Shows
Thrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryThrilling Tales JulyThrilling Tales for July2023-07-0116 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryJune Thrilling Tales: "The Dead Man" by Ray Bradbury
In this well-known short story by Ray Bradbury, a lonely middle-aged woman moves to a small town to take a job as a manicurist and finds she is strangely drawn to a local eccentric, Odd Martin, who claims to be dead! 2023-06-0322 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryMay Thrilling Tales: "Another Fine Mess" by Ray BradburyLaurel and Hardy were a comedy team widely regarded as one of the best in film history. Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy made over 100 comedies together, starting in the silent movie era and moving to "talkies." Author Ray Bradbury loved this duo and anything about old Hollywood. Another Fine Mess is his tribute to Laurel and Hardy's award-winning film, The Music Box, made in 1932.2023-05-0318 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryApril Thrilling Tales - "Night of the Twisters"
Mother Nature has an unpredictable personality, especially when it comes to such weather phenomena as tornados and hurricanes. "Night of the Twisters" was written in 1972 by James Michael Ullman, an American novelist and newspaper editor known for his work in and about the Chicago area in the mid-1900's. It is the story of a young woman alone in a remote farmhouse during a stormy night who is visited by two escaped convicts. 2023-04-0316 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryMarch Thrilling Tales - "The First Night of Lent"This short story by Ray Bradbury is the first Irish short story written by this well-known author. The story came from Bradbury's own experiences of living in Dublin in 1953-54 while writing the screenplay for "Moby Dick" for film director John Huston. It is a wonderful story about the Irish with a surprise ending. Starting March 4th, go to https://www.eastlakelibrary.org/thrilling-tales to listen to our podcast!2023-03-0416 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryThrilling Tales: "The Boarded Window" / "The Oval Portrait"This month, we have two short stories by famous American authors. An exemplary Ambrose Bierce tale, "The Boarded Window" involves an ill-fated marriage and an act of shocking violence in the dark of night. "The "Oval Portrait," by Edgar Allan Poe, concerns a man who spends a night in an abandoned chateau and becomes fascinated by a portrait of a beautiful young woman.2023-02-0419 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryThrilling Tales - "The Snow Image"The Snow Image: A Childish Miracle (1851) is a story Nathaniel Hawthorne originally intended for adults, later adapted for children. A brother and sister, named Peony and Violet, create a snow girl that magically comes to life. Join us starting January 2nd for January's Thrilling Tales podcast by going to https://www.eastlakelibrary.org/thrilling-tales.2023-01-0233 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryThrilling Tales for the Holidays - "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet"Getting ready for some holiday travel? Let's hope you don't have the same experience as the airline passenger in Richard Matheson's short story, "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet." Made famous in the Twilight Zone episode starring William Shatner, this is the story of Bob Wilson, a salesman recovering from a recent nervous breakdown, who becomes convinced that a monster only he can see is tampering with the engines on the wing of the plane he is flying in. Unfortunately, when anyone else looks, the creature disappears! Of all of Matheson's novels and short stories, none comes closer to sheer paranoid terror...2022-11-1237 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryThrilling Tales - "The Ghost-Eater"Clifford Martin Eddy Jr. was an American author known for his horror, mystery and supernatural short stories. He is best remembered for his work in Weird Tales Magazine and his friendship with H.P. Lovecraft. "The Ghost Eater" is a take on a poor soul taking shelter on a stormy night in what seems to be an unoccupied house in the middle of a dense forest - the perfect ingredients for a horror story, don't you think? 2022-10-0522 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryThrilling Tales - "To Serve Man""To Serve Man" is a science fiction short story by Damon Knight. It is told from the point of view of a translator working at the United Nations, as he narrates the story of the Kanamit, a race of aliens that seem to radiate goodwill, friendship, and plentiful gifts. The story first appeared in the November 1950 issue of Galaxy Science Fiction and has been reprinted a number of times. However, it was made widely popular by its 1962 television dramatization as an episode of The Twilight Zone, starring Richard Kiel.2022-09-0318 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryThrilling Tales - "Undertaker, Please Drive Slow"Undertaker, Please Drive Slow, by Ron Goulart, is a very Chandleresque type of story. It centers on a wealthy man whose daughter apparently died on their yacht several years earlier. The man refuses to believe his daughter is dead and hires a private detective to find her - now that he has some evidence that she is alive!2022-08-0625 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryThrilling Tales - "Just a Little Impractical Joke"Men often make fools of themselves over women, money, greed, or jealousy. This story by Richard Stark (a pseudonym for Donald Westlake) is an example of just such an individual who thinks he's committed the perfect crime. Westlake was a three-time Edgar Award winner, who specialized in crime fiction capers, with an occasional foray into science fiction and other genres.2022-07-0926 min
Thrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryThrilling Tales - "Voice in the Night" - June 2022This month's podcast is called "Voice in the Night" by Robert Colby, which first appeared in Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine in April 1969. The story centers around a murderer who uses the telephone to lure unsuspecting women to their death.2022-06-0426 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryButton, Button - May 2022"Button, Button" was written by Richard Matheson in 1970 and later made into an episode on the television series, The Twilight Zone; it was also the basis for the 2009 film, The Box." This story poses the question of whether an ordinary person would be willing to make a total stranger die in exchange for $200,000 by simply pushing a button. Would you?2022-05-0515 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryThrilling Tales - "The Monkey's Paw" - April 2022"The Monkey's Paw" is a horror short story by author W. W. Jacobs, first published in England in the collection The Lady of the Barge in 1902. In the story, three wishes are granted to the owner of The Monkey's Paw, but the wishes come with an enormous price for interfering with fate! 2022-04-0223 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryThrilling Tales - "The Black Ferris" - March 2022 #19This month's podcast of "Thrilling Tales" offers another selection by the master of short stories, Ray Bradbury. "The Black Ferris" is about two boys who learn that the owner of a sinister traveling carnival is using an enchanted Ferris wheel to turn himself into a small child. Why? So that he can infiltrate the house of a local widow and steal her jewelry. Of course, no one believes them! This story first appeared in an anthology called "Weird Stories" in 1948 and was a precursor to "Something Wicked This Way Comes." https://www.eastlakelibrary.org/thrilling-tales2022-03-0519 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryThrilling Tales - "John Charrington's Wedding" - February 2022 #18In honor of lovers everywhere and in celebration of Valentine’s Day, this month’s podcast of Thrilling Tales features “John Charrington’s Wedding." This ghostly tale was written by British author, E. Nesbit, in 1891. The story follows the ill-fated courtship between John Charrington, a young man brimming with willful confidence, and May Forster, the village beauty.
This is not some charming love story but rather one of fanatical love that reaches from beyond the grave! So, gobble up that heart-shaped box of chocolates, sit back, and enjoy!!2022-02-0518 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryThrilling Tales - "Blind Date" - January 2022 #17"Blind Date," by Charles Boeckman, is the story of a man who discovers a woman's body in the trunk of his car along with evidence that he was her lover - unfortunately, he doesn't even know her! Is this a case of amnesia or an intricate plot to incriminate him in a homicide he didn't commit?! This podcast begins January 5th at https://www.eastlakelibrary.org/thrilling-tales!2022-01-0534 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryThrilling Tales #16 - "The Changing of the Guard"This month's Thrilling Tale, "The Changing of the Guard," was a teleplay by the Twilight Zone's Rod Serling, written by his wife, Anne. It is a beautiful holiday story of an elderly professor forced to retire the day before Christmas vacation, feeling he has accomplished nothing in his lifetime as an educator. The episode aired in 1962 and starred Donald Pleasance as Professor Fowler.2021-12-2329 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryThrilling Tales - "The Changing of the Guard" - December 2021 #16This month's Thrilling Tale, "The Changing of the Guard," was a teleplay by the Twilight Zone's Rod Serling, written by his wife, Anne. It is a beautiful holiday story of an elderly professor forced to retire the day before Christmas vacation, feeling he has accomplished nothing in his lifetime as an educator. The episode aired in 1962 and starred Donald Pleasance as Professor Fowler. Go to https://www.eastlakelibrary.org/thrilling-tales!2021-12-0429 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryThrilling Tales - "Busted! A Thanksgiving Mystery Short Story" - November 2021 #15Ready for your holiday feast? It seems like SOME families have more in mind than eating and watching football games! Nothing like adding a few extra ingredients to a rich uncle's plate at Thanksgiving in hopes of reaping the rewards of a big inheritance. What could possibly go wrong?! Enjoy this month's Thrilling Tale by Gail Farrelly as you enjoy your turkey with all the trimmings! 2021-11-0613 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryThrilling Tales "The Witch Door" October 2021 #14This month's Thrilling Tales podcast is "The Witch Door." In this 1995 short story, author Ray Bradbury gives us a glimpse into the life of a couple who have fled the turmoil of a dystopian society to a New England farm house. But it soon becomes clear that they are not alone. Who or what lurks behind The Witch Door?2021-10-0419 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryThrilling Tales - "Our Education" - September 2021Back to school, back to the classroom, back to...wait a minute! Where are the teachers?! This month's Thrilling Tales' podcast, "Our Education," by Lincoln Michel, focuses on a young boy trapped in a school from which all of the teachers have disappeared. Unfortunately, there seems to be no option to break from what might be perceived as a fantasy and simply go home!2021-09-0421 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community LibraryThrilling Tales - "August Heat Wave" - August 2021 #12Are the heat and humidity getting to you? This oppressive weather affects people in different ways! "August Heat Wave" is this month's Thrilling Tales podcast theme with two stories focusing on characters' extreme reactions. "Death by Scrabble" by Charlie Fish turns an innocent board game into a life and death struggle between a husband and wife. In "August Heat," by W.F. Harvey, a work-a-day artist's inspiration becomes prophetic.2021-08-0219 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community Library"Wish You Were Here" - July 2021 #11The phrase “wish you were here” is associated with picture postcards introduced at the end of the nineteenth century but certainly lawn ornaments are not capable of writing postcards...or are they?!?! "Wish you Were Here" by Frank Jones is a short gothic horror story about an elderly lady who purchases a very unusual garden gnome.2021-07-0321 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community Library"The Lottery" - June 2021 #10Shirley Jackson’s frightening story "The Lottery" was published in 1948 in The New Yorker. At the time, the magazine received more letters than they ever had before for another work of fiction. Many people were enraged, revolted, and rarely interested. That’s because readers didn’t know if the story was fact or fiction. If you’re looking to be frightened, then this is the story for you! Starting June 5th, go to https://www.eastlakelibrary.org/thrilling-tales.2021-06-0520 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community Library"Mother's Love" - May 2021 #9In celebration of Mother's Day, this month's selection for the Thrilling Tales podcast is "My Mother's Keeper" by Barbara Callahan. The story centers around a young girl who overhears her mother's boyfriend's admission of murder in the adjoining confessional. She is torn between protecting her mother and betraying the "code of silence" associated with the sacrament of penance.
