The Fear Archive https://www.violethourmedia.com/ en The Fear Archive investigates the real stories behind horror films. Every episode, hosts Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip dig into the actual cases, killers, hauntings, and conspiracies that Hollywood turned into your favorite scary movies — and ask whether the film or the truth is more disturbing. From Ed Gein and Psycho to the Gainesville Ripper and Scream, from MK-Ultra and The Manchurian Candidate to Faces of Death and the internet gore ecosystem — if a horror film has a real story behind it, the Fear Archive will find it. New episodes every other Wednesday. A Violet Hour Media production. https://megaphone.imgix.net/podcasts/b93df854-9598-11f0-9226-b72b34c8c65c/image/6425284ed3fbec8bbe5144a38d469756.jpg?ixlib=rails-4.3.1&max-w=3000&max-h=3000&fit=crop&auto=format,compress The Fear Archive https://www.violethourmedia.com/ episodic Violet Hour Media The Fear Archive investigates the real stories behind horror films. Every episode, hosts Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip dig into the actual cases, killers, hauntings, and conspiracies that Hollywood turned into your favorite scary movies — and ask whether the film or the truth is more disturbing. From Ed Gein and Psycho to the Gainesville Ripper and Scream, from MK-Ultra and The Manchurian Candidate to Faces of Death and the internet gore ecosystem — if a horror film has a real story behind it, the Fear Archive will find it. New episodes every other Wednesday. A Violet Hour Media production. The Fear Archive investigates the real stories behind horror films. Every episode, hosts Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip dig into the actual cases, killers, hauntings, and conspiracies that Hollywood turned into your favorite scary movies — and ask whether the film or the truth is more disturbing.

From Ed Gein and Psycho to the Gainesville Ripper and Scream, from MK-Ultra and The Manchurian Candidate to Faces of Death and the internet gore ecosystem — if a horror film has a real story behind it, the Fear Archive will find it.

New episodes every other Wednesday. A Violet Hour Media production.

]]> The Violet Hour contact@violethourmedia.com Dead Air | Ep. 02 | Amanda Has A Body In Her Wall https://www.violethourmedia.com/ Amanda has a dead rat in her wall and has been marinating in the smell for weeks. Mike has a baby garter snake in his foundation and is convinced mama snake is behind him right now. This is Dead Air — the Fear Archive companion show where nothing stays on topic and everything connects back to true crime anyway. This episode: the rat in the wall becomes a conversation about frogging and things hiding in domestic spaces, which leads to the CERN Large Hadron Collider, Mandela effects, and whether a particle collider in Switzerland is throwing us into new timelines. Then Rex Heuermann pleads guilty to strangling eight women at Gilgo Beach — a case both hosts grew up near on Long Island. Plus The Killing Season documentary, the West Mesa Bone Collector, and Amanda's report from the LA premiere of the new A24 Faces of Death remake. Also: Forbidden Fruits, They Will Kill You, and a very strong pitch for why you should watch Cropsy immediately. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Wed, 22 Apr 2026 14:00:00 -0000 full Violet Hour Media Rex Heuermann pleads guilty, CERN conspiracies, A24 Faces of Death premiere, and a dead rat in Amanda's wall. Amanda has a dead rat in her wall and has been marinating in the smell for weeks. Mike has a baby garter snake in his foundation and is convinced mama snake is behind him right now. This is Dead Air — the Fear Archive companion show where nothing stays on topic and everything connects back to true crime anyway. This episode: the rat in the wall becomes a conversation about frogging and things hiding in domestic spaces, which leads to the CERN Large Hadron Collider, Mandela effects, and whether a particle collider in Switzerland is throwing us into new timelines. Then Rex Heuermann pleads guilty to strangling eight women at Gilgo Beach — a case both hosts grew up near on Long Island. Plus The Killing Season documentary, the West Mesa Bone Collector, and Amanda's report from the LA premiere of the new A24 Faces of Death remake. Also: Forbidden Fruits, They Will Kill You, and a very strong pitch for why you should watch Cropsy immediately. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Amanda has a dead rat in her wall and has been marinating in the smell for weeks. Mike has a baby garter snake in his foundation and is convinced mama snake is behind him right now. This is Dead Air — the Fear Archive companion show where nothing stays on topic and everything connects back to true crime anyway.

This episode: the rat in the wall becomes a conversation about frogging and things hiding in domestic spaces, which leads to the CERN Large Hadron Collider, Mandela effects, and whether a particle collider in Switzerland is throwing us into new timelines. Then Rex Heuermann pleads guilty to strangling eight women at Gilgo Beach — a case both hosts grew up near on Long Island. Plus The Killing Season documentary, the West Mesa Bone Collector, and Amanda's report from the LA premiere of the new A24 Faces of Death remake. Also: Forbidden Fruits, They Will Kill You, and a very strong pitch for why you should watch Cropsy immediately.


Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

]]> 4265 yes Faces of Death (1978) vs. Faces of Death (2026): The True Story Behind the Most Notorious Shock Film Ever Made https://www.violethourmedia.com/ Faces of Death is not what it claims to be — and that is entirely the point. Released in 1978 and directed by John Alan Schwartz under the pseudonym Conan LeCilaire, Faces of Death presented itself as a documentary exploration of death across cultures and contexts. In reality it was a carefully engineered hybrid: some footage real, some staged, all of it designed to keep you asking one question — is this real? As long as you were asking, you were watching.In this episode, Amanda and Mike dig into the true story behind Faces of Death 1978 — the Mondo film tradition that inspired it, the economic conditions of the junk film era that made it possible, and the deliberate craft behind its most notorious sequences, including the monkey brain scene (staged with gelatin and a very agitated monkey in a Valley restaurant) and the coroner footage shot at the actual Los Angeles County Coroner's Office. Mike was also internet friends with director John Alan Schwartz before his death, and shares firsthand insight into the mythology of the film's production.The episode also covers the Faces of Death 2026 remake — directed by Daniel Goldhaber and Isam Mazhi, the duo behind Cam (2018), and starring Barbie Ferreira, Jermaine Fowler, and Charli XCX. Released April 11, 2026. Where the original asked is this real, the remake asks something harder: why are you watching?From Mondo Cane to rotten.com to LiveLeak to ISIS recruitment videos to TikTok, Amanda and Mike trace the full lineage of the death-watching impulse — and ask the question Faces of Death has always been asking. Why do we look? Topics include: Faces of Death 1978, Faces of Death 2026, John Alan Schwartz, Mondo films, shock cinema, exploitation film history, morbid curiosity, Barbie Ferreira, Charli XCX, Daniel Goldhaber, LiveLeak, Ogrish, rotten.com, snuff mythology, VHS horror, The Killing of America. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Wed, 15 Apr 2026 14:00:00 -0000 full 2 4 Violet Hour Media Why We Look — Mondo Films, Shock Sites, and the 2026 Remake Faces of Death is not what it claims to be — and that is entirely the point. Released in 1978 and directed by John Alan Schwartz under the pseudonym Conan LeCilaire, Faces of Death presented itself as a documentary exploration of death across cultures and contexts. In reality it was a carefully engineered hybrid: some footage real, some staged, all of it designed to keep you asking one question — is this real? As long as you were asking, you were watching.In this episode, Amanda and Mike dig into the true story behind Faces of Death 1978 — the Mondo film tradition that inspired it, the economic conditions of the junk film era that made it possible, and the deliberate craft behind its most notorious sequences, including the monkey brain scene (staged with gelatin and a very agitated monkey in a Valley restaurant) and the coroner footage shot at the actual Los Angeles County Coroner's Office. Mike was also internet friends with director John Alan Schwartz before his death, and shares firsthand insight into the mythology of the film's production.The episode also covers the Faces of Death 2026 remake — directed by Daniel Goldhaber and Isam Mazhi, the duo behind Cam (2018), and starring Barbie Ferreira, Jermaine Fowler, and Charli XCX. Released April 11, 2026. Where the original asked is this real, the remake asks something harder: why are you watching?From Mondo Cane to rotten.com to LiveLeak to ISIS recruitment videos to TikTok, Amanda and Mike trace the full lineage of the death-watching impulse — and ask the question Faces of Death has always been asking. Why do we look? Topics include: Faces of Death 1978, Faces of Death 2026, John Alan Schwartz, Mondo films, shock cinema, exploitation film history, morbid curiosity, Barbie Ferreira, Charli XCX, Daniel Goldhaber, LiveLeak, Ogrish, rotten.com, snuff mythology, VHS horror, The Killing of America. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Faces of Death is not what it claims to be — and that is entirely the point. Released in 1978 and directed by John Alan Schwartz under the pseudonym Conan LeCilaire, Faces of Death presented itself as a documentary exploration of death across cultures and contexts. In reality it was a carefully engineered hybrid: some footage real, some staged, all of it designed to keep you asking one question — is this real? As long as you were asking, you were watching.In this episode, Amanda and Mike dig into the true story behind Faces of Death 1978 — the Mondo film tradition that inspired it, the economic conditions of the junk film era that made it possible, and the deliberate craft behind its most notorious sequences, including the monkey brain scene (staged with gelatin and a very agitated monkey in a Valley restaurant) and the coroner footage shot at the actual Los Angeles County Coroner's Office. Mike was also internet friends with director John Alan Schwartz before his death, and shares firsthand insight into the mythology of the film's production.The episode also covers the Faces of Death 2026 remake — directed by Daniel Goldhaber and Isam Mazhi, the duo behind Cam (2018), and starring Barbie Ferreira, Jermaine Fowler, and Charli XCX. Released April 11, 2026. Where the original asked is this real, the remake asks something harder: why are you watching?From Mondo Cane to rotten.com to LiveLeak to ISIS recruitment videos to TikTok, Amanda and Mike trace the full lineage of the death-watching impulse — and ask the question Faces of Death has always been asking. Why do we look?


Topics include: Faces of Death 1978, Faces of Death 2026, John Alan Schwartz, Mondo films, shock cinema, exploitation film history, morbid curiosity, Barbie Ferreira, Charli XCX, Daniel Goldhaber, LiveLeak, Ogrish, rotten.com, snuff mythology, VHS horror, The Killing of America.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

]]> 4297 yes MK-Ultra vs. Hollywood | The CIA Program That Became a Cinematic Universe https://www.violethourmedia.com/ What if the CIA didn't just experiment on human minds — what if they also shaped the movies inside them? In this episode, Amanda and Mike break down the real history of Project MK-Ultra — the CIA's declassified program of forced LSD experiments, psychological torture, and memory erasure — and trace its fingerprints across some of Hollywood's most iconic films. From The Manchurian Candidate to Stranger Things. From Operation Midnight Climax to The Parallax View. From declassified documents to your Netflix queue. Did MK-Ultra end in 1973… or did it just go cinematic? 🔍 IN THIS EPISODE: The real history of Project MK-Ultra Sidney Gottlieb and the CIA's obsession with LSD Frank Olson — the man who fell from a window Operation Midnight Climax (yes, it was real) Donald Ewen Cameron and psychic driving The Manchurian Candidate (1962) The Parallax View (1974) Altered States (1980) Stranger Things and the Montauk mythology The CIA's official Hollywood Entertainment Liaison office Confirmed vs. unconfirmed: what MK-Ultra actually proved Did MK-Ultra end — or did it just go cinematic? Content warning: This episode includes discussion of graphic violence, sexual assault, suicide, child abuse, torture, non-consensual drugging, and psychological experimentation. 🎙️ The Fear Archive is part of the Violet Hour Media network — home of Long Night in Egypt, Hollow, The Gloom, and more. 🔔 Subscribe and hit the bell so you never miss an episode. 📲 Listen everywhere: https://linktr.ee/feararchivepod If this episode made you think, subscribe, leave a comment, or share it with the friend who says everything is a conspiracy theory. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada & Michael Ryan Assip Produced by Cassie Jozefov A production of Violet Hour Media / Realm Media Popular Topics Include: MK-Ultra, CIA mind control, Project ARTICHOKE, LSD experiments, human experimentation Cold War, The Manchurian Candidate 1962, The Parallax View 1974, Conspiracy Theory 1997, Altered States 1980, government conspiracy film, Sidney Gottlieb, Frank Olson death, Donald Ewen Cameron, Alan Memorial Institute Montreal, sleeper agents, hypnosis CIA, psy-ops, CIA Hollywood consulting, paranoia cinema, 70s political thrillers, declassified documents, Sirhan Sirhan mind control theory Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Wed, 08 Apr 2026 14:00:00 -0000 full 2 3 Violet Hour Media Did MK-Ultra end… or did it just go cinematic? What if the CIA didn't just experiment on human minds — what if they also shaped the movies inside them? In this episode, Amanda and Mike break down the real history of Project MK-Ultra — the CIA's declassified program of forced LSD experiments, psychological torture, and memory erasure — and trace its fingerprints across some of Hollywood's most iconic films. From The Manchurian Candidate to Stranger Things. From Operation Midnight Climax to The Parallax View. From declassified documents to your Netflix queue. Did MK-Ultra end in 1973… or did it just go cinematic? 🔍 IN THIS EPISODE: The real history of Project MK-Ultra Sidney Gottlieb and the CIA's obsession with LSD Frank Olson — the man who fell from a window Operation Midnight Climax (yes, it was real) Donald Ewen Cameron and psychic driving The Manchurian Candidate (1962) The Parallax View (1974) Altered States (1980) Stranger Things and the Montauk mythology The CIA's official Hollywood Entertainment Liaison office Confirmed vs. unconfirmed: what MK-Ultra actually proved Did MK-Ultra end — or did it just go cinematic? Content warning: This episode includes discussion of graphic violence, sexual assault, suicide, child abuse, torture, non-consensual drugging, and psychological experimentation. 🎙️ The Fear Archive is part of the Violet Hour Media network — home of Long Night in Egypt, Hollow, The Gloom, and more. 🔔 Subscribe and hit the bell so you never miss an episode. 📲 Listen everywhere: https://linktr.ee/feararchivepod If this episode made you think, subscribe, leave a comment, or share it with the friend who says everything is a conspiracy theory. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada & Michael Ryan Assip Produced by Cassie Jozefov A production of Violet Hour Media / Realm Media Popular Topics Include: MK-Ultra, CIA mind control, Project ARTICHOKE, LSD experiments, human experimentation Cold War, The Manchurian Candidate 1962, The Parallax View 1974, Conspiracy Theory 1997, Altered States 1980, government conspiracy film, Sidney Gottlieb, Frank Olson death, Donald Ewen Cameron, Alan Memorial Institute Montreal, sleeper agents, hypnosis CIA, psy-ops, CIA Hollywood consulting, paranoia cinema, 70s political thrillers, declassified documents, Sirhan Sirhan mind control theory Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices What if the CIA didn't just experiment on human minds — what if they also shaped the movies inside them?

