05/15/13 - Wednesday's Topical Currents is with veteran Florida journalist and raconteur Jeff Klinkenberg. In the tradition of the great Al Burt, Klinkenberg discovers the quirks and funky aspects of our diverse and often unusual state. He’s found that a low register tuba blast can trigger bull alligators to bellow. That and more in his book, ALLIGATORS IN B-FLAT: Improbable Tales from the Files of Real Florida. Topical Currents at 1pm on WLRN-HD1 rebroadcast at 7pm on WLRN-HD2 and audio on-demand after the live program.
In celebration of Lake Placid’s recent accolade as being named America’s Most Interesting Town by Reader’s Digest, the Tour Lake Placid Society hosted a premier screening of WLRN’s Weird Florida: On the Road at the Caladium Arts and Crafts Co-op.
Show times were 10 a.m., 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. It started out with a full house of 68 people, the second showing had 55, and the third had 44 for a total of 167 people who watched the video. Everyone loved it. There was a drawing for a free book and DVD, which was later donated to the Lake Placid Public Library.
From the shadows of Ashley’s Restaurant fans gathered for a Big Weird Florida Bash !!
Over 100 people showed up for a special screening of the new episode of WLRN’s Weird Florida: On the Road Again. This event took place at Florida’s well-known haunted eatery, Ashley’s Restaurant which lasted until 11pm. In addition to the screening, there was live music, a real séance led by The Great Cindini, and a remote broadcast on Spookhunters Radio from America’s skeptical ghost hunter Owen Sliter. Books and DVDs were sold as well as a raffle for giveaways.
Florida’s Master of the Weird, Charlie Carlson busy on the set of ‘ASHLEY’S SHADOW” a film based on his novel by the same name. The movie is set in 1934 and centers around the real-life unsolved murder of Ethel Allen, a nineteen-year-old local who was found brutally murdered on the shores of the nearby Indian River.
01/09/13 - Wednesday's Topical Currents features Florida raconteur Charlie Carlson and his “curious canine,” Lady Isabel, his adopted full-bred boxer. They’re the focus of a WLRN-TV documentary, “WEIRD FLORIDA: ON THE ROAD AGAIN.” They travel over 1500 miles across the Sunshine State in search of unusual people and places . . . and find Florida’s best-kept secrets and oddest legends.
The official Weird Florida: On the Road Again trailer:
Which is part of why WLRN is proud to present Weird Florida: On The Road Again. This latest hour-long documentary is the follow-up to the tremendous success of the first television special Weird Florida: Roads Less Traveled, which has aired on PBS stations from Miami, Fla. to Juneau, Alaska.
WLRN producer Mia Laurenzo says she wanted to take viewers on a TV tour of seldom-seen attractions.
"I like it when viewers say, 'Wow, I really didn't know that' — especially people who live here,'' says Laurenzo, who traveled with Carlson, the dog and a cameraman for several weeks beginning in May.
The Hollywood resident got the idea for the documentaries after spotting Carlson's 2005 book, "Weird Florida: Your Travel Guide to Florida's Local Legends and Best Kept Secrets." Taking a cue from the classic series "Ripley's Believe It or Not!," the WLRN show also has segments on creepy legends such as a lake monster in the city of Frostproof and a "skunk-ape" north of Lakeland.
"It's not your typical PBS travel show which tells you about the types of food, the culture, the area and [has] these beautiful sweeping aerial pans,'' Laurenzo says. "'Weird Florida' is campy. We take a look at these roadside attractions."
Posted at 11:46 a.m. Friday, December 21:
WLRN takes viewers on a trip through Florida in search of weird places and whacky people, with its new documentary Weird Florida: On the Road Again ! This exciting new documentary was produced due to the tremendous success of the first television special Weird Florida: Roads Less Traveled, which has aired on PBS stations from Miami, Florida to Juneau, Alaska. To fulfill the desires of weird fans everywhere, the bizarre journey to Florida’s zaniest places will continue in this all new Weird Florida: On the Road Again.
Have you seen our Weird Florida crew on the road? If they gave you one of these stickers we want to see you pictures! And if you don’t have one, send us an email to mia(at)wlrn(dot)org, and we will get one to you in a hurry!
