1 00:00:00,720 --> 00:00:17,360 Speaker 1: Disgraceland is a production of Double Elvis. This is a 2 00:00:17,400 --> 00:00:20,520 Speaker 1: story about a movie. It's a movie we've all heard of, 3 00:00:20,640 --> 00:00:24,280 Speaker 1: and most of us, i'm guessing, have seen The Exorcist. 4 00:00:25,320 --> 00:00:28,640 Speaker 1: It's actually a story about a story connected to that movie. 5 00:00:29,240 --> 00:00:33,080 Speaker 1: It's the story of possession, it's the story of murder, 6 00:00:33,960 --> 00:00:37,960 Speaker 1: a story about depravity and lies, and it's a story 7 00:00:38,120 --> 00:00:44,720 Speaker 1: about evil, but it's also about loneliness and identity, about 8 00:00:44,720 --> 00:00:48,440 Speaker 1: a film so impactful it caused people to faint and 9 00:00:48,560 --> 00:00:52,640 Speaker 1: vomit when they first saw it. And yes, it's a 10 00:00:52,680 --> 00:00:57,240 Speaker 1: story about a movie that contained a great score, great music. 11 00:00:58,360 --> 00:01:00,560 Speaker 1: Unlike that music, I played a few top of the 12 00:01:00,560 --> 00:01:05,280 Speaker 1: show that wasn't great music. That was a preset loop 13 00:01:05,520 --> 00:01:11,520 Speaker 1: for my melotron called Diabolical Dance Time MK One. I 14 00:01:11,600 --> 00:01:14,080 Speaker 1: played you that loop because I can't afford the rights 15 00:01:14,120 --> 00:01:18,080 Speaker 1: to The Most Beautiful Girl by Charlie Rich. And why 16 00:01:18,120 --> 00:01:21,680 Speaker 1: would I play you that specific slice of George Costanza 17 00:01:21,800 --> 00:01:26,920 Speaker 1: singing cheese? Could I afford it? Because that was the 18 00:01:27,000 --> 00:01:30,560 Speaker 1: number one song in America on December twenty sixth, nineteen 19 00:01:30,680 --> 00:01:34,679 Speaker 1: seventy three, And that was the day The Exorcist opened 20 00:01:34,680 --> 00:01:39,039 Speaker 1: in theaters, a film that sickened everyone from Catholics to 21 00:01:39,160 --> 00:01:42,640 Speaker 1: Agnostics living in denial of the existence of true evil. 22 00:01:44,319 --> 00:01:50,600 Speaker 1: On this episode demonic possession, cold blood and murder, hauntings, curses, 23 00:01:50,960 --> 00:01:56,720 Speaker 1: sickened audiences, and the exorcist. I'm Jake Brennan, and this 24 00:01:57,800 --> 00:02:32,280 Speaker 1: is disgraceland. Exorcism, the religious or spiritual practice in which 25 00:02:32,720 --> 00:02:36,120 Speaker 1: a demon or another evil entity is driven out of 26 00:02:36,120 --> 00:02:41,360 Speaker 1: the body of a possessed person is very real, or 27 00:02:41,440 --> 00:02:45,839 Speaker 1: so saith the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, who 28 00:02:45,880 --> 00:02:48,720 Speaker 1: have an entire page on their website dedicated to the 29 00:02:48,720 --> 00:02:53,680 Speaker 1: century's old custom. On this page is written quote, there 30 00:02:53,680 --> 00:02:57,000 Speaker 1: are instances when a person needs to be protected against 31 00:02:57,080 --> 00:03:00,160 Speaker 1: the power of the devil or to be withdrawn from 32 00:03:00,200 --> 00:03:05,000 Speaker 1: his spiritual dominion. At such times, the Church asked publicly 33 00:03:05,080 --> 00:03:08,400 Speaker 1: and authoritatively in the name of Jesus Christ, for this 34 00:03:08,480 --> 00:03:17,639 Speaker 1: protection or liberation through the use of exorcism. Father Vincent P. 35 00:03:17,840 --> 00:03:20,600 Speaker 1: Lampert is a sixty one year old Catholic priest and 36 00:03:20,680 --> 00:03:25,639 Speaker 1: currently the designated exorcist of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Indianapolis, 37 00:03:26,200 --> 00:03:30,000 Speaker 1: a position he's held for over two decades. At the 38 00:03:30,000 --> 00:03:32,400 Speaker 1: time of his appointment to this role, back in the 39 00:03:32,440 --> 00:03:36,080 Speaker 1: early two thousands, he was one of only twelve officially 40 00:03:36,120 --> 00:03:41,480 Speaker 1: appointed Catholic exorcists in the country. Now in twenty twenty four, 41 00:03:41,880 --> 00:03:46,360 Speaker 1: there are one hundred and seventy five. According to Father Lampert, However, 42 00:03:46,840 --> 00:03:51,920 Speaker 1: true cases of demonic possession are extremely rare. We're talking 43 00:03:52,000 --> 00:03:54,680 Speaker 1: one in five thousand of all cases that appear to 44 00:03:54,760 --> 00:04:00,200 Speaker 1: require in exorcism. More commonly, the Church recognizes problems such 45 00:04:00,200 --> 00:04:03,640 Speaker 1: as infestation, which is the presence of evil in a 46 00:04:03,680 --> 00:04:07,960 Speaker 1: location or in an object like a voodoo doll, demonic vexation, 47 00:04:08,080 --> 00:04:12,000 Speaker 1: which is a physical attack, in demonic obsession, which is 48 00:04:12,000 --> 00:04:16,320 Speaker 1: a mental attack. That's not to say that demonic possession 49 00:04:16,400 --> 00:04:21,479 Speaker 1: never happens, because it does. Ask Father Vincent Lampert. He 50 00:04:21,520 --> 00:04:25,960 Speaker 1: has seen demonic possession with his own eyes. He's watched 51 00:04:26,000 --> 00:04:30,520 Speaker 1: people levity. He's seen their eyes roll into the backs 52 00:04:30,560 --> 00:04:34,640 Speaker 1: of their heads, the guttural noises, the foaming at the mouth, 53 00:04:35,120 --> 00:04:40,880 Speaker 1: the unspeakable odors, tongue slithering like snakes, and faces twisted 54 00:04:40,920 --> 00:04:45,560 Speaker 1: into agonizing lumps of flesh. When the time comes to 55 00:04:45,600 --> 00:04:49,600 Speaker 1: perform an exorcism, when the Psalms and the Gospels are recited, 56 00:04:50,120 --> 00:04:53,440 Speaker 1: when the water is blessed, and sprinkled when the priest 57 00:04:53,560 --> 00:04:55,960 Speaker 1: breathes on the face of the afflicted. In order to 58 00:04:56,000 --> 00:04:59,840 Speaker 1: assert the power of the Holy Spirit at that time, 59 00:05:00,320 --> 00:05:04,359 Speaker 1: one must be strong in the presence of pure evil. 60 00:05:04,880 --> 00:05:08,120 Speaker 1: The one must also remain strong to carry forth the 61 00:05:08,160 --> 00:05:15,000 Speaker 1: work that must be done. Doing that work driving out 62 00:05:15,040 --> 00:05:19,120 Speaker 1: the devil, that's the easy part. Father Lampert will tell 63 00:05:19,160 --> 00:05:22,400 Speaker 1: you so. He'll also tell you that the hardest part 64 00:05:22,440 --> 00:05:26,600 Speaker 1: of an exorcism is convincing someone that they actually need 65 00:05:26,920 --> 00:05:33,680 Speaker 1: to let God in. Ronnie Hunkler shut the front door 66 00:05:33,720 --> 00:05:35,960 Speaker 1: of his house and locked the dead bolt with his key. 67 00:05:36,760 --> 00:05:39,080 Speaker 1: He tossed an overnight bag in the car, put it 68 00:05:39,120 --> 00:05:42,040 Speaker 1: in drive, and left his darkened home behind for the night. 