DARK SHADOWS FORUMS
Members' Mausoleum => Calendar Events / Announcements Archive => Calendar Events / Announcements '24 I => Calendar Events / Announcements '04 I => Topic started by: Connie on January 03, 2004, 09:33:09 AM
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My sister moved into a "new" house a few months ago. She claims it's haunted. Apparently things disappear and then show up mysteriously, and the TV changes channels by itself. I believe the house was built in the 20's or 30's - not sure - BUT, it's built near historic battlegrounds. Hmm.....I dunno. If the house were haunted wouldn't the dogs react in some way or another?
I have to go over there tonight for a New Year's-type gathering and plan to get the details.
Perhaps a seance is in order??? :o
;D ;D ;D
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Any cold spots?
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Connie,,,which Battlegrounds?
Nah, dogs don't always respond....bring a cat though >:D
Patti
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If you have the seance, Connie, and one of the attendees goes into a trance and starts repeating over and over again: "I don't understand!"...........move out!
Gerard
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Wow, that's pretty spooky! Tell your sister to grab her camera and start taking pictures all throughout the house, especially if she feels cold spots or hears noises. She may be suprised at what turns up in them. ;)
Also, here's a good link for her. It's a Ghost Study group and they may be able to help her out.
http://pub105.ezboard.com/bghostystudylounge
Cassandra
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I live in a house built in 1921. I heard moaning sounds at night and metal clanking(steam radiators), the lights flickered(knob and tube wiring) and the cold spots were spine-chilling(no insulation and drafty windows). We have renovated the house but kept the radiators. The one in my oldest son's bedroom sounds like someone laughing through their nose. I think it gives this old house character. However, I think having a seance is more fun than calling a contractor. Connie, keep us informed.
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Hi Connie i'll bring the rest of the
gang we can have that seance !!! Oh and say these
words too!! " YOU MUST" Have That Seance Tonight!!
Love Anne :D
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Apparently things disappear and then show up mysteriously
Been there, seen that - several times a year, actually. Actually, silverware and cooking utensils (particularly measuring spoons, wire whisks, and slotted spoons) sometimes disappear, never to be seen again. And a pendulum in a clock that hasn't worked in years (but I like it, so I've left it up on the wall) begins swinging for no apparent reason (though the clock itself doesn't change time) and sometimes continues to swing for days at a time only to stop again, also for no apparent reason.
Just the normal stuff at my house. I'm so used to it now that none of it even phases me. Whenever it looks like something's disappeared for good, I just buy another one. :D
and the TV changes channels by itself
Never had that happen, though...
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and the TV changes channels by itself.
I think the big question here is: what was your sister watching? and were the new programs better? 8)
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Any cold spots?
You mean aside from my sister? [lghy]
Connie,,,which Battlegrounds?
Princeton
Okay - here's the low-down. :o
There don't seem to be any cold spots or strange noises, BUT.....
They SEE this guy! Most often he's with a dog. My sister says he wears a hat, and the dog looks like a Shepard-type dog. I asked if she could see his face and she says no -- he's sort of a silhouette.
This is what's happened: During the month they were working on the house and not living there yet - cleaning the place, clearing brush, etc. - there were 2 different instances when my sister was in the kitchen and she felt a hand grab her butt!! Her husband was NOT behind her. LOL One time he was in front of her, a few feet away, and the other time he was in another part of the house. She was startled obviously, and turned and saw no one.
Once they were moved in, she saw the guy more than once, walking by. One night at dinner she told her husband, "Ya know, there's a guy living here." WELL, her husband nearly spit his food across table! Apparently HE had seen him too but didn't say anything 'cause he didn't know if my sister would freak or get nervous, or what. He said he had seen the man walking past in the hallway outside the kitchen, heading for this back room where they've got some stuff stored. They most often see him in that hallway, or the kitchen -- the back area of the house. My sister also saw him out in the backyard through her kitchen window. He was by himself - the dog wasn't with him.
