Astonishing Legends

Kinga Philipps is back with us for part two of our investigation into the legend of the lost city of Akakor.  In this episode, we look closer at the facts in this case, attempting to separate them from the fiction.  Kinga has a specific and knowledgeable insight into Tatunca Nara’s point of view as she and J.J. Kelley interviewed him at his home in Barcelos, Amazonas, in 2019 for their Travel Channel show, Lost in the Wild.  In the 1980s, at least three people hired Tatunca as a guide to find Akakor.  Two were never seen again, and one was found with a bullet hole in the back of their skull.  Did they insist on venturing into the jungle alone, as Tatunca claimed?  What became of the journalist Karl Brugger, whose book The Chronicle of Akakor could be considered the catalyst to this series of events?  Is this mystery more natural, supernatural, or criminal at its core?  Whatever the truth at the heart of this darkness, the fact is that an incredible account, a fantastic fable, mere words can spark quests and tragedy.Visit our website for a lot more information on this episode.

In this podcast, the hosts discuss the legend of the lost city of Akakor, an underground city in the Amazon jungle. They explore the fascination with this tale and the expeditions to find it. They also discuss the challenges and dangers of exploring the jungle, as well as the presence of ancient alien technologies in different cultures. The podcast delves into the mysteries and intrigue surrounding Akakor, captivating listeners with its multi-layered story.

In part 2 of our series on the Ghosts of Versailles, we’re looking into what transpired in the years following the initial incident. Charlotte Moberly and Eleanor Jourdain conducted intense research to figure out who or what they may have been interacting with on August 10th, 1901. That research led them, among many other things, to discover there was an insurrection on that exact day in 1792, 71 years earlier to the day. The Tuileries Place is not in Versailles but in Paris, 11 miles away. Revolutionaries with weapons wanted the Monarchy abolished. They waged an intense attack on the palace that Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette were now living in on lockdown. On that day, 650 of the Swiss Guard were massacred by Jacobins and a group known as the Paris Commune. Once the Swiss Guard ran out of ammunition, they were slaughtered, and their bodies dismembered and paraded about the palace grounds. King Louis and Marie Antoinette had moved to a safer location in the Legislative Assembly Building. Moberly and Jourdain wondered if they might have somehow intersected with what no doubt would have been Marie Antoinette’s fearful and saddened state of mind that day. Is it possible she was reminiscing about happier times at her favorite place in the world, Le Petit Trianon? Could Moberly and Jourdain have somehow crossed paths with Antoinette's ghostly memories of happiness on the anniversary of the day that would mark the beginning of the end, not only for the King and herself but the Monarchy, too? We’ll discuss that and our theories about what may have happened and how the Ghosts of Versailles evolved into the story it is today.Visit our website for a lot more information on this episode.

In the late summer of 1901, two women journeyed to the renowned Palace of Versailles, a few miles west of Paris. This breathtaking royal home, once the epitome of the French Monarchy during the reigns of Louis XIV, XV, and XVI, was an unfamiliar territory to them. Yet, the palace grounds seemed eager to impart a history lesson they had not anticipated. While exploring the vast estate, Charlotte Anne Moberly and Eleanor Jourdain found themselves amidst various characters adorned in peculiar attire. They noticed buildings, structures, and anachronistic farm tools from a past era. It was as if they had inadvertently stepped through a portal into a bygone era. The highlight of their uncanny experience may have been an encounter with a spectral figure of what may have been Queen Marie Antoinette herself. The bewildering events of that summer day left Moberly and Jourdain perplexed. Over time, they gradually pieced together the puzzle of their extraordinary visit. Years were devoted to delving into Versailles' rich history, with additional visits undertaken to comprehend the mysterious occurrences they had witnessed. Despite being mocked by many, they remained steadfast in their quest to understand what they had seen in 1901. Today, their astonishing experience, known as the Moberly-Jourdain Incident or The Ghosts of Versailles, continues to fascinate fans of timeslips, time travel and encounters with ghosts of events that happened long ago. Tonight, Scott is joined by special guest co-hosts Richard Hatem and Marie Mayhew to dive into this bizarre tale.Visit our website for a lot more information on this episode.

Enjoy episode number 21 of the Patreon-exclusive Astonishing Junk Drawer! 

Would you look at that? It’s already the end of 2023, and our second favorite annual holiday is upon us. We’re now into our 4th annual tradition of the Astonishing Legends All-Star Holiday Special, and it indeed has taken on a life of its own. This year, we’re welcoming back all of our guests from last year and being joined by a few new ones as well. This show was recorded and broadcast live on video to our Patrons at Patreon.com/astonishinglegends a few weeks ago and in fact, if you are a patron you can still access the uncensored and unedited version of it there. You’ll hear the audio from that presentation, slightly edited for length and propriety tonight. To the extent that’s possible, anyway. The Holiday Special topics are wide-ranging and generally unplanned; this year is no exception. We touched on everything from the ubiquitous UAP phenomenon to podcast production to some of our various guests’ favorite topics of the past year. Allison Jornlin talks about going on Shark Tank with her brother, and Micah Hanks invites us all to come and see the infamous Brown Mountain Lights in North Carolina for ourselves. So get the fire going, settle down under a warm blanket with some eggnog or even a holiday cocktail, and enjoy this wonderful tradition with our returning guests, Richard Hatem, Jim Harold, Micah Hanks, Paul Gledhill, and Allison Jornlin. And please join us in welcoming the hosts of the new Astonishing Legends Network podcast ‘Scared All the Time.’  Stay tuned after the closing credits for a special afterparty and toast to our other network show, ‘The Midnight Library’, and a wonderful visit from our own Tess Pfeifle.Visit our website for a lot more information on this episode.

