Twisted Tales with Heidi Wong

Episode: A Family Curse That Spanned Generations

Release Date: April 6, 2026
Host: Heidi Wong
Podcast: Twisted Tales (Crime House Original)

Episode Overview

In this episode, Heidi Wong delves into the chilling real-life inspirations behind Ari Aster’s horror film Hereditary. Through the lens of infamous cults, generational family tragedies, fraudulent mediums, and ancient demonology, Heidi examines the true horror found in legacy, trauma, and manipulation—showing how reality’s “family curses” outdo anything in fiction.

Key Themes & Discussion Points

1. Cults and Generational Trauma: The Family International (Children of God)

[03:59 - 09:45]

• History & Rise: Founded in 1968 by David Berg, starting with “preaching to hippies” and evolving into a worldwide movement.
  • “He started with preaching to hippies on the beach, mixing Christianity with new age ideas like free love and communal living. And people were all about it.” (Heidi Wong, 04:05)
• Complete Control: Berg, aka “Moses David,” leverages a barrage of “Mo Letters” to micro-manage members’ lives.
• Disturbing Practices: Introduction of “flirty fishing” (using sex to recruit) and normalization of child abuse.
• Long-lasting Damage: Generational trauma took root through isolated upbringing, systematic abuse, and shunning/outcasting.
• Case Highlight: The shocking story of Ricky Rodriguez’s murder-suicide in 2005 reignites public attention to the cult’s legacy of harm.

"A British court case found that the group engaged in systematic physical and sexual abuse of children, resulting in lasting trauma for survivors. And this trauma lasted for generations.” (Heidi Wong, 07:52)

2. The Genetic Curse: The Galvin Family

[09:46 - 14:56]

• Surface Perfection: Don and Mimi Galvin’s Colorado Springs family portrays an idyllic American life—until six of their twelve children develop schizophrenia.
  • “Six sons, all schizophrenic in one family. Let that sink in.” (Heidi Wong, 10:27)
• Ripple Effects: Violence, abuse, and tragedy shatter the household, with siblings experiencing neglect, sexual abuse, and terror.
• Medical & Scientific Impact: The Galvin case is pivotal in shifting views on schizophrenia’s hereditary nature.
  • The family’s DNA aids ground-breaking research, including nutritional recommendations (choline supplements) to help prevent brain disorders in future generations.
• Lingering Toll: Only two affected brothers remain alive, relying on family for ongoing care, revealing the tragedy behind scientific advancement.
• Quote of Hope:

  “Because of the sheer number of cases in one family, researchers were able to study schizophrenia in ways they never could before…The research continues today.” (Heidi Wong, 12:51)

3. The Hemingway Curse

[16:15 - 18:38]

• Suicide Throughout Generations: Ernest Hemingway’s famed legacy is overshadowed by recurrent suicides and addiction in his lineage.
• The Shadow of Silence: Family members like Mariel Hemingway speak to the toxic culture of denial and untreated trauma.

  • “I grew up watching a family that was completely amazing and creative, but also destructive and self medicating. All of them, they were addicts.” (Mariel Hemingway quoted by Heidi Wong, 17:39)

• Enduring Pain: Tragedy, addiction, and unspoken abuse cycle through generations, described as “the Hemingway curse.”

4. Exploiting Grief: The Rise of Spiritualism & Bereavement Scams

[18:39 - 21:44]

• Origins of Spiritualism: The Fox sisters spark a Victorian-era craze for seances and mediums, targeting the grieving masses during an age of high mortality.
• Fraudulent Mediums: Many spiritualist tricks later proven to be fraudulent (table rapping, fake ectoplasm), but the movement persists due to overwhelming grief.
• Modern Scams: The tradition carries on as present-day bereavement scams prey on the vulnerable; the psychic services industry pulls in over $2 billion yearly.

“When you’re desperate to hear from someone you’ve lost, you’ll pay almost anything for that connection, even if on some level, you know it might not be real.” (Heidi Wong, 20:50)

5. Demonology in Horror: The Legend of King Paimon

[21:45 - 23:02]

• Occult Roots: King Paimon, the demon at the heart of Hereditary, comes from the 17th-century Lesser Key of Solomon, signifying centuries-old fears.
• Alluring But Dangerous: Paimon makes for a powerful, enigmatic antagonist, with origins possibly predating even Western demonology.

6. Case Study: Hereditary—Where All These Horrors Meet

[23:48 - 28:57]

• Plot Parallels to True Events: Heidi summarizes Hereditary, highlighting its foundation in the very real family tragedies and cult dynamics discussed earlier.
  • “A charismatic leader who claims divine authority. Devoted followers who give up everything. Children raised to serve the group’s purpose, and generations of people whose lives were stolen from them.” (Heidi Wong, drawing connections between cult stories and film, 09:45)
• Family Doomed by Legacy: The Graham family at Hereditary’s heart illustrates the inescapability of generational curses and inherited trauma.
• Iconic Scene Highlight:
  • “Then comes that scene...Peter swerves to avoid roadkill and hits a telephone pole. The impact is instant and horrifying. I’m not going to describe it in detail, but if you know, you know.” (Heidi Wong, 24:41)
• Emotional Core: The true horror is not supernatural, but the helpless feeling of being trapped by family legacy and exploited in grief.

  “Most of us haven’t dealt with demonic possession, but a lot of us know what it’s like to feel cursed by our families, to inherit trauma, to watch mental illness ripple through generations. That’s the real horror of Hereditary.” (Heidi Wong, 27:40)

• Reality Outdoes Fiction:

  “The supernatural stuff is just the framework. The real horror is how much of it is true.” (Heidi Wong, 28:10)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On cult manipulation:

  “David [Berg] didn’t just want followers, he wanted complete control over their bodies, their minds, their children, their entire lives. And he got it.” (Heidi Wong, 05:34)

• On the Galvin family tragedy:

  “The brothers themselves received nothing. They lost their future, their potential and their lives, all because of a genetic lottery that they never had a chance to win.” (Heidi Wong, 13:55)

• On the cycle of family trauma:

  “It’s the kind of inherited pain that feels inescapable, like you’re doomed for just being born into this family.” (Heidi Wong, 18:09)

• On spiritualist grift:

  “The line between comfort and exploitation is thin, and there are plenty of people willing to cross it.” (Heidi Wong, 21:25)

• On Hereditary's realism:

  "These are the monsters that inspired Hereditary. And unlike Paimon, they’re not going anywhere.” (Heidi Wong, 28:29)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [03:59] – Introduction to The Family International / Children of God cult
• [09:46] – The Galvin family’s genetic “curse”
• [16:15] – The Hemingway family’s legacy of suicide and addiction
• [18:39] – Spiritualism, the Fox sisters, and the bereavement scam industry
• [21:45] – Origins and myth of King Paimon
• [23:48] – Breakdown of Hereditary and its links to real-world horrors
• [28:29] – Concluding reflections connecting all stories

Episode Takeaways

• The foundational terror in Hereditary stems from reality: family curses, trauma, predatory cults, and the insidious exploitation of grief.
• Real-life stories—like those of the Family International, the Galvins, the Hemingways, and victims of psychic scams—blur the line between horror fiction and true crime.
• The episode's tone is empathetic, direct, and deeply unsettling, but ultimately, it remains a meditation on the very human aspects of horror—family, inheritance, loss, and the ongoing quest for agency and understanding within them.

Host closing thought:

“There’s no reason to fear the dark unless you try to hide from it.” (Heidi Wong, 28:49)