Campfire Classics Podcast

Episode 40- Look at my Specimen Rod

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
We're back with another story, three more crimes (one of them a lie), and a whole lot of juvenile banter.
This week is March's "True Crimes and a Lie," but it is also our first story from one of the great American writers, Herman Melville.  This story was specially selected by Heather for Ken to read specifically because of its title, "The Lightning-Rod Man."  It is a wild ride with a couple of dramatic characters and a shocking number of jokes about the male reproductive organ.  Or maybe that's just our hosts reading something into it that wasn't there.
Regardless, it is a fantastic story, and along the way our hosts discuss the Great White Dick, green glass balls, and...yeah, it really is mostly euphemisms.  Though there is also a surprising amount of geography.
"The Lightning-Rod Man" was first published in Putnam's Monthly Magazine, August 1854, and despite being one of Melville's lesser known stories is a literary gem.
Kevin from The Jury Room guest as he tries his hand at "True Crimes and a Lie."  He's a great guest, but more importantly a great host of his own podcast, so check him out at JuryRoomPodcast.com 
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

Episode 39- The Dead Travel Fast

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
If it's Tuesday it must be...Munich?
This week, you'll be delighted to learn that Heather is going to attempt her German accent again.  Do you think it will be better than last time?  You'll have to listen to find out.  The story is from horror legend Bram Stoker, and in fact was first written to be part of his most famous book Dracula.  The story is called "Dracula's Guest".
As we work through the story, we address some important issues.  Like the value of theatre critics, what is the best transition music, and dyslexia 2.0.
"Dracula's Guest" was first published in 1914, 2 years after Stoker's death, as part of the collection Dracula's Guest and Other Weird Stories. But today, we're reading it out of the book Classic Horror Tales sent to us from Foggy Pine Books.  Visit them at www.foggypinebooks.com.
Promo: Breaking Down Bad Books (Host Nathan also recommended this week's story, so double shout out, please go support him)https://shows.acast.com/breaking-down 
And you can go hear Ken and Heather interviewed in the March 16th episode of Figure it Out with Julia Johnson.
https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/733vg-12af24/Figure-it-out-Podcast
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

Episode 38- Cuckoo in the Bean

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
As we near the 1 year mark of being quarantined from the world, let's look back at all the marvelous...
Nah, never mind, how about we just read another story.
This week, Ken gets to read an odd little story by the apparently famous (though we'd never heard of him) Ring Lardner.  "Haircut" is a charming, folksy, storyteller-y short story with more suspicious character crammed into 8 pages than you can shake a stick at (or some other olde timey idiom).
Along the way, Ken and Heather talk Music Man re-writes, grave robbing vengeance, and (stick around until the end) a Campfire Classics animal costume calendar.  
"Haircut" was first published  in 1925, and is his most republished and anthologized story.
Promo: Stolen From Me By Linseyhttps://www.stolenfrommepod.com/
And, if you can't wait for more of Ken's voice, head over to Plum Forest Podcast and listen to hime in episode 31, The River Rockhttps://www.plumforestpodcast.com/
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

Episode 37- Jealousy's a Green-Eyed Ghost

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
Another week, another episode, another beautiful story read passably well by the team of Campfire Classics!
This week, Heather takes a crack at "The Shell of Sense" by Ghost Fiction author and American Suffragette Olivia Howard Dunbar.  The story goes places we weren't expecting, and takes ages getting a couple of places we were anxious to get.  Who the f**k is Theresa!? 
Other important questions include, 'What new awards categories should be established?' 'Who would you haunt?' and 'Why do my super powers suck?'
"The Shell of Sense" was published  in 1908, and today can be read in dozens of collections of ghost stories, short stories, and Dunbar anthologies.
Promo: Figure it Out
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

True Crimes and a Lie, Vol. 7

Welcome to True Crimes and a Lie, the gameshow within our podcast where we try to tell the difference between truth and lies.
We're not good at it.
This month's TCaaL comes from Episode 36 of Campfire Classics, though this recording has 2 1/2 minutes of extra audio not heard on the full episode.
Our guests Ashley and Jeff struggle to find a hint that will point them toward the correct answer.  Will they guess right?
Will you?

Episode 36- Don't Take the Hoonanny

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
A lot is going on this week.  First of all, it's the return of True Crimes and a Lie with special guest contestants Ashley Lawler and Jeff Verde!  Can you pick out the lie?  Will they?
Our story this week comes from author Frank R. Stockton and asks with its title a very important question: "The Lady, or the Tiger?"
Other questions we answer include, 'What was the first reality show?' 'What happens when you eat brunch too fast?' and 'Why is the king half a dick?'
"The Lady, or the Tiger?" was published  in the magazine The Century in 1882, and has been reprinted many, many times.
Promo: Crime Divers
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.
 
