The Amityville Horror, by Jay Anson

If you ask my parents to give you a potted history of my childhood, I’m sure they’d eventually come to the part where I was a bundle of nerves that could never watch a horror movie, or hear a scary story, without being reduced to tears at bed time.  Some of my most poignant childhood memories involve being unable to close my eyes in the dark for fear of the things that go bump in the night.  Oddly enough, my concerns were never about the earthly boogiemen, it was always fear of those things supernatural (except for Robert Stack – I was terrified of Robert Stack).  So, I learnt how to work around these fears; I never watched scary movies or read scary books, I crawled into bed with my parents (when they would let me), and the rest of the time I’d put on a brave face during the day and cry at night.  As a grown-up, you’d think this fear would have been alleviated; not so.  For the most part, I still avoid scary movies and TV shows about ghosts and other things supernatural.  But, while reading Northanger Abbey, the main characters are fanatical for gothic ghost stories, and it encouraged me to pick up one of our own modern ghost story to give it a try: The Amityville Horror.

The Amityville Horror is the story of the Lutz family who, in December 1975 moved into a beautiful home on Long Island at 112 Ocean Avenue.  The history of 112 was a bit of a mixed bag; the book purports that it had been built on an Indian burial ground/insanity ‘hospital’, and in more modern times, it had been the site of the grisly murders of the DeFeo family in 1974.  When the Lutz family bought the home, they weren’t concerned with any of this, but were instead thrilled with the rock-bottom price the house was being offered for.  Shortly after moving in, however, strange and unsettling things began to happen – inanimate objects were moving around, the Lutz family began experiencing personality changes, apparitions were seen, strange noises were heard, and foul odors were unexpectedly be smelt.  Through all this, the book also tells the story of a priest who, as a family friend, blessed the home with the Lutz’s moved in; he also experiences unsettling phenomenon, such as ill-health, dangers, and a personality change.  Throughout the Lutz’s residence at 112, the situation quickly deteriorates to the point where the Lutz’s fear for the physical safety of themselves and their children, and so they abandon the house after a 28 day residency.

The Lutz family’s story is one that has captivated modern pop-culture since it first emerged; the book itself had gone through 21 individual printings in the first three years after it was published, it’s been the inspiration for several movies, and with the advent of the internet, it’s been the subject of many web pages, some that debunk it and others that support the claims made by the Lutz family.

So, while the book itself makes repeated claims that it tells a true story, the question remains – did the events at 112 Ocean Avenue really happen as George and Kathy Lutz tell us they did, or were the Lutz’s looking for a pay-day?  Many of the conspiracy theorists seem to have found some rock-solid facts to dismiss a lot of the assertions made in the book; claims of foul weather and snow aren’t substantiated by the local meteorologists, reported calls to the police and the priest who original blessed the home have been denied by those individuals, and neighbours report nothing out of the ordinary happened while the Lutz’s lived in the area.

Now, far be from me to deny another person’s truth.  If the Lutz’s truly believed that these events happened to them, then maybe they did.  However, when you start reading about how the story and book came together, I start having doubts; apparently, the Lutz’s never worked directly with the book’s author, Jay Anson, rather, they sent him hours of audio tapes that recount the events.  In my opinion, when you’re trying to get an accounting of events out of people, they should be separated so you can compare stories – rather, George and Kathy collaborated on the audio tapes, each telling their story, each supporting and validating the other’s account, and finally agreeing on a series of events.  I don’t think we can discount the psychological ability for humans to accept as fact suppositions when they are supported by a second person.  However, Shakespeare’s words, “There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, Than are dreamt of in your philosophy” ring true as well – something might have happened in that home; whether it all happened as the Lutz’s purported it to, or if it was built upon during the recounting, I can’t say.

So, final verdict?  I’d say read this book.  It’s a massive piece of our modern literary tradition.  However, if, like me, you’ve got a fear of things that go bump in the night, this one might not be for you.  You would think, at my age, I’d be able to get over my fears.  But, in the interest of full disclosure, I’ll admit that I had a hard time falling asleep the last couple of nights – I kept having the urge to open my eyes to make sure nothing untoward was in my room with me….