Micah James
Bio
Fiction, true crime, tattoos, and LGBT+ are my favorite things to write about.
Instagram: @allthingscreepypod
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Annabelle and Robert
Annabelle: This doll was famous before the Conjuring series came out, thanks to the late couple Ed and Lorraine Warren. However, that movie series really shot her into the mainstream and is now famous beyond the occult community. That being said, the fictional glass doll’s real Raggedy Ann counterpart might be a little bit more terrifying. Especially given the fact that a lot of the stuff that happened in the original home was caused by a Raggedy Ann.
By Micah James5 months ago in Horror
5 Hoaxes That Had People Fooled
Missing Link. Charles Darwin was the first person to propose evolution, even publishing a book on his findings entitled On the Origins of Species. Ever since, people have been trying to find the missing link. And it was found in 1912 by amateur geologist and archeologist Charles Dawson. The skull was given the name Piltdown Man. While many people did buy into it, there were still skeptics. Those who didn’t believe it said it looked exactly what it was: a human skull with an ape jaw. There was a ceremony in December 1912 hosted by the Geological Society of London, where Dawson could present his findings. Then, in 1917, believers felt a little vindication. Another skull was found, given the title Piltdown II. As more and more early human skulls were found in China and Africa, the legitimacy of the Piltdown skulls came under scrutiny. These new skulls had an apelike skull and humanlike jaw, the exact opposite of the Piltdown ones. Finally, in 1953, the Piltdown Man was run through some tests, which exposed the skull as a fraud. The nonbelievers were on the right track! It was revealed that it was a combination of human (skull), orangutan (jaw), and chimp (teeth). To top it all off, the fluorine dating shows the skull to be no more than 100,000 years old. While that it old, it’s still not old enough to be a missing link. There is still no answer to who the perpetrator of the hoax is, though it’s suspected it was Charles Dawson himself. Indecent Animals. A man by the name of Clifford Prout Jr. was fed up with animals just walking around in the nude. So much so that in the 1950s and 60s, he started a group called SINA: the Society for Indecency to Naked Animals. Clifford believed that animals deserved some modesty just as much as humans. According to Prout, allowing animals to wander around with their genitals out contributed to moral decay. The public took SINA so seriously that Clifford Prout received a $40,000 donation to continue his efforts. But in 1964, the truth finally came out. Clifford Prout Jr. wasn’t a real man, and SINA wasn’t a real group. The person behind this was actually career hoaxer Alan Abel, who would later impersonate Howard Hughes and offered a “euthinasia cruise” for those who were ready to go. Hoax Unintended. This one is a little bit up for debate when it comes to calling it a hoax, as it could fall under the mass hysteria umbrella as well. And that is the radio presentation of H.G. Wells’ sci-fi novel War of the Worlds. There were a few things that led to this hysteria/hoax. Prior to the radio show, there was a disclaimer that would have helped avoid the whole trouble. However, there were many people who were listening to another station and didn’t tune in until 8:12, thus missing the disclaimer. There was another thing that lent to the believability of the broadcast. The alien invasion started with a weather report and a concert. This was followed by “reports” of explosions on Mars, a meteorite touching ground in New Jersey, and finally with aliens actually invading. With the reporters starting to become more frantic, the one million people who tuned in also started to panic. People were arming themselves and crowding highways. When CBS got wind of the hysteria, Wells himself had to get onto the radio and remind everyone that it was all fiction. The Cardiff Giant. Giants have been a big part of mythology all over the world, and on October 10, 1869, two men seemingly found evidence of their existence. Gideon Emmons and Henry Nichols dug up a 10-foot petrified man while digging a well on a New York farm for owner William Newell. As word spread, Newell decided to put up a tent and charged a quarter for a peek at the giant (and eventually charged $0.50 as more and more people came). Some claimed that this body was an ancestor of the Onondaga people while others claimed that this was evidence of the Biblical giants. And many still believed its authenticity despite professionals saying that this giant was a fake. William Newell eventually sold this “mummy” to two businessmen, who took the body on tour. PT Barnum offered these men $50,000 for the giant for his own collection. When they declined, Barnum created a knockoff for his New York museum. Eventually, a man named George Hull came forward and admitted that this was a get-rich-quick scheme. He commissioned a German stone cutter to create this man and asked his cousin William Newell to bury the body. Even after the hoax was revealed, the Cardiff Giant still made its rounds before making its way to the Farmers’ Museum in Cooperstown in 1947, where he still lives today. Feejee/Fiji Mermaid. Nowadays, it’s more widely known that PT Barnum wasn’t super honest about all of his attractions and performers. So it was hard to choose just one, but one of his more famous “real” discoveries was something he dubbed the “Feejee Mermaid.” He claimed that these were the remains of a real mermaid found in the Bay of Bengal. Eventually, staff from the Peabody Museum of Archeology and Ethnology got their hands on a specimen called the Java Mermaid. While it’s not known if this is the Feejee Mermaid, at the very least it is very similar to the one Barnum had. The museum wanted to get to the bottom of the mystery. After all, if Barnum was telling the truth, then this would have been a brand new discovery. It was found that this wasn’t really a mermaid. In fact, it was just a souvenir handcrafted by Southeast Asian fishermen and sold to tourists as a mermaid. These creatures are a mix of paper-mache and fish bones and fins.
By Micah James7 months ago in History
5 (un)Real Cryptids
You might know a thing or two about cryptids. You know the ones: Bigfoot, Mothman, and the Jersey Devil to name a few. No one knows for sure if they are really real or if people just see things. But that’s where the following former cryptids got their start.
By Micah James10 months ago in History
19 Urban Legends to Creep You Out
999 phone charging myth. This legend originated in Britain. Supposedly, if your phone is low on battery, just dial 999 (or your own local emergency number) and hang up; your phone will then be charged. The British police have actually come out and said that this is very untrue, that it is strictly an urban legend. If your phone is really running low and about to die, just find a place to plug it in and wait a few minutes rather than calling the emergency line. Alexandria’s Genesis. This legend started to be passed off as “true” around 2005. It is a genetic mutation marked by purple eyes. Those who have it are apparently “perfect” humans. Beyond the eye color, those who have this mutation have extremely fair skin that doesn’t get sunburned, dark brown head hair but no other body hair, no menstrual cycle yet don’t suffer infertility, strong immune systems, don’t gain weight, always look five to ten years younger than their actual age, and a lifespan of 150 years. The very first person to allegedly have Alexandria’s Genesis was all the way back in 1329. The person was a woman from London named Alexandria Augustine. However, according to Snopes, the actual first occurrence and/or mention of this mutation was in Daria fanfiction from 1998. Buckley family. While the legend itself isn’t true, it isn’t out of the realm of possibility. As the story goes, Susan and John Buckley had planned a Halloween prank where they would chop off the head of a dummy. However, they changed their minds and decided to behead their own mother. When the deed was done, Susan and John took a picture with their decapitated mother before disappearing. The photo that is connected to the story started off as a regular family photo of two kids with their mother. Artist Edward Allen got his hands on it and turned it into an art piece titled “Midwestern Matricide.” Cropsey. This is a classic boogeyman story that is based on real life kidnapper and child killer Andre Rand. The legend circulated mainly in the 70s and 80s in Staten Island. The story says Cropsey was an escaped mental patient who would snatch kids off the street late at night. Occasionally he is described wielding an axe or a hook hand. Death Number 999-9999. The Thai legend states that if you call this number after midnight, you are able to wish for something. But this wish does come with a hefty price: your death. It is said that plenty of people have called and met their demise while others haven’t died at all. Although, many have not been able to make the call as they are too frightened to find out if they’ll really die or not. Elevator Game. This is a popular ritual legend that originated in South Korea. You have to go to a building with at least ten floors. You press the buttons in a certain order. At some point, a woman will enter the elevator with you, but you need to pay her absolutely no attention. At the end of the first journey, you will end up in an alternate universe. To get back home, you need to press the same exact buttons, just in the opposite order. Frozen Hill People. This urban legend dates back to the 1880s in Vermont. The US was facing a pretty intense storm, and Vermont wasn’t fairing well. A farming family, like many others that winter, were really struggling. In one version of the legend, the family found a way to make some of the older and infirm members of the family go into a hibernation to help with the dwindling food supply. A man by the name of Uncle William witnessed the group drug six family members - four men and two women. When the sex were unconscious, they were dragged outside so they could freeze up. Following this process, they were then buried for the next four months. When the hibernation was complete, these family members were warmed back up, seemingly unharmed by the winter. In the Air Tonight legend. Phil Collins released a song called In The Air Tonight in January 1981. Not long after, an urban legend began to build around it. People started saying that it was about a man drowning out at sea. Allegedly, Collins didn’t help because he simply couldn’t help as he wasn’t close enough to save the man. The singer denied the legend and rumors during a BBC World Service interview, stating that he was going through a divorce during the time he was writing it. Killer in the Backseat / High Beams. A woman is driving