PODCAST: THE GATEWAY

PODCAST: THE GATEWAY

Teal Swan is an internet spiritual guru who produces hypnotic self-help YouTube videos aimed at people who are struggling with depression and suicidal thoughts. Many of her videos share unorthodox messages about mental health with her hundreds of thousands of fans who follow her on Facebook and Instagram, and in person.

This podcast investigates Teal and asks the question as to whether her methods are dangerous and could cause serious harm, or helpful services for those who need them.

MY VERDICT: This isn’t the kind of thing I would normally listen to, and I happened upon it purely by chance – I mostly listen to true crime podcasts and this was a little different, although there is an investigative element to it.

I’m not going to give anything away so I’ll talk very little of the details uncovered, other to say that you find out fascinating things and it twists and turns in directions you just wouldn’t expect.

I find Teal Swan to be equal parts annoying and remarkable, her tone of voice is sometimes obnoxious and she has an answer for everything (but she should because she’s selling herself as a guru), but you have to admire her for the following she has created, if only from a business and marketing point of view.

There are, despite the investigation, no clear answers and no satisfying ending to this podcast but it poses some very interesting questions, especially as to what some of the most vulnerable people on this planet need. I recommend this podcast, it’s enthralling and opens up a debate on gurus, memories, spiritualism, YouTube and suicide.

Find information here: https://gizmodo.com/weve-launched-an-investigative-podcast-about-a-controve-1826416613

PODCAST: DEATH IN ICE VALLEY

PODCAST: DEATH IN ICE VALLEY

An unidentified body. Who was she? Why hasn’t she been missed? A BBC World Service and NRK original podcast, investigating a mystery unsolved for almost half a century.

MY VERDICT: The above information is all the background you’re given before you start to listen to this well made documentary podcast. And it’s intriguing, which sets the tone for the mystery and the series. A woman is found dead and burnt in the remote valley near Bergen in Norway. No one knows who she is, no one knows where she came from, no one has reported her missing and all the labels are missing from her clothes.

I’d heard of this mystery a long time ago but didn’t research it at all as I was under the impression that there wasn’t much to know – nothing had been discovered in all the years since her death in 1970.  That was until this podcast from the BBC and NRK started digging.

Not only are the facts fascinating, and the investigating is amazingly well done, but I think one of the best aspects of this podcast is the style. The moody rain-scapes are atmospheric and perfect for setting the tone. The differences between the presenters are one of things that I find most interesting. The English man from the BBC, Neil McCarthy, is an outsider and a pragmatist with typical English pessimism while Marit Higraff, the presenter from NRK is forever optimistic and tells such a compelling background to McCathy and us, the listeners.  

Some information is held back, it doesn’t speculate madly (like the internet) and facts or information is given to us clue by clue, but it’s a testament to a well-made podcast and great storytelling rather than to give a biased opinion. 

There’s a great website to accompany this https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p060ms2h

I would recommend to listen to the podcast first and then look at all the notes. And then maybe look at all other crazy internet theories afterwards.

PODCAST: HEAVEN’S GATE

In 1997, thirty-nine people took their own lives in an apparent mass suicide. The events captivated the media and had people across the planet asking the same question...‘Why?’ 20 years later, those who lost loved ones and those who still believe - tell their story. Hosted by Glynn Washington of Snap Judgment.

MY VERDICT: I knew a little about the cult known as Heaven’s Gate before I listened to this podcast so I wasn’t expecting to hear much that I didn’t know. I was wrong. All the information I’d heard before were mostly about the leader of the cult, Marshall Applewhite, and how his life had lead him to become a cult leader. (The best example of this is the Heaven’s Gate episode on Last Podcast on the Left)

This podcast started with interviweing people who had joined the cult, it was fascinating to hear from some survivors. It meant questions could be asked of them that you couldn’t ask to the 39 people who killed themselves in the 90s. We were able to hear what made the cult a desirable group for some to join, and it was interesting to hear stories about the good times that they had, a side that is rarely noted on most documentaries or tellings of this cult’s story.

I think the most compelling thing about this podcast, was the host. The man who put this podcast together, Glynn Washington, had a unique perspective into a story about a cult, as he used to be in one. I found this perspective fascinating. His main point was, that we should not think of these cult members as crazy or mentally ill because he knew that normal people joined cults and they were easier to fall into than some people thought.

This podcast does a good job of telling the whole story, Washington is able to get a lot of interviews with integral characters in the cult’s history that I’d never heard from before, including the families of some of the members of the cult who participated in the mass suicide and the daughter of one of the cult leaders. Which meant we saw yet more sides to these people.

I would thoroughly recommend this podcast, it’s more like listening to a documentary than a traditional podcast and the only down side I could mention is very random long pauses (I’ve noticed this in a few podcasts and I have no idea why they exist.)

