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****10-31-19****

Today marks the 5th anniversary of this page but it is a somber one. I had hoped to announce the airing of brand new episodes as we originally planned but we are now saving those until the end of the series. The pain of Michael’s passing is still very much felt, but the pride in what we created will live on. The last five years have been UNREAL and something I can’t begin to explain. I started this page to share the tapes of MINDWEBS I had, now I am sharing the tapes Michael Hanson gave to me! I helped fulfill dreams for Michael and got him back on radio with new episodes we worked together on. It was a distinct honor to be able to do so and I wish we could have done so much more. Thanks to those of you who expressed your happiness at the show being back where ever on the net while Michael was alive. Know that Michael did see your words and they meant a lot to him.





The family and friends of Michael have requested that I post the WMSE tribute show we did for him on September 14th so I have created a new page:









I want to thank everyone for their kind words and positive reactions to the show. It was hard to find the right words and the plans we had for the show quickly got tossed as we just spoke from our hearts. 3 hours is simply not enough time to show just how great Michael Hanson was but, as we mention in the show, this is not end. Michael is going to be with us for a long time and he still has new things to give to you. We are all so lucky to be able to have him in our lives for years to come.

There will not be many updates to make for a while as we let the series play out. It should be noted that on Dec. 21st/22nd we will be airing episode 37 “the Star” and “The Gift.” This has ended up being the most damaged of all the episodes, at least the first story. This has been repaired as much as possible however be aware that there is unavoidable signal damage. Overall, it is a very listenable stereo copy of the show and I am happy to finally be able to air it. As a small gift on Christmas I will also be posting the WHA copy of the show thanks to Norman Gilliland who aired his copy. While his is free of the signal loss, the episode is in mono and does not match the quality of Michael’s stereo copy. We end the year with the episode I first heard off Jim Blackson’s reels, "But As A Soldier, For His Country" by Stephen Goldin. A story I would rank in my top 10 favorites and the one that ignited me to reach out to Michael.





5 years. Wow. If you told me what was going to happen when I created this page back then I never would have believed you.





In memory of Michael we go onward!





****September 9th 2019****





It is with the deepest regret and pain that I make this announcement. Michael Hanson the creator and host of MINDWEBS, award winning radio personality, noted jazz drummer and my dear friend has passed away this morning after a long and valiant battle against cancer. He was 78 years old. Michael is survived by his wife Rosie and sons Rolfe and Stephan.

I don’t know why it took me so long to reach out to Michael. I had wanted to contact him ever since his retirement from radio but I guess due to intimidation, distance and personal issues I could never bring myself to do it. I simply listened to the 30 episodes I had recorded repeatedly and dreamed of a day that I could hear the show again though it always remained in my mind to reach out to him as I became more and more obsessed with the show as the years went on. When I first found the original MP3 encodes online I was overjoyed until I heard the quality. The despair I felt listening to them was that the unbelievably poor quality completely took away the power of the show, but it also renewed my belief that other recordings had to exist and it increased my determination to find them. Years later by complete chance I found out that Jim Blackson had about a dozen reels of the show. Jim sold them to me for the price of postage to ship them. I could not believe it when I noticed that the reels contained 7 shows I had never heard and were not in circulation. While many of the shows were upgrades to the original MP3’s there were still massive quality issues. However, after almost 2 years of going through and mixing everything I had on the show I found that I could not only replace over half of the existing poor encodes, but that I now had 153 of the 169 episodes and shared the fruits of my efforts with friends. Their demand took out my dropbox so that is when I first created this Archive page. One of the things that came up at that time was that Michael’s jazz band still did a Summer-residency at a Madison restaurant and after hearing “new” episodes I became fully obsessed with hearing the entire series and knew I had to make contact with him. As I am most busy during the Summer it was very hard to find the time to make it out there and I kept missing chances but realized that I could not put it off any longer and finally made it my sole birthday gift to see him. My wife and I made our reservation at Otto’s and saw Michael’s band. After the show I approached Michael and told him that my meeting with him was a very long time in the making as I was a huge fan of MINDWEBS. The mention of the show lit up his face and he talked about how much of a labor of love the show was for him and how proud and happy he was with it and how people were still contacting him about it. He also told me the story about how his master reels of the show were stolen from him. He then started to mention that if I went online I could find a site “by some guy named Darkman who…” I interrupted him with a smile that must have been from ear to ear. “Michael… Michael, I’m Darkman.” His eyes got huge and his jaw dropped. “YOU’RE DARKMAN?!” As he said this he shook my hand and began to shower me with profuse thanks for what I had done. The level and sincerity of it was completely unexpected and almost unbelievable. While in so many ways I kick myself for not reaching out to him sooner, I think our meeting would not have had the impact on either of us had it come at any other time. Without a single word from me, Michael then gave me the best gift I have ever received when he said that he was going to give me his back up tapes of the show so I could create the master digital encode of the series and we talked about it’s possible return to radio given my involvement with WMSE. I gave him my contact info (forgetting to get his!) and in a euphoric daze left, being so overwhelmed that my wife had to drive home. Over the next days I eagerly awaited his phone call.

