Everly Heights Tales

The Fakist might be dead, but the team behind the story lives on! Join us for two original stories from our audio drama Everly Heights Tales, an anthology set in a nostalgic Ohio town called Everly Heights. 

SEASON FINALE. When former kid detective Danny Chance and ex-FBI agent Melody Trainor stumble upon the Quaker Intercourse Mafia in an abandoned Chi-Chi's parking lot, a scheme to shake Danny out of his driveway goes violently, irreversibly sideways, and the trail leads straight back to 1924 Sobol Street.

NEXT TIME: Who knows?

SPONSOR

CAST LIST

Nathan Beatty - Danny Chance / Henry Duplas
Ryanne Bennett -  Melody Trainor
Sean Weiland – Dick Armstrong
Pete Lutz - Jebidiah Albarn
Casey J. N...

Former kid detective Danny Chance is still taking clients from his dad's driveway. When former partner Melody Trainor blows back into Everly Heights freshly fired from the FBI, their reunion dredges up bad sandwiches, old grudges, and Dick Armstrong, Danny's arch-enemy.

NEXT TIME: Melody Trainor makes a deal with the devil to save her former partner-in-fighting-crime. It goes about as well as you'd expect.

SPONSOR

CAST LIST

Nathan Beatty - Danny Chance / Henry Duplas
Ryanne Bennett -  Melody Trainor
Sean We...

Thirteen-year-old Danny Duplas is tired of being just a normal kid. Armed with a metric "ship ton" of dust-covered Hardy Boys books and a signboard in his dad's driveway, he rebrands himself as "Danny Chance, the boy detective with the freaky good luck." From a Swiss Army knife buried in a box of Super Mario cereal to a whirlwind encounter with national media icon "Ask Marilyn" vos Savant, Danny outsmarts local delinquents in a bid to earn his cynical cop father's respect. Danny Chance is on the case.

NEXT TIME: Years later, Danny Chance...

For years, the regulars at Leroy's Pub have treated Zelda Jordan like a drive-thru therapist, spilling their darkest sins over pork rinds and cheap Rolling Rock. Tonight, she's got other plans. Armed with a notebook full of weaponized poetry and a double shot of liquid courage, Everly Heights' favorite punk-rock bartender takes the whole town apart at the Leroy's Pub Open Mic night. A story of a woman who's finally done being the inciting incident in everybody else's story.

NEXT TIME: Meet Danny Chance, kid detective with the freaky good luck in our 3-part finale.

Twenty-four years old and sleeping on his sister Aurora's couch, Jeremy Hahn is exactly the kind of guy who needs a miracle. What he gets is Zarvan, a clock shop owner who may or may not be a cosmic entity, and an offer that sounds insane: go back to 2016, find the moment the whole thing went sideways, and put it right. But one choice leads to others, and as Jeremy takes a speed run at a new future, he begins to wonder if the past is best left in the past, after all.

After the...

A decade before she became an Everly Heights hero, Tina Infantino was a "multiverse hopper" in several of my unreleased 2016 novellas. In this archival live stream, my wife Anne Marie DeSimone joins our Universe Box podcast pals for Tina's beta jaunt into a surreal Stepford-esque world where a government experiment has turned every citizen into a telepath. Tina must fix a crumbling marriage before she’s stuck in this reality forever.

Stick around for the aftershow to hear the cast discuss this "Quantum Leap in the multiverse" project. Again, all from ten years ago!

CAST

The woman hunting Tina Infantino across the multiverse has a singular grudge, and she's not backing down. Between a infinite shopping mall, a frozen wasteland with a chilling message, and a full-scale breach inside W.E.I.R.D.E. headquarters itself, Tina's running out of room to figure out what she's supposed to be. A girl who's spent her whole life feeling small finds out she might be anything but. The thrilling origin of Infinite Tina concludes!

After the story, creator Bill Meeks brings in voice actress Mandy McCullough where she finally answers "what...

With Ken gone and the guilt eating her alive, Tina takes Jim Colvin up on an offer that sounds a lot like a job: join W.E.I.R.D.E., save the multiverse, and maybe find her friend along the way. A whirlwind tour of the strangest headquarters in Everly Heights introduces her to a crew of weirdos she didn't know she needed. Then a punk rock troll with a blowtorch takes her along for a field assignment on the wrong side of the multiverse, where someone familiar is waiting for her.

In the...

In the fallout of a digital betrayal that’s made her a middle school pariah, Tina meets Ken Sako at the Dixon Park swingset for a big talk, and maybe a fresh start. But something they find in the sand has been waiting for a lonely kid just like Ken, and the friendship that was holding him in Everly Heights is on life support. After a world-weary waitress at Gaston's points them toward a mysterious man named Jim Colvin, the two friends discover that the Ometahedron can offer Ken something Everly Heights can't: a clean slate. Ken fi...

