Episode 215: The Frederick Valentich Disappearance And The Port Chicago Fifty

The girls are back with a birthday episode, and they’re giving “rager” a new meaning as they travel from “maybe aliens snatched this man’s plane” to “the U.S. Navy really said racism? never heard of her.” First, Monique gives Amy the birthday gift of a deeply weird UFO disappearance: the 1978 case of Frederick Valentich, a 20-year-old Australian pilot who vanished over the Bass Strait after reporting a strange object hovering above him. His final transmission included the words “it’s not an aircraft,” followed by 17 seconds of creepy mechanical noise and then absolutely fucking nothing. Then Amy takes us into the Port Chicago disaster, one of the worst homefront disasters of World War II and a story so enraging it should come with a free blood pressure cuff. Black sailors were forced to load explosives without proper training, officers turned it into a speed competition, 320 people were killed in a massive blast and then the Navy blamed the surviving Black sailors when they refused to go back to the same deadly work. It took 80 years for the Port Chicago 50 and other convicted sailors to be exonerated.

This week on Another Fucking Horror Podcast, Monique and Amy celebrate Amy’s birthday the only way that makes sense: with a UFO disappearance, a military disaster and enough institutional bullshit to make you want to scream into a pillow.

First, Monique covers the mysterious disappearance of Frederick Valentich, a 20-year-old Australian pilot who vanished over the Bass Strait in 1978 while reporting a strange object flying above him. His final transmission? “It’s not an aircraft.” Then came 17 seconds of creepy mechanical noise, and absolutely no clarity.

Then Amy covers the Port Chicago disaster of 1944, where Black sailors were forced to load live ammunition without proper safety training while white officers raced crews against each other for speed. The result was a catastrophic explosion that killed 320 people, including 202 Black sailors, many barely out of their teens. And because apparently the Navy had not done enough damage, the surviving Black sailors who refused to return to the same deadly conditions were charged with mutiny.

It took 80 years for the Port Chicago 50 and the other convicted sailors to be officially exonerated.

So, yes. This one has aliens, cover-ups, racism, birthday energy and the usual dose of “are you fucking serious right now?”

Also, if you’re listening when this drops and you’re a last-minute girly, come see Monique and Amy live at Florida Man Live on Friday, July 24 at 8 PM at Shillelagh Tavern in Astoria. Expect true crime, themed drinks, Florida chaos and outfits that say “I may or may not own a flamingo lawn ornament.”

Tickets via Eventbrite or https://anotherfuckinghorrorpodcast.com.