D (18:35)

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C (19:05)

So it's 1974, just a few years after the whole Annabelle incident happened. It's a Wednesday night in Amityville, which is like this little town on Long island in New York. A bunch of regulars are sipping on beer in a little dive bar called Henry's. So I guess suddenly, like a man bursts into the bar and screams like, you gotta help me. I think my mother and father are shot. And you know, lads is like, what? And right away people realized the man who was screaming, his name is Ronald DeFeo. Ronald DeFeo Jr. He's a local, everyone knew him. So they're like, oh my God, what? So people call the police, like right away. So police and officers, everyone, like, shows up to the house, Officers walk into the house and immediately sense that something is off so they walk around, they check the house, and while doing so, they find six bodies. Ronald's father, mother, and four siblings. They were all shot in the back of the head with a rifle. So the scene, you could say is very bloody and gruesome. Yeah, so at first, Ronald's telling everyone, like, it was like a mob hitman had killed his family. He's going with that story for just a little bit of time. But it wouldn't take long for Ronald to crack, and he eventually confessed he was the one who killed his family. Ronald told police that he slipped his family sleeping pills during dinner and then shot them in their bed while they slept. So he's arrested, right? Okay, yeah, you can't do that. Arrested, whatever. And then not long after, you know, he's taken to trial and he tweaks his story a little bit. He pleads the insanity defense, saying that the quote, unquote voices in his head told him to kill his family, even though they never found, like, the motive for these murders. Ronald was convicted of second degree murder, and people were really freaked out by this case because, again, like, no one could understand why Ronald did this until the following year. On December 18, 1975, a new family moved into Ronald's old house in Amityville. It was George and Kathleen Lutz, as well as their three kids, Daniel, Christopher, and Missy. Now, they got this house for a steal. Okay, it was discounted. They paid $80,000 for it. And they were like, hell, yeah. You know, it's a big house. It's like they're mansion owners now. I mean, yes, the whole family did get murdered into it, but, like, that's old news, you know, According to them, as soon as they stepped through the front door, they started to get that uneasy feeling like something wasn't right. So they called up a local priest to come and bless the house, give it a little spring cleaning, some holiday cheer. So the priest shows up, and he's going around blessing the house and sprinkling holy water everywhere as the family continues to unpack. But then he gets to one of the bedrooms in the house, and before he can even sprinkle holy water in this room, he hears, get out. It was an evil voice saying, get out. So the priest, he panics. He's like, okay, I will. Bye. You know, because there's no one in the room. So I guess the priest, like, keeps the incident to himself. But he tells the family, like, hey, maybe just don't sleep in that room. Just leave it alone. So after he left, it was said that the house felt a little lighter. Things seemed good until changes started happening within the family. Apparently the family, they all started to seem more like tense and moody. And after just a few days, everyone's personality started to change for the worst. The dad, George, he also caught a chill, meaning he was freezing cold all of the time. He started spending most of his time near the fireplace trying to just stay warm. He also stopped taking showers or like keeping up with any of his hygiene. And he was battling insomnia. I guess he would wake up every night at exactly 3:15am I mean, even if he was in like a dead sleep. The mom, I guess she also seemed to be falling apart. She was sick all the time and had a hard time leaving her room. It was said there was this one night where George woke up. You know, he wakes up, he looked over and he saw his wife levitating over the bed. Yeah, I don't know, I would, I would think that would be enough. She was levitating over the bed. George felt like he was losing his mind. So he didn't know whether it was like real, Was it fake? I don't know. George said he was like having night terrors. One time he woke up and like turned to Catherine, but when he looked at her, it wasn't Catherine. It was like a 90 year old hag, Like a scary, scabby old woman. Around the same time, the family also noticed a strange ooze that was like appearing in places. It was almost like a jello like substance that would appear on surfaces and so slowly seep out of the walls. I don't know, I mean, okay. Then the family started noticing smells in the house that came from nowhere. Yeah, someone was farting. It was said