Morbid

In the fall of 1961, Betty and Barney Hill took a trip to Niagara Falls. On the drive back from Canada to their home in Portsmouth, NH, the Hills claimed their trip was interrupted when, after stopping to investigate a strange flying object hovering above the car, the couple was abducted by what Barney later described as “beings [that] were somehow not human.”

Thank you to the wondrous Dave White for Research Assistance!

References:

Friedman, Stanton, and Kathleen Marden. 2007. Captured! The Betty and Barney Hill UFO Experience. Red Wheel : Newburyport, MA.

Palmer, Barry. 1965. "Portsmouth couple wes 600 persons here." Nashua Telegraph, December 1: 3.

Public Broadcasting Sysetm. 1997. Nova: Kidnapped by UFOs? Boston, MA, April 1.

Robinson, J. Dennis. 1999. "The Grounding of Betty Hill." The Portsmouth Herald, February 5.

—. 2008. The UFO romance of Betty and Barney Hill. Accessed August 17, 2023. http://www.seacoastnh.com/the-ufo-romance-of-betty-and-barney-hill/?showall=1.

The Portsmouth Herald. 1969. "Barney Hill dies in city at age 46." The Portsmouth Herald, February 26: 3.

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)

Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)

Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley

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Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)

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It’s wackadoodle time on this week’s listener tales. In this installment we have the only and only butt mountain, possible imposter police officers, attempted kidnappings, psychic friends, demon filled dorm rooms, and haunted airbnbs. If you have a tale you would like to send in please send it to [email protected] with “Listener Tales” somewhere in the subject line :)

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)

Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)

Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley

Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally

Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)

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In the summer of 1974, paranormal investigators and UCLA students Barry Taff and Kerry Gaynor were approached in a bookstore by a woman who’d overheard their conversation about the supernatural and said she had a friend who needed help from someone with their expertise. The friend in question was Doris Bither, a middle-aged single mother of four who claimed she and her family were under attack from unseen entities in their Culver City, California home.

According to Doris, the attacks began several months earlier and included, among other things, objects moving on their own, the presence of inexplicable foul odors in the house, unusual noises with no point of origin, and most distressingly, multiple physical and sexual assaults that were increasing in frequency and intensity.

Thank you to the lovely David White for research assistance :)

References

Biddle, Kenny. 2021. "A Closer Look at the Entity Photographs." Skeptical Inquirer 45 (6).

O'Keeffe, Ciaran, James Houran, Damian Houran, Neil Dagnall, Kenneth Drinkwater, Lorraine Sheridan, and Brian Laythe. 2019. "The Dr. John Hall story: a case study in putative “Haunted People Syndrome"." Mental Health, Religion & Culture 22 (9): 910-929.

Ortega, Xavier. 2011. The Real Entity Case, Part II. August 6. Accessed August 23, 2023. https://www.ghosttheory.com/2011/08/06/the-real-entity-case.

Radford, Benjamin. 2021. "The ‘True’ Story behind The Entity: Untangling Hollywood Horror." Skeptical Inquirer 45 (6). https://skepticalinquirer.org/2021/10/the-true-story-behind-the-entity-untangling-hollywood-horror/.

2005. The Entity Files. Directed by Perry Martin. Produced by Anchor Bay Entertainment. Performed by Barry Taff.

—. 2011. The Real Entity Case. August. Accessed August 24, 2023. http://barrytaff.net/2011/08/the-real-entity-case-2/.

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)

Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)

Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley

Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally

Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)

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In the depths of American history there are few examples of mass hysteria that loom larger than the Salem witch trials of 1692. As horrific as it was, it was far from the only example of witch-hunting in Massachusetts’ history. In fact, ten years before hysteria over black magic gripped the village of Salem, similar accusations of witchcraft were aimed at Mary Webster of Hadley, a small village in Western Massachusetts.

Thank you to the incredible Dave White for Research assistance.

References

Clancy, Hal. 1977. "In good old days, wicthes would hang for a May snow." The Boston Globe, May 14: 1.

Judd, Sylvester. 1905. History of Hadley. Springfield, MA: H.R. Hunting.

Manning, Alice. 1976. "Witches in the Connecticut Valley: a historical perspective." Daily Hampshire Gazette, December 15: 35.

Marshall, Bridget. 2003. "Mary (Reeve) Webster, the "Witch" of Hadley." University of Massachusetts Lowell. Accessed August 28, 2023. https://faculty.uml.edu//bmarshall/Mary%20Webster.htm.