 

Episode 35- The Magical Mr. Electrico

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
Welcome back.  This week we are treated to a surprisingly modern (for us) story.  "Asleep in Armageddon" was published in 1948, but through some interesting copyright loopholes, has entered the Public Domain early.  We also get some fascinating fun facts on Science Fiction literary legend Ray Bradbury.
Important topics of discussion this week include Heather's plan to join the Daily Show, a man with a magic sword, and what do you think "wreckage" means?
"Asleep in Armageddon" was published in 1948 in Planet Stories.
Promo: Booze and Ghouls
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

Episode 34- Lost in Translation

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
In a drastic departure from last week's episode, this week's author is gothic romance adventure novelist Robert Louis Stevenson.  "Thrawn Janet" is a short horror story written in Scots English and read (kinda) in this episode by Ken.  To hear his brief attempt at the original dialect and text head on over to patreon.com/5050ArtsProduction.
This episode covers a wide array of topics, from The Big Game, to who would you haunt if you came back as a ghost, to sitting in a bog with a book.
"Thrawn Janet" was published in 1881 and was later released in the collection The Merry Men, and Other Tales and Fables published in 1887.
Promo: Wine Dine and Storytime
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

Episode 33- Dynamite of the Soul

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
Thank you for helping us pass 2,000 downloads!
We're hitting classic humorist P.G. Wodehouse this week!  Well, reading, not hitting.  He is dead and it would be weird to hit him.  We learn a lot about Sir Wodehouse while Heather makes a valiant effort to read his short story "Absent Treatment".  We tackle the world's first "Not" joke, the origins of the dancing feline musical, and what actually is the "Dynamite of the Soul"?
"Absent treatment" was published in Strand in March 1911 and can be found in the 1919 collection My Man Jeeves.
Promo: Curiosity Cake Podcast
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

True Crimes and a Lie, Vol.6

This episode comes from Campfire Classics' episode "A Gift to Humanity".  This is a special one, because for the first time Heather isn't working alone.  The ladies from Wine Dine and Storytime join in on the fun and try to figure out which stories are real.
Let us know how you did playing along at home.  And check out our guests show wherever you listen to podcasts.

Episode 32- A Gift to Humanity

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
Happy six month anniversary!  We've been doing this for half a year. And we're celebrating by inviting some guests! The ladies from the podcast Wine Dine and Storytime help us play a round of "True Crimes and a Lie".  Who will win?
It's a new author this week, so you'll get to hear some fun facts about the fascinating Edith Wharton before Ken reads "Miss Mary Pask".  In all, it's an extra long action packed episode.  Heather plans a new career running an Air BnB, Ken tries to define "reverse necrophilia", and the greatest gift to humanity is...well, listen and let us know if you agree.
"Miss Mary Pask" was published in Pictorial Review in April 1925.
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

Episode 31- Acetone High on the Yellow Brick Road

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
It's been a long couple of ...weeks? ...months? ...centuries? We could all use some self-care.  Hopefully, this will provide you with some simple joy.  This week, Heather gets to read two stories by the great L. Frank Baum. Though neither of them have anything to do with magic slippers.
Discussion topics include TED Talk Tangents, fancy chickens, and moist beatboxing.
"The Box of Robbers" and "The Glass Dog" were both published in the 1901 collection American Fairy Tales.
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

Episode 30- Musty Hussies!

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
We're celebrating Public Domain Day!
On January first, a whole year worth of writing entered the public domain and became fair game for us to try to read.  Please join us in welcoming 1925 into the fold.  To celebrate, Heather has chosen to give Ken a short story from that year, "The Strange Case" by Edgar Wallace.  It will be a race to the finish as Ken tries to make it to the end before his sugar high runs out.
Today, your hosts struggle to remember what year it is, compare this week's author to a certain famous lifeguard, and definitely don't resort to making fart sounds.  Because that would be childish.
Oh!  And a thousand thank yous to our new patron, Stefan Brock.
"The Strange Case" was published in the 1925 collection The Mind of Mr. J.G. Reeder.
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

True Crimes and a Lie, Vol.5

So here's an important question.  Can you tell fact from fiction?  Do you know the difference between real and fake news?  Test your senses in this edition of True Crimes and a Lie! a gameshow within a podcast, where Heather tries to pick the true crimes from the lie.
This episode comes from Campfire Classics Episode 29- Eight Miles in My Rear.

