Matt, Katie, and EJ tackle the latest in weird news, talking vampire burials, and drilling into Noah's Ark. Plus, we examine ghost-repelling potions, the weird history of a lake monster video, and the unofficial beverage of Bigfoot researchers.

Archeologists analyze a vampire burial found in Poland

https://www.cnn.com/2026/08/21/science/vampire-burial-young-woman-poland

Filmmakers studying viral Champ footage

https://www.adirondackexplorer.org/communities/filmmakers-who-captured-viral-champ-footage-to-appoint-panel-for-full-analysis/

https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/magazine/1995/05/07/truth-decay/acc35bb5-70db-4fe0-a56c-477ebd4d9834/

Drilling begins at Noah’s Ark site

https://nypost.com/2026/09/22/lifestyle/drilling-begins-at-noahs-ark-site-as-researchers-probe-turkeys-controversial-durupinar-formation/

Hazmat needed after anti-ghost spell goes awry

https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/state/north-carolina/article317071644.html

Hard Mountain Dew offers cast prize for bigfoot

https://nypost.com/2026/09/21/us-news/hard-mountain-dew-offers-1m-for-proof-that-bigfoot-exists/

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On a cold December day in 1967, a suspension bridge in West Virginia collapsed. The accident happened at rush hour, plunging automobiles into the chilly Ohio river. In the years that followed the tragedy, strange stories began to emerge. Some residents claimed that they had seen a bizarre, winged creature on the nights leading up to the collapse. Described as a huge, flying animal with glowing red eyes, this creature was quickly linked to the ill-fated bridge, and the deaths of nearly fifty motorists.

Dubbed “Mothman,” this strange entity would become one of the most popular figures in all of cryptozoology. Existing in the grey area between real animals and spiritual guardians, Mothman has become a harbinger of doom. If you see the red eyes, tragedy is coming.

But the origins of Mothman are even stranger. The creation of this myth dips into so many buckets of Fortean science, that Mothman is almost a mascot for the field. You can’t talk about this cryptid without talking about alien visitation, men in black, hollow earth, clairvoyance, and the bizarre, swirling pot that brewed mid-century esotericism.

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We’ve talked about haunted locations before, from the Winchester Mystery House to Bhangarh Fort and the grandaddy of them all, the Amityville House. But today’s topic is not just one of the most haunted structures, it’s one of the most haunted seas in the world. Surrounding a remote atoll in Micronesia is a graveyard of automobiles, planes, and ships; the victims of a massive battle during World War II. Called the “Ghost Fleet of Chuuk Lagoon,” these wrecks are not only one of the most popular and iconic dives. Allegedly, they are haunted by the ghosts of the Japanese and American Naval soldiers who lost their lives in the conflict.

Divers claim to have seen ghostly apparitions in the wreckage. Some even claim to have encountered phantom divers that follow them as they traverse the rusting husks. Others swear they have heard voices, or running machinery, as if the spirits are continuing their work in the chilling depths.

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Matt, Katie, and EJ conclude their investigation of the Curse of the Crying Boy, a haunted painting with the power to burn whatever it touches. The Sun offers to burn Londoner's copies of the painting in a public pyre, claiming it will finally rid them of the curse. But as the story spreads, some people claim that the remaining pictures of crying children are still jinxed. Is it true, or is there some more mundane explanation for why these pantings refuse to go up in flames?

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Matt, Katie, and EJ break down the latest in Fortean news. A modern-day witch trial unfolds in Hanover, PA as a New Age shop challenges a 160 year old law. Ufologists investigate a possible weapon on Mars. And a newly-identified squid shows up in the most unlikely place. Plus, an Australian-themed exorcism.

• Hanover witch trials

https://www.witf.org/2026/07/18/pennsylvania-tarot-reading-lawsuit-advances-after-judge-denies-motion-to-dismiss/

https://www.wgal.com/article/york-county-lawsuit-challenges-pennsylvania-165-year-old-fortune-telling-ban/73369978

• Cindy Crawford’s daughter was possessed and had an exorcism

https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/kaia-gerber-claims-she-had-exorcism-as-a-possessed-child/

• Alien object on Mars

https://www.gbnews.com/science/space-breakthrough-object-mars-life

https://www.yahoo.com/news/science/articles/mysterious-mars-object-stirring-extraterrestrial-143101720.html

https://www.ufosightingsdaily.com/2026/07/nasa-mars-rover-finds-alien-missile.html

• New squid found in 70 year old collection

https://spacedaily.com/t-sperm-whale-stomach-new-squid-family-mobydickia/

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In England in the 1980s, a new haunted object exploded onto the occult scene. This was a painting of a crying boy, a painting allegedly possessing such a dark and powerful energy that it was indestructible. Even after a housefire gutted their home, the owners of the painting swore that it remained unharmed, as if the painting itself had been the cause of the blaze.

The most terrifying part: the painting was one of a thousands, and all of them were cursed. This series of paintings of crying children have become synonymous with catastrophe, from death to destruction. Some even claimed the child depicted in the painting was the devil himself.

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Matt, Katie, and EJ conclude their investigation into Mokele-Mbembe and the living dinosaurs of Africa. New investigator William Gibbons experiences a terrifying attack in the jungle, and converts to Christianity. Now empowered by God, he leverages Young Earth Creationism and cryptozoology in his future expeditions. Meanwhile, more and more researchers fail to capture evidence of dinosaurs, even as Werner Herzog and Steve Boyes track mysterious ghost elephants in Angola. What do these real animals tell us about the living dinosaurs of the Congo? And are there any surviving sauropods out there?

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Matt, Katie, and EJ tackle the latest in Fortean news. This month, we dive into the New Apostolic Movement, as small town church wages war with their neighboring bookstore, claiming that it's full of demons. Plus, an alien steals James Franco's lunch, and Jimothy the raccoon continues his antics.

The Demon Next Door

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/2026/08/charismatic-christian-church-tennessee/687624/

James Franco's alien:

https://www.irishstar.com/culture/entertainment/james-franco-addresses-alien-footage-37437551

https://www.snopes.com/news/2026/07/16/james-franco-alien-footage/

Jimothy the raccoon:

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/meet-jimothy-seattles-internet-famous-raccoon/

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