Ken and Robin Talk About Stuff · a reading record

The Consulting Occultist

Every episode of Ken and Robin Talk About Stuff tagged Consulting Occultist — 200 in all, from Episode 705 back to Episode 1 — each with the date it aired and the subject of that episode's Consulting Occultist segment.

Aired
Years 200 entries

  1. No. 705
    Episode 705: A Real Science That Can Do Magic

    Finally the Consulting Occultist profiles Chicago-based mail order woo-purveyor Sydney Flowers.

  2. No. 699
    Episode 699: Double Deepfake

    Finally the Consulting Occultist fulfills a previous promise to cover Arabic geomancy.

  3. No. 695
    Episode 695: You’ve Clearly Never Dealt with Balloon People

    Finally the Consulting Occultist gives us the lowdown on frequently arrested Elizabethan magician Simon Forman.

    Simon Forman

  4. No. 691
    Episode 691 – From Such Triangles As

    Finally the Consulting Occultist regales you with miracles attributed to Pythagoras.

    Pythagoras

  5. No. 687
    Episode 687: Speaking of Magical Tools

    Finally at the behest of beloved Patreon backer Bart Mallio the Consulting Occultist reveals all about the magic of chess.

  6. No. 679
    Episode 679: His Frequency is Powerful

    Finally the Consulting Occultist fills us in on Douglas MacArthur’s role in Korean shamanism.

    Douglas MacArthur

  7. No. 674
    Episode 674: As I Used to Pronounce It

    Finally the Consulting Occultist, at the behest of beloved Patreon backer Jason Thompson, looks at the esoteric side of filmmaker Alejandro Jodorowsky. CW: sexual assault.

    Alejandro Jodorowsky

  8. No. 668
    Episode 668: Skating and Painting

    Finally the Consulting Occultist answers a request from estimable backer Michael Maneval for a profile of cosmically illuminated sculptor and painter Walter Russell.

    Walter Russell

  9. No. 661
    Episode 661: Dismiss All the Butlers

    Finally the Consulting Occultist fulfills beloved Patreon backer Christopher Hatty’s request for a profile of Theosophist turned Buddhist, opera singer turned suspected anarchist spy, Alexandra David-Néel.

    Alexandra David-Néel

  10. No. 658
    Episode 658: Personality Temu

    Finally the Consulting Occultist suggests traditions of immortality estimable backer Bob Grider might include in his Yellow King game.

  11. No. 655
    Episode 655: You Think Too Much About Pole Arms

    Finally backer and sponsor John Kovalic asks the Consulting Occultist about 1960s blues rock musician Graham Bond, who considered himself the son of Aleister Crowley and feuded with rival magicians.

    Graham Bond

  12. No. 652
    Episode 652: Break a Window and Wait for Film Night

    Finally the Consulting Occultist obeys the command of estimable backer Justin Mohareb, who wants to know about Kabbalists who used their powers against fascism.

  13. No. 648
    Episode 648: Hey Isn’t That Ezra Pound?

    Finally the Consulting Occultist tells the tale of Florence Farr, an actor and Golden Dawn member whose artistic life intertwined with those of Shaw, Yeats, and Pound.

    Florence Farr

  14. No. 643
    Episode 643: Not Even Enough Gnomes

    Finally the Consulting Occultist reveals the career of Albin Grau, ritual magician and production designer for the 1922 Nosferatu.

    Albin Grau

  15. No. 639
    Episode 639: This Appendix Should Not Have Been Printed

    Finally, at the behest of estimable Patreon backer Steve Dempsey, the Consulting Occultist fulfills its Canadian content requirements with a look at William Lyon Mackenzie King, who served for a total of 21 years as Prime Minister while secretly engaged in spiritualist inquiry.

    William Lyon Mackenzie King

  16. No. 635
    Episode 635: His Cousin Latte Dick

    Finally the Consulting Occultist looks at collector and art historian Aby Warburg.

    Aby Warburg

  17. No. 630
    Episode 630: Live at Dragonmeet 2024

    [No Consulting Occultist segment written up in this episode's show notes.]

  18. No. 629
    Episode 629: Laugh With You Near Them

    Finally the Consulting Occultist raps tables and psychically excites the zither for a look at Victorian spiritualist William Stainton Moses.

    William Stainton Moses

  19. No. 626
    Episode 626: She Did Say Independent

    And finally the Consulting Occultist profiles influential 19th century proto-feminist spiritualist Anna Kingsford.

    Anna Kingsford

  20. No. 622
    Episode 622: In the Interest of Asking a Question

    Finally the Consulting Occultist surveys the works of early astrologer Gan De, who catalogued the stars during China’s Warring States period.

    Gan De

  21. No. 619
    Episode 619: The Zeppo of the Golden Dawn

    Finally the Consulting Occultist delves into the career of coroner and Golden Dawn co-founder William Wynn Westcott.

    William Wynn Westcott

  22. No. 615
    Episode 615: Ranger Problems

    Finally the Consulting Occultist cracks the code on pioneering steganographer Johannes Trithemius.

    Johannes Trithemius

  23. No. 611
    Episode 611: Terrible Ideas Deflation

    Finally the Consulting Occultist lays out everything you need to know to placate a Mesopotamian ghost.

  24. No. 608
    Episode 608: The Power is in the Booties

    Finally at the behest of silver-stringed backer Jon Biscoe, the Consulting Occultist looks at two magical tomes mentioned in Manly Wade Wellman’s Silver John Stories, the Grand Albert and the Long-Lost Friend.

    Grand AlbertThe Long Lost Friend

  25. No. 604
    Episode 604: It Takes a While to Work

    Finally the Consulting Occultist looks at 1920s celebrity astrologer Evangeline Adams, who doled out stock market tips, gave readings to moguls, movie stars and a monarch, and predicted her own death.

    Evangeline Adams

  26. No. 601
    Episode 601: Hydrate and Fix Your Boot

    Finally, the Consulting Occultist, surprised to find that he has yet to cover Nostradamus after more than a decade of episodes, proceeds to do just that.

