We take a different view of Zombies this week as we look at the pop culture side of the walking dead.  We hear from Tony Rossi, the manager of the Georgia Coffee Shop and Café in the Georgia town where the popular Walking Dead TV series is filmed and he relates how much fun it is when the walking dead visit his eatery. Lucy Leitner tells us why Pittsburgh, Pa. is the epicenter of the Zombie movement in the US.

Additional Amazingly Strange, Weird and Unbelievable Stories we captured for the May 13 episode of Ripley Radio, the official radio partner of Ripley’s Believe It or Not!  include: Chad Lewis explores the possibility that “real” zombies do actually exist, thanks to a Haitian process called zombification; Jodi Pliszka says the use of maggots is more common than one might believe in contemporary medical treatment; Zombie make-up artist Barry Anderson relates how funny it is to watch actors in full zombie makeup eat a sandwich during their meal break; and 1970s one-hit wonder Dean Friedman provides the musical egress this week with his catchy hit, Ariel.

Listen to the Oddcast!

Partner Networks

Believe It or Not, during the 20^th century, frozen whale carcasses were big draws on the circus and carnival midways!  Historian James Taylor visits this week and talks about frozen whales, live whales and exploding whales.  Mark Oswald wraps up his series on natural oddities and unbelievable sights at US National Parks, by telling us about the opportunity to walk right up to the crater of an active volcano.

More amazing, unbelievable and bizarre stories on the May 6 episode of Ripley Radio, the official radio program of Ripley’s Believe It or Not! include: Ryan DeSear, manager of Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies in Gatlinburg, Tenn., tells Ralf about the new Dinosaur exhibit that will be on display through the end of the year; Neal Thompson, the author of the new biography of Robert Ripley, “A Curious Man,” talks about his research and the amazing facts he uncovered about the curious man; and Stephen Stills provides the musical egress this week with Marianne.

Listen to the Oddcast through our Partner Networks

Partner Networks

Believe It or Not! there’s a perfume out there that makes you smell like a Zombie. What does a Zombie smell like?  While hard to describe, Mark Crames, president of the company that manufactures it, explains why he created it and compares its smell to something that will make most of us cringe. Meanwhile, our intrepid reporter Chad Lewis tells of his search in Lake Pepin, Minn. for the famous monster named Pepie.

Additional Amazingly Strange, Weird and Unbelievable Stories we captured for the April 29 episode of Ripley Radio, the official radio partner of Ripley’s Believe It or Not!  include: Ralf talks with newspaper reporter Janelle Wetzstein who tells the tale of the Petaluma Batman, a mysterious real life superhero who lives (and is loved) in this small California town; National Park historian and chronicler Mark Oswald continues his series this week and takes us to Yellowstone, revealing the strange, natural wonders of this huge national park; Barry Anderson, the professor and founder of Ghoul School, explains the hands-on approach his students take while creating body parts; and country newcomer Kacey Musgraves weaves  a poignant trailer park story in our musical egress this week, Merry-Go-Round. 

Listen to the Oddcast

Partner Networks

We begin a series of reports this week on the unbelievable, unusual and strange aspects of our US National Parks. Author Mike Oswald kicks the series off by revealing the one park that is many things -  below sea level, the hottest, driest AND largest, and is the only place where one can go to see rocks that move by themselves! Chad Lewis returns to talk about one of the wackiest of all summer festivals, the UFO Festival in New Mexico.  It’s one of this road warrior’s favorites.

Other Strange, Weird and Unbelievable Stories we captured for the April 22 episode of Ripley Radio, the official radio partner of Ripley’s Believe It or Not!  include: Ralf “with an F” reports on a thief in Michigan who returned money he stole, plus interest – 30 years later; Mark Stevens of Topps Sports & Entertainment talks about the unveiling of the world’s largest baseball card in Florida; the Ghoul School’s Barry Anderson recalls the day he was nearly arrested for transporting what appeared to be a decapitated body;  Actor J Larose explains the sometimes painful process of having prosthetics applied in makeup prior to a horror film shoot; and The Reason provides our musical egress this week with  Drive Me Home. 

Listen to the Oddcast

Partner Networks

Artist Steve Casino has chosen an unusual medium for his art – peanut shells – on which he paints the famous and the infamous. He tells us how he does it and why he began this strange endeavor and what his friends really think of it (and him).  Sideshow historian James Taylor relates the triumphant but somewhat tragic story of the sexiest and most talented con-joined twins of all times – the Hilton Sisters. From their mother selling them upon their birth to their nanny to their financially successful life on the vaudeville stages to their retirement jobs as dual cashiers at a Florida grocery store, James weaves their engrossing story.

Other Strange and Wonderfully Weird Stories We Captured for the April 15 Episode of Ripley Radio, the official radio partner of Ripley’s Believe It or Not!, include: Teen Ivan Barber has surgery for appendicitis only 10 hours before he takes the stage and wins a battle of the bands contest; T. Thorn Coyle explains how we can all easily “make magic” in our everyday lives; Ghoul School professor Barry Anderson joins us again and explains how his grandmother predicted an airplane event that nearly took the life of his father; and horror film actor J Larose returns and tells us how cool it was to be a part of career day at his kid’s elementary school along with all the doctors and lawyers and insurance salesmen parents of the other kids.

