History Unhinged: Rainy Day Rabbit Holes

Latest Episodes:

Buried Alive: The Incredible True Story of Mick Meaney: Unlocked Bonus Episode! Jul 16, 2025

Show notes

Normally, this kind of jaw-dropping rabbit hole is reserved just for our Patreon supporters—but today, we’re unlocking it for everyone.

In 1968, Irishman Mick Meaney decided to let himself be buried alive for 61 days in a Guinness record stunt that captured international attention…and caused his pregnant wife to find out via the radio. In this bonus episode, Shea welcomes special guest Kevin Ryan, host of Tyrant in Training Podcast and a fellow member of our Umbrella Podcast Collective, to explore:

The surprisingly popular 1960s fad of human burial endurance contests
The bizarre safety coffins that people invented to avoid being buried alive by accident
Edgar Allan Poe’s stories—and real-life fears—of premature burial
The transatlantic rivalry with Texan “Living Corpse” Bill White
And how Mick Meaney’s stunt became a moment of Irish legend

🎧 This is the kind of fascinating, darkly funny story our Patreon supporters get access to every month. If you enjoy it, we’d love to have you join the community!

💸 Special Offer:

Get 20% off your first month on Patreon through the end of July with promo code SUMMERFUN20.

Unlock more bonus episodes, early access, and exclusive content:

👉 rainydayrabbitholes.com/support

🎙️ About Our Guest:

Kevin Ryan is the host of Tyrant in Training Podcast, where he dives into the strange and the sinister side of history.

🌐 Learn more at tyrantpod.com

The Napoleon Bunny Apocalypse Jul 09, 2025

Show notes

Rainy Day Rabbit Holes: Silly Summer Season — Napoleon vs. The Bunny Apocalypse

In this episode, we travel back to 1807, when Napoleon Bonaparte, the conqueror of Europe and master tactician, faced the most humiliating defeat of his career — at the paws of a swarm of ravenous rabbits. We explore how a grand hunting party meant to celebrate his triumph turned into slapstick chaos, why the bunnies charged, and whether this story was an elaborate piece of historical trolling.

Topics Covered:

The aftermath of the Treaty of Tilsit
Napoleon’s love of grand gestures
Alexandre Berthier’s ill-fated event planning
The possibly hangry domesticated rabbits
Paul Thiebault’s rivalry and the murky origins of the story
What it all means for the myth of invincibility

Resources & Further Reading:

History Unhinged-Rainy Day Rabbit Holes Trailer Jul 03, 2025

Show notes

History Unhinged: Rainy Day Rabbit Holes is the podcast that makes history wild, weird, and unforgettable. Join hosts Jody and Shea as they dig into outrageous true stories, haunted places, bizarre disasters, and scandals from the Pacific Northwest and beyond. With unfiltered humor and a love of storytelling, each episode brings you the fascinating tales you never learned in school. Perfect for anyone who enjoys history, true crime, and a good laugh along the way.

Travis Walton: The Most Famous UFO Abduction in America Jun 25, 2025

Show notes

He vanished in a beam of light. When he came back, he said he’d been taken aboard a UFO. And that was just the beginning.
In 1975, 22-year-old logger Travis Walton disappeared without a trace after a terrifying encounter with a UFO in the forests near Snowflake, Arizona. When he reappeared five days later, confused and frightened, he claimed he'd been taken aboard an alien craft. Was it the most credible alien abduction in U.S. history? Or an elaborate hoax designed to escape a failed logging contract?
This week, Shea is joined by her brother Jason—recording on location in Arizona—to explore the infamous Travis Walton incident. We break down what happened on that strange November night along the Mogollon Rim, dig into Travis’s vivid and chilling account of his time aboard the ship, and examine how the story inspired the nightmare-fuel film Fire in the Sky. We also look at how Walton has turned this event into a career, and why even some UFO believers think the whole thing might’ve been staged.
👽 Buckle up. It’s gonna get weird in the woods.
🎙 Support the show, get bonus content, early access, and more at
👉 www.rainydayrabbitholes.com/support
Use code SUMMEROFSAUCERS for 15% off your first month—through June 25 only!
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/history-unhinged-rainy-day-rabbit-holes--6271663/support.

