{"id":920,"date":"2025-10-01T11:44:00","date_gmt":"2025-10-01T11:44:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vanessayrogers.com\/fabricoffolklore\/?post_type=podcast&#038;p=920"},"modified":"2025-10-20T14:45:40","modified_gmt":"2025-10-20T14:45:40","slug":"ep-68-krampus-and-other-frightening-christmas-monsters-with-jeff-belanger","status":"publish","type":"podcast","link":"https:\/\/vanessayrogers.com\/fabricoffolklore\/podcast\/ep-68-krampus-and-other-frightening-christmas-monsters-with-jeff-belanger\/","title":{"rendered":"Ep 68: Krampus and Other Frightening Christmas Monsters with Jeff Belanger"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Is Krampus a villain we should fear, or is he Santa&#8217;s sidekick? In episode 68, we speak with Jeff Belanger\u2014author, podcaster, storyteller, and explorer of the unexplained who specializes in paranormal phenomena, folklore, and legends. His latest book, The Fright Before Christmas: Surviving Krampus and Other Yuletide Monsters, Witches, and Ghosts, explores the darker aspects of Christmas folklore. We delve into various mythical creatures associated with the holiday season, such as Krampus, Belsnickel, and the Yule Lads, examining their origins and roles in different cultures. Jeff reflects on societal values and the human psyche tied to these traditions as we uncover the macabre side of Christmas and winter customs. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@LegendTripping\">\u202a@LegendTripping\u202c<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@fabricoffolklorepodcast\"><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Watch this episode on YouTube<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Click below to watch this full episode on our YouTube channel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe title=\"Ep 68: Krampus and Other Frightening Christmas Monsters with Jeff Belanger\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/fVdoDZJytqU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Is Krampus a villain we should fear, or is he Santa&#8217;s sidekick? In episode 68, we speak with Jeff Belanger\u2014author, podcaster, storyteller, and explorer of the unexplained who specializes in paranormal phenomena, folklore, and legends. His latest book, The Fright Before Christmas: Surviving Krampus and Other Yuletide Monsters, Witches, and Ghosts, explores the darker aspects [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":921,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"episode_type":"audio","audio_file":"https:\/\/vanessayrogers.com\/fabricoffolklore\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Ep-68-Krampus-and-Other-Frightening-Christmas-Monsters-with-Jeff-Belanger.webm","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"https:\/\/vanessayrogers.com\/fabricoffolklore\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/maxresdefault-84-1.jpg","cover_image_id":"922","duration":"1:14:18","filesize":"62.32M","filesize_raw":"65345872","date_recorded":"2025-10-01 11:44:00","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"full"},"tags":[],"series":[76],"class_list":["post-920","podcast","type-podcast","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","series-fabric-of-folklore"],"episode_featured_image":"https:\/\/vanessayrogers.com\/fabricoffolklore\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/maxresdefault-84.jpg","episode_player_image":"https:\/\/vanessayrogers.com\/fabricoffolklore\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/maxresdefault-84-1.jpg","download_link":"https:\/\/vanessayrogers.com\/fabricoffolklore\/podcast-download\/920\/ep-68-krampus-and-other-frightening-christmas-monsters-with-jeff-belanger","player_link":"https:\/\/vanessayrogers.com\/fabricoffolklore\/podcast-player\/920\/ep-68-krampus-and-other-frightening-christmas-monsters-with-jeff-belanger","audio_player":null,"episode_data":{"playerMode":"dark","subscribeUrls":{"audible":{"key":"audible","url":"","label":"Audible","class":"audible","icon":"audible.png"},"apple_podcasts":{"key":"apple_podcasts","url":"","label":"Apple Podcasts","class":"apple_podcasts","icon":"apple-podcasts.png"},"google_play":{"key":"google_play","url":"","label":"Google Play","class":"google_play","icon":"google-play.png"},"google_podcasts":{"key":"google_podcasts","url":"","label":"Google Podcasts","class":"google_podcasts","icon":"google-podcasts.png"},"pandora":{"key":"pandora","url":"","label":"Pandora","class":"pandora","icon":"pandora.png"},"rssradio":{"key":"rssradio","url":"","label":"RSSRadio","class":"rssradio","icon":"rssradio.png"},"spotify":{"key":"spotify","url":"","label":"Spotify","class":"spotify","icon":"spotify.png"},"stitcher":{"key":"stitcher","url":"","label":"Stitcher","class":"stitcher","icon":"stitcher.png"},"youtube":{"key":"youtube","url":"","label":"YouTube","class":"youtube","icon":"youtube.png"},"iheartradio":{"key":"iheartradio","url":"","label":"iHeartRadio","class":"iheartradio","icon":"iheartradio.png"}},"rssFeedUrl":"https:\/\/vanessayrogers.com\/fabricoffolklore\/feed\/podcast\/fabric-of-folklore","embedCode":"<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"he7MGWhuGw\"><a href=\"https:\/\/vanessayrogers.com\/fabricoffolklore\/podcast\/ep-68-krampus-and-other-frightening-christmas-monsters-with-jeff-belanger\/\">Ep 68: Krampus and Other Frightening Christmas Monsters with Jeff Belanger<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" src=\"https:\/\/vanessayrogers.com\/fabricoffolklore\/podcast\/ep-68-krampus-and-other-frightening-christmas-monsters-with-jeff-belanger\/embed\/#?secret=he7MGWhuGw\" width=\"500\" height=\"350\" title=\"&#8220;Ep 68: Krampus and Other Frightening Christmas Monsters with Jeff Belanger&#8221; &#8212; Fabric of Folklore\" data-secret=\"he7MGWhuGw\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\"><\/iframe><script>\n\/*! 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