America is fascinated with it’s celebrities. It’s also fascinated with the paranormal. It seemed only natural that I should throw something together to merge the two obsessions. The Bio channel has been cashing in on it’s new show “Celebrity Ghost Stories,” but while entertaining, the featured celebrities aren’t quite A-listers. So I’ve assembled this little inventory of haunted celebrities, and celebrities who have passed on but reported to still be hanging around.  HEATH LEDGER AND MICHELLE WILLIAMS – since his untimely death in 2008 Heath Ledger seems to have found a way to come back to his ex Michelle Williams. One night Michelle was awoken to the sounds of furniture moving around the room. She saw a shadowy figure that looked like Heath. Another time Michelle says he visited and apologized for not being there to help raise their daughter, Matilda.
 NEVE CAMPBELL – The Scream star bought a house that had been owned by a woman who was murdered in 1991. She reported paranormal activity including doors slamming, windows banging open, and ashtrays flying off shelves. The specter of the woman has been seen by Campbell and visitors on many occasions. Neve says she grew accustomed to the spirit, “After a while it felt normal. I'd pass her in the hallway and casually wish her good morning.”
 ADELE – The phenomenal British songstress paid £7 million for a home in Sussex that had once been a convent. Immediately after moving in Adele said she was creeped out by the place. She told friends about hearing bangings late at night. She was so freaked out she moved in her female bodyguard so she wouldn’t be alone in the mansion, and hired additional security personnel.
 LUCILLE BALL – Lucy seemed to have been loved by those living and dead. During her life she managed to keep her encounters with the supernatural relatively quiet. At one time she had grown tired of being known as a comedy queen, until she was visited in a dream by her dead friend Carol Lombard, who convinced her to keep going. Lucy’s spirit is said to frequent her old Beverly Hills home, where furniture moves and windows are found broken with no explanation, and shouting sounds have been traced to the attic. Lucy is also believed to hang around the Paramount Studios building where DesiLu’s production offices were located. Security guards have reported seeing a woman wandering the upper levels and smelling old flowers and perfume.
 JOE HILL – The son of horror writer Stephen King has came into his own, publishing several novels of his own. One of his works was picked up for a television pilot. While the show never got picked up, Joe’s return trip from shooting the pilot in Pittsburg led him to spend the night in the Bethleham Hotel. The hotel’s room 932 is supposedly haunted. Visitors can by the “Room With a Boo” package that includes spending the night in the spooked room. The night Hill visited the room was booked and he was given room 832, directly below it. Even so Hill woke up in the middle of the night as terrified as he’d ever been. He was certain something was sitting on the edge of his bed and was paralyzed, unable to lift his head to see who, or what was there. He was able to scream, quite loudly, which caused a lot of thumping from the room above to be heard. Perhaps there were residual haunting effects from the room above experienced by Stephen King’s son that night.
 MATTHEW MCCONAUGHEY – Alright, alright, alright. When Matthew McConaughey moved into his Hollywood home he and his dog spent the first night, where else, in a tent. He awoke to the sounds of furniture moving and other weird noises. McConaughey grabbed a baseball bat and went off to investigate, in his birthday suit. The actor is convinced the noises he heard that night were caused by the apparition he has seen several times since then, whom he calls Madame Blue. When talking about Madame Blue he often says the two of them get along famously, and he thinks it may be because of his constant nudity at home.
 ANNA NICOLE SMITH – The Texas native and former Playmate has paranormal tales circulating from both sides of the grave. During her life, Anna Nicole talked about an incubus that used to visit her in an apartment she once lived in. She claimed she thought it was her boyfriend until she woke up one day and it wasn’t. At first Smith was freaked out by it, but came to terms with it saying, “Well, you know what? He’s never hurt me and he just gave me some amazing sex so I have no problem.” And Anna Nicole isn’t the only celebrity to have encountered such a spirit. Lucy Liu has also talked about being visited by an incubus.
After her death from an accidental overdose in 2007 Smith’s ghost has been spotted at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel in Hollywood, Florida where she passed away. To discourage tourists seeking to exploit the room she died in, the hotel has since renumbered the rooms so that room 607 can’t be found.
 DAN AYKROYD AND MAMA CASS – One of the writers and stars of the Ghostbusters films has had his own real life encounters with the paranormal. Aykroyd, who lives in the home once owned by Mama Cass Elliot of the Mamas and the Papas, is sure the singer is still lingering around. “I'm sure it's Mama Cass because you get the feeling it's a big ghost.” Gym equipment and jewelry moves around mysteriously. Aykroyd says she once crawled into bed with him. He says he rolled over and nuzzled up to whatever it was and went back to sleep.
 NICOLAS CAGE – Actor Nic Cage owned one of the most notoriously haunted properties in the country. The LaLaurie House in New Orleans has a haunted past that goes back to the 1930s and a socialite named Madame Delphine LaLaurie. Madame LaLaurie was well known for the elaborate parties she hosted in the home, as well as her dark side. She is said to have mistreated, abused, and some say even murdered slaves. During the time he owned the home, Cage never slept there. Over the years countless witnesses have reported ghostly goings on there. For more info on the LaLaurie House’s haunted history visit this link. Perhaps Cage’s reluctance to spend the night at the LaLaurie House and possibly encounter it’s ghosts stems from an experience he had at an earlier age while staying at the home of his uncle, Francis Ford Coppola. Nic’s room was in the attic. One night he saw the black silhouette of a woman with big hair appeared. At first he thought it was his aunt, but as it approached he realized he didn’t know what it was. He screamed and threw a pillow at it, and it disappeared.
 SHARON TATE – The horrific murder of actress Sharon Tate and several guests at her home by the Manson Family is a dark stain on American culture. In August of 1969 Tate, the pregnant wife of director Roman Polanski, was stabbed to death repeatedly by followers of Charles Manson. Eerily, just days before the murders, Sharon confided to friends that she had seen her own ghost. If you’ve read my blog on dopplegangers you’ll know this is commonly seen as an omen of impending death. The encounter started while she was in bed and saw what she believed was the ghost of the home’s previous owner, Paul Burn, who had shot himself there following the breakup of his marriage to actress Jean Harlow. Terrified, Tate fled downstairs only to be confronted with her own ghost. She saw herself tied to a pillar with her throat cut, in the same position her body would be found days later.