She just shrugs it off - it doesn't bother her. He doesn't cause any sort of "trouble" and seems harmless enough. She is under the impression that he's happy they're living there.
A couple of weeks ago, her husband had a couple of friends/co-workers over and it was late - around 3 am. Her husband and one of the friends had crashed for the night, and she and the other friend were sitting in the kitchen talking. She started hearing music coming from the dining room - said it sounded like a radio playing. There is NO source of music or a TV anywhere nearby. She asked the guy if he heard the music and he said yes. She got up to investigate and it was coming from a corner of the room where there's a floor lamp and some plants on a small table and shelves - that's it. As she moved closer, the music got louder. Their friend was freaking out. LOL She said it must be the ghost and told him about it. He went nuts! Couldn't believe it. He was gonna be sleeping in that back room and was all nervous and took a knife with him to bed. LOL My sister kept saying, "Don't take that to bed - you'll cut yourself!! Nothing's going to happen." Well, he would have none of it, and went to bed with the blanket wrapped around his head, clutching the knife. ROFL
Apparently the house has been vacant for the last few years. Before that, some historical society was using it, and before THAT, two elderly women lived there. Beyond that, my sister doesn't know anything. (The house and property are owned by the State - her husband works for the parks department and they have the house for as long as he works for them - or until he dies - whichever comes first). ANYWAY, a couple of houses up the road toward the Battlegrounds there is another house that has some "ghostly" stuff going on too.
As far as pictures, my sister doesn't have a camera at the moment but is planning on buying a digital one in the next couple of weeks. When I was over there the other night, I took my new camera to try it out, take pictures of the Christmas lights, etc. (This thing is sooo complicated -- all the possible settings -- I'm so confused) [hdscrt]
I took a bunch of pictures and put them on a website for her. Haven't had the chance to study them for any sort of ghostly apparitions as of yet. LOL
Ya all are welcome to go visit if you care to search for this guy! [sure]
The URL is: http://mywebpage.netscape.com/BeamOfLite1/NewYears/index.html
Happy hunting!
-CLC ;D
By the way.....thanks for the link, Cassandra. I passed it along.
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Fascinating, Connie!
Although I remain a bit of a skeptic concerning ghosts, I know a number of intelligent, emotionally stable people who have experienced ghostly phenomenon so there must be something out there. A couple I know experienced a very unpleasant and even menacing ghostly presence for a number of years until they called on a priest who with prayer and holy water calmed things down considerably.
I have to disagree with others about having a seance, which may inadvertently connect you with spirits you don't want anything to do with. Maybe that's being alarmist, but better safe than very sorry, if you know what I mean. [woryy]
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That is so neat! I sometimes wonder, in a hypothetical kinda way, if there are "portals", like time or even space portals, in which what has happened before is happening and temporarily co-mingling with what's happening now. Sorta like the parallel time room. What's being experienced, both in sight, sound (like the music) and touch consists of events from another time or place (maybe a parallel universe?) that somehow "collide" with the present. Maybe that man (with or sans the dog) is in his own time and space and witnesses things from your time and space and is just as perplexed. Imagine him living in, let's say, 1931 and from the corner of the living room he suddenly hears South Park. Or possibly someone living in the house seventy years from now who is seeing "this woman" walking around (i.e., you!) and hears Brittney Spears singing from a corner where they have their sofa and floor lamp, but you had your stereo!
Gerard
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I love Gerard's theory about time and space co-mingling. It would explain some of the events I have read about.
I am inclined to agree with Happybat about not stirring things up with a seance. Who knows what sorta of bogie might make himself at home afterwards. The ghost must be an animal lover if his dog stayed loyal to him even in death. He can't be all bad. Although, I don't know if I could handle the butt-grabs. How do you smack a ghost across the face?
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I am not so sure I would be as calm as your sister. Even though he seems to be harmless. Glad she is able to deal with it with a sense of humor.