It didn’t come. Days turned to weeks, weeks turned to months and I began to become panicked over what might have happened. I finally made up my mind that over the weekend I was going to drive out to Madison to his house to find out what was going on. The very next morning after I made that decision I found a text on my phone “Is this still your contact number? Michael.” Our phone call that night was just as amazing as our first meeting and we made plans to get together so he could give me his tapes. I was on cloud 9 until early in the conversation when he said “Now I have to tell you something. I have stage 4 cancer.” My legs gave out and I fell back into my chair. Shortly after our first meeting Michael had been diagnosed with prostate cancer that had now spread to other organs. I realized that this was no longer going to be about MINDWEBS. This was going to be more about ensuring Michael’s legacy in radio history. When we met again for dinner I almost didn’t recognize him at first as he was bald and bloated from the chemo. We talked about how we were going to release everything and in that conversation I brought up the question if he would be willing to do another episode. I asked it more as an idea to keep his mind pre-occupied with something other than his situation (which at the time was very grim due to uncertainty) but also as a way for him to make a statement that he still “had it.” He seemed intrigued with idea and agreed to give one a shot. When we met and recorded it my jaw hit the floor at the story he picked and how well it came out but it was too short to be a full episode. He was happy with it as well and agreed that we should try to work on creating a full episode. That lead to another session that not only spawned episode #170, but triggered Michael to consider doing more stories as he saw what I knew all along; HE STILL HAD IT. To revive the show was never really the plan, but just came about due to his situation and to find myself involved in the creation of new episodes with him is something I still can’t wrap my head around. It will forever be something I cherish and am proud of. The conversations we had over drinks after sessions will always be with me along with the trading of music cd’s and the introduction to amazing music. To call all of this a privilege and an honor would be a horrific understatement and while others have and will continue to attempt to profit off Michael’s creation this page will exist to render their efforts completely irrelevant and they have to live with the shame of their actions while Michael was alive. I have nothing to be ashamed of. I cherished the time we had together and wished we could have done more if only time and distance would have allowed it. I am comforted with the knowledge and pride that I helped ensure Michael Hanson’s place in radio history. I was able to make Michael’s dream of digitizing and releasing his beloved creation for the world a reality while correcting a great wrong that was done to him and that I was able to provide him with a mental escape and positive support at such a hard moment in his life. He also expressed his comfort to me knowing that his voice and spirit would continue on over the airwaves and into the ether after his passing and that in this way he would live on after his death and still be with us. Friday became the night that I would work on the final mix downs of the new episodes and each session I had was magical and while it was the culmination of a dream to hear all of the original episodes, to now be listening to NEW creations was unbelievable and is a thrill I will always remember and cherish. Given the circumstances every session was a gift and on the way to his house I would always pass by a cemetery that was a grim reminder to me each time to make the most of the time I had with Michael. I am proud of the work we did together and am crushed that we can’t continue on after we were really starting to find our groove and make some great radio. I consider this the greatest thing I have ever done in my life and to know that this is over and will never happen again is personally devastating. I am going to miss him beyond anything I can possibly put into words and while we knew this was coming, the finality of it all is cold and something that is hard to bare. The deepest condolences to Michael’s family and innumerable friends and musicians who collaborated with him. Memorials may be made in Michael's name to the ASPCA, 424 E. 92nd St, New York, NY 10128-6804 or the Freedom From Religion Foundation PO Box 750 Madison, WI 53701

This project will continue to it’s completion as I promised to Michael and here is where his memory will live on. We do have completed episodes yet to air starting with a special 3 story episode on the 28th/29th and others that will be aired in the future including the final MINDWEBS episode which is actually the very first story we did. I would rank this episode and it’s crushing end as one of my favorites even if I had nothing to do with it. We lost an amazing person today but thankfully we have not lost this show and here it will remain for anyone who wants it. May it stand forever as the testament of the master story teller. Thank you Michael. I am glad you were able to see by the response to the show, just how loved you truly are. Peace my friend.



