The Losers' Club: A Stephen King Podcast

Seven years, eight seasons! The Losers look ahead at 2024. Together, they share their own highlights of Season 7 and go over the Club's reading and viewing lists for the year. Consider this a big old teaser trailer. Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Patreon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Losers reach the last page of Stephen King's time-traveling drama: 11/22/63. In the sixth and final episode of their coverage, the Losers return to the present to discuss the tear-jerker of an ending, King's original finale, and their final thoughts. Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Patreon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We (mostly) kept JFK conspiracy talk out of our 11/22/63 episodes, as the story is best enjoyed on King's terms. We did, however, think it would be enriching to chat with some smart people about King's assertion that "it is very, very difficult for a reasonable person to believe" that Lee Harvey Oswald wasn't the lone shooter. Previously, we spoke with Brendan James of Blowback about the book, Oswald, and King’s political evolution. You can find that episode just a bit further down the feed. Now, we're speaking with Jim DiEugenio, one of the leading experts on the political assassinations of the 1960s. Jim is the author of two books about the Kennedy Assassination, one of which was the basis for Oliver Stone’s documentary JFK Revisited: Through the Looking Glass. He also has a new book out, The JFK Assassination Chokeholds and a website, KennedysandKing.com, that's loaded with resources.   Since Jim knows Kennedy scholarship like the back of his hand, we chatted with him about the research materials King cite

The Losers continue their journey through Stephen King's time-traveling drama: 11/22/63. In the fifth of six episodes, the Losers spend their time healing at the Parkland Memorial Hospital, all before the big, titular day. Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Patreon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Losers continue their journey through Stephen King's time-traveling drama: 11/22/63. In the fourth of six episodes, the Losers go on a stakeout and get stuck between stations, specifically Dallas and Jodie, Texas. Yes, our man Jake Epping experiences what we call the sweet and sour of life as he gets lovingly closer to Sadie Dunhill and yet dangerously closer to Lee Harvey Oswald. To keep things together, the Losers discuss the way King weaves fiction around facts before finally slicing into some freshly baked poundcake. Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Patreon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Losers continue their journey through Stephen King's time-traveling drama: 11/22/63. In the third of six episodes, the Losers head back to Derry, Maine, all before road trippin' down south to Sunset Point, FL, Dallas, TX, and Jodie, TX. Things take a dark turn along the way, proving - as King writes - it wasn't all Andy-n-Opie back in 1958. Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Patreon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Losers continue their journey through Stephen King's time-traveling drama: 11/22/63. In the second of six episodes, the Losers head to Derry, Maine, where they reunite with familiar faces and meet a new villain in King's Dominion: Frank Dunning. Along the way, they also discuss the evolution of Jake Epping -- err, George Amberson -- and how this section of the book affords Constant Readers the perfect opportunity to stakeout our main character ... during a stakeout of his own. Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Patreon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Look, we would've been perfectly happy enjoying 11/22/63 without getting into the weeds of the JFK conspiracy, but Stephen King himself took pains to detail how his research for the book convinced him that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone. "It is very, very difficult for a reasonable person to believe otherwise," he writes in the book's afterword. Since that's no fun, we sought out some smart people to provide a counterpoint and share their own thoughts about the book's depictions of Oswald, Kennedy, and the assassination. In this episode, The Losers' Club speaks with Blowback co-host (and recent King convert) Brendan James about 11/22/63's Oswald, conspiracy in the 21st century, and King's political evolution over the years -- from the paranoia of The Stand to the regret of Hearts in Atlantis to the ghastly spirit of Donald Trump pervading his latest novels (and Twitter account). Finally, Brendan leaves us with some conspiracy fiction recommendations. Stay tuned for "Pt. 2: The Janitor's Father" -- dropping thi

The Losers finally reach Stephen King's time-traveling drama: 11/22/63. In the first of six episodes dedicated to the 2011 best-seller and Constant Reader favorite, they wrestle with the novel's origins, its themes, and its commitment to history. Along the way, they also try to pinpoint what this story might have looked like when King originally dreamt it up way, way back in the early '70s. Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Patreon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Losers scan the nearby skyscrapers and gaze at the monstrosities watching from above. The stone monsters. The gargoyles! Join Losers Dan Pfleegor and Dan Caffrey as they flip through Stephen King and f-stop Fitzgerald's coffee table book Nightmares in the Sky: Gargoyles and Grotesques. Together, they discuss the impetus behind the project, King's essay, and the countless photos within. To stay on theme, they also revisit Stan Winston's 1972 telefilm Gargoyles. Note: This episode was recorded in 2021 and is being unlocked for the book's 35th anniversary. Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Patreon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Here's a clip from Randall and Mel's Month of Halloween Hell 3, the Losers’ Club's Patreon-exclusive annual series in which Randall and Mel watch a horror movie every day in October and talk about it, returns for its third year, this time with fellow Losers Dan Caffrey and Justin Gerber along for the ride. It's a marathon four-hour episode. Want to hear the full track? Become a member of The Barrens (Patreon) by visiting www.patreon.com/thebarrens. You'll unlock hundreds hours of exclusive content that includes even more episodes of The Stephen King Archives, our Dark Tower Detour series, dozens of Ka-mmentary tracks for your favorite King flicks, all of our Lobstrosities episodes clawing through those silly King sequels, in addition to spinoffs like Talkin' Hawkins and CrichtonCast. Not to mention, dozens upon dozens of locked episodes and one-offs, including a 24-7 Discord community featuring Constant Listeners just like you! Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Patreon Learn more about your ad cho

