The movie was notorious for sending audience members fleeing up the aisles in fear or nausea, and nine members of the cast and crew were rumored to have died during filming.
The film is set in Georgetown, which is several strata above Mount Rainier socially and economically but only about 20 minutes across town if traffic is light. The famous staircase scene was filmed at 36th and Prospect NW. If you want to feel like a tourist and maybe get a cupcake then hitch a ride on the Circulator because the staircase is still there.
But if you're more in the mood for a short stroll, head over to 33rd St. and Bunker Hill Rd. here in Mount Rainier and see if you can feel any remnants of the evil that supposedly took over a child's life here in 1949.
If you're a skeptic like me and you love to ruin the magic then check out this article that explodes many of the myths around the story and even offers a convincing alternative to the demonic possession theory.
Most def. Did you know that Dance Box Theater did a piece about this called "Haunted"? http://www.danceboxtheater.org/projects/haunted.html
ReplyDeleteFor those who haven't clicked through to the article, it also explains that the whole thing happened in Cottage City. It's very nicely researched. I found it after a neighbor told me that the park with the gazebo downtown was the Exorcist spot. Not true, and she was glad to know the real story after getting the heebie-jeebies walking by there for years now.
ReplyDeleteLook forward to following the new blog!