thrilled to bring you the first episode of Gideon Media’s “Give Me Away.” It’s a sci-fi thriller from Mac Rogers, who wrote some of my very favorite pieces of audio in the genre- including  The Message, LifeAfter, and Steal The Stars.  You can hear the rest of the series, and find credits, transcripts, and more at gideon-media. org. === The screaming spaceship lands just as Graham Shapiro's life is falling apart. The world reels, and Graham makes some big decisions. Featuring Hanna Cheek, Sean Williams, Kevin R. Free, Nat Cassidy, Diana Oh, Dani Martineck, Rebecca Comtois, Alba Ponce de León, Jorge Cordova, Lori Elizabeth Parquet, and Stephanie Willing. Written by Mac Rogers, directed by Jordana Williams, sound designed by Bart Fasbender, music composed by Adam Blau, assistant directed by Marty McGuire, and produced by Cara Ehlenfeldt. Transcripts are available at www.gideon-media.com/transcripts. Gideon Media crafts gripping productions that explore human grace and darkness through popular genre forms. Learn more at www.gideon-media.com and follow us on Twitter @mediagideon, Instagram @gideonaudio, and Facebook @gideonaudio. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For today's release- we're back with the Season Four Blooper Reel. Spoilers for Season Four of Unwell (obviously). A transcript for this episode is available here. Like this show? Want to help support the artists who made it? You can join Audacious Machine Creative's Membership program at https://audaciousmachinecreative.memberful.com/join. $5 a month gets you ad free feeds of all of our podcasts, and goes directly to supporting the artists making new audio fiction podcasts! Find Unwell merch at https://www.audaciousmachinecreative.com/store Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We're so excited to share this live recording of one of our talks at the 2022 University of Pittsburgh Queer Horror Week! Enormous thanks to the University of Pittsburgh Horror Studies Working Group for hosting us, and in particular to Dr. Bridget Keown, who lead this fantastic talk. This talk was recorded live in a classroom- so the audio is a little rougher than our usual fare- but we hope you enjoy this fantastic chat! You can also take in a version of this talk via video (with captioning) hosted by the University of Pittsburgh here. Like this show? Want to help support the artists who made it? You can join Audacious Machine Creative's Membership program at https://audaciousmachinecreative.memberful.com/join. $5 a month gets you ad free feeds of all of our podcasts, and goes directly to supporting the artists making new audio fiction podcasts! Find Unwell merch at https://www.audaciousmachinecreative.com/store Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome, Loyal Polices...to Our Fair City. We're so excited to share this feed drop- the show that kicked off our work in audio fiction with HartLife NFP. If you enjoy this episode- we hope you'll take a moment to check out the rest of Our Fair City. The following audio record comprises Season One of the glorious True Histories of the HartLife Corporation in its entirety. We hope you enjoy this remastered and reissued version. To read more about this new edition of Season One, click here. Support Unwell and HartLife NFP on Patreon at www.patreon.com/hartlifenfp The Narrator— Ansel Burch Nathan Rourke— Clayton Faits Jack— Mark Soloff Neal Henderson— Sebastian H. Orr Old Lady— Lauren Faits Alison Dalton— Nina O'Keefe Elizabeth Rourke— Tara Schile Andrew Snidge— Frank Sjodin Clay— Tyler Samples Sandy— Abby Doud Peat— Jared Latore MolePerson Overseer— Jeffrey Gardner Vice President Davenport— Ben Aldred Special Agent George Chamberlain— Jim McDoniel Doctor Emily Caligari— Marsha Harman The Professor— Ginneh Jolan The Dean— Jim McDoniel The TA— Mark Soloff Doctor Herbert West— Ryan Schile The Voice of HartLife— Jeffrey Gardner Written by Clayton Faits, with Ansel Burch, Jim McDoniel, Frank Sjodin. Directed by Jeffrey Nils Gardner. Sound Design by Ryan Schile. Music by Stephen Poon. Episode art by Robin Billadeau. Produced by David Rheinstrom. Production Management by Betsey Palmer. Created by Clayton Faits. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We're so excited to share this live recording of another of our talks at the 2022 University of Pittsburgh Queer Horror Week- this one on how how we make Unwell! Enormous thanks to the University of Pittsburgh Horror Studies Working Group for hosting us, and in particular to Dr. Bridget Keown, who lead this fantastic talk. This talk was recorded live in a classroom- so the audio is a little rougher than our usual fare- but we hope you enjoy this fantastic chat! You can also take in a version of this talk via video (with captioning) hosted by the University of Pittsburgh here. Like this show? Want to help support the artists who made it? You can join Audacious Machine Creative's Membership program at https://audaciousmachinecreative.memberful.com/join. $5 a month gets you ad free feeds of all of our podcasts, and goes directly to supporting the artists making new audio fiction podcasts! Find Unwell merch at https://www.audaciousmachinecreative.com/store Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, we've got another feed drop for you- this one is the first episode of an audio fiction miniseries created by Unwell executive producer Jeffrey Nils Gardner. It's a much more abstract show- we hope you enjoy it! If you want to hear more, search for "Museum at tomorrow" in your podcast app! === A beginning. A new way of listening. “Through me the way into” Learn more at www.nilsgardner.com/the-museum-at-tomorrow Read a transcript of this episode here. Content advisories for this episode here. Created and produced by Jeffrey Nils Gardner Interviews with Bates Slayer, Makena Levine, and Eleanor Hyde. Museums toured include the Art Institute of Chicago, the Chicago History Museum, and the Northwestern Block Museum of Art. Music by Jeffrey Nils Gardner, with additional tracks from the Blue Dot Sessions. Special thanks to Neil Verma and Sarah Geis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

While recording for Season Five, we took a bit of time out to record answers to some questions you folks sent in. In this session, Joshua K Harris, Kat Hoil, and Marsha Harman jumped in with some answers- and we’ll have some more answers from other questions in a later episode. Enjoy! Like this show? Want to help support the artists who made it? You can join Audacious Machine Creative's Membership program at https://audaciousmachinecreative.memberful.com/join. $5 a month gets you ad free feeds of all of our podcasts, and goes directly to supporting the artists making new audio fiction podcasts! Find Unwell merch at https://www.audaciousmachinecreative.com/store Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Time for more listener questions! This week, Jeffrey and Eleanor sit down to talk about writing and structuring the series, the inspirations behind Unwell and lots more- including an appearance from our favorite waitress, Ele Matelan! Like this show? Want to help support the artists who made it? You can join Audacious Machine Creative's Membership program at https://audaciousmachinecreative.memberful.com/join. $5 a month gets you ad free feeds of all of our podcasts, and goes directly to supporting the artists making new audio fiction podcasts! Find Unwell merch at https://www.audaciousmachinecreative.com/store Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hello, Jeffrey here. As we approach Season Five, we’ve got anothrt feed drop for you- the fantastic actual play podcast Of Mice and Men and Monsters. The show’s Dungeon Master is Katelyn, who also happens to be a high school English teacher. She creates adventures that weave classic literature with dungeons and dragons- so far they’ve tackled Frankenstein, Moby Dick, Robin Hood, The Count of Monte Cristo, Oliver Twist, Robinson Crusoe and The Great Gatsby, with many more to come.  We’re here with the first episode of Frankenstein- you can find out more and listen to later episodes at www.omamam.com, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Enjoy! ==== In the pilot episode of Of Mice And Men And Monsters, our players Penelope, Bertram, and Awen are brought together because of a mysterious flyer by Dr. Frankenstein. A flyer that describes Frankenstein's latest experiment -- a race through an intricate maze in his castle where the winner will be lavished with riches and prizes. But in this race, not everyone will make it out alive. Support our show by visiting our Patreon page -- https://www.patreon.com/omamamshow Visit our website -- https://www.omamamshow.com Find and support our sponsors at: fableandfolly.com/partners Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices