Marc Hartzman

An authoritative compendium on sword swallowing, featuring historical biographies, expert insights, rare photos, and behind-the-scenes stories from modern sword swallowers. To the Hilt offers a riveting exploration into the mysterious and dangerous world of sword swallowing, charting its history from ancient rituals to modern-day performances. This comprehensive volume, cowritten by world-renowned sword swallower Dan Meyer and celebrated sideshow historian Marc Hartzman, delves into the lives and careers of over 100 sword swallowers. Packed with rare photographs, fascinating anecdotes, and expert insights, this book is the definitive guide to an art form that has both captivated and terrified audiences for centuries. Meyer and Hartzman bring their extensive expertise to the table, creating a work that is both informative and enthralling. Meyer, with his numerous world records and vast experience, provides an insider’s perspective that is unmatched. Hartzman adds depth with his historical knowledge and engaging writing style, making this book a must-read for anyone intrigued by the bizarre and the daring. Key Features: Definitive Compendium of Historical Biographies: Highlights the captivating lives of historical sword swallowers from the 1700s to the present, many of whom have never been profiled in other books. Behind the Scenes with Modern Performers: Provides an inside look at the wild stories and experiences of modern sword swallowers, who account for one out of every 300 million people alive today. Expert Perspectives: Readers will learn from Dan Meyer, the world’s leading expert on sword swallowing and viral TEDx presenter, as he shares his unique life experiences and relatable life lessons in his introductory essay. Rare Imagery: Contains a treasure trove of rare photographs and ephemera that bring the history of sword swallowing to life. Medical Insights: Outlines the medical risks and implications of sword swallowing through a doctor’s essay included in the book, which serves both as a warning and an elucidation of the phenomenon. To the Hilt is not just a book; it's a journey into a world where danger and artistry intersect. Perfect for sideshow enthusiasts, history buffs, or those simply seeking a road map for pushing human capability to its limits in any domain, this book will leave readers both enlightened and amazed.

We Are Not Alone . . . manages to be highly entertaining and easy to read, yet fair, balanced and thorough.' Christopher Mellon, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Intelligence. Do you want to believe? Explore our fascination with UFOs and extraterrestrial intelligence through exclusive interviews, archival photos, and strange but true stories from history. After decades of cover-ups and denials, in a June 2021 report, the US government finally admitted what many people already knew: yes, UFOs are real, and no, we don t know what (or who) they are. Weird historian Marc Hartzman separates fact from fiction and provides a comprehensive tour through the skies, including: UFO sightings, from the famous to the obscure. Alien abductions, including the Betty and Barney Hill abduction and the Pascagoula abduction/ Ancient aliens, from Biblical astronauts to the alien architects behind the pyramids/ Scientific evidence, including the 'Wow!' radio signal and the interstellar Oumuamua object. Cover-ups and conspiracies, including the Roswell Incident and Area 51. Governmental and military findings, from Project Blue Book to reports of UFOs at nuclear weapons sites. Deeply researched and highly entertaining, We Are Not Alone will inform and entertain anyone who s ever doubted that we are really alone in the universe.

A fantastic book.' Ben Kissel, co-host of Last Podcast on the Left. Take a spirited tour through the supernatural history of America, from its haunted sites to its famous ghosts to its ghost-obsessed pop culture. Ghosts are everywhere whether you believe in them or not. Every town has its local legends, and countless books, movies, and TV shows are haunted by their presence. But our obsession with ghosts runs deeper than we know and is embedded in the very fabric of American history. Writer and historian Marc Hartzman dons the mantle of tour guide, taking readers on a fascinating journey through supernatural history, including: The Fox Sisters and the rise of Spiritualism The supernatural obsessions of famous figures like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Famous haunted sites like the Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia and the LaLaurie House in New Orleans Famous ghosts like the Bell Witch of Tennessee and the Greenbrier Ghost of West Virginia Paranormal investigators like Ed and Lorraine Warren Deeply researched and highly entertaining, with archival images and black and white illustrations, Chasing Ghosts will satisfy believers and skeptics alike.

Have you ever seen a ghost? Now you can see them in the comfort of your own home. In 1864, when J. H. Brown's Spectropia was first published, beliefs in spirits were reaching a high point. Mediums across the country were selling the idea of communication with the afterlife. And people were buying it. With the Civil War raging, death was plaguing America and grieving families were willing to cling to any hope of reconnecting with lost loved ones. As s ances conjured up spirits through rappings on walls, levitating tables, mysterious images in photographs, and other fantastic appearances, Brown decided to do something about it. He had had enough of "the absurd follies of spiritualism." As Brown notes in the pages of this book, "All the senses are more or less subject to deception, but the eye is pre-eminently so." With the sixteen color plates in Spectropia, he created a way for anyone to see ghosts through nothing more than science. Follow Brown's simple instructions and the spectres within these pages will take shape in your newly haunted house. Only for a short time though, after which they will vanish beyond the veil. This new edition republishes the original text and illustrations in FULL COLOR, and includes a foreword by author and founder of WeirdHistorian.com, Marc Hartzman. ABCnews.com has called him "one of America's leading connoisseurs of the bizarre."

Mars has been a source of fascination and speculation ever since the Ancient Sumerians observed its blood-red hue and named it for their god of war and plague. But it wasn t until 1877, when canals were observed on the surface of the Red Planet, suggesting the presence of water, that scientists, novelists, filmmakers, and entrepreneurs became obsessed with the question of whether there s life on Mars. In The War of the Worlds, H. G. Wells suggested that we wouldn t need to make contact with Martians they d come for us while, many years later, Nikola Tesla claimed that he did make contact. Since then, Mars has fully invaded pop culture. It has its own day of the week (Tuesday, or martis in Latin), candy bar, and iconic Looney Tunes character. It has been the subject of iconic novels and movies, from Ray Bradbury s The Martian Chronicles to Mars Attacks! to The Martian. And it has sparked a space-race feud between Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos, who both hope to send a manned mission to Mars in the near future. Filled with entertaining history, archival images, pop culture ephemera, and interviews with NASA scientists, The Big Book of Mars is the most comprehensive look at our relationship with Mars yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

Profiles some two hundred lesser-known figures from the heyday of the American sideshow, tracing the lives of such individuals as legless acrobat Eli Bowen, four-legged woman Myrtle Corbin, and "human torso" Prince Randian, in an account of the rise and fall of sideshows and how advances in modern medicine have enabled voluntary body changes. Reprint.