in the bathroom. Black stains that looked like mold appeared in the toilets. Sounds like a personal issue, really. Catherine said like no matter how much she cleaned, she could not get rid of these stains. They just kept coming back. And similar black stains would also appear in places that just would not make sense, like on ceramic figurines in the home. The family also reported hearing doors slamming shut for no reason. You know, it was just a freaky situation. Everyone was on edge now. Everyone, the whole family reported that they felt like someone was in the room with them at all times. Someone was watching, even if they were alone. And it was like just them. It just always felt like someone was there. Ugh. I know at this point my ass would grab my tent. I would go outside, set up my tent and I would just live there from now on, you know? But that's okay, Wheelie, shut up. It's not about you. The Lutz family said that, you know, they tried to call the priest to have him come back, help him out, but every time they try to call him, the phone would not connect. So finally, the family decided to handle things like the best that they could. They each held a crucifix or rosary and walked through the house saying the Lord's Prayer. It was said as soon as they did that, the house filled with voices screaming at them to stop. They said this was the final straw. I don't know. I think your wife levitating, that would be a final straw. Maybe. I don't know. But this was the final straw. So the Lutz family, they immediately jumped into the car and they drove to Catherine's mother's house. Now, they left behind pretty much everything they owned. They only lived in the house for 28 days. Once they were safely out of the house, they began to tell people about their experiences. So, of course, this got the attention, you know, of the local news. A reporter decided to call everyone's favorite paranormal investigators, the Warrens, you know, to get their hot take on this. And when the Warrens got this call, it was the best thing that had ever happened to them. Well, yeah, it was. I mean, this is exactly the kind of case they were hoping for. So the Warrens get the call and decide to go straight to the scene. Ed brought along extra help to photograph and, like, document the investigation. They spoke to the Lutz family about listening to their experiences and began recording their conversations for research inside the house. Lorraine said that she kept receiving visions of the DeFeo family's bodies all lined up in the living room with white, bloody sheets over their bodies. She also felt something trying to physically push her back out of the house. She believed that this something, this force, was a, quote, overwhelming demonic presence. Ed also agreed that he had feelings of being pushed or moved while he was in the house. But their investigation uncovered something no one saw coming. The Warrens claimed to uncover the reason why this house was, like, so haunted in the first place. According to them, a man named John Ketchum had once lived on the property in the 1920s. Now he had a cottage that was torn down sometime before the current house was built. John was apparently known to be someone who dabbled in the art of black magic. So when he died and was buried on the property, all the evil spirits associated with that black magic stayed on the property. But that's not all. The Warrens also claimed to have uncovered Shinnecock, Indian spirits. According to them, when they lived on this land, it was used almost as a place for people who were sick or mentally ill. Many who were considered outcasts were sent there, I guess, to just die. All these spirits, the Warren said, left the property with, quote, a very negative energy and dark history, end quote. Which, quote, was a magnet for demonic spirits. End quote. Dark history. Isn't that fun? It's like when you're watching a movie and they say the title of the movie in the movie and you're like, ah, dark history. Ah, it's like that. Anyway, spirits. The wildest and most important piece of research that the Warrens captured was a photograph from inside the home. Now listen, in this photo, it shows like the top of the stairs, okay? And there seems to be like a shadowy figure. It's not even shadowy. It looks like a young boy looking around the corner. Corner. Photoshop wasn't easily available yet so many people believed, like, that's the spirit of the little boy who died on the property. It was creepy looking. Now, this picture was run in every newspaper in the area and like, no one could identify this person. Now, the Warrens, they didn't charge for this investigation, but, you know, they made a life changing amount of money on this case. They did interviews, they delivered lectures, they wrote books about it. They even managed to get the deed to the house so that they would, like, always have control of the property. Lorraine said, quote, the case