312: Comedy Horror, with Evan Dorkin
The Good Friends of Jackson Elias
We’re back and we’re and we’re putting on our ponchos. They look a bit silly, but that works for us here. The important thing is that they’ll keep some of the gore off our clothes. Comedy horror can be a messy business, especially once you bring gardening equipment into play. We’re not sure whether to laugh or cry, so we’ll probably just scream. Main Topic: Comedy Horror This episode sees us delve into the bloody world of comedy horror, trying to pin down what makes the two genres work so well together, looking at some examples from media, and trying to work out how to perform...
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311: RPGs and Fiction, with Evan Dorkin
The Good Friends of Jackson Elias
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310: Something Wicked This Way Comes, with Cuppycup
The Good Friends of Jackson Elias
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309: Theme Parks and Horror, with Cuppycup
The Good Friends of Jackson Elias
We’re back and we’re learning about protein spills. What sounded like an innocent sexual innuendo has turned out to be more scatological than any of us would have liked. The unpleasant realities of theme parks are well hidden behind twee language and cute costumes. Happily, once we strip them away, we can find some good horror inspiration. Although we do wish it all smelled a bit better. Main Topic: Theme Parks and Horror This episode, we visit the topic of theme parks, amusement parks, funfairs and the like, looking for Call of Cthulhu inspiration. As with so many things rooted...
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308: The Appeal of Vampires, With Josephine McAdam
The Good Friends of Jackson Elias
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307: Horror For the Nervous, with Josephine McAdam
The Good Friends of Jackson Elias
We’re back and we’re hiding behind the sofa. Sure, the monsters, masked killers, and mutants can probably find us back here, but it still feels safer for some reason. Fear is rarely a rational thing, so why should our response to it be? Main Topic: Horror For the Nervous This episode came about when Scott was playing The Between with Josephine McAdam over on and she mentioned that she rarely watches or reads horror media because she finds it upsetting. Given how many horror projects Josephine has been involved with, this seemed like something worth exploring, so we...
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306: Quatermass and the Pit
The Good Friends of Jackson Elias
We’re back and we’re digging up the past. Some of this excavation is purely physical, burrowing into the clay under London in search of the usual skulls and spaceships. The rest, however, is more atavistic in nature, uncovering the strange, alien memories buried within our minds. On reflection, we probably shouldn’t have used pickaxes for both jobs. Main Topic: Quatermass and the Pit This episode is our long-overdue exploration of the strange world of Professor Bernard Quatermass, and especially the 1967 film adaptation of Quatermass and the Pit. While we’ve mentioned Nigel...
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305: How to be an Investigator
The Good Friends of Jackson Elias
We’re back and we’re blundering. That’s not to say that we don’t have a clue, but we’re not quite sure what to do with the handful we’ve managed to find. We’ve tried pinning them to a board and running strings between them, but the result is more abstract art than anything functional. Maybe we’ll just keep punching NPCs until one of them finally tells us what’s going on. Main Topic: How to be an Investigator This episode is our attempt to sharpen our own skills as investigators, or at least hope that others can learn from our mistakes. Scott and guest host Seth Skorkowsky...
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304: Haunted Landscapes
The Good Friends of Jackson Elias
We’re back and we’re digging deep. While you might expect to find ghosts in these haunted landscapes, mostly we’re unearthing history. Oh, and carcinogens. On balance, ghosts seem like the healthier option. Main Topic: Haunted Landscapes Building on last episode’s discussion of Lovecraftian horror and detective fiction explored in Heather Miller’s , we’re delving into another part of the book, which lays out the idea of haunted landscapes. The landscapes in question are haunted by the past rather than ghosts, with layers of history transforming their geography and meaning. We...
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303: Call of Cthulhu and Detective Fiction
The Good Friends of Jackson Elias
We’re back and we’re sifting through evidence. Being a good detective requires a keen eye for detail, an analytical mind, and a thorough knowledge of the genre. But that happens when you find yourself in a different genre than you were expecting? Is your uncanny ability to piece together disparate clues really an asset when it leads you to horrifying revelations? Maybe this new dark age thing we’ve heard about isn’t so bad after all. Main Topic: Call of Cthulhu and Detective Fiction This episode delves into the complex relationship between detective fiction and Lovecraftian horror....
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We’re back and we’re peering through time. Handily, Yog-Sothoth has granted us the power to see he who is to come after us. Well, except Charles Dexter Ward actually turned up in 1926, around a hundred years earlier than anticipated. Time can be like that.
Happily, Ward has been raised from his essential saltes several times since then — on screen, in audio, and even within the pages of the occasional scenario. We’ll try to catch up with him where we can. Let’s just hope that it’s really Ward we’re meeting and not Joseph Curwen. It’s so embarrassing when we mix them up!
