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Vendor of the Week 18: Cait May Illustration

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Cait May is an artist living in Baltimore with a BFA in Illustration from the Maryland Institute College of Art. She works primarily digitally, with a foundation in watercolor and brush ink.
Maryland born, Florida raised, Cait has always loved the environments around her. Whether the Catskills or the Gulf of Mexico, she finds inspiration in the flora and fauna. Cait returned to her home state for school (and because she desperately missed the snow). Raised in a crazy family of theater people, she knew from a very small age that drawing was something she was meant to do. Her work can be viewed at: http://www.caitmayart.com/
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She first became interested in the paranormal when her sister started seeing a “White Robe Lady” standing outside her window on a nightly basis. What began as a simple interest has integrated itself into her artwork – which, while whimsical, still has a grounding in all things unknown.
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Cait and her boyfriend Trevor write and illustrate a webcomic called “Irregular,” a story about six young cryptids trying to make their way through the human world, and learning together that family is not who you are born to, but who you find along the way. It can be read online at:  http://www.irregularcomic.com/
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Milwaukee Paranormal Conference tickets available here: milwaukeeparacon.brownpapertickets.com

Guest Speaker: Celeste Contreras

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I am Celeste Contreras, I am Mexican-Mexica, Polish-Blackfeet Cherokee. Artist. Activist. Parade maker. Born in Dallas, Texas, raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founder of Milwaukee’s Dia de los Muertos Parade. Currently working towards a B.A. in Art Education at Alverno College.

Website: www.diadelosmuertosmilwaukee.com

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Milwaukee Paranormal Conference tickets here:  milwaukeeparacon.brownpapertickets.com

Panel Discussion: Wisconsin’s Wildest Urban Legends

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Presented by Cult of Weird. Sunday, UWM Ballroom West

Moderator: Tea Krulos (author, Monster Hunters) Panel: J. Nathan Couch (author, Goatman: Flesh or Folklore?) Charlie Hintz and Christina Rickman (Cult of Weird), Valerie Kedrowski (Stevens Point Paranormal Club).

Have you heard the story of Haunchyville, a village of angry dwarves (and their albino bodyguard) that supposedly exists in Muskego? Or maybe you’ve heard the gruesome tale of Boy Scout Lane, an isolated road outside of Stevens Point where a troop of Boy Scouts met their demise in the 50s…maybe it was the 60s. They were killed by their demented Scoutmaster…or their bus driver…or they died in a fire when their bus crashed.

And who could forget our breakout star of Milwaukee Paranormal Conference 2015, the Goatman! This half human, half goat creature allegedly stalks couples getting hot n’ heavy with each other on Hogsback Road outside of West Bend.

Our panel of urban legend enthusiasts will discuss these and more– we got to mention the Phantom Man of Highway 12 in Baraboo, and probably should discuss whatever happened with that Milwaukee Lion story.  We’ll also have a discussion session with the audience so you can share your own favorites.

Why discuss urban legends? They’re an important part of our modern local folklore…and of course, they’re a hell of a lot of fun!

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Boy Scout Lane

Milwaukee Paranormal Conference tickets available here: milwaukeeparacon.brownpapertickets.com

Guest Speaker: Loren Coleman

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Keynote Speaker 2016. Presentation: “The Minnesota Iceman: the Milwaukee Connection and More,” Saturday, Wisconsin Room

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Loren Coleman has been investigating cryptozoological evidence and folklore since the Abominable Snowmen/Yetis caught his interest in 1960. He is the author, coauthor, editor of, and/or contributor to over 100 popular books on natural history mysteries and the media, including Mysterious America, Bigfoot!: The True Story of Apes in America, Cryptozoology A to Z, Suicide Clusters, The Copycat Effect, Tom Slick and the Search for the Yeti, The Field Guide to Bigfoot and Other Primates, The Field Guide to Lake Monsters and Sea Serpents, and Mothman and Other Curious Encounters. Coleman has been a consultant to television programs, and films, including the Mothman Prophecies movie and documentary in 2002, filling in for John A. Keel (who was ill) during 400 media interviews and televised appearances.

Coleman regularly appears on documentary television programs – including Finding Bigfoot, Mysteries at the Museum, Monsters and Mysteries, MonsterQuest, In Search Of, CBS News Sunday Morning, Unsolved Mysteries, Animal X, Ancient Aliens, Ancient Mysteries, Unsolved Mysteries, Animal X, and other media, such as Coast to Coast AM – as an expert on strange creatures and inexplicable phenomena. His investigations have resulted in the coining of some recognized names in cryptozoology, including Dover Demon, Montauk Monster, Napes, Phantom Panthers, Cassie, and other monikers in Fortean cases, such as Phantom Clowns.