69 00:05:43,520 --> 00:05:48,919 Speaker 1: The NASA engineer hated this day, Halloween. Every year. He 70 00:05:49,000 --> 00:05:52,040 Speaker 1: was freaked out, not by the little kids in costume. 71 00:05:52,720 --> 00:05:55,440 Speaker 1: He was freaked out that a random stranger would show 72 00:05:55,520 --> 00:05:58,800 Speaker 1: up uninvited on his doorstep, only to discover who he 73 00:05:58,880 --> 00:06:03,080 Speaker 1: really was, not just another geek working the Apollo program. 74 00:06:03,480 --> 00:06:05,600 Speaker 1: His career would be of interest to no one. When 75 00:06:05,640 --> 00:06:10,200 Speaker 1: his secret his past was brought into the light. It 76 00:06:10,320 --> 00:06:16,520 Speaker 1: started small noises, scratches, a knocking coming from inside his 77 00:06:16,600 --> 00:06:22,480 Speaker 1: wall or under his floor. This was years ago, way 78 00:06:22,480 --> 00:06:26,440 Speaker 1: back in January of nineteen forty nine, when Ronnie was 79 00:06:26,560 --> 00:06:31,000 Speaker 1: just fourteen years old. He was an only child living 80 00:06:31,040 --> 00:06:34,960 Speaker 1: with his folks in Cottage City, Maryland, a small quiet 81 00:06:35,000 --> 00:06:38,960 Speaker 1: town just outside of the nation's capital. Ronnie and his 82 00:06:39,000 --> 00:06:42,359 Speaker 1: family were mourning the recent death of his aunt. It 83 00:06:42,440 --> 00:06:46,520 Speaker 1: hit Ronnie particularly hard. He got a Ouiji board and tried 84 00:06:46,560 --> 00:06:50,120 Speaker 1: to contact her on the other side because she didn't answer, 85 00:06:50,960 --> 00:06:56,599 Speaker 1: but something else did. Ronnie was sitting on his bed 86 00:06:56,640 --> 00:07:00,440 Speaker 1: when he felt it, a hand, a claw, something there 87 00:07:00,680 --> 00:07:03,320 Speaker 1: under his mattress. It went from one end of the 88 00:07:03,360 --> 00:07:07,840 Speaker 1: bed to the other, scraping at his legs. Ronnie jumped 89 00:07:08,080 --> 00:07:11,200 Speaker 1: and then the bed began to shake, and not just vibrate, 90 00:07:11,680 --> 00:07:15,880 Speaker 1: It rattled violently, and Ronnie quickly got to his feet 91 00:07:16,040 --> 00:07:19,720 Speaker 1: and the shaking stopped, and out of nowhere the bed 92 00:07:19,760 --> 00:07:21,880 Speaker 1: she flew off the mattress like it had been pulled 93 00:07:21,880 --> 00:07:26,080 Speaker 1: by someone. There was no one else in the room. 94 00:07:26,480 --> 00:07:29,320 Speaker 1: Soon it wasn't just the bed. Chairs would shake or 95 00:07:29,400 --> 00:07:32,640 Speaker 1: move when Ronnie sat in them. A portrait of Jesus 96 00:07:32,760 --> 00:07:38,560 Speaker 1: Christ hanging on the wall rattled whenever he came near it. Doctors, psychologists, shrinks. 97 00:07:38,960 --> 00:07:44,200 Speaker 1: No one could help, so Ronnie's parents turned to the church, first, 98 00:07:44,280 --> 00:07:47,720 Speaker 1: to a Lutheran minister down the street. He observed it all, 99 00:07:48,200 --> 00:07:51,960 Speaker 1: the shaking bed, the moving furniture, the deep red scratches 100 00:07:52,000 --> 00:07:55,480 Speaker 1: that were beginning to appear on Ronnie's body. It was 101 00:07:55,520 --> 00:07:58,080 Speaker 1: obvious to the Lutheran minister what needed to be done, 102 00:07:58,840 --> 00:08:02,560 Speaker 1: but he couldn't do it. Ronnie needed the help of 103 00:08:02,640 --> 00:08:09,080 Speaker 1: a Catholic priest. In February, Father Albert Hughes asked the 104 00:08:09,120 --> 00:08:12,760 Speaker 1: Catholic Church for permission to perform an exorcism on Ronnie Hunkler, 105 00:08:13,440 --> 00:08:17,960 Speaker 1: and the church granted his request. Father Hughes strapped Ronnie 106 00:08:18,000 --> 00:08:21,760 Speaker 1: to his bed, put a rosary around Ronnie's neck, and 107 00:08:21,840 --> 00:08:24,480 Speaker 1: made the Sign of the Cross with holy water, and 108 00:08:24,560 --> 00:08:29,880 Speaker 1: then he began, the power of Christ compels you. Ronnie 109 00:08:29,920 --> 00:08:34,120 Speaker 1: was hot. Something inside him began to flail. The power 110 00:08:34,160 --> 00:08:38,760 Speaker 1: of Christ compels you. The thing inside Ronnie was agitated, 111 00:08:39,320 --> 00:08:44,000 Speaker 1: was angry, squirmed and crawled all over Ronnie's skin. It 112 00:08:44,160 --> 00:08:47,679 Speaker 1: fought against the restraints. As Father Hughes carried on, the 113 00:08:47,760 --> 00:08:51,439 Speaker 1: power of Christ Compels you. A noise was coming from 114 00:08:51,520 --> 00:08:56,640 Speaker 1: Ronnie's throat, a voice, but not Ronnie's voice instead something 115 00:08:56,760 --> 00:09:00,880 Speaker 1: high pitched and horrifying. It was then that one of 116 00:09:00,920 --> 00:09:04,599 Speaker 1: Ronnie's hands broke free. He grabbed an exposed piece to 117 00:09:04,640 --> 00:09:07,520 Speaker 1: the mattress spring and ripped it off. Then he thrust 118 00:09:07,520 --> 00:09:10,760 Speaker 1: the sharp metal into the priest's shoulder. The ritual had 119 00:09:10,760 --> 00:09:14,720 Speaker 1: to end. Father Hughes, however, was not the only one wounded. 120 00:09:15,480 --> 00:09:19,360 Speaker 1: There were more red scratches on Ronnie's body, clearly spelling 121 00:09:19,360 --> 00:09:24,839 Speaker 1: out words. One read hell in another read Lewis. 122 00:09:25,320 --> 00:09:31,160 Speaker 2: Louis, as in Saint Louis, as in the city where 123 00:09:31,240 --> 00:09:35,320 Speaker 2: Ronnie's dead aunt was, from the city where his parents 124 00:09:35,360 --> 00:09:37,280 Speaker 2: now believed he was supposed to go. 125 00:09:39,200 --> 00:09:42,400 Speaker 1: In Saint Louis. Ronnie stayed with family while two local 126 00:09:42,520 --> 00:09:45,680 Speaker 1: Jesuit priests, Walter Holler and William Bowder and carried on 127 00:09:45,800 --> 00:09:50,120 Speaker 1: with the exorcisms. Once again, the rosary and the crucifix 128 00:09:50,200 --> 00:09:53,800 Speaker 1: and other holy relics were laid out. Once again, the 129 00:09:53,880 --> 00:09:57,960 Speaker 1: prayer was recited, and again the thing inside Ronnie it 130 00:09:58,080 --> 00:10:02,280 Speaker 1: fought back. It screened and spat in the priests that 131 00:10:02,480 --> 00:10:06,480 Speaker 1: laughed in their faces, and the power of Christ. Satan 132 00:10:06,920 --> 00:10:12,400 Speaker 1: was in control. Satan had the power. Satan had the boy. 133 00:10:14,440 --> 00:10:17,360 Speaker 1: Then to prove it. Satan put Ronnie in a trance 134 00:10:17,760 --> 00:10:19,440 Speaker 1: and made him piss all over the bed he was 135 00:10:19,520 --> 00:10:23,520 Speaker 1: lying in. How about that, Father, Satan pisses on your 136 00:10:23,520 --> 00:10:27,960 Speaker 1: holy water. But the two priests kept at it, the Rosary, 137 00:10:28,120 --> 00:10:32,880 Speaker 1: the crucifix, the relics. And then on Monday, April eighteenth, 138 00:10:32,960 --> 00:10:36,880 Speaker 1: nineteen forty nine, the day after Easter, Ronnie woke up 139 00:10:36,920 --> 00:10:39,959 Speaker 1: immediately and began having a