In this episode, Amanda and Mike break down the real history of Project MK-Ultra — the CIA's declassified program of forced LSD experiments, psychological torture, and memory erasure — and trace its fingerprints across some of Hollywood's most iconic films.

From The Manchurian Candidate to Stranger Things. From Operation Midnight Climax to The Parallax View. From declassified documents to your Netflix queue.

Did MK-Ultra end in 1973… or did it just go cinematic?

🔍 IN THIS EPISODE:

  • The real history of Project MK-Ultra

  • Sidney Gottlieb and the CIA's obsession with LSD

  • Frank Olson — the man who fell from a window

  • Operation Midnight Climax (yes, it was real)

  • Donald Ewen Cameron and psychic driving

  • The Manchurian Candidate (1962)

  • The Parallax View (1974)

  • Altered States (1980)

  • Stranger Things and the Montauk mythology

  • The CIA's official Hollywood Entertainment Liaison office

  • Confirmed vs. unconfirmed: what MK-Ultra actually proved

  • Did MK-Ultra end — or did it just go cinematic?

Content warning: This episode includes discussion of graphic violence, sexual assault, suicide, child abuse, torture, non-consensual drugging, and psychological experimentation.



🎙️ The Fear Archive is part of the Violet Hour Media network — home of Long Night in Egypt, Hollow, The Gloom, and more.

🔔 Subscribe and hit the bell so you never miss an episode.

📲 Listen everywhere: https://linktr.ee/feararchivepod



If this episode made you think, subscribe, leave a comment, or share it with the friend who says everything is a conspiracy theory.

Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada & Michael Ryan Assip Produced by Cassie Jozefov A production of Violet Hour Media / Realm Media

Popular Topics Include: MK-Ultra, CIA mind control, Project ARTICHOKE, LSD experiments, human experimentation Cold War, The Manchurian Candidate 1962, The Parallax View 1974, Conspiracy Theory 1997, Altered States 1980, government conspiracy film, Sidney Gottlieb, Frank Olson death, Donald Ewen Cameron, Alan Memorial Institute Montreal, sleeper agents, hypnosis CIA, psy-ops, CIA Hollywood consulting, paranoia cinema, 70s political thrillers, declassified documents, Sirhan Sirhan mind control theory


Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

]]> 3569 yes Dead Air | Ep. 01 | We Need to Talk About the Camel Filler Situation Dead Air is the show between the shows. No scripts. No research. Just Amanda Kagiwada and Mike Assip talking about whatever broke their brains this week — and somehow ending up in weirder places than the Fear Archive ever goes. Episode 1: A potentially cursed Pakistani coin appears on Mike's dresser and nearly ends his marriage. Amanda joins the moon community and cannot explain what she saw. A doctor allegedly brought a syringe full of mystery drugs on a hike in Hawaii. Twenty camels were disqualified from a beauty pageant for filler injections. Mike was an extra in The Dark Knight Rises. And somehow it all connects back to simulation theory. 00:00 No Signal — the cursed necklace story 12:45 The Watch Log — Elizabeth Smart doc, Network, Project Hail Mary22:13 The Current — Hawaii hiking murder trial 39:48 The Spiral — Cheshire Cat moon, Mandela effect, Killing for Culture 1:04:45 Rent Free — camel beauty pageant fillers & King Tuff Dead Air drops on the off weeks between Fear Archive episodes. New episodes of The Fear Archive every other Wednesday. Subscribe to The Fear Archive: https://linktr.ee/feararchivepod Dead Air is part of The Fear Archive universe — a Violet Hour Media production Popular Topics Include: Fear Archive podcast, horror podcast, true crime podcast, podcast discussion, Amanda Kagiwada, Michael Ryan Assip, horror film recommendations, true crime recommendations, horror community, podcast behind the scenes, horror culture, true crime culture Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Wed, 01 Apr 2026 14:00:00 -0000 full Violet Hour Media Dead Air is the show between the shows. No scripts. No research. Just Amanda Kagiwada and Mike Assip talking about whatever broke their brains this week — and somehow ending up in weirder places than the Fear Archive ever goes. Episode 1: A potentially cursed Pakistani coin appears on Mike's dresser and nearly ends his marriage. Amanda joins the moon community and cannot explain what she saw. A doctor allegedly brought a syringe full of mystery drugs on a hike in Hawaii. Twenty camels were disqualified from a beauty pageant for filler injections. Mike was an extra in The Dark Knight Rises. And somehow it all connects back to simulation theory. 00:00 No Signal — the cursed necklace story 12:45 The Watch Log — Elizabeth Smart doc, Network, Project Hail Mary22:13 The Current — Hawaii hiking murder trial 39:48 The Spiral — Cheshire Cat moon, Mandela effect, Killing for Culture 1:04:45 Rent Free — camel beauty pageant fillers & King Tuff Dead Air drops on the off weeks between Fear Archive episodes. New episodes of The Fear Archive every other Wednesday. Subscribe to The Fear Archive: https://linktr.ee/feararchivepod Dead Air is part of The Fear Archive universe — a Violet Hour Media production Popular Topics Include: Fear Archive podcast, horror podcast, true crime podcast, podcast discussion, Amanda Kagiwada, Michael Ryan Assip, horror film recommendations, true crime recommendations, horror community, podcast behind the scenes, horror culture, true crime culture Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Dead Air is the show between the shows. No scripts. No research. Just Amanda Kagiwada and Mike Assip talking about whatever broke their brains this week — and somehow ending up in weirder places than the Fear Archive ever goes.

Episode 1: A potentially cursed Pakistani coin appears on Mike's dresser and nearly ends his marriage. Amanda joins the moon community and cannot explain what she saw. A doctor allegedly brought a syringe full of mystery drugs on a hike in Hawaii. Twenty camels were disqualified from a beauty pageant for filler injections. Mike was an extra in The Dark Knight Rises. And somehow it all connects back to simulation theory.

00:00 No Signal — the cursed necklace story

12:45 The Watch Log — Elizabeth Smart doc, Network, Project Hail Mary22:13 The Current — Hawaii hiking murder trial

39:48 The Spiral — Cheshire Cat moon, Mandela effect, Killing for Culture

1:04:45 Rent Free — camel beauty pageant fillers & King Tuff

Dead Air drops on the off weeks between Fear Archive episodes. New episodes of The Fear Archive every other Wednesday.

