We’re back and we’re enjoying the salt air. Or should that be the Saltair? Either way, it would be even jollier if there weren’t all these ghouls around. We have nothing against ghouls, and they serve a useful purpose, but they do have an unfortunate habit of lurking in the dark corners of your house or even your car windows. On the other hand, they are lively dancers, especially for dead folks. We suppose that if you are going to have a Carnival of Souls, some not-quite-live entertainment goes a long way.













Main Topic: Carnival of Souls







This episode delves into the 1962 horror film Carnival of Souls. While it wasn’t a commercial success, it has become a classic of the genre, influencing everyone from George Romero to David Lynch. The story of its origins is almost as strange as the film itself, and we go into both in detail. There is plenty of inspiration for our games of Call of Cthulhu to be found here.







As Carnival of Souls is in the public domain, you can watch it on YouTube. We highly recommend doing so before listening to this episode, as we will spoil the bejesus out of it.



















Our Guest Host







Regular listeners will know that Paul has left the Good Friends. Matt and Scott are inviting interesting people we know to join us as guest hosts, bringing fresh perspectives and expertise to our discussions.







We are delighted to have Ross Bryant join us again as our guest host for this episode. You may know Ross from The Improvised Shakespeare Company, Dropout TV, The Glass Cannon Network, or the many improvised Call of Cthulhu games he and Scott have played together on Ain’t Slayed Nobody. He is currently developing a new historical Call of Cthulhu actual play podcast called Walking Shadows, with Rashawn Scott, Becca Scott, and Zach Reino. The first episode will be out in 2025, wherever you find your podcasts.













Links







Things we mention in this episode include:









* “She Moves Backwards” on Ain’t Slayed Nobody







* Herk Harvey







* Centron Corporation







* “Ministry of Fear” on Ain’t Slayed Nobody







* British Public Information Films







* Hauntology







* Candace Hilligoss







* The Third Man (1949)







* <a href="https://en.