''Alice Isn't Dead'' is a
podcast presented as a series of audio diaries by a truck driver in her search across America for the wife she had long assumed was dead (the eponymous Alice). In the course of her search, she encounters not-quite-human serial murderers, towns literally lost in time, and a conspiracy that goes way beyond her missing wife.
The series was created in 2016 by Joseph Fink, and it has been published by
Night Vale Presents
Night Vale Presents, formerly known as Commonplace Books, is a production company and independent podcast network founded in 2015 by Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor. In 2016 Night Vale Presents expanded into a network hosting original podcasts oth ...
since March 8, 2016.
The main character and narrator, whose name is only mentioned as being Keisha on the last episode of the first season, is voiced by
Jasika Nicole. During its run, the podcast typically aired on alternating Tuesdays. The first season ended on July 12, 2016, with a second season premiering on April 4, 2017 which concluded on August 8th, 2017. Fink stated that the third season would be the final season; it began airing on April 24, 2018, and concluded in August, 2018.
A novel based on the series, written by Fink, was released on October 30, 2018 by
Harper Perennial.
Production
In an interview with the ''
Huffington Post
''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...
'', Joseph Fink explained that the inspiration for the podcast came from his experiences traveling around in vans on long trips, particularly in the United States, for the ''
Welcome to Night Vale'' live shows.
The series puts particular focus on the narrator driving through towns without stopping and spending time at rest stops along the highway. All ten episodes of the first season were written by Fink, with music by Disparition.
Jasika Nicole also appears on ''
Welcome to Night Vale'' in the role of Dana Cardinal. She was pitched ''Alice Isn't Dead'' during a conversation with Fink before one of the ''Night Vale'' live shows and signed on immediately, receiving scripts a few months later.
The first season was partially funded through sponsored advertising by
Audible Inc.,
Squarespace,
Casper Sleep, and
Blue Apron - a practice that would continue with other series under the ''Night Vale Presents'' banner such as ''Within the Wires'' and ''
The Orbiting Human Circus (of the Air)
''The Orbiting Human Circus (of the Air)'' is a fictional radio drama podcast written and created by Julian Koster, and published by Night Vale Presents. It is the fourth podcast to be released under the Night Vale Presents name. The podcast st ...
''.
Roberta Colindrez, who appeared in the original cast of ''
Fun Home'' and was a member of the
Neo-Futurists alongside much of the Night Vale Presents crew, makes an uncredited voice cameo in the finale of Part 1. She makes her first credited appearance as this character in the bonus episode "Haugen, Montana," narrating in place of Jasika Nicole, before making an appearance in the premiere of Part 2. Erica Livingston, also a former Neo-Futurist, makes an uncredited voice cameo as the titular Alice in the finale of Part 2, before making her first credited appearance as the character narrating the bonus episode "Mérida, Yucatán."
List of episodes
Series overview
Part 1 (2016)
Part 2 (2017)
Part 3 (2018)
Bonus episodes
During the lead ups to the releases of Part 2 and Part 3, short bonus episodes were released to advertise the podcast's return.
Part 2 (2017)
Part 3 (2018)
Another live show, entitled "The Finish Line," was be performed at Live at the Coronet in Los Angeles on April 27, 2019, and was released digitally on November 14, 2019.
Patreon-exclusive
As part of the
Patreon campaign for Part 3, several bonus episodes were released to patrons of the show.
On October 14, 2019, the first four Patreon exclusive episodes were released publicly as a compilation episode called "The Window & The Mirror."
Reception
Cassandra Khaw
Cassandra Khaw (born 31 August 1984) is a Malaysian writer of horror and science fiction. They also create video games and tabletop games, and formerly wrote about them as a games and tech journalist.
Biography
Cassandra Khaw was born in Malays ...
of ''
Ars Technica
''Ars Technica'' is a website covering news and opinions in technology, science, politics, and society, created by Ken Fisher and Jon Stokes in 1998. It publishes news, reviews, and guides on issues such as computer hardware and software, sci ...
'' positively reviewed the first three episodes, stating that the series "very quickly comes into its own, dropping any pretence of gallows humour for the kind of creeping, consuming terror that pervades the best horror movies." Neil Verma compared the ''
modus operandi
A ''modus operandi'' (often shortened to M.O.) is someone's habits of working, particularly in the context of business or criminal investigations, but also more generally. It is a Latin phrase, approximately translated as "mode (or manner) of op ...
'' of the Thistle Man, the series' antagonist who follows its narrator as she drives across America, to that of the eponymous villain in
Lucille Fletcher's 1941
radio play ''
The Hitch-Hiker
''The Hitch-Hiker'' is a 1953 American film noir thriller co-written and directed by Ida Lupino, starring Edmond O'Brien, William Talman and Frank Lovejoy, about two friends taken hostage by a hitchhiker during an automobile trip to Mexico.
...
''.
Awards
TV adaptation
A television adaptation of the podcast was in development for
USA Network by
Universal Cable Productions. The series would have been written and executive produced by
Kyle Bradstreet
Kyle Bradstreet (born 1979/1980) is an American television writer and producer. From 2015 to 2019, Bradstreet worked on the USA Network series ''Mr. Robot''. He is the creator and the executive producer of the upcoming Disney+ miniseries ''Secret ...
, who would have served as
showrunner
A showrunner (or colloquially a helmer) is the top-level executive producer of a television series production who has creative and management authority through combining the responsibilities of employer and, in comedy or dramas, typically also th ...
.
Fink would have written for and executive produced the show.
The show was ultimately not picked up.
See also
*
Horror podcast
References
2016 podcast debuts
2018 podcast endings
American podcasts
Audio podcasts
Horror podcasts
LGBT-related podcasts
Podcasts adapted for other media
Scripted podcasts
Night Vale Presents
External links
*
{{Podcast platform links