home from work, a party, a friend’s house, or just simply being out (depending on the version of the legend you read). She is being followed by a truck that keeps flashing their high beams. When she finally arrives home, the driver lets her know that there was a man in the backseat of her car and it seemed as if he was trying to kill her. Snopes claims that it may have been inspired by a similar real life case. In 1964, an escaped murderer hid in the backseat of a car and ended up being shot by the car’s owner (a police detective). Love Rollercoaster Scream. The legend revolves around the song Love Rollercoaster by the Ohio Players. There's a scream heard around the 1:24 mark on the single version and around the 2:32 mark. People have said that it's the scream of someone who was being murdered while the tape was rolling. However, the truth is more mundane than that. It is apparently the screech of Billy Beck, much like that of Mariah Carey when she goes an octave higher. Mowing Devil of Hertfordshire. A pamphlet from 1678 details the account of a farmer who seemed to have a visit from the Devil himself. The Hertfordshire farmer refused to pay the laborer for the duty of mowing the farmer's lawn. He even claimed that he'd rather have the Devil do it. That same night, it was reported that his lawn was up in flames. The next morning, the grass seemed perfectly cut. I personally couldn't find a “real” version of the story, but it wouldn’t be hard to believe that a fire did breakout somehow on a farmer’s lawn and a legend and/or rumors to start. Niles Canyon ghost. This is a variation on the vanishing hitchhiker urban legend. It is said that a young woman died in some kind of automobile accident on February 28th (year differing by story) and is seen walking around the area she died every February 28th. Whenever a driver stops to pick her up, this girl gives them an address across a bridge. Upon reaching the start of the bridge, the hitchhiker disappears. Red Room Curse. This Japanese legend revolves around a pop up on your computer. It starts with a red pop up with a question, roughly translated to, “Do you like | ?” When you close the window, it will pop up again and again until it reads (again roughly translated), “Do you like the red room?” The most common variation of the legend says that the screen will then turn completely red. The victim will feel a mysterious presence behind them before losing consciousness. Later on, they will be found dead in their room with the walls painted red with blood. Siren Head. A Canadian artist by the name of Trevor Henderson drew up a character that people eventually have claimed to see in real life. Siren Head is described as twelve feet tall, having a skeletal frame, covered in dried mummified flesh, and has skin the color of rusted metal. Its head is in the shape of a siren, of course. It can make various sounds, both natural and man-made such as sirens, radio broadcasts, white noise, and even human voices. Snuff Films. The legend of snuff films has been around since the 1970s. Supposedly, these are videos (which are meant to be profited off of) that show real murder. Victims are lured by the “filmmaker” under false pretenses before being, well, snuffed out. The “film” is then sold to buyers. There are beheading videos and other videos where you see someone die, but these are usually shown as propaganda or the murderers own gratification rather than for profit so they can’t be classified as snuff films. I couldn’t find any evidence of actual snuff movies, though that doesn’t mean they don’t exist. If they do, I do not recommend trying to find any. Mercritis. This legend originated in Mississippi. According to the legend, Mercritis is a disease that came over from Europe that ravaged the south. Men who suffered from the illness would emit an odor that, when inhaled, would cause women to go into a homicidal rage. Doveland, Wisconsin. The small town supposedly disappeared at some point in the 1990s. Although, there is not much evidence that Doveland has ever existed. That being said, there are people who claim that they have been there, even saying that they have various merchandise (shirts, mugs, etc) with ‘Doveland’ written on them. There are even some who have claimed that they had family living in the small town. Because there has been no mention of Doveland, Wisconsin before 2015 and only memories of some traveling to or through the town, it’s hard to prove that it ever actually existed. The babysitter and the man upstairs. There are many variations of this tale, but the one I’ve heard most often has been as follows: A girl, anywhere between 13 and 16, is hired to babysit two children. It is a relatively easy job as