Main Topic: The Case of Charles Dexter Ward part 5
This is the conclusion of our investigation into HP Lovecraft’s novel The Case of Charles Dexter Ward. We start off with some final thoughts on the story itself, and then move on to discussing how it has found its way into other media. Considering what an overlooked tale this is, it has a rich history of being adapted.
Links
Things we mention in this episode include:
- HP Lovecraft Historical Society reading of the complete fiction of HP Lovecraft
- At the Mountains of Madness by HP Lovecraft
- Yog-Sothoth
- “The Dunwich Horror” by HP Lovecraft
- “The Shadow Out of Time” by HP Lovecraft
- Gothic horror
- “The Thing on the Doorstep” by HP Lovecraft
- “Pickman’s Model” by HP Lovecraft
- “The Outsider” by HP Lovecraft
- The Haunted Palace (1963)
- “The Haunted Palace” by Edgar Allen Poe
- American International Pictures
- The Raven (1963)
- The Masque of the Red Death (1964)
- Charles Beaumont
- Heroes
- Roger Corman
- The Resurrected (1991)
- Dan O’Bannon
- Alien (1979)
- Total Recall (1990)
- Brent V Friedman
- Return of the Living Dead (1985)
- “Cthulhu Dreams” by The Darkest of the Hillside Thickets
- Hellraiser (1987)
- Dark Adventure Radio Theatre adaptation of The Case of Charles Dexter Ward
- Necronomicon Providence
- The Lovecraft Investigations
- “The Whisperer in Darkness” by HP Lovecraft
- “The Shadow Over Innsmouth” by HP Lovecraft
- “The Haunter of the Dark” by HP Lovecraft
- Pleasant Green
- Shadows of Yog-Sothoth
- Grizzly Peaks Radio
- Day of the Beast
- Dark Adventure Radio Theatre adaptation of Day of the Beast
- Horror on the Orient Express
News
Paul’s Final Episode
This is Paul’s final episode with The Good Friends of Jackson Elias. After 300 episodes, he has decided to step back from the microphone and focus on writing. Please join us in thanking him for his time on the podcast and in wishing him every success with the fresh horrors that await him.
This is not the end of the podcast, however. Matt and Scott will continue with a roster of guest hosts, each bringing their own blasphemous knowledge and insights to our discussions. Our first three guest hosts will be comedian and writer Ross Bryant, Lovecraft scholar Heather Miller, and gaming icon Seth Skorkowsky. We shall announce further guests as we book them.
Blasphemous Tome Issue 13
We are hard at work on issue 13 of The Blasphemous Tome, the fanzine we put out twice-yearly for Patreon backers of The Good Friends of Jackson Elias. This new issue will contain “A Social Responsibility” — a brand-new and gruesome Call of Cthulhu scenario from our own Matt Sanderson, set amidst the urban decay of modern-day Northampton.
Anyone backing us at the $5 level or higher by the end of this year can expect a printed copy of the Tome, signed by our own fair extremities. Backers at the $3 level will receive a voucher for a discounted print-on-demand copy, and everyone will receive the PDF.
Don’t forget that backing us also gives you access to the entire back catalogue of the Tome in PDF format, which includes a wealth of Call of Cthulhu scenarios you won’t find anywhere else.
Matt and Scott at the Illusion Horror Con
Matt and Scott will be attending the Illusion Horror Con this December, running games and taking part in panels. This is an online horror convention with attendees from across the world. You can find full details of the schedule at the convention website.
Paul at Dragonmeet
Paul will be on the Chaosium booth at Dragonmeet this year. This is an annual one-day gaming convention held in London. Do stop by and say hi if you’re there.
Christmas Story Reading on the Good Friends Discord
With Christmas fast approaching, Mike Perceval-Maxwell of Mr Spike’s Bedtime Stories is once again organising a full-cast ghost story reading on The Good Friends of Jackson Elias Discord server. This time, we shall be reading two tales of William Hope Hodgson’s occult detective, Carnacki the Ghost Finder. Specifically, we will be reading “The Searcher of the End House” and “The Horse of the Invisible”.
So fire up your electric pentacle and join us by the fireplace at 22:30 GMT on the 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th of December. Don’t despair if you can’t make the live performances, as we plan to record them and release them as special episodes on the podcast feed.
The Ice House on Symphony Entertainment
Scott recently joined Bridgett Jeffries and Graham Walmsley for a live improvised horror story over on Symphony Entertainment. Bridgett recorded the tale, which we dubbed “The Ice House”, and you can watch it below.