WELCOME TO THE CFZ BLOG NETWORK: COME AND JOIN THE FUN

Half a century ago, Belgian Zoologist Bernard Heuvelmans first codified cryptozoology in his book On the Track of Unknown Animals.

The Centre for Fortean Zoology (CFZ) are still on the track, and have been since 1992. But as if chasing unknown animals wasn't enough, we are involved in education, conservation, and good old-fashioned natural history! We already have three journals, the largest cryptozoological publishing house in the world, CFZtv, and the largest cryptozoological conference in the English-speaking world, but in January 2009 someone suggested that we started a daily online magazine! The CFZ bloggo is a collaborative effort by a coalition of members, friends, and supporters of the CFZ, and covers all the subjects with which we deal, with a smattering of music, high strangeness and surreal humour to make up the mix.

It is edited by CFZ Director Jon Downes, and subbed by the lovely Lizzy Bitakara'mire (formerly Clancy), scourge of improper syntax. The daily newsblog is edited by Corinna Downes, head administratrix of the CFZ, and the indexing is done by Lee Canty and Kathy Imbriani. There is regular news from the CFZ Mystery Cat study group, and regular fortean bird news from 'The Watcher of the Skies'. Regular bloggers include Dr Karl Shuker, Dale Drinnon, Richard Muirhead and Richard Freeman.The CFZ bloggo is updated daily, and there's nothing quite like it anywhere else. Come and join us...

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Saturday, November 09, 2013

CRYPTOLINK: Comedian, 'World Champion' Judah Friedlander Takes On Cryptids in 'Monster Project'

A word about cryptolinks: we are not responsible for the content of cryptolinks, which are merely links to outside articles that we think are interesting (sometimes for the wrong reasons), usually posted up without any comment whatsoever from me. 


2013-10-25-MonsterProject.png


The Lake Champlain Monster, Jersey Devil, Chupacabra: They are elusive creatures of folklore and celebrities of the cryptozoology world - and they are about to meet the World Champion. Enter Judah Friedlander, best known as the comedian with a sasquatchian beard, long hair and penchant for trucker hats emblazoned with giant-sized statements proclaiming him the champ of all things. For nearly seven years, he was best known for the role writer Frank Rossitano on 30 Rock, but he is also a crypto enthusiast and the host of The Monster Project on the Nat Geo Wild network.
Premiering Oct. 26 at 8 p.m. ET, "Champ" says hello to the Champ. The paranormal field is a natural for an expert of all things such as Friedlander who wrote the book How to Beat Up Anybody: An Instructional and Inspirational Karate Book, which featured a chapter on fighting Bigfoots (and ninjas, T-rexes and three-armed men). And over the course of three episodes, all airing this Saturday, he performs the task of host and commentator, weighing in with his take on pre-recorded footage of various paranormal groups on an investigation.
But instead of beating up the paranormal groups - as a master of karate like Friedlander might be persuaded to do - he makes fun without being mean. He doesn't discredit, but also doesn't automatically believe, what is presented to him as evidence. The Monster Project serves as an introductory course in cryptids for newbies, while remaining entertaining for established fans of the paranormal pop culture genre. And Friedlander is kind of like a kinder, gentler Tosh.O of the paranormal (with karate skills).
Friedlander joined me for a discussion at the National Geographic offices in New York City to talk about The Monster Project. He was not forced to beat me up, but he did answer questions.
Did you have an interest in cryptozoology before this show came about?
"I've been obsessed with Bigfoot since I was a kid. I have always been a fan of the paranormal - cryptozoology - and I have Bigfoot jokes in my act, mermaid bits, UFO bits, all kinds of stuff. This show is basically a combination educating people about this stuff as well as having fun with it. I tried really hard not to make fun of anyone. My goal is to say, 'Hey, let's look at this stuff but have a sense of humor about it too.'"

DALE DRINNON: Black Panther, skunk ape, Frontiers of Anthropology, Benny's Blogs, Cedar and Willow

New at the Frontiers of Zoology:
New at the Frontiers of Anthropology:
 
New at Cedar and Willow:
 
New at Benny's Blog for Thelma Todd:
 
New at Benny's Other blog, the Ominous Octopus Omnibus:
 
(Previous mention of Fantomah on one of the projected Thomasina Edison covers I did earlier at Cedar and Willow:
 
Best Wishes, Dale D.

FORTEAN BIRD NEWS FROM THE WATCHER OF THE SKIES

In an article for the first edition of Cryptozoology Bernard Heuvelmans wrote that cryptozoology is the study of 'unexpected animals' and following on from that perfectly reasonable assertion, it seems to us that whereas the study of out-of-place birds may not have the glamour of the hunt for bigfoot or lake monsters, it is still a perfectly valid area for the Fortean zoologist to be interested in. So after about six months of regular postings on the main bloggo Corinna took the plunge and started a 'Watcher of the Skies' blog of her own as part of the CFZ Bloggo Network.