Rainy Day Rabbit Holes Presents: Mysterious Pacific Northwest – The McMinnville UFO Photos Jun 18, 2025

Show notes

Rainy Day Rabbit Holes Presents: Mysterious Pacific Northwest – The McMinnville UFO Photos
As part of our Summer of Saucers celebration this June, we’re featuring an episode from Mysterious Pacific Northwest, one of our sister shows in the Umbrella Podcast Collective!
In this episode, they explore the captivating story of the McMinnville UFO photographs, taken by Evelyn and Paul Trent in May 1950. These images became some of the most famous pieces of alleged extraterrestrial evidence, sparking global interest in UFOs, fueling debates, and even inspiring the annual McMinnville UFO Festival.
You'll hear about:
👽 The backstory of the Trents and the day they captured the photos
📸 The cultural impact and investigations into their authenticity
🌎 How McMinnville became a UFO hotspot
🌐 Listen to more from Mysterious Pacific Northwest: Apple Podcasts
🌐 Discover all Umbrella Collective shows: rainydayrabbitholes.com/umbrella
🌐 Visit us: Rainy Day Rabbit Holes
Sources:

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/history-unhinged-rainy-day-rabbit-holes--6271663/support.

But What About Sparky? UFO's Part 3 Jun 11, 2025

Show notes

In this final installment of our three-part conversation with filmmaker, lawyer, and legend-level storyteller Steve Edmiston, we’re diving deep into the most unhinged festival in the Pacific Northwest: the Men In Black Birthday Bash!

We cover:

👽 The wild origin story of the bash

🐶 The heroic tale of Sparky the Dog and the upcoming disc dog tournament

👑 Drag queens, trivia, and SNL-worthy cosplay

🎟️ All the details you need to show up and how to win FREE tickets and exclusive swag!

This episode is part party preview, part UFO-lore love letter, and part official field guide for all things MIBBBFest. If you’re into aliens, oddities, or just need an excuse to dress in all black and scream-laugh at a trivia night — this one’s for you.

🎁 GIVEAWAY INFO:

We’re giving away:

2 pairs of tickets to the Maury Island Incident screening + Drag Queen Trivia on June 20
2 pairs of tickets to the MIBBB Main Event on June 21
2 MIBBB swag bags full of exclusive alien-approved goodies

🕛 Deadline: Midnight, June 13!

➡️ Enter all three at rainydayrabbitholes.com 🎧 Listen now!

🔗 Full event info: https://mibbbfest.squarespace.com/

Batsquatch with the Short Pour Podcast Jun 07, 2025

Show notes

What do you get when you mix craft beer, cryptids, and a whole lot of laughs? Shea from Rainy Day Rabbit Holes joins the Short Pour Podcast to drink Rogue Brewing’s Batsquatch IPA and unravel the juicy mysteries behind the legendary Bat Squatch.
In this episode, Shea crashes the Short Pour Podcast to sip Batsquatch IPA and dive headfirst into Pacific Northwest cryptid lore. From the weed-fueled origin stories of Bat Squatch to tales of Skamania County’s Bigfoot protection laws, the conversation hops between hazy beers, ridiculous one-star reviews, and Shea’s trademark skeptical humor. You’ll learn about Rogue’s famous Beard Beer, the Great American Beer Festival, and why Shea’s convinced the teenage Bat Squatch witness was just high as a kite. Plus, stick around for hilarious tangents on Momo the Missouri Monster, the Ozark Howler, and the infamous Ape Canyon attack.
🎧 Listen for juicy details, wild theories, and plenty of Pacific Northwest charm.
Make sure to follow the Short Pour Podcast! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/short-pour/id1730164900
And don’t forget — you can get bonus content, ad-free episodes, and exclusive perks at rainydayrabbitholes.com/support.
Catch us three times a week on Radio Tacoma!
Find more at rainydayrabbitholes.com.
Chapters:
00:00 – Intro & Meet Shea
08:45 – First Beers & Craft Beer Journey
18:20 – Rogue Brewing’s Wild Beers
31:45 – Legend of Bat Squatch
41:10 – The Skeptic’s Take
52:00 – Other PNW Cryptids & Ape Canyon
60:15 – Ridiculous Beer Reviews
66:30 – Bigfoot Laws & Cryptid Culture
75:00 – Rainy Day Rabbit Holes & Sign Off
Batsquatch, Rogue Brewing, cryptids, Pacific Northwest legends, craft beer, hazy IPA, Bat Squatch IPA, Short Pour Podcast, Shea Rainy Day Rabbit Holes, funny cryptid stories, Bigfoot laws, Skamania County Bigfoot, Ape Canyon attack, beer podcast