Because us weird people need to give fair warning to those around us. It’s only common courtesy.
All of the Coral stone structures on Boca Chita Key were built by Mark Honeywell, the wealthy industrialist who founded the Honeywell Corporation.
Carl Fisher, a wealthy entrepreneur, was often invited to social gatherings hosted by Mr. and Mrs. Honeywell on the island. Fisher would bring along his famous pet elephant, Rosy, also attended the party on one occasion. Rosy gained national fame for serving as President Herbert Hoover’s golf caddy when he came to Miami.
Just when our bodies are aching, our patience is low and the weather is hot and steamy, we have our best day yet. If you’ve never been to Sarasota’s Circus Museum on the Ringling Estate, I have to say GO! It was AWESOME!! Its an interactive museum and houses the biggest littlest circus built by Howard Tibbals. This model is a replica of Ringling Bros.
I’ve got to say with the weather the way it was, I was very skeptical about filming anything today. We caught up with Weird Florida’s favorite Cryptozoologist, Scott Marlowe in Frostproof to talk about a monsterous serpent that killed a man in Lake Clinch back in the 1920′s. Then we were supposed to head to the Green Swamp just outside of Lakeland to talk about an ax murder, but the gate was locked. So then things got real interesting when we met with a wonderful Vietnamese man who has built this shrine to his parents and his homeland. We just happened to stop by when we could see this
The Weird Florida team rolled into the quaint town of Lake Placid, a city known for its beautiful murals, unique trash receptacles and clown school. We visited Toby’s Clown Foundation to catch a glimpse of the magic that clowning around can bring to people of all ages. Then we drove through the city looking at all the majestic art that adorns the buildings in downtown Lake Placid. It’s definitely a sight to see.
The Kennedy Bunker on Peanut Island in Palm Beach was really amazing. It was like a this huge tin cylinder 27 feet underground and could house 30 people for 30 days comfortably. Complete with an escape hatch and a helipad it was designed to protect President John F. Kennedy in the event of attack.
What a great time we had in Florida’s haunted eatery, Ashley’s Restaurant. The owner, Greg Parker admitted to witnessing some unexplained activities and one staff member said she will never close the restaurant alone. We met with ghost hunter Owen Sliter who demonstrated some techniques to tracking paranormal activity and though he didn’t find much, he did managed to get a little spooked in the room where an alleged murder took place. Friday night we will catch a street performer, The Great Cindini in West Palm Beach who eats f
Day three wraps up after our trip to the Barberville Roadside market. What a cool place! These people have everything to decorate your yard or home. In the market for a 19 ft giraffe or a rooster over 8 ft tall? How about your own Statue of Liberty or a wishing well with a black bear? I wound up with a guitar made of recycled metal. We’ve been meeting some great people and even Isabel has been making friends on this trip. For Day 4 we head to a haunted restaurant in Rockledge, we’ll meet with a ghost hunter to see what’s really going on.
We just wrapped up day 2 of our Weird Florida round 2 tour. Yesterday we visited the Mysterious Ruins in New Smyrna and the Black Forrest Cottage for little people off Spruce Creek in Port Orange. We met lots of nice people and a few fans stopped by to say hi. Today we spent lots of time talking with Denise Stoner of the Mutual UFO Network who has been trying to get to the bottom of what really happened on July 4, 2004
We are gearing up for another Weird Florida road trip. I’ve got rubber chickens, weird fans for our weirdest fans and a good ole’ fashioned map, Charlie doesn’t use a GPS. He wouldn’t know how to work one if he tried. I can’t believe it’s been two years since we’ve been on the road searching for all things strange, which actually seems to follow us. Charlie is like a weird magnet or something. In all this time though, I have learned we have the most loyal following of any show I’ve ever done and I hope our list of admirers keeps growing.
The tremendous success of Weird Florida: Roads Less Traveled, which has aired on PBS stations from Florida to Juneau, Alaska, has attracted an overwhelming response from viewers asking for more strange places.
To fulfill the desires of weird fans everywhere, the bizarre journey to Florida’s zaniest places will continue in an all new, Weird Florida: On the Road Again.
