The Amityville murders 50-year anniversary: How a family tragedy became a supernatural haunting story
“The most haunted house in the world” got the title based on a horrible tragedy that befell the family that lived there inspired a supernatural franchise.
It has been five decades since the sleepy Long Island town of Amityville became one of the focal points of supernatural lore in the United States. A horrific crime took place at 112 Ocean Avenue starting at 3:15 am on November 13, 1974, which would claim all but one of the seven members of the DeFeo family who resided there.
The sole survivor, Ronald “Butch” DeFeo Jr., would go on to be prosecuted and sent to jail, sentenced to six consecutive sentences of 25 years to life. While the 23-year-old initially blamed the mob, he confessed the next day to killing his parents, two brothers and two sisters while they slept with a .35-caliber Marlin rifle one by one.
However, Butch, who was known to use LSD and heroin, said voices told him to do it.
The Amityville murders 50-year anniversary: How a family tragedy became a supernatural haunting story
He went on trial in October 1975, and two months later while the case against him was still playing out in court, a young couple, George and Kathy Lutz, purchased the house where the brutal crime had occurred. They had been told about the tragedy prior to purchase but decided to go ahead.
Upon the insistence of a friend, the Lutzes had a priest come and bless the house before they along with their three young children moved into it. Father Mancuso, who performed the blessing, reportedly heard a voice that told him to “get out” when he sprinkled holy water and began to pray in the bedroom of the two slain DeFeo sons.
The Lutzes claimed not long after to be experiencing paranormal phenomena, like green slime oozing from the walls and Kathy levitating above the bed. They also said there was a demonic presence and George said he was awaking at 3:15 am every night. They spent only 28 days in the house before abandoning it.
While their neighbors in Amityville think that all this was a hoax to capitalize on the horror according to History, the murders and haunting story became fodder for 'The Amityville Horror' book in 1977 written by Jay Anson. Two years later it was adapted into a movie which would go on to become one of the highest-grossing horror films of all time.
That success spawned a franchise with several books and numerous films based on the murders and the supposed haunting. It has also made Amityville, and the house at 112 Ocean Avenue in particular, a tourist attraction for “the curious and believers in the supernatural.”
The New York Post reports that “the most haunted house in the world” has changed hands several times over the years since the Butch’s familicide. However, none have reported the house as being haunted.
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