Richard Hatem's Paranormal Bookshelf

Astonishing Legends co-host Scott Philbrook returns to chat with Richard about his upcoming “Light in the Dark Tour 2026” -- as well as answer such never-before-asked questions as: What scares our dogs? Where will Scott & Forrest be appearing live in September? Did Abbott & Costello get along? Can anyone find Scott’s legendary “lost” appearance on “Portlandia”? Did Richard schedule too many shows on this tour -- and will Susan ever forgive him?? Find out the answers to these and many more questions on today’s episode!LINKS: Get tickets to Richard Hatem’s “Light in the Dark Tour 2026” LIVE!: https://www.richardhatemsparanormalbookshelf.com/eventsSupport RHPB on Patreon here! https://patreon.com/RichardHatem?utm_medium=unknown&utm_source=join_link&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator&utm_content=copyLinkCelebrate 2026 with 26% off all RHPB merch with offer code RHPB26! CLICK HERE and the discount is pre-applied! https://richardhatem-shop.fourthwall.com/promo/RHPB26Need help with your personal writing projects? Richard is here to help! Get 20% off when you mention RHPB! https://www.richardhatem.com/Notes:Get the answer to ALL of your Abbott & Costello questions here:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/abbott-and-costello-meet-the-podcast/id1729032545Is your dog afraid of hiccups, just like Luna? Learn about your dog’s weird fears here: https://www.redpointydog.com/post/understanding-your-dog-s-fear-what-to-look-for-and-how-to-help-them

“That’s what was different about paranormal cases as opposed to my usual ones. These cases made me wonder ‘What If?’ I wondered if Bigfoot had supernatural abilities. Could it pass through dimensions the way we pass through air? Could it make itself invisible? Is that why it was so rarely seen? Is that why I could smell it now –– but not see it?”-- Stanley Milford, Jr., The Paranormal RangerIn late 2002, Navajo Ranger Stanley Milford and his partner Jonathan Dover receive a strange and completely unprecedented assignment: they will be in charge of all reported cases involving UFOs, witches, Bigfoot, ghosts and any other paranormal activity. They will be “The Paranormal Rangers.” What starts out as a public relations maneuver soon evolves into a full-time, full-blown investigation into everything that people fear the most: the unknown. And as Stanley Milford learns, you don’t take on an assignment like this and come out the other side unscathed – or unchanged. Stanley prides himself on being able to live a life that straddles reality; with “a foot in two worlds”. But what do you do when one world begins to pull you in deeper and deeper -- against your will –- and you start to lose your balance?Meanwhile, it’s 1979. Richard is in 8th grade and he’s on the verge of becoming a man. That’s right: he’s about to enter the world of organized sports. With it comes an entré into a world he’s never been allowed into: male bonding with the sports guys. Sure, he’d rather be at home eating mini-pizzas and watching “The Rockford Files”. But when Sean Delgado – the most popular guy in school – allows you to hang out with him, what are you supposed to do? So what if he punches you so hard you have permanent bruises – it’s worth it, right? Hanging with the sports guys offers privileges Richard has never dreamed of. But there are hidden dangers, too. When the road gets rough, even Richard must decide which of his “two worlds” he really belongs in.Links: Buy a copy of Stanley Milford’s “The Paranormal Ranger” HERE Support RHPB on Patreon HERE!Celebrate 2026 with 26% off all RHPB merch with offer code RHPB26! CLICK HERE and the discount is pre-applied!Need help with your personal writing projects? Richard is here to help! Get 20% off when you mention RHPB! https://www.richardhatem.com/Want to know more about near death experiences? Attend the largest NDE gathering in the world! Get tickets for IANDS 2026 Conference HERE.

“It was Christmas time. It was supposed to be a time of happiness, but we had funerals in town. We couldn’t put off the funerals until after Christmas. They said later, they found a hairline crack in an eyebolt, and once one part went down, the whole bridge went down.” – from the book Bridging The Tragedy by Bill & Jaci KousoulasWhen the Silver Bridge collapsed on December 15, 1967, the tragedy touched the lives of everyone in Point Pleasant, West Virginia. In the months leading up to the disaster, hundreds of people in the Ohio River Valley reported UFO sightings, psychic events, poltergeist activity, Men in Black and encounters with a flying humanoid that became known as Mothman. What happens to a community that undergoes this kind of trauma? Bill & Jaci Kousoulas decided to find out.Richard was fortunate enough to meet Bill & Jaci at the 2025 Mothman Festival in Point Pleasant. In this interview, Richard talks with them about their initial interest in the case (sparked by the movie The Mothman Prophecies), their paranormal investigations, the concept of “Post Traumatic Growth”, and the people they met in Point Pleasant – many of them first-hand witnesses to the bridge collapse and the Mothman himself – all of which led to the publication of their book Bridging the Tragedy -- Silver Linings In The Mysterious Ohio River Valley. LINKS: Buy Bill & Jaci’s book “Bridging the Tragedy” here https://www.amazon.com/Bridging-Tragedy-Silver-Linings-Mysterious/dp/B0CGKK5KTC/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2UISTYHW9O71R&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.JGFkN_m1TGe7bsB-M4g1NV0X-SsmyxkAfqfydVAkI4z6qQIdI1EhVVj1HxqXLrXm.elAVktCytqkj6YX87VPcYvE9F4C_LnqmyBHd4r6AhBI&dib_tag=se&keywords=bridging+the+tragedy&qid=1769029017&s=books&sprefix=bridging+the+tragedy%2Cstripbooks%2C168&sr=1-1

