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Amityville Haunted House: Hauntings, Ghosts, Paranormal Activity And Amityville Horror
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Published: January 21, 2008
The house that stood at 112 Ocean Avenue was intended to be the place of High Hopes for the DeFeo family. Although the sign in the front yard stated such, the notion was inevitably shattered. The sprawling Dutch Colonial house in Amityville, New York, was instead the setting for something much more sinister, a horrific act that remains inconceivable to most.
On a November evening in 1974, the DeFeos were found murdered in their home, all six family members shot to death while sleeping. All were executed with a shot gun, with the exception of the gunman, eldest son Ronald Butch DeFeo. The mass murder irrevocably changed the quite town of Amityville, and the house at 112 Ocean Avenue took on a life of its own.
Thirteen months after Butch DeFeo was convicted of murdering his entire family, George and Kathy Lutz purchased the ill-fated Amityville house for what seemed like a bargain. Although the Lutzs knew of the carnage that occurred the year prior, they were unfazed and moved in quickly. Not completely reassured, the Lutzs had a priest come and bless the house, though to no avail. Soon after taking up residence in Amityville, the horror began.
Mysterious noises and odors began to fill the air almost immediately after the Lutzs moved in. According to the Lutzs, doors would open and close on their own, and the temperature in the Amityville house rose and fell dramatically. Voices would emphatically shout, 'Get Out!,' and George Lutz heard a marching band stomping through the living room in the middle of the night. Green slime oozed from the ceiling and walls, and inexplicable black stains appeared in the toilets and sinks that Kathy Lutz could not scrub away.
The enigmatic happenings at the Amityville house were immediately attributed to illusions and hallucinations by the Lutz family. However, when the mysterious occurrences became more frequent and violent, the Lutzs found another explanation. The haunted house was said to still be roamed by ghosts of the massacred DeFeo family and other paranormal phenomena. As time progressed, the Amityville hauntings grew more intense, and said ghosts more vehemently worked to eradicate the Lutz family.
What began as voices and stenches quickly moved more towards incomprehensible paranormal activity. The horror truly began when the Lutz family's personalities began to change, notably with George Lutz. The patriarch said he began waking at 3:15 a.m., the same time Butch DeFeo was said to begin his killing spree. Five-year-old Missy Lutz befriended a demonic pig named 'Jodie,' whose eyes burned red in the distinctive quarter-moon windows of the haunted house. Kathy Lutz said something evil overtook her body late one night, and she took on the appearance of a ghastly old woman. With one last unsuccessful attempt to have a priest exorcise the Amityville residence, the Lutzs decided it was time to leave 112 Ocean Avenue after 28 days.
The Lutzs story was so inconceivable, it had to be told. And so it was, by Jay Anson and the book, The Amityville Horror. The book sold over three million copies, spawning more books and nine ensuing movies about the hauntings at the Amityville house. The said paranormal activity in Amityville propelled the Lutzs and the haunted house to widespread fame. However, with this came criticism, as many wondered just how true the evil phenomena could all be. The extreme malevolence seemed so unfathomable, many parapsychologists doubted the sinister paranormal activity even occurred.
As such, it was revealed in 1979 by Butch Defeo's defense attorney, William Weber, that the Amityville story was concocted over a couple bottles of wine one evening. Weber told People magazine that he and Lutz created the paranormal happenings and hauntings; the Lutzs were in need of money and Weber was searching for an insanity plea for his client. Before her death, Kathy Lutz admitted to some of the terrifying phenomena in the Amityville house being exaggerated. However, George Lutz passionately maintained the account portrayed in Anson's novel as accurate, even until his recent passing in 2006.
Whether believed to be a hoax or haunting, the legend of Amityville lives on today. Although all owners of the Amityville house following the exit of the Lutzs insist there are no paranormal phenomena, 112 Ocean Avenue is still inundated with visitors each year. People from all over the world come to Amityville to feel for themselves the ominous presence of the house. Even if the story of an Amityville haunting is fiction, the fact does remain that a brutal mass killing of a sleeping family did occur. Although the Amityville house may not abound with evil spirits, its foreboding aura is undeniable.
Sources:
"A Grisly Discovery." The Amityville Murders. 9 Nov. 2007. http://www.amityvillemurders.com/discovery.html.
"The Murders: A Night of Hell." The Amityville Murders. 9 Nov. 2007. http://www.amityvillemurders.com/murders.html.
"Capitalizing on a Tragedy." The Amityville Murders. 9 Nov. 2007. http://www.amityvillemurders.com/capitalizing.html .