the kids are already out to bed, so the girl studies and/or watches television when the phone rings. “Have you checked the children?” the voice asked. The girl hangs up, but the phone rings again. So she calls the police and they tell her to try to keep the other person on the phone for 60 seconds so they can trace the call. As it turns out, the call was coming from inside the house. The story ends with either all three being killed or getting out safely before the person gets them. This story was turned into a movie called “When a Stranger Calls.” There was even a case where a babysitter was killed in the 1950s. Many people believe that this is where the legend began. Humans can lick too. A kid has a dog that he loves dearly, and every night the dog would sleep next to the kid’s bed and lick the boy’s hand. One night, the kid hears a dripping sound from the bathroom. He thinks it’s just the faucet but is still nervous. So he hangs his hand over the edge of his bed and feels calmer when he feels a lick. In the morning, the boy goes to the bathroom and is greeted by a horrific fright. He sees his dog hanging from the shower head with the words “Humans can lick too” written in what appears to be the dog’s own blood. The ending always varies, but the ending I grew up with was the one where the killer was never found.
By Micah Jamesabout a year ago in Horror
Cursed
Curses. They've been around for centuries. But are they really real or can the be explained away? King Tut’s Curse. King Tut’s final resting place was discovered in February 1923. Some claim that there was an inscription at the entrance that read, “Death comes on wings to he who enters the tomb of a pharaoh.” Just two months later, the team’s sponsor died from a bacterial infection. Others connected to the expedition died through the years as well. However, there are some reasonable explanations. The sponsor isn’t the only one who died from something bacterial. There was evidence of different fungus, molds, and other things that can cause illness in the tomb. There were some who also died in unrelated events - cancer, car accidents, things like that. Polish King’s Tomb. 1973 came with another cursed tomb. A group of archaeologists found Polish king Casimir IV Jagiellon in Krakow. With King Tut’s discovery just 50 years prior with the finding of many other Egyptian tombs, curses were still in the forefront of their minds. So the archaeologists had joked that they would be cursed upon opening the tomb. Soon after the opening, people connected to the excavation started dying. Many said it was due to a curse, but much like King Tut, there is a reasonable explanation. Upon further investigation, there was evidence of a deadly fungus that can cause lung cancer when breathed in. The Curse of Tippecanoe. AKA the 20 Year Curse or even Tecumseh’s Curse. This one affected US presidents, specifically all presidents between William Henry Harrison and John F. Kennedy (including those two). Each president from Harrison to Kennedy had died somehow, someway while in office every 20 years. I do want to acknowledge that the only president to not fall into this pattern was Zachary Taylor, who was elected in 1848 and died in 1850. Harrison was the first to fall victim. After all, he was the president when the US army went into battle against the Shawnee tribe. The chief at the time of the Battle of Tippecanoe was Chief Temcumseh. Harrison died of pneumonia. Abraham Lincoln (elected in 1860 and 1864) was the next, who was assassinated while watching a play. Then came James Garfield (elected in 1880), who was assassinated while he was on his way to a Williams College reunion. William McKinley (elected in 1900) was shot twice at point-blank while in line at the Pan-American Exposition. After that was Warren G. Harding (elected in 1920) who got sick while on a cross country tour. It’s said that he died of a heart attack, but no autopsy was conducted. Franklin D. Roosevelt (elected in 1932, 1936, 1940, and 1944) had suffered from a massive cerebral hemorrhage. And finally, the last official victim of the curse was JFK (elected in 1960) who was assassinated. There are arguably two others who some people count as victims: Ronald Reagan (elected in 1980) and George W. Bush (elected in 2000). They both had assassination attempts, but neither died while in office. In fact, Bush is still alive and kicking. All of them can be explained away in some fashion. For example, Abe Lincoln was president during the American Civil War, so of course there would be people who didn't like how he was handling it, and anybody could suffer from a hemorrhage like FDR. The Little Bastard. Famous actor James Dean had a silver Porsche 550 Spyder that