AUSTRALIAN EXPEDITION UPDATE!

Hey Jon, 

UPDATE! 

Halfway through the trip and things are going well. 

We've deployed all of our game cameras into the field and have already received some promising footage of Tasmanian wildlife - but not our elusive striped quarry (yet). We've also interviewed quite a few new witnesses and have sourced some great locations where vocalisations have been heard consistent with those described to be of the Thylacine. 

Morale is high and the team have been deploying over a wide range during the day and night, visiting new and old 'hot spots'. Last night the intrepid searchers dined on wallaby roadkill for dinner, prepared and cooked by UK naturalist Jonathan McGowan. Let's say we're being fully 'immersive' in our search for Australia's most iconic cryptid. More news as it comes to hand. 

Best, 
Rebecca & The Team

THE GONZO BLOG DOO-DAH MAN RECOLLECTS

The Gonzo Daily - Saturday
 
We heard from the Australian expedition late last night, and there is a dispatch posted on the CFZ blog (http://forteanzoology.blogspot.com/). Things appear to be going very well, and I am greatly looking forward to hearing their adventures when they return.  I worked late last night making sure that this weekend's Gonzo Weekly was finished early. A disturbing number of the magazines are going astray. I suspect that this is something to do with people's e-mail settings, and that stuff from MailChimp is screened out as Spam. We are going to have to address this somehow. Finally the new Roy Harper album arrived (about a week late) and I am very much looking forward to listening to it in peace this afternoon.
 
Another visit to our old friend Thom the World Poet
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2013/11/thom-world-poet-daily-poem_9.html
 
 
 
For those of you interested, the latest episode of my webTV show
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2013/11/cryptozoology-online-on-track-of.html
 
CABINET OF CURIOSITIES: Glastonbury Fayre Triple LP on eBay for just shy of two hundred quid!
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2013/11/cabinet-of-curiosities-glastonbury.html
 
 
ROBERT FRIPP: Revisiting royalties in the music industry: the promise of “Big Data”
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2013/11/robert-fripp-revisiting-royalties-in.html
 

*  The Gonzo Daily is a two way process. If you have any news or want to write for us, please contact me at  jon@eclipse.co.uk. If you are an artist and want to showcase your work, or even just say hello please write to me at gonzo@cfz.org.uk. Please copy, paste and spread the word about this magazine as widely as possible. We need people to read us in order to grow, and as soon as it is viable we shall be invading more traditional magaziney areas. Join in the fun, spread the word, and maybe if we all chant loud enough we CAN stop it raining. See you tomorrow...

*  The Gonzo Daily is - as the name implies - a daily online magazine (mostly) about artists connected to the Gonzo Multimedia group of companies. But it also has other stuff as and when the editor feels like it. The same team also do a weekly newsletter called - imaginatively - The Gonzo Weekly. Find out about it at this link: www.gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/11/all-gonzo-news-wots-fit-to-print.html
 
* We should probably mention here, that some of our posts are links to things we have found on the internet that we think are of interest. We are not responsible for spelling or factual errors in other people's websites. Honest guv!

*  Jon Downes, the Editor of all these ventures (and several others) is an old hippy of 54 who - together with his orange cat (who is currently on sick leave in Staffordshire) and two very small kittens (one of whom is also orange) puts it all together from a converted potato shed in a tumbledown cottage deep in rural Devon which he shares with various fish, and sometimes a small Indian frog. He is ably assisted by his lovely wife Corinna, his bulldog/boxer Prudence, his elderly mother-in-law, and a motley collection of social malcontents. Plus.. did we mention the orange cat?

ANDREW MAY: Words from the Wild Frontier

News and stories from the remoter fringes of the CFZ blogosphere...

From Nick Redfern's World of Whatever:

OLL LEWIS: Yesterday's News Today

Yesterday’s News Today
http://cryptozoologynews.blogspot.com/

On this day in 1998 the last exemptions to the abolition of the death penalty in peace time, treason and piracy with violence, were removed when Britain signed up to the European convention on human rights.

And now the news:

  • Wildlife Traffickers Sentenced in Indonesia
  • Law loophole means shark finning at sea continues
  • Nocturnal Animals Take Chances On Moonlit Dinners
  • Open University launches free online ecosystems co...
  • The future of grizzly bears is at risk says report...
  • Mysterious Disease Turning Sea Stars to Goo May Di...
  • Former poachers help in the fight against elephant...

  • HSBC loans drive deforestation and push orangutans...

  • Here's a compilation of the funny bits from Carry On Don't Loose Your Head, enjoy:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KoTCdPPlZCs