Long before they graced our screens as mindless, brain-eating monsters, zombies were rooted in Haitian folklore. Rumors of a zombie potion made their way to 1980s Boston, where an ethnobotanist hoping to uncover the concoction found himself enmeshed in a secret society and face-to-face with a real zombie.
Keep up with us this spooky season on Instagram @the ... Show More
Oct 28
Was Jack the Ripper a Freemason?
In 1888, Jack the Ripper stalked the streets of Whitechapel, England. Officially, he killed five women, brutally mutilating some of them beyond recognition. But perhaps the most unsettling part of his tale is how, to this day, we still don’t know his true identity. They say it’s ... Show More
55m 31s
Oct 21
Winchester Mystery House: Ghosts, Legends, and Hoaxes
If you’ve heard of the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose, California, you’ve surely heard the rumors about its famous owner, Sarah Winchester. Like the claims she was an eccentric hermit who never left her 24,000-square-foot mansion. Or that she demanded construction crews wor ... Show More
47m 59s
Sep 2025
The Truth About "Zombies"
As summer turns and fall begins, Ridiculous History officially enters the most wonderful time of the year. In today's episode, Ben, Noel and Max dive into the legend of a specific kind of 'living dead' -- the zombie. According to the stories, a zombie is a cadaver reanimated thro ... Show More
50m 17s
Oct 2023
268. History of Zombies: From Haiti and Voodoo to the Night of the Living Dead! (English Vocabulary Lesson)
What is a zombie? You might be thinking of the flesh-eating, undead monsters common in Hollywood, but the origin of zombies is much more fascinating than the stories in film and TV.
From the brutal slave plantations of Haiti to the development of voodoo legends and traditions, ... Show More
25m 6s
Oct 2023
Lucy Swanson, "The Zombie in Contemporary French Caribbean Fiction" (Liverpool UP, 2023)
Believed to have emerged in the French Caribbean based on African spirit beliefs, the zombie represents not merely the walking dead, but also a walking embodiment of the region's history and culture. In Haiti today, the zombie serves as an enduring memory of enslavement: it is de ... Show More
53m 57s