    Nostradamus

  27. No. 596
    Episode 596: Also a No Show Job

    Finally the Consulting Occultist looks at the career of Icelandic medium Indriði Indriðason.

    Indriði Indriðason

  28. No. 594
    Episode 594: Bishop of the Drowned Land

    And finally the Consulting Occultist profiles Maria de Naglowska, occult lecturer and sex magician of 20s and 30s Paris.

    Maria de Naglowska

  29. No. 591
    Episode 591: Good Fun That Barbarians Have

    The Consulting Occultist wraps up the episode with the rundown on the 17th century English physician and mystic Robert Fludd.

    Robert Fludd

  30. No. 583
    Episode 583: Marge the Druid is Feeling Rejected

    Finally the Consulting Occultist meets us in the Food Hut at the behest of distinguished patron Elias Helfer, seconded by Jamie Twine, who seek the esoteric secrets of the pavlova.

  31. No. 580
    Episode 580: The Most Fun Word in the History of Metallurgy

    Finally the Consulting Occultist tells the wry tale of the early Georgian era astrologer Isaac Bickerstaff, who predicted the death of rival John Partridge and might not have been entirely who he seemed.

    Isaac BickerstaffJohn Partridge

  32. No. 575
    Episode 575: Your Starter Past Life

    Finally the Consulting Occultist tells us about turn of the century Swiss medium, automatic writer and vicarious Mars visitor Hélène Smith.

    Hélène Smith

  33. No. 572
    Episode 572: Rains of Peas and Gravel

    Finally stellar backer Scott Wachter asks the Consulting Occultist why the so-called 13th astrological sign, Ophiuchus, remains unrecognized.

    Ophiuchus

  34. No. 568
    Episode 568: Dream Ghosts

    Finally the Consulting Occultist fills intrepid backer Jacob Boersma in on the alchemists, demonologists and kabbalists of his native Netherlands.

  35. No. 564
    Episode 564: Speciation Event

    Finally the Consulting Occultist looks at self-styled shaman Durek Verrett, provider of woo-woo to the stars and fiancée of Norwegian princess Martha Louise.

    Durek Verrett

  36. No. 562
    Episode 562: Never Refer to Peoples’ Necks

    Finally the Consulting Occultist looks at the alchemical side of pioneering scientist and mathematician Isaac Newton.

    Isaac Newton

  37. No. 558
    Episode 558: Any Other Stupid Cave Lake

    And finally the Consulting Occultist regales us with tales true and folkloric concerning Ursula Southill, remembered by history as the witch and prophetess Mother Shipton.

    Mother Shipton

  38. No. 555
    Episode 555: Do We Get a Deal for Seven?

    Finally the Consulting Occultist tells the tale of a magical assassination plot aimed at Edward II.

    Edward II

  39. No. 552
    Episode 552: Worse Hats

    Finally beloved Patreon backer Gerald Sears wants the Consulting Occultist to tell him what happened to occultism in America in the 40s and 50s.

  40. No. 547
    Episode 547: Such Things as No

    Finally the Consulting Occultist meets us in the Architecture Hut for a look at the so-called Devil’s Architect, Nicholas Hawksmoor, whose reputation for the arcane might just have been burnished by some of our finest living nerdtropers.

    Nicholas Hawksmoor

  41. No. 542
    Episode 542: Classic Snake Swap-Out

    Finally, the Consulting Occultist profiles 1st century prophet Alexander of Abonoteichus, begetter of the Glykon snake cult.

    Alexander of Abonoteichus

  42. No. 539
    Episode 539: Players and/or Humans

    Then the Consulting Occultist enters the Culture Hut at the behest of sophisticated backer Jake Maas, who seeks enlightenment on the Theosophical roots of avant garde artist Yves Klein.

    Yves Klein

  43. No. 535
    Episode 535: NASA is Not in the Neck Adjustment Business

    Finally, at the behest of inquiring backer Sam Rutzick, the Consulting Occultist warily goes undercover for some questionable spinal adjustment, in search of the ghostly weirdness behind chiropractic treatment.

  44. No. 534
    Episode 534: Manimal Utopia

    [No Consulting Occultist segment written up in this episode's show notes.]

  45. No. 531
    Episode 531: The Copts Still Have His Head

    Finally the Consulting Occultist meets erudite backer Jamie Twine in a gondola for a survey of the weird and magical in Venice.

  46. No. 526
    Episode 526: From What Steve Did

    Finally, at the behest of insightful backer Benjamin Rawls, the Consulting Occultist turns his gaze to Japan and its Happy Science cult.

    Happy Science

  47. No. 523
    Episode 523: Never Seen With a Windsock

    Finally the Consulting Occultist reaches into his tarot collection for HEXEN 2.0, making this also a Culture Hut installment about its creator, contemporary artist Suzanne Treister.

    Suzanne Treister

  48. No. 518
    Episode 518: A Big Fan of Heliocentrism

    Finally at the request of beloved Patreon backer Louis Sylvester, the Consulting Occultist profiles Cotton Mather.

    Cotton Mather

  49. No. 514
    Episode 514: Joseph Campbell in a Jar

    Finally forward-thinking backer Tennant Reed visits the Consulting Occultist for the esoteric motivation behind repeated thefts of the preserved head of reformer and utilitarian philosopher Jeremy Bentham.

    Jeremy Bentham

  50. No. 511
    Episode 511: I Just Wanted to Say Astrosome

    Finally the Consulting Occultist lets love into his heart for a profile of songwriter, polemicist and free love priestess Edith Maida Lessing.

  51. No. 506
    Episode 506: His Bonaparte Eyes

    Finally estimable backer John Kingdon asks the Consulting Occultist to profile Gerald Gardner, fashioner of modern Wicca.

    Gerald Gardner

  52. No. 502
    Episode 502: Aramaic Mutterer Whisperer

    Finally at the behest of tart and tannic backers Fridrik Bjarnason and Tim Vert, the Consulting Occultist joins us in the Food Hut to survey the esoteric side of wine.

