The Paracast -- The Gold Standard of Paranormal Radio

UFO researcher and religious scholar David Halperin returns to talk about his recent columns about UFOs and the Bible, including the theories that ancient man was visited by beings from outer space. He continues to focus on his theory that UFOs are a myth, manifestations of a collective unconscious, and not physical spaceships from other planets. Back in the 1960s, David was a teenage UFO investigator. Later he became a professor of religious studies — his specialty, religious traditions of heavenly ascent. From 1976 through 2000, David taught Jewish history in the Religious Studies Department at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. He’s the author of five non-fiction books on Jewish mysticism and messianism, the coming-of-age novel Journal of a UFO Investigator, and Intimate Alien: The Hidden Story of the UFO.

After 15 years, The Paracast is still here, as Gene and Randall present a special episode featuring veteran UFO researchers and authors Tim “Mr. UFO” Beckley and Jerome Clark. The discussion takes us way back to the early days of the UFO field, and how they became lifelong friends in the pages of Ray Palmer’s Flying Saucers magazine. Topics include the reasons why people interested in sci-fi often reject UFO believers, and the concept of “event anomalies,” and “experience anomalies” to describe the sort of encounters people report. Beckley boasts that he has had “so many careers that even his own girlfriend doesn’t know what he does for a living.” He has published hundreds of books covering paranormal topics. Clark is best known as author of the sprawling “UFO Encyclopedia.” He has also written numerous articles covering “Fortean” topics, and also worked with the late Dr. J. Allen Hynek at the Center for UFO Studies, and as an editor for Fate magazine.

Gene and Randall present paranormal researcher Sheryl Gottschall, president of Australia’s UFO Research Queensland (UFORQ), one of the oldest research organizations exploring the phenomenon. Starting in the the mid-1970s, she started exploring the field of near death experiences which deepened over the next decade. Sheryl was introduced to the UFO subject in 1980 by her father-in-law who had seen contactee George Adamski speak at Brisbane City Hall in the 1960s. As a child she would watch the stars at night and wonder if life existed elsewhere in the universe, and she read as many books about the 1950s and 1960s contactees as she could find. During the 1990s she became interested in alien abduction and attended a 1992 event in Brisbane featuring abduction researcher, Budd Hopkins. During this interview, Sheryl will focus on her interest in UFOs and also possible near-death experiences.

Gene and Randall present paranormal writer and researcher Tim R. Swartz to bring us up to date on his ongoing studies involving the strange and unknown. He is an Indiana native and Emmy-Award winning television producer/videographer, and is the author of a number of popular books including "The Lost Journals of Nikola Tesla," "America's Strange and Supernatural History,"  and "Time Travel: Fact Not Fiction!" In this episode, he'll focus on a recent book, "Alien Lives Matter — It's OK to Be Gray," which contains reports from 20 of the world's leading UFOlogists that establish that humans have done battle with aliens over and over again, shooting at them, molesting them, hitting them, running them over,  unleashing dogs upon them, and injuring -- and even killing them -- though any means possible, as humans try to combat their fear of the unknown.

Gene and Randall present a very special episode featuring Martin Willis, of Podcast UFO, and experiencer Tom Warner, author of an autobiography, "Beyond the Stars," who reports he and four other families were abducted by a UFO on September 1, 1969, when he was just 10 years of age. As he explains during the episode, this was not his first nor his last paranormal encounter. Martin has been fascinated with the subject of UFOs since his youth, yet he was on the fence about the subject until he experienced a personal sighting in 2006 in Carmel Valley, CA. That sighting solidified his belief that Unidentifiable Flying Objects really do exist. Tom is a self-taught watercolor artist and was named to the American Gallery Greatest American Painters, winner of James Weldon Johnson Literary Foundation Legacy Award for stellar contributions to Literature and the Arts.

Gene and Randall present the return of Walter Bosley. Walter worked briefly in the film industry as a production assistant on commercials and a feature film. He then decided to put his talents to use in counter-espionage and counter-terrorism in a career with the FBI, the AFOSI, and other U.S. federal organizations. His non-fiction books include Latitude 33: Key to the Kingdom, and Empire of the Wheel: Espionage, The Occult and Murder in Southern California. He frequently sits in as an unofficial co-host on the critically-acclaimed radio show Radio Misterioso, and appeared on numerous other radio programs, including Coast to Coast AM, The Kevin Smith Show, Dark Matters Radio, and, of course, The Paracast.

Gene and Randall take a journey through time and space with biological anthropologist Dr. Michael P. Masters, author of Identified Flying Objects: A Multidisciplinary Scientific Approach to the UFO Phenomenon. The book challenges readers to consider new possibilities while cultivating conversations about our ever-evolving understanding of time and time travel. In other words, whether UFOs are piloted by humans from our future. Dr. Masters also discusses his next book, which focuses on abductions. Collectively, his background, education, and current research program combine to offer a unique perspective and novel approach to addressing unanswered questions pertaining to a widely recognized yet poorly understood aspect of modern global culture.

Gene and Randall present Special Correspondent William Puckett with another collection of recent sightings from around the world, plus his comments about prospects for solid information from the Pentagon UAP Task Force. Among the key sightings is a report about a robot-like being emerging from a glowing green UFO, as reported in Las Vegas on November 22, 2020. William worked as a meteorologist with the National Weather Service for 3 years and the Environmental Protection Agency for 27 years. He was a consultant for the History Channel series "UFO Hunters" and is also a research associate with NARCAP (National Reporting Center for Anomalous Phenomena). He is credited with meteorological and radar analysis for the November 7, 2006 UFO Incident at O'Hare Airport in Chicago.