Mather, Cotton. 1967. Magnalia Christi Americana. New York, NY: Russell and Russell.

Perera, Lisa. 1992. "Before Salem, Valley had witch trials of its own." Daily Hampshire Gazette, May 16: 22.

Smith, Anna. 2019. The Witch of Hadley: Mary Webster, the Weird, and the Wired. October 15. Accessed August 28, 2023. https://www.massreview.org/node/7575.

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)

Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)

Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley

Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally

Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)

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On August 6, 1978, the body of thirty-five-year-old bar owner Jack Tupper was found in a vacant lot in the Bronx, just across the street from the local firehouse. His face had been severely slashed, his head and body badly beaten, he had been shot seven times, and finally, he had been set on fire. Witnesses reported seeing a small group of men in the lot attempting to set fire to a box earlier that day, including three witnesses who identified former racehorse trainer Howard “Buddy” Jacobson as one of the men, and one who was able to provide detectives with the license plate number of the car they were driving.

Buddy Jacobson was quickly arrested for Tupper’s murder and the story quickly became New York’s latest scandal: Former horse trainer murders man in love triangle. Jacobson had indeed killed Tupper because the younger man was having an affair with Jacobson’s girlfriend but, while the motive may have been a classic, the story was far more sensational and salacious than anyone could have expected, and it turned out the arrest was just the beginning.

Thank you to David White for research assistance :)

Resources:

Allen, Joy. 1978. "Family is embittered in 'triangle' slaying." Newsday, August 9: 17.

Arnett, Peter, and Jane See White. 1978. "Life and death on fast track for a model." Newsday, August 21: 4.

Associated Press. 1979. "Jacobson defense alleges cocaine plot by victim." Newsday, October 11: 19.

—. 1979. "'Triangle' case hearing could clear defendant." The Journal News, October 24: 4.

Christine, Bill. 1988. "The odyssey of Buddy Jacobson: Horses, models and a murder sentence." Los Angeles Times, January 10.

Cummings, John, and Peggy Brown. 1980. "Buddy Jacobson escapes prison." Newsday, June 01: 3.

Cummings, Jophn, and Joy Allen. 1978. "'Triangle' murder probers hear horseman's ex-wife." Newsday, August 16: 17.

Fried, Joseph P. 1980. "Jacobson's 'friends and relatives' said to have helped in recapture." New York Times, July 11: A1.

New York, NY: Macmillan.

—. 1978. "Love and Death on the Upper East Side." New York Magazine, September 11.

McFadden, Robert D. 1979. "'Gag' order covers murder trial." New York Times, October 23: B8.

McFadden, Robert. 1980. "Jacobson, in calls from jail, speaks of his 'betrayal'." New York Times, 07 July: A1.

New York Times. 1978. "Jacobson warned of bail revocation." New York Times, November 10: B7.

Newton, Edmund, and Sheryl Kornman. 1980. "Cops hunt Buddy Jacobson around the world." Newsday, June 2: 4.

The Reporter Dispatch. August. "Hunt widens in triangle slaying." The Reporter Dispatch, 10 1978: D14.

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)

Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)

Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley

Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally

Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On August 6, 1978, the body of thirty-five-year-old bar owner Jack Tupper was found in a vacant lot in the Bronx, just across the street from the local firehouse. His face had been severely slashed, his head and body badly beaten, he had been shot seven times, and finally, he had been set on fire. Witnesses reported seeing a small group of men in the lot attempting to set fire to a box earlier that day, including three witnesses who identified former racehorse trainer Howard “Buddy” Jacobson as one of the men, and one who was able to provide detectives with the license plate number of the car they were driving.

Buddy Jacobson was quickly arrested for Tupper’s murder and the story quickly became New York’s latest scandal: Former horse trainer murders man in love triangle. Jacobson had indeed killed Tupper because the younger man was having an affair with Jacobson’s girlfriend but, while the motive may have been a classic, the story was far more sensational and salacious than anyone could have expected, and it turned out the arrest was just the beginning.

Thank you to David White for research assistance :)

Resources:

Allen, Joy. 1978. "Family is embittered in 'triangle' slaying." Newsday, August 9: 17.

Arnett, Peter, and Jane See White. 1978. "Life and death on fast track for a model." Newsday, August 21: 4.