Part 2 of the podcast delves into the odd clues and loose ends of the mysterious death of Zigmund Adamski. They debate the involvement of extraterrestrial meddling and explore the possibility of unintentional homicide. Philip Mantle offers expert insights on the case and shares his own experiences. The speakers discuss unsettling details and speculate on the cause of death. They also touch on intriguing topics like dying from laughter or fright, communication problems during paranormal encounters, and the impact of unseen forces on electronic devices.

Zigmund Adamski, a Polish immigrant miner, goes missing and is found dead under mysterious circumstances. Clues include burn marks, a green ointment, and odd dressing. The coroner never identifies the ointment. PC Godfrey, involved in the case, has a UFO encounter months later.

On July 3, 1975, the Ministry of Justice in Japan responded to an inquiry by Amelia Earhart researcher and investigator Major Joe Gervais. Gervais had sent a letter to the Department of Immigration and Naturalization in Tokyo, operating on the hunch that Earhart had been taken prisoner and held on Saipan during WWII but under an assumed identity. The Ministry of Justice responded, saying the woman in their custody was known to them as Irene Craigmile. This was not a name mentioned by Gervais to the Japanese authorities. So, who is Irene Craigmile? Craigmile and Earhart were acquaintances and pilots who looked similar, but photos show they are two separate people. This begs the question for the “Japanese Capture” theory of Earhart’s disappearance: who then went down with the plane that was apparently ditched near Buka Island in Papua New Guinea? Were these two women connected via some secret mission, and is the plane at Buka a version of Earhart’s Electra 10-E? These questions and evidence are just a few of the puzzle pieces of the enduring mystery of Earhart’s fateful last flight, meticulously stitched together by William “Bill” Pennington Snavely, Jr. in his latest book, Lost in Flight: Amelia Earhart, Giving Cover as a Decoy for a Spy Plane. In 2018, Bill was a guest on our show, where he outlined his research leading to a startling theory of Earhart’s plane possibly having crashed near the coast of Matsungan Island near Buka, eventually sinking to a depth of 109 feet. Two main aspects of Bill’s investigation that remain novel are that, unlike the other researchers, he calculated his flight tracking starting from the last known location and then traced backward and that his team is the only one with an aircraft to investigate whose characteristics match the Electra. Bill’s multiple expeditions to Buka have yielded intriguing evidence supporting his claim, evidence which has previously been kept under wraps due to nondisclosure agreements. However, as his research in the intervening years continued, a new hybrid theory emerged from his discoveries that may solve the disconnect between “Japanese Capture” and the wreckage at Buka. Could it be that a failed reconnaissance mission led to one of the greatest coverups in US history? Bill Snavely is now free to disclose the shocking findings he revealed in his book. Also joining us is longtime friend and fellow podcaster Chris Williamson, whose podcast Chasing Earhart and its companion book, Rabbit Hole: The Vanishing of Amelia Earhart & Fred Noonan, is the definitive interview collection. Prepare to suit up as we dive for the truth behind one of the world’s most famous and significant aviation enigmas. Visit our website for a lot more information on this episode.

Adam Livingston moved his family from Pennsylvania to a parcel of farmland near a village then known as Smithfield, West Virginia, sometime in the 1770s. The village’s name would evolve over the years to the more pragmatic name of Middleway. However, colloquially, it would also acquire the moniker of “Clip” or “Cliptown” for the bizarre events that would transpire there. A few years before 1790, the once-thriving Livingston family would begin to endure supernatural harassment so extreme that they were beleaguered and exhausted, leaving their neighbors and visitors bewildered. According to one popular account, a mysterious Irish stranger appeared at Livingston’s door seeking shelter one dark and stormy night. Livingston provided hospitality to the weary traveler until the stranger summoned his host when fearing his death was near, begging that he send for a priest to deliver last rites. While Livingston was generous in his accommodation, being a Lutheran and having a disdain for Catholic priests, he refused to send for one. The stranger died during the night and was buried in unconsecrated ground the next day. Soon after, it seems a curse had befallen the Livingstons. Progressing as many stories of prolonged poltergeist bedevilment do, the haunting started with strange and unexplained noises about the home. Then, unseen forces would smash their crockery, light their bedding on fire, and roll great balls of fire from the hearth across the floors, causing panic. Livingston’s cattle all died, and his barn burned down. The entity’s most noteworthy destruction was making a persistent sound of clipping as if by invisible shears and leaving any family or visitor’s cloth or leather sliced, often with crescent shapes cut into them. This peculiar practice would lend the phenomenon its name, the “Wizard Clip.” While we may never know the accurate details of the happenings, something otherworldly apparently did materialize at the Livingston homestead. We can more easily explore why such mystical occurrences transmogrify into enduring folklore. To help us with that challenge, we’re joined by author and intelligence analyst Michael Kishbucher, whose recent book, The Appalachian Legend of the Wizard Clip, thoroughly investigates this early American story. Aiding in the elucidation is Appalachian folklore expert, lead researcher, and producer for Small Town Monsters Heather Moser. Cautiously pull up a chair close to the fire as we examine the obscure yet harrowing tale of “America’s first poltergeist.” Visit our website for a lot more information on this episode.