The Oddcast: Tales of the Occult, Weird, and Arcane

Episode 45: The Monkey's Paw by W.W. Jacobs Mar 07, 2023

First published in 1902 by Harper's Monthly and reprinted in his third collection of short stories The Lady of the Barge (also, 1902). The Monkey's Paw is one of the most well-known, adapted, and influential horror short stories ever written.

An old war acquaintance brings a furry talisman in the shape of a monkey's paw, which promises to grant three wishes to whomever wishes upon it.

Sergeant-Major Morris: Nik Marvin (shamanagans@globular.org)

Mrs. White: Miranda Friel

Herbert White: Jim Tobe

Mr. White, Stranger, Narration, Music and Sound Design: Jon Fredette

Episode 44: Midsummer by Arthur Machen Apr 05, 2022

Arthur Machen, the pen-name of Arthur Llewellyn Jones, was a Welsh author and mystic of the 1890s and early 20th century. He has garnered a reputation as one most influential classic horror story authors to have ever written.

Summary: Leonard, a farm hand, after a day in the city retires to his small house for the evening and, restless, decides to take his wandering thoughts out into the surrounding woods. What he comes across during his walk is perhaps the best kept secret in the village.

Narration, Sound, and Music by Jon Fredette

Episode 43: Terra Incognita by Vladimir Nabokov Jan 10, 2022

First published in the émigré journal Posledniya Novosti in Paris in 1931. Translated by the author and his son, the story was published in English in The New Yorker in May, 1963, and later added to A Russian Beauty and Other Stories.Three men traverse an area of unknown country, the tropical hell of Badonia, in hopes of reaching the Gurano Hills and escaping Zonraki. Gregson, Cook by Nik Marvin Valiere, Narration, Sound Design, and Music by Jon Fredette

Episode 42: The Beautiful Suit by H.G. Wells Oct 29, 2021

Originally published under the title "A Moonlight Fable" in the April 10, 1909, number of Collier's Weekly. A young man acquires a hand-woven suit from his mother, and, becoming obsessed with its beauty over a period of days, he flees into the night with it. Narration, Sound Design, and Music by Jon Fredette.

Episode 41: The Awakening by Arthur C. Clarke Oct 02, 2021

First published in Zenith in February 1942 and later revised and published in Future in January of 1952. Collected in The Best of Arthur C. Clarke 1937-1955. Upon discovering a terminal illness that will kill him within a year, an influential cult leader known only as "The Master" enters deep cryosleep for a century in hopes of awakening once a cure has been discovered. Narration, Music, and Sound Design by Jon Fredette.

Episode 40: The Guide by Ellis Peters Sep 06, 2021

Ellis Peters (nom de plume of Edith Pargeter) was an English writer, and the short story (originally titled Guide to Doom) was first published in Alfred Hitchcocks: Stories that Scared Even Me in 1967. As a tour guide of an old fortified mansion finishes his last tour of the day, he is approached by a mysterious man who asks if he can see an infamous well within the manor. Guide: Jon FredetteMusic and Sound Design by Jon Fredette

Episode 39: Gateway of the Mind by Anonymous Jul 18, 2021

Originally posted on Creepypasta on November 23, 2009 by an anonymous author. An experiment in the early 80s attempts to establish contact with God by depriving a test subject of all senses. Narration and Sound Design by Jon Fredette.

Episode 38: The Writing of the God by Jorge Luis Borges May 13, 2021

Original Spanish title: "La escritura del dios"First published in the literary magazine Sur in 1949, and later reprinted in The Aleph. An incarcerated magician seeks a divine script that will allow him the omnipotence to free himself and avenge the destruction of his pyramid at Qaholom. Voice: Nik Marvin Narration, Music, Sound Design by Jon Fredette

Episode 37: They're Made Out of Meat by Terry Bisson Apr 01, 2021

Originally published in 1991 through OMNI magazine. Two multidimensional aliens deliberate over contacting the human race once they realize their entirely made out of meat. Aliens: Mats Bennett and Jon FredetteSound Design by Jon Fredette

