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Category: Legends

Two men outside a house. Small children are looking at them through the window from inside the house.

Scary Stories for Halloween 2024 on the Folklife Today Podcast

Posted by: Stephen Winick

We're back with another episode of the Folklife Today podcast! In this latest Halloween episode, John Fenn and I continue our discussion with Hanna Salmon about the new Research Guide "Folktales and Oral Storytelling: Resources in the American Folklife Center Collections." Then we introduce some of our favorite spooky stories: the ghost legend "The Vanishing Hitchhiker" as told by students Marty Weathers and Bill Henry of Georgia; the witch story "Skin, Don't You Know Me" as told by master storyteller J. D. Suggs of Mississippi and later Michigan; and the truly spooky tale of "The Two White Horses," told by the great Connie Regan-Blake, a leading Appalachian storyteller who has lived in Tennessee and North Carolina among other places. Of course, in addition to some chat about the tales, the episode showcases the stories themselves. This blog post shows you how to find the podcast and gives you some additional background on the stories and storytellers. So prepare for a scare and give us a listen!

Posted in: Día de los Muertos, Halloween, Halloween Stories, Legends, Podcasts

Andrea Kitta speaks in the Whittall Pavilion of the Library of Congress on September 4, 2024.

Andrea Kitta on Conspiracy Theories: Botkin Folklife Lectures Plus

Posted by: Stephen Winick

In a recent lecture in our Benjamin A. Botkin Lecture Series, Conspiracy Theories, Folklore and Belief: Birds Aren't Real, Loch Ness Monsters and Microchips, folklorist Andrea Kitta discussed some definitions of conspiracy theories and how they fit into other belief traditions and narratives with a focus on understanding why people believe in conspiracy theories and how they function. This blog post includes the lecture video, an interview video with Dr. Kitta, and a set of links to related collections and programming.

Posted in: AFC Events, Beliefs, Benjamin Botkin Folklife Lecture Series, Botkin Folklife Lectures Plus, Legends