 JIM MORRISON – The Lizard King died in Paris but some would have it that his ghost is still hanging around a Mexican restaurant on Santa Monica Boulevard. The restaurant was once a recording studio The Doors used as a workshop. A manager there reports lights mysteriously going on and off and the door handle to the bathroom, which was where the recording booth once was, jingles by itself. A chef added that someone was brought in to do a sort of spiritual cleansing but was unsuccessful, telling the owners that whatever was there wasn’t leaving.
An interesting photo is out there, supposedly taken in 1997 at the French cemetery where Morrison is buried. It shows ‘rock hisrorian’ Brad Meisner and what appears to be the spirit of Morrison in the background. Experts who have analyzed the photo say it shows no signs of manipulation. You decide.
 TORI SPELLING AND FARRAH FAWCETT – After the death of her father, super-producer Aaron Spelling, actress Tori Spelling had psychic John Edward attempt to contact him. Instead her late neighbor, Farah Fawcett came through. She asked that Tori pass along very specific messages to her family.
 ORSON WELLS – The genius behind Citizen Kane and responsible for the ensuing real-life panic when his “War of the Worlds” was broadcasted on the radio and thought to be actual news bulletins reporting a Martian invasion is said to still hang around his favorite haunt. His apparition has been seen at what was his favorite restaurant during his life, Sweet Lady Jane’s in Los Angeles, sitting at the table he preferred. The smells of his brandy and cigars are also said to sometimes be present.
 JOHN LENNON – Shot and killed by Mark David Chapman in 1980 in New York, the spirit of John Lennon has reportedly touched those who were close to him since his death. His son Julian believes it was the spirit of his father at work when in Australia working on a film, he was handed a white feather by an Aboriginal elder during a ceremony. Lennon told his son before his death that if he died, to look for a white feather. Fellow Beatle Paul McCartney also believes Lennon visited the studio where his former bandmates were recording of one of his songs. A white peacock wondered in and McCartney is sure it was Lennon (although it belonged to a neighbor). When they finished the recording they decided to throw some backmasking on the end, recording themselves backwards and sounding like gibberish when played forward, all except for one part. See video below:
The paranormal world today has come a long way from the UFO sightings and ghost stories of women in white crying on the side of the road of the 1950s. Scully and Mulder helped usher in a new wave of interest in all things spooky in the 1990s. UFOs evolved to include reports of crop circles and abductions to perform genetic experiments. Fringe science helped to popularize new age beliefs. New creatures popped up like the chupacabra that emerged in Puerto Rico and made its way up through Mexico into the US.
The start of the new millennium saw even more interest in the paranormal, with ghost hunting shows taking over the airwaves. The culture continued to evolve. The internet revolutionized access to information. The world wide web helped to spread tales of strange encounters. Anyone could post about their encounters on forums and social networking sites.
Reports started to appear about encounters with black eyed children. Had it not been for the internet revolution it is doubtful that stories about encountering black eyed children would have caught fire and taken off as they have. Nearly all of the accounts were eerily similar, with the weird kids approaching a person and asking to be let in to their home or car. They seemed to emit a vibe that incited absolute fear in the person. When they are told no the children become enraged, banging on windows and doors and yelling, demanding to be let in. No reports exist in which the person allowed them in. Perhaps this tells us that to do so would mean certain death by some horrid unknown means.
It took until the 2000s for stories of black eyed kids to take off and gain popularity. The genesis of the reports goes back to 1998. Journalist Brian Bethel wrote about his encounter. Bethel had just gotten into his car when two boys approached him and asked for a ride. He described feeling sudden fear and panic and an urge to flee, while at the same time a strange need to open the door for the boys. That was when he noticed their eyes. They were coal black. There was no visible white to them, no colored iris. The entire eye was as black as the pupil. Even more frightened now, Bethel refused the boys, who became more insistent and banged on the windows. Bethel said that was when their ‘spell’ broke long enough for him to put his car into gear and get the hell out of there.
Since Bethel’s story thousands of more accounts have been made. There are usually two children, while cases with only one have been reported. They frequently appear to be in their teens, sometimes younger. They are usually dressed in trendy clothes, often hoodies, but in a handful of instances they were dressed in period clothing. They have very pale skin and something about them seems off. They all have those coal-black eyes that the person usually doesn’t notice at first. They seem to only come out in the late evening or at night.
Almost every account of black eyed children encounters includes the strange need to oblige the children’s request. It’s been theorized that this is a result of a psychic signal the kids send to the person. In many instances the person described a hypnotic feeling and having to fight the urge to let them in. They tell the person they need in to use their phone, or ask for a ride because they need to get home, their mother is worried about them.
So what are these kids? Where do they come from? People have declared that they are everything from Satan’s spawn and demons in disguise to alien shape shifters and offspring of the Nephilim. What would happen if you let one in? Some believe they are vampire-like creatures, probably related to their need to be invited in, that will exanguinate you if allowed inside. Others think they’re trying to feed, but are hungry for your soul rather than your blood. Skeptics point out that you can buy contacts that make your eyes look black. Believers argue that such contacts are extremely uncomfortable and not cheap, thus not likely to be being worn by these kids. An interesting side note involves the famous cloned sheep, Dolly. Dolly had black eyes with no whites. This leads some to believe that these kids are clones, and since they were created in a lab they have no soul and this is why they are hungry for yours. When will Hollywood catch on and cash in on this relatively new paranormal phenomena? Are black eyed kids with some unknown origin lurking out there in the dark waiting, or is this a new urban legend propelled by the anonymous ability to post such tales on the internet? Author David Weatherly has written a book detailing accounts and theorize about them, called The Black Eyed Children. For more info on black eyed kids visit the following links: Article from Who Forted Several accounts of encounters on about.comAnother good article
While researching my previous blog "Curses! (Foiled Again)" I came across vast number of supposed curses. So many of them play such a big role in Americana culture I felt the need to give you a look at a few more famous curses.
Before we jump in, I want to include a quick follow up to the curse of Little Bastard and James Dean. Dean's short career took off after he starred in "Rebel Without A Cause." All three of the principle cast members went on to meet untimely deaths. Dean was killed in the car crash in 1955. His co-star Natalie Wood drowned in 1981 under mysteriouss circumstances. She reportedly fell off the boat she was on with her husband, Robert Wagner, and actor Christopher Walken. Sal Mineo, who played Plato, rumored to have been the first gay film character, was stabbed to death in a West Hollywood alley in 1976.