Episode 36: An Inhabitant of Carcosa by Ambrose Bierce Feb 20, 2021

First published in the San Francisco Newsletter of December 25, 1886 and was later reprinted as part of Bierce's collections Tales of Soldiers and Civilians and Can Such Things Be?A man from the ancient city of Carcosa awakens from a sickness-induced sleep to find himself lost in an unfamiliar wilderness.Music, Sound Design, and Narration by Jon Fredette

Episode 35: 2BR02B by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. Dec 31, 2020

Published in the January 1962 in the Worlds of "If" Science Fiction magazine. A painter in the Chicago Lying-In Hospital witnesses an absurd scene in the lobby while he creates a mural immortalizing VIPs in a time of overpopulation. Cast (Instagram Handles): Painter - Gabriel Clausen (@g_period)Orderly - Jim Tobe (@jimtobe)Leora Duncan - Miranda Friel (@miranda.friel)Dr. Hitz - Mats BennettWheling/Narration - Jon Fredette (@glib_reaper)Hostess - Rebecca Bishop (@rebeccabishopartistry)Contributors from Fiverr: Voice for song: stuckonapuzzleVoiceover Artists: voxpopuli_gbhopevoiceoversathiraanand13perbatgigmeister1Narration, Sound Design, and Music by Jon Fredette"America the Beautiful" by Samuel A. Ward and the Victor recording label, provided by the Library of Congress.

Episode 34: Leiningen Versus the Ants by Carl Stephenson Dec 06, 2020

Originally published in the December 1938 edition of Esquire. It is a translation, probably by Stephenson himself, of "Leiningens Kampf mit den Ameisen" which was originally published in German in 1938.Summary: A Brazilian plantation owner and his 400 workers brave an onslaught of millions of merciless and ravenous ants. Narration, Music, and Sound Design by Jon Fredette.District Commissioner played by Pedro Daher: https://www.fiverr.com/pedrodaher?source=order_page_summary_seller_linkAdditional Sounds by FreeSound Forum Users:briankennemar and RTB45

Episode 33: Darkness by Lord Byron Nov 01, 2020

Written in July of 1816 and inspired by "The Year Without Summer", the aftermath of the eruption of Mount Tambora in the Dutch East Indies the previous year, in which enough sulphur was cast into the atmosphere to change global temperatures and weather patterns. A post-apocalyptic "last man" poem. Sound Design and Narration by Jon Fredette.

Episode 32: In the Court of the Dragon by Robert W. Chambers Oct 24, 2020

First published in his collection The King in Yellow in 1895. An unnamed narrator attends an afternoon mass at the church St. Barnabe and has several frightful encounters with a menacing organ player. Sound Design, Music, and Narration by Jon FredetteMonseigneur C - Nik Marvin

Episode 31: The Black Meat by Eric Dean Sep 24, 2020

Published on Monologging.org, on S.H. Roddey’s Haunted Head, and in Literati Presents #5 by Literati Press. The original audio version, hosted on youtube.com/ericdean, was Recorded by Rish Outfield and released on his fiction podcast The Dunesteef (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-dunesteef-audio-fiction-magazine/id284671097).Follow Eric on Instagram at /ericidean or at his website www.ericwrites.comSummary: A journalist ruminates on the cultural impact of a new delicacy as he is invited to taste it for the first time. Narrated, Sound Design, and Music Composition by Jon Fredette. Additional Voices by Nik Marvin, Rish Outfield, and Miranda Friel.

Episode 30: The Boarded Window by Ambrose Bierce Jul 30, 2020

First published in the San Francisco Examiner on April 12, 1891 and reprinted in Bierce's collection Tales of Soldiers and Civilians the same year. A narrator recounts what he knows of an old woodsman who lived in a mysteriously boarded up cabin for several years before his death. Music, Narration, and Sound Design by Jon Fredette.

Episode 29: The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas by Ursula K. Le Guin Jun 13, 2020

Originally published in the October edition of New Dimensions 3 in 1973. The story was nominated for the Locust Award for Best Short Fiction in 1974 and won the Hugo Award for Best Short story in the same year.The utopian Omelas enjoys its annual summer festival amid the dark secret that is kept within a broom closet of a cellar beneath one of the richest buildings of the city.Narration, Music, Sound Design by Jon Fredette.