Associated Press. 1979. "Jacobson defense alleges cocaine plot by victim." Newsday, October 11: 19.

—. 1979. "'Triangle' case hearing could clear defendant." The Journal News, October 24: 4.

Christine, Bill. 1988. "The odyssey of Buddy Jacobson: Horses, models and a murder sentence." Los Angeles Times, January 10.

Cummings, John, and Peggy Brown. 1980. "Buddy Jacobson escapes prison." Newsday, June 01: 3.

Cummings, Jophn, and Joy Allen. 1978. "'Triangle' murder probers hear horseman's ex-wife." Newsday, August 16: 17.

Fried, Joseph P. 1980. "Jacobson's 'friends and relatives' said to have helped in recapture." New York Times, July 11: A1.

New York, NY: Macmillan.

—. 1978. "Love and Death on the Upper East Side." New York Magazine, September 11.

McFadden, Robert D. 1979. "'Gag' order covers murder trial." New York Times, October 23: B8.

McFadden, Robert. 1980. "Jacobson, in calls from jail, speaks of his 'betrayal'." New York Times, 07 July: A1.

New York Times. 1978. "Jacobson warned of bail revocation." New York Times, November 10: B7.

Newton, Edmund, and Sheryl Kornman. 1980. "Cops hunt Buddy Jacobson around the world." Newsday, June 2: 4.

The Reporter Dispatch. August. "Hunt widens in triangle slaying." The Reporter Dispatch, 10 1978: D14.

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)

Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)

Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley

Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally

Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)

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On the morning of December 31, 1946, nineteen-year-old Pearl Lusk boarded a crowded subway train in Brooklyn. A few days earlier, she’d met a man named Allen in a bar who offered her a very strange, yet simple job: she was to follow a young woman named Olga and take a photo to determine whether she was wearing any stolen jewelry.

That morning, as Pearl and Olga exited the crowded subway train, Pearl raised the camera in Olga’s direction and pulled the wire to take a photo, but what happened next would put into motion a series of events that rivals fiction.

Thank you to the wonderful Dave White for Research assistance!

References

Adams, Toni. 1947. "Troopers hunt and kill Alphonse Rocco." Kingston Daily Freeman, January 7: 1.

Brooklyn Daily Eagle. 1947. "Camera-gun suspect flees in stolen car." Brooklyn Daily Eagle, January 6: 2.

Buffalo Evening News. 1947. "'Camera' shooting victim asks N.Y. City to pay her $200,000." Buffalo Evening News, February 14: 1.

—. 1953. "Court frees city of liability for not averting shooting." Buffalo Evening News, April 22: 25.

—. 1947. "Police press quest for spouse of camera-gun victim." Buffalo Evening News, January 2: 9.

—. 1946. "Times Square Station is scene of shooting." Buffalo Evening News, December 31: 10.

International News Service. 1947. "Estranged wife and family glad Ruocco is dead." Buffalo Evening News, Janaury 7: 1.

Kingston Daily Freeman. 1947. "Victim of camera shooting guarded." Kingston Daily Freeman, January 2: 18.

McKelway, St. Clair. 1953. The Perils of Pearl and Olga. August 8. Accessed August 10, 2023. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1953/08/08/the-perils-of-pearl-and-olga.

New York Times. 1947. "Camera-gun victim files for $200,000." New York Times, February 15: 17.

—. 1947. "'Camera-gun' victim loses a leg." New York Times, Janaury 3: 1.

—. 1947. "Girl, dupe in plot, shoots woman with 'camera' gun." New York Times, January 1: 1.

—. 1947. "Lusk girl freed; will leave city." New York Times, Janaury 11: 20.

—. 1947. "Rocco killed by the police in Catskills." New York Times, January 7: 1.

Smith, Delos. 1947. "Gullible girl hoaxed into plot on life of estranged wife." Daily Boston Globe, January 1: 13.

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)

Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)

Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley

Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally

Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)

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In the spring of 2009, Edwin Gonzalez and his girlfriend, Lillian Otero, fled their house in Gardner, MA, less than one year after moving into what they believed was their dream home. Later, once they were safely away from the old Victorian, Gonzalez and Otero would explain to friends and family that they had been driven out by angry ghosts who had done everything—including possessing Lillian—in order to torment them, leaving them no other options than to abandon the house that had once held such promise.

