Ong’s Hat on TVTropes
A wonderfully comprehensive entry on Ong’s Hat at TVTropes. Whoever did this entry was very inclusive. LINK: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/ARG/OngsHat
Author: Joseph Matheny
Joseph Wayne Matheny (born December 24, 1961, in Chicago, Illinois) is an American storyteller and artist who has created works using alternate reality gaming and transmedia storytelling methods, dealing with subjects of liminality and modern myth. He holds patents for prediction, recommendation, and behavioral analysis algorithms and software design. He is a published author of screenplays, white papers, technology, sci-fi, marketing, and gaming books. He currently resides in the Pacific Northwest. He is probably best known for the avant-garde work, Ong's Hat, which has been called the proto-Alternate Reality Game by academia, the mainstream, and alternative media. Ong's Hat is often cited as the first ARG on many List of alternate reality games.
Ong’s Hat episode of Historicon (not in English)- Η πρώτη θεωρία συνωμοσίας (Guest Storyteller Elena Strouthou)
Η πρώτη θεωρία συνωμοσίας (Guest Storyteller Elena Strouthou) H φίλη και host του “Breaking the 20%” έρχεται στο στούντιο για να μας μιλήσει για την πρώτη θεωρία συνομωσίας του ιντερνετ! … Continue reading Ong’s Hat episode of Historicon (not in English)- Η πρώτη θεωρία συνωμοσίας (Guest Storyteller Elena Strouthou)
Ong’s Hat: The Internet Myth That Became a Reality
The strange saga of Ong’s Hat is one of the earliest and most enduring legends of the internet — an elaborate blend of fact, fiction, and possibility. Born in the … Continue reading Ong’s Hat: The Internet Myth That Became a Reality
EarMobPodcast Ep. 27 I Read It On The Internet So It Must Be True w. Joseph Matheny
p. 27 I Read It On The Internet So It Must Be True w. Joseph Matheny. Joseph joins us to discuss Ong’s Hat, and how the Internet caused his social … Continue reading EarMobPodcast Ep. 27 I Read It On The Internet So It Must Be True w. Joseph Matheny
Ongs Hat Compleat – Official Soundtrack
LINK: https://polypores.bandcamp.com/album/ongs-hat-compleat-official-soundtrack Also, a great write-up of this project: https://moonbuilding.substack.com/p/issue-73-1-august-2025 The soundtrack to the audiobook version of Ong’s Hat: Compleat New addition: Hat Complete soundtrack! The dl now includes a … Continue reading Ongs Hat Compleat – Official Soundtrack
Interview mit Joseph Matheny – Ongs Hat, Nekronomikon, Randonautica, UAPs, KI, Dimensionen, Künstler
Heute die Vollversion vom Interview mit Joseph Matheny. Wir reden über Ongs Hat, Lovecraft und das Nekronomikon, Wandern und andere spirituelle oder psychedelische Reisen, das Künstlerdasein, die App Randonautica und … Continue reading Interview mit Joseph Matheny – Ongs Hat, Nekronomikon, Randonautica, UAPs, KI, Dimensionen, Künstler
Keeping up to date
If you subscribe to this site via email or something like WP Reader, I wanted to let you know that I only update it with major announcements. Those would be … Continue reading Keeping up to date
This Is Not a Game with Marc Fennell (Ong’s Hat History)
This Is Not a Game is the award-winning, extraordinary, untold story of the internet’s first conspiracy theory, the legend of Ong’s Hat. Marc Fennell will dive deep into a previously … Continue reading This Is Not a Game with Marc Fennell (Ong’s Hat History)
The Mauve Zone #012 – The Great Media Brain Drain, Insight Roles, and Canadian Conspiracies
***Begin transmission Joseph Matheny, David Metcalfe, Willow Truman and Ken Eakins send you transmissions from the Mauve Zone. How idiots became ‘intellectuals’, The Queen of Canada’s Conspiracy scene, how to … Continue reading The Mauve Zone #012 – The Great Media Brain Drain, Insight Roles, and Canadian Conspiracies
A bibliographic archeology of game-like conspiracy narratives: examining the Ong’s Hat Incunabula catalog
James A. Hodges (School of Information, San Jose State University, San Jose, California, USA) Journal of Documentation ISSN: 0022-0418 Article publication date: 21 April 2025 Abstract Purpose This paper aims to reframe contemporary research on … Continue reading A bibliographic archeology of game-like conspiracy narratives: examining the Ong’s Hat Incunabula catalog
The Mysterious Egg in Ong’s Hat – The First ARG
Ong’s Hat is a real place. But the stories about it aren’t. That didn’t stop tales about a dimension hopping, scientific, transcendentalist, sadomasochistic cult from spreading across the early internet. … Continue reading The Mysterious Egg in Ong’s Hat – The First ARG
