Hacking The Afterlife podcast

Hacking the Afterlife Redux with Jennifer Shaffer - a podcast from a year ago with David Crosby and Prince

Another unusual visit with pals on the Flipside. In today's podcast we have folks who've been to visit us before, but had more to say. One is the Oscar nominated dog Hira, owned by the screenwriter director Robert Towne. Hira's been to visit us before, transcripts are in the book "Backstage Pass to the Flipside." David Crosby stopped by again - after talking to us about what it was like to return to the flipside, and in this case, he wanted to talk further about his semi jaded, snarking observations.  Here's a link to the official story of how Graham Nash met David Crosby, but in this account, he recalls a lifetime in Victorian England where he knew Graham. (Be interesting to see if Graham has any memories of that era.) But in terms of Hira - I walked him for a number of years when Robert was at Warner Bros, and later in the Marina.  And was with Hira when he passed - a wild car ride to rush him to the animal hospital to try to save him.  That's another story for another time, but Hira stops by to tell the audience that we are always connected to our pets. He talks about the "contract" of our connection. Then David Crosby takes the spotlight - we didn't ask for him to stop by, but he did a few weeks back, and had more to say about his adventure. (David knew our moderator on the flipside Luana Anders, so it's not hard for me to see how she'd put him at the top of the list of guests.) Prince stopped by - sorry I didn't ask him any direct questions, but David talked a bit about creating music on the flipside.   Then I did ask a direct question to Carl Laemmle about the film "All Quiet on the Western Front" - a film he bought for his son to produce when he was the head of Universal pictures, which one lots of Oscars.  I mention the amazing story of the triathlete who purchased the rights, knowing that it would win her an Oscar (which she hasn't won yet.) Carl predicts the film will win three Oscars.   A bit about predictions - and why I never do them. Because the future is not set. Carl doesn't know for sure if the film will win three Oscars, but has a "better view" and is more apt to be correct. However, anything could happen - and it sometimes does.  People ask mediums like Jennifer all the time to predict the future, and as I like to point out - it's not set, however a good medium has a better opportunity to get the "likely outcome" as opposed to lottery numbers.  "It's likely" that the remake of ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT will win three oscars, so if one is a betting person, perhaps dial up one's bookie. But don't blame me if it doesn't - blame Carl Laemmle. He's the one who said it. Than back to Hira - who had a message for Robert Towne, my old boss, which I will pass along. Always fun to hear from a pet on the flipside, if only to remind us they still exist.

Hacking the Afterlife with Jennifer Shaffer, a visit from three grandfathers on the flipside

In this podcast we get a visit from people offstage that we know.

As usual, we begin the podcast with a conversation with Luana Anders, our moderator on the flipside (who left the stage in 1996) and she wants to talk about a recent dream that Jennifer had that included two of her grandfathers.

They come through with expressions of love, as well as a discussion of how we can access our loved ones offstage.  Then later, my father comes through and wants to discuss his grandson Richard Jr.

It's unusual for us to have a podcast that is just about our own family members, but it serves to remind our audience that their loved ones are always present, easy to converse with or have access to.

Thanks to Jennifer's two grandfathers for stopping by, and my own father for saying hello. It's always great to hear from loved ones on the flipside.

Enjoy!

Hacking The Afterlife Podcast with Jennifer Shaffer, Jim Medlyn, Luana Anders and Ma Durga

An unusual visit with folks off planet.  First Jennifer talks about losing her dad's ring prior to our last podcast.  Fortunately, she was able to find it, again, but it allowed us to ask her father on the flipside about it.

Jim has been a frequent visitor to our conversations - since Jennifer and I started meeting up 8 years ago.  He passed back in 2017, and when he started visiting us, I realized that Jennifer couldn't speak when he was around. So I asked him "What can we tell people in terms of helping them with grief?" He said "Try to move grief to nostalgia."  I didn't know what that meant, nor did Jennifer.

He explained, "Grief is sad memories, nostalgia is a combination of sad and happy memories. When you can move grief to nostalgia you begin the healing process."