Although they didn’t know it when they moved in, Gonzalez and Otero’s home, the S.K. Pierce Mansion, had long been considered by locals to be haunted. Indeed, in its more than one-hundred-year history, the Victorian home had seen more than its fair share of tragedies, including several deaths in the house as recent as the 1960s, as well as countless other unsavory myths and legends.

Thank you to Dave White for research assistance.

References

City of Gardner. n.d. History. Accessed August 1, 2023. https://www.gardner-ma.gov/316/History.

Discovery Channel. 2013. "Haunted Victorian." A Haunting. New York, NY: Discovery Channel, October 19.

Farragher, Thomas. 2022. "Want to be a ghost host? Come to Gardner." Boston Globe, August 20: B1.

Fiorentino, Alyssa. 2021. How the S.K. Pierce Mansion became one of the most haunted homes in Massachusetts. October 27. Accessed July 31, 2023. https://www.housebeautiful.com/lifestyle/a38046654/sk-pierce-haunted-victorian-mansion/.

Fitchburg Sentinel. 1963. "Gardner man, 47, dies in room fire." Fitchburg Sentinel, April 9: 11.

—. 1891. "Notes." Fitchburg Sentinel, December 8: 2.

Gelinas, Brian. 2012. "Group of ghost hunting enthusiasts converge on Gardner mansion." Athol News, October 6: 1.

Gershon, Livia. 2006. Ghost hunters. July 28. Accessed August 1, 2023. https://www.thegardnernews.com/story/news/2006/07/28/ghost-hunters/11341583007/.

Ilinitch, Shawn. 2003. Psychic profiler detects spirits in South Gardner home. October 31. Accessed August 1, 2023. https://www.thegardnernews.com/story/news/2003/11/01/psychic-profiler-detects-spirits-in/11284159007/.

Landry, Stephen. 2021. "Debunking rumors about the S.K. Pierce Mansion." Gardner News, September 22.

—. 2020. "New book details history of S.K. Pierce Mansion." Gardner News, September 25.

Pelletiere, Nicole. 2016. Homeowner to turn 'haunted' mansion into scary attraction. September 2. Accessed August 1, 2023. https://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/homeowner-turn-haunted-mansion-scary-attraction/story?id=41769810.

SK Haunted Victorian Mansion. 2023. The Mansion. Accessed August 2, 2023. https://www.skhauntedvictorianmansion.com/index.html.

Stanway, Eric. 2013. The Victorian. September: Independent.

—. 2013. "Gardner mansion shelters ghostly past." Worcester Telegram and Gazette, July 10.

Zillow. 2023. 4 West Broadway, Gardner, MA. Accessed August 1, 2023. https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/4-West-Broadway-Gardner-MA-01440/57587523_zpid/

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)

Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)

Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley

Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally

Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)

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On March 15, 1895, thirty-five-year-old Michael Cleary murdered his wife, twenty-six-year-old Bridget Cleary in their home in Ballyvadlea, County Tipperary. While terrible, the murder was just the last act in a series of bizarre atrocities committed against Bridget, whom her husband would later claim had been taken by malevolent fairy folk and replaced with a changeling.

More shocking, however, was that the barbaric act hadn’t been committed by one man alone, but by a group of rural men, including family.

Was Bridget Cleary really murdered out of fear of fairies? Or had Michael Cleary just convinced himself of as much in order to commit murder?

References

Bourke, Angela. 1999. The Burning of Bridget Cleary: A True Story. London, UK: Pimlico.

Freeman's Journal. 1895. "Strange death near Clonmel." Freeman's Journal, March 25.

Irish Times. 1999. "Burning Bridget." Irish Times, August 7: B24.

n.a. 1917. The Tipperary Witch Case. Toronto, ON: McGill University.

New York Times. 1895. "A with burner sentenced." New York Times, July 6: 5.

—. 1895. "Not witches, but fairies." New York Times, April 22: 4.

Ruxton, Dean. 2016. "The story of the last 'witch' bruned alive in Ireland." Irish Times, November 24.

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)

Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)

Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley

Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally

Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)

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It's Listener Tales 77 AND it's August so you know what that means.... It is obviously time for Halloween tales! This week we have a spook-a-dook installment filled with tales of bullet wounds that go undetected, sleep paralysis demons, deaths by elevators, and spooky nanny's. If you have a listener tale you’d like to send in please send it to [email protected]

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)

Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)

Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley

Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally

Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)

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