  53. No. 494
    Episode 494: Sidekicks to the Bear

    And back to the recreation, the Consulting Occultist provides a profile of 13th century magician Roger Bacon.

    Roger Bacon

  54. No. 490
    Episode 490: They Left the Irony Bridge Intact

    Finally the Consulting Occultist examines the esoteric influence on, and of, Swami Vivekananda, founder of yoga as we know it.

    Swami Vivekananda

  55. No. 487
    Episode 487: Nothing More Organic Than a Moon

    Finally sagacious backer Jeff Greenlee visits the Consulting Occultist for the lowdown on the surprisingly steamy story of the Jesus’ Wife hoax.

    Gospel of Jesus's Wife

  56. No. 482
    Episode 482: I Never Really Got Rid of Her

    Finally estimable Patreon backer Robert Wolfe asks the Consulting Occultist about Mary Poppins creator P. L. Travers and her association with mystical philosopher George Gurdjieff.

    P. L. TraversGeorge Gurdjieff

  57. No. 478
    Episode 478: His Pursevant Had Dropsy

    Finally estimable backer Michael David Jr. enjoins the Consulting Occultist to profile English writer and Catholic decadent Montague Summers.

    Montague Summers

  58. No. 473
    Episode 473: The Special Ability is It’s a Gun

    Continuing with the Western theme, estimable backer Ian Carlsen visits the Consulting Occultist to learn the esoteric significance of Wild Bill Hickok’s Dead Man’s Hand.

    Wild Bill HickokDead man's hand

  59. No. 468
    Episode 468: Weird Mushroom Things and a Swirl Over There

    Finally estimable Patreon backer P. O’Neil seeks the Consulting Occultist’s files on a Theosophist retirement community in Ojai, California.

    Krotona

  60. No. 463
    Episode 463: The Bubble Wrap of Roleplaying Games

    Finally the Consulting Occultist profiles the mystical psychologist Claudio Naranjo.

    Claudio Naranjo

  61. No. 458
    Episode 458: Slacker Infant

    Finally the Consulting Occultist confronts a head-scratcher only one of his particular esoteric set of skills can solve: why is there a floating baby in a clamshell in the Chicago seal?

    Seal of Chicago

  62. No. 455
    Episode 455: Ambush Us With Ghosts

    Then numerology takes on a TikTok twist as the Consulting Occultist examines Grabovoi numbers.

    Grigori Grabovoi

  63. No. 449
    Episode 449: Quietly Judging You

    Finally the Consulting Occultist profiles a genuine arch-villain of the occult, the Rasputin or Argentina, José López Rega.

    José López Rega

  64. No. 446
    Episode 446: Well Also H. R. Giger

    Finally, shadowy Patreon backer Dave from Washington enters the parlor of the Consulting Occultist hoping he may shed light on the appearance of Theosophical symbols on the control console in Ridley Scott’s Alien.

  65. No. 442
    Episode 442: Mad at Unicorns

    Finally the Consulting Occultist again shows you his picture collection as an erudite but anonymous Patreon backer asks for the lowdown on Art Nouveau illustrator and occult theorist Austin Osman Spare.

    Austin Osman Spare

  66. No. 438
    Episode 438: Anyone Can Bilocate

    Finally estimable Patreon backer Ed Sizemore checks in with the Consulting Occultist for the story of Baird Spalding and Douglas DeVorss, which starts with an ancient book of desert secrets.

    Baird T. Spalding

  67. No. 435
    Episode 435: Unreliable Satanists

    Finally enigmatic Patreon backer Bt taps on the door of the Consulting Occultist for the supernatural secrets of automaton maker John Joseph Merlin.

    John Joseph Merlin

  68. No. 431
    Episode 431: Working for Bigfoot

    Finally the Holy Roman Empire once again rears its head as perceptive Patreon backer Paul Douglas visits the Consulting Occultist to learn about Michael Scot, court magician to Frederick II.

    Michael Scot

  69. No. 428
    Episode 428: Only a Modernist Horse

    Finally the Consulting Occultist dons his paisley smoking jacket for an inquiry into the occultism of LSD advocate Timothy Leary.

    Timothy Leary

  70. No. 425
    Episode 425: Pork Chop of the Truth

    Finally the Consulting Occultist reviews the case files from the 1968 robbery of Israel Regardie’s Los Angeles library.

    Israel Regardie

  71. No. 422
    Episode 422: Sumerian GM Screens

    Finally, the Consulting Occultist for the first time trains his eye on a subject who is both a paranormalist and an RPG designer, James “Herbie” Brennan.

    Herbie Brennan

  72. No. 419
    Episode 419: Five Hour Haste

    Finally the Consulting Occultist goes literary as Thomas Casey seeks info on the supernatural leanings of Portuguese modernist writer Fernando Pessoa.

    Fernando Pessoa

  73. No. 416
    Episode 416: They’re Gonna Have Their Lifeforms Fight

    Finally Elias Helfer trudges with us up the cobwebbed stairs to the parlor of the Consulting Occultist for a look at iconic Tarot deck illustrator Pamela Colman Smith.

    Pamela Colman Smith

  74. No. 411
    Episode 411: Chief Plant Health Officer

    Finally the Consulting Occultist brandishes his planchette to explain the Ouija board and its inventor, Elijah Bond.

    OuijaElijah Bond

  75. No. 408
    Episode 408: Not That My Players Would Do Anything Like That

    Reflective Patreon backer Corey Pierno seeks the Consulting Occultist’s wisdom on crystals and their history as supernatural objects.

  76. No. 404
    Episode 404: Toss In Your Werecows

    Finally, admirable Patreon backer John W S Marvin calls on the untapped military knowledge of the Consulting Occultist for a look at the esoteric secrets behind the Battle of Kursk.

    Battle of Kursk

  77. No. 398
    Episode 398: Dragons Love Merch

    Finally estimable Patreon backer Fred Kiesche heads into the Edwardian parlor of the Consulting Occultist for a profile of Russian painter, archaeologist and theosophist Nicolas Roerich.