Subscribe to The Fear Archive: https://linktr.ee/feararchivepod

Dead Air is part of The Fear Archive universe — a Violet Hour Media production

Popular Topics Include: Fear Archive podcast, horror podcast, true crime podcast, podcast discussion, Amanda Kagiwada, Michael Ryan Assip, horror film recommendations, true crime recommendations, horror community, podcast behind the scenes, horror culture, true crime culture


Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

]]> 4628 yes An American Haunting vs. The Bell Witch | The Legend That May Have Hidden Something Darker https://www.violethourmedia.com/ In the early 1800s, a family in rural Tennessee claimed something was living inside their home — something that spoke, argued, and punished. It pulled hair in the night, mocked prayers, and named its victims. They called it the Bell Witch. The haunting became one of the most famous supernatural legends in American history — and one of the only ones to allegedly result in a death. In this episode of The Fear Archive, we examine the Bell Witch case, the story of Betsy Bell, and the disturbing theory that the haunting may have masked something far more human — and far more terrifying — happening inside the home. We also explore the 2005 film An American Haunting, which reframes the legend as psychological horror rather than supernatural fear. Was this a ghost story… or something else entirely? If you enjoyed this episode, consider subscribing, liking, or leaving a comment. It helps independent creators — and helps more people find The Fear Archive. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada & Michael Ryan Assip. Produced by Cassie Jozefov. A production of Violet Hour Media. Popular Topics Include: Bell Witch haunting, Bell Witch legend, John Bell, Lucy Bell, Robertson County Tennessee, An American Haunting 2005, Donald Sutherland, Sissy Spacek, Kate Batts, poltergeist history, American ghost stories, Southern gothic horror, paranormal history, 1817 haunting Tennessee, Andrew Jackson Bell Witch, frontier America supernatural, true haunting stories, haunting death, unexplained death paranormal, spirit with a voice, domestic abuse haunting theory Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Wed, 25 Mar 2026 14:00:00 -0000 full 2 2 Violet Hour Media The Haunting That Spoke, Accused — and May Have Covered the Truth In the early 1800s, a family in rural Tennessee claimed something was living inside their home — something that spoke, argued, and punished. It pulled hair in the night, mocked prayers, and named its victims. They called it the Bell Witch. The haunting became one of the most famous supernatural legends in American history — and one of the only ones to allegedly result in a death. In this episode of The Fear Archive, we examine the Bell Witch case, the story of Betsy Bell, and the disturbing theory that the haunting may have masked something far more human — and far more terrifying — happening inside the home. We also explore the 2005 film An American Haunting, which reframes the legend as psychological horror rather than supernatural fear. Was this a ghost story… or something else entirely? If you enjoyed this episode, consider subscribing, liking, or leaving a comment. It helps independent creators — and helps more people find The Fear Archive. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada & Michael Ryan Assip. Produced by Cassie Jozefov. A production of Violet Hour Media. Popular Topics Include: Bell Witch haunting, Bell Witch legend, John Bell, Lucy Bell, Robertson County Tennessee, An American Haunting 2005, Donald Sutherland, Sissy Spacek, Kate Batts, poltergeist history, American ghost stories, Southern gothic horror, paranormal history, 1817 haunting Tennessee, Andrew Jackson Bell Witch, frontier America supernatural, true haunting stories, haunting death, unexplained death paranormal, spirit with a voice, domestic abuse haunting theory Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices In the early 1800s, a family in rural Tennessee claimed something was living inside their home — something that spoke, argued, and punished. It pulled hair in the night, mocked prayers, and named its victims.


They called it the Bell Witch.


The haunting became one of the most famous supernatural legends in American history — and one of the only ones to allegedly result in a death.


In this episode of The Fear Archive, we examine the Bell Witch case, the story of Betsy Bell, and the disturbing theory that the haunting may have masked something far more human — and far more terrifying — happening inside the home.


We also explore the 2005 film An American Haunting, which reframes the legend as psychological horror rather than supernatural fear.


Was this a ghost story… or something else entirely?


If you enjoyed this episode, consider subscribing, liking, or leaving a comment. It helps independent creators — and helps more people find The Fear Archive.


Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada & Michael Ryan Assip.

Produced by Cassie Jozefov.

A production of Violet Hour Media.


Popular Topics Include: Bell Witch haunting, Bell Witch legend, John Bell, Lucy Bell, Robertson County Tennessee, An American Haunting 2005, Donald Sutherland, Sissy Spacek, Kate Batts, poltergeist history, American ghost stories, Southern gothic horror, paranormal history, 1817 haunting Tennessee, Andrew Jackson Bell Witch, frontier America supernatural, true haunting stories, haunting death, unexplained death paranormal, spirit with a voice, domestic abuse haunting theory

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

]]> 2682 yes Fire in the Sky vs. Travis Walton: Alien Abduction or Something Else? https://www.violethourmedia.com/ The Fear Archive investigates the Travis Walton abduction — one of the most famous and most contested UFO encounters in American history — and the 1993 film that tried to put the experience on screen. On November 5, 1975, Travis Walton disappeared into the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest near Snowflake, Arizona, in front of six witnesses. He was gone for five days. When he returned — confused, dehydrated, and claiming he had been taken aboard a spacecraft — the investigation that followed subjected every witness to polygraph examination. They passed. Walton passed. The case was never conclusively resolved. Fire in the Sky is the film version. Tonight Amanda and Mike examine what the film gets right, what it invents, and why the question at the center of this case — was he abducted or was he not — is more uncomfortable than either answer. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Travis Walton abduction, Fire in the Sky 1993, Snowflake Arizona UFO, alien abduction true story, UFO encounters 1975, polygraph alien abduction, alien abduction film, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, UFO history Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Wed, 11 Mar 2026 14:00:00 -0000 full 2 1 Violet Hour Media Five Days. No Body. No Blood. Five Witnesses Who Never Changed Their Story. The Fear Archive investigates the Travis Walton abduction — one of the most famous and most contested UFO encounters in American history — and the 1993 film that tried to put the experience on screen. On November 5, 1975, Travis Walton disappeared into the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest near Snowflake, Arizona, in front of six witnesses. He was gone for five days. When he returned — confused, dehydrated, and claiming he had been taken aboard a spacecraft — the investigation that followed subjected every witness to polygraph examination. They passed. Walton passed. The case was never conclusively resolved. Fire in the Sky is the film version. Tonight Amanda and Mike examine what the film gets right, what it invents, and why the question at the center of this case — was he abducted or was he not — is more uncomfortable than either answer. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Travis Walton abduction, Fire in the Sky 1993, Snowflake Arizona UFO, alien abduction true story, UFO encounters 1975, polygraph alien abduction, alien abduction film, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, UFO history Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices The Fear Archive investigates the Travis Walton abduction — one of the most famous and most contested UFO encounters in American history — and the 1993 film that tried to put the experience on screen.

On November 5, 1975, Travis Walton disappeared into the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest near Snowflake, Arizona, in front of six witnesses. He was gone for five days. When he returned — confused, dehydrated, and claiming he had been taken aboard a spacecraft — the investigation that followed subjected every witness to polygraph examination. They passed. Walton passed. The case was never conclusively resolved.

Fire in the Sky is the film version. Tonight Amanda and Mike examine what the film gets right, what it invents, and why the question at the center of this case — was he abducted or was he not — is more uncomfortable than either answer.

Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production.

LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution.

Popular Topics Include: Travis Walton abduction, Fire in the Sky 1993, Snowflake Arizona UFO, alien abduction true story, UFO encounters 1975, polygraph alien abduction, alien abduction film, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, UFO history


Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

]]> 3308 yes Black Christmas vs. Danny LaPlante: When the Killer Is Already Inside https://www.violethourmedia.com/ Black Christmas vs. Danny LaPlante is the episode that asks the question horror fans have never dared to ask out loud: did the film create the killer? In 1974, Black Christmas changed horror forever — not with gore or monsters, but with a single chilling idea: the killer is already inside the house. Watching. Listening. Waiting. In this episode of The Fear Archive, Amanda and Mike examine the real-life crimes of Danny LaPlante, a teenager who hid inside family homes for days at a time — rearranging objects, watching people sleep, and conducting what can only be described as psychological warfare. They break down LaPlante's crimes, the investigation that stopped him, and the deeply unsettling question of whether a 17-year-old boy ever watched Black Christmas and took notes. There is no proof. But the parallels are impossible to ignore. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Black Christmas 1974, Black Christmas true story, Danny LaPlante, killer in the walls, home invasion horror, frogging true crime, horror film true story, Bob Clark, slasher film history, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, real stories behind horror movies, Amanda Kagiwada, Michael Ryan Assip, Violet Hour Media, was Danny LaPlante inspired by Black Christmas Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Wed, 17 Dec 2025 20:48:00 -0000 full 1 10 Violet Hour Media The Real Crimes That Inspired One of Horror's Most Terrifying Home-Invasion Films — and Whether LaPlante Saw the Movie First Black Christmas vs. Danny LaPlante is the episode that asks the question horror fans have never dared to ask out loud: did the film create the killer? In 1974, Black Christmas changed horror forever — not with gore or monsters, but with a single chilling idea: the killer is already inside the house. Watching. Listening. Waiting. In this episode of The Fear Archive, Amanda and Mike examine the real-life crimes of Danny LaPlante, a teenager who hid inside family homes for days at a time — rearranging objects, watching people sleep, and conducting what can only be described as psychological warfare. They break down LaPlante's crimes, the investigation that stopped him, and the deeply unsettling question of whether a 17-year-old boy ever watched Black Christmas and took notes. There is no proof. But the parallels are impossible to ignore. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Black Christmas 1974, Black Christmas true story, Danny LaPlante, killer in the walls, home invasion horror, frogging true crime, horror film true story, Bob Clark, slasher film history, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, real stories behind horror movies, Amanda Kagiwada, Michael Ryan Assip, Violet Hour Media, was Danny LaPlante inspired by Black Christmas Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Black Christmas vs. Danny LaPlante is the episode that asks the question horror fans have never dared to ask out loud: did the film create the killer?

In 1974, Black Christmas changed horror forever — not with gore or monsters, but with a single chilling idea: the killer is already inside the house. Watching. Listening. Waiting.

In this episode of The Fear Archive, Amanda and Mike examine the real-life crimes of Danny LaPlante, a teenager who hid inside family homes for days at a time — rearranging objects, watching people sleep, and conducting what can only be described as psychological warfare. They break down LaPlante's crimes, the investigation that stopped him, and the deeply unsettling question of whether a 17-year-old boy ever watched Black Christmas and took notes.

There is no proof. But the parallels are impossible to ignore.

Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production.

LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution.

Popular Topics Include: Black Christmas 1974, Black Christmas true story, Danny LaPlante, killer in the walls, home invasion horror, frogging true crime, horror film true story, Bob Clark, slasher film history, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, real stories behind horror movies, Amanda Kagiwada, Michael Ryan Assip, Violet Hour Media, was Danny LaPlante inspired by Black Christmas


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]]> 3662 yes Gremlins vs. The Hopkinsville Goblins: America's Strangest Documented Alien Encounter https://www.violethourmedia.com/ The Fear Archive investigates the Kelly-Hopkinsville encounter — the most detailed and extensively documented alien creature sighting in American history — and the unlikely film it helped inspire. On the night of August 21, 1955, the Sutton family and their friends at a farmhouse outside Hopkinsville, Kentucky, reported a siege by small, silver, glowing beings that appeared from the tree line and would not leave. They fired guns. The beings kept coming. By morning, eleven witnesses were shaken and consistent in their accounts. Police investigators found physical evidence. No one involved ever recanted. Gremlins took the idea of small, malevolent creatures and made it funny. The Hopkinsville Goblins were not funny. Tonight Amanda and Mike examine what actually happened. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Hopkinsville Goblins, Kelly-Hopkinsville encounter, 1955 UFO encounter, Kentucky alien sighting, Sutton family siege, Gremlins 1984, Joe Dante, alien creature encounter, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, documented alien encounter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Wed, 10 Dec 2025 15:00:00 -0000 full 1 9 Violet Hour Media Rural Kentucky. 1955. A Family Under Siege From Something Small, Silver, and Absolutely Real to Everyone Who Was There. The Fear Archive investigates the Kelly-Hopkinsville encounter — the most detailed and extensively documented alien creature sighting in American history — and the unlikely film it helped inspire. On the night of August 21, 1955, the Sutton family and their friends at a farmhouse outside Hopkinsville, Kentucky, reported a siege by small, silver, glowing beings that appeared from the tree line and would not leave. They fired guns. The beings kept coming. By morning, eleven witnesses were shaken and consistent in their accounts. Police investigators found physical evidence. No one involved ever recanted. Gremlins took the idea of small, malevolent creatures and made it funny. The Hopkinsville Goblins were not funny. Tonight Amanda and Mike examine what actually happened. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Hopkinsville Goblins, Kelly-Hopkinsville encounter, 1955 UFO encounter, Kentucky alien sighting, Sutton family siege, Gremlins 1984, Joe Dante, alien creature encounter, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, documented alien encounter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices The Fear Archive investigates the Kelly-Hopkinsville encounter — the most detailed and extensively documented alien creature sighting in American history — and the unlikely film it helped inspire.

On the night of August 21, 1955, the Sutton family and their friends at a farmhouse outside Hopkinsville, Kentucky, reported a siege by small, silver, glowing beings that appeared from the tree line and would not leave. They fired guns. The beings kept coming. By morning, eleven witnesses were shaken and consistent in their accounts. Police investigators found physical evidence. No one involved ever recanted.

Gremlins took the idea of small, malevolent creatures and made it funny. The Hopkinsville Goblins were not funny. Tonight Amanda and Mike examine what actually happened.

Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production.

LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution.

Popular Topics Include: Hopkinsville Goblins, Kelly-Hopkinsville encounter, 1955 UFO encounter, Kentucky alien sighting, Sutton family siege, Gremlins 1984, Joe Dante, alien creature encounter, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, documented alien encounter