Ong’s Hat: The Beginning (Authorized Version)
Ong’s Hat: The Beginning (Authorized Version) Reissued, authorized, and final version, 2021. Available as Kindle, Print, and Audiobook Free versions at Archive.org ONG’S HAT FAQ REVIEWS “…a bizarre Internet phenomenon: … Continue reading Ong’s Hat: The Beginning (Authorized Version)
Getting out of the way with Joseph Matheny
The Cosmic Salon This is such an incredible conversation with a truly lovely soul and fellow journeyman — Joseph is behind many things in this reality that folks may not … Continue reading Getting out of the way with Joseph Matheny
The Liminal Cycle (A Trilogy) by Joseph Matheny
The Liminal Cycle, an interdisciplinary media experience. It is presented in three acts across multiple mediums. Liminal– Novella presented as a movie treatment Xen– Novel presented as a “found” mobile … Continue reading The Liminal Cycle (A Trilogy) by Joseph Matheny
New Mauve Zone and a Bonus Substack
***Begin transmission Joseph Matheny, David Metcalfe, and Ken Eakins send you transmissions from the Mauve Zone. It’s a Drone-O-Rama in the US and UK, The Orange Man is back in … Continue reading New Mauve Zone and a Bonus Substack
Happy Solar Return (New Year)
Some of the new Substack mailing. Read the entire message here. First of all, I want to say hello and thanks for sticking around. It’s been a busy year, and … Continue reading Happy Solar Return (New Year)
Cracking the Code with Joseph Matheny
(This conversation originally took place in 2021.) Joseph Matheny, legendary transmedia storyteller and creator of Ong’s Hat, has got some insight to share about the appeal of conspiracy theory and the … Continue reading Cracking the Code with Joseph Matheny
VYSXXXX | The Real Vayse: Halloween 2024
In Cronenberg’s cinematic interpretation of Burroughs’s “Naked Lunch,” Peter Weller’s Bill Lee character is confronted by Hank with pages of reports he cannot remember writing. Bill Lee drawls laconically, “I … Continue reading VYSXXXX | The Real Vayse: Halloween 2024
Strange Tales of People Who Built Portals to Other Dimensions
Perhaps one of the most famous stories of portals being opened is that of a place called Ong’s Hat. The setting for this particular tale is the ghost town of … Continue reading Strange Tales of People Who Built Portals to Other Dimensions
The Mauve Zone #009 – The Media v Miracles, the Horror of Nature, and Cosmic Transmissions.
***Begin transmission Joseph Matheny, David Metcalfe, and Ken Eakins send you transmissions from the Mauve Zone. David’s ‘Scars of Dracula’ T, Amicus v Hammer, Robert Bloch and HP Lovecraft, Cosmic … Continue reading The Mauve Zone #009 – The Media v Miracles, the Horror of Nature, and Cosmic Transmissions.
The Rebel Podcast: Episode 232: Ong’s Hat (The”Fake” Town)
Listen: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/stylesrebelradio/episodes/Episode-232-Ongs-Hat-TheFake-Town-e2pm74i/a-abj2nus What is going on in Ong’s Hat New Jersey? Does this abandoned town hold the secrets to interdimensional travel or the secrets to Quantum reality? Was it all … Continue reading The Rebel Podcast: Episode 232: Ong’s Hat (The”Fake” Town)
Joseph Matheny: Bending Reality With Art
Had a blast meeting Steve and kibitzing about all our mutual passions. I hope you enjoy listening to this as much as I enjoyed recording it. Steve’s intro: This week … Continue reading Joseph Matheny: Bending Reality With Art
First Time Caller: An Art Bell Tribute
In this episode of The Computer Room, Katherine and friends talk about Art Bell’s legacy. We meet Leah Prime, who’s writing a book about Art Bell, John Steiger who on … Continue reading First Time Caller: An Art Bell Tribute
The Mauve Zone #008 – The Collins Elite, X Disinformation, and the London Riots
***Begin transmission Joseph Matheny, David Metcalfe, and Ken Eakins send you transmissions from the Mauve Zone. New disinformation from the top and the London Riots, Will the real Collins Elite … Continue reading The Mauve Zone #008 – The Collins Elite, X Disinformation, and the London Riots
Mother Foucault’s Bookshop Friday, July 19, 2024
Friday, 7/19/24, join author, programmer, & psychonaut Joseph Matheny for a talk on trickster deities, literary hoaxes, & the enduring legend of Ong’s Hat. 7pm AUDIO of appearance Archive.org copy
Joseph Matheny 