Episode 27: The Screwfly Solution by Raccoona Sheldon Apr 09, 2020

Originally published in the anthology "Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact" (June, 1977) the novelette went on to win the Nebula Award that year under the pen name James Tiptree Jr.As an unprecedented sickness spreads around the globe, a scientist hurries home to be with his wife and daughter. Alan - Jon Fredette Anne - Miranda FrielAmy - Megan McIver Barney - Mats Bennett Prof. Ian McIntyre - Jim Tobe Willard Mews - Tony WolfSound File Credits (Free Sound Forum): TheScarlettWitch89azimuth413uair01Narration by Jon Fredette and Miranda Friel Sound Design and Music by Jon Fredette

Episode 26: Orientation by Daniel Orozco Feb 28, 2020

Originally published in The Seattle Review and subsequently in The Best American Short Stories 1995.A new office employee is given orientation on the first day of work by a detached, yet knowledgable, veteran of the job.Narration, Sound Design, and Music by Jon Fredette.

Episode 25: The Mirror by Haruki Murakami Jan 17, 2020

Written in 1981/2 and published in 1983 in an undisclosed Japanese periodical. Later added to his short story collection Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman which was published in 2006. A man recalls a frightening experience he had in his brief time as a night watchman at a school in the Niigata Prefecture. Translated by Philip Gabriel. Narration, Sound Design, and Music by Jon Fredette.

Episode 24: The Secret Miracle by Jorge Luis Borges Dec 16, 2019

First published in the magazine Sur in 1943. Failed playwrite Jaromir Hladik is captured during the Nazi occupation of Prague in the early stages of World War II. Awaiting his execution in prison, he seeks redemption for a wasted life through contemplating his unfinished work, The Enemies. Narration, "Hladik", Music, Sound Design by Jon Fredette. Additional Voices by Mats Bennett and Miranda Friel.

Episode 23: The Kraken by Alfred, Lord Tennyson Nov 01, 2019

First published in Tennyson's first solo collection, "Poems, Chiefly Lyrical" (1830) when he was around 20 years old. One of the few sonnets Tennyson penned and with this one specifically he grossly distorts the sonnet form to better fit the horrendous mythical sea creature he describes. Narration, Sound Design and Music by Jon Fredette.

Episode 22: The Daughters of the Moon by Italo Calvino Oct 14, 2019

A modern folktale which takes place in a parallel-universe New York City; mysterious lunar women are hypnotized by the moon's influence and converge at the edge of the city to undertake a clandestine task for the satellite. First written in 1968 and originally published with the rest of his cosmic tales in Le cosmicomiche (The Cosmicomics); it was translated much later in 2009 and republished in The New Yorker. Sound design, music, narration and "Qfwfq" by Jon Fredette"Diana" by Miranda FrielTranslated by Martin Mclaughlin

Episode 21: The Continuity of Parks by Julio Cortazar Jul 12, 2019

"Continuidad de los parques" was originally written in Spanish and first published within the Editorial Sudamericana in 1964. Summary: A man settles down to finish reading an immersive novel and suffers the consequences of doing so. Narration, Sound Design, and Music by Jon Fredette.

Episode 20: The Sect of the Idiot by Thomas Ligotti May 15, 2019

First published in Crypt of Cthulhu in 1988. A man visits a nameless town and questions his existence as reality transforms into nightmare around him, leading him to a clandestine sect of dreams and dark dimensions. Narration, Sound Design, and Music by Jon Fredette

Episode 19: The Moon-Bog by H.P. Lovecraft Apr 16, 2019

First written around March 1921, the story was first published in the June 1926 issue of the pulp magazine Weird Tales.Summary: a man visits an isolated castle at Kilderry, where an old friend plans to drain an ancient and locally-revered swamp bog. Narration, Sound Design, and Composition by Jon Fredette

Episode 18: The Star by H.G. Wells Feb 28, 2019

First published in the Christmas number of The Graphic in 1897. It is credited with the creation of the subgenre depicting the "impact event" of science fiction, and is referenced in Arthur C. Clarke's "Rendezvous with Rama". Summary: At the turn of the 19th century, a celestial collision in our solar system first captures the attention of the world and then threatens all life on earth. Narration, Sound Design, and Music Composed by Jon Fredette. Additional voices by Megan McIver, Miranda Friel, Mats Bennett, and voice actors from Fiverr.