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]]> 3514 yes Amityville II vs. The DeFeo Murders: What Really Happened the Night Six People Were Killed https://www.violethourmedia.com/ The Fear Archive examines the DeFeo murders — one of the most disturbing family annihilations in American true crime history — and the exploitation film that tried to explain them with demons and incest. On November 13, 1974, six members of the DeFeo family were found shot dead in their beds at 112 Ocean Avenue in Amityville, New York. The only survivor was Ronald 'Butch' DeFeo Jr., who would later claim he heard voices. What followed was one of the most contested criminal cases and haunted house myths in American history. Tonight Amanda and Mike separate what actually happened from what Hollywood invented — and ask the harder question: when a movie tries to explain real horror with the supernatural, who does it protect? Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Amityville horror true story, DeFeo murders, Ronald DeFeo Jr, 112 Ocean Avenue, Amityville II The Possession, Amityville true crime, family annihilation, Butch DeFeo, horror film true story, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Wed, 03 Dec 2025 15:00:00 -0000 full 1 8 Violet Hour Media The DeFeo Family Murders, the House on Ocean Avenue, and How Hollywood Got It Spectacularly Wrong The Fear Archive examines the DeFeo murders — one of the most disturbing family annihilations in American true crime history — and the exploitation film that tried to explain them with demons and incest. On November 13, 1974, six members of the DeFeo family were found shot dead in their beds at 112 Ocean Avenue in Amityville, New York. The only survivor was Ronald 'Butch' DeFeo Jr., who would later claim he heard voices. What followed was one of the most contested criminal cases and haunted house myths in American history. Tonight Amanda and Mike separate what actually happened from what Hollywood invented — and ask the harder question: when a movie tries to explain real horror with the supernatural, who does it protect? Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Amityville horror true story, DeFeo murders, Ronald DeFeo Jr, 112 Ocean Avenue, Amityville II The Possession, Amityville true crime, family annihilation, Butch DeFeo, horror film true story, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices The Fear Archive examines the DeFeo murders — one of the most disturbing family annihilations in American true crime history — and the exploitation film that tried to explain them with demons and incest.

On November 13, 1974, six members of the DeFeo family were found shot dead in their beds at 112 Ocean Avenue in Amityville, New York. The only survivor was Ronald 'Butch' DeFeo Jr., who would later claim he heard voices. What followed was one of the most contested criminal cases and haunted house myths in American history.

Tonight Amanda and Mike separate what actually happened from what Hollywood invented — and ask the harder question: when a movie tries to explain real horror with the supernatural, who does it protect?

Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production.

LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution.

Popular Topics Include: Amityville horror true story, DeFeo murders, Ronald DeFeo Jr, 112 Ocean Avenue, Amityville II The Possession, Amityville true crime, family annihilation, Butch DeFeo, horror film true story, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media


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]]> 3430 yes Frailty vs. Joseph Kallinger: The Shoemaker Who Said God Told Him to Kill https://www.violethourmedia.com/ The Fear Archive investigates Joseph Kallinger — a Philadelphia shoemaker, father of seven, and serial killer who claimed God ordered him to murder every human being on earth — and the Bill Paxton film that channeled his darkness. Kallinger did not fit the profile. He was quiet, unremarkable, a craftsman who fixed shoes and raised children. And then he began recruiting his own son into a campaign of kidnapping, torture, and murder that terrorized the East Coast in the mid-1970s. The film Frailty imagines a father who receives divine orders to destroy demons. Kallinger lived something far worse: a man who believed his delusions completely, and made his child a witness to them. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Joseph Kallinger, Frailty 2001, Bill Paxton, shoemaker serial killer, God told me to kill, religious delusion murder, father son serial killers, Michael Kallinger, Philadelphia serial killer, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Wed, 19 Nov 2025 16:12:00 -0000 full 1 7 Violet Hour Media A Father. A Shoemaker. A Mission From God. The Real Story Behind Frailty. The Fear Archive investigates Joseph Kallinger — a Philadelphia shoemaker, father of seven, and serial killer who claimed God ordered him to murder every human being on earth — and the Bill Paxton film that channeled his darkness. Kallinger did not fit the profile. He was quiet, unremarkable, a craftsman who fixed shoes and raised children. And then he began recruiting his own son into a campaign of kidnapping, torture, and murder that terrorized the East Coast in the mid-1970s. The film Frailty imagines a father who receives divine orders to destroy demons. Kallinger lived something far worse: a man who believed his delusions completely, and made his child a witness to them. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Joseph Kallinger, Frailty 2001, Bill Paxton, shoemaker serial killer, God told me to kill, religious delusion murder, father son serial killers, Michael Kallinger, Philadelphia serial killer, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices The Fear Archive investigates Joseph Kallinger — a Philadelphia shoemaker, father of seven, and serial killer who claimed God ordered him to murder every human being on earth — and the Bill Paxton film that channeled his darkness.

Kallinger did not fit the profile. He was quiet, unremarkable, a craftsman who fixed shoes and raised children. And then he began recruiting his own son into a campaign of kidnapping, torture, and murder that terrorized the East Coast in the mid-1970s.

The film Frailty imagines a father who receives divine orders to destroy demons. Kallinger lived something far worse: a man who believed his delusions completely, and made his child a witness to them.

Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production.

LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution.

Popular Topics Include: Joseph Kallinger, Frailty 2001, Bill Paxton, shoemaker serial killer, God told me to kill, religious delusion murder, father son serial killers, Michael Kallinger, Philadelphia serial killer, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media


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]]> 3484 yes The Strangers vs. The Keddie Cabin Murders | The Unsolved 1981 Case That Still Has No Answer https://www.violethourmedia.com/ The Fear Archive examines the Keddie Cabin murders — one of the most disturbing unsolved cases in California history — and how that atmosphere of random, senseless violence found its way into The Strangers. On the night of April 11, 1981, three people were murdered inside Cabin 28 in the small Sierra Nevada community of Keddie, California. Sue Sharp, her teenage son John, and his friend Dana Wingate were killed with knives, a hammer, and rope. Sue's 12-year-old daughter Tina was abducted and never found alive. No arrests. No convictions. No answers. The Strangers is a film about random violence — strangers who choose a house and will not stop. Tonight Amanda and Mike examine what the film understands about terror, and what the Keddie case understood first. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Keddie Cabin murders, Cabin 28 murders, Keddie California 1981, Sue Sharp murder, unsolved cabin murders, The Strangers 2008, home invasion horror, unsolved murder cold case, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, random violence horror Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Wed, 12 Nov 2025 15:00:00 -0000 full 1 6 Violet Hour Media Cabin 28. Three Bodies. No Conviction. Four Decades of Silence. The Fear Archive examines the Keddie Cabin murders — one of the most disturbing unsolved cases in California history — and how that atmosphere of random, senseless violence found its way into The Strangers. On the night of April 11, 1981, three people were murdered inside Cabin 28 in the small Sierra Nevada community of Keddie, California. Sue Sharp, her teenage son John, and his friend Dana Wingate were killed with knives, a hammer, and rope. Sue's 12-year-old daughter Tina was abducted and never found alive. No arrests. No convictions. No answers. The Strangers is a film about random violence — strangers who choose a house and will not stop. Tonight Amanda and Mike examine what the film understands about terror, and what the Keddie case understood first. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Keddie Cabin murders, Cabin 28 murders, Keddie California 1981, Sue Sharp murder, unsolved cabin murders, The Strangers 2008, home invasion horror, unsolved murder cold case, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, random violence horror Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices The Fear Archive examines the Keddie Cabin murders — one of the most disturbing unsolved cases in California history — and how that atmosphere of random, senseless violence found its way into The Strangers.

On the night of April 11, 1981, three people were murdered inside Cabin 28 in the small Sierra Nevada community of Keddie, California. Sue Sharp, her teenage son John, and his friend Dana Wingate were killed with knives, a hammer, and rope. Sue's 12-year-old daughter Tina was abducted and never found alive. No arrests. No convictions. No answers.

The Strangers is a film about random violence — strangers who choose a house and will not stop. Tonight Amanda and Mike examine what the film understands about terror, and what the Keddie case understood first.

Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production.

LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution.