itself has affected our personal lives more than any other case we've ever worked on in 54 years of research. End quote. Now, the Lutz, they never returned home. Their stuff was sold at auction and an author named Jay Anson turned the Letts's story into the novel the Amityville Horror. In 1977. It was an instant bestseller and overnight turned the Warrens into celebrities. Today it sold over 10 million copies. The book was even turned into a famous movie in the 70s. They did a remake in 2005 with Ryan Reynolds. Maybe you saw that one. It wasn't that great, was it? I don't remember. Spooky, though. The original one was good. I think it was. It was scary. Now, the Lutz, they were even able to get like some money from this book deal they said they made around like $300,000 from their story going to the press. And it all seemed to be going very well for the Warrens until they faced their biggest case yet. So it's the late 1970s. The Amityville case is all over the news. And at the same Time. Over in England, a family was dealing with an invasion in their own homes. An invasion of poltergeists. Poltergeists are ghosts that usually move objects or make loud noises. So it's said that they're not exactly like demons. They're still terrifying and usually a sign that, like, something is up in your home. From 1977 to 1979, two twin sisters named Janet and Margaret Hodgson began experiencing poltergeist activity. So they lived in apartments in an area called Enfield. According to them, the first things that, like, started to happen were that when they were in bed, like, when the sisters were in bed sleeping, the beds would start shaking violently. Then they would, like, start to hear strange sounds, like shuffling and banging. Almost like someone was knocking on a door. So they would tell their mom. Her name's Peggy. They tell her, be like, something's happening. But she never saw any of it. So she's like, okay, sure, she had her doubts. Then one day, a chest of drawers slid across the room and blocked the door. So the girls, like, couldn't leave their room. Now, when that happened, the mom was in the room. So she saw that and was like, oh, shit, you're not lying. Something's happening. So on August 31, 1977, after there were, like, a bunch of disturbances, Peggy called the police. So she calls up the police, and she's like, hey, my furniture's moving. And there's, like, strange loud sounds. So, like, the police are like, all right, they took her seriously. They showed up at the house, but even they were confused by what they were seeing and what they were hearing. I guess one of the chairs in the house kept wobbling and sliding around, like, without anyone touching it. So police checked all around the house. They checked the chair, and they couldn't figure out, like, what was happening. So they decide for some reason to call the press. I know, very random. I thought they were gonna call a priest or something. But no. The press. Yeah. So a photojournalist from the Daily Mirror showed up to see, like, what's going on. He shows up in the evening, and he's watching Peggy. And Peggy is, like, I guess, bringing her kids into the living room one by one, and she's, like, putting them down for a nap. Nothing was happening. I guess the journalist is like, okay, this is really boring. Then Peggy brings her daughter Janet in, and that's when, like, all hell breaks loose. It was said that objects in the room rise up from the ground and start flying all over the place. Yeah. What? A Lego brick flies across the Room and clocks a journalist in the eye. Lego to the face. The journalist knew, like, it wasn't any of the kids, okay? So he actually gathered everyone into, like, one corner of the room so he can keep. Keep track of, like, the objects. They were all moving on their own. So then he set up a camera to take photos in the girl's bedroom. You know, capture anything odd, I guess. A little while later, he goes and he checks the camera and he finds a photo of Janet. People claim in the photo, like, she's levitating above her bed, Almost like she's being thrown by a force no one can see. I think this is the most famous photograph from this whole incident. And to them, it was, like, proof. But I don't know, when you look at the photo, it kind of looks like she's jumping up in the air. I don't want to discredit them at all, but I'm like, okay, I don't know. Anyways, after this, a paranormal investigator named Maurice Gross investigated the situation. He also witnessed the magical, like, flying Lego pieces. And he observed that there were some marbles in the room that were very hot to the touch, I guess. Maurice stayed at the house for long periods of time, over several months. And every single weird, bizarre thing that the family experienced happened while he was there. One of the daughters started screaming that someone was holding her leg. So Maurice, I guess, tried to pull her, and, like, she didn't