Listen to the Oddcast

Partner Networks

Actor J. Larose, star of several popular horror films, joins us this week to talk about the genre and why it is so appealing to the public and world-renown FX artist Barry Anderson describes his new adventure – Ghoul School where he teaches the precise and often macabre art of horror makeup.

Other Strange and Wonderfully Weird Stories We Captured for the April 8 Episode of Ripley Radio, the official radio partner of Ripley’s Believe It or Not!,  include: Tommy Edison, known as the Blind Movie Critic tells Ralf why he doesn’t have to have vision to judge a film; James Lowe explains how the US Post Office is going to help reduce its huge deficit – by selling apparel and accessories; We hear how a mayor of a small town was chosen by pulling his name out of a hat; In the Jackpottin’ With James Taylor segment, we learn how the world’s top expert on sideshows started in the business; and Eddie Vedder and his ukulele provide this week’s musical egress with Longing to Belong.

Listen to the Oddcast

Partner Networks

This week on Ripley Radio, we present two unbelievable mysteries. What makes a person hiccup for seven years and is there really such a thing as spontaneous human combustion?  Is there a cure and what is it like to live with continuous hiccups, and is there such a thing as spontaneous human combustion and if there isn’t, why do some people burn into a little pile of ash while nothing else around them is disturbed?

Other Strange and Wonderfully Weird Stories we captured for the April 1 episode of Ripley Radio, the official radio partner of Ripley’s Believe It or Not!  include: Jim Morris, the baseball player on which the movie, The Rookie was based, talks with Ralf about his amazing adventure and answers the question, “what ever happened to” Jim Morris?; Tim talks about his book, Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Baseball Oddities and reads a few unbelievable factoids from its pages; The Defeat of Jess James Days, a festival in Minnesota, is Chad Lewis’s contribution to weird fairs and festivals this week; and British rocker Nick Lowe goes mellow and offers us Hope for Us All, this week’s musical egress.

Listen to the Oddcast

Partner Networks

One of the oldest cartoon characters in the world is Popeye the Sailor Man and this week we learn from Chad Lewis that Chester, Ill. lays claim as the hometown of the character and each year holds an off-beat picnic in his honor. Getting into the big leagues is tough for any player, but especially hard if you are half-blind. We hear the tale of one half-blind baseball pitcher who has a good shot at it this year – Believe It or Not!

Other Strange and Wonderfully Weird Stories We Captured for the March 25 Episode include: a homeless man talks with us this week on Ripley Radio, the official radio show of Ripley’s Believe It or Not!, and explains how a very expensive diamond ring ended up in his possession and why he returned it, even while the devil on his shoulder was telling him to keep it; Jodi Pliszka reports on a weird medical malady known as Fregoli, a condition that causes you to see the same person, no matter who you look at; Edward Meyer, Ripley’s archivist tells us about his newest purchase, a man-eating Bengal Tiger who killed more than 40 people during its life. Not only did Ripley’s get the taxidermied tiger, but also the human jewelry found inside its stomach when it was shot during the last century; and the cast of the Broadway show, American Idiot provides us with our musical egress this week with the Green Day song, Boulevard of Broken Dreams.

Listen to the Oddcast

Partner Networks

Variety entertainer extraordinaire Todd Robbins drops by this week and tells us that he has eaten more than 5,000 light bulbs during his career as part of his act. It’s a learned skill and one has to be very careful, he notes. Frank DeCaro, a celebrity in his own right, shares a few favorite items from his Dead Celebrity Cookbook, including Michael Jackson’s favorite treat. The Grim Reaper Gourmet, as he calls himself, appears in the March 18 episode of Ripley Radio, the official radio broadcast partner of Ripley’s Believe It or Not!

Other Strange and Wonderfully Weird Stories We Captured for the March 18 Episode include: In her weird medical maladies segment, Jodi Pliszka tells us about periodic paralysis, a symptom that comes on quickly and goes away just as quickly; Joe Tombari and nine of his friends have been playing tag for 23 years and the game goes on! He relates a few of the more outrageous “tags” that have occurred over the years; we learn about the world’s record for the most people wearing frog masks; Ripley archivist Edward Meyer reports that one of his latest acquisitions is a 2,500 year old chunk of redwood tree; and Nashville-based Here Come the Mummies provide us with our musical egress with Aeroplane.

Listen to the Oddcast

Partner Networks

Lucky is the topic this week as we celebrate St. Patrick’s Day 2013 on Ripley Radio, the official broadcast station of Ripley’s Believe It or Not!  Stacy Lee Goforth tells us that if you believe strongly enough, you can create your own luck and that virtually anything can be a lucky charm.  Chad Lewis examines the “Luck of the Irish” and everything that goes along with it.

Other Strange and Wonderfully Weird Stories We Captured for the March 11 Episode include: A last wish of an 88-year old man was that his funeral procession drive through Burger King on the way to the cemetery for one last Whopper Junior; a high school graduation class of 1948 has plans to hold its 65^th reunion – in a funeral home; was there a real St. Patrick and did he truly drive the snakes out of Ireland? We hear one theory; and the Irish rock group, The Saw Doctors, present D’ya Wanna Hear My Guitar? as this week’s musical egress.

Listen to the Oddcast

Partner Networks