Darkman









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Welcome to Michael Hanson’s personal archive of his creation MINDWEBS. 169 half-hour shows which presented 188 short stories from 135 different authors. This series originally aired on WHA Radio in Madison, Wisconsin from the mid 70’s through the mid 90’s, however after more than 20 years MINDWEBS has returned to the airwaves! ALL 169 episodes DIRECT from the tapes of Michael Hanson himself! Tune in every Saturday at Midnight to 91.7 WMSE community powered radio in Milwaukee, Wisconsin for these exclusive re-broadcasts of the MINDWEBS series. EVERY SINGLE EPISODE. Can’t tune in? Check out the stations live stream or catch them in the stations podcast/archive page I can also report that Michael and I are exploring the possibility of NEW MINDWEBS episodes and have begun work on them. And as if this all isn’t amazing enough by itself, weeks after each broadcast I will be posting the very same episode files used for the broadcasts HERE IN FULL LOSSLESS QUALITY. This will continue each week until every single episode is aired and posted here where they will remain FREE forever. We are also working with Rick Hurdle and his fantastic PLOT SPOT web site to create a definitive show guide with information about each episode and verified cast information, interviews, pictures and more info about Michael Hanson himself. This will be the home of the definitive series in highest quality from source material for anyone who wants it. ANYONE who says that they have differently sourced, better sounding or more complete collection of this show is LYING . So get ready to hear MINDWEBS like you have never heard before! As both Michael and I have limited time and resources we really need YOU to help us spread the word about this productions amazing return and what we are doing here. Please help us to direct people to WMSE and THIS Archive page so they can experience the show as it was meant to be. Let everyone you know who you think would like MINDWEBS about what we are doing here, at WMSE and The Plot Spot. It would mean everything to Michael! He would love to read your show reviews on The Plot Spot and hear your support here. This collection is being made public HERE by the show creator as this will always remain free. Please respect his creative vision and do not sell or appropriate for profit. That is a fair request and those who are honest will comply.

I am forever in debt to Mr. Hanson and thank him for bestowing me with such an honor. It was both humbling and amazing that he gave so freely to me given the experiences he has had in the past and promise I will do what others never did; treat him and his wonderful creation with the respect they deserve. I started as a fan and am now happy to call him my friend. I also want to send thanks to Rick Hurdle for all the valuable information, work and assistance. He has kept me in line and his respect to the series and authors shows his strong character and I am happy he is a partner in this. WMSE station manager Tom Crawford for all his support of the show, his support of me personally and for being the cornerstone to one of Milwaukee’s greatest institutions. Finally a continued forever thank you to Jim Blackson who was the spark that ignited a fire. You made dreams come true for both Michael and I.

Thank YOU for your continued support of the show and we are so happy to be able to finally re-present the show as it should be heard. Now get ready to fully enjoy one of radio’s greatest productions… MINDWEBS!

Darkman

It is my hope and intention that this project will bring free enjoyment of MINDWEBS to listeners new and old as long as sound exists. My sincere thanks to Darkman for making this possible. And my thanks to the myriad fans who've help make this entire enterprise viable. --Yours truly, Michael Hanson







****Update 8-13-19**** Thank you for visiting the source of the remastered and BRAND NEW episodes of Michael Hanson's MINDWEBS series. We hope you have enjoyed our newest episode and are happy to announce another BRAND NEW episode. This time we once again visit the collection “The Weight of Words” which brought you the story “Monkey and the Lady” by bringing you a MINDWEBS production of Dave McKean’s “The Language of Birds.” This is unlike any previous MINDWEBS episode in that the actual book has changes in font and style throughout the story. Passages fade away on the paper, turn into nonsense or symbols. We have attempted to mirror those changes in the story with audio effects and manipulation. So know that the effects you hear are reflections of the book. We have been working on this episode for over a year and it has slowly come together to create a very unique MINDWEBS experience. It was an ambitious story to do, but Michael and I hope the result conveys the stories experience and pays homage to the wonderful art of Dave McKean. So join us at Midnight on August 31st for another world premier MINDWEBS episode. And when we say world, we mean it! Want to publicly thank Raymond Gallacher who contacted us from Scotland with a really nice note of support. Michael is beyond thrilled that his creation has touched so many people beyond Wisconsin and now the world and thank you for reaching out.

You will also notice our cool new picture of Michael! HUGE amount of thanks to Kat Schleicher for helping us set up a portrait session at Michael’s second home Otto’s and getting some great photos of Michael and family. We needed a better/more updated picture of the man and she knocked them out of the park. We are so happy to be able to share a piece of her wonderful work with you.