Was this the First X-File? Jun 04, 2025

Show notes

The Maury Island Incident wasn’t just a weird UFO story — it was the first X-File, complete with FBI agents, bomber crashes, and shadowy Men in Black.
In Part 2 of our conversation with filmmaker and historian Steve Edmiston, Shea and Jody pull you deep into the tangled webs of the Maury Island mystery. Why did J. Edgar Hoover take personal interest in a Washington state UFO case? What secrets were sealed away for 50 years? And was Fred Crisman a truth-teller or just a chaos-loving sociopath? Expect wild laughs, sharp insights, and deep dives into the Men in Black birthday bash, hidden military tests, and why UFO stories still haunt the Northwest.
Listen for our behind-the-scenes takes, award-winning costumes, and why Shea and Jody might just show up at this year’s bash. https://mibbbfest.squarespace.com/
✨ Chapters:

00:00 Welcome Back & Bash Teasers
10:30 FBI Takes Over UFO Investigation
22:15 Agent Jack Wilcox: The First Mulder
35:45 Crisman: Sociopath or Storyteller?
52:00 Military Secrets vs. UFOs
1:05:20 Industrial Waste Theories
1:18:00 Future Film & Series Ideas
1:25:00 The (Very Real) Struggles of Podcasting

🎧 Don’t miss our bonus content, ad-free episodes, and exclusive perks on Patreon or the Spreaker Supporter’s Club! Join at rainydayrabbitholes.com/support.
🌐 More at rainydayrabbitholes.com.
We’re giving away:
👽 2 pairs of tickets to the June 20 Maury Island Incident screening + afterparty
🕶️ 2 pairs of tickets to the June 21 Men in Black Birthday Bash
🎁 2 exclusive MIBBB swag bags ⚠️ You only have until MIDNIGHT, June 13 to enter!
👉 rainydayrabbitholes.com Enter all three contests + maximize your chances!
Tagging the Umbrella Podcast Collective (@umbrellapodcastcollective) + hear us three times a week on Radio Tacoma (@radiotacoma)!
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/history-unhinged-rainy-day-rabbit-holes--6271663/support.

Bonus: Steve Edmiston on combat storytelling May 31, 2025

Show notes

A little behind the scenes bonus conversation we had with filmmaker and Maury Island expert Steve Edmiston. We chat about skepticism, how we create history, and the art of combat storytelling!
Make sure to enter to win tickets to the Men In Black Birthday Bash, happening in Des Moines WA the weekend of June 20th! www.rainydayrabbitholes.com
Find out more at https://mibbbfest.squarespace.com/
Follow the Men In Black Birthday Bash on social!
https://www.facebook.com/622.MIB/
https://www.instagram.com/mibbb622/?hl=en
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/history-unhinged-rainy-day-rabbit-holes--6271663/support.

The Origin of the Men In Black May 28, 2025

Show notes

✨ UFOs, Men in Black, and Maury Island Mysteries (with Steve Edmiston) | Part 1
✨ Summary:
In this first episode of a three-part series, Shea and Jody sit down with filmmaker, lawyer, and UFO expert Steve Edmiston to uncover the wild story behind the Maury Island Incident — the Pacific Northwest’s own UFO conspiracy that helped birth the Men in Black legend! We dive into:
👽 The strange events at Maury Island
🕶️ How the term “flying saucer” started here in the PNW
🎬 Steve’s short film The Maury Island Incident
🎉 The upcoming Men In Black Birthday Bash
🎁 How YOU can win tickets + exclusive swag from the event! Stick around for Part 2 + 3, where we explore shady players like Fred Crisman, the legend of Sparky the dog, Roy Olmstead’s bootlegging empire, Yamashita’s gold, and Steve’s fascinating activism work. Links + Resources:
🎟️ Enter the giveaway → rainydayrabbitholes.com
🛸 Learn more about MIBBB Fest → mibbbfest.squarespace.com
🎬 Watch Steve’s film → https://mauryislandincident.com/
#MenInBlack #MauryIslandIncident #MIBBBFest #UFOhistory #PNWPodcast #ConspiracyTheories #RainyDayRabbitHoles #PNWstories #PodcastLife #UFOsightings #DragQueenTrivia #UFOEvents #AlienConspiracies #PodcastGiveaway
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/history-unhinged-rainy-day-rabbit-holes--6271663/support.

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