Meet Marshall Hicks and Kat Wells | hosts of Boys and Ghouls” horror movie podcast”

We had the good fortune of connecting with Marshall Hicks and Kat Wells and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Marshall and Kat, is there something that you feel is most responsible for your success?
KAT: I’d say our curiosity. There are a million film podcasts out there (and I listen to many of them, so I’m not knocking them!) whose hosts analyze and criticize and offer their opinions. We definitely have some of that, but mostly we’re more interested in digging a little deeper and learning the little known facts about the odd character actor or stories from set. It’s less about our opinions and more about our boundless curiosity and sharing with each other what we’ve learned along the way. I think that’s what makes us unique and what keeps a very niche subset of listeners always coming back to see what we’ll cover next!

MARSHALL:
I’ve often credited our positivity, especially when “Boys and Ghouls” first started in 2012. Deciding that we would create a horror movie podcast, I listened to some of what was out there already. A lot of what I heard was guys using their podcast just to say how much everything sucked. So, there seemed to be an opening in the market for positive horror movie podcasts that talk about what they like about horror. That’s why our tag line is, “Hosted by a warm and engaging duo.”

Also, in 2012 a horror podcast that had a female host was difficult to find. These days there are tons of excellent horror podcasts hosted by women but when we first started “Boys and Ghouls”, just hearing a female voice was nearly a novelty.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
KAT: I mentioned above what I think sets us apart as an entertainment podcast: that we’re less about criticism, reviews, and opinions and more about doing research and then sharing it with each other and our audience. There’s a real playful “show and tell” feeling to what we do that gives me the warm fuzzies – and we’ve heard from listeners that it does that for them, too. We started “Boys and Ghouls” in 2012 with no goal of monetizing or growing the brand beyond the hope that our little podcast would find its way to people who would enjoy it. It was and is a labor of love. The funny thing is, I now work in podcasting professionally. Having the background of working on “Boys and Ghouls” absolutely helped me land and grow the role I’m in at work today, and our show remains a side project that brings me so much joy. That’s not to say it’s not a worthy goal to make your dream into your job, but I’m really happy with how our creative pursuit fits into my life! And I’d say that one lesson I’ve learned is: create the thing that inspires you and brings you joy – I guarantee you that you’ll reach at least a few people who truly appreciate what you do and will let you know so. That sense of community is wonderful and so fulfilling for me.

MARSHALL:
If anyone is considering starting a podcast: I’d say a good recipe for success is to get one of your favorite people in the world, then don’t see them very often because of life and other responsibilities. So, when you get together to record you can’t wait to share all of the cool stuff you learned about your shared interest. In our case that’s horror movies and all things spooky.

One of the things that helped “Boys and Ghouls” along the way was that we tried to keep our episodes “evergreen”. We knew that if anyone listened to us, it would first take them a while just to find us. So, we chose topics that could be listened to at any time the future. Rather than speculate on what is coming next for horror, we tend to cover topics that are established enough to still be relevant months or even years later.

Also, we strive for good sound quality. There are many podcasts that have great guests, good perspectives and interesting things to say, but sound like they’re broadcasting from inside a tin can. Our studio is nothing more spectacular than my apartment bedroom (recording onto a free version of Garage Band) but we do things like turn off the central air so it doesn’t show up on our recording. If we have dead-air or a siren goes by we cut it out later for a clean final product. More than ever, not everyone can record in the same room. But recording a show over Zoom can result in one of the hosts sounding clear and another as if they’re in the bottom of a well. When Covid forced us to do episodes separately, we did it over the phone but both recorded only our side of the conversation. Afterward, the two recordings were mixed together. It was a giant pain editing that way and making it sound like we were in the same space. But, I believe that a listener prefers a clean sound and looks for an experience that can feel like they’re just joining a conversation between friends.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
KAT: I’m such a fan of the more hidden parts of Los Angeles. Visiting celebrity graves is a favorite pastime for both Marshall and me, so I’d say a perfect morning would be grabbing some coffee and pastries from Porto’s in Burbank, then heading up to Forest Lawn Glendale for amazing views and a visit to their on-site museum. Then you can stroll around and visit various departed celebrities (Google is great for giving some direction here!) and admire the many murals and sculptures that this Memorial Park has to offer. I also support seeing some of the more common tourist destinations – but I’d recommend pairing something traditional with something a little more off the beaten path. For example, you could spend a day exploring Santa Monica and Venice, but don’t miss the opportunity while you’re on the west side to pop over to the Self-Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine in the Palisades. Or, check out Hollywood Boulevard, but don’t miss the chance to pop over to Griffith Park to explore the abandoned animal enclosures at the old zoo and the Travel Town train museum. By the way, every cool recommendation I have is something Marshall taught me about – I can’t take any credit.