We also wanted to acknowledge those of you out there who are un-happy with WMSE’s time dependent archive recorder on their web site as well as other glitches that have been occurring with the broadcasts of the show, some of which have been simple miscommunication issues while others have been admitted carelessness of station staff. This has led to some angry emails to Tom Crawford at the station and even complaints here. We understand the disappointment some of these things bring up. We do apologize for the miscues and have made corrections, but also ask for some understanding. WMSE is a volunteer fueled station that survives on a shoestring budget. Not only was there little time to prepare for the broadcasts or reprogram the station’s new web site to accommodate it, the shows revival was COMPLETELY unexpected and nothing could prepare the station for the audience response to the show. We have been trying to address problems and create work arounds while we work on larger projects behind the scenes. For example, we have addressed the issue of the time cut offs with the rebroadcasts on Sunday morning. And when Michael’s master files are being posted here most times less than a week after air, I fail to understand the focus to complain about minor hick ups rather than realize that all of this very nearly never happened and that gratitude should be the larger focus. We are not only slowly making our way through the original tapes, but working on new episodes and other projects around the show that will be unveiled in the future. It is no lie when I tell you that NO ONE expected any of this to happen, but IT HAS and rather than rush to complaints maybe offers and actions of support would be a more productive and helpful thing (like Raymond. We deeply appreciate not only his words, but his added reinforcement that news of the show IS making it world wide!). By all means feel free to contact us if you think you can offer a way to help the show. Many people are still un-aware that the show has been revived and that is why we need YOUR HELP letting people know about the show and what we are doing. Your voice does make a difference and it is a great time to be a fan of MINDWEBS and Michael could not be more pleased with the revival of his creation. We have more new episodes ready for air and working on more as well as other things we hope to announce soon. Be assured that more good things are on the way both in the near and far future.

Onward!



****Update 7-4-19****

Thank you for visiting the source of the remastered and BRAND NEW episodes of Michael Hanson's MINDWEBS series. We hope you enjoyed our tribute to Harlan Ellison and I am happy to announce we have another BRAND NEW MINDWEBS episode to be aired July 27th & 28th. This time we have a double feature with the stories Trace by Jerome Bixby and Prolog by John P McKnight . The later being a story Michael wanted to do during the original run, but had issues completing. The session was as epic as the story and we are so happy and proud to be able to present it to you now. We found out a mutual love of the song Witchi-Tai-To by Everything is Everything and it very much sums up how we feel now. We hope you are enjoying listening to the episodes, new and old of MINDWEBS. Much more is still to come.

***Update 6-13-19**** Thank you for visiting the source of the remastered and BRAND NEW episodes of Michael Hanson's MINDWEBS series. Last year it just so happened that our airing of “Repent! Harlequin…” aired the same week Harlan Ellison passed away. In memory of this great writer we wanted to do something special, so we are bringing you an all new MINDWEBS episode with Michael reading "All The Sounds Of Fear” at Midnight on June 29th. While it seems like life is putting up every obstacle to hinder our recording sessions, we are moving forward and close to being able to have a new episode every month for the rest of the year. I am also happy to announce that we will be airing a new MINDWEBS promotional spot on WMSE. This new promo is actually a mini MINDWEBS episode with a 3 minute story! You will have to listen to the station in order to hear it as we will not be posting it here for a very long time. Our hope and plan is to create more of these in the near future.

More new episodes are on the way along with our continued remastering of the original series tapes. Help us keep spreading the word that MINDWEBS is back on the air with all new episodes.



****Update 5-5-2019**** Thank you for visiting the source of the remastered and BRAND NEW episodes of Michael Hanson's MINDWEBS series. We hope you enjoyed our newest episode “Warning Signs.” We have another brand new MINDWEBS episode to bring you next week with the double story episode “It’s Alright-He Only Died”& “Feeding Time.” These new episodes are made possible by the support of WMSE’s Sound Citizen members. WMSE is completely funded by it’s listeners and features unique programing you will find no where else and we hope you will show your gratitude for what we are doing by becoming a part of the WMSE Team. All donations are tax deductible and really are vital for the day to day operations of a community powered radio station. Summer is a busy time for both of us, but we are working on more episodes and will be bringing you new ones all Summer long and hope to bring you even more soon. Finally I have some sad news to pass along. A little over a month ago at one of our sessions I found out that Charlie, Michael’s beloved dog, had been diagnosed with a cancer that was quickly spreading to his brain and at 14 years old his time was very short. A little over a week ago he passed away. Charlie has been a constant companion during all of our recoding sessions finding at least one moment to start howling and barking during the recording. In an effort to distract him I brought along some chews once which only made the matter worse as every time he saw me after that, he knew he was getting treats and would voice his excitement. I have added an out-take featuring Charlie in loving memory of the times he wanted to tell his own story. But his interruptions were not long lasting and soon he would find a spot on the floor to lay and listen to Michael read the story. Condolences to Michael on the loss of such a long time companion which is never easy, but I find solace knowing he lived a full, loved life under the good care of Michael and Rosie. I’m going to really miss him in our future sessions.

