Hysteria 51

ForthHand Media

Hysteria 51 is your offbeat weekly podcast destination for all things weird and wonderful! We navigate the cosmic highways of UFOs, the alien-infested landscapes, and the enigmatic frontiers of the paranormal. With your hosts, Brent Hand and David Flora, alongside our cantankerous tin man, Conspiracy Bot (with a not-so-subtle desire to rule the world, doubling as our chief inquisitor into the unknown), we delve into unique mysteries, the inexplicable, and the downright unusual. Each week, we explore a fresh topic, making one thing crystal clear... the truth is out there, but you won’t find it here.

  1. 3d ago

    The Mad Gasser of Mattoon | 516

    Shut the windows and change your mask filters, the Mad Gasser of Mattoon is prowling the podcast! A WWII-era midwestern mystery, the Mad Gasser of Mattoon held a small town in a gaseous grip of fear for 2 weeks with no explanation and few suspects. Panic took hold as locals tried to figure out what was happening in their small Illinois community. To this day, no one knows exactly who perpetrated a series of alleged gas attacks, nor has anyone found out why. Join David as he relates not only the timeline of the ‘phantom anesthetist,’ but also similar attacks in different parts of the country throughout the years. Were they connected somehow or just coincidence? He also looks at what police and scientists have found, and whether or not anything has actually been explained over the years. Don’t let the fumes get to you in this episode of Blurry Photos! Music Ghostpocalypse – 8 Epilog, Ghostpocalypse – 6 Crossing the Threshold, Some Amount of Evil, Malicious, Villainous Treachery – Distressed, Danse Macabre, Myst on the Moor – Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 Sources Gas Attacks in America: http://mysteriousuniverse.org/2011/06/mad-gassers-of-america/An Overview: http://io9.gizmodo.com/did-mattoon-have-a-mad-scientist-or-a-mad-population-1510479349Vitelli, R. “The Mad Gasser of Mattoon.” JREF Swift Blog. James Randi Educational Foundation, 23 Apr. 2011. Web. 12 Dec. 2016. http://archive.randi.org/site/index.php/swift-blog/1279-the-mad-gasser-of-mattoon.htmlMaruna, S. The Mad Gasser of Mattoon: Dispelling the Hysteria. Jacksonville: Swamp Gas Books, 2003.Johnson, D. “The Phantom Anesthetist of Mattoon: A field study of mass hysteria.” Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology. 1 Jan. 1945, Volume 40, Number 1: 175-186. http://ergotism.info/en/hysteria/mass_hysteria_mad_gasser_jasp_1945_40.pdf See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    The Mad Gasser of Mattoon | 516
  2. Aug 5

    Lawn and Order: Psychic Pets Unit | 515

    This week, Hysteria 51 asks two important questions: How far is too far when protecting your lawn, and has your dog secretly been judging you this entire time? First, a Minnesota man allegedly constructs a homemade spike strip packed with dozens of three-inch screws to stop neighborhood kids from biking across his grass. Because apparently a “Keep Off the Lawn” sign lacked the medieval menace he was looking for. Then we travel to South Korea, where pet owners are turning to tarot readers to uncover their animals’ hidden thoughts, anxieties, health concerns, and possibly their opinions about that bargain-bin kibble. Dogs are selecting cards, humans are seeking answers, and somewhere a cat is refusing to participate because it already knows the future and finds it disappointing. Join us for homemade lawn traps, psychic pets, canine emotional baggage, and another bewildering tour through the strangest corners of weird news. Links & Resources 📌Lawn Care 📌Tarot Terrier Email us your Contest Topics: ForthHandMedia@gmail.com Email us your favorite WEIRD news stories: weird@hysteria51.com Support the Show Get exclusive content & perks as well as an ad and sponsor free experience at https://www.patreon.com/Hysteria51 from just $1 Shop Be the Best Dressed at your Cult Meeting! https://www.teepublic.com/stores/hysteria51?ref_id=9022 See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