Today, as the modern popularizer of cryptozoology, and one who is termed the “world’s leading living cryptozoologist,” Loren Coleman is an honorary member of the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club and other groups. He was a Life Member of the (now-defunct) International Society of Cryptozoology (ISC). He is the 1999’s Bigfoot Times’ “Bigfooter of the Year,” and is a new inductee in 2015 to the Ohio Bigfoot Conference’s “Hall of Fame.” He travels extensively to continue his fieldwork and lectures, and writes blogs and frequent articles, for example, for Fortean Times, Portland Monthly, and his two blogs.

Coleman is the founder in 2003, and present director of the nonprofit International Cryptozoology Museum, which just moved in July 2016, to a new building at Thompson’s Point, Portland, Maine. The world’s only cryptozoology museum is routinely recognized, as it was in the last few years, as one of Time Magazine’s “Seven Weirdest Museums in the World,” and on the “best of” lists by Indian Times, MSN, Jetsetter Magazine, Huffington Post, ElleDécor, Weirdee, Blog for Lifestyle and Travel, Portland Phoenix, Skyscanner, and Travel + Leisure. In 2016, Coleman and the Board of the International Cryptozoology Museum founded the new International Cryptozoology Society, to continue the work of the ISC.

Websites

CryptoZoo News: cryptozoonews.com

International Cryptozoology Museum: cryptozoologymuseum.com

Iceman

Loren will have copies of the new Neanderthal: The Strange Saga of the Minnesota Iceman available, and getting a signed copy from him will be a nice complimentary item to his talk. The book is by Belgian-French cryptozoology pioneer Bernard Heuvelmans, translated here in English for the first time. Loren wrote the Afterword to this edition, which brings the bizarre story of the Iceman up to date.

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Milwaukee Paranormal Conference tickets available here!:  milwaukeeparacon.brownpapertickets.com

Vendor of the Week 17: Monette Bebow-Reinhard

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Bebow-Reinhard earned a master’s in history in 2006. She is responsible for the research that got the Arndt Sawmill site in Wisconsin on the National Historic Register and is now doing work on the history of Booyah. She also markets movie scripts, has two other novels being marketed, and a fifth novel coming out later this year (hopefully by conference time) called Grimms American Macabre, through All Things that Matter Press. She is also compiling a master database of all pre-contact copper artifacts found in the Americas. Be sure to shop and chat with her, she’s had a fascinating background, including gaining the right from the creator of the Bonanza series to become the only authorized Bonanza novelist.  He highly approved of her portrayal of Lincoln in her second Bonanza novel.  She can also tell you a thing or two you didn’t know about Custer’s Last Stand.

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Mystic Fire: A Civil War/Bonanza novel: With so much bloodshed in the country in 1862 would you be surprised to find a ghost or two? The Cartwrights are torn apart in this saga when runaway slaves come seeking help. With Adam and Ben gone, Hoss and Joe are expected to run the ranch, but Hoss meets up with a lady who seems quite literally, to Hop Sing, anyway, not of this world. Lincoln is also a character in this saga as he deals with his wife’s growing insanity and need for mysticism and his own desire to find a place to send the slaves out of the country, leading some in a kind of revolt against them.  You’ll find plenty of mystic fire in this novel!
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Adventures in Death & Romance: Vrykolakas Tales is the first series of stories of the new Greek vampire, Arabus Drake, who as Mikos in 1503 is murdered with his love Althea and comes back seeking vengeance. But his is a cowardly soul trapped inside the corpse swarming with demons, so Althea remains in the early realm as a spirit to help him learn to control the demons.  And the stories progress from there through history as he seeks the one thing that eludes him as a vampire–acceptance by the mortal world, even as he continues to seek to quench his blood thirst. You will witness, as never before, how it feels to be vampiric, and demonic and will come to see that we all have demons we struggle with, and you might even find reason to hope for his success along the way.
You can see chapter reads on these and her other two novels at www.grimmsetc.com
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Milwaukee Paranormal Conference tickets are available here: milwaukeeparacon.brownpapertickets.com

Vendor of the Week 16: Muddy Water Press

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Alex Groh is a 2011 MIAD grad, who owns and operates Muddy Water Press in Davenport, Iowa. He provides design and specialty screen printing to advertising and marketing agencies with the goal of funding a training and teaching facility to allow artists and designers access to equipment not normally available to them.