THE 27 CLUB
Pop culture has witnessed the deaths of what seems to be an unusually large number of musicians at the age of 27. Whether it is statistically significant or not, the idea has taken root and grown in the minds of music fans for decades.
Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones is often cited as the founding member of the modern 27 Club. He was found dead in his swimming pool in 1969. From then until 1971 the rock world saw the deaths of three more of it's most popular musicians. In September of 1970 guitar legend Jimi Hendrix died of a drug overdose in London. The following month blues singer Janis Joplin died of an overdose in Los Angeles. Jim Morrison, lead singer of The Doors and self-proclaimed Lizard King, was found dead in his bathtub in Paris in July of 1971.
The 27 Club gained attention again in 1994 when Curt Cobain of Nirvana was found dead of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. His mother was quoted as saying, "Now he's gone and joined that stupid club."
Things get strange from here. Cobain was married to Courtney Love, lead singer of the band Hole. Months after losing her husband, she also lost her bass player, Kristen Pfaff, to a heroine overdose. Pfaff was 27 years old. Digging a little further, we find that at age five Courtney appeared on the cover of the Grateful Dead album Aoxomoxoa, with several others and the band members, which included Ron ‘Pigpen’ McKerna, who joined the 27 Club on 8 March 1973. As I said earlier, Jones' death is considered the first of the modern 27 Club, but the large number of deaths of musicians at the age of 27 goes back much further. An official list found here goes back to include classical composers in the 19th century. The death toll is said to be 41. The legend of the 27 Club usually credits guitarist Robert Johnson as it's founding member. Johnson achieved more fame after his death than he ever saw in life. Legend has it he met the devil at a crossroad in Mississippi and the devil tuned his guitar, thus giving him mastery of the instrument. Johnson died in 1938, apparently poisoned by a jealous husband. An interesting side note to the story of the 27 Club is the white lighter legend. Since high school I've never carried a white lighter, as I was once told they were bad luck. I had no idea where this superstition came from back then. It was reported that Joplin, Hendrix, and Morrison all had white lighters in their pockets when they died. Whether it was better or not, these legendary musicians ultimately burned out, rather than faded away. THE ATUK SCRIPT CURSE Lesser known than the 27 Club is the supposed cursed script for a movie called "Atuk," based on a novel about an Eskimo who moves to New York and is a fish out of water story. Legend has It that actors who read the script end up dead. John Belushi was offered the role. He read the script and was enthusiastic about taking on the role. Tragically he was found dead of a heroine overdose in 1982. After Belushi’s death the role was given to comedic actor Sam Kinneson. Filming began, and after shooting only one scene Kinneson became dissatisfied and demanded parts of the script be rewritten. Filming came to a halt and shortly after Kinneson died in a car accident when he was hit by a drunk driver in 1992. The press began talking about a curse attached to the movie when John Candy became interested in the role. He was reading the script when he died of a heart attack in 1994, on the 12th anniversary of Belushi’s death. Chris Farley climbed to fame after breaking out on Saturday Night Live. Atuk was pulled off the studio shelf and Farley was about to accept the role when he died of a drug overdose in 1997 at the age of 33, the same age that John Belushi , whom Farley had idolized, died at. The curse struck one more time. Farley had given the script to SNL cast mate Phil Hartman, encouraging him to take a co-starring role. In 1998 Hartman was murdered by his wife. The Atuk script has been shelved. No plans for future attempts at it's production have been made.
The Superman Curse
The Superman Curse refers to the belief some people have that people involved in various adaptations of the comic hero, especially actors portraying the man of steel, were fated to meet tragedy. A total of 5 actors that portrayed the hero, George Reeves, Bud Collyer, Lee Quigley, Kirk Alyn and Christopher Reeve, met untimely deaths. The legend states that if you intend to play the strongest man on Earth, you will either die or end up in the weakest position possible.
In the 1950s George Reeves played Superman in films and television shows. In 1959, days before he was to get married, he was found dead in his home from a gunshot wound. Controversy continues even today as Reeves was known to be having an affair with the wife of a studio executive. His prints were not found on the gun. From there whispers of a curse associated with the character began.
George Reeves as Superman
Several other actors associated with the role were said to succumb to the curse. Most notably was Christopher Reeves who played Superman in a series of films from the late 1970s through the 1980s. Like others who had portrayed the character before him, Reeves became type casted and found it difficult to find other roles. Reeves was participating in an equestrian event in 1995 when he was thrown from his horse, breaking his neck and leaving him paralyzed from the neck down. He died in 2004 from complications related to his injury.
Christopher Reeves
In recent years executives have revived the Superman franchise. Because of the alleged curse actors Josh Hartnett and Paul Walker both turned down the opportunity to portray the superhero.
Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster created the character who became the most iconic superhero around. They sold the rights to the character to DC Comics for $130 and had to sit back and watch as DC made a fortune on the character. After years of lawsuits they were awarded a small annual payment and given credit as creators of Superman. It’s been said that Siegel and Shuster cursed their creation and could be responsible for the subsequent tragedies. Hmmmmm.
Others said to have fallen victim of the curse include Richard Pryor, who appeared in Superman III and was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis shortly after. Marlon Brando played Superman’s father in film, and later suffered many personal tragedies including his son killing his girlfriend and being sent to prison and the suicide of his daughter. Lee Quigley appeared in a 1978 Superman movie as an infant, and died at the age of 14 after inhaling chemical solvents. Margot Kidder, who played Superman’s love interest Lois Lane, suffered from severe bipolar disorder. In 1996 she went missing for days before the police found her in a paranoid delusional state.
In an interesting twist in 1963 President John F. Kennedy’s staff approved a Superman story in which the hero touts the president’s physical fitness initiative. It was scheduled to be released the following April, but Kennedy was assassinated in November and presidential successor Lyndon Johnson had them publish a reworked version.
THE KENNEDY CURSE
A series of unfortunate events has plagued America’s most famous political family. While some say these tragedies could happen to any family and the curse is invoked because of the family’s position in the public eye, there's no denying the Kennedy's have endured one tragedy after another for decades.