seizure. Three men had to 140 00:10:40,000 --> 00:10:43,000 Speaker 1: hold him down while Father voter and called upon Saint Michael, 141 00:10:44,040 --> 00:10:47,400 Speaker 1: the most Glorious Prince of the celestial host, Saint Michael, 142 00:10:47,440 --> 00:10:50,280 Speaker 1: the Archangel, defend us in the conflict which we have 143 00:10:50,360 --> 00:10:54,000 Speaker 1: to sustain against principalities and powers, against the rulers of 144 00:10:54,040 --> 00:10:57,360 Speaker 1: the world of this darkness, against the spirits of wickedness 145 00:10:57,360 --> 00:11:01,680 Speaker 1: in high places. He needed to convulse, while a blood 146 00:11:01,679 --> 00:11:05,560 Speaker 1: curdling scream rang from his throat. Present our prayers to 147 00:11:05,600 --> 00:11:08,240 Speaker 1: the most High, that without delay they may draw his 148 00:11:08,360 --> 00:11:12,640 Speaker 1: mercy down upon us. Ronnie was burning up. The stench 149 00:11:12,679 --> 00:11:15,760 Speaker 1: of rotting flesh filled the room. His father Bowden carried 150 00:11:15,840 --> 00:11:19,520 Speaker 1: on seize the dragon, the old serpent, which is the devil, 151 00:11:19,559 --> 00:11:22,920 Speaker 1: and Satan, bind him and cast him into the bottomless pit. 152 00:11:26,440 --> 00:11:30,440 Speaker 1: The seizure stopped Ronnie. The bed, the furniture, the entire 153 00:11:30,559 --> 00:11:34,160 Speaker 1: room was still. Ronnie blinked his eyes and turned to 154 00:11:34,160 --> 00:11:36,320 Speaker 1: look at Father boder and standing next to him where 155 00:11:36,320 --> 00:11:41,880 Speaker 1: he lay. Calm, cool, collected, and once again speaking with 156 00:11:41,920 --> 00:11:50,880 Speaker 1: his own voice, Ronnie simply said, he's gone. All these 157 00:11:50,960 --> 00:11:54,080 Speaker 1: years later, as an adult, Ronnie could still remember that 158 00:11:54,160 --> 00:11:57,240 Speaker 1: moment like it was yesterday. He could still remember how 159 00:11:57,280 --> 00:11:59,200 Speaker 1: he told the priest of the vision he had while 160 00:11:59,200 --> 00:12:02,160 Speaker 1: in the thralls of demonic possession, a vision of a 161 00:12:02,200 --> 00:12:06,199 Speaker 1: battlefield full of blood and smoke and fire, of Saint 162 00:12:06,240 --> 00:12:10,080 Speaker 1: Michael himself riding atop a mighty steed, charging directly up 163 00:12:10,120 --> 00:12:13,040 Speaker 1: to Satan and smiting the devil down with one stroke 164 00:12:13,080 --> 00:12:17,559 Speaker 1: of his sword. But the story of Ronnie's possession and 165 00:12:17,679 --> 00:12:22,440 Speaker 1: exorcism didn't belong to him anymore. It had since served 166 00:12:22,480 --> 00:12:27,080 Speaker 1: as the inspiration for The Exorcist, both the nineteen seventy 167 00:12:27,080 --> 00:12:31,640 Speaker 1: one best selling novel in the nineteen seventy three blockbuster film, 168 00:12:31,960 --> 00:12:34,800 Speaker 1: not that anyone knew it was Ronnie's story. His real 169 00:12:34,920 --> 00:12:38,160 Speaker 1: name was never used in the press. Instead, he was 170 00:12:38,240 --> 00:12:42,280 Speaker 1: known as Roland Doe, which was just the way he 171 00:12:42,400 --> 00:12:46,800 Speaker 1: liked it. And this was the reason why, once again, 172 00:12:47,400 --> 00:12:50,600 Speaker 1: on Halloween Knight, he was fleeing his own house in 173 00:12:50,679 --> 00:12:55,480 Speaker 1: fear because he was at peace now spiritually and emotionally, 174 00:12:56,200 --> 00:12:59,760 Speaker 1: and if the world discovered that he Ronnie Hunkler was 175 00:12:59,800 --> 00:13:04,080 Speaker 1: that exorcism kid, then he never know true piece again. 176 00:13:32,720 --> 00:13:35,040 Speaker 1: William Peter Blattie was in the right place at the 177 00:13:35,120 --> 00:13:39,119 Speaker 1: right time, first as an English undergrad at Georgetown University, 178 00:13:39,200 --> 00:13:42,120 Speaker 1: where in nineteen fifty he learned about the exorcism of 179 00:13:42,160 --> 00:13:45,440 Speaker 1: the local boy known as Roland Dough just one year prior. 180 00:13:46,520 --> 00:13:49,160 Speaker 1: The story haunted him for the next twenty years, and 181 00:13:49,200 --> 00:13:53,720 Speaker 1: eventually it influenced his excellent writing in his nineteen seventy 182 00:13:53,760 --> 00:13:57,839 Speaker 1: one horror novel The Exorcist. William Bladdie was in the 183 00:13:57,920 --> 00:13:59,959 Speaker 1: right place at the right time again when that novel 184 00:14:00,080 --> 00:14:02,920 Speaker 1: of his was single handedly turned into a bestseller by 185 00:14:02,920 --> 00:14:08,800 Speaker 1: a blackout drunk named Robert Shaw. Let me explain, Robert Shaw. 186 00:14:08,960 --> 00:14:12,000 Speaker 1: That's Captain Quint from Jaws, though this was a few 187 00:14:12,080 --> 00:14:15,600 Speaker 1: years before Jaws. Robert Shaw was scheduled to be the 188 00:14:15,640 --> 00:14:18,480 Speaker 1: featured guest on that night's episode of The Dick Cavit Show. 189 00:14:18,480 --> 00:14:20,600 Speaker 1: Which at the time was known for its late night 190 00:14:20,760 --> 00:14:24,520 Speaker 1: long form interviews and some ways of precursor to podcast. 191 00:14:24,600 --> 00:14:28,600 Speaker 1: But I digress. Robert Shaw, however, had knocked back one 192 00:14:28,640 --> 00:14:31,720 Speaker 1: too many Gansetts or whatever he was drinking beforehand, and 193 00:14:31,880 --> 00:14:35,640 Speaker 1: was currently shitfaced in the Dick Cavit Show green room. 194 00:14:36,120 --> 00:14:38,960 Speaker 1: William Blattie was sitting in his apartment six blocks away 195 00:14:39,120 --> 00:14:41,600 Speaker 1: when his telephone rang. He was surprised to hear a 196 00:14:41,640 --> 00:14:43,520 Speaker 1: member of the Cavit Show team on the other end 197 00:14:43,560 --> 00:14:45,920 Speaker 1: asking if you wanted to be that night's guest in 198 00:14:46,040 --> 00:14:51,120 Speaker 1: Robert Shaw's place. His novel The Exorcist up to that 199 00:14:51,200 --> 00:14:54,840 Speaker 1: moment had been a complete flop. No one was buying 200 00:14:54,840 --> 00:14:58,440 Speaker 1: the thing. He recognized what this opportunity meant. Then an 201 00:14:58,440 --> 00:15:01,440 Speaker 1: appearance on this late night law form interview show could 202 00:15:01,480 --> 00:15:05,520 Speaker 1: change his life. So yeah, Bladdie said yes, faster than 203 00:15:05,560 --> 00:15:07,960 Speaker 1: Linda Blair's possessed head to do a one to eighty. Sorry, 204 00:15:07,960 --> 00:15:10,480 Speaker 1: I'm getting ahead of myself, but the only thing was here. 205 00:15:10,760 --> 00:15:13,760 Speaker 1: He had fifteen minutes to get to the studio, so 206 00:15:13,840 --> 00:15:16,720 Speaker 1: he ran all six blocks from his apartment, sweating his 207 00:15:16,800 --> 00:15:19,720 Speaker 1: ass off, where as Robert Shaw slept one off in 208 00:15:19,800 --> 00:15:22,880 Speaker 1: the next room, Peter Bladdie spoke to Dick Cavit about 209 00:15:22,880 --> 00:15:28,840 Speaker 1: a shocking new book for forty minutes. The next week, 210 00:15:29,080 --> 00:15:31,920 Speaker 1: The Exorcist was the number one book on the New 211 00:15:32,000 --> 00:15:36,840 Speaker 1: York Times bestseller list. Thank you, Captain Quinn. Again, this 212 00:15:37,040 --> 00:15:41,280 Speaker 1: was the early seventies. It's right after Altamont, It's after 213 00:15:41,600 --> 00:15:46,760 Speaker 1: Charles Manson, It's after Rosemary's Baby. The American public it 214 00:15:46,800 --> 00:15:49,120 Speaker 1: had grown up, it had lost its innocence, it had 215 00:15:49,120 --> 00:15:52,720 Speaker 1: become disillusioned, and at this moment in time, the American 216 00:15:52,760 --> 00:15:55,320 Speaker 1: public was more than ready to have the shit scared 217 00:15:55,320 --> 00:15:58,880 Speaker 1: out of it by a very disturbing story of demonic possession. 