Popular Topics Include: Keddie Cabin murders, Cabin 28 murders, Keddie California 1981, Sue Sharp murder, unsolved cabin murders, The Strangers 2008, home invasion horror, unsolved murder cold case, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, random violence horror


Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

]]> 3315 yes The Entity vs. Doris Bither: The True Paranormal Case That UCLA Investigated https://www.violethourmedia.com/ The Fear Archive investigates the haunting of Doris Bither — the real paranormal case that UCLA researchers took seriously enough to document — and the 1982 film The Entity that dramatized it. Doris Bither was a single mother living in Culver City, California, who reported being physically attacked by an unseen entity. She was bruised. Her children witnessed the disturbances. And when parapsychology researchers Barry Taff and Kerry Gaynor investigated, they documented phenomena they could not explain — including a luminous form that appeared in her living room. Whether you believe in the paranormal or not, this case resists easy dismissal. Tonight Amanda and Mike examine why. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Doris Bither, The Entity 1982, Barbara Hershey, paranormal assault case, UCLA parapsychology, Barry Taff, Culver City haunting, supernatural assault true story, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, real paranormal investigation Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Wed, 05 Nov 2025 15:00:00 -0000 full 1 5 Violet Hour Media She Said Something Was Attacking Her. UCLA Scientists Came to Investigate. Then Someone Put On Black Sabbath. The Fear Archive investigates the haunting of Doris Bither — the real paranormal case that UCLA researchers took seriously enough to document — and the 1982 film The Entity that dramatized it. Doris Bither was a single mother living in Culver City, California, who reported being physically attacked by an unseen entity. She was bruised. Her children witnessed the disturbances. And when parapsychology researchers Barry Taff and Kerry Gaynor investigated, they documented phenomena they could not explain — including a luminous form that appeared in her living room. Whether you believe in the paranormal or not, this case resists easy dismissal. Tonight Amanda and Mike examine why. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Doris Bither, The Entity 1982, Barbara Hershey, paranormal assault case, UCLA parapsychology, Barry Taff, Culver City haunting, supernatural assault true story, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, real paranormal investigation Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices The Fear Archive investigates the haunting of Doris Bither — the real paranormal case that UCLA researchers took seriously enough to document — and the 1982 film The Entity that dramatized it.

Doris Bither was a single mother living in Culver City, California, who reported being physically attacked by an unseen entity. She was bruised. Her children witnessed the disturbances. And when parapsychology researchers Barry Taff and Kerry Gaynor investigated, they documented phenomena they could not explain — including a luminous form that appeared in her living room.

Whether you believe in the paranormal or not, this case resists easy dismissal. Tonight Amanda and Mike examine why.

Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production.

LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution.

Popular Topics Include: Doris Bither, The Entity 1982, Barbara Hershey, paranormal assault case, UCLA parapsychology, Barry Taff, Culver City haunting, supernatural assault true story, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, real paranormal investigation


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]]> 4163 yes Ed Gein vs. Hollywood: How One Real Killer Inspired Psycho, Texas Chain Saw Massacre, and Silence of the Lambs https://www.violethourmedia.com/ Ed Gein is the most influential killer in horror film history — and most people do not know the half of it. The Fear Archive examines the Butcher of Plainfield and the full scope of his cinematic legacy. In 1957, police entered Ed Gein's farmhouse in Plainfield, Wisconsin, and found something that defied description. Masks made of human skin. Bowls carved from skulls. Furniture upholstered in flesh. Gein was not a prolific killer — but what he did to his victims' remains became the template for Norman Bates, Leatherface, and Buffalo Bill. Tonight Amanda and Mike ask the question this legacy demands: what does it mean that our most beloved horror villains are all one man's nightmare reassembled? Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Ed Gein, Psycho 1960, Norman Bates, Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Leatherface, Silence of the Lambs, Buffalo Bill, Butcher of Plainfield, Plainfield Wisconsin, horror film true story, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, real killer behind horror movies Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Wed, 29 Oct 2025 14:00:00 -0000 full 1 4 Violet Hour Media One Man. Three Iconic Villains. The Real Story Hollywood Has Been Mining for Seventy Years. Ed Gein is the most influential killer in horror film history — and most people do not know the half of it. The Fear Archive examines the Butcher of Plainfield and the full scope of his cinematic legacy. In 1957, police entered Ed Gein's farmhouse in Plainfield, Wisconsin, and found something that defied description. Masks made of human skin. Bowls carved from skulls. Furniture upholstered in flesh. Gein was not a prolific killer — but what he did to his victims' remains became the template for Norman Bates, Leatherface, and Buffalo Bill. Tonight Amanda and Mike ask the question this legacy demands: what does it mean that our most beloved horror villains are all one man's nightmare reassembled? Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Ed Gein, Psycho 1960, Norman Bates, Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Leatherface, Silence of the Lambs, Buffalo Bill, Butcher of Plainfield, Plainfield Wisconsin, horror film true story, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, real killer behind horror movies Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Ed Gein is the most influential killer in horror film history — and most people do not know the half of it. The Fear Archive examines the Butcher of Plainfield and the full scope of his cinematic legacy.

In 1957, police entered Ed Gein's farmhouse in Plainfield, Wisconsin, and found something that defied description. Masks made of human skin. Bowls carved from skulls. Furniture upholstered in flesh. Gein was not a prolific killer — but what he did to his victims' remains became the template for Norman Bates, Leatherface, and Buffalo Bill.

Tonight Amanda and Mike ask the question this legacy demands: what does it mean that our most beloved horror villains are all one man's nightmare reassembled?

Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production.

LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution.

Popular Topics Include: Ed Gein, Psycho 1960, Norman Bates, Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Leatherface, Silence of the Lambs, Buffalo Bill, Butcher of Plainfield, Plainfield Wisconsin, horror film true story, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, real killer behind horror movies


Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

]]> 4082 yes X (2022) vs. The Copeland Murders: The Oldest Serial Killers in American History https://www.violethourmedia.com/ The Fear Archive investigates Ray and Faye Copeland — a Missouri farming couple convicted of serial murder in their seventies — and the Ti West horror film X, which excavates the darkness lurking beneath rural American surfaces. We interview Peter Phok, executive producer on X. Ray and Faye Copeland looked exactly like what they were: an aging farm couple in Ozark County, Missouri. They were not. Between 1986 and 1989, they lured transient workers to their farm, used them for fraudulent cattle deals, and murdered them when they became liabilities. When investigators found the remains, Faye Copeland had been making a quilt from the victims' clothing. Ti West's X understands this specific American darkness. Tonight Amanda and Mike examine how well. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Copeland murders, Ray Copeland, Faye Copeland, oldest serial killers America, farm murders Missouri, X 2022, Ti West, Mia Goth, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, rural serial killers, geriatric killers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Wed, 22 Oct 2025 14:00:00 -0000 full 1 3 Violet Hour Media A Sweet Old Couple in Rural Missouri. A Farm. A Body Count. The Oldest Serial Killers Ever Convicted in the United States. The Fear Archive investigates Ray and Faye Copeland — a Missouri farming couple convicted of serial murder in their seventies — and the Ti West horror film X, which excavates the darkness lurking beneath rural American surfaces. We interview Peter Phok, executive producer on X. Ray and Faye Copeland looked exactly like what they were: an aging farm couple in Ozark County, Missouri. They were not. Between 1986 and 1989, they lured transient workers to their farm, used them for fraudulent cattle deals, and murdered them when they became liabilities. When investigators found the remains, Faye Copeland had been making a quilt from the victims' clothing. Ti West's X understands this specific American darkness. Tonight Amanda and Mike examine how well. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Copeland murders, Ray Copeland, Faye Copeland, oldest serial killers America, farm murders Missouri, X 2022, Ti West, Mia Goth, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, rural serial killers, geriatric killers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices The Fear Archive investigates Ray and Faye Copeland — a Missouri farming couple convicted of serial murder in their seventies — and the Ti West horror film X, which excavates the darkness lurking beneath rural American surfaces. We interview Peter Phok, executive producer on X.