The heat is on across King's Dominion. To cool off, The Losers' Club put on their shades, rev up their ol' Plymouth Fury, and feel the breeze in Hollywood King. Along the way, they sort through plenty of Needful Tweets. Topics include Stephen King's new short stories collection You Like It Darker, the forthcoming short story collection tied The Stand from fellow authors, and a whole lotta talk about the adaptations we've been waiting for like 'Salem's Lot, The Life of Chuck, The Monkey, and more. Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Patreon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Losers' Club's Randall Colburn is joined by one of his favorite songwriters, Zac Pennington (Popular Music/Parenthetical Girls), to unpack the parodic pleasures of U.K. cult hit Garth Marenghi's Darkplace, a loony hospital horror soap that's maybe-sorta-definitely taking the piss out of Stephen King (in the most loving way possible, of course). The pair discuss low-rent '80s horror, hearing Matt Berry's voice for the first time, and how genuinely strange it is that Darkplace came out just months before King's own Kingdom Hospital, his short-lived ABC hospital horror soap. Popular Music's lush and haunting new album, Minor Works, is available now. Order it here and stream it wherever you stream music.  Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Patreon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Here's a clip from our latest Patreon-exclusive installment of The Soul's Midnight, a Patreon exclusive series that allows the Losers to put down Stephen King for a moment and talk about some real-life spooky tales. Since we’ve just read Full Dark, No Stars --a collection of novellas all about murder – we figured we’d combine the two and talk about some crazed killers who have influenced, or may have been influenced by one of our all time favorite things: horror movies. Want to hear the full track? Become a member of The Barrens (Patreon) by visiting www.patreon.com/thebarrens. You'll unlock hundreds hours of exclusive content that includes even more episodes of The Stephen King Archives, our Dark Tower Detour series, dozens of Ka-mmentary tracks for your favorite King flicks, all of our Lobstrosities episodes clawing through those silly King sequels, in addition to spinoffs like Randall and Mel's Halloween Hell, Talkin' Hawkins, and CrichtonCast. Not to mention, dozens upon dozens of locked episodes and one-

What a long dark night it’s been on this trip through Stephen King’s 2011 collection Full Dark, No Stars. After traveling back to 1922 and taking a detour through Big Driver, Losers Justin Gerber, Rachel Reeves, and Jenn Adams make a pit stop in Derry for a nasty little tale of schadenfreude and revenge, “Fair Extension.” Then it’s full speed ahead through the collection’s final novella A Good Marriage. Inspired by the horrific crimes of BTK, King’s story follows a happily married woman who finds a life-altering secret buried in her garage. Topics range from the ethics of True Crime storytelling, the fine line between art and exploitation, and the lies we tell ourselves to get through the day.  Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Patreon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today marks the 25th anniversary of Apt Pupil, the 1998 Stephen King adaptation that stars the late Brad Renfro and Sir Ian McKellen. Admittedly, it's a very controversial film to discuss, but to their credit, our friends Joe Lipsett and Trace Thurman of the Horror Queers braved the unnerving themes and backstories within the production. They also invited our co-host Jenn Adams along to help 'em out. So, we thought: Why not shed a light on the film -- consider it a Long Watch -- and give our network pals the spotlight, too. Win-win. If you dig this episode, do not hesitate to subscribe to the Horror Queers wherever you get podcasts. They're brilliant. Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Patreon | Store Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We all know Stephen King loves to write horror fiction, but he also loves to read it. And when the Master of Horror is looking for his next literary fright he turns to our special guest for this episode: Sadie “Mother Horror” Hartmann! Losers Jenn Adams and Dan Caffrey join the Bookstagram star and fellow Constant Reader to discuss her incredible new book 101 Horror Books to Read Before You’re Murdered. Together, they chat about all things horror fiction including their favorite subgenres, creepy kids, the importance of modern horror, and what makes a book Stephen King(ish). And, of course, Sadie recommends a few novels perfect for spooky season! We guarantee you’ll come away from this episode with a much longer To Read list! Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Patreon | Store Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Happy Friday the 13th, Constant Listeners! We have a special treat for you: Another series from the LC family. It's called The Lady Killers: a Feminine Rage Podcast, and it's hosted by fellow Losers Jenn Adams and Sammie Kuykendall, in addition to Halloweenies editor Mae Shults and Rue Morgue editor Rocco Thompson. So what's the gist? Each episode will feature Jenn, Sammie, Mae, and Rocco discussing a female-identifying killer in the horror genre—and sometimes the wider world of cinema—from Julia and Jennifer to Carrie and Christine. They’ll tell the story from her point of view, decide if it’s “Good For Her” Horror, and answer the most important question of all: would we die for her? New episodes every Thursday; subscribe now. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Because it's spooky season, the Losers are dusting off an old Crate episode on 1999's The Blair Witch Project, a film that even Stephen King asked to turn off for being "too freaky." Where do you stand? Where do the Losers stand? Hopefully, not in the corner. Note: This was recorded in January 2021 and is being unlocked today for the main feed. For more exclusive episodes like this that we haven't unlocked,please join us at www.patreon.com/thebarrens. You can even get our latest book episode on Holly. Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Patreon | Store Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Losers continue their coverage of Pet Sematary: Bloodlines by speaking with writer-director Lindsey Anderson Beer. Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Patreon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices