CHICAGO – Few in investigative journalism have made the impact Carl Kolchak did. As a reporter for

the Independent News Service out of Chicago, he dared to speak truth to power. Specifically, dark, evil, occult power.

More than just about anyone else, Carl Kolchak was driven to find the truth, no matter how seedy, campy, or blood sucking it might be. Whereas the local police force was usually too “professional” in their investigations of unusual crimes, no theory was too crazy or without merit for Carl to pursue.

The scoops uncovered by Kolchak were as varied as the fevered hallucinations of a hippie on a three-day Scoobie snack bender. He chased down immortal serial killers for breakfast, zombies for lunch, and vampires for dinner. We here at the Interesting Times Harold are working on a a series to highlight some of Kolchak’s greatest work. Tune in later for that.

Kolchak’s investigative career was relatively short-lived, and in the mid-1970s he disappeared from public record. There are two theories floating around about this. The first (and most likely) is that his investigations into the shadowy world of the macabre finally caught up to him, and some powerful forces of darkness either caught him or he’s in hiding.

The second theory is far less likely, and based only on unreliable witness testimony that he began working for a secretive government spy agency. Which is, of course, absurd.

The various records of his ground-breaking investigations are detailed here, some of which will be featured here in the future at the Interesting Times Harold.