The Kennedy’s are the closest thing to American royalty. Many family members have served in high-ranking public offices. The curse claimed it’s first victim when Joe Kennedy Jr, the eldest brother of JFK, volunteered for a dangerous mission flying explosives. He was killed when his plane exploded over the English Channel. In 1941 Joe Kennedy Sr., father to JFK, arranged for an experimental lobotomy for his daughter Rosemary. The result left her institutionalized until her death in 2004. In 1948 Kennedy sister Kathleen Kennedy Cavendish was killed in a plane crash in France.
JFK and his wife Jackie experienced their share of loss, having one baby stillborn, one miscarriage, and one baby, Patrick Bouvier Kennedy, died 2 days after he was born, having been six weeks premature. John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963. Jackie went on to remarry Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onasis. Subsequently two of her Onasis stepchildren suffered untimely deaths, one in a plane crash and one from substance abuse.
Robert, or Bobby Kennedy seemed to be following in his brother’s footsteps. His political career was on fire and he received the nomination from the Democratic party to run for president. At an event shortly after receiving the nomination Bobby was assinated by Sirhan Sirhan.
In 1964 Senator Edward Kennedy escaped a plane crash that killed his aide. In 1969 he was driving home from a party on Chappaquiddick Island with Mary Jo Kopechne when he drove off a bridge into the water. Kennedy managed to escape from the car but left Mary Jo behind to drown. In a televised statement he questioned whether there was a curse on his family..
The curse seemed to have continued to come after the following generations of Kennedy’s. In 1973 Edward Kennedy Jr. lost his right leg due to bone cancer. In 1997 Michael Kennedy, son of Bobby Kennedy, died after he hit a tree while playing football on skis. Numerous other tragedies befell the Kennedy clan, including several family members suffering from addiction, car accidents, and rape accusations. In 1984 David Kennedy, another of Bobby’s sons, died of a drug overdose in Palm Beach.
The Kennedy family during happier times
In 1999 John F. Kennedy Jr, whom the nation remembered fondly from photographs of him sitting under his father’s desk in the Oval Office and saluting as his father’s casket was being carried away, died in a plane crash. John Jr. was the publisher of the political magazine George and had recently became interested in aviation. Receiving his pilot’s license, he purchased a small plane and took his wife Carolyn Bessette Kennedy and his sister-in-law Lauren Bessette for a flight over the waters near Martha’s Vineyard. His plane crashed into the Atlantic Ocean, killing all three passengers. Most recently this past May Mary Richardson Kennedy, the estranged wife of Robert Kennedy Jr., was found dead in her home from an apparent suicide. The couple had filed for divorce two years prior but had not proceeded with the process. If there is a curse on the Kennedy family where did it come from? One origin story tells about a Kennedy ancestor in Ireland finding a cursed treasure that had washed ashore from a ship. More often cited as being responsible for the origin of the curse is Joe Kennedy, the father of the Kennedy clan. Over the years the story has changed as it was passed along, but the version most often cited involves Joe Kennedy’s trip back to the US on an ocean liner. Also aboard was a Jewish rabbi and six of his students. The trip happened to coincide with the Jewish holiday Rosh Hashanah. Kennedy complained to the captain about the loud noise from the Jews praying and demanded they be forbidden to continue their praying. The rabbi is said to have placed a curse on Kennedy, damning him and all his offspring. If so, this rabbi was one guy I would not want to cross. Perhaps the idea of a curse on the Kennedy family is nothing more than media hype, as they are so prominent in the public eye. Statisticians say that compared to other families, the number of tragedies is not statistically significant. Cursed or not, the Kennedys have endured more than their share of tragedies and hardships. To find out more about these and other famous curses check out the following links: The Insane True Stories Behind 6 Cursed Movies Most Horrifying Hollywood Curses
A group of campers were enjoying the outdoors in Provo Canyon, Utah near Squaw Peak and Little Rock Canyon Overlook. They spotted some deer on a hill and hiked to get a closer look. Then they spotted what they first thought was a bear, until it stood up and sent them running in fear. What we get is a few shaky frames that are being called the best Bigfoot evidence to surface since the famous Patterson film from the 60s.
Here's a still shot from the footage, shown below in it's entirety.
On October 30 the video was uploaded to YouTube and quickly made the rounds on the paranormal sites. It was posted by a user named Beard Card, who has talked to the press but doesn't want his true name revealed. This may give some credibility to his tale, as hoaxers usually like to get credit for their work.
A CGI specialist viewed the footage and said that it was not someone in a costume because you can see muscle definition and the fur appears to be real.
Phil Poling, a video analyst with ParaBreakdown said, “Usually when we see young people involved in some kind of a hoax video, what we get is a lot of overacting, a lot of ‘What is it?", a lot of them talking over each other, pointing and performing in front of the camera,"he said. "In this case, however, what we have are individuals who are relatively quiet. They're not performing; they're not hamming it up for the camera." He added "On the downside, what we have is a blobsquatch, I'm sorry, but I just don't know what this is.”
Hoax videos are all about timing. They usually take too much time building up to their climax. This short video doesn't do that. Skeptics argue that the creature was most likely a bear, but I've seen bears in the wild and while at first it does look like one, when it stands up it no longer resembles a bear. It's arms appear to be more human or ape-like.
I did some background checking and found that Beard Card didn't create a YouTube account until the day the video was posted, and the only other videos he has are a slowed down version of the original and a news segment about the footage. That could mean a hoaxer created the account just for their hoax video, or it could be irrelevant. Below is the video, which now has 200 subscribers and over 5 million views. Decide for yourself.
I had intention on having this blog up a couple weeks ago but life has its way of keeping you busy. So without further adieu let's dive in and see where getting dressed up and going door to door for candy comes from.
Modern day Halloween has centuries-old roots that go back to the Celtic celebration of Samhain, one of the 2 most important observances to the Celts, marking the harvest and the beginning of a new cycle. They believed that on this day the veil between the worlds of the living and the dead was at its thinnest and ghosts were able to mingle among us. All manner of supernatural creatures were thought to be out and about at this time, including ghosts, fairies, and demons.
All the fires at home had to be extinguished. The people would gather and lit bonfires to honor the dead, as well as to keep them away. They offered sacrifices that symbolized their wishes. Afterwards they would light torches from the fire to take home and re-light their home fires with in order to have a prosperous season the next year. During the celebration they would dress up in animal skins and attempt to tell one another's future. Then the god-fearing Christians made their way into what is now Ireland, the UK, and northern France where the Celts lived. The missionaries were instructed to try and adapt the native's existing beliefs into coexisting with Christian notions. Samhain was renamed All Saint's Day, to honor those who had passed away that year, along with all the saints. The church branded Celtic beliefs as evil, and those who continued to follow the old way were branded witches or went into hiding.