“I became a journalist because of Carl Kolchak. He was my idea of what a journalist was and should be, and he remains that to this day.” -- Mark Dawidziak, author of The Night Stalker CompanionToday’s episode is a Christmas gift to myself: a visit with my friend Mark Dawidziak, who just happens to be the world’s leading authority on Carl Kolchak and all things Night Stalker – the movies, the TV series, the original novel by Jeff Rice and the many sequel novels, one of which was written by Mark himself!The Night Stalker, a TV-movie starring Darren McGavin, Simon Oakland and Barry Atwater, was about an intrepid reporter named Carl Kolchak covering a series of bizarre murders in Las Vegas – murders he becomes increasingly convinced are being committed by an actual, real-life vampire. It premiered on January 11, 1972 to blockbuster ratings and for decades was the highest rated TV-movie of all time. It led to a sequel, The Night Strangler, and eventually to a 20-episode TV series that premiered on September 13, 1974. It’s the TV show that most people my age remember – a weekly trip into horror that at the time had no equal. Chris Carter often cites his love for The Night Stalker as the inspiration for creating his hit series The X-Files. And of course, listeners of this podcast know about my affection for the show and how formative it was for me as a young kid.Join Mark and me as we talk about Darren McGavin, Dan Curtis, David Chase, our favorite Night Stalker episodes, the history of the American vampire, the 3rd (unproduced) Night Stalker movie, how Darren McGavin finally gave up on the show (but not the character) – and the upcoming 2026 release of the all-new, definitive edition of The Night Stalker Companion!Mark Dawidziak is the author or editor of 25 books, including three acclaimed studies of landmark television series: The Columbo Phile, The Night Stalker Companion and Everything I Need to Know I Learned in The Twilight Zone. He also is an internationally recognized Mark Twain scholar, and five of his books are about the iconic American writer. His most recent book, A Mystery of Mysteries: The Death and Life of Edgar Allan Poe, was published by St. Martin’s Press in February 2023.Keep up with Mark Dawidziak and buy his books at his personal website here https://www.markdawidziak.com/Buy The Night Stalker TV series on DVD here https://kinolorber.com/product/kolchak-the-night-stalker-the-complete-series-blu-ray?gad_campaignid=21604535012Buy the novel The Night Stalker here https://www.abebooks.com/servlet/SearchResults?an=jeff%20rice&ref_=search_f_hp&sts=t&tn=night%20stalker

Today I’m excited to bring you an episode of the brilliant new podcast Gods, Ghosts & UFOs – with their special guest, ME! You’ll recognize co-host Tom Maxwell from his appearances on Astonishing Legends Episodes 291 & 292, “American Bloodfalls”. (You might also know him as the frontman for the 90s band Squirrel Nut Zippers. He wrote their hit song “Hell”). On Gods, Ghosts & UFOs, Tom – along with co-hosts J.E. Peterson and Mallory Everton – does a weekly round-up of weird and obscure paranormal news stories. Their conversations are hilarious, probing, provocative – and refreshingly intelligent. If you’re a fan of RHPB, Astonishing Legends and Scared All The Time, you’ll love this too. So enjoy this episode where they welcomed me as their guest – and we talk about haunted Las Vegas Casinos, the Fresno Night Crawlers and a YouTube UFO mystery that might already have been solved… LINKS: Listen to “Gods, Ghosts & UFOs” here: https://www.tommaxwell.com/gods-ghosts-ufos

“When I was six years old, on Christmas Eve, I had an encounter with a little gnome that walked into my bedroom. I don’t recall any fear. But after that, I don’t remember anything.” – Rob KristoffersenRob Kristoffersen is not only an expert on UFOs and UFO cases and host of the Our Strange Skies podcast – he’s also one of my best friends. In this wide-ranging interview we get progressively weirder and wilder, touching on everything from Bigfoot to elves to ghosts to crop circles to UFO cults to alien abductions – and all the way to the mysterious creature Rob saw on his neighbor’s lawn that completely changed his life.Links:Support RHPB on Patreon here! https://patreon.com/RichardHatem?utm_medium=unknown&utm_source=join_link&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator&utm_content=copyLink Get RHPB merch here! https://richardhatem-shop.fourthwall.com/? Check out Rob’s podcast Our Strange Skies here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/our-strange-skies-ufos-throughout-history/id1546735571