  3. Aug 3

    Reality: Bigger, Stranger, and Probably Watching | 514

    Reality may be bigger, stranger, and far more crowded than our three-dimensional monkey brains can handle. This week on Hysteria 51, we count down ten horrifying theories about what could exist in dimensions we cannot see, from shadow matter and hidden forces to holographic universes, colliding branes, M-theory, and countless alternate versions of you making equally terrible decisions. Could gravity be leaking into another dimension? Is our universe just one thin membrane floating in a much larger cosmic void? Does every possible outcome create another reality where you remembered the password on the first try? We break down the real science behind extra dimensions, dark matter, the multiverse, many-worlds theory, and the terrifying possibility that reality has more rooms than advertised. So grab a flashlight, avoid making eye contact with the shadow universe occupying your couch, and prepare to discover why the cosmos is weird, physics is rude, and somewhere in another dimension, this episode is probably much better. Sources Time and the Block Universe Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy – Time https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2026/entries/time/ Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy – Temporal Consciousness https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2025/entries/consciousness-temporal/ Asher Peres – “Critique of the Wheeler-DeWitt Equation” https://arxiv.org/abs/gr-qc/9704061 The Fifth Force Eöt-Wash Group – “New Test of the Gravitational Inverse-Square Law at the Submillimeter Range” https://arxiv.org/abs/2002.11761 NA64 Collaboration – “Hunting Down the X17 Boson at the CERN SPS” https://arxiv.org/abs/2009.02756 Kaluza-Klein Theory and Extra Dimensions CERN – Extra Dimensions, Gravitons, and Tiny Black Holes https://home.cern/science/physics/extra-dimensions-gravitons-and-tiny-black-holes/ Theodor Kaluza – “On the Unity Problem of Physics” https://inspirehep.net/literature/14622 Shadow Matter and Hidden Sectors Edward Kolb, David Seckel, and Michael Turner – “The Shadow World of Superstring Theories” https://www.nature.com/articles/314415a0 Lawrence Krauss, Alan Guth, David Spergel, George Field, and William Press – “Inflation and Shadow Matter” https://www.nature.com/articles/319748a0 Dark Energy and Dimensional Leakage Nobel Prize – The 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/physics/2011/summary/ Nobel Prize – The Accelerating Expansion of the Universe https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/physics/2011/popular-information/ Gia Dvali, Gregory Gabadadze, and Massimo Porrati – “4D Gravity on a Brane in 5D Minkowski Space” https://arxiv.org/abs/hep-th/0005016 The Holographic Principle Leonard Susskind – “The World as a Hologram” https://arxiv.org/abs/hep-th/9409089 Juan Maldacena – “The Large N Limit of Superconformal Field Theories and Supergravity” https://arxiv.org/abs/hep-th/9711200 Fermilab – The Holometer https://holometer.fnal.gov/index.html Fermilab – Holometer Frequently Asked Questions https://holometer.fnal.gov/faq.html Brane Worlds and the Bulk Lisa Randall and Raman Sundrum – “A Large Mass Hierarchy from a Small Extra Dimension” https://arxiv.org/abs/hep-ph/9905221 Lisa Randall and Raman Sundrum – “An Alternative to Compactification” https://arxiv.org/abs/hep-th/9906064 The Ekpyrotic and Cyclic Universe Justin Khoury, Burt Ovrut, Paul Steinhardt, and Neil Turok – “The Ekpyrotic Universe: Colliding Branes and the Origin of the Hot Big Bang” https://arxiv.org/abs/hep-th/0103239 Paul Steinhardt and Neil Turok – “Cosmic Evolution in a Cyclic Universe” https://arxiv.org/abs/hep-th/0111098 M-Theory and the String Landscape Edward Witten – “String Theory Dynamics in Various Dimensions” https://arxiv.org/abs/hep-th/9503124 Leonard Susskind – “The Anthropic Landscape of String Theory” https://arxiv.org/abs/hep-th/0302219 T. Banks – “The Top (10^{500}) Reasons Not to Believe in the Landscape” https://arxiv.org/abs/1208.5715 The Many-Worlds Interpretation Hugh Everett III – “‘Relative State’ Formulation of Quantum Mechanics” https://journals.aps.org/rmp/abstract/10.1103/RevModPhys.29.454 Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy – Many-Worlds Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/sum2026/entries/qm-manyworlds/ Email your Contest Entries to: ForthHandmedia@gmail.com Email us your favorite WEIRD news stories: weird@hysteria51.com Support the Show Get exclusive content & perks as well as an ad and sponsor free experience at https://www.patreon.com/Hysteria51 from just $1 Shop Be the Best Dressed at your Cult Meeting! https://www.teepublic.com/stores/hysteria51?ref_id=9022 See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    Reality: Bigger, Stranger, and Probably Watching | 514
  4. Jul 29