Episode 29- Eight Miles in My Rear

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
Welcome to 2021!  So glad you made it!
This week sees the long anticipated return of True Crimes and a Lie, our gameshow within a podcast where Ken shares three crime stories and Heather tries to guess which ones are real and which is fiction.  Then we get a story from Scottish author Hume Nisbet, whose name Ken has trouble pronouncing correctly.  This week's story is The Vampire Maid.
During the episode, your hosts discuss beatbox mastery, the return of the guillotine, and Heather has a near fatal laughing fit over a sophomoric butt joke.  So, business as usual. 
The Vampire Maid was published in 1900, and has been reprinted many times since.
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

Episode 28- See You Next Tuesday

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
This is our farewell to a long year.
And we're coming back to an author we loved last time.  Mr. H.H. Munro, better known as Saki.  Ken gets to read two stories, "Laura" and "Sredni Vashtar" (how would you pronounce that name?)  This week, conversations include New Year's Resolutions, ejaculations in the kitchen area, and...did you hear that cat?  Ah well, see you next Tuesday!
"Sredni Vashtar" can be found in the 1912 collection The Chronicles of Clovis, "Laura" in the 1914 Beasts and Super-Beasts.
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

Episode 27- Crack is Whack: A Ghost Story

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
What is your favorite late December tradition?  Because this week, we've found a new one.
Taking up the torch of a centuries old British tradition, we're reading a ghost story for the holidays.  Spooky author M.R. James returns to give us some tips on writing, and Heather takes a pass at his short "Lost Hearts."  Ken tries not to roast his chestnuts, we learn a lot about architecture, and jokes are funnier when you explain them, right?
"Lost Hearts" was originally published in 1895. It was later collected in James' 1904 book Ghost Stories of an Antiquary.
Craig Kellberg once again contributes his musical talents. Listen for his sick Hurdy-Gurdy shredding.
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

Episode 26- Teabag Your Sweetmeats

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
Only two more episodes in 2020 after this week!  The year that wouldn't end is drawing to a close.  It is moving into the past, as all things do.
This week, we're tapping into one of history's greatest storytellers, Hans Christian Andersen.  He is responsible for some of the most enduring tales of all time, not to mention a fair number of Disney's plot lines, and in today's episode, Ken gets to read "The Fir Tree".  True to form, our hosts keep it classy as they discuss stalkers, killing rats, and getting pooped on.
"The Fir Tree" was published in 1844 and is part of the collection New Fairy Tales.
And a special shoutout to "The Jury Room" and the show's host Kevin.  Looking for some true crime in your podcasting day?  Head over to juryroompodcast.com and give him a listen.
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

Episode 25- Fairying Around: A Christmas Tale

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
25 episodes!  This feels like a quarter life crisis or something.
We have a new author this week.  Mary E. Wilkins Freeman!  Heather reads her short story entitled "The Christmas Masquerade".  And it is a wild ride.  A ride on loose horses, with drunk babies, and full of cherries.
And so many other strange twists and turns.  There is honestly too much to cover here, so just give it a listen.
"The Christmas Masquerade" can be found in the 1893 collection The Pot of Gold and Other Stories.
 
Oh!  And special thanks to Craig Kellberg, for his recordings of Away in a Manger and God Rest Ye, Merry Gentlemen. 
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

Episode 24- Dreams, Feasts, and Fire Island

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
December 2020 starts with some big life news from our hosts.  Back into our regular rotation, this week's story comes from an author named E.F. Benson, who, in addition to having a fabulous moustache, was the writer of many horror and satire shorts.  This story is called "The Room in the Tower".
Our hosts start by sharing the big news before going on to such important topics as recurring dreams, bad decision making in horror stories, and possibly have some disturbing premonitions. 
"The Room in the Tower" was published in a collection of the same name in 1912.
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

Episode 23- Rather an Old Ass

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
Movember is coming to a close as we prepare for Thanksgiving.  Poirot returns for one more adventure, this one entitled "The Tragedy at Marsdon Manor." Ken's moustache listens in as Heather gets her second try at the great Belgian detective.
See the moustache at movember.com/m/kensandberg
This week, Heather shows off her dance moves, Ken finally comes clean about his medical training, and seriously...what is a turnip faced watch!?
"The Tragedy at Marsdon Manor" was published in the magazine The Sketch in 1923 and can be found in the short story collection Poirot Investigates.
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

Episode 22- Bronchitis my Butt

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
Movember moustache tribute week number 3!  Hopefully you have not tired of M. Poirot.  Campfire Classics hasn't. This week's mystery is "The Million Dollar Bond Robbery." Ken takes the helm, reading this uncommonly silly adventure, and, of course, continues his moustache growth at movember.com/m/kensandberg.
This week's talking points include a real life mystery, finding an insult that isn't an insult, and a particular personal discomfort, which is discussed at length.
"The Million Dollar Bond Robbery" was published in the magazine The Sketch in 1923 and can be found in the short story collection Poirot Investigates.
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