It was a profound statement. I asked him if he was "taking any classes" on the flipside (something people often report) and he took his daughter into "deep space" and described an advanced class in astrophysics.  He warned Jennifer that she might be freaked out by the appearance of the teacher.

I asked if we could speak directly to her and it turns how she has 8 arms. For those familiar with Tibetan Buddhist or Hindu deities, that's not such an odd thing to see or encounter.  I asked her if people on the planet knew her and she said that was the case.

I did some research to learn that there was a deity named "Ma Durga" that fit the description. So the next time we did a podcast, I asked Jim to take us back to his classroom and asked her if she went by that name. Jennifer had never heard it before, but she said that was how people refer to her.

So today, in our conversation with Luana Anders, our moderator on the flipside, suggested that I needed to "dig deeper" in my next book, which is about people who report seeing aliens - in their dreams, in their guided meditations or visits to their councils. (Some can be found at DIVINE COUNCILS IN THE AFTERLIFE).  In the podcast, Luana pointed out that I needed to combine some of the research.

I just realized that the reason Jennifer saw a connection between George Noory (Coast to Coast) and the book, is because George is a reference to the Contact in the Desert meeting, as he hosts a panel each year.

At some point, I ask Luana why she brought up Jesus and she says "Jesus is an alien."  I ask if she means that literally, or figurately since we all could be considered aliens, because we all incarnate on other planets and choose to incarnate on earth. (35% of the reports from the Newton Institute include memories of lifetimes off planet.)

Be that as it may, it makes me realize that I need to add more of this research into the latest book.  Then, because of that conversation with Jim and his teacher Ma Durga from years ago (It's in the book BACKSTAGE PASS TO THE FLIPSIDE) I asked if it was possible to speak to her again.

She has eight arms. She also looks like a woman, but wears a large green cape.  (That's the visual that Jennifer got.)  In this interview, I had a question pop into my head - "Why the 8 arms?" I was going to ask if it was because everyone "on her planet has 8 arms."

Instead Jennifer answered "It's because she was an octopus in a previous lifetime and get the energy of that persona."  It goes to how people report we project an image to others on the flipside - we choose the persona we want to project, based on our experiences with it.

She explained that she had been a girl on the planet, and then an octopus (or vice versa) and that in between lives - in this classroom - she projects that image.

Asked about her classroom instruction, she spoke about the lectures about how time is different on different planets, in different realms, in different universes.  (I mention how that's the subject of the film #INTERSTELLAR and she said that was accurate.)

Another mind bending journey into the flipside. We spoke to Jennifer's father, a former Mormon bishop, as well as Ma Durga, a Hindu deity who teaches a class in astrophysics on the flipside.

Mind bending stuff.

 

Hacking the Afterlife with Jennifer Shaffer, Morton, Duane, Paxton, Perry and Luana Anders

Here's our extended New Year's Day podcast; starts with a conversation about predictions - while many reach out to mediums to ask to "predict what's going to happen" as noted, mediums like Jennifer have a "better view of likely outcomes."  Even then, they're translating what they're getting, and likely outcomes don't always come to pass. A discussion of a new study that correlates solar flares and earthquakes.  How the study by physicists (not geologists) shows the effects of solar flares can be measured in the larger earthquakes on Earth (re: Japan's recent quake.) Then "Morton" shows up - for those who've seen HACKING THE AFTERLIFE on Amazon, #MichaelNewton appears during a conversation Jennifer and I were having and she says "Your friend Morton is here."  I had no clue who that was, and she says, "the guy you made the documentary (FLIPSIDE) about." (He also appears in "Hacking the Afterlife.") Michael talks about the dream state - how people can bypass the filters on the brain during dreams.  A discussion how we "cast" our dreams the same way we would a play. A discussion of the NDE research that shows 1-3% have a "hellish" experience during the event, and how that may be related to what Michael is saying - the idea that we "manufacture" or "construct" dreams (and experiences on the flipside.) Then "Duane" someone I haven't met, whose wife reached out to me with footage of a "light" or series of lights that appear in her garage cam for 15 minutes - she goes out to investigate, as do her two sons - one of them sees the light (oval shaped, small, darting and moving around with them) She was curious to hear my thoughts on it (submitted via our forum on Quora "Hacking the Afterlife").  As proof of concept. Jennifer could have no knowledge about him or his family - and correctly identifies his two boys, and the members of his previous family.  Then he speaks about the difficulty of creating that "energy" - which he says is like the "orbs" people have been capturing with digital cameras. (And Jennifer shows an example) The family saw the light moving around on camera, then went out to investigate, and the youngest (presumably the one without filters) sees the light and points to it, identifying it as his dad. (There's no sound, but one can clearly seem him pointing at the frisbee sized light that is moving around with them.) Duane's wife asked how to license the footage, or how to share it on media platforms, as it would make sense to try to license the footage through a company that does that sort of thing. (If anyone reading this has a suggestion of a reputable licensing group, please send an email, and I will forward it on to her.) Then, because it's an extended edition, I invited a couple of people we've interviewed before - Matthew Perry and #billpaxton as they both had shown up recently. In Bill's case, he appeared on Rob Lowe's podcast, where a medium talked about him "surfing" on the flipside - so I asked him about how he was able to create the environment to do that. #MatthewPerry weighs in on the recent autopsy report that showed DMT in his system - as he's reported before, that wasn't what caused the event, and a closer reading of the report reveals the same. Yet for some inexplicable reason it's been associated with his passing. As noted in the podcast; "When in doubt take the time to ask them directly what happened."  (It's what Jennifer spends a third of her work doing; pro bono sessions for law enforcement agencies nationwide who ask for her help.) A discussion of "aliens" - as I'm working on a book about the many "encounters" people have had in the research, either via hypnotherapy, or through guided meditation. People who had an abduction experience, or some other event in the past, who can revisit it via guided meditation. Also how these folks appear in the book DIVINE COUNCILS IN THE AFTERLIFE on people's councils. Wise beings who don't normally incarnate on our planet.  Finally a visit from #waynedyer to admonish Jennifer to "stop feeling guilty" and a lovely piece of advice from our moderator on the Flipside #LuanaAnders about how to "use a strainer" to greet the New Year, by distilling all the things of value, letting go of the negative emotions and experiences and focusing on the heart of why we've chosen to join each other on the planet. It's another mind bending podcast to be sure.  Enjoy! Happy New Year!

 

Hacking the Afterlife Podcast Christmas Redux with Charles Dickens, Jennifer Shaffer and Luana Anders

Hacking the Afterlife with Jennifer Shaffer, Luana Anders and Charles Dickens

 

HERE'S A REPLAY OF LAST YEAR'S CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY PODCAST

It sounds bizarre, I know. We interviewed Charles briefly in the book "Backstage Pass to the Flipside" so his presence didn't throw me for a loop.  

I really did look at a note on my cellphone this morning about a story that he's in - and his pal Washington Irving.  And for him to say "that's why I stopped by" is mind bending to say the least.

We start off the podcast with Jennifer revealing that her mom is in the hospital, and her emotions around the loss of her dad, five years ago. He's come by a number of times to chat with us, including taking us on a trip to an Akashic library, as well as going to visit the classroom on the flipside where he described his physics teacher in detail. 

The woman has 8 arms, and is known as Ma Durga on the planet - no other way to put it, as we've spoken with her a number of times, and Jennifer has had long conversations with her.  The point isn't that a "deity from earth" is hanging out in the flipside, but rather people on earth have identified a teacher on the flipside as a deity.

In this case, I knew that Dickens had visited Washington Irving, I know that he purchased some property in Cairo Illinois (a land scam that claimed it was going to be the next "city on the Nile")

I know that he visited a garment factory in Boston where he asked them to tell him some local ghost stories. I know that when he visited Irving, Irving's uncle had taken up resident at his home and his name was Ebeneezer.

As Jennifer pointed out, she never could have guessed that name - but Charles was specific about who greeted him when he crossed over (a deaf child, perhaps the model for Tiny Tim) and how his book was about the financial politics of the day, the Victorian era when the rich got richer and the poor died of starvation.

Jennifer mentioned the chapter in Architecture of the Afterlife where Tony Stockwell recalled a lifetime in Victorian London, where he and his brother both died of starvation in one of those "workhouses."  Awful places for humans to be place - without any help from the government.

So A Christmas Carol was a tale about how to be kind to others and to give around the holiday time.

He also gives a review of the film "Splendid" which is both hilarious and mind bending. When asked about it, he said "I hate musicals."  Hilarious reply - and then he said he was kidding, he loved the film and loved what Will Ferrell did with the part.

I mean - c'mon - Will's never going to believe that Charles Dickens showed up on our podcast tonight to compliment him on his performance in SPIRITED, but that is EXACTLY WHAT HE DID.

We've been doing this for 8 years. Jennifer works with law enforcement nationwide, and just last week was part of an operation that was able to track down and eliminate 450 pounds of fentanyl.  She's the real deal.

Apologies for my cough - not much I can do, other than to say, I hope it clears up soon!

And happy holidays to you all.  Enjoy our Christmas special with the one and only Charles Dickens!

 

Hacking the Afterlife with Jennifer Shaffer, Maestro Leonard Bernstein, Felicia Bernstein

Another one for the ages.

In this episode, I invited two people to come to our podcast booth. One was Norman Lear, the prolific TV producer, and the other was Leonard Bernstein. I have just seen the Premiere of #MAESTRO #Netflix #StevenSpielberg #MartinScorsese #BradleyCooper #CareyMulligan #MayaHawke - and wondering if I might be able to invite the Maestro himself #LeonardBernstein and his wife #FeliciaMontealegre to our podcast.

I didn't tell Jennifer who I was inviting, other than Lenny. I didn't know if she had seen the film or not, so I did my best to ignore the title, and focus on the person I wanted to speak with.

I get overcome with emotion when he tells us that he met with Gustave Mahler on the flipside, someone he spent his life focused on, someone who like him was both a composer and a musician.  "We lived dual lives" Leonard has reportedly said.

In this interview, Jennifer starts by saying that this "person is a director."  It didn't occur to me to agree that a conductor is a director. (Doh!) 

Jennifer mentions 48 years that "they were together" - but that is the amount of time that Felicia was in NYC - 27 years married to Leonard.

Jennifer said that she died of lung cancer, I didn't know, but that is correct.

I asked if he's spoken to Gustave (Mahler) and she described their meeting on the flipside. (Jennifer didn't know what I was referring to or who I was talking about. She works with law enforcement agencies often - 30% of her practice is pro bono work with different agencies.)

Leonard conducted all of Mahler's symphonies, made recordings of them in the 1960's and the 1980's.

I ask about the comment Bradley made where he felt "his presence during the making of the film." He said he was "present for every moment" but especially in the dance sequence. (Jennifer hasn't seen the film - but that would be the onstage sequence of "On the Town" where Bradley took part in Jerome Robbin's choreography as Leonard.

I asked what piece he felt connected to - she asked if there was an Olympic piece. He did compose "Olympic Hymn" the six minute intro for the Olympic Congress in Germany.

He mentions "Mass" commissioned by Jackie O for the opening of the Kennedy Center in 1971. It's "anti war" message kept Nixon from the ceremony, the Vatican called the piece "blasphemous."

He mentions seeing Aretha on the flipside, said "they were friends." I didn't know they were pals, headlined the 1977 Inaugural Gala at the Kennedy Center, were onstage together holding hands.

Aretha is interviewed in "Backstage Pass to the Flipside" and "Tuning into the Afterlife." She told us that her niece would find her "missing will." The niece did find it in her home as she predicted she would. (We reached out to her, the niece told me that she talks to her mother on the flipside often (Aretha's sister) but didn't believe we were conversing with her.  

Beethoven's father was Johann, lived from 1740 to 1792. He was a musician, singer and teacher who reportedly was an alcoholic who was abusive to his son.

Our interviews with Beethoven can be found in "Tuning into the Afterlife" (available on Amazon). 

At one point Jennifer mentions "addiction" and it's widely reported that Leonard's use of drugs and alcohol increased after her passing. 

For more information, see MartiniZone on Youtube, RichMartini.com or JenniferShaffer.com - Copyright Richard Martini 2023, All Rights Reserved.  See the film MAESTRO in theaters now, or on Netflix soon - and compare this conversation with one's own ears.

 

 

Hacking the Afterlife with Jennifer Shaffer, Luana, Amelia Earhart, Steve Jobs and Napoleon

As all in all of our podcasts, Jennifer and I have no clue who we're going to speak to during our session.  Sometimes I ask or invite people to come forward, and sometimes Jennifer states up front "so and so is here."

In today's podcast, we asked Luana Anders, our moderator on the flipside, to let us know if she wanted to bring someone forward or talk about process.

Jennifer said "she wants to speak to you about your next book."  I am writing my next book, it's kind of what I do - it's a little afield of the normal topics that I work on, because it focuses on those people who have had experiences with ETs - either seeing them, or talking to them.

I assumed she meant she wanted to talk about that... "My next book."

But then Jennifer said "Amelia Earhart is here." For those who know, Amelia has shown up before on the podcast, and the initial interview mentioned in the podcast can be found in the book HACKING THE AFTERLIFE. In it, I give the details of how that came about to be, how I had interviewed three different mediums and asked Amelia the same questions and got the same answers.

But then as Amelia was speaking about "this being my next project" (I've been trying to get my filmed version off the runway for some years now) I realized what she was saying. That a "book about Amelia" is going to be my next book.

Then I asked if it should be a book based on what the research says about what happened to Amelia, or should it be a story about my journey to that research.

And she said it should be about my journey.

Which is amazing to hear - as it saves me the effort of going down another road instead. So that's why I mentioned in the podcast that everyone can do the same by asking their loved ones on the flipside to assist in their decisions.

Then Jennifer mentioned Steve Jobs, so he stopped by to tease her a bit, since she's had him show up in many sessions (dating back to before I met her).  

That led me to ask a question about his last words, which then led me to ask Napoleon about his last words.

I know it's hard to fathom, but Napoleon has been to visit before, I was given a question to ask him by an Oscar winning screenwriter, and he answered it.  Then I saw the film recently, and asked him his opinion about the film.

What makes it uncanny is that Jennifer has NOT SEEN THE FILM but is answering my questions from Napoleon's perspective - who has seen the film.  He gives it a "thumbs down" in general, but has compliments for the work of Joaquin Phoenix.  He describes specifically what he liked about his performance - which again is mind bending as Jennifer has not seen it.

Everything he says is accurate about the film, including the reluctance of Josephine to accept him as her new husband (she was married, lost her husband in the Revolution.)

I recommend the film, but after you've seen this interview, and then come back and listen to it again.

MIND BENDING.

Thanks for tuning in!

HACKING THE AFTERLIFE with Jennifer Shaffer, Thanksgiving with Luana Anders and Jennifer’s dad Jim

Sometimes we have podcasts where Luana Anders wants to talk about process or connecting to those we love who are offstage.

In this anniversary edition - we can't tell if it's been 8 or 9 years of us getting together like this, we have a conversation about connecting with loved ones over the holidays.

Needless to say, they're available. They can be conversed with if one wants to. We've spoken about it in the book BACKSTAGE PASS TO THE FLIPSIDE, the idea of "setting a chair aside" for a loved one who is no longer on the planet.

Jennifer recounts how a client of hers lost a loved one recently, and he came through to insist that instead of being sad about his passing that they tell a joke or a story in his honor that will make everyone laugh on Thanksgiving.

I recommend that people speak about them in present tense, and if it's not a tradition, we can make it one where everyone in attendance talks about "what they're grateful for" or "about a person that is no longer on the planet that they'd like to invite to the dinner."

It's a non denominational comment. We don't have to convince anyone that "they're still alive!" but we can suggest that we heard from someone that it's a tradition in Ireland (or Italy, why not?) where on Thanksgiving everyone tells a story about someone who couldn't be there at the dinner.