Episode 17: The Masque of the Red Death by Edgar Allen Poe Dec 18, 2018

The story was first published in May 1842 in Graham's Magazine and has since been adapted in many different forms, including a 1964 film starring Vincent Price. Prince Prospero walls himself in one of his abbeys, passing the time with wealthy nobles in hedonistic masquerades, in hopes of waiting out a deadly plague known as the Red Death.Narration, Sound Design, and Music Composed by Jon Fredette.

Episode 16: Memento Mori by Jonathan Nolan Jan 11, 2018

Originally published in the March 2001 edition of Esquire magazine. It was the basis for the film Memento directed by Christopher Nolan. A man with anterograde amnesia hunts for his wife's murderer. Narration, Sound Design, Music Composition by Jon Fredette.

Episode 15: The Circular Ruins by Jorge Luis Borges Dec 04, 2017

Originally "Las ruinas circulares". First published in the literary journal Sur in December 1940. It was first published in English in View (Series V, No. 6 1946). An itinerant magician discovers a site of arcane, circular ruins, a forsaken temple, and finds inspiration to complete his earthly task.Narration and Sound Design by Jon Fredette. Translated by J.E.I.

Episode 14: Men Without Bones by Gerald Kersh May 17, 2017

Originally published by Esquire in 1954. Summary: While at dock, a passenger of a banana boat encounters a mad, weary traveller seeking passage away from the terrors he experienced on a lost expedition. Dr. Goodbody played by Hunter Hash.Narration, Sound Design, and Composition by Jon Fredette.

Episode 13: A Madman by Maurice Level Feb 21, 2017

Summary: A psychopath finds brief reprieve from a prolonged depression in a Parisian daredevil's act. The Cyclist played by Tony Wolf. Narration, Sound Design and Composition by Jon Fredette.Jeanne Mareteux Level (1875-1926) was a doctor and author of some 700 'conte cruel', many of which were adapted for performance at the infamous Grand Guignol theatre in Paris. Level began to write while on night shifts in a hospital where he was working as a surgeon, and his stories soon began to appear regularly in the newspaper, Le Journal. 26 of his 'cruel tales' were translated into English by Alys Eyre Macklin and published shortly after the First World War as Tales of Mystery and Horror in the US, and as Crises in the UK.

Episode 12: Sredni Vashtar by Saki Jan 15, 2017

Summary: With his imagination, a sickly boy creates his own religion, worshipping a merciless and vengeful god, to help him cope with his dull, depressive existence. Originally written by Saki (Hector Hugh Munro) between 1900 and 1911 and initially published in his book The Chronicles of Clovis. It has been adapted for opera, film, radio and television.Narration, Sound design, music by Jon Fredette. Additional voices by Megan McIver: www.meganmciver.comMusic during end "pitch" provided by Myriad Black: https://myriadblack.bandcamp.com/

Episode 11: Aborted Mother by Mark Slade Nov 27, 2016

Summary: A baby and her mother are visited at home by a gift-bearing stranger in a post-apocalyptic dystopia. Mark Slade has appeared in numerous publications such as The Stray Branch, Weird Year and Wicked Gardens. He has written/and created such audio shows as Blackout City, The Sundowners and written for audio shows The Curiosity Peddler and Manor House. His new anthology (co-edited by Gavin Chappell) is Dark Dreams where all the characters in the stories share the same dreams and nightmares.Now available at this link http://www.lulu.com/shop/rogue-planet-press/dark-dreams/paperback/product-22931027.html Mark has a forthcoming book about a secret society WPS written with other members of that secret society.Mark lives in Williamsburg, VA with his wife, daughter, and a Pomeranian that uses mind control on humans.Mark's website: http://bloodydreadful.blogspot.com/Megan's website: www.meganmciver.comAborted Mother. Written by Mark Slade. Sound design, music, and narration by Jon Fredette. Additional voices by Megan McIver.