    Nicholas Roerich

  78. No. 394
    Episode 394: Fruit Cutting Policies

    Finally the Consulting Occultist elucidates the effort to market famously ill-reviewed 50s fantasy novel Kinsmen of the Dragon as an esoteric tome.

  79. No. 390
    Episode 390: Open a Can Hut

    Finally esteemed Patreon backer Peter Williamson visits the Consulting Occultist to learn about economist, mystic, poet and painter George Russell.

    George William Russell

  80. No. 385
    Episode 385: Shill for the Macedonians

    Then we conclude our Consulting Occultist series on key figures of the magical Belle Epoque with dynamic duo Oswald Wirth and  Stanislas de Guaita.

    Oswald WirthStanislas de Guaita

  81. No. 384
    Episode 384: Number One Nightmare

    The Consulting Occultist continues our series of arcane profiles from Belle Epoque Paris with a look at Ely Star, a protege of Robert Houdin who infused his astrology with kabbalism.

  82. No. 383
    Episode 383: Not Quite Doctor Cowboy

    The Consulting Occultist continues to wear suspiciously Robin-like facial hair as we enter the penultimate edition of Belle Epoque magicians series, as inspired by The Yellow King Roleplaying Game, with the scene’s fun couple,  Moina and Samuel Liddell Mathers, of Golden Dawn fame.

    Samuel Liddell MacGregor MathersMoina Mathers

  83. No. 382
    Episode 382: Health and Safety

    Then the Consulting Occultist continues our series on the magicians of the Parisian Belle Epoque, as we drop into the shop of bookseller, composer and occult publisher Edmond Bailly.

  84. No. 381
    Episode 381: Anthropodermic Wallet

    Finally the Consulting Occultist resumes our interrupted look at the 1890s Parisian supernatural scene with a profile of the Martinist writer and salon organizer Papus.

    Papus

  85. No. 380
    Episode 380: He Said, Foreshadowingly

    Finally the Consulting Occultist returns to matters Rosicrucian as beloved backer, the Monster Talk podcast, asks for secrets of Christian Rosenkreuz’s legendary tomb.

    Christian Rosenkreuz

  86. No. 373
    Episode 373: Nutty Crab Soup [Corrected]

    Finally the Consulting Occultist answers a request from beloved Patreon backers Tim Maness and Jean Bauer for the lowdown on the 1911 Ark of the Covenant expedition.

  87. No. 369
    Episode 369: Lotta Garlic There Though

    Then the Consulting Occultist acquaints us with a central figure in the field of magical speculation, Cornelius Agrippa.

    Cornelius Agrippa

  88. No. 367
    Episode 367: Ungrateful Mopes

    Finally the Consulting Occultist heads to balmy British Columbia to tell the tale of yellow-robed cultist Brother XII.

    Brother XII

  89. No. 360
    Episode 360: Sir Gawain “the Rock” Johnson

    Finally the Consulting Occultist takes a day trip to the Tower of London to inspect the arcane sigils of imprisoned sorcerer Hew Draper. Want to pose a question to the show? Get your priority question asking access with your support for the KARTAS Patreon!

  90. No. 355
    Episode 355: If Abstract Expressionism Doesn’t Do the Trick

    The Consulting Occultist doesn’t usually muss his smoking jacket in the realm of politics, but with Marianne Williamson running for President he has little choice but to roll up his sleeves.

    Marianne Williamson

  91. No. 352
    Episode 352: We’ve Still Got that Other Folder

    Then the Consulting Occultist calls for order in the court as we hear the confession of a Livonian werewolf.

    Thiess of Kaltenbrun

  92. No. 349
    Episode 349: Bad Odds in a Balloon

    Finally backer Chris Kalley, seconded by Jay Tea, asks the Consulting Occultist to blow the lid off magical Buenos Aires.

  93. No. 341
    Episode 341: Trouser Leg of the Mythos

    Finally, at the behest of backer Andrea Colletta, we pop into the parlor of the Consulting Occultist to whip up the new sorcerous discipline of etymomancy.

  94. No. 335
    Episode 335: Any Smart Gundamologist

    Finally backer Chris Kalley visits the Consulting Occultist to learn about military theorist, Thelemite and fascist J. F. C. Fuller.

    J. F. C. Fuller

  95. No. 332
    Episode 332: Unencumbered By Space Cats

    Then backer Gerald Sears asks the Consulting Occultist to fill a game set in late 20s New York City with historical esoteric weirdness.

  96. No. 329
    Episode 329: The Looming Party

    Finally, at the behest of backer Wayne Rossi, we turn to the Consulting Occultist for the mystical skinny on Carlos Castaneda.

    Carlos Castaneda

  97. No. 326
    Episode 326: Credulous Ghost-Hunting Dupe

    Finally the Consulting Occultist unwinds the deeply complicated tale of the Cock Lane Ghost, as first penetrated by intrepid occult investigator Samuel Johnson.

    Cock Lane ghostSamuel Johnson

  98. No. 321
    Episode 321: Red Dawn Times

    The other Consulting Occultist continues our Yellow King-inspired series on occultists of the Belle Epoque with a look at the original neo-Gnostic, Jules Doinel.

    Jules Doinel

  99. No. 320
    Episode 320: Ghost Rationing Policy

    Our survey of Belle Epoque weirdness ducks into the Eliptony Hut with a profile of early parapsychologist Albert de Rochas.

    Albert de Rochas

  100. No. 319
    Episode 319: Eventually You Run Out of Zigs

    Finally the Consulting Occultist changes identities to embark on a series on the wizards and paranormalists you might encounter in 1890s Paris. First up: pioneering trickster Leo Taxil.

    Léo Taxil

  101. No. 315
    Episode 315: Eloi au Vin

    Finally it’s time to stay positive as backer Dan Kassiday asks the Consulting Occultist to discuss the nocebo effect explanation for curses.

  102. No. 310
    Episode 310: The Social Media Impact of Ulthar

    Finally backer Derek Upham visits the Consulting Occultist for a look at artist James Bridle, who has constructed a magic circle to trap self-driving cars.