Birdie
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I have to disagree with others about having a seance, which may inadvertently connect you with spirits you don't want anything to do with. Maybe that's being alarmist, but better safe than very sorry, if you know what I mean. [woryy]
I agree with you Happybat! Years ago when we were growing up my older sister (who was around 13 at the time) and her friends held a seance in her friend's basement. The friend's house was connected to a church and her friend's father was the Minister there. My sister said at first nothing was happening and then suddenly one of the guys at the table started acting real strange. She said at first some of them thought he was joking around (although my sister claims he wasn't the joking type) but then it started getting real serious. She said he was talking in a foreign language and then started going into some kind of convulsions, shaking at the table with his eyes rolling to the back of his head. Everyone was getting real scared and then suddenly she said he was lifted up off his seat and thrown across the room! At that point she said they were all crying & screaming hysterically while some of the others ran upstairs to get the Minister. When the Minister came downstairs he found the kid unconsciecous on the floor and tried to revive him with smelling salt. My sister said when the kid came too he didn't remember a thing and was more scared at being woken up on the stone cold floor than anything else, not to mention the huge bump on his head! She said the Minister then blessed the place and gave them all a lecture on not trying to open doors that they may not be able to close.
My sister, who is close to 50 now to this day still gets scared whenever we talk about it. Funny how they make it look so easy & fun on DS!!
Connie, the pictures were great! Your sister has a lovely home too. But I swear I see a faint image of a man's face looking in the window on the picture that says " awww that's my baby." It's near the very bottom of the photo and when I looked through my magnifying glass it looks like he's wearing glasses!! Maybe it's just my imagination but that's what I see.
Cassandra
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Ghosts, Shmosts Connie.....all I see is a tribe of gorgeous kids. [wink2]
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But I swear I see a faint image of a man's face looking in the window on the picture that says " awww that's my baby." It's near the very bottom of the photo and when I looked through my magnifying glass it looks like he's wearing glasses!! Maybe it's just my imagination but that's what I see.
I see him too, Cassandra. Looks like Selby as Quentin (to me). Ready to move in, Connie, lol?
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A creepy story, Connie! Yes, I have heard that Ouija boards might even open the door to demonic presences and you definitely don't want THAT. Back in college a friend and I read many of demonologists Ed and Larraine Warren's books and they were interesting but also very frightening. In fact, I suggested to my spirit-infested friends that they contact the Warrens, which they did.
Speaking of ghosts, what do you all think of the recent Hampton Court ghost sighting?
Please see: OT - If this IS a fake...
(by following the above link) on the Calendar Events / Announcements '03 II board in the Members' Mausoleum Archive
Apparently, there is some doubt now as to its authenticity, although I don't think they have proven that it is a hoax. Fascinating! [ghost]
[Edited by Midnite]
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I loved those books by the Warrens! They were all so wonderfully creepy. They "appeared" in two made-for-TV movies that I know of. By that, I mean their characters were involved, played by actors. One was based on their book about a murder case in Connecticut in which a young man accused of homicide was alledgedly possessed by the devil. Andy Griffith played Ed Warren. The second was The Haunting, based on a case in north-eastern Pennsylvania, near Scranton/Wilkes Barre, in which a family found itself under apparent demonic attack after it moved into a house.
Oops! I accidentally hit "post" before I was finished. Anyway, The Haunting, originally aired on Fox, appears every once in awhile on the Sci-Fi Channel. I remember "The Haunting" case, because I was living in Pennsylvania when it happened, and local news channels had virtually daily up-dates.
Gerard
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I see him too, Cassandra. Looks like Selby as Quentin (to me). Ready to move in, Connie, lol?
But I swear I see a faint image of a man's face looking in the window on the picture that says " awww that's my baby." It's near the very bottom of the photo and when I looked through my magnifying glass it looks like he's wearing glasses!! Maybe it's just my imagination but that's what I see.
I don't see it. I've studied and studied and I can't find a man's face. (And certainly nothing resembling Selby) LOL!!