It’s the late 90s, and the World Wide Web is turning Everly Heights into a digital minefield. Tina Infantino is heading for Space Camp, while her best friend Ken Sako is stuck in the Rust Belt channeling his grudge into the hit Game Creation System ZZT from Epic MegaGames. From the cash register at Convenience Market to the pixelated infamy of Princess Puke and the sickening spin of a Space Camp staple, this digital tragedy explores the roles we play to fit in, the buffers that can overflow if you don't clear the cache, and the tr...

In the shivering shadow of the 1994 "Storm of the Century," thirteen-year-old Marcus finds himself trapped in a drafty Ohio house that feels worlds away from his old life in Texas. From the rhythmic, soulless clicking of a Macintosh mouse... to the stubborn smudge of a colored pencil on a composition notebook... and the static-filled weather bulletins from substitute WART-TV meteorologist Mr. Matheson, a generational battle of artistic integrity unfolds. Marcus, a purist clinging to the messy "human touch" of his superhero character Detective Fang, faces off against his father, David, a graphic artist who has traded ink...

In the wake of a sudden loss, Ricky Special is trying to balance the books on his grief. After delivering a shocking eulogy at his late mother Jennifer's funeral the young conservative retreats to the only place where things still make sense: the analytical sanctuary of Mr. Matheson’s math classroom. From the the relentless ticking of a classroom clock to the ghostly memories of painted triangles, Ricky is forced to find his own solution to the unquantifiable relationship between life, loss, and his mother's legacy.

In the aftershow, Bill Meeks takes us behind the sc...

WATCH THE FULL VIDEO HERE, featuring footage from the original college production. 

In the flickering lights of WART-TV 3’s Studio B, Lester Applebottom is fighting for a second act. Once a theater actor whose career ended in purple-and-gold tights and a five-year sentence, Lester has traded his orange jumpsuit for a bowling shirt and a "wack-a-doo" persona to host "The Storybook Playtime Show." When Zeke, the station's disgruntled one-man graphics department storms the set with a firearm, Lester must find a way to talk Zeke off the ledge before the 'Glen of Happiness' turns into a c...

In the podcast studio deep inside the Franklin W. Dixon Memorial Library, Jeremy Hahn is recording the latest episode of his Dogboy Adventures fan podcast "Greetings from Colta City." He’s invited his theater buddy Clara Danvers on to dissect Dogboy's "subversive" violence, but he didn't plan for the chemistry crackling across the studio in his meticulous show doc. While Jeremy hides behind his fandom, Clara derails the recording with a plot twist he never saw coming. A romantic story about the roles we play to protect ourselves and the courage it takes to make a move.

A reunion in a burned-out theater basement forces two former bandmates to confront the lives they picked and the song they never finished. When Marla Harmon returns to Everly Heights for a benefit show for Cornerstone Theater, she finds more than charred Fresnel lights and party snacks. Among the former Rocky Horror cast members in attendance? Calvin Hobbes, her ex-bandmate/boyfriend, now dressed as a man his younger self would label a "sellout." Between a hidden bottle of furnace vodka, a forgotten cassette, and an out-of-tune Stratacoustic guitar, their last unfinished song plucks the strings of the...

Bill Meeks joins Tom Merritt (Daily Tech News Show) to address the "dark troll wizard" of the project’s history: the years spent fleshing out his six-year old creative writing project Everly Heights using advanced generative AI trained on his own artwork. Bill explains how the artistic community's reaction to AI tools caused him to rethink his approach and abandon them (for the most part) by leaning on his history in audio drama to tell new tales in Everly Heights. He also discusses his work creating custom models to generate character turnarounds, props, and animation assets. PLUS: Explore the re...

W.E.I.R.D.E. agent Jim Colvin spends his days policing the multiverse, yet he can't find out what his new wife, Ramona, is hiding. His deepening paranoia finds a reluctant partner in Nosloo the Great, a refugee dark troll wizard from the war-torn Land of Fee-Nee who is desperate to return home and save his kingdom. But when Jim hatches a risky scheme to use the wizard to force a moment of radical honesty, the walls begin to close in—both from the secrets in his marriage and the coworkers determined to uncover exactly wh...

High school teacher Bill Matheson lives for the logic of math, but his personal equation has become a mess of negative numbers. As the town’s resident workaholic, Mr. Matheson juggles teaching high school algebra, the daily grind at The Koffee Shop, and programming lights at Cornerstone Theater. Despite double-checking his work, he’s successfully calculated himself right out of his own marriage! Faced with an empty house and a fresh opportunity from the local tax man, Mr. Matheson must decide if he’s ready to stop “showing his work” and finally solve life’s most delicate equation by tweaking som...