See more here:

https://www.heavensgate.show

BOOK 140: STEPPENWOLF: HERMANN HESSE

Steppenwolf (orig. German Der Steppenwolf) is the tenth novel by German-Swiss author Hermann Hesse. Originally published in Germany in 1927, it was first translated into English in 1929. Combining autobiographical and psychoanalytic elements, the novel was named after the lonesome wolf of the steppes. The story in large part reflects a profound crisis in Hesse's spiritual world during the 1920s while memorably portraying the protagonist's split between his humanity and his wolf-like aggression and homelessness. Hesse would later assert that the book was largely misunderstood.

From the very beginning, reception was harsh. American novelist Jack Kerouac dismissed it in Big Sur (1962) and it has had a long history of mixed critical reception and opinion at large, Already upset with Hesse's novel Siddhartha, political activists and patriots railed against him, and against the book, seeing an opportunity to discredit Hesse. Even close friends and longtime readers criticized the novel for its perceived lack of morality in its open depiction of sex and drug use, a criticism that indeed remained the primary rebuff of the novel for many years. However as society changed and formerly taboo topics such as sex and drugs became more openly discussed, critics came to attack the book for other reasons; mainly that it was too pessimistic, and that it was a journey in the footsteps of a psychotic and showed humanity through his warped and unstable viewpoint, a fact that Hesse did not dispute, although he did respond to critics by noting the novel ends on a theme of new hope.

Popular interest in the novel was renewed in the 1960s – specifically in the psychedelic movement – primarily because it was seen as a counterculture book, and because of its depiction of free love and explicit drug usage. It was also introduced in many new colleges for study, and interest in the book and in Hermann Hesse was feted in America for more than a decade afterwards.

Hesse's 1928 short story "Harry, the Steppenwolf" forms a companion piece to the novel. It is about a wolf named Harry who is kept in a zoo, and who entertains crowds by destroying images of German cultural icons like Goethe and Mozart.

The name Steppenwolf has become notable in popular culture for various organizations and establishments. In 1967, the band Steppenwolf, headed by German-born singer John Kay, took their name from the novel. The Belgian band DAAU (Die Anarchistische Abendunterhaltung) is named after one of the advertising slogans of the novel's magical theatre. The innovative Magic Theatre Company, founded in 1967 in Berkeley and which later became resident in San Francisco, takes its name from the "Magic Theatre" of the novel, and the Steppenwolf Theatre Company in Chicago, founded in 1974 by actors Terry Kinney, Jeff Perry, and Gary Sinise, took its name from the novel. The lengthy track "Steppenwolf" appears on English rock band Hawkwind's album Astounding Sounds, Amazing Music and is directly inspired by the novel, including references to the magic theatre and the dual nature of the wolfman-manwolf (lutocost). Robert Calvert had initially written and performed the lyrics on 'Distances Between Us' by Adrian Wagner in 1974. The song also appears on later, live Hawkwind CD's and DVDs. Danish acid rock band Steppeulvene (1967-68) also took their name from this novel.

"Be Here Now"(1971), by author and spiritual teacher Richard Alpert (Ram Dass) contains an illustration of a door bearing a sign that reads "Magic Theatre - For Madmen Only - Price of Admission - Your Mind." This references an invitation that Steppenwolf's Harry Haller receives to attend an "Anarchist Evening at the Magic Theatre, For Madmen Only, Price of Admission Your Mind."

The Black Ice, by Michael Connelly, has J. Michael Haller making a reference to the author when he mentioned that, if his illegitimate son took his surname, he'd be "Harry Haller" instead of Harry Bosch.

Paula Cole references the concept of the steppenwolf in her song 'Pearl' on her 1999 album Amen.

Steppenwolf was also referenced in the film Mall (2014).

Lobo da Estepe by the brazilian band Os Cascavelletes was also inspired by the book.

(Information taken from Wikipedia)

FILM 1262: LETHAL WEAPON

TRIVIA: Jackie Swanson did perform the high fall on her own. Trained by legendary stuntman Dar Robinson. Also, the stunt was done using an airbag covered with a life-size painting of the driveway and cars, which, like a foreground miniature, visually blends into the real scene. Thus, the editor is able to hold the shot until just as she makes contact with the airbag, for greater realism.

On E! True Hollywood Story (1996), Gary Busey says he was hired to play Joshua because they were looking for someone big and menacing enough to be a believable foe for Mel Gibson. Busey also credits the film for reviving his failing movie career.

In one scene, Riggs asks Murtaugh, "Did the stock market crash?". The infamous Black Monday of October 19, 1987 occurred 7 months after this film's release.

Film 1086: The Bridge

Trivia: The documentary caused significant controversy when Eric Steel revealed that he had tricked the Golden Gate Bridge committee into allowing him to film the bridge for months and had captured 23 suicides which took place during the filming phase of the project. In his permit application to the Golden Gate National Recreation Area Steel said he intended "to capture the powerful, spectacular intersection of monument and nature that takes place every day at the Golden Gate Bridge."

Steel interviewed relatives of the suicide victims, not informing them that he had footage of their loved ones' deaths. Later, he claimed that "the family members now, at this point, have seen the film, [and are] glad that they participated in it."

The filmmakers captured 23 of the 24 known Golden Gate suicides in 2004.

The film was inspired by an article entitled "Jumpers," written by Tad Friend appearing in The New Yorker magazine in 2003.