Episode Eighty-One: Project MKUltra, Plus Fun Drug Stories
After World War II, the CIA became intensely interested in finding out whether individuals could be mind controlled or forced into confessions using means such as drugs, hypnosis, sensory deprivation, and other techniques. From 1953 to 1973, Project MKUltra, as well as several other related programs, engaged in many illegal activities, including dosing unknowing subjects with LSD, erasing the memories of psychiatric patients under the auspices of “treatment,” generally trying to alter the mental states of individuals who oftentimes had no idea what was being done to them, and being responsible for at least one death, if not many more. Follow Tom and Jenny down the rabbit hole of these creepy CIA mind control experiments, plus enjoy a few amusing drug-related stories in our current events segment. Hang onto your brains and listen in to the soothing, hypnotic tones of episode 81. YOU WILL LOVE 13 O’CLOCK. YOU WILL LOVE 13 O’CLOCK. YOU WILL LOVE 13 O’CLOCK.
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13 O’Clock is hosted by Jenny Ashford & Tom Ross. Channel art and audio & video editing by Jenny Ashford. Music & sound effects courtesy of freesound.org users jamespotterboy, corsica-s, enjoypa, capturedlv, luffy, kiddpark, and justkiddink. Video clips courtesy of Videezy.
Jenny Ashford is a horror, true crime, and paranormal writer, graphic designer, and podcaster. Her most recent books are a three-volume true crime compilation collectively known as The Faceless Villain: A Collection of the Eeriest Unsolved Murders of the Twentieth Century. Volume One was published in 2017, Volume Two in 2018, and Volume Three in 2019.
Her other books include four paranormal nonfiction books: The Unseen Hand: A New Exploration of Poltergeist Phenomena, The Mammoth Mountain Poltergeist (with Tom Ross), House of Fire and Whispers: Investigating the Seattle Demon House, and The Rochdale Poltergeist (both with Steve Mera); as well as three horror novels, Red Menace, Bellwether, and The Five Poisons; two short story collections, Hopeful Monsters and The Associated Villainies; and a graphic novel, The Tenebrist. A second edition of The Associated Villainies was published in 2019, featuring four new stories, an enhanced print layout, and an audio book version. A second edition of The Five Poisons was published in 2020.
Her short stories have appeared in several anthologies, including The Nightmare Collective, History Is Dead, 2012AD, ChimeraWorld #3, and ChimeraWorld #4. Her horror blog, Goddess of Hellfire, contains writing news, short stories and articles, and her reviews and opinions on horror films and books.
She also co-hosts a podcast with Tom Ross called 13 O'Clock, on which they discuss true crime, unexplained mysteries, paranormal weirdness, horror movies and books, food, and other fun, creepy topics. They recently collaborated on a 13 O'Clock cookbook.
Jenny's graphic design work can be seen on everything from books and business cards to posters and packaging. She runs an online store called Gravecake selling products with her designs, and also has a board-and-card game concern called Giallo Games, which produces games based around the beloved Italian horror/crime genre, among many other themes.
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