    James Bridle

  103. No. 307
    Episode 307: Nobody Wants to Be a Gate

    Finally backer Hal Mangold asks the Consulting Occultist to review the career of Australian artist and Pagan sex magician Rosaleen Norton.

    Rosaleen Norton

  104. No. 304
    Episode 304: We’re Not Running a Party of Death Here

    Finally the Consulting Occultist profiles Alexander Dugin, a Russian philosopher who combines fascism, synarchy, nationalism and chaos magick under the banner of an oddly familiar eight-pointed arrow star.

    Alexander Dugin

  105. No. 301
    Episode 301: Thanks For Knowing We Were Right

    If someone tells you their favorite esoteric writer is Julius Evola, you just heard your cue to back away slowly. The Consulting Occultist is here to tell you why.

    Julius Evola

  106. No. 298
    Episode 298: Now We’re Just Gygaxing

    Finally the Consulting Occultist opens a perilous tome to tell us about Reginald Scot and The Discoverie of Witchcraft.

    Reginald ScotThe Discoverie of Witchcraft

  107. No. 295
    Episode 295: That’s Why They Call It Ichor

    And Ash Jackson is the Scrollbard meets us in the parlor of the Consulting Occultist to get each of us to circumscribe a sacred alphabet.

  108. No. 291
    Episode 291: Where Magic Goes to Die

    Then the Consulting Occultist goes West Coast as we examine the ley line implications of the L.A. Times leaving its iconic art deco headquarters.

  109. No. 290
    Episode 290: Leaves Don’t Work on PayPal

    Finally, hold onto your library cards as, thanks to a query from backer Michael Parker, the Consulting Occultist investigates the theft of an Isaac Newton manuscript from the Carnegie Rare Books room.

    Isaac Newton

  110. No. 284
    Episode 284: There’s Always a Worse Writer Death

    Finally the Consulting Occultist finds another Nazi mystic to talk about, as Patreon backer Bret Kramer asks for a profile on Savitri Devi.

    Savitri Devi

  111. No. 282
    Episode 282: Haunted Anarchist Texts

    Recovering from the red carpet, we visit the Consulting Occultist, who has been checking out the initial offerings placed online by the Ritman Library of occult texts.

    Ritman Library

  112. No. 279
    Episode 279: Logical Analogy Shock

    Then the Consulting Occultist admits backer Hoyle Anderson to his Edwardian snuggery for a cuppa and discussion of zodiac cup tasseography.

  113. No. 274
    Episode 274: What Would Thagdar Do?

    Finally, backer Tim Vert checks in with the Consulting Occultist on the status of a possible eclipse child.

  114. No. 270
    Episode 270: Nobody Wants to be a Waistcoat

    And finally the Consulting Occultist fulfills the request of Patreon backer Paul by filling us in on the witches of Chiloe.

    Warlocks of Chiloé

  115. No. 267
    Episode 267: The First Two Things are Metaphors For the Third

    We end on a Gallic switcheroo as Robin dons the mantle of Consulting Occultist to fulfill a request from Patreon backer Paul to talk about the Rosicrucian magician Josephin Peladan. Watch for his appearance in The Yellow King Roleplaying Game.

    Joséphin Péladan

  116. No. 263
    Episode 263: All Seven Spleens

    Then, following a prophecy laid down to us by Patreon backer Rafael Pabst, the Consulting Occultist looks at the career of poet and illustrator William Blake, with a special focus on the visionary, angel-seeing part.

    William Blake

  117. No. 259
    Episode 259: All the Cute Girls are Capulets

    Finally the Consulting Occultist serves up a reply to Patreon backer David Shaw, who seeks the secret truth on occult Kashmir.

  118. No. 255
    Episode 255: The Devil’s Condiment

    Finally the Consulting Occultist goes inside, uh Posadism, as backer Stewart Robertson asks about Posadism.

    Posadism

  119. No. 253
    Episode 253: That’s More of a Gloss on Aristotle

    And the Consulting Occultist gets all semiotic to reply to a query from Patreon backer Polydamas on what the Secret Masters were up to when they invented post-modernism.

  120. No. 247
    Episode 247: So Fair It Shines as a Marketing Quote

    Finally Patreon backer Tim Vert knows who he’s gonna call. He asks the Consulting Occultist to tell us all about Harry Houdini’s ghostbusters.

    Harry Houdini

  121. No. 244
    Episode 244: You Have to Sit in the Jar

    Finally the Consulting Occultist looks at the arcane geography of 1930s Los Angeles times as manipulated by L.A. Times publisher Harry Chandler and revealed in the pages of Cthulhu Confidential.

    Harry Chandler

  122. No. 243
    Episode 243: I Do Not Wish to Be a Moth Hat

    And when Ken was in Berlin getting his fangs fitted, he took time out to visit a museum. Hence, the Consulting Occultist recounts the wonders of the alchemy exhibit at the Kulturforum.

  123. No. 240
    Episode 240: Bush Bachelor

    Then get ready to grab your picket signs as our Tell Me More segment enlists the Consulting Occultist for a look at the secret occult history of the epic battle between urban planner Robert Moses and the writer Jane Jacobs over the fate of Greenwich Village.

    Robert MosesJane Jacobs

  124. No. 238
    Episode 238: The Titular Goat in This Reenactment

    Finally we check in on the Consulting Occultist as backer Wayne Rossi demands the occult truth behind the Elvis-Nixon meeting.

  125. No. 235
    Episode 235: He-Man’s Woman Hating Civilization

    And in a switcheroo, Robin dons the smoking jacket of the Consulting Occultist as we look at the cultists and gurus of 1930s L.A., as seen in Cthulhu Confidential.

  126. No. 231
    Episode 231: Please Compensate For Our Brutal Incompetence

    Then backer Jacob Ansari meets the Consulting Occultist at the baggage carousel to ask about the sorcerous significance of the Denver International Airport.

