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In part 1 of a 3 part mini-series, Jack “The Agnostic” Garcia a  folklorist and mythologist extraordinaire examines the lives & literary legacy of the Brothers Grimm. Wilhelm and Jacob Grimm dedicated their lives to writing down the stories related to them by the peasants voices of their era and over time added , deleted and reshaped these tales inserting Judeo-Christian perspectives into many of the older Pagan stories. Often omitting the sex, sensuality and bawdy humor, while intensifying the scenes of lurid violence. The original printing was the stuff of nightmares – stories that opened a door into the social and psychological landscape of Germanic culture and the Medieval period. In part 1 , Jack plays storyteller reciting the original version of Rapunzel, in which the wicked witch is a type of sexual predator who locks up the young girl with the long beautiful hair inside a tower so she can keep her all for herself. And runs amok when Rapunzel gets pregnant from her clandestine nightly romps with the Prince. Jack also recites the  little known tale – Allerleirauh- a story in which a king desires to marry his own daughter and make her the new queen of his kingdom.

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In the Season 8 premiere episode – Jack “The Agnostic” Garcia , a Eucharistic Minister of The Holy Sacrament in the Roman Catholic Church-examines the life, legend and legacy of the blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta. A tiny pint sized ordinary person with a remarkable healing spirit, Mother Teresa would become a beacon of light in a world that is often filled with darkness and despair.  Endlessly working to ease the suffering and pain of the unwanted and unloved in our society, via many acts of kindness and mercy.  And yet this saintly pint sized Nun was constantly plagued with inner feelings of loneliness, doubt and desolation -battling her inner torment with work and prayer.  Ultimately her healing spirit would be stronger than any inner darkness she encountered and Mother Teresa never lost sight of that healing force within herself -answering the call of God in extraordinary ways.

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In the season 7 finale , Jack “The Agnostic” Garcia , a Eucharistic Minister of The Holy Sacrament in the Roman Catholic church, examines the amazing life , legend and legacy of the Iberian Saint who is often thought by many to be of Italian origin.  Born and baptized Fernando Martins, in the late 12th century to a wealthy , powerful and influential noble Portuguese family, the often sickly and pint-sized future saint becomes strongly attracted  to the simple evangelical lifestyle.  Joining the Franciscan order , Anthony soon rises very high indeed, becoming the lector/reader of the divine scriptures to the Franciscans , as well as envoy to Pope Gregory IX.  At the height of medieval political turmoil, religious wars, heretical movements and The Inquisition – St. Anthony would often stand alone against the injustices and corruption of the ruling elite, the super strong and the mega-wealthy – proving himself to be the true spiritual successor to the blessed Saint Francis of Assisi.

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Jack “The Agnostic” Garcia continues his in depth analysis of the life, legend and literary legacy of the great Edgar Rice Burroughs. In part 2, Jack examines the author’s series of adventure novels that take place on the planet Venus, in which spaceman Carson Napier blasts into the heavens in a rocket torpedo of his own design and pierces the mist laden cloud covering of Venus encountering a semi-civilized world of vast oceans, dotted with great islands that are inhabited by both bestial races and more intellectually inclined ethereal , angelic beings. Jack also explores some of ERB’s lesser known and obscure works that have been forgotten or ignored by both fans and literary scholars including The Moon Maid, in which the first manned spaceship to reach the lunar surface discovers a hidden world of a very domineering and flying women who plan on conquering the Earth. As well as the little known and hard to find novel Beyond 30 / AKA -The Lost Continent , a sardonic view of the 22nd Century in which America is an isolated fortress of civilization while Europe and Asia are now vast jungles comparable to darkest Africa and are ruled by a beautiful but barbaric Queen of the forest.Last but not least , Jack goes in depth into the John Carter on Mars / Barsoom series of novels , in which ERB’s virtually invents the heroic fantasy sub genre with his romances of Martian exotica. Books whose influence would be as far reaching on Sci Fi /Fantasy literature as anything created by Jules Verne or H.G. Wells.
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Jack “The Agnostic” Garcia a noted authority and expert on pulp fiction magazines, golden and silver age comic books and early science-fiction/ fantasy literature, examines the life, legend and literary legacy of the great Edgar Rice Burroughs, the biggest selling author of the 20th century. Blessed with a vivid imagination and a gifted storyteller, Burroughs created a timeless and complex multiverse of adventure that still enthralls millions of readers to this very day.
In part 1 of a 2 part program, Jack examines in depth Tarzan, the lord of the jungle- one of the greatest of all fictional characters that would become known and loved all over the world. Jack also explores Burroughs feverish tales of swashbuckling daring do, The John Carter on Mars series of books , erotic and exotic interplanetary romantic adventures that are often scientifically outrageous but always memorable and entertaining. Next up it’s the Hollow Earth / Lost World series of novels, The Pellucidar Books, in which a 20th century adventurer carves out an empire for himself in a hidden land where time has stood still and dinosaurs and cave people continue to roam the Earth.