Taylor, Troy. "Amityville: Horror or Hoax?" Prairie Ghosts. 2004. 9 Nov. 2007. http://www.prairieghosts.com/amityville.html.
Nickell, Joe. "Amityville: The Horror of it All." Committee for Skeptical Inquiry. Feb. 2003. 9 Nov. 2007. http://www.csicop.org/si/2003-01/amityville.html.
Thirteen months after Butch DeFeo was convicted of murdering his entire family, George and Kathy Lutz purchased the ill-fated Amityville house for what seemed like a bargain. Although the Lutzs knew of the carnage that occurred the year prior, they were unfazed and moved in quickly. Not completely reassured, the Lutzs had a priest come and bless the house, though to no avail. Soon after taking up residence in Amityville, the horror began.
Mysterious noises and odors began to fill the air almost immediately after the Lutzs moved in. According to the Lutzs, doors would open and close on their own, and the temperature in the Amityville house rose and fell dramatically. Voices would emphatically shout, 'Get Out!,' and George Lutz heard a marching band stomping through the living room in the middle of the night. Green slime oozed from the ceiling and walls, and inexplicable black stains appeared in the toilets and sinks that Kathy Lutz could not scrub away.
The enigmatic happenings at the Amityville house were immediately attributed to illusions and hallucinations by the Lutz family. However, when the mysterious occurrences became more frequent and violent, the Lutzs found another explanation. The haunted house was said to still be roamed by ghosts of the massacred DeFeo family and other paranormal phenomena. As time progressed, the Amityville hauntings grew more intense, and said ghosts more vehemently worked to eradicate the Lutz family.
What began as voices and stenches quickly moved more towards incomprehensible paranormal activity. The horror truly began when the Lutz family's personalities began to change, notably with George Lutz. The patriarch said he began waking at 3:15 a.m., the same time Butch DeFeo was said to begin his killing spree. Five-year-old Missy Lutz befriended a demonic pig named 'Jodie,' whose eyes burned red in the distinctive quarter-moon windows of the haunted house. Kathy Lutz said something evil overtook her body late one night, and she took on the appearance of a ghastly old woman. With one last unsuccessful attempt to have a priest exorcise the Amityville residence, the Lutzs decided it was time to leave 112 Ocean Avenue after 28 days.
The Lutzs story was so inconceivable, it had to be told. And so it was, by Jay Anson and the book, The Amityville Horror. The book sold over three million copies, spawning more books and nine ensuing movies about the hauntings at the Amityville house. The said paranormal activity in Amityville propelled the Lutzs and the haunted house to widespread fame. However, with this came criticism, as many wondered just how true the evil phenomena could all be. The extreme malevolence seemed so unfathomable, many parapsychologists doubted the sinister paranormal activity even occurred.
As such, it was revealed in 1979 by Butch Defeo's defense attorney, William Weber, that the Amityville story was concocted over a couple bottles of wine one evening. Weber told People magazine that he and Lutz created the paranormal happenings and hauntings; the Lutzs were in need of money and Weber was searching for an insanity plea for his client. Before her death, Kathy Lutz admitted to some of the terrifying phenomena in the Amityville house being exaggerated. However, George Lutz passionately maintained the account portrayed in Anson's novel as accurate, even until his recent passing in 2006.
Whether believed to be a hoax or haunting, the legend of Amityville lives on today. Although all owners of the Amityville house following the exit of the Lutzs insist there are no paranormal phenomena, 112 Ocean Avenue is still inundated with visitors each year. People from all over the world come to Amityville to feel for themselves the ominous presence of the house. Even if the story of an Amityville haunting is fiction, the fact does remain that a brutal mass killing of a sleeping family did occur. Although the Amityville house may not abound with evil spirits, its foreboding aura is undeniable.
Sources:
"A Grisly Discovery." The Amityville Murders. 9 Nov. 2007. http://www.amityvillemurders.com/discovery.html.
"The Murders: A Night of Hell." The Amityville Murders. 9 Nov. 2007. http://www.amityvillemurders.com/murders.html.
"Capitalizing on a Tragedy." The Amityville Murders. 9 Nov. 2007. http://www.amityvillemurders.com/capitalizing.html .
Taylor, Troy. "Amityville: Horror or Hoax?" Prairie Ghosts. 2004. 9 Nov. 2007. http://www.prairieghosts.com/amityville.html.
Nickell, Joe. "Amityville: The Horror of it All." Committee for Skeptical Inquiry. Feb. 2003. 9 Nov. 2007. http://www.csicop.org/si/2003-01/amityville.html.
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