Monthly Archives: February 2016

Conspiracy, History, True Crime, Unsolved Crime, Unsolved Mystery

The Mysterious Deaths of Elisa Lam and Edgar Allan Poe

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What do Elisa Lam and Edgar Allan Poe have in common? Both of these artistic individuals died in extremely mysterious ways and have since become well known on account of their mysterious passing. In this episode we discuss the details that shroud the mysterious deaths of Lam and Poe.

Elisa Lam was an extremely talented and ambitious young woman who suffered from anxiety and depression. Her body was found in a water tank atop a hotel in which she had been staying.  However many accounts suggest that it would be extremely difficult for her to gain access to this water tank much less actually get in on her own. Does this indicate she may have been murdered? Perhaps… however what makes this case even more bizarre is the security camera footage that shows Lam dancing around the hotel’s elevator in a mechanical and somewhat disturbing manner. What exactly caused this strange behavior? Drugs? Alcohol? A mental breakdown of some sort?

Watch Elisa’s bizarre elevator footage here!

PoeEdgar Allan Poe was a talented man who was no stranger to death growing up. After the passing of many of his loved ones, he developed an interest in writing dark and macabre stories.   Poe is well known for his famous poem known as “The Raven”. He was found in a delirious state on the side of the street strangely dressed in someone else’s clothes and later taken to the hospital. He was delirious and uttered only a few words during his stay in the hospital. Unfortunately, shortly thereafter, he died leaving us with more questions than answers. Was his death related to his erratic drinking behavior? His attending physician was quite convinced otherwise. Tune in for this episode and hear the many theories regarding the mysterious deaths of these two individuals.

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Cryptozoology, History

Legendary Humanoid Creatures

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For this episode we continue our series of cryptozoology by discussing a number of legendary and mythical humanoid creatures.  Though there are a large number of alleged sightings and encounters of such human-like beings all over the world, no actual concrete proof has ever been found that can prove of their existence. Sean and Eric present the backgrounds, encounters, and any possibly evidence or theories of each of these mysterious beasts.

The infamous Yeti, or “Abominable Snowman,”  supposedly hides in the Himalayan Mountains and has been seen by local tribes for centuries. Mountaineers and adventurers claim to have seen this creature from a distance, and many times in the snowy mountains bipedal tracks have been discovered that can be linked to no known animal.

The Almas is a legend of the Caucasus mountains in central Asia.  These man sized creatures supposedly share facial features with the Neanderthal people. Could these creatures be leftovers from some ancient population, or are the sightings of the Almas merely exaggerations and folklore?

Next up is the Skunk Ape, a bizarre creature that was allegedly spotting many times in the state of Florida in the 60’s and 70’s.  This animal was described as being similar to an orangutan, but was always associated with a horrible smell that followed it.  Whether the Skunk Ape that caused a frenzy in the state was simply an escaped primate, or a strange humanoid creature that has been hiding in the swamps for decades, is still unknown to this day.

Finally we discuss the Orang Pendek, a smaller cryptid that reportedly lives in the remote forests of Sumatra.  These creatures have supposedly been spotted by locals and foreigners alike for over a century, but as yet there is still no legitimate evidence of its existence.

Is there any reasonable explanations of these humanoid creatures? Are these beasts all just myths and legends created by locals, or could there actually be something to the phenomenon of different groups of people allegedly seeing these lone creatures all over the world? Tune in and found out all about these strange and mysterious humanoid creatures!

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Conspiracy, History, True Crime, Unsolved Crime, Unsolved Mystery

Unsolved Disappearances 2

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In this short, Eric discusses two intriguing and mysterious disappearances.

First, the story of Diane Augat… this 40 year-old woman has a history of bipolar disorder and drug and alcohol abuse. After losing custody of her children and later getting divorced her life began to spiral out of control. She was last seen in April of 1998, however a mysterious phone call, believed to be from Augat reached her mother’s answering machine. A few days later her severed finger was found. Later her belongings began to turn up all over town. Who could have murdered this woman and what was the motive?

In our second disappearance, an innocent 8 year old boy vanished while passing through a crowd of people in Britain. His remains were found over 80 miles away. His death was later linked to a place known as The Elm Guest House where rich VIP politicians and judges would go to partake in disturbing sexual parties involving young boys. However the police appear to have worked very hard to cover up evidence tying any particular individual to this guest house. Tune in to this episode and learn more details about these mysterious disappearances!

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Podcast

Strange Matters Joins the Dark Myths Collective

Happy to announce Strange Matters is now part of the Dark Myths collective of podcasts! Dark Myths is a group of podcasters dedicated to producing high quality and emotionally power-packed listening experiences. From mystery based podcasts like our own, to great historical shows, and also a few creepy fictional programs, take the time to check out some of the other excellent podcasts of Dark Myths!

Check out all the shows at Dark Myths here!

Conspiracy, True Crime, Unsolved Crime, Unsolved Mystery

Shared Psychosis- The Folly of Two

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Shared psychosis: an extremely rare condition found in the DSM IV that describes psychotic behavior exhibited by a healthy individual who is under the influence of a close friend or family member with schizophrenia. There is a lot we don’t know about the mind; however we do know that people can act in irrational ways when the neurotransmitters in their brain are not functioning properly.

Erikkson twins

Could this explain the case of the Eriksson twins? These sister were behaving strangely before darting across one of the busiest highways in the United Kingdom, known as M6. Not only did they display super human resilience when hit by vehicles traveling at very high speeds, but they continued to be defiant to the police officers and paramedics that were trying to assist them. Are their behaviors simply a product of delusion? Or could there have been something more… drugs, conspiracy or even a suicide pact?

The-Gibbons-Twins-001

The story of the Gibson sisters is similar however significantly less violent and more strange. These sisters grew up in social isolation due to being victimized as the only black girls in their area in Wales, England. They quickly turned toward each other and inward for comfort. They developed an unhealthy dependence upon each other and began acting in bizarre ways. Sometimes they would move in-sync almost as if they were both puppets controlled by an invisible puppeteer. They spoke to each other in their own made-up language. This strange behavior progressed into violence and crime and eventually led to the demise of one of the sisters. But what really caused her death? Listen to this episode and find out for yourself!

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History, True Crime

Killers Around the World: European Serial Killers

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This episode of the Strange Matters Podcast starts a new series, highlighting brutal and psychotic serial killers from around the world.  The purpose of this series is to dispel the common conception that the United States has both the highest number along with the worst serial killers in the world, while at the same time presenting and educating listeners of murderers that aren’t quite as well known as the popular and infamous American killers.

In this entry episode to the series, Sean presents and discusses four serial killers from different countries in Europe.  Each of these men carried out terrible crimes without showing any remorse or guilt.  Ranging from a reclusive potential cannibal, to a hammer wielding maniac, to a cold blooded ‘Terminator’ known for wiping out entire families, these men are some of the most horrific and notorious serial killers of all time.

During this episode Sean discusses the lives, crimes, and lasting legacies of each of these terrible killers.

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