218 00:16:00,000 --> 00:16:02,640 Speaker 1: At the center of that story was an eleven year 219 00:16:02,640 --> 00:16:05,560 Speaker 1: old girl, Reagan, which was one of the many ways 220 00:16:05,560 --> 00:16:08,040 Speaker 1: in which Peter Bladdie's novel differed from the true life 221 00:16:08,040 --> 00:16:11,960 Speaker 1: tale of Roland Doe aka Ronnie Hunkler from which The 222 00:16:12,000 --> 00:16:17,000 Speaker 1: Exorcist was conceived. The book sold millions. Among the many 223 00:16:17,040 --> 00:16:20,080 Speaker 1: people who loved it was the director William Freakin, who 224 00:16:20,120 --> 00:16:22,760 Speaker 1: wanted to turn the book into a movie. And when 225 00:16:22,800 --> 00:16:25,680 Speaker 1: it came to turning The Exorcist into a movie, Freakin 226 00:16:25,760 --> 00:16:29,200 Speaker 1: knew he was the guy for the job. Now there's 227 00:16:29,240 --> 00:16:32,480 Speaker 1: something you should know about William Freakin here, because despite 228 00:16:32,560 --> 00:16:35,080 Speaker 1: his many accolades at the time, he has since become 229 00:16:35,200 --> 00:16:39,160 Speaker 1: somewhat of an underrated underdog who isn't as routinely celebrated 230 00:16:39,200 --> 00:16:42,520 Speaker 1: as many of his peers. He was a grizzled, foul 231 00:16:42,560 --> 00:16:45,360 Speaker 1: mouthed Chicago kid who quote didn't give a fuck about 232 00:16:45,360 --> 00:16:47,880 Speaker 1: anybody else that walked the face of the earth unquote, 233 00:16:47,880 --> 00:16:51,640 Speaker 1: as one Hollywood producer kindly put it. In the early 234 00:16:51,720 --> 00:16:56,600 Speaker 1: nineteen seventies, William Freakin was motivated by three things. Number One, 235 00:16:56,880 --> 00:16:58,520 Speaker 1: he wanted to make a better movie than his buddy, 236 00:16:58,560 --> 00:17:02,280 Speaker 1: Francis Coppola, of course, had just made The Godfather, so 237 00:17:02,600 --> 00:17:06,720 Speaker 1: good luck. Anyways, Coppola was currently the hottest ticket in town. 238 00:17:07,400 --> 00:17:10,280 Speaker 1: That very fact it put a fire in Freakin's belly. 239 00:17:10,960 --> 00:17:14,359 Speaker 1: This kind of unofficial competition, this creative back and forth. 240 00:17:14,760 --> 00:17:16,760 Speaker 1: It's what made the Beatles and the Beach Boys great 241 00:17:16,760 --> 00:17:19,359 Speaker 1: in the sixties, and it's what made cinema great in 242 00:17:19,400 --> 00:17:24,720 Speaker 1: the seventies. Number Two, William Freakin was emboldened and empowered 243 00:17:25,000 --> 00:17:28,520 Speaker 1: by his recent success. Freakin had just won the Oscar 244 00:17:28,680 --> 00:17:32,600 Speaker 1: for Best Director for his incredible film The French Connection, which, 245 00:17:33,000 --> 00:17:35,280 Speaker 1: as he loved to tell Steve McQueen to his face, 246 00:17:35,640 --> 00:17:38,399 Speaker 1: had a way better car chase scene than Bullet. In 247 00:17:38,440 --> 00:17:42,280 Speaker 1: Freakin's eyes, that Oscar Win was a mandate quote. I'm 248 00:17:42,320 --> 00:17:45,560 Speaker 1: glad that people deified directors, he once said, because I 249 00:17:45,640 --> 00:17:48,639 Speaker 1: make more money that way. I'm quoting I. When it 250 00:17:48,680 --> 00:17:51,959 Speaker 1: came to making money, William Freakin knew how to do 251 00:17:52,000 --> 00:17:54,919 Speaker 1: that because he had made movies that entertained people, that 252 00:17:55,000 --> 00:17:57,919 Speaker 1: people wanted to go see. A movie wasn't made to 253 00:17:57,960 --> 00:18:00,199 Speaker 1: hang on a wall in the museum. A movie was 254 00:18:00,200 --> 00:18:04,040 Speaker 1: an art. A movie's primary purpose was to entertain. And 255 00:18:04,080 --> 00:18:06,359 Speaker 1: if he didn't do that, he didn't do your job. 256 00:18:07,400 --> 00:18:10,600 Speaker 1: And finally, number three, and this is the big one, 257 00:18:10,640 --> 00:18:14,359 Speaker 1: William Freakin wanted his film adaptation of The Exorcists to 258 00:18:14,520 --> 00:18:18,920 Speaker 1: feel real, just like his previous film, The French Connection 259 00:18:19,200 --> 00:18:24,120 Speaker 1: had felt real. For that film, Freedkin created the gritty, propulsive, 260 00:18:24,280 --> 00:18:27,880 Speaker 1: almost documentary feel of New York City in part by 261 00:18:27,960 --> 00:18:31,200 Speaker 1: hiring a camera operator who had shot the Cuban Revolution 262 00:18:31,400 --> 00:18:35,040 Speaker 1: right alongside Fidel Castro. That's one hundred percent true, by 263 00:18:35,080 --> 00:18:38,800 Speaker 1: the way, go look it up. In Freakin's estimation, if 264 00:18:38,800 --> 00:18:42,679 Speaker 1: the Exorcist was cheesy. It would bomb plain and simple. 265 00:18:43,040 --> 00:18:46,120 Speaker 1: Hollywood being a fickle mistress and all that. He knew 266 00:18:46,200 --> 00:18:48,720 Speaker 1: that his oscar wouldn't mean shit anymore if he wasn't 267 00:18:48,720 --> 00:18:52,040 Speaker 1: making Warner Brothers money. So he made sure the movie 268 00:18:52,119 --> 00:18:57,160 Speaker 1: felt real. The makeup, the practical effects, the disgusting sores 269 00:18:57,200 --> 00:18:59,840 Speaker 1: and cuts covering the face of then thirteen year old 270 00:19:00,080 --> 00:19:04,199 Speaker 1: Into Blair, her spinning head, the pea green vomit that 271 00:19:04,280 --> 00:19:06,359 Speaker 1: she spewed all over the priest trying to rid her 272 00:19:06,400 --> 00:19:11,159 Speaker 1: body of a demon. Freedakin obsessed over minor details. He 273 00:19:11,240 --> 00:19:14,320 Speaker 1: went over budget and over time while his buddy Francis 274 00:19:14,320 --> 00:19:18,040 Speaker 1: fort Coppola wrap production on The Conversation, the masterpiece he 275 00:19:18,119 --> 00:19:22,439 Speaker 1: made between the first two Godfather movies. Meanwhile, Freedkin's attention 276 00:19:22,560 --> 00:19:25,560 Speaker 1: to detail on The Exorcist drove a lot of people crazy, 277 00:19:26,320 --> 00:19:29,560 Speaker 1: so did his temper. He tossed phones across the room, 278 00:19:29,600 --> 00:19:32,600 Speaker 1: He blew his fuse regularly, He fired staff at will, 279 00:19:32,960 --> 00:19:36,080 Speaker 1: even giving his longtime production designer the axe and then 280 00:19:36,240 --> 00:19:40,400 Speaker 1: ordering the entire set to be rebuilt. And attention to detail. 