Episode 21- Derelict in the Ditch

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
Week two of the Movember moustache tribute from Campfire Classics brings us another Poirot Mystery from Dame Christie.  This one is called "The Disappearance of Mr Davenheim", and Ken continues to raise money for Movember with his sad moustache which you can see at movember.com/m/kensandberg.
This week, Heather gets to take her first turn at the great Belgian detective and his French accent with...mixed success.  Our hosts learn more about moustaches than anyone knew you could learn, cast a couple of new Poirot film adaptations, and try to figure out where The Big D has disappeared to.
"The Disappearance of Mr. Davenheim" was published in the magazine The Sketch in 1923 and can be found in the short story collection Poirot Investigates.
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

Episode 20- Psycho Psychic or That Darn Cat

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
Week one of the Movember moustache tribute from Campfire Classics kicks off with a Poirot Mystery from the great Agatha Christie called "The Adventure of the Cheap Flat". Ken will be raising money for Movember, and you can check out his moustache progress or donate some money at movember.com/m/kensandberg.
This week, our co-hosts make unfounded accusations against left handed people, discuss the origins of the Mario Brothers, and start training to become international spies.
Also, did you vote yet?
"The Adventure of the Cheap Flat" was published in the magazine The Sketch in 1923 and can be found in the short story collection Poirot Investigates.
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

Edgar Allan Poe-nus Episode - Halloween 2020

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
Back in August, we read this story thinking it might be a good 10th episode.  Instead, it was upsetting.  So now you get to hear it for Halloween!Trigger warning: This is a Poe horror story and the character is not nice to people or small animals.
So, today we're taking a swing at Edgar Allan Poe's short story The Black Cat. Along the way, we cast Hollywood's most believable psychopath, make WILD predictions about the ending based on nothing, and get a surprise visit from Hercule Poirot.
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

Episode 19- Rock 'n' Roll Reaper

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
Our final regular release in October 2020 is another spooky story.  This one comes to you from American Author Robert William Chambers.  The story "In the Court of the Dragon" leaves our hosts a little confused.  Okay, a lot confused, but it is incredibly engaging and comes from a collection called The King in Yellow.  During their attempt to understand this tale of terror our hosts discuss the quirks of cathedral architecture, learn that "voluntary" doesn't always mean what you think it does, and question just what type of music the devil would play.
And it all kicks off with an impromptu song.
If you already heard this week's True Crimes and a Lie, you can catch the story by jumping to 16:50.
"In the Court of the Dragon" was published in the collection The King in Yellow in 1895.
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

True Crimes and a Lie, Vol. 4

Here's a little sneak peek of the action coming up in the next Campfire Classics!  That's right, it's another True Crimes and a Lie! a gameshow within a podcast, where Heather tries to determine fact from fiction and Ken tries to come up with a snappy tagline.
Can you tell which story is fiction?  And can you guess the super subtle theme that holds these stories together?
 

Episode 18- A Comely Wench

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
This week we're promoting #comelywench.
The great Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is most well known for authoring the most enduring detective of modern literature, Sherlock Holmes.  But Heather and Ken are shocked to learn in this episode that he wrote other characters, too!  We learn a little about Heather's first impression of Ken, look up a bunch of new words, and put out a call for your favorite haunted objects!"The Leather Funnel" was first published in the June 1903 issue of The Stand Magazine.
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

Episode 17- Don't Be a Bullying Seaman

Welcome to Campfire Classics, a Literary Comedy Podcast!!
And a belated Happy Birthday to Ken, who turned 36 (if we're counting quarantine birthdays) yesterday!
This week, Heather reads an unsettling seafaring story by British author, Victorian hunk, and erstwhile bodybuilder William Hope Hodgson. "The Voice in the Night" is an eerie journey, and our hosts compensate by finally learning what the poop deck is, coming up with euphemisms for "drunk, and trademarking a new burlesque entertainment style.
If you've already enjoyed this week's "True Crimes and a Lie", you can get to the story by jumping to the 13:27 mark.
"The Voice in the Night" has been adapted and reprinted many times, but was first published in the November 1907 edition of Blue Book Magazine.
So sit back, light a fire (or even a candle), grab a drink, and enjoy.

True Crimes and a Lie, Vol. 3

Check out the newest installment of True Crimes and a Lie, A Gameshow within a Podcast all about telling true crime from fake crime.Enjoy this now or as part of Campfire Classics' Episode 17.And please write in and let us know if you have ideas for better taglines!