In Ghostly’s seventeenth episode,
Pat and Rebecca explore the curse of Poltergeist,
the 1982 movie by Steven Spielberg and Tobe Hooper and its sequels. Legend says
that the movie was cursed because of its dark subject matter and use of real
skeletons in the original movie. Several actors suffered untimely deaths,
including two of its main stars, Dominque Dunne and Heather O’Rourke. Other
paranormal claims include lightening strikes, mechanical clowns attacking
children, and an exorcism. Do all these events add up to a curse? As always,
you the listener get to decide.

Poltergeist Logo: It Knows What Scares You

Questions explored in this episode:

What happened on the set of the Poltergeist movies that led people to believe
it was cursed? What happened to Dominique Dunne? How did Heather O’Rourke die?
What claims did JoBeth Williams, who played the mother make about the film? Did
she and others experience poltergeist activity? What is a poltergeist? Why was
there an exorcism performed on the set of the second movie? Is there a Poltergeist curse?  

Creepy Clown Doll from Poltergeist

[8:13] Listen to hear Pat give a basic plot overview along with a brief history of the movie and the details of the deaths of two of the main stars, Dominque Dunne and Heather O’Rouke.

WARNING: There are some graphic details of domestic abuse
when discussing Dominque Dunne’s tragic death. If you or anyone you know is
suffering from domestic abuse, please call 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or visit https://www.thehotline.org/

[24:55] After the history, listen to Rebecca tell the ghost story of what it was like to work on the film. It is a terrifying tale that would be a nightmare for any actor – or anyone.

JoBeth Williams in Swimming Pool with real skeleton

[28:35] Then listen to the Great Debate! Rebecca and Pat go through all the stories and evidence of the curse of Poltergeist, including the deaths, the almost deaths, and just all-around potential paranormal activity, and debate what’s true and what’s just folklore. Listen to all sides and decide what you believe.

[1:10:34] Be sure to stay for the whole episode to hear the “Closing Arguments” to help you make your choice before voting.

Now is the time to vote on this
episode! Vote on whether or not you think the Poltergeist Curse is real using the poll on our Facebook
page.  Just search for Ghostly Podcast on Facebook and be sure to
Like us so you don’t miss any future episodes!

Also included in this episode are,
as always, poll results from our previous episode on Waverly Hills Sanatorium.
(Check out the episode here if you haven’t had a
chance to listen yet).

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