Some of the sickest killers and creepiest tales that cinema has seen have been inspired by real events. The world is full of mysteries and deeply disturbing true stories. So with that here's 10 true stories that seem perfect for a horror movie re-imagination of their own. Admittedly, some of these have gotten low-budget movie versions, but they deserve something a bit more A list of their richly spooky roots.
1. Samuel Page.
Samuel Page was a blacksmith in Dublin in the 1830s. Samuel and his wife Sarah had two girls; Becky and Hannah. For all intents and purposes the Page’s were a well-adjusted family who were very much a part of the Dublin community in the mid-19th century. However, by night Samuel and his family ran a satanic cult from the basement in their home. Once their evil practices were discovered, their house was burned to the ground by locals. Bodies of all the family were discovered, except for Samuel’s. For weeks afterwards, Dubliners were excavating the tunnels looking for the corpse of Page but it was never found. They say that his soul is owned by the devil and that disciples of Page’s cult still follow him today.
You can experience the horror and thrill of Samuel Page’s Nightmare now in the RDS! Ghost trains and haunted houses are mere child’s play to this bone chilling interactive attraction. The RDS in Ballsbridge has been given a special makeover for to provide thrill-seekers and and horror fans alike with the chance to delve deep into Samuel Page’s Nightmare, offering an unmatched experience and horror journey you won’t get anywhere else. The story bursts into life with live actors, professionally designed sets, costumes and terrifying scenes! Be warned, it is not for the faint hearted!
You can purchase tickets here for as little as €17
2. The Winchester House.
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One of the weirdest buildings in the US is the home of the late Sarah Winchester. The widow of gun magnate William Winchester, Sarah believed the ghosts created by her husband's Winchester rifles would come for vengeance. To protect her, she built a mansion in Northern California that was endlessly under construction for 36 years. It is said she believed that keeping it always in flux would ward off spirits who'd do her harm. But the construction is nonsensical at best. There are windows that look into other portions of the home rather than outside. There are doors and stairwells that lead nowhere. All told an estimated $75 million dollars by today's rates was spent on the house, which has been a tourist attraction since 1923, five months after she died of a heart failure at 83.
3. H. H. Holmes.
Credited as America's first serial killer, Holmes's body count is thought to be somewhere between 27 (the number he CONFESSED to) and 200 victims! How is such a thing possible? He built a hotel in a bustling part of Chicago in the 1890s, and designed it to be a perfect killing floor for his sick desires. Later called "Murder Castle," it was designed to be a maze of windowless rooms, making escape virtually impossible for those Holmes chose to trap. No one aside from Holmes knew the full layout of the place as he repeatedly hired and fired new builders to construct this killing castle in portions. Some of the weirder attributes of this hotel were doors only able to be opened from the outside, doorways that open on brick walls, a safe big enough to put a person inside (to suffocate them), and a chute that allowed him to dump bodies from the upper floors straight to the basement, where two massive furnaces and large supplies of flesh-stripping acid were stored. Um, hello?! HOW hasn't this been made into a movie yet!
4. Death in the Dyatlov Pass.
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There's a passage in Russia's Ural Mountains that's conditions are so harsh that its nearby peak is called Dead Mountain because of the lack of wildlife there. Why you'd want to go skiing in such a place is beyond me, but that's exactly what nine ski hikers did in February of 1959, never to return. The eventual search party discovered a tent ripped in two and all of the group's belongings--including their shoes--left behind despite the deathly cold temperatures. Following a trail of shoeless footprints that led to the woods, they soon recovered five of the bodies, some in their underwear. The rest were found two months later, when the spring thaw melted the snow that covered them. These were better clothed that the others, but unlike their friends--who were believed to have died of hypothermia--this foursome had strange fatal injuries that included major skull trauma, major chest fractures, and a missing tongue. The impact that could make this kind of damage is said to be that of a high-speed car crash, which has inspired many wild theories.
5. The Silent Twins.
June and Jennifer Gibbons were British twin girls whose bond became something dangerous as it drew them together, away from the world, and into trouble. As children, they spoke their own language, and rarely spoke to anyone else. But their love for each other sometimes curdled, resulting in one trying to murder the other and vice versa. As they got older, they went on a crime spree of theft and arson that got them branded as psychopaths. They were committed to Broadmoor Hospital for the criminally insane when they were just 14 years old. Later, they did finally begin to reach out to someone, journalist Marjorie Wallace. To her, they showed a remarkable self-awareness, admitting they could never be individuals as long as the other lived. Jennifer told Wallace, "I'm going to die. We've decided." And as they were being transferred to a lower security facility that would give them more personal freedom, Jennifer did just that. Though she is said to have died of a heart condition, it's a bizarre coincidence to say the least.
6. Elisa Lam.
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The unexplained death of Elisa Lam has been gone viral this month because of its bizarre circumstances. You can read a full rundown of what is known at Vigilant Citizen, but here are the key details. Early this year, a 21-year-old student named Elisa Lam was reported missing. Her body was later discovered by a maintenance worker in one of the rooftop water tanks of Los Angeles' Cecil Hotel, after guests had complained about the water tasting funny. Police found the above surveillance tape from the hotel's elevator, which may be some of Lam's final moments. You really have to watch it yourself to understand why it's been given so many the heebie jeebies and is inspiring paranormal activity theories. Keep in mind, no sign of alcohol or drug use were discovered in her autopsy.
7. The Disappearance of Belle Elmore.
Belle Elmore was the stage name of aspiring opera singer Cora Crippen, unhappy wife of homeopathic Dr. Hawley Crippen. Sadly, her greatest fame was not achieved on the stage, but posthumously because of the bizarre circumstances surrounding her death. Despite her popularity in London's theatrical community, the Crippens did little together but quarrel, often publicly. After a dispute at a party they'd thrown on January 31st, 1910, she went missing. Her husband insisted Cora had gone to California. But her friend, professional strongwoman Kate Williams, suspected foul play and went to Scotland Yard. Suspicion grew as Dr. Crippen invited his secretary, the pretty young Ethel Neave, to move in, and she began wearing Cora's jewelry and mink coat. When Scotland Yard turned up to his home to investigate, he was gone. But the coppers discovered a dismembered torso in his cellar, and the chase was on! Crippen and a cross-dressing Neave were spotted on a ship headed to Canada, and quickly caught upon their arrival.
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