For someone who is scared of her own shadow (me), I don't know why I love scary movies (it must be some sort of subconscious, psychological attempt to conquer my fears). I'll sit in a dark theater, scream in terror, and sacrifice a few nights of good sleep for the sake of a frightfest. But the one thing I have never—and will never— do is attend a presentation by the Warrens.
Ed (now deceased) and Lorraine Warren were paranormal investigators whose work has inspired a slew of scary movies—The Amityille Horror, The Conjuring, A Haunting in Connecticut. And each year, around Halloween time, they (now Lorraine and her son-in-law, Tony Spera) put on a series of presentations—complete with video, recording, and photographic evidence—in Connecticut about their experiences with the "other" side: spirits, ghosts, demons, and the like. This year, their presentations have been all about Annabelle, the so-called "devil doll" that inspired the recent movie bearing the same name.
annabelle doll
While the previous movie adaptations of the Warrens' work have been fairly accurate, according to them, Annabelle is a very loose interpretation. In fact, between the Warrens' account and the movie, the only similarity is that both involve a creepy doll. But after reading about the Warrens' experience with the doll, I've come to determine that the story behind the real-life Annabelle is actually much more frightening than the movie version. Compare for yourselves below.
The basis of the movie is this: John Form purchases Annabelle, a vintage doll in a white wedding dress, for his expecting wife Mia, who collects dolls. The terror begins almost immediately when members of a satanic cult invade their house and attack the couple. Blood from one of the cult members, Annabelle Higgins, gets on the doll—and leads to the doll haunting the couple through a series of creepy events that [SPOILER] eventually leads to another death.
Here are the real-life details, according to the New Haven Register and the Warrens' own website (visit at your own risk).
Annabelle is a vintage Raggedy Ann doll purchased in 1970 by a mother for her daughter Donna's 28th birthday. The doll began to move around Donna's apartment and leave messages for her on parchment, which Donna did not own.
Donna first contacted a medium about the doll, who told her it was inhabited by the spirit of a seven-year-old girl named Annabelle Higgins.
After the doll tried to strangle and attack Donna's friend Lou, she turned to the Warrens for help. The Warrens informed Donna that Annabelle was actually inhabited by an inhuman, demon spirit. They then held an exorcism for the doll and removed it from her home.
The exorcism did not take, though, and the Warrens' power steering and brakes failed during their drive home with the doll in the car.
The Warrens' had a special case built for the doll in their Occult Museum, since it escaped several locks in its first few weeks at their house. Of all the items in the museum, Spera claims that the doll is what he is most frightened of.
Visitors to the museum who taunted the doll were all involved in near-fatal or fatal accidents upon leaving the Warrens.
SO creepy, am I right? I'm not a superstitious person, but I'm also not looking to agitate any demon-doll-spirits—so I'll leave this one to you guys to debate.