I'll tell you what I DO see though.....
In the first picture on the Miscellaneous page, I see a figure of a man wearing a hat in the window. Looks like he's standing out in the yard. The image is white-ish and translucent. I've studied the things on the inside of the window (like that hanging plant holder) to see if it could be a reflection of anything, and the shape doesn't match anything in the kitchen. My husband doesn't see the hat - he just see's the guy's head, but I think the hat is very obvious. It's tipped - goes down on the left and up on the right.
I'm gonna email my sister and tell her to look at that picture and ask if she sees anything in that window. Not gonna tell her what I see.
I was thinking maybe he went outside 'cause he didn't like all the commotion in the house! LOL
;D :o ;D
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I see 'im, Connie. Took a few seconds to see the hat, but I finally did.
You weren't wearing a hat when you took the pic, were you? ;)
Here's the face I see in the window that Cassandra pointed out (I think it's the same one), Connie. I moved it way over because when I moved it anywhere left of Evan, in the picture, it gave me the creeps.
Looks like Quentin to me!
[attachment deleted by admin]
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Here's the face I see in the window that Cassandra pointed out (I think it's the same one), Connie. I moved it way over because when I moved it anywhere left of Evan, in the picture, it gave me the creeps.
Looks like Quentin to me!
Dom, I don't think we're seeing the same thing. This is the image that I see. It's almost directly behind Evan and I drew a white circle around it. Im not sure of what you are seeing because I only see a white circle where you posted the picture?
LOL !! By the time we're finished here we'll all need glasses!!
Cassandra
[attachment deleted by admin]
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I'll tell you what I DO see though.....
In the first picture on the Miscellaneous page, I see a figure of a man wearing a hat in the window. Looks like he's standing out in the yard. The image is white-ish and translucent. I've studied the things on the inside of the window (like that hanging plant holder) to see if it could be a reflection of anything, and the shape doesn't match anything in the kitchen. My husband doesn't see the hat - he just see's the guy's head, but I think the hat is very obvious. It's tipped - goes down on the left and up on the right.
I see it Connie! I didn't see it at first but could see it with my magnifying glass. The hat almost looks like one of those old cowboy hats to me.
The funny thing was that I was going to ask you who was that walking outside in the yard in the same photo but first window panel!! He's just about parallel to the guy with the hat on. It looks like someone with very short cropped curly hair wearing a striped sleeve shirt. He looks like he's just passing through! LOL!! This is getting really weird now.
Cassandra
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Hi, Cassandra! I moved the face to below the plant to Evan's left. See it now? I don't know how to just circle a photo, as you did. So I had to move it to make it obvious. I see your phantom face now too (now that it's circled).
Maybe the guy in the cowboy hat is the ghost of Peter Bradford! LOL! Remember that corny, hatted dark phantom they used on the show that ended up being Peter bradford? ::)
I'll nominate your "face in the window" as Elliot Stokes. I guess he traded in his monocle for a pair of glasses once he got to "the other side". ;D
Well, now I gotta go see if I can see the ghost in the striped shirt! :D I'm hoping it's Joe Haskell! If so, I'm gonna offer to house sit when the family goes on vacation! [wink2]
dom (begging forgiveness for trying to tie this thread to DS)
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Now, I'm not saying that something isn't going on in Connie's sister's home. And far be it from me to try to stifle speculation over ghostly phenomenon. But can we say overreaching to try to find evidence that may not really be there? :D
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Thanks for the link, Midnite. I should have guessed that the "spook" has already been discussed here before!
Gerard,
In college I also attended a talk given by the Warrens. They had a supposedly demonic voice on tape. Whatever it was, it was extremely creepy sounding and not like any human voice I've ever heard. Anyway, it was a fascinating talk.