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In the second installment of GRR’s epic mini series Jack “The Agnostic” Garcia, an expert folklorist and mythologist continues his examination of the sacred  stories of the mother continent. First off its the tale of the greatest warrior king of the Yoruba peoples (Nigeria) , Shango who leaves mortality behind and eventually becomes a God.  Then its the story of the first Mambo King , Mwetsi from Zimbabwe, who helps create the human race but is then ritually slain in order to ensure the continued prosperity of the land. Next its stories about animals, including the Mantis the most sacred animal of the Kalahari bushmen and the trickster Hare a resourceful character that would travel with the West African slaves into the  American south and be come transformed into Brer Rabbit. Then its four sacred stories about Anansi , from the Ashanti peoples of Ghana, a mortal trickster who is so clever that he even tricks the High God himself ,but one day goes too far and is given a well deserved divine comeuppance.  And last but not least -Jack examines the most celebrated trickster figure in African mythology , the West African deity known as Eshu – a restless spirit with an all consuming hunger to create chaos and disorder.

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In a special two part program folklorist and mythologist extraordinaire, Jack “The Agnostic” Garcia (who is often referred to as the heavy metal Joseph Campbell) examines the rich and diverse myths  and legends of the birthplace of humanity and the Mother to us all – The continent of Africa. In Part 1 , Jack focuses on the creation myths of many different peoples – from the sacred stories of the Yoruba of Nigeria in which the supreme God Olorun and his vassal God Orishnala – set the cosmos into motion by tossing a snail shell (the symbol of female genitalia,conception,pregnancy, birth and the fertile waters of the sea) that is filled with a magical dirt from the heavens bringing all plant and animal life into being. To the tale of  the Dogon peoples of Mali -in which a cosmic egg known as Amma vibrates seven times then bursts open to reveal the creator spirits called Nommos who then get busy building the universe plus many other creation myths from the Bambara, Kuba -etc.  Next Jack examines the multicultural myth of the origins of human sexuality and the many diverse sacred stories about the arrival of death into the world and in conclusion Jack recites the beautiful story of Marwe from the Wachanga peoples of Kenya, in which a young girl in an act of remorse and desperation drowns herself ending up in the land of the dead , where  she gains wisdom and riches as well as a handsome husband upon her return to the land of the living.

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Jack “The Agnostic” Garcia concludes GRR’s epic Tibetan trilogy by playing storyteller and reciting some of the indigenous Shamanic Bon religions , myths and legends including the creation of the universe and the dawn of humanity. Next up, Jack explores the flowering of Buddhism in Tibet ignited by such Buddhist Saints as Padmasambhava , Marpa and Milarepa and also gets into the tales of the greatest mythical hero of Tibet – King Gesar, a combination of King Arthur, Merlin the Magician and Hercules rolled into one, who is sent down to Earth by the Gods in order to fight evil and injustice.  Jack then examines the enduring western myth about Tibet, the hidden Holy City of Shangri-La  , a type of repository for wisdom and knowledge as the world marches towards destruction.  And last but not least – Jack explores The Book of The Dead , and acts as a tour guide through the various stages of the death experience providing a unique vision of what may be awaiting us all when we shuffle off this mortal coil.

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