A Mixed Bag of News; Or, Why I'm Not Going to Be on TV (Again)

Today I have four brief points to cover that don’t quite warrant full blog posts, so I’ll present them as an omnibus.

First, I want to thank everyone who purchased a book in response to my request for support to help keep my website running ad-free. I just received my monthly sales report covering September, and I am happy to report that my readers purchased enough books that the royalties will cover the costs associated with upkeep and maintenance on the website. I hope all of you are enjoying the books, and I can’t wait to hear how you liked them.

Second, I have just published my translation of J.-H. Rosny Aine’s The Xipéhuz as an eBook in the Amazon Kindle Store. While you can continue to read the story on my website for free, you can now purchase a formatted copy for your e-reader for easy reading for just $1.99.

Third, I have just posted to the Library Jack London’s “The Red One,” a story about a Pacific island where the natives worship a strange sphere left by extraterrestrial beings. Written in 1916 but not published until 1918, it anticipates some of the themes found in the Cthulhu Mythos. It’s a must-read for fans of ancient astronauts.

Finally, I have some disappointing news to share. Six weeks ago, the casting agent for the Discovery Channel’s sister channel Destination America contacted me about hosting a new documentary series that would explore the unsolved mysteries of ancient America. I auditioned for the program in September, but since filming for the series was scheduled to begin today, I imagine that means that they didn’t pick me. Since they did not require a confidentiality agreement (unlike National Geographic Channel), I'm free to discuss this. I can tell you that Destination America never informed me of the outcome of the audition, not even an email. They kept me hanging for six weeks after asking me to make sure I'd be free in the last two weeks of October.

In September, the network asked me to make an audition tape, and I had an interview with the casting agent, who told me that they needed two engaging, informed guides with knowledge about the wild side of ancient American mysteries. It was clear, though, that Destination America was not entirely aware that I have a skeptical view of supernatural and extraterrestrial claims when they asked me to audition. (In fact, they had not looked at my current website, only my old Lost Civilizations Uncovered pages.) Although the casting agent assured me that the network did not have a pre-conceived idea of what the program, tentatively titled Ancient America, would be, the proposed subject matter—the existence of giants, whether the ancient Native American mounds were built by space aliens or Europeans—suggested a sensational approach. I see now that Destination America has purchased a new season of the supernatural docu-series A Haunting, so I am not optimistic that the network will follow a skeptical path with whatever hosts they ultimately chose to go with.

But, I’m willing to be proved wrong, at least until we hear that David Childress is now hosting it.