****Update 4-14-19**** Thank you for visiting the source of the remastered and BRAND NEW episodes of Michael Hanson's MINDWEBS series. We have a lot of great things coming over the next few weeks. Next week we air one of the fan favorites that for too long has existed only as a horrific sounding bootleg "The Night He Cried" by Fritz Leiber and follow it with “ Desertion”by Clifford Simak the following week, Then on May 4th, as a part of the WMSE Spring Membership Drive we will once again be premiering a BRAND NEW MINDWEBS episode. This time Michael reads the 2017 short story from Edward M. Grant “Warning Signs.” We close the drive the following week with yet another BRAND NEW double story episode. This episode features a previously un-known/un-published short story from noted author Raymond Chandler brought to light by The Strand magazine in 2017 along with Robert Sheckley’s delightful short “Feeding Time.” We hope you show your appreciation for what we are doing by becoming a member of the WMSE team and give them the vital support they need to continue to bring such fantastic programing like MINDWEBS to you. Michael and I are pushing the production of new episodes and I cannot properly convey to you how much these new shows mean to us. Believe me when I say Michael is putting his heart and soul into each story he brings and it is a genuine honor to be the one recording him and hearing him read. Your support will also help fuel other things around the show. One thing currently under discussion is a possible one off live MINDWEBS show and an evening with Michael Hanson (which may or may not be broadcast)! Following the new episodes we come back with one of the classics from the WHA run "When It Changed" by Joanna Russ on May 18th read by the one and only Carol Cowan. It doesn’t stop there. In June we will be airing an episode that never made it into bootleg circulation in "The Last Question" by Isaac Asimov as well as bringing you another BRAND NEW MINDWEBS episode. It’s a really good time to be a fan of the show and we are hearing from more people who are just finding out about what we are doing thanks to the efforts of those of you who are helping us promote our efforts. Please keep spreading the news that MINDWEBS is back on the air and that Michael Hanson is bringing new stories to the radio Saturdays at midnight on WMSE. Your efforts and enthusiasm have had very positive effects in the past and does actually help us with the show. The growing interest in a radio show well over 20 years off the air has lead to its return and now its revival with new episodes. We are working on many things behind the scenes and hope to have more good news in the future. Keep turning as many people as you know onto MINDWEBS and stay tuned to 91.7 WMSE and this web page for more exciting news regarding the show.





****Update 4-1-19**** Thank you for visiting the source of the remastered and revamped episodes of Michael Hanson's MINDWEBS series. If you have not heard, WMSE station manager Tom Crawford had a health issue that left him on doctor ordered bed rest so he asked me to cover for him on The Frontier Radio Theater for the last two weeks. Was a great honor and I thank Tom for letting me promote the show. in the transfer over to the great Dewey Gill on the 3/31/2019 show we had an impromptu conversation on the show, how Michael and I met, teasers on upcoming shows, and the latest and greatest announcement about MINDWEBS. Then you get to listen to one of the best Big Band music shows you will ever hear. Some really great things are coming and we hope to be announcing them soon. Keep spreading the news and a thank you for the kind words we have been seeing about the show around the web. Michael and I are absolutely thrilled to be reviving the show and giving everyone a weekend treat to look forward to. We are not even half way through the series and have so many more things to bring you. Onward!





****Update 2-14-19**** Thank you for visiting the source of the remastered and revamped episodes of Michael Hanson's MINDWEBS series. As a special Valentine treat I have added another one of Michael's broadcasts to my Asylum page. The broadcast is from Feb. 13th 1987 and features segments dedicated to Friday the 13th and Valentine's day. Work is moving ahead on new MINDWEBS episodes and we hope to be airing more soon. In the meantime, continue to enjoy Michael's official release of his MINDWEBS series on WMSE and right here in the Internet Archive.





****Update 01-13-19**** Thank you for visiting the source of the remastered and revamped episodes of Michael Hanson's MINDWEBS series. A new year is upon us and I am very happy to announce that another BRAND NEW MINDWEBS EPISODE is also upon us that I think might be Michael’s best new episode yet. On January 26th at midnight on WMSE we are set to premier Joseph E. Kelleam’s first short story “Rust” from 1939. We are very proud of this one and you will not want to miss it, but if you do, remember that every episode is re-aired at 8am Sunday morning . Our resolution this year is to bring you more new episodes so keep spreading the word that MINDWEBS is back on the air and that all episodes are being released here, for free, in their highest quality directly from Michael Hanson.



****Update 12-12-18****

Thank you for visiting the source of the remastered and revamped episodes of Michael Hanson's MINDWEBS series. Seasons greetings to you and a belated happy 78th birthday to the one and only Michael Hanson! As I reflect back upon the year that seems to have flown by, I am simply amazed to have worked with Michael in creating brand new episodes of MINDWEBS. Since it was not really planned it is even more amazing that we have already aired six of them! We are both extremely happy with how things are coming together and are busy working on more. We hope you enjoy them as much as we enjoy making them. To round out this year we have a number of gifts to give you.