MARSHALL:
Exploring Los Angeles, Kat and I have managed to go to some great horror movie locations. The original “Halloween” babysitter houses are in Hollywood as well as Nancy’s house from “A Nightmare on Elm Street”. These locations are accustomed to tourists but, when visiting, just stay on the sidewalk. For a less visited location, Kat and I have traveled to the former home of Tor Johnson, which was used in “Plan 9 From Outer Space”. We didn’t know if the private residence’s current owner enjoyed having horror fan’s creeping around so we just took a photo and split. A more famous location would be Frank Lloyd Wright’s superb Ennis House, unforgettable as the exterior in “The House On Haunted Hill” (1959). The Michael Myers house is in Pasadena, relocated next to the hardware store location from “Halloween” and the Laurie Strode house is a few blocks away.

If you only have time to visit one cemetery in LA, make it the Westwood Village Memorial cemetery. It’s small and has a huge number of celebrities. The most prominent is Marilyn Monroe but look around and find Billy Wilder, Bettie Page, Don Knotts, Dean Martin, Truman Capote and many more. And, it’s not far from my favorite pizza place in LA, Enzo’s. Enzo’s features good food and lots of photos of Luca Brasi from “The Godfather” (Enzo’s is owned by the son of the actor who played the role so you can enjoy a pizza pie while sitting under a photo of Luca Brasi being garroted).

At Halloween, get your hands on the SoCal Haunts list for that year. It’ll guide you to all the best houses for displays and homemade haunted mazes. But, all year you can visit the spooky corridor of Magnolia Blvd in Burbank as it features two (sometimes three) Halloweentown stores and two Mystic Museum sites; including the Slashback Video experience that imagines the heyday of a video store which only rents VHS horror movies. Then, be sure to visit the all-horror book store Dark Delicacies just around the corner on Hollywood Way.

If you’re going to the Friday night Classic Car Show at Bob’s Big Boy, stop behind the nearby Milt and Edie’s dry cleaning to view a mural that depicts the history of cleaning laundry in America. If you’re visiting Doc Brown’s house in Pasadena, stop along the way at the plaque commemorating the invention of the cheeseburger. There’s a statue of Bruce Lee in Chinatown and of Batman in Burbank. If you like buildings that are shaped like things, The Idle Hour bar in North Hollywood is shaped like a barrel and on its patio is the Bulldog Cafe from “The Rocketeer”. Or, look into auctions and estate sales. I recently went to the estate sale of Alex Trebek in his Los Angeles home. I got a few books and just wandered the rooms of the late Jeopardy host. If you can find such an event in LA, check it out. It’s cheaper than going to a museum and everything is for sale.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
KAT: I’ve got to go with my mom. She taught me that horror can be fun, and never restricted what I was allowed to read. I’m so thankful that when I wanted to be the Grim Reaper or a burn victim for Halloween, she was right there figuring out how to do the makeup and proudly taking pictures.

MARSHALL:
I’d also like to go with Kat’s mom. Because she made Kat and, without her, I would probably have just started a movie blog and then quit after a few months. Also, I’d like to send some credit to the Weekly Dictator podcast. When I was just considering starting “Boys and Ghouls”, they had me on as a guest and showed me the nuts and bolts of putting out a show. After recording with them, I went out that night and bought a USB microphone.

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