All Saint's Day, or All Soul's Day became All Hallows, meaning sanctified or holy. The evening prior to this was believed to be the time for the most supernatural activity, and came to be known as All Hallow's Eve, which finally became Halloween.
Trick or Treating
During the All Soul's Day festivities, the poor would go from house to house and beg for food. They were given "soul cakes" in return for offering up prayers for the family's lost loved ones. The offering of these cakes was encouraged by the church to replace the leaving out of food and wine as offerings for the wandering ghouls lurking about on that night. The practice became known as "going a-souling" which evolved in time as children went around the town asking for food and money, and eventually became what we know today as trick or treating.
Going a-souling or trick or treating while wearing costumes dates back to the Samhain festivals in which the people would wear animal skins and skulls. The costumes were meant to trick the actual supernatural beings that were out walking among them on this night.
Jack O'Lanterns
The story of the first jack o'lantern starts with a fellow named Jack. There are a few variations, but they all agree that Jack meets the Devil and tricks him into not taking his soul. Upon his death Jack was deemed to mean to get into heaven, but because of the trick he played on the devil, he can't go into hell either. With no where to go and doomed to wander around for eternity, the devil tossed Jack an ember from the fires of hell. He placed it inside a hollowed out turnip to light his way in the dark.
People began carving turnips and then pumpkins and placing candles in them to scare away Jack and any other wandering beasty that happened to creep up on All Hallow's Eve.
Halloween Comes to the New World
Halloween celebrations in colonial America were extremely limited because of the rigid Protestant belief system. The melting pot of a nation saw the traditions and beliefs of colonists mesh with those of its immigrants as well as Native Americans. Early celebrations included dancing, singing and eating. Neighbors would gather to tell stories about the dead and attempt to tell one another's futures.
In the late nineteenth century Irish immigrants fleeing to the New World to escape the potato famine back home helped to popularize the Halloween celebrations. This is when Americans, taking from Irish traditions, began to dress up in costumes and go from house to house asking for food.
Modern Halloween has became a holiday for children as well as adults who dress up like every manner of ghastly creature and mock and tease the spirits of the dead. In so doing, they are reaffirming death and its place as a part of life in an celebration of a holy and magic evening. Be vigilant tomorrow as you go about your business, mischievous or not, as the thin veil between worlds may allow ghouls to wander into your path!
Two weeks ago a guy just across the mountain in Virgie, KY captured footage of the object seen below. The object was spotted here in Letcher County in Jenkins, as well as Elkhorn City and South Williamson in Pike County, and in parts of Virginia and Tennessee.
The footage was shot by Allen Epling with what I'm fairly certain is the most powerful telescope in Virgie. An amateur astronomer, Epling and his wife were enjoying an evening with friends when one of the visiting children came and told him there was a funny looking airplane in the sky. Minutes later Epling had set a camera to recording through the viewfinder of his telescope. He uploaded the footage, shown below, to YouTube and the next day he began enjoying his 15 minutes on all the popular UFO-related websites.
Witnesses reported seeing the object hovering in the sky for over 2 hours. Epling described it as looking like "two fluorescent bulbs side by side, parallel, shining very brightly. It would get so bright they would seem to merge, and you could see it very clearly with the naked eye. Then it would dim down almost invisible." One witness described viewing it thru binoculars as starting out as a sphere, morphing into the elongated shape in the pictures, then back in to a sphere before disappearing. Police officials said they received a handful of calls about the object but were unable to locate it themselves. Officials with the U..S. Department of Defense and Kentucky Air National Guard say they had no aircraft in the sky at the time. Some believers are calling the it a plasma UFO. Others insist it is the result of test performed by everyone from the Illuminati and the New World Order to the Nephelim and the Anunnaki. Skeptics theorize that the sightings could be the result of a highly classified test, something like NASA’s Tether Incident, in which a mile long cable ran from satellites to a space shuttle. When it was activated, a charge ran along the tether, and creating a magnetic field that interacted with the Earth’s magnetic field. When the cable broke and it floated away with the satellites, several UFO sightings were reported as witnesses mistook the strange light show for alien transportation. To read more about the Virgie UFO footage visit the following links: AP article From UFO Eyes.com From UFO Case Book.com The story featuring Epling on the local WYMT news is below:
I previously stated something to the effect of bath salt zombies and addiction would be the catalyst for the end of the world as we know it. It seems I’m on the right track. A friend recently posted about googling the effects of krokodil. Sounded interesting so I had to know what it was.
A couple hours later I was eyeball deep in the Russian drug scene. Recent law changes have tightened the flow of heroine in from Afghanistan and made it much harder to come by. While here stateside, amateur chemists are busy cooking meth, Russian “make-your-dope-at-home” addicts are responsible for the invasion of a drug referred to as Krokodil.
The drug’s reptilian name comes from it’s immediate effect of turning the skin flaky and greenish. Users eventually end up looking like zombies, with sores continuing to literally eat away their flesh all the way to the bone. The images and videos that follow are about as graphic as it gets, you’ve been warned.  That used to be an arm. Krokodil is actually a synthetic form of morphine, actually called Desomorphine. The drug was discovered in 1932 and was intended to be a substitute for morphine. It’s use was quickly discontinued when it was found to be much more addictive than morphine. Russian addicts desperate for a fix have been cooking up their own recipe of krokodil. Especially in isolated and poor regions of the country, addicts continually go about the process of distilling and boiling that takes about an hour. Krokodil’s effects, similar to that of heroine, only lasts for up to an hour. The life of a user often consists of a continuous cycle of cooking and using.  Actual person, not a Walking Dead extra. Codeine tablets are available over the counter in Russia. They’re krokodil’s main ingredient, cooked together with match tips, gas, paint-thinner, lighter fluid, and iodine. Yeah. When produced in a lab with proper equipment, the drug is clean. When made with makeshift tools, it’s byproducts are as toxic and corrosive as they come. The solution is injected by users. While it gives them their fix for a short period of time, injection sites soon develop into large sores, which only grow. Gangrene, meningitis, and irreversible brain damage are common. The life expectancy of a person once they use drops to two to three years.
