The Spooky Stuff

Ken Summers is a paranormal researcher, history aficionado, part-time traveler, variegated artist, and purveyor of strange tales and forgotten hauntings. The ever-apologetic creator of the “orb color chart,” he has always endeavored to balance open-minded fascination and humor with logical questioning in the pursuit of truth. Unlike many self-described experts in the field, he isn’t afraid to admit that he doesn’t have all the answers, and where others argue over the existence of ghosts, UFOs, Sasquatch, and other mysteries, Ken sees the true value of supernatural stories as a means of keeping interesting, forgotten history alive.Ken has long been fascinated by the most obscure, forgotten, and unusual stories and incidents related to the paranormal. That quest for the strangest of the strange developed into a blog series of “Queer Paranormal Road Trips” in 2008. This questioning of the sexualities of specters led to his last book, Queer Hauntings: True Tales of Gay and Lesbian Ghosts, published in 2009. Currently, he’s busily at work researching for a follow-up book, once again delving into the mysterious realm where ‘weird’ and ‘queer’ blur together.Whenever possible, Ken puts his vast knowledge of “useless information” to use in the form of tours, lectures, or writing. Some of his work can be found on Week in Weird. He was also editor and a contributor for Haunted Akron.

Rebecca Williamson is the owner of Cambre House and Farm, a haunted wedding venue outside of Nauvoo Illinois. She has been interested in the paranormal her entire life and has nearly 20 years of experience doing paranormal investigations. Rebecca bought the Cambre House from her Grandparents' estate in 2016 and hosts weddings and paranormal investigations there.

In this episode, Vanessa Hogle came to the paranormal table to talk about her latest book, “Ghosts Abroad Ireland” just in time for St. Patrick’s Day! She tells me about her adventures in Ireland that will make you laugh and even cry.Five short years ago Vanessa Hogle was stuck. Knee deep in two jobs, a dead end relationship and no positive viewpoint regarding the future. Knowing something had to change she drew inspiration from her past and began to forge a new life for herself and her son. She had been involved in the paranormal community before and knew that's where she had to start. Having "remote viewed" for a paranormal team, and consulted for the "Leave or Die" episode of The Haunted, on Animal Planet.Always finding new ways to better herself, and her family's future, Vanessa has also drawn upon her more artistic abilities and has established herself as a commissioned artist, showing publicly at Loyola University, Chicago, in September 2018. In January of 2019, she founded Perfect Trust Productions LLC and recruited trusted friend and investigator, Gwen Clapper. By January of 2020, Vanessa was named as the newest member of Beyond Perception Investigators. A paranormal team whom she had worked extensively with for several years. With over 400 investigations under her belt, her books and art, Vanessa is proving there are no limits too high to reach. She has done this all while raising a son and holding down 2 jobs! You can find more information about Vanessa at vanessahogle.com.

Welcome to the Spooky Stuff podcast. In this episode, Robert Murch and Rick “Ormortis” Schreck stop by the paranormal table to talk about the infamous Ouija board. They talk about the history of the Ouija board, the media’s influence on how the board is viewed, Shreck’s famous Ouijazilla, and how they came to become avid collectors and experts on talking boards.Robert Murch is the world’s foremost collector, historian, and expert on Ouija and Talking Boards and serves as the Chairman of the Board for the Talking Board Historical Society which he founded. His bizarre relationship with Ouija began after watching Kevin Tenney’s Witchboard in 1986, a century after the talking board made its debut. Murch purchased his first antique Ouija board in 1992 and became obsessed with unraveling the mystery of its origins. Since then, he’s devoted his life to researching the history of the Ouija board and its founders, with Murch often traveling the world to track down descendants of all those involved with the introduction of the mystifying oracle.Rick “Ormortis” Schrek serves in TBHS along with Murch as Vice President. Ironically his collecting started the same year as Murch 1992 when he visited Salem Mass for the first time. Rick and Murch have known each other for a long time as friends and fellow collectors before the formation of the TBHS. His passion for collecting talking boards is rivaled by his obsession of making them which he has been doing for about 17 years. He uses materials that most won't touch, wood from embalming tables and funeral type stuff. Rick’s biggest accomplishment is his Ouija board -OuijaZilla, the largest Ouija Board on the planet. It is featured in Ripley's Believe it or Not, Bind Blown, 2020. You can find more info about Rick at ouijazilla.com.

In this episode, Dan and Kat Eckhart stop by the paranormal table to talk about their work as professional seance hosts. We dive into the fascinating history of seances and their influences on women's rights, religion, and the abolitionist movement. It was an amazing conversation.The Eckharts are séance hosts and experts, obsessed with exploring what lies beyond the veil. Often referred to as “celebrity occultists", the Eckharts strive to share their love of the paranormal by showing that spirit communication can be exciting, mystical, and ultimately accessible to us all. In their séances, the Eckharts share some of their most impactful ghost stories, facilitate spirit contact through traditional techniques such as crystal moving on a spirit board, and demonstrate unnervingly accurate trance mediumship.You can follow the Eckharts on Instagram and TikTok and you can visit their website at theEckharts.com.

In this episode, Amanda Paulson of Pretty Fn Spooky comes to the paranormal table to chat about social media, where everyone fits in the community, and we touch a little bit on representation in the field. Amanda is a paranormal investigator located in Spokane, Washington. She has been a paranormal enthusiast her entire life but her investigating experience started in 2008 when she joined a ghost hunting team in Billings, Montana. Since moving to Washington in 2010, Amanda has investigated all over the United States and in 2019 began serving as a Representative on the Spokane Historic Landmarks Commission. As a highly sensitive person, Amanda has had experiences with the occult since she was a young child but through a scientific approach, seeks to substantiate paranormal claims with solid evidence and give peace and understanding to those experiencing paranormal activity. As the creator of Pretty Fn Spooky media enterprise, Amanda is a lifelong seeker of the unknown and lover of anything that might make you say, “that’s pretty fricken spooky!”