281 00:19:40,720 --> 00:19:44,639 Speaker 1: Freakin's attention to detail didn't come without a little pain. 282 00:19:46,200 --> 00:19:48,679 Speaker 1: In the scene where the mother Chris McNeil played by 283 00:19:48,680 --> 00:19:51,040 Speaker 1: Ellen Burston, has thrown off the bed by the demon 284 00:19:51,080 --> 00:19:55,200 Speaker 1: inhabiting her daughter. Freedkin rigged a unit around Burson's body 285 00:19:55,400 --> 00:19:58,040 Speaker 1: that literally yanked her and tossed her to the floor, 286 00:19:58,440 --> 00:20:01,159 Speaker 1: and Burston landed on her cocks. That's the bone at 287 00:20:01,160 --> 00:20:05,800 Speaker 1: the basier's spinal column, causing her incredible pain. The screen 288 00:20:05,920 --> 00:20:08,280 Speaker 1: that comes from Ellen Burston at that moment in the 289 00:20:08,280 --> 00:20:12,600 Speaker 1: film is very real. In the film's final scene, when 290 00:20:12,640 --> 00:20:15,920 Speaker 1: Father Carris, having just spoiler alert here, jumped out of 291 00:20:16,000 --> 00:20:19,240 Speaker 1: Reagan's bedroom window and is dying on the street, and 292 00:20:19,359 --> 00:20:23,040 Speaker 1: another priest rushes to give him absolution. That priest, a 293 00:20:23,080 --> 00:20:27,080 Speaker 1: real priest named Father William O'Malley, wasn't giving freaking the 294 00:20:27,119 --> 00:20:31,040 Speaker 1: performance he wanted. Freakin thought about that third motivation of 295 00:20:31,080 --> 00:20:35,800 Speaker 1: his make it real. He looked at Father O'Malley and asked, 296 00:20:36,160 --> 00:20:38,920 Speaker 1: do you trust me? Of course O'Malley had faith in 297 00:20:39,000 --> 00:20:41,439 Speaker 1: the director. He wasn't a real actor. What did he know? 298 00:20:42,000 --> 00:20:44,720 Speaker 1: And at that moment, Freakin drew back his arm and 299 00:20:44,880 --> 00:20:47,560 Speaker 1: slapped O'Malley across the face as hard as he could 300 00:20:47,560 --> 00:20:51,440 Speaker 1: with his hand. O'Malley was frozen in shock, freaking tot 301 00:20:51,480 --> 00:20:55,320 Speaker 1: O'Malley to do the scene again. This time O'Malley's heart 302 00:20:55,359 --> 00:20:58,600 Speaker 1: was pounding. This time his own hand was shaking as 303 00:20:58,600 --> 00:21:00,800 Speaker 1: he reached out to the dying priests on the ground, 304 00:21:01,600 --> 00:21:06,280 Speaker 1: and this time it was real, as real as some 305 00:21:06,359 --> 00:21:09,080 Speaker 1: of the extras Freedkin hired to lend credibility to the 306 00:21:09,080 --> 00:21:12,560 Speaker 1: world that he was creating. Extras like Paul Bateson, a 307 00:21:12,680 --> 00:21:16,120 Speaker 1: radiology technician who worked at an NYU lab. That's him 308 00:21:16,160 --> 00:21:18,639 Speaker 1: with the short hair and the beard, prepping Linda Blair 309 00:21:18,720 --> 00:21:21,440 Speaker 1: for an angiogram and a scene which features a dramatic 310 00:21:21,520 --> 00:21:24,399 Speaker 1: spurt of blood, a visual which to many was the 311 00:21:24,400 --> 00:21:28,240 Speaker 1: most disgusting in the entire film. Paul Bateson helped simulate 312 00:21:28,280 --> 00:21:30,919 Speaker 1: a practical effect based on something he did in his 313 00:21:31,000 --> 00:21:36,360 Speaker 1: everyday life. But just like Ronnie Hunkler, the NASA engineer 314 00:21:36,400 --> 00:21:39,000 Speaker 1: who was living with an old secret about his childhood 315 00:21:39,000 --> 00:21:43,680 Speaker 1: demonic possession, Paul Bateson's life wasn't exactly what it seemed. 316 00:21:45,520 --> 00:21:49,680 Speaker 1: Paul Bateson had a secret too, the only difference being 317 00:21:50,359 --> 00:21:52,879 Speaker 1: he wasn't nearly as good at keeping his skeletons in 318 00:21:52,920 --> 00:21:56,720 Speaker 1: the closet as Ronnie Hunkler. But it wasn't until well 319 00:21:56,760 --> 00:22:01,159 Speaker 1: after The Exorcist became a nationwide sensation and sent audiences 320 00:22:01,200 --> 00:22:05,240 Speaker 1: into hysterics that William Friedkin would discover he hadn't just 321 00:22:05,359 --> 00:22:10,320 Speaker 1: hired NYU's chief neural radiology technician for his movie. He'd 322 00:22:10,400 --> 00:22:21,159 Speaker 1: hired a murderer. We'll be right back after this. 323 00:22:21,400 --> 00:22:22,720 Speaker 2: We're, We're, We're. 324 00:22:28,960 --> 00:22:31,040 Speaker 1: There's been a lot of talk about the so called 325 00:22:31,160 --> 00:22:35,480 Speaker 1: curse of the Exorcist. Yes, nine people connected to the 326 00:22:35,520 --> 00:22:39,760 Speaker 1: movie died during or shortly after production. Yes, Selen Burst 327 00:22:39,760 --> 00:22:43,480 Speaker 1: had developed a permanent spinal injury following the incident described earlier, 328 00:22:44,400 --> 00:22:47,159 Speaker 1: and yes, one of the movie sets mysteriously burned to 329 00:22:47,200 --> 00:22:50,000 Speaker 1: the ground. But those are just a bunch of random 330 00:22:50,040 --> 00:22:52,760 Speaker 1: coincidences that people were eager to make some kind of 331 00:22:52,800 --> 00:22:56,560 Speaker 1: sense out of. As people tend to do, we humans 332 00:22:56,680 --> 00:22:59,320 Speaker 1: must have explanations for things that are not ever meant 333 00:22:59,320 --> 00:23:03,680 Speaker 1: to be explained, to rationalize why they happened. To reason, 334 00:23:04,680 --> 00:23:08,160 Speaker 1: the reality is that The Exorcist scared the living hell 335 00:23:08,200 --> 00:23:10,359 Speaker 1: out of everyone who saw it in theaters when it 336 00:23:10,440 --> 00:23:14,240 Speaker 1: opened the day after Christmas in nineteen seventy three, and 337 00:23:14,359 --> 00:23:17,720 Speaker 1: perhaps because of this, the legend of the film's supernatural 338 00:23:17,760 --> 00:23:21,679 Speaker 1: powers grew. People literally went into hysterics right in the 339 00:23:21,680 --> 00:23:25,800 Speaker 1: theater in the middle of the movie. They collapsed, They fainted, 340 00:23:26,080 --> 00:23:29,800 Speaker 1: they vomited. They left halfway through the film, falling to 341 00:23:29,880 --> 00:23:33,560 Speaker 1: the floor of the lobby hyperventilating, only to return the 342 00:23:33,600 --> 00:23:37,199 Speaker 1: next day, punk down more hard earned money for another ticket, 343 00:23:37,520 --> 00:23:39,000 Speaker 1: and see if they can make it through to the 344 00:23:39,119 --> 00:23:43,320 Speaker 1: end this time. Watching The Exorcist in nineteen seventy three 345 00:23:43,840 --> 00:23:47,879 Speaker 1: was like running an endurance race. For many Catholics, however, 346 00:23:48,359 --> 00:23:53,160 Speaker 1: the real disgust was the blasphemy