 Effects of krokodil eating the flesh of the user When heroine users try to kick the habit they will experience withdrawal for 3-5 days. Krokodil users face up to 30 days of physical and mental anguish. While the drug seems to have exploded in Russia, it’s spreading throughout Europe. Cases have been reported in Switzerland, Poland, the Czech Republic, Belgium, Germany, and several other countries.
Bad economies further the plight of addicts across the world. In desperation, they turn to any means available to get their fix and not be sick. The bath salt attacks here in the U.S. recently, and the effects of krokodil in Russia further the need to fund more rehabilitation programs. Otherwise, a dystopian future populated with lethargic addicts walking around with their flash rotting of isn’t that far off.
For more graphic effects of krokodil use, see the following videos:
This last one's not for those with weak stomach's after the 5 min. mark
It is my personal opinion that if the end of the world "AS WE KNOW IT" is looming in our near future as REM sang about, it will be brought about by addiction and bath salt zombies.
The economic condition of our country is in the toilet. The unemployment rates are alarming nationwide, but here in the mountains every couple weeks another large coal company announces it's closing, and laying off or letting go hundreds of employees. These people who can't find work are turning to any means they can think up to make ends meet. Every couple weeks the phone lines are out because someone has stolen the telephone lines for the copper to sell for scrap metal. There was a story in the local paper last week about the sheriff's department busting some guy who had stolen almost 10 military grave markers, intending to scrape off and sell the tiny amount of copper on the markers.
Addiction has long been a problem here in eastern Kentucky. Drug companies pushed pain pills down the throats of coal miner's. Opiate addiction is a big problem here, as well as the abuse of other prescription medications. Recent changes in state laws have made it so that general practice doctors can no longer prescribe pain medicine. I know an elderly man with cancer, who doesn't know what he's going to do next month when he can't get any more refills for his medicine. The health care reps tell him to go to a pain clinic, where you sit among pill heads who have scraped up enough cash to come get their monthly script. There are waiting lists to get into these clinics, and patients who have seen their family doctor for years now have to fight the clinic crowd to get the medicine they need. Tightening the pain pill laws will have repercussions. The pills that people are addicted to are going to be harder to get. They are going to become desperate and unpredictable.
A recent article talked about how the rates of heroine related crimes in Louisville had increased tenfold in the last couple years. With the pill laws making their drug of choice harder to get, addicts have turned to heroine to get their fix. Heroine is arguably the most addictive drug there is. The article stated that people have been arrested in possession of heroine in several other counties as well, many closer to home here in eastern Kentucky. If people think things are bad here now with all the pill addictions, wait until they're cut off and turn to heroine. Better katy-bar the door, because it'll all be over then.
The latest drug fad to hit the area is a product marketed as bath salts. They're in no way intended to pour into a tub to soak in. The drug is pretty much synthetic cocaine. With bath salts already booming locally, if heroine makes it's way into the area as a result of the pain pill cutback laws, things are going to get bad. Remember when Charlie Sheen was making all those videos wired out of his mind? Bath salts was responsible for that, and his following court issues and house arrest.
Bath salts are so new, not much is known about their effects, short-term or long-term. Many users experience something like a 'bad trip,' and just flip out. One user said, "Some people just can't handle it." While on the drug, users have experienced radical personality changes, some snorting their way into a prolonged psychosis. For a while around here it was commonplace to hear about some guy stabbing his girlfriend while on a bath salt binge, or another guy trying to fight five other guys, then slash his wrists. Other towns across the country are experiencing the bath salt boom too. Along with it come the outrageous tales of the terrible, unexplainable, and just retarded things users have done.
In the little town that I live in, the local grocery store was broken into one night by a guy who was on bath salts. When an employee arrived the next morning, he found a window broken, and the bath salt guy passed out in the floor, covered in peanut butter and chocolate. Merchandise was scattered all over the store. He had a wild night, squirting ketchup and other condiments all over the shelves. Some reports say he had written out "I'm Sorry" in mustard on the floor. Local newspapers dubbed him the Peanut Butter Bandit, and he was sent away to the big house.
Shockingly, many of the incidents involving bath salt attacks involve attempted cannibalism. Guess these are definitely the people who "can't handle it." In June in Layfeyette, Louisiana forty-three-year-old Carl Jacquneaux was said to have had a domestic dispute with Todd Credeur. He stormed into Carl's yard and attacked him, biting a chunk out of his face while on the drug.
Pamela McCarthy, a 35 year old wife and mother from New York was actually tasered to death after a run in with the state police. Onlookers called police when the naked McCarthy was seen attacking her toddler son and the family dog. The picture below was taken as the child ran to his father for safety. McCarthy suffered cardiac arrest after the incident. She was high on bath salts.
McCarthy, running naked and going after her son who's dad is holding him, before being killed by the police
June was a busy month for out of control bath salt users. On the 26th Michael Daniel was arrested in Waco, Texas. Cops were called when he tore through his family's home in a rage, then chased the neighbors dog, barking at it as he did so. When he caught the dog, he beat it, strangled it, then proceeded to eat it.
Also in June a 20 year old man attacked a 77 year old woman with a shovel while high on bath salts. After finally being subdued with a large quantity of rubber bullets and a taser gun, he told officers he was an alien and that Jesus was telling him to kill the woman.
The case that started the Bath Salt Zombie craze was when Rudy Eugene literally ate the face off of a homeless man in Miami. The attack lasted 18 minutes before Eugene was finally shot to death by police. Warning, the following video shows the attack from a surveillance camera. It doesn't show much detail, but might not be appropriate for the kiddies: Just as crazy is the story of Michael Daniel of Texas. Family members called the police when they say he went berserk. He attacked several family members and friends while running around on all fours and growling and barking like a dog. Before the cops could arrive, he snatched up the family dog and started biting chunks out of it.
A little closer to home, a 19 year old Charleston, W. Va. man was found in a very bizarre position. His neighbor had been told by friends that Mark Thompson had stolen a pygmy goat she had bought for her granddaughter. When police went to question Thompson, they found him in his bedroom, high on bath salts, wearing women's underwear and standing over the dead goat.