In this episode, Amanda Woomer from Spook Eats comes to the paranormal table. We talk about what inspired her to start her amazing blog, Spook Eats, the representation of women in paranormal media, and how she is putting the spotlight on women with the Feminine Macabre. We also touched on the paranormal culture in America versus the rest of the world.Writer, anthropologist, and former international English teacher, Amanda R. Woomer was born and raised in Buffalo, New York. A member of the Society for Psychical Research, she is a featured writer for the award-winning Haunted Magazine and the owner of Spook-Eats. She is the author of A Haunted Atlas of Western New York, The Spirit Guide: America’s Haunted Breweries, Distilleries, and Wineries, and The Ghosts of the Ghostlight Theatre as well as two books in the Creepy Books for Creepy Kids series. Her newest project, the Feminine Macabre, is an all-new all-female paranormal journal highlighting the works of women in the paranormal coming March 2021. Follow her spooky adventures at spookeats.com and on Facebook Instagram and Twitter.

Michael is a paranormal investigator and content creator who has attracted attention on social media for his content that’s not only fun, but it’s educational! He is also very passionate about representation in the field. You can follow Michael on YouTube as well as TikTok and Instagram at glowingghostparanormal.Intro and outro music by Marc Jungermann

Jade is a Scottish paranormal explorer traveling the US in a search for the unknown. She documents her paranormal explorations on YouTube as well as TikTok and Instagram at ghostclubparanormal.Intro and outro music by Marc Jungermann.

Cherise Williams is a witch, tarot reader, ghost hunter, and paranormal researcher from Ohio. Cherise holds a diploma in the healing arts and certifications in topics such as spiritual studies and hypnotherapy. When she’s not witching or ghosting it up, she can be found wandering the woods, abandoned homes, and cemeteries, or hanging out with her family and pets.Cherise is most active on Instagram and TikTok with username CheriseWilliams.xo.Intro and outro music by Marc Jungermann.

In this episode, Ivy Boyd takes a seat at the paranormal table to talk about paranormal history as well as TV and women in the field. Ivy Boyd is a paranormal investigator, researcher, and overall enthusiast for all things spooky! She is a former paranormal podcaster and currently works as a traveler and blogger for the Ghouls Trip paranormal travel blog. You can follow her on Instagram and TikTok at tattoosandspooks. Intro and outro music by Marc JungermannSpecial appearance by ChloeBear the Cat

In this episode, Melissa Wilton comes to the paranormal table to enjoy some spirits while talking about spirits. This episode takes some crazy twists and turns since there are some spirits involved!Melissa is a paranormal investigator and leads her own team in Calgary, AB, Canada, called The Calgary Association of Paranormal Investigation (CAPI for short). She first took interest in the paranormal as a child when she had some scary experiences that she didn’t fully understand. As she grew up and got into the field, Melissa became what she lovingly refers to as an open-minded skeptic. She strongly believes in energy and has had some incredible experiences that leave her with many questions that she hopes to answer one day. Melissa now seeks answers to the big questions about what happens after we die, while also using her skills as an investigator and energy healer to help people that believe their homes or businesses are haunted.

Our first episode of 2021 is off to a strong start! This episode features a great conversation with Beth Darlington! She talks about her passions for education and online learning in the paranormal. She also takes the approach of accessibility of information in the paranormal field and the future of the paranormal community. You can find Beth’s website at accessparanormal.com.

In this episode, Anne Rech-o-vich and Renata Daniel took a seat at the paranormal table to talk about their work as paranormal business owners and educators. These two incredible ladies talk about the value of education in the field, elevating women, and so much more. Enjoy the show! Be sure to check out their podcast, "True Hauntings" where you listen to your favorite podcasts. You can find more info about Anne and Renata at https://www.anneandrenata.com/.

In this episode, Kitsie Duncan joins the paranormal table to talk about her latest book, “I’d Rather Talk to Dead People” as well as her amazing career in the paranormal. We take a deep dive into how we should be treating the ghosts as well as swapping stories from the field. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, it was an epic conversation. You can check out Kitsie’s work at https://www.flow.page/kitsieduncan.

Dylan Jones comes to the paranormal table to talk about the media's influence on the paranormal community. How does the media affect modern day paranormal investigators? Why is there so much drama in the paranormal community? What's in a name when it comes to parapsychologist versus psychical researcher versus paranormal investigator versus ghost hunter? Come join the conversation and find out. You can learn more about Dylan at theghosthunter.co.uk.

Queer ghost hunter and podcaster Shane McClelland takes a seat at the paranormal table to talk about LGBTQ+ representation in the paranormal field, how he communicates with queer ghosts, and his work with Queer Ghost Hunters and his podcast, The Q Files. It’s a conversation NOT to be missed!You can listen to The Q Files on your favorite podcast streaming platform.Follow Shane on social media:Twitter: https://twitter.com/McClellandShaneFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheQFilesPodcast

Rob Gutro is a scientist, psychic medium, and paranormal investigator. He joins the paranormal table to talk about his latest books, "Kindred Spirits" and "Inspired Ghost Tracking." We chat about his love triangle with the ghost of his husband's partner, animal spirits, and his adventures with his team.You can find more information about Rob at http://ghostsandspiritsinsights.blogspot.com/.Music provided generously by Marc Jungermann. Thanks, Marc!

Do you like spooky stuff? Paranormal investigator, author, and blogger Alex Matsuo welcomes you to the paranormal table. Want to know what this podcast is all about? Here's the place to start!Music by Marc Jungermann (used with permission...thank you, Marc!)