Episode list

Welcome to South Jersey Horror. My name is Benjamin Dutill and it's an absolutely pleasure to be your host for this unique podcast. I certainly hope that I grab your attention and curiosity as we dive deeper into the dark hole together to discover what lies beneath the psyche of our minds and why we are intrigued by death and the macabre. Truly, we can find out what we must know; what drives men and women to be obscurely unknown and how dark and powerful forces can influence even the most fragile and virgin mind.

The true story of suburban housewife Gertrude Baniszewski, who kept a teenage girl locked in the basement of her Indiana home in the 1960s.

Jeffrey Dahmer was an American serial killer who took the lives of 17 males between 1978 and 1991. Dahmer was captured in 1991 and sentenced to 16 life terms. He was killed by fellow prison inmate Christopher Scarver in 1994. Well-known books about Dahmer include: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story: An American Nightmare, by Donald A. Davis. It was published just a few months after Dahmer's arrest, in November 1991. The Shrine of Jeffrey Dahmer, by Brian Masters, which was published in 1993.

Theodore Robert Bundy was an American serial killer who kidnapped, raped, and murdered numerous young women and girls during the 1970s and possibly earlier. After more than a decade of denials, before his execution in 1989 he confessed to 30 homicides that he committed in seven states between 1974 and 1978. This episode also includes rare audio archive of a reporter who witnessed Ted Bundy's execution also audio of Ted Bundy receiving his death sentence in court.

The true crime story about Wayne Williams and the missing Atlanta children. Between 1979 and 1981, approximately 29 African-American children, teens, and young adults-mostly boys-were kidnapped and murdered. A majority of the killings shared common details. The FBI joined the multi-agency investigation in 1980. For the three long years that the disappearances and killings were engulfing Atlanta, it had a profound effect on life there. Additionally, I attempt to theorize the psychological aspect of the murderer and the theories behind the heinous acts. This episode also has an NBC Report from 11 May 1981 featuring a news story about Wayne Williams and the murders that seized the city of Atlanta.

In all facets of his public-facing life, Dennis Rader appeared to be just a "regular" guy. Dennis Lynn Rader is an American serial killer known as BTK or the BTK Strangler or the BTK Killer. Between 1974 and 1991, Rader killed ten people in Wichita and Park City, Kansas, and sent taunting letters to police and newspapers describing the details of his crimes. Also in this episode, there is an exclusive Dateline Interview with Dennis Rader that aired October 25, 2009.

In this episode, I explain the events that transpired in late early 1949 that inspired an author to write a book to later become a Hollywood Horror Blockbuster film. The Exorcist (1973) claimed to be the scariest film of its era, it had a great negative on the public and those who conveyed in watching the movie. A movie about possession and exorcism, definitely a masterpiece of the horror sub-genre. William Peter Blatty won an Oscar for Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium and Linda Blair won a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress and too many other awards to mention.

Based on a True Story - In 1971, Carolyn and Roger Perron move their family into a dilapidated Rhode Island farm house and soon strange things start happening around it with escalating nightmarish terror. In desperation, Carolyn contacts the noted paranormal investigators, Ed and Lorraine Warren, to examine the house. What the Warrens discover is a whole area steeped in a satanic haunting that is now targeting the Perron family wherever they go. To stop this evil, the Warrens will have to call upon all their skills and spiritual strength to defeat this spectral menace at its source that threatens to destroy everyone involved. I also talk about spoilers and easter eggs in which can be found in the movie.

Malevolent boxes abound in horror movies (the Rubik's Cube-like container of "Hellraiser" being one of the most memorable), their contents inevitably wreaking havoc on humankind. The ratty receptacle in "The Possession" is no different: This demon possession movie starring Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Natasha Calis, and Kyra Sedgwick is basically about a young girl who buys an antique box at a yard sale and she is unaware that inside the collectible lives a malicious ancient spirit. The making of this 2012 horror film, which is loosely based on the true story of a cursed wine cabinet or known as the dybbuk box, was plagued by unfortunate, supernatural occurrences or simply an evil spirit from Jewish lore. And when I say that this movie is based on a true story, which is basically Hollywood's way of saying that there's a lot of truth bending going on. But what really happened? What's the truth behind The Possession?

In this episode I talk about what inspired Wes Craven to create the first A Nightmare on Elm Street and the famous villain, Freddy Krueger. As part of A Nightmare on Elm Street oral history (via Vulture), Craven recounted the story that influenced the creation of Freddy Krueger. He recalled a Los Angeles Times article from the 1970s about a family that escaped the Killing Fields in Cambodia. After fleeing to the United States, the young son had disturbing nightmares in which something was chasing him. The terror caused him to be afraid to go to sleep, so he would try to stay awake for days. The boy eventually fell asleep, but his parents heard him screaming in the middle of the night, and he was dead by the time they got to him. And far more psychologically chilling than the parental vendetta that led to the birth of the on-screen Krueger - which also is explained in greater detail in the Vulture oral history. I also provide movie reviews for the 1984 version, the 2010 reboot, Freddy vs. Jason, and Part3: The Dream Warriors. *** DISCLAIMER *** I do not own the rights to the A Nightmare on Elm Street theme song. I downloaded the ringtone from the Zedge website.

As a veteran member of a South Bronx precinct, NYPD Sgt. Ralph Sarchie (Eric Bana) has seen more than his share of dark and horrifying events -- so many that they have begun to poison his soul. Sarchie further finds his beliefs and understanding pushed to the limit when he and his partner investigate a particularly bizarre incident. He forms an alliance with a renegade priest (Edgar Ramírez), who tries to convince Sarchie that real evil -- and demons -- do exist. Ralph Sarchie is a retired NYPD sergeant and traditionalist Catholic demonologist. He has written a book, Beware the Night, which details many of his paranormal investigations; his accounts were later the basis of the film Deliver Us from Evil. Retired now, Ralph Sarchie continues to assist those who are in need of spiritual release from the evil within.

Who was the Zodiac Killer? The Zodiac Killer took credit for several murders in the San Francisco Bay Area in the late 1960s but he was never caught. The self-proclaimed Zodiac Killer was directly linked to at least five murders in Northern California in 1968 and 1969 and may have been responsible for more. He taunted police and made threats through letters sent to area newspapers from 1969 to 1974, before abruptly ceasing communication. Despite intensive investigations, no one was ever arrested for the crimes and the case remains open. The mystery surrounding the murders has been the subject of numerous books and movies, including director David Fincher's acclaimed 2007 feature Zodiac.

***** DISCLAIMER ***** I do not own the rights to the Friday the 13th theme song nor to the audio clip of Jason's Mother; I acquired those from Zedge. From Sean S. Cunningham's 1980 version to Rob Zombies 2009 version, Friday the 13th has come a long way when it comes to a bloody blockbuster about a hockey mask maniac wielding a rusted machete. However, there is the aspect of the evolving technology in which makes a film better. But, is it the creativity that makes the movie the movie? I will let you decided as you listen to this podcast.

***** DISCLAIMER - I do not own the rights of the audio clips that are played in this episode ***** In this episode I compare the two versions: Tobe Hooper's 1982 and Gil Kenan's 2015 version. It's the The Freelings vs. The Bowens. For almost 40 years, director Tobe Hooper's PG-rated horror classic has existed and made us afraid of closets, new housing developments, televisions that are on past midnight with static and clowns. In my opinion the original Poltergeist keeps its originality and horror feeling. Poltergeist has become one of the movies we will never forget. It take us to the world of classical effects and keeps us thinking how they achieved that. Additionally, Tobe Hooper caught wind that this event actually happened to a family in New York; that is also discussed in this episode.

***** DISCLAIMER ***** I do not own the rights of the sound/audio clips in this episode. 'The Silence of the Lambs' is not based on a true story. It is based on the book of the same name written by Thomas Harris. He based the character of Hannibal Lecter on a convicted killer he had met at a prison in Mexico. Gary Heidnik was a serial killer whose crimes would become the inspiration for the "Buffalo Bill" character in the movie "Silence of the Lambs." In this episode I also discuss my review of the movie, on-screen cameos, character analysis, and why this movie is a timeless classic.