He researches and illustrates American tall tales, hoaxes and folk tales in his time off and is currently building a poster compendium of the creatures he researches, as well as working on several other projects to introduce people to the stories behind the monsters

Website: www.etsy.com/shop/MuddyWaterPress
Facebook: www.facebook.com/MuddyWaterPress

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Hey folks, today is the last day of the VIP ticket drive (ends at Midnight tomorrow night). $75 gets you a seat at our VIP dinner party, admission to both days of the conference and our Saturday night masquerade ball, a cloth tote bag filled with swag, AND a quality print of Muddy Water Press’s beautiful conference poster above. After midnight tomorrow, tickets go up and no free poster included.

You can take advantage of this deal here: milwaukeeparacon.brownpapertickets.com

Milwaukee Paranormal Conference Official Poster Revealed!

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AND YOU CAN GET A FREE PRINT WITH VIP TICKET PURCHASE!

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Our fantastic 2016 poster art is revealed here today, created by our talented collaborator Alex Groh of Muddy Water Press. Everyone who has purchased a VIP pass so far or buys one by July 1 will get a FREE copy of a print of this poster.

In just a few days our June VIP pass drive ends (11:59pm the night of July 1). After July 1, VIP passes raise in price and the poster print will have to be bought separately.

Buy your VIP pass today and get an official poster print, a seat at our VIP/ guest speaker dinner party, both days of the conference, and a cloth tote bag filled with swag from our sponsors and vendors all for only $75! Tickets here: milwaukeeparacon.brownpapertickets.com

 

 

You Can Be a MPC Sponsor!

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MkeParaCon_Logo-01We have a fantastic way for you to help support the Milwaukee Paranormal Conference via your business, organization, team, website or media outlet, etc. It’s even a good opportunity for an individual who would like to support us and be noted as a sponsor.

We are making an offer to any such group willing to buy ten tickets– we will not only give you an additional 2 free tickets, we will list your group as a “supporting sponsor” for any presentation/ panel discussion of your choice. You can see our schedule and pick something out here: milwaukeeparacon.com/schedule

You’ll be listed as a supporting sponsor on our website (with a link to your page), in our conference program, and given a shout out onstage before the presentation of your choice. We have 100 VIP swag bags, and you can include a promotional item in those if you want.

This offer is good for 2-day Passes, 2-day Super Passes, VIP passes. You can get ten of a kind, or mix and match. Tickets are priced here: milwaukeeparacon.brownpapertickets.com

What will you do with 12 tickets? Give them to your employees/ co-workers, as gifts to customers, clients, have a giveaway or raffle, give them to friends or family as an early Halloween gift. Everyone loves free stuff!

If you’re interested in this opportunity, e-mail us at: milwaukeeparacon@gmail.com and we’ll talk about the details.

Guest Speaker: Minnesota Krampus

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Feral House Publishing presents: “Celebrating Krampusnacht,” Sunday, UWM Union Ballroom West. Krampus parade through the UW Student Union directly before their presentation!

Minnesota Krampus is a traditional Saint Nikolaus and Krampus group (nicknamed “Pig’s Eye Pass”) from the great city of St Paul, Minnesota.  Organized as a 501c3 non-profit, Minnesota Krampus promotes these alpine traditions by attending events around the upper Midwest wearing authentic costuming and hand-carved wooden masks from the Austrian Alps.  Beware the chilling klang of primal bells, the howls of the creatures hunting the mountain passes, and the sting of the whips for the wicked.  Winter is near and Krampus is coming…

Website: www.minnesotakrampus.com

Krampus-510x728Feral House, called by the New York Times, “the most dangerous publisher in America,” has been publishing innovative and celebrated non-fiction books since 1989.Movies have been made, cultural trend influenced and political crimes exposed by our small, independent press.

The new Feral House book The Krampus: And the Old, Dark Christmas Roots and Rebirth of the Folkloric Devil (by Al Ridenour) will be published the week of the conference and you’ll be able to buy a copy at Feral House’s table on the vendor floor. We’ll also be giving a couple free copies away at the Minnesota Krampus presentation!

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Get your Milwaukee Paranormal Conference tickets today! igg.me/at/milwaukeeparacon

Now Announcing the Milwaukee Paranormal Conference Film Fest!