The podcast begins Saturday, May 8th.2021-05-0847 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community Library"Nature Gone Wild" - April 2021 #8Ah, Spring - when nature comes alive! In "The Finnegan," by Ray Bradbury, when three children are found dead, drained of blood, rumors of vampires circulate. But this is more of a "creature feature" than a tale of macabre horror. Simply nature gone wild!2021-04-1023 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community Library"Banshee" - March 2021 #7In celebration of St. Patrick's Day and the wonderful folklore of Ireland, "Banshee" is a semi-autobiographical story by Ray Bradbury that reflects his stormy relationship with movie director, John Huston. Bradbury takes a supernatural twist to one of Huston's pranks played upon him during his stay at a mansion in Ireland while writing the screenplay for the movie, "Moby Dick."2021-03-2027 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community Library"Love Hurts" - February 2021 #6This month's podcast celebrates Valentine's Day with the theme - "Love Hurts!" The first selection is "Final Arrangements" by Lawrence Page, a long-suffering husband is fed up with his invalid wife's constant nagging and decides to make some plans for "final arrangements!" Author Margaret Mahy was best known for her children's and young adult books; however, in our second selection, "Fingers on the Back of the Neck," she uses her strong supernatural elements for an older audience - greedy little Ivan is gripped by the spirit of his great-grandmother after he causes her death! Join storyteller and Library Director...2021-02-1338 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community Library"Winter Run" - January 2021 #5"Winter Run", by Edward Hoch, was first published in an anthology of crime stories in 1964. Hoch was a master of detective stories, emphasizing mystery and deduction rather than suspense and fast-paced action. On May 10, 1965, the final episode of the Alfred Hitchcock Hour featured "Off Season," which as based on this story. Hope you enjoy this nice little crime drama with a nasty twist!2021-01-0926 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community Library"Christmas Reunion" - December 2020 #4This month's Thrilling Tales podcast is taken from Sir Andrew Caldecott's, Not Exactly Ghosts - "Christmas Reunion," sees an annoying man's Christmas celebration cut short by a strange telegram. Click on the podcast link on our website (eastlakelibrary.org) beginning December 5th...and enjoy this holiday gift from your library! For more Christmas fun...after listening to the podcast, come into the library and answer the question: "In what country did the alleged homicide take place?" The first twenty winners receive a beautiful traditional Christmas Cracker filled with gifts!2020-12-0523 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community Library"Thanksgiving" - November 2020 #3"Thanksgiving" by Joyce Carol Oates opens with an ordinary scenario: a father and daughter go grocery shopping for Thanksgiving supplies. However, being that this is Thrilling Tales, this is not a typical holiday shopping excursion. But rather the new normal after a catastrophic event. Listen to our podcast, if you dare....2020-11-0728 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community Library"The Master of Rampling Gate" October 2020 #2 Part 1Anne Rice, author of the wildly successful Vampire Chronicles, has written a suspenseful tale that conjures up frightful images of the supernatural - The Master of Rampling Gate.2020-10-1030 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community Library"The Master of Rampling Gate" October 2020 #2 Part 2Anne Rice, author of the wildly successful Vampire Chronicles, has written a suspenseful tale that conjures up frightful images of the supernatural - The Master of Rampling Gate.2020-10-1010 minThrilling Tales at East Lake Community Library"Back to School" - September 2020 #1For September, we have a back-to-school theme: “Here There Be Tygers” by Stephen King (a story he wrote while still in high school!) and “The Dead Language Master” by Joan Aiken.
"Here There Be Tygers" by Stephen King - Is there a tiger lurking in the boys' bathroom at school?
"Dead Language Master" by Joan Aiken - A cruel joke played on the Latin teacher goes horribly wrong!2020-09-1826 min