Wide Atlantic Weird – Details, episodes & analysis

Dr Justin Mullis drops into the Explorers Club to discuss the 2017 film Kong: Skull Island. Topics include:

-Japanese cryptozoology

-The depiction of apes in popular culture

-Kong as a colonial Lost World story?

-the ecology of Skull Island

-The significance of the 70s Vietnam setting

-John Goodman and the Monarch organisation

-Kong’s reinvention as a Kaiju

-Some of the best CGI in a recent creature film?

-The Skullcrawlers’ link to the original 1933 King Kong

-Cryptozoology in the Monsterverse

-The mystical gateway that often guards the Lost Worlds

Links:

-Justin’s academia edu

-Justin's Notes for the episode (availability pending)

-Justin at Adventures In Poor Taste

-From Cryptids to Kaiju

-Colonialism and the Emergence of Science Fiction, John Rieder

-Kaiju Transmissions episode

-G-Fest 2024

-King Kong Cometh, Paul A. Woods

-Kong Unmade, John Lemay

-Encyclopedia of Weird War Stories, Paul Green

-The Great War and Prehistoric Memory, Ross J Wilson

Return to Skull Island back in 1933 with Eddie Guimont to see whether there's more to the overlooked SON OF KONG than you've heard. Topics include:

-UPDATE ON PERCY FAWCETT’s LOST CITY!

-Occult beliefs in Bolsonaro’s government

-Was Kong intended to be sympathetic?

-The origins & making of Son of Kong

-The real-life colonial adventures of Kong’s creators

-The social and economic world of Kong’s 1933

-The trope of the ancient lost monument-builders

-The ethnicity of the Skull Islanders

-Willis O’Brien’s special effects

-Lovecraft and Mysterious Islands

Links:

Jason Colavito on Percy Fawcett

https://www.jasoncolavito.com/blog/a-plausible-explanation-for-the-lost-city-of-manuscript-512

Kong: The History Of A Movie Icon, Ray Morton, 2005

https://www.raymorton.com/books/king-kong-the-history-of-a-movie-icon-from-fay-wray-to-peter-jackson/

When The Stars Are Right, Edward Guimont and Horace A Smith

https://www.hippocampuspress.com/other-authors/nonfiction/when-the-stars-are-right-h.-p.-lovecraft-and-astronomy

From Crypto's to Kaiju, Justin Mullen (currently restricted access)

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/03080188241234141

From the gilllman of Robert W Chambers' 'The Harbour Master' to the monstrous apes and aquatic dinosaurs of 'King Kong,' fiction has informed the cryptozoologists who went out into the dark corners of the earth seeking 'real' mystery creatures. Justin Mullis returns to talk us through his article 'Cryptofiction.' Get ready for a monster-load of influential stories from writers both familiar and obscure. Talk includes:

-Famous cryptozoologists who were influenced by monster fiction

-The influence of ‘The Lost World’ (of course!)

-Victorians, dinosaurs and ‘real’ dragons

-Victorian stories of surviving dinosaurs and the origin of Mokele-Mbembe

-Arthur Conan Doyle’s non-‘Lost World’ cryptids

-The 1925 Lost World film, King Kong, and novelisations of Kong (with extra dinosaurs!) and connections to Atlantis

-‘The Monster of Partridge Creek’ a fictitious monster that turned up as a ‘true’ story

-Lord Dunsany, the ‘Club Story’ and cryptozoology

-Early fiction featuring Bigfoot-like creatures, including ‘The Cairn’ by HR Wakefield and ‘Rogues In The House’ by Robert E Howard

-Robert W Chambers and ‘In Search Of The Unknown’ - a template for cryptozoology from 1904?

References:

-Cryptofiction, Justin Mullis, 2019

https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781315184661-19/cryptofiction-science-fiction-rise-cryptozoology-justin-mullis

-Justin’s talk on Robert W Chambers for The Last Tuesday Society

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-cryptozoological-fiction-of-robert-w-chambers-justin-mullis-tickets-635838198167

-Justin’s writing at Adventures In Poor Taste:

https://aiptcomics.com/author/justinmullis/

-Justin’s academia.edu with links to his writing

https://bgsu.academia.edu/JustinMullis/CurriculumVitae

-Wide Atlantic Weird: Fairy Euhemerism with Justin Mullis

https://player.fm/series/wide-atlantic-weird/for-fear-of-little-men-euhemerism-and-secret-fairy-peoples-with-justin-mullis

-Lake Monster Traditions, Michel Meurger, 1988

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lake-Monster-Traditions-Cross-cultural-Analysis/dp/1870021002

-Jacques Collin de Plancy, who wrote ‘Voyage To The Centre Of The Earth’