    Humanoid Homework and Reptilian Lockdown | 513

    This week, education gets artificial and prison security goes prehistoric. First, the company behind Realbotix is pitching schools on humanoid AI teacher assistants, because apparently the journey from crypto to adult companionship to high-school STEM education is now a perfectly normal corporate career path. Could a lifelike robot help teenagers learn science, or will “Sally” spend the semester explaining algebra to students desperately searching for her off switch? Then, Israel clears a regulatory path that could allow Nile crocodiles to guard prisons and discourage escape attempts. That’s right, razor wire and watchtowers may soon be joined by several tons of hungry, armored swamp dinosaur with absolutely no respect for visitation hours. Join us as we examine AI robot teachers, crocodile prison guards, and the continuing global effort to turn everyday life into a low-budget science-fiction movie. Grab your hall pass, stay away from the moat, and remember: there are no stupid questions, but there may be crocodiles. Links & Resources 📌Hot for Teach 📌Swamp Puppy Security Email us your Contest Topics: ForthHandMedia@gmail.com Email us your favorite WEIRD news stories: weird@hysteria51.com Support the Show Get exclusive content & perks as well as an ad and sponsor free experience at https://www.patreon.com/Hysteria51 from just $1 Shop Be the Best Dressed at your Cult Meeting! https://www.teepublic.com/stores/hysteria51?ref_id=9022 See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    Humanoid Homework and Reptilian Lockdown | 513
  5. Jul 27

    All Colors Sam and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Weird Picnic | 512

    We go pond jumping this week and head to the Isle of Wight for one of the strangest paranormal encounters ever reported: All Colours Sam, better known as the Sandown Clown. In 1973, two children claimed they met a nearly seven-foot-tall, three-fingered, three-toed, ghost-like humanoid living in a metal hut near Sandown Airport. Normal British stuff, we are pretty sure. Sam wore a pointed yellow hat, spoke through a strange device, said he was “a ghost in an odd sort of way,” and somehow managed to make eating berries look like advanced alien surgery. So what was All Colours Sam? An extraterrestrial? A robot? A folkloric entity? A man in a costume? Or one of the most bizarre childhood stories ever to escape into UFO and cryptid lore? We break down the full encounter, the witnesses, the weirdest details, what believers think happened, what skeptics say, and why the Sandown Clown mystery is still confusing paranormal researchers more than 50 years later this week on Hysteria 51. Sources BUFORA Journal, Vol. 6, No. 5, Jan/Feb 1978 – “Ghost or Spaceman ’73?”Internet ArchiveThink Anomalous – The Sandown “Ghost Clown,” 1973Think AnomalousOnTheWight – All Colours Sam, aka Sam the Sandown ClownOnTheWightOnTheWight – The Sandown Clown: Exploring Sam, the Isle of Wight’s Surreal 1973 EncounterOnTheWightBBC Radio 4 / Uncanny – Cold Cases: Case 5: The Sandown ClownApple PodcastsOnTheWight – BBC Sounds and Cease to Exist Podcasts Turn Their Attention to All Colours SamOnTheWightSpooky Isles – The Sandown Clown: Fact or Fiction?Spooky IslesWeird Darkness – The Sandown Clown: All Colours Sam and the Isle of WightWeird DarknessIsland Echo – The Sandown Clown Returns to the Isle of WightIsland EchoBedtime Stories – The Sandown ClownThe Sandown ClownShrouded Hand – The Sandown Clown Incident: A Creepy Encounter With an Unknown EntityThe Sandown Clown Incident Email your Contest Entries to: ForthHandmedia@gmail.com Email us your favorite WEIRD news stories: weird@hysteria51.com Support the Show Get exclusive content & perks as well as an ad and sponsor free experience at https://www.patreon.com/Hysteria51 from just $1 Shop Be the Best Dressed at your Cult Meeting! https://www.teepublic.com/stores/hysteria51?ref_id=9022 See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    All Colors Sam and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Weird Picnic | 512
  6. Jul 22

