The Decatur, Illinois, native grew up in a home that encouraged family nights. Many of those excursions included trips to the local movie theater where Matzke’s father and grandfather had been fans of classic-era monster films. Passing the torch, his father took him to see King Kong (1933), Godzilla (1954), etc., and the stop-motion works of model animation master Ray Harryhausen. But his monster education didn’t stop there.
“Dad was a teacher and Lutheran school principal who later became a pastor,” says Matzke. “He taught language arts and we always had books...he was always putting books in my hand.”
Books of all sorts, as it turns out, including many about (movie) monsters. One day Mark ran across a book about cryptids, legendary unknown animals with nicknames like Nessie, Champ, Sasquatch, and Bigfoot.
The names and stories stuck with him. As an adult he would later transform those early interests into discussions and interviews, spreading the word via online podcasting. But even as a child Matzke enjoyed making his own audio recordings. Some of his fondest memories are those of sitting in the back seat of the car, portable tape recorder in hand, narrating family vacations.
Flash forward to recent years. Matzke was first introduced to podcasting by his friend Seth Breedlove, founder of the Small Town Monsters production group. Matzke learned the ropes as the two recorded discussions on comic books, monsters, folklore, and Bigfoot -- the latter as an extension of Breedlove’s work on the Small Town Monsters documentary, Minerva Monster. Breedlove convinced Matzke that podcasting was do-able as both a hobby and professional art form. Matzke began creating his own podcast material.
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| Monsterland Ohio Blog |
Cryptid Casts, Monsters,
& Ministry
& Ministry
Currently, Matzke is the co-host of two monster-themed podcasts: Monsterland Ohio Radio, which he founded in 2014 and hosts along with his 14-year-old son, Andy; and SasWhat: A Podcast About Bigfoot. SasWhat was originally created by Breedlove. Breedlove added Matzke as co-host early into the show’s initial run. Episode 101 saw Breedlove turn hosting over to Matzke who in turn added Andy as co-host. The father-son duo have together posted 30 shows to date.
In addition to the monster casts, Matzke hosts two ministry podcasts: Voices of Faith, which uses an interview format, and Lifewords, a collection of his sermons. Professionally, Matzke’s full-time job is that of Senior Pastor of St. Mark Lutheran Church in Chesterland, Ohio, not far from Cleveland. He is a 1994 graduate of Concordia University (Chicago) and a 1998 graduate of Concordia Theological Seminary (Fort Wayne, IN). He and his wife, Sue, moved to Ohio in 1998 where they served in 3 Ohio pastorates before moving to Chesterland 2 years ago.
Monsters plus the work of ministry; how does Matzke maintain a balance? Equally important, how does his family feel about all of this?
“You can’t be in ministry 24 hours a day,” says Matzke. “It can be hard on family...you need a hobby.” Matzke chose podcasting, a decision which wife Sue sees as an important addition to their family.
“She (Sue) is truly supportive of this...” says her husband.
Son Andy is a part of the “hobby” -- directly involved in the podcast work itself. In addition to co-hosting, he assists in the research required for some episodes and has even pursued his own topics for discussion. A road trip to Indiana with his mother earlier this year allowed him the opportunity to look into an event from the 70’s and then to talk about it during a later podcast.
“Andy's research took place in Columbus, Indiana,” says his father. “It was regarding the Mill Race Monster sightings from 1974. It sounds like a case study in hysteria, but is fascinating nonetheless.”
Show Favorites
The Matzke’s Monsterland Ohio actually started out as a blog, then became a blog that included a podcast. The subject matter varies. One week might have the two talking about a monster movie. The next might include discussions of comic books or of favorite directors met at fan conferences. The format is always father and son banter and always family friendly.
Asked whether they have a favorite MO episode and the answer seems a bit odd. “Our interview with Bill Riley and Joe Ziegler of The Ultimate Abbott and Costello Tribute Show,” Mark affirms. “They were warm, funny (of course), and it is a true time capsule since Joe is now deceased.”
