More Like Ancient FAILiens

Are we humans really smart enough to come up with the GENIUS STUFF? The Ancient Astronaut Theorists have their doubts and, despite themselves, stumble upon some interesting ideas. Toby and Brandon are joined by Stuff They Don’t Want You To Know host Matt Frederick in a wide-ranging discussion that’s sort of about The Genius Factor (Season 9, Episode 4). We have Hammurabi’s thoughts on divorce, a repository of all the wisdom of humans or perhaps the Universe, and mushrooms that make you see elves!
You can find Matt on Stuff They Don’t Want You To Know: https://podcasts.apple.com/es/podcast/stuff-they-dont-want-you-to-know/id732915228
You can also find the show on Netflix by searching for “Stuff They Don’t Want You To Know”
You can find More Like Ancient FAILiens early and ad-free along with many other great podcasts at Grab Bag Collab! Visit grabbagcollab.com to join.
Also!!!! We have a Failiens bonus episode out today at www.grabbagcollab.com, just for subscribers! In this unhinged bonus hang, Brandon, Toby, and special guest Matt Frederick spiral from Ancient Aliens nonsense into “can we trust reality anymore?” while dunking on deepfakes, internet slop, and the very concept of truth.

Brandon and Toby are joined by John Hodgman for part two of their look at Chariots of the Gods, a look at the movie made from the Erich von Daniken book that started the Ancient Aliens craziness. Huge desert drawings in Peru! Questionable use of drinking water during a desert expedition! And synths!
Subscribe to hear this and other great podcasts early and ad free at ⁠grabbagcollab.com⁠.
For more about John Hodgman, visit: ⁠https://www.johnhodgman.com/

What if the entities that ancient peoples called gods were in fact aliens? Mind blown, right? It all started with Chariots of the Gods, the book by Erich von Daniken and then the film based on that book. Comedian John Hodgman joins Brandon and Toby to discuss the movie version and so much more. Witness the birth of the gods were aliens weirdness as the Ancient Astronaut Theorists did, with B-roll and weird 70s music.
Subscribe to hear this and other great podcasts early and ad free at ⁠grabbagcollab.com⁠.
For more about John Hodgman, visit: ⁠https://www.johnhodgman.com/⁠

On Saturday, January 10, the Godfather of Ancient Astronaut Theorists, Erich Von Daniken, died at the age of 90. In this episode of More Like Ancient Failiens, Toby and Brandon look at EVD’s life, from his time as a hotelier and embezzler to the successes of Chariots of the Gods and its sequels, to the final form of Ancient Astronaut Theory, Ancient Aliens. We look at the ups and downs, the dubious claims, and the short-lived theme park that was not as exciting as the Alps.
We also have some exciting news about where we’re taking our show in 2026. We’re calling it The Pivot, and it basically means we’ll be reviewing movies, TV shows, and crappy ‘89s docs about UFOs to show just how deep (or high) this whole thing really goes.
Subscribe to hear this and other great podcasts early and ad free at grabbagcollab.com.
“Erich Von Daniken’s Genesis” in the New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/1974/03/31/archives/erich-von-danikens-genesis.html

“Scholars Will Call it Nonsense” in Expedition Magazine: https://www.penn.museum/sites/expedition/scholars-will-call-it-nonsense/

Erich Von Daniken Explained: https://everything.explained.today/Erich_von_D%C3%A4niken/

Short History Channel video on Erich Von Daniken:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dc1QUbSN9uo

Part two of Brandon and Toby’s discussion with journalist Keith Kloor about the documentary film, The Age of Disclosure. In this episode, we discuss Lu Elizondo and The Observables (not a band, alas), the time Keith made Lu sad, and bubbles that warp both space and time. Plus, the culinary delights of roadkill.
You can read Keith’s reporting about issues we talk about here:
https://www.poynter.org/reporting-editing/2021/ufos-once-consigned-to-conspiracy-theories-have-landed-in-mainstream-american-journalism/
https://www.wired.com/story/will-the-new-york-times-ever-stop-reporting-on-ufos/
https://gen.medium.com/americas-enduring-obsession-with-ufos-b582ca8f86cb
https://issues.org/ufos-wont-go-away/
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/ufos-keep-appearing-in-the-news-heres-why-we-cant-quit-them/
https://www.spytalk.co/p/star-drek-ufo-crank-luis-elizondo
https://theintercept.com/2019/06/01/ufo-unidentified-history-channel-luis-elizondo-pentagon/
https://keithkloor.substack.com/p/why-ufos-will-never-ever-go-away

More Like Ancient Fail-iens is published early and ad-free over at www.grabbagcollab.com
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