a teenage girl masturbating 347 00:23:53,320 --> 00:23:59,680 Speaker 1: with a crucifix. This was supposed to be entertainment. Still, 348 00:24:00,200 --> 00:24:04,280 Speaker 1: the Exorcist entertained in part because it was so shocking 349 00:24:04,320 --> 00:24:07,120 Speaker 1: that it was impossible to turn away, no matter how 350 00:24:07,160 --> 00:24:10,040 Speaker 1: bad you wanted to. It was like looking directly into 351 00:24:10,040 --> 00:24:14,160 Speaker 1: the eyes of pure evil. And within a few years 352 00:24:14,680 --> 00:24:18,000 Speaker 1: that evil was everywhere. It was out on the streets 353 00:24:18,000 --> 00:24:20,760 Speaker 1: in New York City. And I'm not just talking about 354 00:24:20,760 --> 00:24:23,840 Speaker 1: the son of Sam sneaking up on unsuspecting couples necking 355 00:24:23,840 --> 00:24:25,600 Speaker 1: in a ship box on the side of the road. 356 00:24:26,600 --> 00:24:30,119 Speaker 1: There was also another depraved, unknown killer responsible for what 357 00:24:30,119 --> 00:24:34,480 Speaker 1: were being called the bag Murders. From nineteen seventy five 358 00:24:34,600 --> 00:24:38,199 Speaker 1: to nineteen seventy seven, the hacked up body parts of 359 00:24:38,280 --> 00:24:41,200 Speaker 1: six men were discovered in plastic bags floating in the 360 00:24:41,280 --> 00:24:44,560 Speaker 1: Hudson River. The shreds of clothing that remained on the 361 00:24:44,600 --> 00:24:47,960 Speaker 1: body parts all came from the same leather stores in 362 00:24:48,000 --> 00:24:52,000 Speaker 1: the village, leading NYPD to come to the conclusion that 363 00:24:52,040 --> 00:24:55,040 Speaker 1: the victims were all members of New York City's gay community, 364 00:24:56,000 --> 00:24:58,879 Speaker 1: and by September of nineteen seventy seven, the son of 365 00:24:58,920 --> 00:25:03,000 Speaker 1: sam Aka, David Berkowitz, had been apprehended, ending one of 366 00:25:03,000 --> 00:25:06,840 Speaker 1: the city's long lasting nightmares. But New York City could 367 00:25:06,840 --> 00:25:11,000 Speaker 1: never be rid of all its nightmares. The bag murders killer, 368 00:25:11,160 --> 00:25:14,520 Speaker 1: for one, was still out there, still targeting gay men, 369 00:25:14,800 --> 00:25:17,600 Speaker 1: if the cops were to be believed. But of course, 370 00:25:17,640 --> 00:25:19,600 Speaker 1: the bag murders were on the minds of men who 371 00:25:19,600 --> 00:25:21,560 Speaker 1: took their lives into their own hands when they went 372 00:25:21,600 --> 00:25:24,880 Speaker 1: out to the leather clubs late at night, like Paul Bateson, 373 00:25:25,600 --> 00:25:29,240 Speaker 1: who on the night of September fourteenth, nineteen seventy seven, 374 00:25:29,920 --> 00:25:34,040 Speaker 1: was hanging out at bad Lands over on Christopher Street. 375 00:25:35,359 --> 00:25:37,840 Speaker 1: The last four years since his minor appearance as a 376 00:25:37,920 --> 00:25:41,399 Speaker 1: radiology tech, and the Exorcist hadn't been kind to Paul Bates, 377 00:25:41,400 --> 00:25:44,800 Speaker 1: and he was drinking a lot. He lost his job 378 00:25:44,880 --> 00:25:48,119 Speaker 1: at NYU, and he picked up some other hustles, like 379 00:25:48,200 --> 00:25:50,600 Speaker 1: the most recent gig as a cashier at a place 380 00:25:50,640 --> 00:25:54,240 Speaker 1: that showed dirty movies. But he couldn't even hold that down. 381 00:25:54,760 --> 00:25:58,960 Speaker 1: He was broke, desperate tonight, he wanted to make a connection, 382 00:26:00,160 --> 00:26:04,280 Speaker 1: just sex, something deeper, and he seemed to find one 383 00:26:04,359 --> 00:26:08,040 Speaker 1: quite easily with another man here at Badlands, Addison Verel, 384 00:26:08,440 --> 00:26:12,600 Speaker 1: a journalist who covered movies for Variety. They smoked some weed, 385 00:26:13,000 --> 00:26:16,960 Speaker 1: did some coke and amyl nitrate, and then around three 386 00:26:16,960 --> 00:26:19,880 Speaker 1: in the morning they headed over to the meatpacking District. 387 00:26:20,880 --> 00:26:23,679 Speaker 1: There they went to another club, this one called the 388 00:26:23,720 --> 00:26:27,040 Speaker 1: Mine Shaft, where the only clothing required to meet in 389 00:26:27,080 --> 00:26:31,720 Speaker 1: New York City code were shoes, dress shirts, ties, sweaters. 390 00:26:32,000 --> 00:26:35,800 Speaker 1: None of those things were allowed. Instead, the all male 391 00:26:35,880 --> 00:26:40,000 Speaker 1: clientele wore jockstraps, torn t shirts, then off it even 392 00:26:40,080 --> 00:26:44,439 Speaker 1: less tonight. Like most knights, those men were engaged in 393 00:26:44,480 --> 00:26:47,240 Speaker 1: all forms of sex in the Mine Shaft's bathtub, on 394 00:26:47,440 --> 00:26:50,360 Speaker 1: its sex swings, and in the back room where if 395 00:26:50,359 --> 00:26:54,320 Speaker 1: you were particularly bold and especially horny. Anything at all went. 396 00:26:57,880 --> 00:27:01,520 Speaker 1: Hours later, the sun was coming out. Hi, drunk on 397 00:27:01,560 --> 00:27:05,520 Speaker 1: the mind shafts beer, and simultaneously exhausted and exhilarated from 398 00:27:05,600 --> 00:27:09,439 Speaker 1: hours of clubbing, Addison Verro invited Paul Bateson back to 399 00:27:09,520 --> 00:27:13,160 Speaker 1: his seventeenth floor studio apartment in the village. There they 400 00:27:13,160 --> 00:27:16,120 Speaker 1: continued to drink, to do drugs, and around seven point 401 00:27:16,119 --> 00:27:20,399 Speaker 1: thirty that morning, they had sex. Paul prepared to bask 402 00:27:20,440 --> 00:27:24,000 Speaker 1: in the afterglow, but instead found that he was experiencing 403 00:27:24,080 --> 00:27:30,320 Speaker 1: something else, a feeling of loneliness, of abandonment. Going into this, 404 00:27:30,359 --> 00:27:32,960 Speaker 1: he had wanted more than the ecstasy of the flesh. 405 00:27:33,280 --> 00:27:36,520 Speaker 1: He wanted a spiritual connection to the soul, which is 406 00:27:36,560 --> 00:27:38,880 Speaker 1: not at all what had just happened between him and Addison, 407 00:27:39,720 --> 00:27:42,920 Speaker 1: at least not in Paul's eyes. Paul felt like Addison 408 00:27:43,040 --> 00:27:47,320 Speaker 1: wasn't into it, like he was just going through the motions. 