he named the “Little Bastard.” It was well known that he absolutely loved that vehicle. Dean was driving in the car on September 30, 1955 when he was stuck by an oncoming vehicle. This accident caused his death. George Barris, a hot rod designer, ended up purchasing the Little Bastard with the plan of fixing it. When he was doing a tune up, the car fell and broke both of his legs. It seems as though George came out of the whole instance otherwise unscathed. From here, the reports of those affected by this alleged curse get a little… iffy. Two doctors apparently bought the engine and transmission. They were then in car accidents that then killed or seriously injured them, but there’s no proof that these instances happened in the car that had Little Bastard’s parts. Another person had purchased the tires, which ended up blowing simultaneously and sent the person to the hospital. All of these freak accidents can be dismissed as just that -- freak accidents. Kennedy Curse. I feel like it wouldn’t be right if I was telling you about curses and didn’t bring this one up. Which means, yes, JFK is a part of two curses. While the most reasonable and logical explanation when it comes to this curse is just the fact that the family is tragically unlucky, with the amount of deaths people see the family as being cursed. It started with JFK’s brother and sister, Joseph Jr and Kathleen. They both died in two separate plane crashes in 1944 and 1948 respectively. The next person is JFK, himself, when (like mentioned earlier) he was assassinated in 1963. Robert followed just five years later and was assassinated. Ted Kennedy was the lucky one, you could say. He survived two different accidents. The first was a plane crash in 1964. Then in 1969, Ted was driving with his partner Mary Jo Kopechne when the car went off the cliff. Mary Jo unfortunately did not survive the crash. Robert sadly lost both of his sons. David died of a drug overdose in 1984 and Michael lost his life in 1997 in a skiing accident. While this isn’t all, it gets the point across. St. Anne’s Well. In 2016, archaeologists uncovered a well in Liverpool that was said to be cursed. St. Anne was also Virgin Mary’s mother and was often associated with healing wells. There was even a cult surrounding this saint. According to the story, it is said that Anne bathed in the well that was uncovered. This well was known for treating eye and skin diseases. During the 16th century, there was a dispute over the ownership of the well between Father Delwaney and Hugh Darcy. Both said they had ownership of the well. Delwaney was in charge of the priory who tended to the well while Darcy owned land. Darcy claimed that Delwaney would not have access to the well for much longer, and he was right. King Henry VIII’s men seized both the priory and the well. Just before he fell over dead, Delwaney cursed Darcy. Within the next three months, Darcy’s son came down with a mysterious illness and died while Darcy himself suffered from financial loss. A year and a day later Hugh Darcy was found dead at the bottom of the well with his head crushed in. Much like the Kennedy family, this can be explained as just a tragic family story. When it comes to the financial loss and Darcy's own death, it can also just be someone who let a curse get to their head and that lead to what happened.
By Micah Jamesabout a year ago in Horror
9 Medical Procedures From the Past
Medicine in the past was horrifying. Some definitely more than others for sure. You probably know about leeching/bloodletting (you know, when doctors take leeches or a knife of some sort to get rid of the bad blood) and lobotomies. But what about other practices?
By Micah James2 years ago in History
Crazy Cryptids
While you might not know the word “cryptid,” you definitely know of at least one of these creatures. Bigfoot and Mothman (and their variations) are the most well known. Basically, a cryptid is one of those creatures that people have claimed to see or swear are real, but the evidence for them is sketchy at best.
By Micah James2 years ago in Horror
8 Urban Legends From Around the World
Urban legends have been spread around for generations. From one person to another, to one generation to the next. There’s absolutely no shortage of them. Today, we take a look into some of these terrifying legends from around the globe.
By Micah James2 years ago in Horror
Cursed Movies
Curses. They’re seemingly everywhere, and movies aren’t safe. There are many films out there that people believe are cursed for one reason or another. Usually it’s thanks to tragic events surrounding the filming or deaths of people involved. Let’s dive into some of these, shall we?
By Micah James2 years ago in Horror