Episode 10: The Hidden Beast by J.D. Beresford Sep 23, 2016

Summary: A man encounters an isolated stranger who lives at the edge of his village and discovers there is more to the stranger than he first surmised. John Davys Beresford (17 March 1873 – 1 February 1947) was an English writer, now remembered for his early science fiction and some short stories in the horror story and ghost story genres. Beresford was a great admirer of H.G. Wells, and wrote the first critical study of Wells in 1915.Narration, sound design, and score by Jon Fredette

Episode 9: The Vector by Jon Fredette Jun 14, 2016

Summary: The fate of humankind hinges on informational broadcasts from the Emergency Alert System about an unknown pathogen outbreak. I decided to write a short story and keep the podcast going while I am away from my home system and incapable of recording my voice. Story, composition and sound design by Jon Fredette Soundcloud (Overflow Downloads): https://soundcloud.com/the-oddcast-2/the-vectorBandcamp (Lossless Downloads): https://jonfredette-sounddesign.bandcamp.com/

Episode 8: An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge by Ambrose Bierce Apr 15, 2016

Summary: Peyton Farquhar, a plantation owner in his mid-thirties, is being prepared for execution by hanging from an Alabama railroad bridge during the American Civil War.Background Info: Originally published by The San Francisco Examiner on July 13, 1890, it was first collected in Bierce's 1891 book Tales of Soldiers and Civilians. The story, which is set during the Civil War, is famous for its irregular time sequence. Bierce's abandonment of strict linear narration in favor of the internal mind of the protagonist is considered an early example of experimentation with stream of consciousness.Narration, Sound Design, and Music by Jon Fredette. Additional voices by Tony Wolf and Megan McIver.

Episode 7: The Russian Sleep Experiment by An Unknown Author Jan 28, 2016

Summary: In the 1940s, Russian scientists kept 5 men awake for 15 straight days. The results were horrifying. Background Information: This story was taken from the horror site Creepy Pasta, and is one of the more celebrated stories on the site. To my knowledge, the author is still unknown to this day. Narration and Sound Design by Jon Fredette.

Episode 5: Dagon by HP Lovecraft Oct 06, 2014

Summary: the testament of a tortured, morphine-addicted man who plans to commit suicide over an incident that occurred early on in World War I when he was a merchant marine officer and adrift on the open ocean. Written in July 1917, one of the first stories HP Lovecraft wrote as an adult. It was first published in the November 1919 edition of The Vagrant (Issue #11). Narration and Sound Design by Jon Fredette.

Episode 4: The Sphinx by Edgar Allen Poe Aug 30, 2014

Summary: A man encounters a terrific monster and believes it to be an omen of his own death. Background Information: "The Sphinx" was only published once, in Philadelphia's Arthur's Ladies Magazine during January of 1846. The story takes place right outside of New York City, where Poe was living with Virginia at the time. The story is set fourteen years into the past in 1832, when a terrible epidemic of cholera had indeed infected the people of New York City. This is a historical fact, and thousands of people died as a result. The relevance to Poe's time is that, in 1846, a new sort of epidemic had infected the populace, principally his very wife, Virginia. The horror that the narrator reflects throughout his tale for his dying friends no doubt reveals Poe's own fears about the imminent death that is soon to claim Virginia's life, which shall be taken a year later on January 30, 1847.Narrated by and Sound Design by Jon Fredette.

Episode 3: The Vulture by Franz Kafka Aug 09, 2014

(orig. German Der Geier) Written sometime between 1917 and 1923, shortly after Kafka's diagnosis with tuberculosis. A vulture slowly eats a man alive as he contemplates his salvation and the inevitable end. Read by Tony Wolf. "The Gentleman" and Sound Design by Jon Fredette.

Episode 2: The Bridge by Franz Kafka Jul 25, 2014

Originally written in 1916. Published posthumously in Beim Bau der Chinesischen Mauer (Berlin, 1931). A bridge, personified, tells of its existence, purpose, and demise. Read by Jon Fredette. Sound Design by Jon Fredette.

Episode 1: Nyarlathotep by HP Lovecraft Jun 27, 2014

First published in 1920 to the November edition of The United Amateur. The arrival of an unknown evil alters the path of humanity forever. Read by Jon Fredette. Sound Design by Jon Fredette.

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