Officers allowed Thompson to keep his bra on for his mugshot
Maybe these individuals weren't the most mentally stable people to begin with, and when they used this new powerful drug, the just couldn't handle it. Crazy people need to be extra careful when they want to go out and get high. Lesson of the day kiddos, unless you want to find yourself naked, covered in condiments, biting chunks out of people and animals, Just Say No to bath salts! For info on more bath salt related attacks, go to the following link: Bath Salt Attacks
People love to hear a story about a good curse. A dark tale passed along resonates with humans and they almost want to believe it, perhaps to mke them feel better about their own situation. They jump all over it, all it takes is a story. People will automatically connect any event that is in some way loosely connected with the curse to a series of tragic and horrendous atrocities as a result of said hex. Maybe it’s because it lets people believe there’s still a little magic left in the world, albeit of the bad voodoo variety. Some may take comfort in knowing that if there is such darkness lurking out there, there must be a lightness that balances it. Or maybe for reasons unknown to us some objects are just injected with evil and bound to bring doom to all who encounter it.
Submitted for your approval are a handful of tales about some famous cursed objects:
LITTLE BASTARD
James Dean was killed in a car accident on September 30, 1955 after hitting another car head on in a high speed collision. The car was a Porsche he named ‘Little Bastard. The car became a thing of paranormal Americana. It was said to be cursed, and serious accidents seemed to befall a host of people who owned pieces of the car afterward.
The scene of James Dean's fatal crash
While being to delivered to a later owner, the car mysteriously fell off the wrecker and broke the driver’s legs. A doctor bought the engine. The first time he drove with it he was killed in an accident during a race. The people who bought the tires and the transmission were nearly killed in accidents driving with parts from the car as well.
Little Bastard was used in road safety campaigns. While being stored by the state for a public safety exhibit, the warehouse burned to the ground. The car was not damaged. Later while being transported from Florida, the car just vanished. It did not arrive at its destination and has not been located since.
Just before his death, James Dean appeared in a public safety commercial warning teens about the dangers of speeding. It closed with a close-up on Dean saying, “Remember, the life you save just might be mine.”
THE POLTERGEIST CURSE
Poltergeist was released in 1982. 2 sequels followed it. Soon after rumors began circulating about a curse attached to the movie. The stories claimed it had to do with the fact that actual human skeletons were used as parts of the set. The story adds to the creepiness of films that caused me to look over my shoulder more than once and maybe even turn on a light a time or two.
The bulk of activities due to the curse relates to deaths of cast members. While some people like to darken the aesthetic of the curse and tell you everyone in the movies died, that’s not the case. However 4 of the principal cast members did die a short time after making the films.
Domminick Dunne, who played the oldest daughter, died in 1982. She was strangled to death by a jealous ex-boyfriend. She was 22 years old.
Julien Beck, who played Preacher Henry Kane, had one of the creepiest looks to him I have ever seen on a person. He caused me to lose sleep as a child. I later found out he had that creepy look because he had been diagnosed with terminal cancer before filming Poltergeist, and accepted the eerie role knowing that he wasn’t going to live much longer. He died in 1982.
Will Sampson’s acting resume included One Flew Over the Cukoo’s Nest and the Indian who shed a tear in the classic anti-littering commercial. He played Taylor, a spiritual shaman being who aided the family. He died of kidney failure and malnutrition in 1987.
On February 1, 1988 Heather o’Rourke, who had starred as Carol Anne, the youngest daughter, passed away. There is some confusion about the cause of her death because there were so many different diagnosis. She was initially diagnosed with Crohn’s Diesase, then an acute form of influenza. She died of septic shock from bacterial toxins in her bloodstream.
Skeptics argue that when you consider the total numbers of actors to appear in the films, this number isn’t statistically significant. Believers go on to include the reports of several strange happenings on the set. Crew members walked off and wouldn’t return. In the scene where Oliver Robbins, playing the son, is attacked by a clown, the prop malfunctioned and was actually choking him. It had to be removed from the set before he could calm down. The director didn’t know this was going on and thought Oliver was doing an outstanding performance.
Will Sampson, who actually practiced Native American mysticism, performed a ritual one night to rid the set of its evil spirits. When screenwriter James Kahn wrote the lines "Lightning ripped open the sky," lightning struck the building he was in and all the arcade games began playing themselves.
Actress Zelda Rubenstein, who played the fantastic psychic Tangina was doing a photo shoot for the movie when she felt a bolt of electricity that stopped her in her place. When the shots came back a picture believed to have been taken around that moment showed a strange white misty figure. Minutes after Rubenstein received a phone call telling her that her mother had passed away.
KING TUT’S CURSE
A famous curse that still holds allure today is that of Tut’s Tomb. In November of 1922 an expedition led by Howard Carter made what is arguably the biggest discovery in the history of archeology. Carter made a hole in the seal of the tomb of King Tutankhamun and poked his head inside. When asked if he could see anything he replied “Yes, wonderful things.” The dig was funded by George Herbert, the Lord Carnarvon. While on the site, he was bitten by a mosquito. He later aggregated the bite and it became infected. He began suffering a high fever and cold chills. A doctor was sent for, but he arrived too late. Lord Carnarvon was already dead. Some stories add that at the moment of his death all the lights mysteriously went out in Cairo. Some reports include his three-legged dog howling and dropping dead at the moment he died. Following Carnarvon’s death newspapers soon began running headlines eluding to a curse that was related to the tomb. Stories varied, having it inscribed on the tomb, its antechamber, and on a stone tablet found inside. The inscription itself varied, but most versions consisted of something like “Death’s wings will come swiftly for those who disturb the King’s tomb.” Carter himself seemed to escape the wrath of the curse. Some argue his curse wasn’t death, but to have to witness those around him falling victim to it. His pet canary, which was present at the tomb’s opening, was said to have been killed by a cobra. Over two dozen men were said to have fallen victim to King Tut’s Curse. For a complete list, use the following link: King Tut's Curse Victims THE DYBBUK BOX A more modern tale of an evil curse is of the haunted item sold on eBay called the Dybbuk Box. In recent months the auction website has amended its policies to ban the sell of items such as potions, spells, psychic readings, portals to other realms, and haunted objects. But back in 2001 Kevin Mannis posted for sale a wine cabinet he called the Dibbuk Box.
