I’ve got my pumpkin carved, my costume ready, and a ginormous bucket of candy just waiting for trick-or-treaters. That means it must be Halloween, one of my very favorite days of the year.
In honor of this spooky day, I present my Top 10 Creepy Stories “Based on a True Story.”
The Amityville Horror: I put this at the top of list because it’s the truest of the true stories. The movie The Amityville Horror is based on the non-fiction (read: super true) book of the same name. Actually, the book is titled The Amityville Horror: A True Story. I told you it was the truest of the true! Written by Jay Anson, the book recounts all the frightening things that happened to the Lutz family when they moved into a house that was -- oops! -- the site of a mass murder. (And you thought being underwater on your mortgage was scary.) Alas, the story by now has been completely discredited.
The Exorcist: Another movie based on a book. This one, though, was based on the novel (read: made up stuff) by William Peter Blatty. He based his story on the real-life exorcism of a young boy in Maryland in 1949. The movie is one of the scariest I’ve ever seen. And the book -- well, it was so scary I couldn’t finish it. There’s a 40th anniversary edition released this month, so you can scare yourself all over again.
The Mothman Prophecies: This one is a creepy movie starring Richard Gere. (No, not that one. You're thinking Pretty Woman.) First, there were local sightings of a big freaky thing with wings, dubbed The Mothman. Then a bridge collapsed. All of this is true. But saying the Mothman, whatever that was, caused the collapse strains the concept of cause and effect. Besides, we all have our local freaky things -- my hometown has the Chicken Lady. Don’t laugh. She was really scary.
Hostel: This movie is inspired by actual events. On the ladder of veracity, “inspired by actual events” sits a couple rungs lower than based on a true story. The movie’s director heard a friend say his hairdresser read a Craig’s List ad about some sort of murder holiday. So he made a movie about good-looking college kids getting chopped to pieces in Europe. Or something like that. I didn’t actually see it. Too scary.
The Blair Witch Project: By now you might be detecting a pattern. I get scared. Really scared. Really easily. But trust me, Blair Witch is super scary. It’s not really based on a true story, so I’ve put it at the bottom of the list. But the filmmakers made you think it was real. They shake the camera around, and I believe they starved their actors to make them seem really desperate. I saw it in the movie theater, and that ending made me drop my popcorn.
You may have noticed, I’ve only listed five stories. So what happened to the others? It must have been the Chicken Lady.
Creepy…
I hope you all have a terrific Halloween. Happy trick-or-treating!
Monday, October 31, 2011
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Let's Start With Some Tall Tales
Hi, and welcome to the inaugural post of my blog, Ripped from the Pages! I love fact, and I love fiction. And I especially love when the two get a little mixed up. Movies that claim to be “ripped from the headlines” -- awesome. Novels ripped from the pages of history -- even awesome-er. So let’s get to it!
My first post is inspired by my 9-year-old son. His phenomenal teacher, Mrs. Constantine, passed out awards to all the boys and girls of the class -- the peacemaker of the class got the Ghandi award, the class clown got the Bill Cosby award, the quiet girl who is definitely going to do great things one day got the Rosa Parks award. All very thoughtful and educational presentations. As a mama, I got chocked up.
My son got the Johnny Appleseed award for, as the certificate explains, his compassion, keen interest in nature, and his love for all living things.
We all know the story of Johnny Appleseed. Good ol’ Johnny takes his place among American folk tales alongside Paul Bunyan and Pecos Bill. Giant blue oxen, lassoing the moon, planting apple trees across America while wearing a pot on one’s head. Tall tales for sure.
But, as it turns out, Johnny Appleseed isn’t just a character. He was a real person. And, as a new book by Howard Means points out, almost certainly insane.
Gee, thanks, Mrs. Constantine.
Yep, Johnny Appleseed, or John Chapman, as his mother called him, was born in 1774 and grew up in Massachusetts. While still a young man, he left home a started planting apple seeds and spreading his own brand of spirituality and environmentalism. It’s that nurturing and love of nature that inspired my son’s teacher to bestow the Johnny Appleseed award on my son. Probably not the insanity part.
Maybe Johnny Appleseed was insane. He’s not the only historical figure accused of being insane because of his beliefs. Joan of Arc, or to take a more current example, Ralph Nader, did things that, let’s face it, the sane among us would probably never consider. I’m just not convinced they’re all that insane. And I don't think we should try to discount or diminish their actions by calling them crazy.
So Sam, I’m glad you love nature. And I’m glad you care about all living things. And if you decide to do something with your life that other people say is crazy, baby, that’s fine by me.
My first post is inspired by my 9-year-old son. His phenomenal teacher, Mrs. Constantine, passed out awards to all the boys and girls of the class -- the peacemaker of the class got the Ghandi award, the class clown got the Bill Cosby award, the quiet girl who is definitely going to do great things one day got the Rosa Parks award. All very thoughtful and educational presentations. As a mama, I got chocked up.
My son got the Johnny Appleseed award for, as the certificate explains, his compassion, keen interest in nature, and his love for all living things.
We all know the story of Johnny Appleseed. Good ol’ Johnny takes his place among American folk tales alongside Paul Bunyan and Pecos Bill. Giant blue oxen, lassoing the moon, planting apple trees across America while wearing a pot on one’s head. Tall tales for sure.
But, as it turns out, Johnny Appleseed isn’t just a character. He was a real person. And, as a new book by Howard Means points out, almost certainly insane.
Gee, thanks, Mrs. Constantine.
Yep, Johnny Appleseed, or John Chapman, as his mother called him, was born in 1774 and grew up in Massachusetts. While still a young man, he left home a started planting apple seeds and spreading his own brand of spirituality and environmentalism. It’s that nurturing and love of nature that inspired my son’s teacher to bestow the Johnny Appleseed award on my son. Probably not the insanity part.
Maybe Johnny Appleseed was insane. He’s not the only historical figure accused of being insane because of his beliefs. Joan of Arc, or to take a more current example, Ralph Nader, did things that, let’s face it, the sane among us would probably never consider. I’m just not convinced they’re all that insane. And I don't think we should try to discount or diminish their actions by calling them crazy.
So Sam, I’m glad you love nature. And I’m glad you care about all living things. And if you decide to do something with your life that other people say is crazy, baby, that’s fine by me.
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