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I just remembered this weird story. A few years ago, my three year old said there was an old witch in the window at the house across the street. He was very scared and did not want to go into our living room because she might see him. I looked at the neighbor's house and I definitely saw an old women standing in the house. She never moved from her spot. When my husband got home I asked him to look out the living room window at the neighbor's house. He asked who the old women was. I told him the person never moves. My son was still afraid to go into the living room. That weekend, my husband was outside working in the garden and our neighbor came out to chat. When she had crossed the street, my husband pointed at her house and asked her if that old women in the window was a halloween mask. She was also surprised to see the old women so she took my husband over to her house. The old scary women turned out to be a little girls coat hanging on a hook. She took it down and showed it to my three year old. He was happy the witch was gone. Thankfully, my neighbor did not put the coat back up. I bet even Prof Stokes would say that was the fastest exorcism ever performed by a lay person. :D
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Now, I'm not saying that something isn't going on in Connie's sister's home. And far be it from me to try to stifle speculation over ghostly phenomenon. But can we say overreaching to try to find evidence that may not really be there? :D
Probably! ::) [lghy]
For the life of me, I can't see the faces dom and Cassandra are referring to. But THIS is the rather ethereal image that struck me. I cut it out and then have a larger size next to it for those who like things magnified. (I think it's clearer in the smaller size):
(http://mywebpage.netscape.com/BeamOfLite1/ghost.jpg)
As far as dom trying to tie this stuff into DS.....
Well, I just figured a lot of DS fans are interested in the "ghostly" aspect of things. LOL
Ya know, not long ago I was realizing just how much of an influence Dark Shadows WAS in my life and I hadn't really thought about it before. I don't think it would be NOW, if I were watching it for the first time, but back when I was a kid, it certainly spawned interests, influenced my taste in furniture, rugs, lamps, etc. How many of you original-run veterans held seances with friends?? I did! Actually, one time my best friend and I held a phoney one to spook a couple of girlfriends. We did it in her basement and had her brother hiding in a closet. (we had him make knocking noises on cue) They were so scared they went screaming up the stairs. LOL
Even back then, we thought the stuff on DS was pretty hoaky, but I think it definitely helped create an interest in the hereafter, which led to quite an interest and exploration of the "spiritual" side of things.
I realized DS even influenced the high school I went to. The town I lived in wasn't large enough to have a high school, and at that time you had a choice between 2 different schools in neighboring towns. I chose the one that had an old gothic building -- bears quite a resemblence to Lyndhurst. (Gee...wonder why I wanted to go there!)
Anyway, it seems the same thing has happened to LAFB. She adores the sets on the show - is always remarking on a beautiful lamp or a piece of furniture she loves, or a chair in one of the rooms. We got her a new lamp for her bedroom for Christmas and all I can say is, the one she chose looks like it would fit quite nicely in the Old House drawing room! LOL (Looks especially good when she's got a few candles lit in there).
Did anyone on here really get into candles back then?? When I was 13 and 14 I always had candles lit in my room. I wanted to be at Collinwood!!!
;D
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I can't see anything in Cassandra's photo, and the face that dom highlighted looks to me like a stereotypical alien (pale, triangular face with big slanting black eyes.) I must say, it's very interesting to read everyone's different perceptions of the same picture. :)
ProfStokes
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We did seances all the time, Connie! No self-respecting teenager back then (I'm talking late 60's through the mid-70's) wouldn't have done them - it was part of adolescence back then. Of course, we were positive that things happened during our little spook gatherings. We also did levitations, ouija boards, you-name-it. And don't forget Mary Worth! That one was actually the spookiest, because you had to go into that pitch-dark bathroom alone, with that one, teeny candle, looking in the mirror and keep saying it over and over again. I don't think any of us made it beyond the second "I believe in Mary Wo..." Oh, and down the street from my best friend's house was a "haunted house". It was an abandoned place that kinda looked like the Psycho house and it still had some broken sticks of furniture in it. One night we went in there, right at midnight - three of us. We clung to each other, moving from room to room, up to the second floor. We never made it into the basement, because while we were on the second floor, my best friend pointed and said: "Didn't we leave that door open? Well, now it's closed." If somebody had been driving by outside at that moment, it would've looked like a scene from The Munsters, when somebody accidentally opens up Spot's hiding place under the stairs and then came crashing out of the house in fast-motion, climbing over the wall or even plowing underneath it. Oh, those were fun days!