    Denver International Airport

  127. No. 227
    Episode 227: Other Buopoths Do

    Then the Consulting Occultist unfurls some alchemical wisdom on a Paul Tevis request for the skinny on the Ripley Scrolls.

    Ripley Scroll

  128. No. 225
    Episode 225: Just Make Up a Bunch of Dwarves

    Finally we enlist the Consulting Occultist to reveal the esoteric weirdness lurking in your bowl of Chex cereal, as he tells all about Ralstonism.

    Ralstonism

  129. No. 223
    Episode 223: There’s No Blood in a JPEG

    Finally the Consulting Occultist, somewhat to his surprise, realizes he has yet to tell us about Eliphas Levi, and so tells us about Eliphas Levi.

    Éliphas Lévi

  130. No. 219
    Episode 219: Argue With Ceramics

    Keep a careful watch as the Consulting Occultist whispers of Les Veilleurs, an Parisian occult group founded in the final days of WWI.

  131. No. 213
    Episode 213: I Would Have Been On the Other Side of That

    We conclude with the Consulting Occultist talking about Jakob Böhme, trying to convince Robin that there is something of interest to be gleaned from yet another Christian mystic.

    Jakob Böhme

  132. No. 203
    Episode 203: Pull the Damn Trigger You Coward!

    Thanks to Patreon backer Morgan Ellis, we have a Consulting Occultist topic Ken can field in his sleep and/or the day before a big show: ley lines.

  133. No. 202
    Episode 202: While We’re On the Surface of the Freezing Sun

    Karl Schmidt wants the Consulting Occultist to spill the astrological and alchemical beans on Rudolf II of the Holy Roman Empire.

    Rudolf II

  134. No. 199
    Episode 199: Not That That’s What Time Travelers Say

    Then we’re back in the parlor of the Consulting Occultist to hear the tale of reputed 16th century sorcerer Rinaldo des Trois-Echelles du Mayne.

  135. No. 195
    Episode 195: All Its Guns in Norman Rockwell

    And hey, it’s another all request episode, as backer James Griffin quizes the Consulting Occultist on past life regression. Why isn’t it a thing any more?

  136. No. 192
    Episode 192: Emulating a Genre That Doesn’t Exist

    Finally the Consulting Occultist satisfies Patreon backer Allen Wilkins’ desire to hear about writer Alan Moore’s occult thought.

    Alan Moore

  137. No. 189
    Episode 189: It Won’t Fix Me But It Will Fix That

    Finally backer Joshua Hillerup climbs the creaky stairs that lead to the Consulting Occultist to learn about the occult symbolism of flowers.

  138. No. 186
    Episode 186: You Need Canapes To Have a Secret Society

    Finally the Consulting Occultist slakes the hankering of Patreon backer Stewart Robertson for info on the Black Dragon Society.

    Black Dragon Society

  139. No. 181
    Episode 181: Taking Latitudes with Longitude

    Then the Consulting Occultist tours us through the colorful career of privateer, courtier, cookbook author and magic powder maker Kenelm Digby. The connection? The rejected magical dog injury method of longitude measurement.

    Kenelm Digby

  140. No. 177
    Episode 177: You’ve Got Your Chainsaw Working

    Finally, the Consulting Occultist fills us in on Paracelsus, a literal Renaissance man whose achievements in medicine, psychology and toxicology also included influential works of a Hermetic bent.

    Paracelsus

  141. No. 175
    Episode 175: And Then Everyone Gets Indicted

    Then in the most momentous crossover team up event since Superman faced off against Ali, the Consulting Occulist enters the Tradecraft Hut to recount the fascinating career of outsiders’ insider Tom Driberg. Only a certain percentage of the legends surrounding him turn out to be too good to check.

    Tom Driberg

  142. No. 172
    Episode 172: #notAllAstrologers

    While in London in December, the Consulting Occultist got a sneak peek at key items of John Dee’s book collection. Join us in previewing the upcoming exhibit Scholar, courtier, magician: the lost library of John Dee, which runs Jan 18-July 29  at the Royal College of Physicians.

    John Dee

  143. No. 168
    Episode 168: Real Made-Up History

    Finally the Consulting Occultist gets architectural to discuss the occult tendencies of Le Corbusier.

    Le Corbusier

  144. No. 164
    Episode 164: Another Excuse To Drink In the Street

    Finally the Consulting Occultist delves into the North Berwick witch trials, in which opponents of King James VI / I found themselves on the wrong end of a Halloween-related accusation.

    North Berwick witch trials

  145. No. 157
    Episode 157: I Have Points in Both, Simon

    Oft-mentioned but not until now explicated, the Priory of Sion finally gets the full treatment from the Consulting Occultist.

    Priory of Sion

  146. No. 154
    Episode 154: Orange and Tufty From the Primordial Swamp

    Then the Consulting Occultist risks possible heckling from a brazen head as he looks at the life and legend of Roger Bacon.

    Roger Bacon

  147. No. 149
    Episode 149: Contemptible People Tavern

    Finally we bathe ourselves in light as the Consulting Occultist profiles the preeminent practitioner of nice magic, Dion Fortune.

    Dion Fortune

  148. No. 147
    Episode 147: The Worst Doppelganger

    Impose your will on reality through whatever lens you want as the Consulting Occultist casts a gimlet eye on chaos magick.

  149. No. 144
    Episode 144: Chaotic Prolix

    Then the Consulting Occultist gives us the lowdown on alchemist, mystic and eponymous library founder Elias Ashmole.

    Elias Ashmole

  150. No. 137
    Episode 137: Clown Moistening Skills

    Finally the Consulting Occultist answers a request from Bryant Durrell for the 101 on spiritualist polymath Rudolf Steiner.

    Rudolf Steiner

  151. No. 135
    Episode 135: So Bad the Quakers Riot

    Then the Consulting Occultist builds electric Jesus in its barn as we look at the career of John Murray Spear.

    John Murray Spear

  152. No. 133
    Episode 133: Wielding Fennel Without Proper Church Authority

    Finally the Consulting Occultist introduces us to the Italian benandanti, who as late as the 16th century were entering dreams to battle witches and pirates.