They can choose whether that person is on the planet or off the planet, but ask them to speak of them in present tense, as if they were at the table and hearing that toast.

Jennifer's father Jim shows up - he's the one who so eloquently offered the idea that "when you can move grief to nostalgia you begin the healing process."

So Thanksgiving is a day of nostalgia, both sad and happy memories of those no longer at the table.

Hope this helps.  Happy Thanksgiving!

Hacking the Afterlife with Jennifer Shaffer, Luana Anders and Matthew Perry part two

"If you believe, it's easier to receive." 

Our weekly conversation begins with a general discussion about talking to loved ones offstage, how it seems to be easier for people to do nowadays.  Jennifer mentions that she has a couple of days of openings on her calendar, so find out more info at JenniferShaffer.com

  We ask our moderator on the Flipside Jennifer Shaffer if she has anyone she wants to reference, she begins by discussing dreams that Jennifer has had where she was with her cat who passed away.

  I asked if she had anyone specifically on her guest list that she wanted to bring forward and Matthew Perry came forward (again) to follow up with our previous conversation.

  As noted, his autobiography mentions that people should read it as if he was already offstage - and so it's apt that he's come from offstage to comment on it.

  Another mind bending podcast on the Hacking the Afterlife podcast.

  Enjoy.

Hacking the Afterlife with Jennifer Shaffer - Matthew Perry, Luana Anders, River Phoenix, Bob Saget revised

There was a glitch at the end of the podcast so I'm uploading it again...

As usual - Jennifer and I have no idea what we're going to talk about, or who we're going to speak to.

We have our moderator on the flipside, Luana Anders to thank for our guest list. 

Today's podcast is the 2023 DAY OF THE DEAD version.  We start off talking about Jennifer's latest events, (JenniferShaffer.com) - as we note in this podcast, by remembering our loved ones, we realize this is the DAY OF THE NOT DEAD.

Because what people report is that when the play is over we go home.  Without exception.

We invite whomever wants to speak to us to check in with Luana first. And she brought Matthew Perry.

Jennifer points out that he's been coming in to her sessions during the past week.  Friends of his that she was reading, brought him forward.  So it's not like Jennifer and I thought "Oh, let's talk to Matthew."

So I asked him the same questions I ask everyone.  In this case, I knew that he had done his first movie with River Phoenix - and that when they become close friends, River's sudden death affected him directly.

In this session he talks about the people that he's helped with their addictions, he talks about passing away after a game of Pickle ball (accurate, but Jennifer didn't know that), he talks about seeing River on the flipside. He says "He likes what we're doing, and he has friends Jennifer will be speaking with and he wanted Jennifer to "get used to it."

He mentions his book during the podcast: Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing: A Memoir. I looked at the prologue and put a sentence at the end of the podcast from the book: "If you like, you can consider what you're about to read to be a message from the beyond, my beyond." 

Jennifer saw Bob Saget come through - and said "The comedian who we spoke to who golfed." She didn't remember his name - I said "Garry Shandling" because Garry did come through to talk about golf... but in this case, she was referring to Bob Saget (who corrects me later in the podcast.)

We spoke to River Phoenix about his journey - about how he shows up to his brother Joaquin often and he's aware of those visits. (Only he could answer this question.) For those interested in attending a Jennifer evening, see JenniferShaffer.com - fun events in Manhattan Beach and around the southland. 

Hank Azaria showed up in our podcast with Stephen Hawking talking about a story he told on the Late Show. 

It's another mind bending podcast.

Fellow has a strong sense of humor. My laughter is reflected by doing this kind of conversation weekly for 8 years. 

Bless his heart. Hope this helps someone. He says he's grateful he left a book. If you're missing him, or want to talk more about him - check out his book. "Every day should be the day of the dead" he says. "Love well. You have to love yourself in order to love others." River Phoenix. "I'll be back." Bob Saget: "Laughter is great medicine." #MatthewPerry #RiverPhoenix #BobSaget