To start, we will be airing the seasonal episode of “Nackles” on the 16th. We aired this episode last year, however I have upgraded some of my gear since that first remaster and have a bit of a cleaner mix to offer. The following week on the 23rd, we are giving our gifts early presenting another BRAND NEW MINDWEBS episode! This time we are airing a story that was one of the first episodes Michael suggested doing when he decided to revamp the show. Took us a while to complete it, but we are very happy to have Connie Gehl help us present an edited version of Chad Oliver’s “Transformer.” We also want to thank Abby Gundersen for her fantastic “Light In Between” music used in this episode and highly suggest checking out her full length releases. At the same time I will be unveiling a new Archive page that will feature an example of Michael’s talents as a producer/host/announcer on public radio outside of MINDWEBS with an air check tape from his “Asylum” radio show . You’ll hear why Michael won multiple “Radio Personality of the Year” awards back in the day. We close the year out throwing a party as only MINDWEBS can with the fantastic story “Wasted On The Young.” The next year we will be continuing on with our official release of the MINDWEBS series including original episodes never in bootleg circulation and hopefully m any more brand new episodes. As this is the season of giving, we hope that you can give back by donating to the Internet Archive so they can continue to provide a forever home to MINDWEBS as well as all of the other wonderful things you can find here. Thanks again for your interest and hope you can continue to help us spread the word that MINDWEBS has returned.





****Update 10-31-18****

Thank you for visiting the source of the remastered and revamped episodes of Michael Hanson's MINDWEBS series. Today is the 4th anniversary of this web page dedicated to Michael Hanson’s MINDWEBS series and we have a bunch of ways to celebrate. While I originally set this page up to share my recordings off the air and tapes of the show given to me by Jim Blackson, the dream was that somehow it would spark more tapes to come forward. Little did I know that those tapes would come from Michael himself! It has been a thrill and honor to be helping Michael Hanson create a place where people will forever be able to obtain his creation free from him in the best possible quality and we hope you are enjoying the ride as we release them. It has been a literal dream come true for both of us to be reviving the show and presenting all NEW episodes by some of Michael's favorite authors. Neither of us expected that to happen! One of the reasons Michael is doing new stories is because he had sold off a large chunk of his book collection just before we met. However given the progressive history of the show it just makes sense to be showcasing contemporary authors. So in celebration of my 4th anniversary we are proud to be premiering TWO BRAND NEW MINDWEBS episodes! The first premiers Saturday November 3rd at midnight with Sarah Stettler helping Michael tell the Ted Kosmatka story “Chasing Ivory.” The following week on Nov 10th Michael reads the original short story version of Arthur C. Clarke's “The Deep Range.” Fingers crossed we will have a very special Christmas present for you as well (you have all been good right?). We hope to be able to ramp up the production of new episodes in the new year and already have some great ones in the works. Only time and distance is getting in the way. We are also airing these as WMSE is having it’s Fall Membership Drive. WMSE is a true 501(c) non-profit radio station that is funded almost entirely by it’s listening community broadcasting since 1981. If you enjoy what we are doing, both Michael and I hope that you will take a moment and give your support to help WMSE make it possible for you to hear MINDWEBS and all of the other amazing programming offered on WMSE. Both of us are supporters and I hope you'll become one too. As you wait for the new shows I have another small treat to share. As you have heard, one of the damaged tapes happened to be "'Repent, Harlequin!' Said the Ticktockman" by Harlan Ellison. We released it as it was a stereo copy but it does have its issues. The copy that I originally posted here was in mono, but was a significant improvement from the first mp3 version. I posted that as an mp3 but have now added that mono version I created off of Jim’s reels in it’s original lossless format. While it too has it’s issues, since it is one of Michael’s favorite stories I felt it only right to include it in this master set as an alternative version since the sound quality is acceptable.

Thank you for your interest, your support and know that we have so much more to bring to you! Help us keep spreading the word that Michael Hanson’s MINDWEBS is back on the air!













****Update 9-29-2018****

Thank you for visiting the source of the remastered and revamped episodes of Michael Hanson's MINDWEBS series.



Tonight we finally premier "A Hunger Artist." We hope you enjoy it as much as we did putting it together. A sincere thanks to Ed and Karl Paloucek for their major contribution to this episode on such little notice. We had a problem setting the right tone musically and they certainly took care of that! Also a thanks to Rick Hurdle for his valuable input during the mixing phase of this episode. This episode would not have been as good without it. Stay tuned for more new episodes in the very near future.