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacques_Collin_de_Plancy

Brontosaurus, A Faded Star Rises Again, Prehisoric Pulp

https://prehistoricpulp.com/2017/08/05/brontosaurus-a-faded-star-rises-again/

Dinomania, Ulrich Merkl

https://aiptcomics.com/2015/11/24/dinomania-the-lost-art-of-winsor-mccay-the-secret-origins-of-king-kong-and-the-urge-to-destroy-new-york-review/

-‘Creatures of Another Age’ edited by Richard Fallon (review by Justin Mullis in AIPT) which features ‘The Dragon of St Paul’s’ which prefigures the climax to The Lost World

https://aiptcomics.com/2022/06/30/creatures-of-another-age-dinosaurs-scifi/

Kong Unmade by John Lemay and others

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Kong-Unmade-Films-Skull-Island/dp/179807799X

Kong: An Original Screenplay, Edgar Wallace

https://www.pspublishing.co.uk/kong-an-original-screenplay-hardcover-by-edgar-wallace-5969-p.asp

The Monster of Partridge Creek, Georges Dupoy, 1908.

https://cryptidz.fandom.com/wiki/Partridge_Creek_Monster

‘In Search Of The Unknown,’ Robert W Chambers, 1904

https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/18668

Every town has that one spooky abandoned building, the one that seems to naturally gather scary stories and urban legends. On the west side of Cork City, the great Victorian redbrick section of the Our Lady's complex, St Kevin's, has a real-life history of scandal and tragedy. In this episode, Cian takes a trip to the empty, fire-scarred structure that still stands above the Lee Valley onto the city. We'll discuss the Victorian origins of the complex, the scandals that went on inside, and the reasons we're drawn to places of tragedy.

The Ghost Trail On Youtube

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyswG_oLkVQV9vQNnpJj1_A

Abandoned Ireland Article on St Kevin's

http://www.abandonedireland.com/skv_more.html

Harrowing By Name Blog Article On St kevin's

http://harrowingp.blogspot.com/2013/01/st-annes-asylum-cork-ireland.html

Cian's old blog, an earlier visit to St kevin's

https://ciangill2.blogspot.com/2010/03/st-annes.html

*NOW UPDATED WITH EXTRA BONUS MATERIAL!*

On this episode, enter the Wide Atlantic Weird cabin-in-the-woods to find the place stuffed with mummified cats, cursed relics and forbidden idols as we delve into THE JEWEL OF SEVEN STARS! This 1903 book from Dublin-born Bram ‘Dracula’ Stoker affords us the perfect excuse to doff a pith helmet, drink cognac, and tell mystical tales of turn-of-the-century Gothic London and spooky, mysterious Egypt!

Come to find out when the Western world actually decided that mummies were scary, why the British were obsessed with Egypt, and how to tell when a fellow is decent by looking at his skull – but stay for the eccentric Irish occultists, the racial hang-wringing, and of course the blatant Orientalising.

-what race were the ancient Egyptians anyway?

-did an Irish palm-reader predict the downfall of Charles Stuart Parnell?

-why did Oscar Wilde’s father want Cleopatra’s Needle brought to London?

-can Cian jam HG Wells, AC Doyle and ‘Invasion literature’ into another episode??

All these questions and more will be raised, mulled over, and distainfully dismissed in THE JEWEL OF SEVEN STARS: BRAM STOKER’S SPOOKY EGYPT PART 1.

Theme from the 1959 Hammer version of The Mummy:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zef-RrAunZ4

Quadrivia article about Cleopatra’s Needle

https://quadriv.wordpress.com/2011/10/31/the-sphinx-cleopatras-needle-and-the-psychogeography-of-london/

Prometheus, made with a decent amount of creative control by increasingly-eccentric director Ridley Scott, is a sorta-maybe prequel to the Alien movies, and a rather divisive entry into the franchise. Cian invites Prometheus fan Daffy to the Cabin In The Woods on a rainy summer's night to discuss the ups and downs of this visually-stunning but thematically confusing film. The guys discuss racism in Ancient Astronauts theory, the place of religion in science, bad plot tropes, and lots of other good things. So grab a bottle and listen here for ANCIENT ASTRONAUTS, RELIGION & SCIENCE IN PROMETHEUS. Spoilers aplenty.

DRAGON'S HOARD ETSY

https://www.etsy.com/shop/DragonsHoardMinis

Christ on a bicycle, you just wouldn't believe the madness that went on behind the scenes during the making of ALIEN 3. An astonishingly bleak, gothic entry into a big-budget franchise that killed off most of its beloved cast, Alien 3 was hated by fans upon release and has only very slowly gained a slightly better reputation over the years. Cian and Stokes enjoy some fine German beer (and Kinsale Pale Ale - recommended!) while getting into the almost incredible reasons why this film spent so long in development hell. From unused scripts about monks on a wooden planet to British wrestlers, dogs in costumes, sexy blonde studio spies, and a pre Fight Club David Fincher, this story has enough weirdness going on to swing a Xenomorph. But does the film hold up? Will the guys ever record an episode about Alien Resurrection? And what is the connection to Last Action Hero? Join Wide Atlantic Weird for some horror film goodness and a descent to Fiorina (Fury) 161 in RUMOUR CONTROL: THE UNBELIEVABLE DEVELOPMENT HELL OF ALiEN 3. 