409 00:27:47,359 --> 00:27:51,400 Speaker 1: Paul's mood suddenly swung. His head was full of disappointment, 410 00:27:51,840 --> 00:27:53,919 Speaker 1: of weed and coke, of the knowledge that in a 411 00:27:53,920 --> 00:27:56,440 Speaker 1: few minutes he'd walk out of that front door, without love, 412 00:27:56,680 --> 00:28:01,639 Speaker 1: without money, with nothing. Slowly he began to move his body. 413 00:28:02,200 --> 00:28:03,919 Speaker 1: He stood up from the bed and walked out to 414 00:28:03,960 --> 00:28:07,000 Speaker 1: the kitchen. There he picked up a heavy frying pan, 415 00:28:07,560 --> 00:28:09,840 Speaker 1: and then he returned to the bedroom. Without any warning, 416 00:28:09,840 --> 00:28:12,240 Speaker 1: he swung the frying pan and he hit addison barrel 417 00:28:12,400 --> 00:28:15,679 Speaker 1: directly in the head with it. The pan vibrated in 418 00:28:15,680 --> 00:28:19,240 Speaker 1: Paul's stiff hands, and there was a cracking sound, and 419 00:28:19,320 --> 00:28:25,640 Speaker 1: Addison's body hit the ground with a thud. Paul didn't 420 00:28:25,680 --> 00:28:28,040 Speaker 1: look to see if there was any blood yet, he 421 00:28:28,119 --> 00:28:31,040 Speaker 1: left Addison moaning and went back to the kitchen. He 422 00:28:31,119 --> 00:28:34,080 Speaker 1: opened a drawer and found a large knife. He picked 423 00:28:34,119 --> 00:28:37,080 Speaker 1: it up in his trembling hand, and again he returned 424 00:28:37,119 --> 00:28:41,480 Speaker 1: to the bedroom. Addison struggling to move, to understand exactly 425 00:28:41,480 --> 00:28:44,800 Speaker 1: what was happening, why it was happening, but he could 426 00:28:44,840 --> 00:28:47,760 Speaker 1: barely see straight through the blurred vision, through the pain, 427 00:28:48,160 --> 00:28:51,200 Speaker 1: through the ringing in his ears, a ringing that was 428 00:28:51,320 --> 00:28:54,760 Speaker 1: finally silenced when Paul bateson the man he'd just met, 429 00:28:55,000 --> 00:28:58,240 Speaker 1: the man he'd welcomed into his home, plunged that knife 430 00:28:58,440 --> 00:29:05,040 Speaker 1: deep into Addison verro'st Paul took Addison's master charge card, 431 00:29:05,280 --> 00:29:09,480 Speaker 1: his passport, some of his clothes, fifty seven dollars in cash, 432 00:29:09,840 --> 00:29:13,040 Speaker 1: and left his one night stand dead in his own apartment. 433 00:29:16,720 --> 00:29:19,640 Speaker 1: Eight days later, an anonymous man placed a phone called 434 00:29:19,840 --> 00:29:22,440 Speaker 1: Arthur Bell, a reporter at the Village Voice who had 435 00:29:22,440 --> 00:29:25,640 Speaker 1: just written an article about Addison Verrio's still unsolved murder. 436 00:29:27,000 --> 00:29:29,960 Speaker 1: Arthur Bell wrote this article partially out of frustration that 437 00:29:30,000 --> 00:29:33,840 Speaker 1: the mainstream press, the press patronized by Joe Q. Hetero, 438 00:29:34,240 --> 00:29:36,440 Speaker 1: gave zero fox when it came to all the gay 439 00:29:36,480 --> 00:29:39,960 Speaker 1: men who were being murdered across the city. It was 440 00:29:40,080 --> 00:29:42,480 Speaker 1: during this phone call that the anonymous man told the 441 00:29:42,520 --> 00:29:45,320 Speaker 1: story that I've just told you and confessed that he 442 00:29:45,400 --> 00:29:47,880 Speaker 1: was the one who did it. He never said that 443 00:29:47,880 --> 00:29:51,320 Speaker 1: his name was Paul Bateson. That detail came later thanks 444 00:29:51,360 --> 00:29:54,280 Speaker 1: to another tip that was called in, and when the 445 00:29:54,360 --> 00:29:57,560 Speaker 1: cops arrested Paul, he told him a story very similar 446 00:29:57,600 --> 00:29:59,840 Speaker 1: to the story that the reporter Arthur Bell had been to. 447 00:30:01,000 --> 00:30:03,920 Speaker 1: Paul later claimed that he delivered his confession while drunk 448 00:30:04,320 --> 00:30:07,000 Speaker 1: and before the police had read him his rights. He 449 00:30:07,080 --> 00:30:09,160 Speaker 1: also maintained that he wasn't the one who called Arthur 450 00:30:09,200 --> 00:30:12,880 Speaker 1: Bell in the first place. Didn't matter. A judge ruled 451 00:30:12,880 --> 00:30:16,240 Speaker 1: the police had properly upheld Paul's constitutional rights and thus 452 00:30:16,240 --> 00:30:19,400 Speaker 1: his confession, as well as a subsequent Village Voice article 453 00:30:19,480 --> 00:30:22,640 Speaker 1: Arthur Bell wrote. After receiving that anonymous phone call were 454 00:30:22,680 --> 00:30:27,719 Speaker 1: admissible in court, prosecutors tried to pin the bag murders 455 00:30:27,720 --> 00:30:30,560 Speaker 1: on Paul Bateson as well, but in the end he 456 00:30:30,600 --> 00:30:33,920 Speaker 1: was convicted solely of the murder of Addison Verel and 457 00:30:33,960 --> 00:30:36,520 Speaker 1: in nineteen seventy nine was sentenced to at least twenty 458 00:30:36,600 --> 00:30:42,560 Speaker 1: years behind bars. Twenty four years later, in two thousand 459 00:30:42,600 --> 00:30:45,400 Speaker 1: and three, according to the New York Department of Corrections, 460 00:30:46,000 --> 00:30:50,720 Speaker 1: Paul Bateson was released on parole. Five years after that. 461 00:30:50,880 --> 00:30:53,880 Speaker 1: In two thousand and eight, his parole ended. His last 462 00:30:53,920 --> 00:30:57,080 Speaker 1: known place of residence was Freeport, New York, a village 463 00:30:57,120 --> 00:31:00,280 Speaker 1: on Long Island. An entry in the United States Social 464 00:31:00,320 --> 00:31:03,240 Speaker 1: Security Index indicates that a man with his name died 465 00:31:03,320 --> 00:31:08,520 Speaker 1: in twenty twelve, but it's unknown unconfirmed. Just like the 466 00:31:08,600 --> 00:31:13,040 Speaker 1: killer being the notorious Bag murders, Paul Bateson vanished into 467 00:31:13,040 --> 00:31:18,240 Speaker 1: the background, and so too did evil. Passing between the 468 00:31:18,320 --> 00:31:23,160 Speaker 1: visible and the invisible, from one host to another. Paul 469 00:31:23,200 --> 00:31:28,200 Speaker 1: Bateson's life was finite. Evil, on the other hand, never 470 00:31:28,240 --> 00:31:32,040 Speaker 1: really goes away. It just quietly moves on when no 471 00:31:32,040 --> 00:31:52,320 Speaker 1: one's watching. Hey guys, brief interjection here to mention that 472 00:31:52,680 --> 00:31:54,720 Speaker 1: you may have heard me talk about at the top 473 00:31:54,760 --> 00:31:58,160 Speaker 1: of this show, the great soundtrack for The Exorcist. The 474 00:31:58,280 --> 00:32:01,400 Speaker 1: story about how this soundtrack came to be is wild. 475 00:32:01,480 --> 00:32:04,480 Speaker 1: It's kind of unbelievable, actually, and it didn't really fit 476 00:32:04,520 --> 00:32:07,200 Speaker 1: into this narrative. So we've got it this week as 477 00:32:07,240 --> 00:32:10,040 Speaker 1: a special mini episode, which you can listen to by 478 00:32:10,040 --> 00:32:14,400 Speaker 1: becoming a Disgraceland All Access member on Apple Podcasts or Patreon. 479 00:32:14,520 --> 00:32:22,440 Speaker 1: All right, back to the show. Twenty twenty eighty five 480 00:32:22,520 --> 00:32:25,240 Speaker 1: year old Ronald Hunkler, the man the world knew only 481 00:32:25,280 --> 00:32:29,080 Speaker 1: as Roland Doe, the same one whose personal experience with 482 00:32:29,160 --> 00:32:32,560 Speaker 1: demonic possession at the age of fourteen inspired the novel 483 00:32:32,640 --> 00:32:36,200 Speaker 1: The Exorcist. Since that something else was in the room 484 00:32:36,240 --> 00:32:39,200 Speaker 1: with him, he was going to tell his twenty nine 485 00:32:39,280 --> 00:32:42,400 Speaker 1: year old female companion, but then he thought better of it. 486 00:32:43,200 --> 00:32:46,200 Speaker 1: She was already well versed in his fears, specifically the 487 00:32:46,240 --> 00:32:49,640 Speaker 1: fear that took hold around Halloween each year that a 488 00:32:49,680 --> 00:32:52,760 Speaker 1: stranger would find out the truth about him, that he was, 489 00:32:52,800 --> 00:32:55,360 Speaker 1: in fact, the inspiration for one of the biggest horror 490 00:32:55,440 --> 00:33:02,000 Speaker 1: movie franchises, of all time, and that would mean attention, grutiny, questions. 