move. Something was holding her back. Maurice even saw Janet go through violent trances. But it wasn't just Maurice. Like, multiple witnesses from the neighborhood claim that they saw this as well. Janet said, quote, the lady saw me spinning around and banging against the window. I thought I might actually break the window and go through it. End quote. Ugh, Sounds painful. Now, apparently, when girls are at the quote, unquote cusp of adolescence, the poltergeist activity can get way worse. I know. It's a thing. So apparently, like, after Janet got her period for the first time, things got even darker, which is so awkward, because when you get your period for the first time, like, it's already an awkward time. And now, like, everyone knows, plus, like, now spirit would start attacking you. Jeez. Rough. Poor thing. I guess Janet started, like, talking in a deep, gruff voice. It was said almost like an old man who smoked his whole life. You know, that's how she was speaking. And she claimed to be speaking for a dead man named Bill Wilkins. Now, Bill, I guess, lived in the apartment, the same apartment years before, and I guess he died or something. Now we have record of all this because there were voice recordings from the house. Maurice even called for backup. So someone not in the world of, like, paranormal activity could be a witness. So Maurice called his brother Rich. He's like, bro, you gotta come over. This shit's wild. So Rich comes over, he talks to Janet, who was claiming to be Bill Wilkins. So Rich was like, okay, let me talk to you, Bill. And, like, started asking him questions through Janet. So Bill was dead. Okay. So Richard asks Bill about his death. And Bill again, through Janet's body, responds, quote, I had an Emory and I fell asleep and I died in a chair in the corner downstairs. And then he added, quote, I'm imprisable. There was no way for Janet to know any of this information. So it was a huge turning point in this whole case. By the summer of 1978, tons of paranormal investigators show up to try and help, including Ed and Lorraine Warren. But when they showed up, apparently they were turned away immediately. Immediately. According to one of the paranormal investigators, Ed and Lorraine wanted to blow this case up in the media even more, saying, quote, they did turn up at Enfield, and Ed Warren told me that he could make a lot of money for me out of it. So I thought, well, that's all I need to know from you. And I got myself out of his way as soon as I could. End quote. The paranormal investigators were genuinely concerned for the family and, you know, and not, like, turning this into a fricking movie or a book. So after just a day, the Warrens had nothing to do with this case. Now, thankfully, about a year and a half later, the activity just stopped out of nowhere. Yeah. The family was traumatized by what happened, but they were able to move on with their lives. The incident became known as the Enfield Poltergeist. And it's one of, like, the most documented paranormal events in modern history because it lasted so long. It lasted a long time. Almost two years. A little side note, I read that later on, the sisters eventually admitted to, like, making some of the story up. Yeah. So who knows how long it actually lasted? Yeah. Sorry. I don't know. Some of it could be very real. The Legos, I think. Yeah, that's. Yep. Now, for some reason, even though Ed and Lorraine were turned away from the case, like, they're still associated with it, I think. And that's how I think they wanted it to be. I mean, any chance he got, Ed would take partial credit for the Enfield Poltergeist investigation. A lot of people in the paranormal community thought that Ed and Lorraine were Fakes, frauds, phonies. And in my opinion, like, this was the beginning of the downfall of the reputation of the Warrens. Before, you know, they seemed like legit demonologists, but to others, they were kind of appearing to be, like, just media whores. You know what I'm saying? For years, the Warrens made money off their most famous case, the Amityville Horror. Within the paranormal community, there were whispers that something was off with that case. But again, like, there was lots of evidence, so no one really questioned anything publicly. But then in 1988, those rumors were confirmed to be true. So the DeFeo murders were real. An entire family was murdered by Ronald DeFeo Jr. But Ronald's attorney, his name was William Weber, he fessed up to something shocking. William the attorney, met with the Lutz family after they already lived in the Amityville home. The Lutz family told William that they wanted to create, like, this big, elaborate story about their home being haunted to, like, make money. So they invited Jay Anson, the man who would eventually write the famous Amityville horror novel. They called him up. They had dinner together. I guess they got. You know, they had some wine. They're drinking, and