Gene and Randall introduce Gray Scott, a futurist, philosopher, and artist who specializes in the philosophy of technology, digital consciousness, and humanity's technological evolution. Says Gray: “To understand the future of technology we must begin with one fundamental truth. Technology is natural and nature is technological. It is the voice of the cosmos. From the Saturn hexagon to African fractals to the Fibonacci sequence found in the growth patterns of every plant on Earth, we are surrounded by geometric, repetitive, numerical patterns—patterns we have only begun to recognize and quantify.” During the interview, Gray reveals his long-time interest in the paranormal and experiencers, UFO intelligences and the nature of the contact experience. He is also host of the "Futuristic Now" podcast.

Gene and Randall are rejoined by author and experiencer Philip Kinsella, who continues to talk about his book, “YOU – THE PUBLIC DECEIVED: The Grand UFO Deception.” In addition to talking further about the gray aliens he observed, he refers to other possible types of ET, such as the Nordics reported by UFO contactees in the 1950s and 1960s. Philip and Randall also have an extended conversation about the nature of consciousness, and the possible multifaceted reality of his abduction experiences. Apart from dozens of published articles on the paranormal, Philip has also appeared on Channel 4, Central, Live TV and Digital, Anglia News, along with radio interviews. He has also had other books published on the UFO phenomena, including “”Sky Crash Throughout Time: A Continued Investigation into the Rendlesham UFO Mystery,” which he coauthored with the first investigator/author on the case, Brenda Butler.

Gene and Randall discuss paranormal matters and other subjects with long-time skeptical writer/researcher Benjamin Radford, author of “Big-If True: Adventures in Oddity,” a compendium of several dozen columns from Skeptical Inquirer science magazine, where he is a deputy editor. The topics he explores include urban legends, the paranormal, the tale of an alleged walking tree, fake cures, critical thinking, media literacy and even whether a certain well-known online dating service uses scientific methods to screen it’s applicants. The discussion also includes the possible efficacy of nutritional supplements and even Gene’s personal experiences with one of these alleged remedies. Ben is also a member of the American Folklore Society, the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club, and the American College of Forensic Examiners International.

Gene and Randall present a special episode featuring former Paracast co-host Christopher O'Brien and Ronald Olch, both part of the UFO Data Acquisition Project (UFODAP). UFODAP is establishing a network of camera-based UFO detection systems, with systems now available for purchase. From 2010 through 2018, Chris and Gene interviewed dozens of guests on The Paracast, the roster of which is a virtual Who's Who in the field of Ufology and the paranormal. Ron developed UFODAP's  mechanical, electronic, software, and documentation starting from proof-of-concept in 2014. Chris is the author of several books on the paranormal that include Enter the Valley, The Mysterious Valley, Secrets of The Mysterious Valley, Stalking The Tricksters, and Stalking The Herd: Unraveling the Cattle Mutilation Mystery.

UFO researcher and author Preston Dennett visits Gene and Randall and brings with him a number of the sightings he’s written about over the years. He focuses primarily on his 2020 book, “UFOs at the Drive-In” covering sightings by movie-watchers over the years in the U.S. Just imagine: you’re watching your favorite movie at the local drive-in theater when suddenly you see a strange flying object swoop down from above and hover right over the movie screen. The object is metallic, saucer-shaped, with portholes and colored lights, and is totally silent. It’s a UFO! Cars start honking and flashing their lights. People exit their cars, pointing and screaming. Some drive away in terror. Then the UFO starts to move around over the theater putting on a show that’s far more interesting than the movie itself! It may sound like science fiction, except it’s true! Preston is a field investigator for the Mutual UFO Network (MUFON), a ghost hunter, a paranormal researcher, and the author of more than 24 books and more than 100 articles about UFOs and the paranormal.

Gene and Randall present scientist and UFO investigator Robert Powell. Robert is a member of the Scientific Coalition for UAP Studies (SCU), the UFODATA project, and the National Space Society. He is active with FOIA requests to various government organizations to obtain information on historical cases. His most recent book,  "The Truth About UFOs: A Scientific Perspective," is an introductory text on the subject that is intended for readers ages 7-11. He is also co-author of "UFOs and Government: A Historical Inquiry."  He is one of two authors of the detailed radar/witness report on the “Stephenville Lights,” as well as the SCU report "UAP: 2013 Aguadilla, Puerto Rico." Robert has a BS in Chemistry and is a former collegiate debater. He has 28 years experience in engineering management in the semiconductor industry.

Gene and Randall present a special return appearance by writer, educator and blogger MJ Banias, who will discuss a new media venture in which he is involved, The Debrief, which is described as "science, technology, and defense news for the bold and rebelliously curious." The discussion covers a range of UFO-related topics and also SETI and the hopes to find evidence of life in outer space. MJ is the author of "The UFO People: A Curious Culture." He has been featured on multiple podcasts and radio shows. His work has been included in Mysterious Universe, RoguePlanet, Vice, Fortean Times, FATE Magazine, and the book, "UFOs: Reframing the Debate." He lives in Canada with his wife, three children, and a massive cat.