PRESS RELEASE
INTRODUCING ‘DEAD RECKONING,’ THE SAN FRANCISCO-BASED PODCAST WHERE DEATH ISN’T THE END OF THE STORY
Here Lies a Story, a San Francisco-based storytelling project, is thrilled to announce a new podcast: DEAD RECKONING.
Dead Reckoning takes listeners on a journey through Bay Area history to uncover the grimmer side of city life — and death.
Co-hosts Courtney Minick and Beth Winegarner explore the fascinating history of early cemeteries and institutions, and how poverty, race, and social status determined what happened to the dead. Courtney and Beth believe that the untold, macabre roots of San Francisco are not only fascinating, but important to how we think about these topics today.
Is it gruesome? A little. Funny? Absolutely. Interesting? Hell yes!
This season, Dead Reckoning is answering the hard-hitting questions:
Is there still a cemetery buried near City Hall?
Why were 4,500 bones buried in a pit at Fort Mason?
Did California doctors really rob graves to learn about medicine?
What happens to poor and unhoused people when they die in The United States?
How does a historic funeral home adapt to the modern market?
Is there anything the people of 19th century San Francisco DIDN’T blame on Chinese immigrants?
WE HAD THE BUBONIC PLAGUE HERE?!
Courtney Minick, creator and writer at Here Lies a Story, says: “I have always loved ghost stories and weird history, and I think it’s a great way to learn about our past AND our present. I started this creative project to help us understand how we’re actually haunted by our past.”
Beth Winegarner, journalist, author, and co-host of Dead Reckoning, says: “Digging into a region’s hidden past is one of my favorite ways to get to know a place. That’s why I wrote ‘San Francisco’s Forgotten Cemeteries: A Buried History,’ and it’s why I wanted to keep the conversation going with Dead Reckoning. Courtney and I met because of our shared love of morbid local history, and we haven’t stopped talking about it since. I’m excited for others to hear the podcast, and to let everyone in on the conversation.”
The podcast also includes discussions with local experts and authors to hear their side of the story. The interview with Amy Shea, author of the newly released “Too Poor To Die: The Hidden Realities of Dying in the Margins,” shines a light on the fact that while death may be the great equalizer, not all deaths are created equal.
Dead Reckoning is produced by the team at Courtney’s flagship project, Here Lies a Story with Carolyn Kissick, host and producer of Sourceress, producing, and Dante Silliman leading creative.
About Courtney:
Courtney is a storyteller with a career spanning technology, law, politics, and creative media. She is the creator of Here Lies a Story, a multi-platform storytelling project that explores history, folklore, and the way the buried past continues to shape our present.
About Beth:
Beth Winegarner is a journalist, author, essayist and pop culture critic who’s contributed to the New York Times, the New Yorker, The Guardian, The Washington Post, Wired, Mother Jones, and many others. She is a former daily news reporter for the San Francisco Examiner and a former contributor to The San Francisco Chronicle. She is the author of several books, most recently San Francisco’s Forgotten Cemeteries: A Buried History.
About Carolyn:
Carolyn Kissick is a producer and storyteller drawn to the hidden, the haunted, and the frightening components of our day to day lives. From Sourceress Podcast to her current work with Here Lies a Story and Dead Reckoning, she’s driven by a desire to make hard-to-reach or complex histories accessible, transforming forgotten fragments into stories anyone can step into.
About Dante:
Dante Silliman is an illustrator, designer, and a lifetime enjoyer of all things spooky and hidden. He loves visually resurrecting forgotten stories for a modern audience at Here Lies a Story and Dead Reckoning through web and social media design, telling ghost stories at parties, and knowing where all the bodies are (still) buried.