they, like, started to take random things that happened in the house and turn them into, like, terrifying ghost stories. Like, for example, someone spilled a plate of spaghetti. So the writer was like, oh, my God, like, let's make that evil green slime oozing from the walls. And they're like, hell, yeah, write it down. That makes a lot of sense. Spaghetti, slime, same thing. So, you know, you get it. So William knew that the story wouldn't sell without, like, Ronald's help. So he pretty much used his power as a lawyer to convince Ronald to go for the insanity plea at trial and say that voices were telling him to kill his family. Ronald said William wanted to, quote, make the story more attractive for possible book and movie contracts. End quote. And quote, he told me I had to do this. He told me there would be a lot of money from book rights and a movie. The whole thing was a con. End quote. So where did the Warrens come in on all this? Well, I guess they were, like, supporting everything the Lutz family said and even kind of making stuff up to make it more believable. Remember how Ed said that the Shinnecock Indian spirits were haunting the province? Well, no one could back up that claim. The Montucket tribe of Long island even reached out to ABC News to confirm that there was absolutely no record of burials at that house location. It was completely made Up. And remember the famous photo of the little boy on the stairs inside the Amityville house? Well, many believe it's actually a grown man and glasses kneeling down behind a staircase. Christopher, one of the Lutz kids, said his dad was, quote, a professional showman, in my opinion. And, quote, I just feel as though we're being exploited. End quote. So this all kind of made Ed and Lorraine look, like, not very credible, like a joke. So Ed Warren, he ended up passing away in 2006. And Lorraine went on to do many interviews with the media in order to protect their legacy. But as the years go on, even more like, stuff had came out about them. In 2017, a woman named Judith Penney spoke to the media. So Judith talked about how she was around for almost every single investigation that the Warrens did. She was the woman in the background that, like, no one really acknowledged, you know? Yeah, you get. Most people knew her as the girl who ran the Warren's Occult Museum. According to Judith, the truth was, she was more than that. Ed had groomed Judith from the time she was 15 years old. I guess at one point, Ed was a driver who would, like, make deliveries to the high school she was attending. And that's how they met. One thing led to another, and Judith moved in with the Warrens in 1963. She lived in an apartment they built for her above their house. Ed and Lorraine's daughter even confirmed this, saying they took her in because she had nowhere. Nowhere to go. The truth was, this wasn't charity. Judith was Ed's girlfriend. Yeah. Ed would alternate between spending nights with Lorraine and then with Judith. She was 15, and he was 37. Mm. Disgusting. In 1963, Judith was arrested after the local police got a tip about her relationship with Ed. I know. I was like, why was she arrested? Connecticut's laws at the time prohibited an unmarried minor from cohabiting with a married adult. In other words. Yeah, that's. Fuck. That's kind of. It's backwards. So she gets arrested. She spent one night in prison in Bridgeport. The police wanted her to admit to the affair and sign legal documents. And I guess when she didn't cooperate, she was court ordered to report to a delinquent youth office for a month. Ed would pick her up from school and drive her to these meetings. This is something allegedly Lorraine knew about and didn't seem to care about. The only time Lorraine cared about Anything was in 1978, when Judith found out that she was pregnant with Ed's child. Now, this was, like, at the height of the Warrens Amityville horror fame. According to Judith, Lorraine forced her to get an abortion. She said, quote, they wanted me to tell everyone that someone had come into my apartment and raped me. And I wouldn't do that. I was so scared. I didn't know what to do, but I had an abortion. End quote. Like I said, ed died in 2006, so he never, like, publicly addressed these claims. But Lorraine was extremely protective over her husband's image. I mean, Lorraine was a consultant on the conjuring movies, so. And like, she had to protect the family business. And she made sure to add that the filmmakers were prohibited from, quote, showing her or her husband. Husband engaging in crimes, including sex with minors, child pornography, prostitution, or sexual assault. And that neither the husband nor wife could be depicted as participating in an extramarital sexual relationship. End quote. I just feel like she just aired all their dirty laundry. Talent attorney Jill Smith told a Hollywood Reporter that this is not common in contracts. Oopsie. Lorraine, she