People Wearing Masks (Ep 436 - Hocus Pocus/Rantasmo)

In honor of the start of October, the spookiest month, this week we’re diving into the Sewers of Paris archives to hear my 2015 interview with Jamie Mauer, who you may also know as Rantasmo, the creator of the Needs More Gay YouTube series. Jamie grew up loving unsettling stories — like a lot of queer people. For those of us who feel pressure to hide their true selves, horror and fantasy — and particularly Halloween — provide a chance to trade one mask for another, be someone new, and scare everyone else for a change.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute.

First, a couple quick reminders, starting with a heads-up that I’ve got a video coming your way soon on YouTube about the making of the movie Psycho and the long strange journey of Norman Bates.

Also, I hope you’ll join me for weekly livestreams over on Twitch every Sunday afternoon at twitch.tv/mattbaume. This weekend we’ll be watching and dissecting some classic episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents. And if you haven’t yet, take a look at my new book about the history of queer characters on sitcoms, Hi Honey, I’m Homo! — available now wherever books are sold. Go to gaysitcoms.com for details.

Big thanks to everyone who makes all my work possible on Patreon — visit patreon.com/mattbaume to support Sewers of Paris and get patron-exclusive benefits.