Gerard
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Hi, Cassandra! I moved the face to below the plant to Evan's left. See it now? I don't know how to just circle a photo, as you did. So I had to move it to make it obvious. I see your phantom face now too (now that it's circled).
OMG I feel so stupid Dom, now I see what you were referring to! That is a weird looking face, reminds me of Zorro with those eyes, LOL!!
Maybe the guy in the cowboy hat is the ghost of Peter Bradford! LOL! Remember that corny, hatted dark phantom they used on the show that ended up being Peter bradford? ::)
ROTFL!!!
Cassandra
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Of course Connie, we also held many a seance. Still love candles and antiques. My mother just gave me an antique mantle clock for Christmas. It chimes so very beautifully, and it is driving the rest of my family crazy. Yet, another benift. My husband has been getting points by whinding the banjo clock in the living room too. O.K. I have a thing fro clocks. I also have many candlesticks around the house.
Birdie
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Nah, dogs don't always respond....bring a cat though >:D
Oh yeah! I will second that one. My dogs could be just lounging around while my cats - especially the gorgeous and intelligent tabby Megan would suddenly look up and turn to stare wide-eyed into a dark room. I don't know what she was looking at but I have a very strong feeling it was definately SOMETHING.
Also, regarding animals in situations like this, after each of those dear ones passed on I felt their prescence at different times. With the cats I felt the familiar pressure of their paws walking across the bed - in ways typical to each cat. With the dogs I felt the right corner of my bed being bumped the way my corgi Casey would do almost every night. My sister mentioned that she had a similar experience when her dog Maddie died. I never found it scary though - just kind of oddly comforting. All the animals were extremely well loved so maybe they just weren't quite ready to leave. :)
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Back in college a friend and I read many of demonologists Ed and Larraine Warren's books and they were interesting but also very frightening. In fact, I suggested to my spirit-infested friends that they contact the Warrens, which they did.
I was just reading about the Warrens not long ago. It probably won't surprise anyone to find out that they too have a web site ...
http://www.warrens.net/ (http://www.warrens.net/) for those who want to "read more about it". [ghost]
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Back in college a friend and I read many of demonologists Ed and Larraine Warren's books and they were interesting but also very frightening. In fact, I suggested to my spirit-infested friends that they contact the Warrens, which they did.
As an uncertified skeptic, I recommend that people also look at these:
http://www.legendofdudleytown.com/warren.html (http://www.legendofdudleytown.com/warren.html)
http://www.bostonphoenix.com/archive/features/97/08/14/SKEPTICS.html (http://www.bostonphoenix.com/archive/features/97/08/14/SKEPTICS.html)
http://www.theness.com/articles/warrens-cs0203.html (http://www.theness.com/articles/warrens-cs0203.html)
http://www.theness.com/articles/ghostbusting-csc0103.html (http://www.theness.com/articles/ghostbusting-csc0103.html)
http://www.amityvillemurders.com/ (http://www.amityvillemurders.com/)
As you might have gathered, I am not all that wild for the Warrens, as I used to be in my more credulous youth. Not that I don't doubt their sincerity--- however, as one (certified) skeptic put it, "One shouldn't mistake sincerity for authenticity." I do not believe reality is completely subjective, though individuals can interpret it differently than the majority. And science isn't infallible. But it's far less likely to play on the emotions of the vulnerable.
And while I don't believe in the supernatural, I think human beings have a spiritual component, though I am not sure any individual has the right to claim that he or she has a direct line to whatever Prime Mover, or intercessor. Why, after all, should an angel bother to help someone with a relatively trivial problem, and allow 30,000 innocent people to die in an earthquake in their sleep, or face a massacre, or a slow painful death from cancer, or what have you?