    Benandanti

  153. No. 131
    Episode 131: Helping People Steal Concrete

    Finally the Consulting Occultist crosses over with Among My Many Hats as Ken tells us about his Goetia instalment of Ken Writes About Stuff.

    Goetia

  154. No. 126
    Episode 126: Rhode Island Jones

    Finally, in response to a Nick Eden request, the Consulting Occultist introduces us to that seeming contradiction in terms, the Soviet Occult.

  155. No. 119
    Episode 119: Sex Argentina

    Our Dreamhounds of Paris-inspired visits to the Consulting Occultist continue with a consideration of mystical seeker George Gurdjieff.

    George Gurdjieff

  156. No. 118
    Episode 118: There’s Nothing In It For Owls

    The Consulting Occultist continues his Parisian sojourn with an examination of uxurious bookseller Nicolas Flamel, to whom later rumor and Harry Potter imputed alchemical mastery.

    Nicolas Flamel

  157. No. 117
    Episode 117: Covered in Cats and Croissant Crumbs

    Back to matters Gallic, the Consulting Occultist details the life, thought, and possible Dreamlands influence of fin de siècle writer, ritualist and schmoozer Gerard Encausse.

    Papus

  158. No. 116
    Episode 116: Okay, I’ll Go Get Your Leg

    Blasting his trumpet for Dreamhounds of Paris, the Consulting Occultist begins a mini-arc delving into the French occult, starting with scientist, spiritualist and polymath Charles Richet.

    Charles Richet

  159. No. 115
    Episode 115: Anopheles Mosquito, Stagnant Pond

    Finally the Consulting Occultist makes an appearance in the Tradecraft Hut to discuss revelations that British psy-ops thought it would calm the Northern Irish conflict if they staged evidence of black masses.

  160. No. 112
    Episode 112: Someone Will Break Out Into Recipes

    Finally, the Consulting Occultist looks at the witch-related thoughts of once-influential scholar Margaret Murray.

    Margaret Murray

  161. No. 109
    Episode 109: Put a Pointy Wizard Hat On It

    Finally the Consulting Occultist gives us the real lowdown on synarchy.

    Synarchism

  162. No. 105
    Episode 105: Does This Look Like a Railroad to You?

    Finally, Sarah Helen Whitman, spiritualist and jilted fiancee of Edgar Allen Poe, summons herself into a particularly gossipy installment of Consulting Occultist.

    Sarah Helen Whitman

  163. No. 102
    Episode 102: Nonsense is on the March

    Thanks to a reminder from listener Joe Taylor, we finally let the Consulting Occultist loose on the Cathars, as we’ve been planning to do all along.

    Catharism

  164. No. 99
    Episode 99: Methane Planet of the Rakshasas

    Then the Consulting Occultist goes psychedelic with a look at the Source Family and its karate-chopping, bank robbing New Age guru, Father Yod.

    Father Yod

  165. No. 97
    Episode 97: Hamsterface

    We close with the Consulting Occultist, who tells us of the London stone and the magical significance of its current ignominious location.

    London Stone

  166. No. 94
    Episode 94: The Simpering Bridegroom

    Finally the Consulting Occultist looks at husband and wife demon-busters Ed and Lorraine Warren.

    Ed and Lorraine Warren

  167. No. 92
    Episode 92: The Werepig Demographic

    Finally, Ken, having tackled the topic in a two-part Ken Writes About Stuff entry, dons the Consulting Occultist hat to introduce us to the basics of voodoo.

  168. No. 89
    Episode 89: The Elvis of the European Occult Underground

    The Consulting Occultist finishes his major figures of the French enlightenment trilogy with the immortal Comte de Saint Germain.

    Count of St. Germain

  169. No. 87
    Episode 87: The Whacking Shovel

    Finally the Consulting Occultist pulls a long con and at least half of a badger game as we consider the grifting career of Cagliostro, alchemist and influential Freemason.

    Cagliostro

  170. No. 84
    Episode 84: Those Punk Magicians Killed My Elephant

    Get sleepy, very sleepy, letting go of cares and worries as the Consulting Occultist casts your mind toward the tale of Franz Anton Mesmer.

    Franz Anton Mesmer

  171. No. 81
    Episode 81: If I Were an Otter

    Consulting Occultist meets Tradecraft Hut as, at the request of listener Johnstone Metzger, we examine the work and shocking demise of mythological studies scholar and Romanian dissident Ioan Culianu.

    Ioan Culianu

  172. No. 79
    Episode 79: Take That, Entertainment

    Responding to popular demand, the Consulting Occultist assesses competing new claims of having cracked the cryptobotanical mysteries of the Voynich Manuscript.

    Voynich Manuscript

  173. No. 76
    Episode 76: Hunker in the Bunker

    Then Ken dons his Consulting Occultist regalia to tear the lid off the djinn menace.

  174. No. 73
    Episode 73: Guff About Other Planets

    The Consulting Occultist returns to the spiritualist movement of the 19th century to contemplate the Swedenborg-cribbing visions of Andrew Jackson Davis, the Poughkeepsie Seer.

    Andrew Jackson Davis

  175. No. 68
    Episode 68: Why You Shouldn’t Ask Us to Destroy Civilization

    Then Ask Ken and Robin visits the Consulting Occultist on behalf of Steven W. King, who wants to know what to put on his beginning occult bookshelf.

  176. No. 65
    Episode 65: Cherubs Who Have Aged Out

    Finally Ken uses his high-level Consulting Occultist borrowing privileges to scrutinize the legendary Voynich Manuscript.

    Voynich Manuscript

  177. No. 62
    Episode 62: Watch Out, Boys, He Has the Power of Transcendentalism

    Finally, with a sigh of palpable reluctance, the Consulting Occultist educates us on the Transcendentalism of Ralph Waldo Emerson.

    Ralph Waldo Emerson

  178. No. 60
    Episode 60: Problems With Sabertooth Tigers

    Finally the Consulting Occultist goes back to basics to study the surprisingly young history of the Tarot.