Peter Postal is five years older, a little wiser, and officially free from the state slammer. While working at the Everly Heights Community Center under the watch of Mr. Matheson, a chance encounter with a troubled teen forces him to confront the ghost of his illicit punk rock past.It's time for Postal to prove that even a broken record doesn't have to skip on the same track forever. Join us for the gritty, heartfelt conclusion to Season 1.

In the Aftershow, Bill Meeks celebrates the end of the season with a look ahead at the...

On this Very Special holiday episode, when eleven-year-old "90s kid" Abby Special is sent to bed early on Christmas Eve, she launches OPERATION: PULP DEFLECTION to sneak out for a late-night screening of Pulp Fiction. But Abby's clandestine Christmas takes a turn for the infringing when Abby gets trapped in an "As Seen on Fantastic Inventions" store with two bumbling crooks. Realizing she's in a "pretty obvious Home Alone homage," Abby defends the perimeter using a Salad Shooter, Ultra Tape, and other junk she's seen on TV to fight back so she can make it home for...

Experience the infamous broadcast that allegedly got Dogboy Adventures cancelled, presented exactly as it aired following WART-TV's Festive Greetings Holiday Parade. In the shadow of the rusted Curleyworld theme park, former carney Jon "Hot John" Pyre and his son Scotty scrape by in a freezing Winnebago, surviving on cold beans and hard truths. Desperate to give his son a better future, John concocts a yuletide lie to drive Scotty away, all while secretly selling his muscle to the Guild of Thieves. A gritty, tear-stained holiday noir about sacrifice, "bad" dads, and the lies we tell to protect...

Join us at Greco's, where the pasta is hot, the staff is snooty, and conversation is the best thing on the menu. Steve Loop goes to dinner with his high school tormentor Jerome Bentley to answer a question: can an old dog really learn new tricks? Over pizza and other Appalachian delicacies, these two former adversaries navigate the minefield of past grievances, high school swirlies, and the surprising power of Jolt Cola to turn back the clock and put right what once went wrong.

In the aftershow, Bill Meeks reveals how a casting call for...

Leaving his sanctuary behind, the exiled King Sparrow returns to the wild to reclaim his stolen kingdom. But the forest has grown darker, and the traitorous Captain Sparrow has allied with the wolves to enslave the host within the Great Mountain. No longer just a bird but a vessel for an ancient power, King Sparrow must wage a final war to free his people and exact his revenge. Witness the mythic conclusion to the the founding fable of Everly Heights, as immortalized in local Yuletide readings, school plays, and murals as the secret origin of an artistic...

When King Sparrow is betrayed by his most trusted captain, a monarch of the skies is cast to the ground, doomed to wander the forest broken, alone, and certain his reign is over. Struggling through a merciless winter, the injured bird fights to find his way back to his Queen, his host, and the life Captain Sparrow ripped away from him. A fairy tale fable of loyalty, loss, and renewal, “The Trials of King Sparrow: Left to the Wolves” is the first of a two-part tale about a fallen monarch whose journey sets in motion the magic that...

Settle in, cool cats and kittens, for Love @ Night on WART-FM broadcasting LIVE from Everly Heights. Your host, Bernie Love, is live and on the line to help you find your ideal match, keep that spark alive, and make amends when you inevitably mess it up. The evening kicks off with a special remote broadcast featuring three colorful Milwaukee locals (all voiced by special guest Dave Theune from Comedy Bang Bang, The Paper, and St. Denis Medical) before returning to the WART-FM studio, where Bernie fields calls from romantics and weirdos alike — including a man whose “payday dinn...

In "The Quackening," Angela Craig is back in Everly Heights, and she's not happy about it. Sleeping in her old room and haunted by a fresh divorce from her gaslighting ex, Travis, her life is a mess. That is, until she has a bizarre run-in with Beatrix Knapp and her old high school bullies, "The Sparkles". They offer her a strange inheritance from a dead relative. Inside a magical box she'll discover the ancestral power to make her wishes a reality. But does Angela want recovery, or revenge?

After the story, Bill Meeks reveals...

When failing salesman Don House returns to his hometown, he’s confronted by the ghosts of his past. This mini-musical follows a man as he reconnects with a troubled musician, a shady restaurant owner, and his first love, all while exploring if it's possible to ever truly go home again.

And stick around for the aftershow where Bill Meeks dives deep into the real-life inspirations for the musical, including his former band that had a top #20 YouTube video for about a week once. True story.

SPONSOR

CAST...

Tonight, my ghoulish guests, we crack open a chilling case of sorority sisterhood gone horribly flat! When Madison invites her frenemy Faith down to the basement for a taste of an exclusive new White Claw flavor, things get bubbly in all the wrong ways. One sip too many, and the claws really come out... A wickedly funny tale of basic witches, haunted hard seltzers, and influencer-era evil. Drink up, darlings — but beware: in Everly Heights, the hangover is the least of your worries.