As to the Warrens themselves, again, while, by all accounts, even from their detractors, that they DO believe what they say, and while I admire their moxie and prescience at taking up their occupation at just the right time (after a series of humdrum and unsuccessful careers) and making good, old-fashioned American success, trouble seems to follow in their wake.
Their "investigations" of Union cemetery in Easton have attracted the curious, who have trespassed and inadvertantly vandalized the place, causing innocent others of fearing arrest even during the day. Their interference with the notorious Ridgefield "demon murder trial" was seen through by the jurors, who understood that the only demon was ther mutual lust and jealousy of two men over one woman.
They played into the hands of Ronald Defeo's attorney, who sought some excuse to get his appalling client sprung from prison with the excuse that the Devil made him kill his family. The Defeos were a messed-up bunch long before they ever moved to Amityville. The Warrens' implications also insulted Native Americans by claiming that they impounded their mentally impaired people at the Ocean Avenue site, and that Satanism was practiced there, etc. Also, abetted the Lutzes, who had gone in over their heads with the mortgage and saw this as a way to recoup their losses (did you know that they returned the very next day after "fleeing" the house, to have a garage sale?)
Also, encouraged the Lindley Street incident in Bridgeport, where a teenaged foster daughter was later caught on videotape knocking over furniture--- an act they had attributed to poltergeists? (There's a distinct misogynistic bent in supernatural investigations in general, heaping blame upon the disturbing influences of growing girls and older women, which thinking, as I recall, led to the "witch burning times" that targetted mostly females. Boy, is Lorraine Warren lucky she wasn't born back then.)
Even a cursory reading of their own case histories shows that Ed (who is mostly retired now due to recent ill health) was not above "leading the witnesses" during his interrogations of those who had contacted him and Lorraine for assistance. Rather than arriving at supernatural explanations AFTER exhausting all possible NATURAL ones (something referred to in the Hampton Court thread, which I admit I lightheartedly introduced), the Warrens jump right in with supernatural theories FIRST.
Again, this is quite legal, and a matter of free will, but might block someone from thinking objectively about the situation, and seeking a less-disturbing way of solving problems.
(Plus, how many times do I have to repeat about the "photographic evidence"? Orbs are reflected DUST or DEW. Arcs are light refractions, or the camera strap falling in front of the lens. Using old or defective film causes emulsions. Reflections cause distorted optical illusions.)
Hey, I love a good story, I love DS, I love Art Bell and George Noory, I loved X-Files and Millennium and Sightings, I still find the Warrens' adventures entertaining (BTW, they only live about 6 miles from me.) However, I would take EVERYTHING the foregoing say, with a BIG grain of salt.
L
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I'm a skeptic (with an open mind) too, Lorraine. I love all the stuff about the Warrens because it's, well, fun! It makes for great reading on a dark, stormy night. But beyond that, I don't give it all much of a thought. Also, it is interesting to see how the Amityville case eventually played out, showing that it was all a hoax. But, again, it sure was fun!
Gerard
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Thanks for the fascinating links, Lorraine. I think it is important to have a look at the evidence of the skeptics, as much of what they say does make a lot of sense. There is a romance about ghosts and psychic phenomenon that is at once comforting ("evidence" that there is life after death) and intriguing as anything inexplicable will always be to people. I believe that those two factors tend to make people ignore or dismiss any logical arguments that might explain away such phenomenon. That is a pity.
Perhaps after investing some 40 years of their lives to investigating and believing in ghosts and demons, it would be too difficult for the Warrens to admit to themselves or to others that they may be wrong. That may be a shame, although I can certainly understand why.