491 00:33:02,320 --> 00:33:05,440 Speaker 1: He didn't even want to think about the questions. He 492 00:33:05,480 --> 00:33:08,280 Speaker 1: no longer had to fear questions at work. It had 493 00:33:08,320 --> 00:33:11,760 Speaker 1: been nearly two decades since he retired from NASA, and 494 00:33:11,880 --> 00:33:14,720 Speaker 1: during his long tenure there he never told a single 495 00:33:14,760 --> 00:33:19,360 Speaker 1: coworker about his past. Still, you didn't let your guard 496 00:33:19,400 --> 00:33:22,640 Speaker 1: down just because you were retired and off and alone. 497 00:33:22,680 --> 00:33:25,320 Speaker 1: You never knew when someone might be around when you slipped, 498 00:33:26,960 --> 00:33:30,520 Speaker 1: like whatever was here with him now, He tried to 499 00:33:30,560 --> 00:33:32,920 Speaker 1: pass it off as a draft in the house, and 500 00:33:32,960 --> 00:33:36,160 Speaker 1: the light playing tricks with him, the same light's now 501 00:33:36,200 --> 00:33:41,200 Speaker 1: growing darker, everything slowing down, the world on its axis 502 00:33:41,520 --> 00:33:44,720 Speaker 1: like a record on a turntable, the plug pulled from 503 00:33:44,760 --> 00:33:48,000 Speaker 1: the wall, the platter getting slower and slower with each 504 00:33:48,120 --> 00:33:53,680 Speaker 1: passing revolution as that platter spun. Ronald's secret was safe 505 00:33:53,680 --> 00:33:58,200 Speaker 1: with him. He was there in his deepest and darkest recesses, 506 00:33:59,120 --> 00:34:04,160 Speaker 1: buried under years of disguise, a sleight of hand. But 507 00:34:04,240 --> 00:34:07,280 Speaker 1: there was a secret even deeper than that, And that 508 00:34:07,400 --> 00:34:15,480 Speaker 1: other secret was this. Ronald Hunkler was a phony, his 509 00:34:15,520 --> 00:34:18,680 Speaker 1: demonic possession from back in nineteen forty nine, the one 510 00:34:18,680 --> 00:34:21,920 Speaker 1: that made the papers, that haunted writer William Peter Blattie, 511 00:34:22,120 --> 00:34:24,960 Speaker 1: that drove the agnostic director William Friedkin to make one 512 00:34:24,960 --> 00:34:27,640 Speaker 1: of the most frightening films of all time. It was 513 00:34:27,680 --> 00:34:32,920 Speaker 1: all a lie. Supposedly Ronald Hunkler had never been possessed. 514 00:34:33,600 --> 00:34:38,719 Speaker 1: Supposedly he just made it all up. Why I was 515 00:34:38,760 --> 00:34:42,120 Speaker 1: a bad boy? That that was a quote attributed to Ronald, 516 00:34:42,120 --> 00:34:45,080 Speaker 1: according to his twenty nine year old companion, who says 517 00:34:45,160 --> 00:34:48,640 Speaker 1: that Ronald confessed this to her at some point before 518 00:34:48,640 --> 00:34:54,200 Speaker 1: his death. And speaking of death, Ronald knew it was coming. 519 00:34:55,200 --> 00:34:57,680 Speaker 1: In fact, that's what was in the room with him now. 520 00:34:58,760 --> 00:35:01,920 Speaker 1: Its presence was disorder and comforting. At the same time, 521 00:35:03,080 --> 00:35:05,880 Speaker 1: he allowed himself to slip into the cold grip of nothingness. 522 00:35:06,480 --> 00:35:09,040 Speaker 1: But just before he did, there was a knock at 523 00:35:09,040 --> 00:35:13,200 Speaker 1: his front door, and once again Ronald Hunkler felt that 524 00:35:13,280 --> 00:35:17,920 Speaker 1: old fear, felt the panic. Who was here at his house? 525 00:35:18,360 --> 00:35:21,000 Speaker 1: And what did they want? They want to ask him 526 00:35:21,000 --> 00:35:24,400 Speaker 1: who he really was, to demand the truth to blacken 527 00:35:24,440 --> 00:35:28,560 Speaker 1: his good name. According to Ronald's twenty nine year old companion, 528 00:35:28,960 --> 00:35:33,160 Speaker 1: the following is what happened. The door opened, and unannounced 529 00:35:33,239 --> 00:35:37,600 Speaker 1: in walked a Catholic priest, but neither she nor Ronald 530 00:35:37,719 --> 00:35:43,080 Speaker 1: had called for a priest. Nevertheless, here he was, and 531 00:35:43,200 --> 00:35:46,680 Speaker 1: that priest performed last rites as Ronald Hunkler passed from 532 00:35:46,719 --> 00:35:52,640 Speaker 1: this world into the next absolution, just like the blessing 533 00:35:52,719 --> 00:35:57,120 Speaker 1: Father Karros received at the end of The Exorcist forgiveness 534 00:35:57,400 --> 00:36:02,720 Speaker 1: for the sins of a past life. I'm Jake Brennan 535 00:36:03,480 --> 00:36:18,720 Speaker 1: and this just disgrace laand all right, thanks for listening 536 00:36:18,760 --> 00:36:21,400 Speaker 1: to this episode on the Exorcis. This week's question of 537 00:36:21,440 --> 00:36:23,640 Speaker 1: the week. Guys, it's an easy one. I want to know, 538 00:36:24,239 --> 00:36:28,160 Speaker 1: is an Exorcist the scariest movie of all time? And 539 00:36:28,360 --> 00:36:33,080 Speaker 1: if so, why? And if not, well, what is six 540 00:36:33,120 --> 00:36:35,120 Speaker 1: one seven nine oh six six six three eight. Leave 541 00:36:35,160 --> 00:36:37,279 Speaker 1: me a voicemail, send me a text and let me know. 542 00:36:37,360 --> 00:36:40,320 Speaker 1: You can also reach me at disgracelam pod as well 543 00:36:40,680 --> 00:36:45,600 Speaker 1: on Instagram, X and Facebook. All right here comes from credits. 544 00:36:47,360 --> 00:36:50,120 Speaker 1: Disgraceland was created by Yours Truly and is produced in 545 00:36:50,160 --> 00:36:53,600 Speaker 1: partnership with Double Elvis. Credits for this episode can be 546 00:36:53,600 --> 00:36:57,239 Speaker 1: found on the show notes page at disgracelampod dot com. 547 00:36:57,320 --> 00:37:00,399 Speaker 1: If you're listening as a Disgraceland All Access member. Thank 548 00:37:00,400 --> 00:37:03,120 Speaker 1: you for supporting the show, we really appreciate it, and 549 00:37:03,160 --> 00:37:05,480 Speaker 1: if not, you can become a member right now by 550 00:37:05,480 --> 00:37:09,720 Speaker 1: going to disgracelampod dot com slash membership, rate and review 551 00:37:09,760 --> 00:37:12,160 Speaker 1: the show and follow us on Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and 552 00:37:12,280 --> 00:37:16,000 Speaker 1: Facebook at disgrace lampod and on YouTube at YouTube dot 553 00:37:16,040 --> 00:37:24,360 Speaker 1: com slash at disgracelampod. Rock a roll up, He's a 554 00:37:24,520 --> 00:37:25,600 Speaker 1: bed Don Man.