SPONSOR

CAST LIST...

In this bonus episode of Everly Heights Tales, I talk to an actor I have an awful lot of nostalgia for: Paul Zaloom, best known as Beakman from the hit ’90s educational series Beakman’s World.

This hour-long interview traces Zaloom’s journey from his own “Everly Heights,” Garden City in New York state, to his work in avant-garde theater and puppetry. He reflects on the comedic and cultural inspirations behind Beakman (including Soupy Sales) and shares fascinating stories about the show’s massive and lasting impact, especially in Mexico and Brazil. If you grew up with Beak...

In the spirit of a classic 90s educational science show like Beakman's World or Mr. Wizard, "Hey, Marie Molecule!" follows a young girl named Eliza, who visits the titular scientist with an anxiety-fueled question: "Will my brother become a super-villain from an X-ray?". With the help of the good-natured Marie Molecule, Eliza learns all about science and radiation. PLUS: Marie Molecule explains a new technological innovation!

After the story, creator Bill Meeks discusses the episode's origin as a submission for America's Next Top Podcaster. He also shares how the Marie Molecule Science Study Center is...

Clara, a devoted usher at the historic Cornerstone Theater, uncovers a chilling secret hidden within its velvet seats: a mysterious power that lets audience members live their best life. When curiosity gets the best of her, Clara is drawn into a fairy tale fantasy that feels more real than her own life. But as the mysterious Zarvan winds her up, she begins to wonder what it will cost to stay in the spotlight forever.

After the story, creator Bill Meeks sits down with old friends, college collaborators, and forever theater kids Anne Marie DeSimone and...

In this bonus episode, the cast of "Welcome, Freshmen" celebrates the final recording session with a virtual cast party! Join writer Bill Meeks and the voice actors behind the Special family—Laurin Skarr (Zara), Bill Meeks (Mr. Matheson, Ricky), Sean Siegler (Michael), Kristyna Zahrek (Abby), Howard F. Hulin (Mayor Brown/Ron Linus), Samuel Lewis (Steve the Geek), Sean Weiland (Jerome), and Bobby Frankenberger (the original Ricky)—as they go behind the scenes of the show. They'll talk about the process of making an animated series over the internet, what it was like to improvise around the scri...

Meet the Special family, a theater-loving, stoner couple and their three very different kids. It’s 1994, and Michael and Jennifer Special are just trying to help fund in the arts in their community, but their son Ricky is on the run from a school bully, and their daughter Zara is betting everything on a plan to start the school year as a popular girl. With a mix of '90s nostalgia, sitcom homages, and a healthy dose of humor, "Welcome, Freshmen" will teach you the joys of scented oxygen, the perils of Crystal Pepsi, and why you sh...

Hear more about how Wheeling, West Virginia inspired the world of Everly Heights in this bonus episode. Butch Maxwell, the host of Butch Maxwell's Complete Waste of Airtime, interviews me live on WKKX 1600 AM to chat about the the real-life locations and people that inspired some of the episodes this season. We also talk a lot about theater, comedy, and finding the right balance between comedy and drama.

See you soon with a brand new story!

LINKS
WKKX 1600 AM
Mystery Theater Unlimited

In the debut episode of Everly Heights Tales, third-ranked local YouTuber (and yo-yo enthusiast) Louie Loop takes listeners on a walking tour of Everly Heights. From square-cut pizza served by aspiring actors and the mistakenly named Franklin W. Dixon Memorial Library, to haunted tunnels, statues inspired by local history, and the legendary Cornerstone Theater, Louie’s guide is equal parts history, myth, and hometown gossip. Along the way, he introduces us to the town’s mix of charm and curse, hinting at the nostalgic stories on the way this season on Everly Heights Tales.

After the...

"Gravity" performed by Classic Tragic Hero, arranged by  Makariah G., Lyrics by Bill Meeks 

LINKS

Everly Heights
Join the EVERLY HEIGHTS ARTS BOARD and support the show
Buy Mr. Matheson's Arithme-TIPS Comic Collection
Subscribe on YouTube

Presenting Everly Heights Tales, a new audio drama anthology from Bill Meeks.

Welcome to Everly Heights, Ohio: the "Home of the Arts, land of the lost," and according to one viral video, the "seventh-most cursed town in Ohio." You bought the bus ticket, threw the party, and moved three states over. But this town has its own gravitational field, and your mistakes never truly left. In this scripted anthology, you’ll meet the locals, travelers, and legends—all caught in the strange undertow of a place that refuses to let go. Will nostalgia save you, or is it h...