It’s October, and scary movie season is upon us at last. But for all the horror movie lovers out there who prefer the chill of a tale that was based on real life, here are the spooky stories behind classic scary movies. We’ll also decide what was real – and what was a horror hoax.
“The Hills Have Eyes” (1977), Remake (2006)
The Movie: In Wes Craven’s classic horror film, a family on a road trip in the Southwestern United States is attacked by a savage group of people when their car breaks down in a remote place.
The Story Behind It: The movie was inspired by the life of Alexander “Sawney” Bean, a 15th century Scotsman who allegedly lead a clan of 40 people that lived in caves for 25 years. According to legend, he and his clan murdered and ate over 1,000 people before he was caught and put to death. His story has inspired many movies, but many historians believe he never really existed.
“The Exorcism of Emily Rose” (2005)
The Movie: A lawyer takes a homicide case involving an overzealous priest and his extreme exorcism of a young girl that ended in her death.
The Story Behind It: The Emily Rose character was based on Anneliese Michel, a German woman who died in the mid-1970’s after an exorcism was performed on her. The subsequent case that followed revealed that Michel’s trouble with mental illness, including epileptic seizures, was misidentified by her Catholic family as demonic possession. While being exorcised, Michel was subjected to considerable abuse and negligence and she eventually died from starvation and dehydration. Her parents and two priests were charged with neglectful homicide.
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“Audrey Rose” (1977)
The Movie: In this film by director Robert Wise, a stranger tries to convince a married couple that their daughter is actually his daughter reincarnated.
The Story Behind It: The movie was based on the work of writer Frank De Felitta, who began an obsession with the idea of reincarnation after he heard his six year-old son play a song perfectly on the family piano – despite never having taken a lesson. De Felitta consulted an occultist who told him about “incarnation leaks,” in which things from past lives reveal themselves in your present life. De Felitta’s work echoes his firm belief that people live many lifetimes.
“The Amityville Horror” (1979), Remake (2005)
The Movie: A young family movies into a house found in Amityville, New York. They endure several weeks of supernatural torture before fleeing the home.
The Story Behind It: The many movie adaptations were based off of one book called “The Amityville Horror: A True Story,” by Jay Anson. The book claimed to be a true account of the experiences of the Lutz family, who were driven out after only 28 days due to paranormal experiences. It is believed to be haunted because the previous owner, Ronald De Feo Jr., shot and killed six members of his family inside the home. However, various lawsuits, memoirs and interviews later it was revealed that the book was a hoax.
“The Exorcist” (1973)
The Movie: In this horror movie classic, a young girl is possessed by a mysterious entity, and her mother enlists two priests to save her.
The Story Behind It: William Peter Blatty, who wrote the novel and screenplay of The Exorcist, was inspired by an article he read in his Georgetown College newspaper about a 13 year-old boy – pseudonym “Roland Doe” – who was exorcised in 1949. Most of the details have been hidden or changed to protect the boy’s family. What is known is that Roland was born to a German Lutheran Christian family in Cottage City, Maryland. After the death of a close relative, Roland began exhibiting strange, violent behavior. When his parents contacted the church, Roland began an intensive exorcism process at Georgetown University Hospital (a Jesuit institution) under the Episcopal Church’s authority. The exorcism gained media attention, mainly because the fantastic documentations of telekinesis and possession gave the public a glance at what they considered an actual case of demon possession. The ritual was performed thirty times on Roland over several weeks and was deemed successful – though many doctors feel his symptoms were dramatized by the church to promote their victory over the devil, and find that many of his symptoms suggest manic depression.
BONUS: From Roland’s case the following possession “tropes” were mined: a resistance to anything “sacred” like crosses or holy water, speaking in a low, gutteral voice while possessed, mysterious welts and injuries, objects flying randomly throughout the room, the possessed body being raised up a shaking bed and speaking in strange tongues.
Ed Gein: A One-Man Cinema
The Movies: Ed Gein has inspired many classic horror characters, including Norman Bates from Psycho, Leatherface from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and Jame Gumb (Buffalo Bill) from Silence of the Lambs.
The Story Behind It: Also known as “The Mad Butcher,” Gein was arrested in Plainfield, Wisconsin for the murder of two women, though several other murders have been attributed to him. During his trial, various body parts were found in Gein’s home and shed. He revealed he had dug up as many as 40 bodies from graveyards, and used body parts for various things, including skin for chair covers, bowls made from human skulls, a belt made from female human nipples, and a lampshade from the skin of a human face. Gein admitted to digging up middle-aged women who looked like his mother, with whom he had a… complicated relationship. After her death, he wanted a sex change operation and began to create a “woman suit” out of women’s skin to pretend to be female. In 1968 Gein was found not guilty of first-degree murder by plea of not guilty by reason of insanity. He was sentenced to life imprisonment, which he spent in a mental hospital. Popular culture has further built on the legend of Gein, who was long attributed with scrawling the phrase “Stop me before I kill again” in blood on a victim’s wall at a murder scene. Makes Norman Bates sound downright cuddly.