The question has also come to me regarding the missing episode #37. That episode is "The Star/The Gift" and since that is one of the seasonal episodes, we have held off airing it. That said, it also happens to be one of the damaged episodes we are attempting to repair. Another episode needing work is episode #43. As our focus is currently on producing new episodes, these will be aired at some future date. We have plenty more to bring you in the meantime and be assured that we will air every single episode, and be posting the SOURCE digital remasters right here from Michael Hanson's personal collection.





****Update 9-11-2018****



Due to several factors beyond control we are re-scheduling the premier broadcast of MINDWEBS episode #173 for Saturday the 29th at midnight on WMSE . We apologize again for the hiccups both here and with the streams of the shows but the issues will be resolved soon and a temporary fix is already in place at the station. So we will continue on with re-broadcasts of the WHA run with this week featuring another one of my personal Top 10 favorites "The Portable Phonograph” by Walter Van Tillburg Clark.





****Update 8-26-2018****

Thank you for visiting the source of the remastered and revamped episodes of Michael Hanson's MINDWEBS series.

WMSE has been experiencing issues with their archives in it's new web site that has been affecting many shows including MINDWEBS. We apologize for the inconvenience this has caused and know that the station is working on addressing the issue and that another exciting MINDWEBS announcement will be made soon. In the meantime I have added all the current aired episodes. Enjoy and remember good things are coming!





Like the newest MINDWEBS episode set to be aired September 15th! This episode marks two significant firsts for the show. For the first time MINDWEBS is doing a story by one of the greatest writers of the 20th century; Franz Kafka. And to make it really special a partial score was created specifically for this episode by renown fiddle player Ed and his equally impressive experimental/avant-garde brother Karl Paloucek . Get ready for Michael's take on Kafka's classic short story "A Hunger Artist."





Keep spreading the word and listening in and know that we are making more new episodes that will be airing very soon.









****Update 7-20-2018****





the history of the station! So by popular demand we will now be doing encore broadcasts of the weekly episodes on the Thank you very much for your interest in MINDWEBS. The Nielsen numbers are in and we are seeing steady increases in listeners to the show as the word is getting out about what we are doing (and also seems that more of you are sticking around to listen to the other fantastic programing on WMSE which is even better!). When we started to do new MINDWEBS episodes WMSE station manager Tom Crawford decided to start playing encore broadcasts of the weekly episodes Sunday mornings at 8. That has resulted in the highest listener ratings for that time slot in! So by popular demand we will now be doing encore broadcasts of the weekly episodes on the Frontier Radio Theater at 8am Sunday mornings, right before the amazing Dewey Gill and his Big Band Show for the rest of the MINDWEBS run. This is the DIRECT result of your interest and help in spreading the information regarding our re-vamping of the show. PLEASE KEEP IT UP!! This is fueling more cool things around the show and making Michael incredibly happy that so many people are still enjoying his creation so many years after it first left the air. Don’t forget that because of your interest Michael has decided to come back to the air with all NEW MINDWEBS stories. No one, not even Michael himself, would have believed that was going to happen even 3 years ago, but here we are on the eve of our third brand new MINDWEBS show! Join us at midnight tomorrow as we air “The Strange Flight of Richard Clayton” by Robert Bloch and hear Michael once again bring the story to life as only he can. And tune in next week as we air one of my personal all time favorite episodes, Norman Spinrad’s “A Night In Elf Hill."









****Update 7-2-2018****





On June 28th Sci-fi legend Harlan Ellison passed away. It just so happens that MINDWEBS production of “'Repent, Harlequin!' Said the Ticktockman” is the next episode to air (and another one of Michael’s favorites). So please join us July 7th at Midnight as we remember this amazing writer and unique personality. Unfortunately the quality of the audio is below the rest of the series but still above any previously released version. That is the sad news. The good news is that episode #172 will be airing July 21st at midnight with a re-broadcast at 8am on the 22nd. This time Michael is featuring an early story by Robert Bloch. We hope you join us in The Future! :-)









****Update 6-3-2018****





When Michael and I first talked about releasing the show and how we were going to do it the question came up; Would you be open to do another episode? Michael agreed to do one to “end the series on a nice round number” and put a topper on it. But only one. When we met and recorded the first session my jaw hit the floor at the story picked and how well it turned out. I thought he didn’t lose a step and Michael was happy with it too, but it was not a complete episode. So another session was booked and that is the session that led to episode #170. Michael was so pleased with how things were coming out that he booked another session as the creative itch had been triggered. That session has not only led to a new episode, but Michael’s decision to re-vamp the show and continue to do more stories. This was not expected nor really planned, but both of us are excited about where this is going and the future possibilities so we are running with it. Michael’s new signature tag in our emails about the show has been “Onward!” and more stories have been recorded and more recording sessions have been booked. While we will continue to release every single episode from the original WERN/WHAD run, I am sincerely excited to say that our focus is on creating NEW episodes and that when I say MINDWEBS is back on the air, we mean it literally! With all that said, I am pleased to announce that June 9th we will be airing episode #171 at Midnight on WMSE (with a re-broadcast on Sunday morning at 8) and posting the master studio copy here. We hope you enjoy the episode as much as we enjoyed creating it and know that more is being planned and more new episodes are on the way!