The Dybbuk Box
In a lengthy item description Mannis told the story of buying it at an estate sell. Afterward he was approached by a young woman, the granddaughter of the woman who had owned it. She told him about her grandmother having survived the Holocaust, and wishing to be buried with the box. She had said it contained an evil Jewish spirit called a dybbuk. Mannis offered to return the item to the family, at which point the young woman became very upset, refusing it back and running away. A dybbuk is a being in Jewish folklore. A dybbuk is not a demon, rather the sprit of a deceased person. They are created to accomplish a goal the person did not accomplish in their life and will not rest until they are done. These can be good things, such as bringing luck to a business, or malevolent, being used to harm others. According to tradition, when a person dies, the dybbok box should be buried with them, to symbolize the release of the energy. He included the story of bringing the box back to his antique furniture shop. He opened the box and found several peculiar items inside, including locks of bound hair and dried flowers. He went on an errand, leaving an employee to mind the store. Alone in the shop, she began to hear glass breaking and thought there was an intruder. She frantically called Mannis, who lost cell reception. He raced back to the store to find all the light bulbs in the basement broken. The employee left and refused to set foot in the store again. The seller promised to include with the sale sworn affidavits and hospital records documenting the tragedies said to befall everyone who had come into possession of the box. Mannis gave it to his mother as a birthday gift. Before leaving the store she suffered a stroke and was left partially paralyzed and unable to speak. She asked for a pen when Mannis went to visit her in the hospital and wrote “Gift evil.” Mannis then gave the box to his sister. She returned it within a week saying the doors wouldn’t stay shut. His brother and his girlfriend also kept it for short periods, all reporting smelling jasmine and cat urine and having nightmares. The dreams were all the same, with Mannis having it himself while keeping the box in his home. In every dream the person would be with someone they knew, and when they looked them in the eyes they would transform into a terrible-looking old hag. Shadow people were seen by those in possession of the box. The auction caught attention of the media and the Dybbok Box became something of an internet meme. One customer bought the box, only to re-sell it on eBay, claiming it caused all the lights in his house to burn out and his hair to fall out. A skeptic could argue the guy could’ve been cashing in on his investment in the box’s story, but people just love a good tale of darkness and the box continued to be sought after. Hollywood even caught wind of the story. Sam Raimi heard about the curse and wrote The Possession, recently released and about a family afflicted by an evil spirit from a box similar to the Dybbuk Box. The Dybbok Box’s current owner is Jason Haxton, a museum director. He wrote a book called “The Dybbuk Box” about the history of the wine cabinet and the strange things that have happened to the people who have owned it. Mannis’ original eBay description can be found here: Dibbuk Box Story
By the time I came along Loretta Lynn was already an icon. That little gal from Butcher Holler sang her way into American history. In her twilight years, Loretta has added another chapter to her mythology, her home finding itself on all kinds of “Most Haunted Locations” lists.
In 1964 Loretta released “This Haunted House” about the ‘ghost’ of a lost love. A couple years later she and her husband Doolittle were taking a country drive when a huge house caught her eye. She told Doolittle that was going to be her house. At the time they didn’t even know who owned the property, but they soon bought it. The Hurricane Mills Plantation included the mansion, several other houses, a church; years ago it had been its own little town. A bloody Civil War battle had been fought on the property, the mansion having been used as a hospital.
The Hurricane Mills Plantation Mansion
Soon after settling into Hurricane Mills Loretta’s family began experiencing frightening encounters with apparitions. Her twin daughters, Peggy and Patsy, told her about repeatedly waking up in the night to find a woman watching them. Curious, Loretta attempted to contact the restless spirits. She believed one of them was a man she came to call Ol’ Man Anderson.
It was found that the home’s original owner was named James Anderson. Loretta felt that he and his wife lingered in her house. She had a little talk with them, promising to take care of the house and ‘fix it up real nice.’ After that she thought of the occurrences as just Ol’ Man Anderson letting them know he was still around.
One day Loretta arrived home from being on tour. She looked up and saw a woman standing on the second story balcony crying and wringing her hands. When she asked who was in the house, she was told no one. She went upstairs and out onto the balcony. No one was there, but she looked out onto her property, which included a cemetery, and saw the woman walking there, and then she seemed to vanish. Buela Anderson was James’ wife, who had died only days after the death of their infant child. They are buried in the cemetery.
Loretta Lynn has had paranormal experiences her whole life. She has talked about seeing people who had passed away as a child. It wasn’t until years later that she realized that everyone didn’t see them. She awoke one night from a vivid dream in which she had seen her father lying in a coffin. That night she received a telephone call from home telling her that her father had passed away. She returned home for the funeral. She found her father laid out in the same suit and in the same coffin that she had seen in her dream. Years later she returned to Butcher Holler and saw her dad’s ghost sitting on the front porch of the house she had grown up in.
Perhaps she inherited some of her abilities from her mother, who was half Cherokee Indian and foretold her very specific details about the man she would marry years before she met Doolittle Lynn. Loretta said she and her mother shared a strong connection. Even on opposite sides of the country, her mother would know when she was feeling sad or depressed, and a letter from her would arrive to cheer her up. Once while visiting Hurricane Mills, her mother gave her a startling warning. She told her she needed to move away from there, because there was a lot of water on the property and one of Loretta’s children would drown there.
Years later while on tour Loretta experienced a seizure and was hospitalized. At the same time one of her sons couldn’t be accounted for back home. He was soon found dead in a creek on the property. Once his body was found, Loretta came out of the coma-like state she had been in.
Both of her sons encountered apparitions at Hurricane Mills. One of them fell asleep fully dressed one night. He woke to find a Civil War soldier tugging on his boot and his dog barking at it. The other son has woken up to find a soldier staring at him. While fishing in the river, they saw a soldier walk across a bridge then vanish.
The family moved out of the mansion and into another house on the property in the 1980s. The mansion is now a museum. Visitors often report being touched, and tour guides have walked away from the job because of the paranormal occurrences. No matter how often they’re straightened, Loretta’s album covers that hang on the walls are said to be found crooked on a regular basis. One visitor saw someone in period clothing standing behind a tour guide. When they asked who it was the person disappeared and the tour guide was mysteriously pushed down the stairs.
Loretta Lynn
While many were unnerved by the incidents, Loretta came to regard the spirits in her home as part of the family. She has said she feels a connection to them, and a responsibility to take care of the house. Hurricane Mills is on the top of my list of dream places to ghost hunt. Loretta, if you’re reading this, give me a call!
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