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We have an absolutely fantastic screening session that will take place Sunday evening after the conference events at UWM have concluded. This film fest will take place at the Underground Collaborative, a performance space in the basement level of the Grand Ave. Mall in downtown Milwaukee. Tickets to this screening are not included with any pass and must be bought separately. They are the low, low price of $6 and allow you access to all of the screenings. Tickets are limited to just 105, so buy yours today: milwaukeeparacon.brownpapertickets.com

Beast of Whitehall: The Abair Road Incident (2016) 40 minutes

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August, 1976: Three teens driving on an isolated stretch of road somewhere in the Adirondacks of Upstate New York has a brush with a bizarre creature. Standing over 7 feet tall and covered with hair, they referred to it as a “beast.” Hours later, Abair Road was crawling with local and state police. Many of them recounted seeing the creature as well.

As the weeks and months passed, more individuals came forward with their own sightings. The Abair Incident became the impetus for a rash of sightings around the town of Whitehall that continues to this day. Today, Whitehall is frequently referred to as the “Bigfoot Capitol of the East.”

Beast of Whitehall documents the long history of sightings in and around the tiny village of Whitehall , New York, and its impact on the culture and people who live in the Adirondack mountains. Delving into the story of the Abair Incident with eyewitness interviews and detailed accounts, this film takes you on an in-depth, terrifying journey into the events that transpired in 1976.

Directed by Seth Breedlove. This screening is made possible by Small Town Monsters, the production company and documentary series this film is part of.
Website: www.smalltownmonsters.com

P.I.M.: A Paranormal Documentary (2016) 60 minutes (followed by Q and A session w/ the filmmakers)

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That noise down the hall. Uneven floorboards or the footsteps of a long dead entity? Shadowy figures in your peripheral vision. Reflection from a passing car or a sighting of a passing spirit? Are we really alone?

These questions are constantly on the mind of Noah Leigh, founder of the Paranormal Investigators of Milwaukee. He and his team come from a multitude of professional backgrounds, but all have one goal; to dig into the truth behind the concept of ghosts. Using a scientific approach, Noah and the Paranormal Investigators of Milwaukee investigate claims of hauntings at popular Wisconsin and Illinois locations. But the truth they uncover is not always just “your imagination playing tricks on you.”

Directed by: Bradley James Kroll, cinematography by Aaron Powers, edited by Bradley James Kroll and Luke Lindemeyer.

The Hidden Truth? (2012) 63 minutes (followed by Q and A session w/ the filmmakers)

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Since 1997, nine college men have drowned in the Mississippi River in La Crosse, Wisconsin. Some are blaming a serial killer, some believe coincidence, but could it be…something paranormal?

Directed by Scott Markus, produced by Scott Markus, Jay Bachochin, Neil Sanders. This screening is made possible by Hidden Truth Productions.
Website: www.hiddentruthproductions.com


MPCFF Shorts Session

The House is Innocent (2015) 13 minutes

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What sorts of people knowingly purchase the former residence of a notorious serial killer and the location of multiple murders? Meet Tom and Barbara, the proud new owners of the most infamous house in Sacramento, California. As the middle age couple renovate the crumbling house, encounter stares from neighbors and growing attention from local news media– they realize its going to take a whole lot more than paint and landscaping to change the community’s minds about their new home.

Winner, best documentary short at the Sidewalk Film Festival and the Rhode Island Film Festival, official selection 2015 Tribeca Film Festival.

Directed by Nicholas Coles.
Website: www.thehouseisinnocent.com

Pilgrimage to the Witch’s House (2012) 22 minutes (followed by Q and A with the filmmakers)

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Since the 1960s the Mary Nohl Art Environment has been widely recognized as the “Fox Point Witch’s House.” This film explores the complex relationship Mary shared with the viewer and the importance of environmental context as it relates to her work.

Directed by Joseph R. Skow.

The SuperNaturals (marketing featurette, 2016) (followed by Q and A with the filmmakers)
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Directed by David Gloyd (Echoes of the Past), this is the featurette being used to promote the as yet unreleased reality series “The SuperNaturals”.

“The Supernaturals” mixes the strangeness of the real life superhero subculture with the world of the paranormal. The Watchman and RazorHawk assemble a costume clad team of quirky do-gooders to seek out the truth, delving into the depths of forests, buildings, and other locations in the search for ghosts, cryptids, and UFOs. Together with experts in these fields, they’ll travel from location to location in on ongoing investigation into the paranormal as only superheroes can.

Directed by David Gloyd, created by David Gloyd and Jack Brinatte.

SHORT DOC TBA

SHORT DOC TBA

Thanks to our supporting sponsors, Milwaukee Twisted Dreams Film Festival, who will be helping run the show. Refreshments will be available for purchase from UberDork Cafe.

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June is our VIP ticket drive. VIP tickets raise from $75 to $100 on July 1. All Milwaukee Paranormal Conference tickets available here: milwaukeeparacon.brownpapertickets.com