  179. No. 56
    Episode 56: Oh, My Pancreas

    Finally we give the weary Consulting Occultist a topic he should be able to do while standing on his head—those diffusely mystical purveyors of alchemical imagery, the Rosicrucians.

    Rosicrucianism

  180. No. 52
    Episode 52: The Delightful Burning Sensation You Alluded To Earlier

    Then look up to the strangest sight in the skyline of Bandung, Indonesia as, at the request of Tom McGrenery, the Consulting Occultist tries to infuse its Octopus House with more weirdness than it already contains.

  181. No. 48
    Episode 48: Except for All the Cannibalism

    Then the Consulting Occultist completes his obligations as a guide to the Nazi occult with a look at the scholarship-distorting, expedition launching academic department of the SS, the Ahnenerbe.

    Ahnenerbe

  182. No. 47
    Episode 47: An Occasional Underused Wendigo

    Then our epic Consulting Occultist series on the Nazi Occult explores the Thule Society, wealthy right-wing imaginers of lost continents who built an anti-Communist goon squad only to see it morph into the Nazi party.

    Thule Society

  183. No. 46
    Episode 46: An Indictment of Your Pudding

    Then we head over to chat with the Consulting Occultist, as part four of our series on Nazi occultism leads us to metaphorically heft the Spear of Destiny.

    Spear of Destiny

  184. No. 45
    Episode 45: A Blatant Vowel Swap

    We wrap with part 3 of our Consulting Occultist series on the Nazi occult, this time focusing in on Irminist prophet and Himmler advisor Karl-Maria Wiligut.

    Karl-Maria Wiligut

  185. No. 44
    Episode 44: The Marshy Aunt

    Finally, part two of our epic Consulting Occultist series on the Nazi occult sets the stage with Volkisch movements, Guido von List, and the cast of variously psychopathic characters who bring occult thought with them into Hitler’s high command.

    Guido von List

  186. No. 39
    Episode 39: The Book of Not At All Sinister Church Names

    We close with a visit to the Consulting Occultist, who recounts the Theosophy-meets-Evangelical-meets-New Age tale of Elizabeth Clare Prophet.

    Elizabeth Clare Prophet

  187. No. 37
    Episode 37: Ghost-Kissed Pilsner

    Then we move on to more entertaining and distant history, as, at the request of Ask Lovecraft, the Consulting Occultist tells us tales of Paschal Beverly Randolph, 19th century exponent of Mesmerism, pre-Adamism, and wholesome sex magic.

    Paschal Beverly Randolph

  188. No. 32
    Episode 32: Cash in Your Magic Swords

    Finally we meet the Consulting Occultist in the non-standard confines of the Tradecraft Hut, where we open an Elizabethan dossier on spy and playwright Christopher Marlowe.

    Christopher Marlowe

  189. No. 30
    Episode 30: Ring-Tailed and Fructivorous

    And finally, with such matters back in the news, we tap the Consulting Occultist for a 101 class on lost continents, from Atlantis to Hyperborea and beyond.

    AtlantisHyperborea

  190. No. 27
    Episode 27: League of Extraordinary Skeletons

    Finally, in Consulting Occultist, we review the stream-crossing career of African-American magician, escape artist and hoodoo worker Black Herman.

    Black Herman

  191. No. 25
    Episode 25: Finally, the Woodrow Wilson Throwdown

    Finally the Consulting Occultist considers the silver-shirted biography of American screenwriter, vision-haver and fascist William Dudley Pelley.

    William Dudley Pelley

  192. No. 22
    Episode 22: Her Agile, Ventriloquistic Foot

    We wrap with an ironic tale for the Consulting Occultist—the sad story of Margaret Fox, who accidentally founded 19th century spiritualism through a teenage prank.

    Fox sisters

  193. No. 20
    Episode 20: Twentieth Century Eccentrics

    We close with another visit to the Consulting Occultist, who this time around delves into the murky facts behind a reputed 17th century French Satanism outbreak, better known as the Affair of the Poisons.

    Affair of the Poisons

  194. No. 15
    Episode 15: A Mere Frustum

    Then Ken in his guise as the Consulting Occultist finds the standards-loving organist behind media-seeking Satanist Anton LaVey.

    Anton LaVey

  195. No. 13
    Episode 13: That Time We Burned Down the White House

    Finally we drop in again on the Consulting Occultist for an introduction to Kenneth Grant, whose role as Derleth to Aleister Crowley’s Lovecraft went as far as incorporating Shub-Niggurath into his ritual practices.

    Kenneth Grant

  196. No. 11
    Episode 11: When Angels Tell You To Wife-Swap

    We close with the ever-popular Consulting Occult as Ken gives us the 101 on Elizabethan magician, mathematician and cartographer (sense a theme here?) John Dee.

    John Dee

  197. No. 8
    Episode 8: Cruller-Infested Demi-Paradise

    Finally, we call again upon the Consulting Occultist for a primer on Aleister Crowley.

    Aleister Crowley

  198. No. 6
    Episode 6: The Mystic Power of Indexing

    Finally we call upon Ken in his capacity as Consulting Occultist to introduce us to H. P. Blavatsky and the Theosophists.

    Helena Blavatsky

  199. No. 3
    Episode 3: The Audacity of Cupcakes

    Lastly but not leastly, Ken again dons the mantle of Consulting Occultist to examine the difference between a mystic and an occultist, as seen through the examples of Johnny Appleseed and Emannuel Swedenborg. Also referenced: Daniel Burnham, and Mitch Horowitz’s book Occult America.

    Johnny AppleseedEmanuel Swedenborg

  200. No. 1
    Episode 1: Vampires are A-holes

    To round out the episode, Ken dons the mantle of Consulting Occultist to give us the 101 on The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, with a cast of characters including William Butler Yeats, Bram Stoker, and Aleister Crowley.

    Hermetic Order of the Golden DawnW. B. YeatsBram StokerAleister Crowley

Nothing in the ledger matches that.