    The Raccoon, the Cryptid, and the Measuring Tape | 511

    Seattle has a new celebrity, and he’s short, round, furry, and built like a raccoon somebody accidentally compressed into a carry-on bag. World, meet Jimothy, the unusually shaped trash panda whose possible spinal deformity, fearless neighborhood adventures, and magnificent little strut have transformed him into an internet sensation, local icon, and living reminder that charisma has absolutely nothing to do with having a neck. No word yet on who he is dating, but our money is on a Kardashian! Then we stomp into even more forbidden scientific territory to investigate one of cryptozoology’s least-requested mysteries: How big is Bigfoot’s... member? An anthropologist uses primate anatomy, evolutionary biology, and far more professionalism than this question deserves to determine whether Sasquatch is proportionally impressive or merely overcompensating with those enormous feet. Also, peen bone??? Maybe! Join us for viral raccoon mania, Sasquatch bedroom speculation, penis bones, and unfortunate proportions. All that and more on the only podcast stupid enough to ask whether Jimothy may secretly be the better-endowed cryptid. Hysteria 51! Links & Resources 📌Tiny Trash Panda 📌Bigfoot Bedroom Disappointments Email us your Contest Topics: ForthHandMedia@gmail.com Email us your favorite WEIRD news stories: weird@hysteria51.com Support the Show Get exclusive content & perks as well as an ad and sponsor free experience at https://www.patreon.com/Hysteria51 from just $1 Shop Be the Best Dressed at your Cult Meeting! https://www.teepublic.com/stores/hysteria51?ref_id=9022 See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    The Raccoon, the Cryptid, and the Measuring Tape | 511
  7. Jul 20

    We Celebrate 200 Episodes of Behind Beautiful Things! | 510

    Join us this week as we help our resident overthinker and frequent fill in host Kevin Crispin celebrate the 200th episode of his show Behind Beautiful Things! The 411 From Behind Beautiful Things: In this milestone 200th episode of Behind Beautiful Things, the tables are turned as guest host Kelly—Kevin's sister (and, yes, a doctor!)—takes over the microphone to interview Kevin. Together, they reflect on Kevin's childhood, his lifelong creativity, the close bond they share as siblings, and how being raised by two strong women helped shape the person he is today. Along the way, Kelly shares stories from her life, making for a heartfelt, odd, and memorable conversation. Reaching 200 episodes wouldn't have been possible without our incredible listeners. Thank you to everyone who has tuned in, shared the podcast, and been part of this journey. A very special thank you goes to our producer, Brent, whose talent, kindness, and generosity have helped make every episode possible. Join us as we celebrate 200 episodes of Behind Beautiful Things with laughter, family stories, gratitude, and a look back at the journey that brought us here. Behind Beautiful Things Website: www.sadtimespodcast.com Follow Behind Beautiful Things on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/373292146649249 Follow Behind Beautiful Things on Instagram: @behindbeautifulthingspodcast Learn more about Kevin’s Professional Speaking and Acting at www.kevincrispin.com Check out Kevin’s substack: https://allconviction.substack.com Get your very own “Sad Schwag”: https://www.teepublic.com/stores/hysteria51/albums/253388-sad-times-podcast?ref_id=9022 Editorial note: Behind Beautiful Things is committed to sharing various stories from generous guests. The hope is to allow any number of stories to be shared to help people feel less alone and, perhaps, more empathetic. It is important to clarify that the guests’ stories, perspectives, and sentiments do not necessarily reflect the views and beliefs of Behind Beautiful Things in any way. Please note that Behind Beautiful Things is in no way a substitute for medical or professional mental health support. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    We Celebrate 200 Episodes of Behind Beautiful Things! | 510
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About

Hysteria 51 is your offbeat weekly podcast destination for all things weird and wonderful! We navigate the cosmic highways of UFOs, the alien-infested landscapes, and the enigmatic frontiers of the paranormal. With your hosts, Brent Hand and David Flora, alongside our cantankerous tin man, Conspiracy Bot (with a not-so-subtle desire to rule the world, doubling as our chief inquisitor into the unknown), we delve into unique mysteries, the inexplicable, and the downright unusual. Each week, we explore a fresh topic, making one thing crystal clear... the truth is out there, but you won’t find it here.

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