Theatre Preview (The Bitch is back)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3L3jJyzjFI

Alien 3 UUP

Original Script (Hicks, Ripley and Newt)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alien_3#1987%E2%80%931989

Brian Glover, wrestler, angry, bald, yorkshireman.

Wrestling 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_zPH3u65H8

Wrestling 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4QxyO_rGqYg

Bottom (i.e Secret Shame): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsz5aGJUNXs

Special Effects

Whippet: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xUMX6hsvbO4

Super Face Hugger: https://avp.fandom.com/wiki/Royal_Facehugger

Bambi Buster: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQCq3CHzhdk

Michael Biehn

Time Bomb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0105597/

Michael Biehn on Ripley & Hicks: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Vgl6eopOy8

Reactions to Alien 3:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5QHc0n0G2kA

Digging up an old script at the Cabin In The Woods, Cian addresses an old topic, a suitably spooky and Gothic one for an unseasonably cold summer’s evening: the Uberwald, the mythical imaginary version of Central and Eastern Europe where Gothic tales of the macabre traditionally take place. On this journey we take on the Fighting Fantasy books, The White Wolf Of The Harz Mountains, Sheridan Le Fanu’s Carmilla, and of course Dracula. Grab your torch, pitchfork, and a can of Nightcrawler milk stout and meet me at the castle as we explore the history of this influential idea.

The White Wolf Of The Harz Mountains Etext

http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks06/0606061h.html

Carmilla Etext

http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/10007

Dracula Etext

http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/345

Dracula 1992 Theme

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=dracula+1992+theme

Sabrewulf Theme (Killer Instinct)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCAK3bwOGx0

Some months ago we did an episode solely about the first Blair Witch movie from 1999.

We're doing everything else in the franchise (two movies and a bunch of video games) in one episode.

While this might give you an idea of the level of quality we're dealing with, there are interesting things to notice within these films and games. Perhaps the take-home lesson is simply that not everything needs a franchise. But grab a beer and join us at the Cabin In The Woods to see whether there's anything salvageable within the FRANCHISE NOBODY WANTED. Big thanks to our guest Ian Stokes!

Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Lost World is the proverbial ‘not-terrible’ dinosaur story. Let’s face it, besides Jurassic Park, there aren’t many. And Conan Doyle knocked it out of the (ahem) park back in 1912 when he brought prehistoric creatures of literary age in this tale of daring Englishmen, led by the infuriating Professor Challenger, finding dinosaurs alive and well on a flat-topped mountain in the jungles of South America.

The book is a seminal text in the colonial-era adventure genre. In this episode of WIDE ATLANTIC WEIRD, Cian sups on a Bud on the porch of the cabin in the woods and covers the myriad influences on old ACD when he wrote The Lost World. Explore the Victorian and Edwardian obsession with archaeology and exotic places. Percy Fawcett disappearing into the Amazon in 1925. The discovery of Troy. The colonial adventurer who later became an anti-imperial Irish revolutionary. The birth of what we now call cryptozoology – the hunt for mystery animals in both fact and fiction. And exactly why might readers in 1912 have been primed to believe that living dinosaurs might just exist? Down a quick brandy to steady your nerve, pack your elephant gun, and follow a crumbling map to EDWARDIANS AND DINOSAURS: THE PREHISTORY OF ‘THE LOST WORLD.’

Ladybird Pickwick Cassette Edition

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvNLbyuqsLU

Lost And Found In Maple White Land by Sherri S. Malch

https://michaeldelahoyde.org/dinosaurs/lost-world-tude/

The Lost City of Z by David Grann

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3398625-the-lost-city-of-z

Frank Reade and Romaina – from Science Fiction Studies

https://www.depauw.edu/sfs/reviews_pages/r70.htm

Darren Naish on Piltdown Man and Conan Doyle (Tetrapod Zoology)

https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/tetrapod-zoology/piltdown-man-came-from-the-lost-world-well-no-it-didn-t/

Discovery of Mountain Gorillas from Mountain Gorilla Conservation Fund

https://www.saveagorilla.org/discovery.html

Beasts And Men by Carl Hagenbeck, 1909

https://archive.org/details/beastsmenbeingca00hage

Hunting Monsters by Darren Naish, 2016

https://www.amazon.com/Hunting-Monsters-Cryptozoology-Reality-Behind-ebook/dp/B01B867JTO