The article about Dudleytown was very interesting. My college friend and I actually visited Dudleytown and Mt. Riga, CT, another alleged site of paranormal activity, back in 1982 on a beautiful summer day. Mt. Riga had its share of houses but there seemed to be no one there and, oddly, no bird song of any kind. In short, the place seemed rather creepy although that may have been due as much to the power of suggestion as to anything else. After both seeing an odd reflection in the window of a "haunted" house, we decided to leave in a hurry! Dudleytown was a wooded area with some old foundations. We saw nothing, but again, what we read about this place lent it a tragic, abandoned quality. Yes, we were probably very gullible but I had to admit that our ghost hunting excursions were also a lot of fun! So, I agree with you too, Gerard. ;D
P.S. The writer of the first article you list does make a mistake of his own: Henry VII was Henry VIII's father, not his brother, who I believe, died very young.
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Thanks for the fascinating links, Lorraine. I think it is important to have a look at the evidence of the skeptics, as much of what they say does make a lot of sense. There is a romance about ghosts and psychic phenomenon that is at once comforting ("evidence" that there is life after death) and intriguing as anything inexplicable will always be to people. I believe that those two factors tend to make people ignore or dismiss any logical arguments that might explain away such phenomenon. That is a pity.
Perhaps after investing some 40 years of their lives to investigating and believing in ghosts and demons, it would be too difficult for the Warrens to admit to themselves or to others that they may be wrong. That may be a shame, although I can certainly understand why.
They can believe whatever they want, and people who believe they can help, well, I SUPPOSE there's something to be said for psychological relief that is not drug-induced or drawn-out with years of pointless psychoanalysis.
However, in this house, where I have lived 42 years, we have since had a family death (right in my presence), someone who was dying (spent last hours in Hospice), plus the deaths of a couple of beloved pets. Though these were all natural ends, a couple were untimely, and only one was "easy." There was plenty of unfinished business, even with the pets, and plenty of grief expended over all. Yet, we have had NO intimations that their spirits are, in any way, present, and if some superstitious person came in here, and suggested they were, I would have to ask that person to leave. Ordinary sadness over my loved ones' absence is more than enough stress for us.
What I took particular umbrage at, was Ed tasking such umbrage at the skeptics with whom he had worked, that he denounced ALL skeptics as "Anti-Christs." Now, I'm not PERFECT, but an Anti-Christ? >:D
I actually visited Dudleytown and Mt. Riga, CT, another alleged site of paranormal activity, back in 1982 on a beautiful summer day. Mt. Riga had its share of houses but there seemed to be no one there and, oddly, no bird song of any kind. In short, the place seemed rather creepy although that may have been due as much to the power of suggestion as to anything else. After both seeing an odd reflection in the window of a "haunted" house, we decided to leave in a hurry! Dudleytown was a wooded area with some old foundations. We saw nothing, but again, what we read about this place lent it a tragic, abandoned quality. Yes, we were probably very gullible but I had to admit that our ghost hunting excursions were also a lot of fun! So, I agree with you too, Gerard. ;D
I love the Cornwall area, and when my brother was alive, I knew he had been to D'town, and begged him to take me there. But alas, such was not to be. :( He said it wasn't haunted, but there WAS a weird huge bush growing smack in the middle of the main pathway at the time (late 1970's) planted, no doubt, to discourage ghost-hunters-- and OUTLAW BIKERS ! :D In fact, as the site says, the area is supposed to be a No-Trespassing zone (in part, due to those old rumors.) Pity, because Condo-necticut has a shortage of weird and wonderful places to excite the imagination. Wait a few years--- SOMEBODY will figure out how to build fine McMansions or luxury townhouses up there, no matter WHAT those Warrens say! (Paging Roger Davis ;D)
P.S. The writer of the first article you list does make a mistake of his own: Henry VII was Henry VIII's father, not his brother, who I believe, died very young.
Henry VII's eldest son was Arthur, who was married to Catharine of Aragon and died at age 16, leaving his widow to later wed younger bro Henry VIII, which eventually led to all the divorces and beheadings that helped make Hampton Court the ---allegedly--- "haunted" palace it is today !!!
L.