Thank you so much for your interest and support of the show and a extra appreciation to those who are helping spread the word about what we are doing and directing people here. Michael never imagined that any of this would be happening and both of us are reveling in the joy that it REALLY IS happening and can’t wait to bring you more.





ONWARD!













****Update 4-7-2018****

We hope you have enjoyed the original un-circulated episodes we have played for you and know that we are not just releasing every episode made, we are reviving the series! Even I have a hard time believing this announcement but it is our biggest one yet. As a special part of WMSE’s spring membership drive we will be airing MINDWEBS episode #170 at midnight on May 5th 2018 with a special encore broadcast on the Frontier Radio Theater on Sunday morning just before the amazing Dewey Gill and his big band show. You have read that right. A brand new MINDWEBS episode from the creative genius of Michael Hanson himself! We are currently working on more new episodes and trying new ideas. Some of the ideas Michael has come up with are very ambitious but will be amazing if completed and will take this series to a whole new level. What we will be releasing are those episodes that Michael thinks are on par with the original series. There has been lots of dust and rust involved but we do hope you enjoy them and hope to air more new episodes in the near future. And of course the actual STUDIO MASTER COPY of each of these episodes will be posted here as well. Help us spread the word; Michael Hanson’s MINDWEBS is BACK ON THE AIR!!









****Update 3-11-2018****



For those who did not see my original announcement, the copies of the episodes are coming off the back up tape dubs of the masters as the master reels were stolen by someone who promised to digitize them for Michael. Unfortunately there were issues with quite a few of those reel transfers that were put to tape. While most can be corrected, there were almost a dozen with problems. That is why we started with episode 3 as the first two were damaged and I was working on repairing them as much as I could. Two of the tapes are in such bad condition that I thought I might have to use my private recordings as they actually sound better than Michael’s copies. I am amazed and excited to report that is no longer the case! Michael was able to find an old box of tapes literally covered in cobwebs and layers of dust that contained over 50 tapes of MINDWEBS episodes (and some other things that will be coming to the Archive). This is a HUGE discovery as we were able to find clean stereo copies of several damaged shows including the two worst sounding episodes! This find has helped to correct almost all of the most severely damaged episodes of the main tape set (Now there are only a handful with minor glitches) and opens up the possibility of upgrades to what we currently have. I was also able to confirm some of the first dates of recording and found original artwork and station documentation (which we’ll get up over at the Plot Spot) as well. Any upgrades to what I have previously posted (which most likely will happen) will be announced.

What I can announce right now is that thanks to this new box of tapes we have found, we can finally post the first two MINDWEBS episodes free of any frequency loss and tape squeal that the other tapes had. So come join us next week as we air the episode that started it all and one of Michael Hanson’s favorite stories in full STEREO glory; Norman Spinrad’s “Carcinoma Angels” that was recorded 3/3/1975. Sadly that means we just missed an anniversary broadcast opportunity, however I’m sure you’ll agree that it was worth the delay when you hear it. Who would have thought that 43 years later MINDWEBS would be back on the air and even seeing an official release? We are both thrilled to be preserving and presenting this series in original studio quality and know that we are doing everything we can to ensure the best sound quality of EVERY SINGLE EPISODE. Enjoy!



We hope you have enjoyed the original un-circulated episodes we have played for you and know that we are releasing every single MINDWEBS episode ever made as well as working on BRAND NEW MINDWEBS episodes to be aired in the very near future.

****Update 2-28-2018****

When I first created this page almost 4 years ago I was most happy to present 7 stories that were not in any circulated collection of the show bringing the number of available shows at the time up to 153. On Feb. 3rd we aired the first of the 16 remaining un-circulated original MINDWEBS episode and on Saturday March 10th the tradition here continues as we air/post another episode that has not been heard in almost 30 years. Over the next few months are many of my personal favorite stories as we continue Michael Hanson’s public release of all 169 episodes here and on WMSE 91.7. Continue to join us every Saturday at Midnight and spread the word that Michael Hanson is giving away copies of his personal tapes right here in the Internet Archive.



Enjoy!





****Update 2-04-2018****