passed away. She died in 2019. But Judith did get the last. She got the last word in the whole situation. Lorraine prided herself on being a devout Catholic her whole life. Judith's response was, quote, her real God is money. End quote. What a ride, huh? Spirits, ghosts, sexual predators. Ain't that something, huh? Movies, they're never true, right? Yeah, I don't know. I think at the end of the day, Ed and Lorraine were really good salespeople. Is that mean to say? I don't think so. I think they were good business people. Maybe. I don't know. They're obviously hiding something. They had some skeletons in their closet. I don't know. And look, just because Ed and Lorraine Warren were full of it does not mean I don't believe even ghosts. I swear there's. There's a ghost in my. Okay, I have this like, hallway and there's a. There is something. There's something going on at the. In this hallway. Okay? It's dark, it's spooky, and I don't know what it is. So this is what I do. This is how I handle ghosts. This is what I do. So when I feel like when I'm walking down this hallway and I feel like I feel it, I just start screaming. Not like bloody murder, but like, wah, wah. Like I just start kind of like just yelling and screaming. Cause I feel like the ghost can't scare me if I'm scaring the ghost. Cause the ghost is going to be like, what is this chick doing? Because I'm just like. And it works every time. If you release it and you get rid of the scare and you pass it on to the ghost instead, you just feel better. As I say it out loud, it sounds stupid. And yeah, if you're like, watching me through a window, I look like a lunatic. But it works, okay? Instead of waiting for the ghost to scare you, you scare the ghost first. And I'm like, you can stay here, ghost. You gotta put up with me. So that's what I do. I believe it works. Just a little tip from me to you. Thank you so much for listening. I know a lot of you, a lot of people have very hot takes on the Warrens. So I can't wait to read your thoughts in the comment section. Okay, friends, next time we are shifting gears. No ghosts, no haunted dolls. But honestly, still creepy. We're diving into the story of a man who was obsessed with purity. Physical purity, spiritual purity, and colon purity. I'm gonna be talking about Dr. John Harvey Kellogg. Yes, the cereal guy. This guy ran a massive wellness empire, which, honestly, it gives cult vibes. He was obsessed with yogurt enemas, electroshock machines, and led a literal crusade against masturbation. So join me next time for the dark history of Kellogg. Now, I'd love to hear your guys reactions to today's story. So make sure to leave a comment down below so I can see what you guys are saying. And your comment might even be featured in a future episode. Now let's read a couple of comments you guys have left me. Taylor Wingo, SG5PK left us a comment on my YouTube saying, quote, my. My mom and I love watching your videos while in our shop making soap. End quote. Aw, Taylor, I love that you watch with your mom and I love that you're doing this while, like, you guys are working on your business. What kind of soap are you making? What sense do you have? Let me know. Anyways, thank you. Thank you for watching. Hi, mom. I hope you guys are having a good day. Lexlove3003 commented on our board games episode saying, quote, you say the Monopoly fight sounds fake, but I can definitely say that sounds like the most real fight I've ever heard between dudes playing games. If you've ever heard a guy rage, quit. You know what I mean? End quote. I could. Yeah, you're right. Good point. It just seems so silly. But at the end of the day, this is. I'm not trying to stereotype, but sometimes men do get really heated about silly things, you know, like parking spot thing. So I guess you're right. I guess you're right. Sorry, I recant my statement. Thank you for your comment. Destiny Grounds left us an episode suggestion. You should do an episode on Bob Ross Destiny. That is a great idea. I did actually go down a little rabbit hole of, like, Bob Ross his whole story. And you're right. Right. That could be actually a really interesting episode. Okay, I'm gonna take note. Bob Ross. I like this. Stay tuned. I might actually. I might do it. I like that. That's a good one. Well, thank you guys so much for watching and engaging. Keep on commenting because maybe you'll be featured and you can join me over on my YouTube where you can actually watch these episodes on Thursday after the podcast airs. And while you're there, you can also catch my murder mystery and makeup. Don't forget to subscribe. And hey, if you don't know, Dark History is an audioboom original. A special thank you to our expert, Benjamin Radford, folklorist and author of Investigating the Scientific Search for Spirits. And I'm your host, Bailey Sarian. I hope you have a good day. You make good choices, and I'll be talking to you guys later. Goodbye, Sa.