Shore Leave 30 Guest: Michael Jan Friedman

Michael Jan Friedman wasn’t a big believer in the paranormal until he was asked to co-write Ghost Hunting, which chronicles the adventures of those two plumber guys from the hit Sci Fi TV show Ghost Hunters.

Now Mike sees ghosts everywhere.

And not just the ghosts of people, which—let’s face it—would be weird enough. He sees the ghosts of bellbottom jeans that linger on this earth still hoping to be worn out and patched and worn out again. He sees the ghosts of eight-track cassettes that refuse to believe their time here is done. He sees the ghosts of pet rocks and Pintos, rotary dial phones and Rocket J. Squirrel.

They haunt him, icing each bony rung of his spine. They flit in and out of his consciousness, hiding just behind his eyeballs. They won’t give him a moment’s respite.

So if anyone at the con knows a good exorcist, please call Mike in care of Studio 54, New York City. He’ll call back just as soon as he finishes his Bonomo’s Turkish Taffy.

Even before he became obsessed with the dead, Mike was the author of 65 books, the majority of them science fiction or fantasy. Eleven of his books have appeared on the prestigious New York Times bestseller lists and several more have been bestsellers in Europe, Latin America, and Asia. Mike has also written for TV, radio, and several different comic book publishers, including D.C. and Marvel. In 1995, he co-wrote the Star Trek: Voyager episode “Resistance,” which series star Kate Mulgrew once cited as one of her favorites.