The Karen & Ellen Letters (Season One Trailer)

The Karen & Ellen Letters are found correspondance between two teenage girls and their landlord, over a three year period, from the 1980s. This podcast is the reading of those letters and a re-telling of the host's journey to authenticate them. The girls are demanding at best, the landlord is tired and impatient, the journey is the perfect blend of comedy, mystery, and cognitive dissonance.

The Karen & Ellen Letters arrive on September 5 at www.karenandellen.com.

Episode Transcript

(00:09):
This is a studio both and production. In two thousand and five, I
was gifted a bound collection of lettersthat would, in many senses change my
life. It was over a hundredpages of handwritten letters from the late nineteen

(00:35):
eighties between a landlord and two ofhis tenants. The letters are at first
ridiculous, then insane, and thenultimately two insane to be believed. And
that's where this podcast actually begins,because those letters would send me on a

(00:59):
few fifteen year investigation to find thetruth about the letters and the people who
wrote them, if they ever actuallyexisted. That investigation would force me to
ask myself a lot of questions fromthe comedic whose responsibility is it to replace

(01:23):
dead fish at a rental? Andhow exactly does someone break a refrigerator with
a leg of lamb, to thephilosophical, like who owns a story?
When does nonfiction become fiction? Andhow are we as consumers responsible for the

(01:44):
blurred line between the two. TheKaren and Ellen Letters are equal parts mystery
and comedy. It's a deep diveinvestigation into both found writings and humanity.
You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'llgoogle endlessly, and you'll laugh so hard

(02:06):
you cry, you'll hear the actualletters, along with my fifteen year journey
to get to the bottom of them. The Karen and Ellen letters arrive on
September fifth, July first, nineteeneighty seven. Dear Mark, when I

(02:28):
signed the lease last week, Ipointed out the burned out light bulb in
the refrigerator. You said if Ireplaced it myself, I could deduct the
cost for my next month's rent,along with any other small expenses that were
your responsibility. So I'm sending youthis list of things I plan will deduct
from my August rent list. Numberone one refrigerator light bulb two dollars two,

(02:49):
oven light bulb two dollars three,shed padlock eight dollars four, telephone
installation thirty seven dollars five, telephonethirty six dollars six, telephone extension cord
nine dollars seven, hangers for closetsin bedrooms twelve dollars. Eight extra front

(03:12):
door keys, u okade six dollarsnine, fish food ten dollars ten,
I'll jacide five dollars eleven, gardentools sixteen dollars twelve, ice trade for
freezer two dollars thirteen, cleaning stuffforty six dollars. Karen, July twenty

(03:36):
first, nineteen eighty seven. DearMark, Hello, I'm just writing to
let you know how much I'm lookingforward to moving into my new home.
Karen has described the house to me, and it sounds well dreamy. I
know we will get along famously.As you know, I'm an artist and
i'm majoring an interior design at yousee, I'm looking forward to trying out

(03:58):
some of my ideas on my newhome. I'm leaving money matters to Karen.
Being an artist, I'm not aspractical as she is. I've been
studying art in Washington this summer.One of the things I've learned here is
a new oil transfer process for marbleizingwalls and ceilings. Of course, I'll
check with you before doing any workon my walls, but I know you'll

(04:18):
just love it. I have agauzy picture in my mind of the house.
Now I know that the work,imagination, and some financial assistance from
you, I can turn my newhome into an enchanted place. Yours,
Helen oh August fifth, nineteen eightyseven, Karen, I will not debate

(04:41):
the electric bill with you. Inthe rental agreement, you signed you agreed
to pay half of the property's electricbill. I cannot measure the amount of
electricity used by you versus the amountof electricity used by the Caldwells and their
two cats. Read your rental agreement. Sincerely, Mark,