The response makes complete sense when one remembers that Monsterland Ohio is all about monsters. The Abbott and Costello films often involved humorous encounters with these legendary movie creatures.
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| Mark and Andy Matzke with Loren Coleman. |
Mark’s favorite SasWhat cast is Episode 81, an interview he and Seth Breedlove conducted with noted cryptid researcher and author Loren Coleman. Coleman is the founder of the International Cryptozoology Museum and member of the International Cryptozoology Society.
The SasWhat podcast is the Matzke’s most well-known and most specific work. Episodes revolve around the topic of Bigfoot and include interviews with both researchers and skeptics.
Within the podcast is a sub-series started by the Matzke’s when they took over as show co-hosts. Titled SasWhat Nation, each episode is a dedicated summary of the Bigfoot encounters within a specific state. The series kicked off February 21, 2017 with Episode 108: SasWhat Nation - Alabama. The Nation’s next topic, Arkansas, is in production now.
But it looks like Bigfoot is not a fan of the sun and surf. Asked if there are any states that won’t be featured and Matzke responds “Hawaii. I'm not sure of any reports from there, although there are folkloric tales of dwarf-type figures.”
Small Town Monsters
SasWhat began as an extension of the Small Town Monsters film projects -- efforts that Matzke and son continue to support today in the podcast and with their own personal participation.
“I like doing the research and support for Small Town Monsters films,” Matzke says. “Involvement (with STM) has taken me places that I never thought I’d go. I believe in the vision of the stories that Seth wants to tell.”
Mark and Andy traveled to Fouke, Arkansas, to be a part of the filming of STM’s Boggy Creek Monster. Monsters most recent release, Invasion on Chestnut Ridge (October 20, 2017), is narrated by Matzke. Invasion tells the story of the Kecksburg UFO crash of December 1965. It also recounts other unusual occurrences associated with the Chestnut Ridge area of Pennsylvania. Combining UFO and Bigfoot lore, Chestnut Ridge is a favorite of Matzke’s.
What Lies Beyond
What does the future have in store for the father-son duo of Mark and Andy? According to Dad, the two will continue to produce podcast episodes for as long as the shared interest continues. Certainly both will continue to be supporters of the team and stories at Small Town Monsters.
Matzke himself says it best with this excerpt from his July 27, 2017 post, The State of Monsterland Ohio Radio, at the Monsterland Ohio blog.
“I have my friend Seth to thank for getting us/me into podcasting in the first place...I've always loved making audio recordings...I suppose that podcasting is simply an extension of all that.”
The show has inadvertently become a time capsule of Andy's transition from childhood to young adulthood. Depending on the day, I find it amusing, or heartbreaking, to listen to those early episodes, as time passes so quickly. I'm grateful that he still seems to enjoy giant monsters and unexplained mysteries. Having my dad come on the show as the unofficial third co-host adds another layer to the proceedings. It's a record of something very special to me.”
The show has inadvertently become a time capsule of Andy's transition from childhood to young adulthood. Depending on the day, I find it amusing, or heartbreaking, to listen to those early episodes, as time passes so quickly. I'm grateful that he still seems to enjoy giant monsters and unexplained mysteries. Having my dad come on the show as the unofficial third co-host adds another layer to the proceedings. It's a record of something very special to me.”
“Our involvement with SasWhat...and Small Town Monsters productions has created a progression of events that we sometimes find hard to believe. It has taken us from watching monster movies to helping make monster movies...But we will always be fans first, and so Monsterland Ohio Radio will continue to catalogue our favorite things.
“If you've listened to the show, we thank you. If you've written to us, we really thank you. Hopefully we've given you a few smiles along the way, or pointed you in the direction of a new show to watch.”
“Whatever your ‘toybox of life’ happens to be, I hope you enjoy it as much as we enjoy making this for you.”
You just can’t say it any better than that.
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