Ray and Faye Copeland looked exactly like what they were: an aging farm couple in Ozark County, Missouri. They were not. Between 1986 and 1989, they lured transient workers to their farm, used them for fraudulent cattle deals, and murdered them when they became liabilities. When investigators found the remains, Faye Copeland had been making a quilt from the victims' clothing.

Ti West's X understands this specific American darkness. Tonight Amanda and Mike examine how well.

Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production.

LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution.

Popular Topics Include: Copeland murders, Ray Copeland, Faye Copeland, oldest serial killers America, farm murders Missouri, X 2022, Ti West, Mia Goth, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, rural serial killers, geriatric killers


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]]> 3644 yes Cruising vs. Paul Bateson: The Exorcist Actor Suspected of NYC's Bag Murders https://www.violethourmedia.com/ The Fear Archive investigates Paul Bateson — a radiology technician, Exorcist film extra, and convicted killer — and William Friedkin's Cruising, the film that documented the exact world Bateson moved through while bodies were disappearing into the Hudson River. Between 1975 and 1977, at least six men were murdered, dismembered, and dumped into the Hudson in plastic bags. Paul Bateson was convicted of one killing. Friedkin believed he was responsible for more — and made a film about it. The result was one of the most controversial movies ever produced: a portrait of New York's leather bar underground that the community it depicted rejected, that critics could not classify, and that law enforcement found uncomfortably accurate. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Paul Bateson, Cruising 1980, William Friedkin, Al Pacino, Hudson River bag murders, Exorcist film extra, LGBTQ true crime, New York City serial killer, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, gay bar murders 1970s Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Wed, 15 Oct 2025 14:00:00 -0000 Cruising & Paul Bateson full 1 2 Violet Hour Media Paul Bateson: From Radiology Tech to Convicted Killer" The Fear Archive investigates Paul Bateson — a radiology technician, Exorcist film extra, and convicted killer — and William Friedkin's Cruising, the film that documented the exact world Bateson moved through while bodies were disappearing into the Hudson River. Between 1975 and 1977, at least six men were murdered, dismembered, and dumped into the Hudson in plastic bags. Paul Bateson was convicted of one killing. Friedkin believed he was responsible for more — and made a film about it. The result was one of the most controversial movies ever produced: a portrait of New York's leather bar underground that the community it depicted rejected, that critics could not classify, and that law enforcement found uncomfortably accurate. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Paul Bateson, Cruising 1980, William Friedkin, Al Pacino, Hudson River bag murders, Exorcist film extra, LGBTQ true crime, New York City serial killer, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, gay bar murders 1970s Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices The Fear Archive investigates Paul Bateson — a radiology technician, Exorcist film extra, and convicted killer — and William Friedkin's Cruising, the film that documented the exact world Bateson moved through while bodies were disappearing into the Hudson River.

Between 1975 and 1977, at least six men were murdered, dismembered, and dumped into the Hudson in plastic bags. Paul Bateson was convicted of one killing. Friedkin believed he was responsible for more — and made a film about it. The result was one of the most controversial movies ever produced: a portrait of New York's leather bar underground that the community it depicted rejected, that critics could not classify, and that law enforcement found uncomfortably accurate.

Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production.

LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution.

Popular Topics Include: Paul Bateson, Cruising 1980, William Friedkin, Al Pacino, Hudson River bag murders, Exorcist film extra, LGBTQ true crime, New York City serial killer, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, gay bar murders 1970s


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]]> 3806 yes Scream vs. The Gainesville Ripper: The Real Serial Killer Who Inspired the Film https://www.violethourmedia.com/ The Fear Archive investigates Danny Rolling — the Gainesville Ripper — and the murders that Kevin Williamson turned into Scream. In August 1990, five University of Florida students were murdered in four days. Rolling slipped through locked doors, left posed bodies for investigators to find, and vanished back into the tree line. Gainesville shut down. Students barricaded doors with furniture. Hardware stores sold out of deadbolts. Six years later, a screenwriter named Kevin Williamson wrote a horror film about a killer who knew the rules. The shadow of Gainesville is present in every frame. Tonight Amanda and Mike examine how the panic of a real event became the architecture of one of the most successful horror franchises ever made. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Gainesville Ripper, Danny Rolling, Gainesville murders 1990, Scream 1996, Kevin Williamson, Wes Craven, University of Florida murders, slasher film true story, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, Scream true story Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Wed, 08 Oct 2025 14:15:00 -0000 full 1 1 Violet Hour Media Five Students. Four Days. One Drifter in the Woods. The Murders That Became Scream. The Fear Archive investigates Danny Rolling — the Gainesville Ripper — and the murders that Kevin Williamson turned into Scream. In August 1990, five University of Florida students were murdered in four days. Rolling slipped through locked doors, left posed bodies for investigators to find, and vanished back into the tree line. Gainesville shut down. Students barricaded doors with furniture. Hardware stores sold out of deadbolts. Six years later, a screenwriter named Kevin Williamson wrote a horror film about a killer who knew the rules. The shadow of Gainesville is present in every frame. Tonight Amanda and Mike examine how the panic of a real event became the architecture of one of the most successful horror franchises ever made. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Gainesville Ripper, Danny Rolling, Gainesville murders 1990, Scream 1996, Kevin Williamson, Wes Craven, University of Florida murders, slasher film true story, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, Scream true story Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices The Fear Archive investigates Danny Rolling — the Gainesville Ripper — and the murders that Kevin Williamson turned into Scream.

In August 1990, five University of Florida students were murdered in four days. Rolling slipped through locked doors, left posed bodies for investigators to find, and vanished back into the tree line. Gainesville shut down. Students barricaded doors with furniture. Hardware stores sold out of deadbolts.

Six years later, a screenwriter named Kevin Williamson wrote a horror film about a killer who knew the rules. The shadow of Gainesville is present in every frame. Tonight Amanda and Mike examine how the panic of a real event became the architecture of one of the most successful horror franchises ever made.

Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production.

LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution.

Popular Topics Include: Gainesville Ripper, Danny Rolling, Gainesville murders 1990, Scream 1996, Kevin Williamson, Wes Craven, University of Florida murders, slasher film true story, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, Scream true story


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]]> 4265 yes The Fear Archive Trailer The Fear Archive is a darkly funny deep-dive into the real stories hiding under horror’s blood-soaked floorboards. Blending gallows humor with obsessive research, we uncover the never-before-discussed connections between reality and the films that terrified us. For fans of Last Podcast on the Left’s chaotic energy and Unspooled’s cinephile deep cuts, this is where true crime meets cult cinema and the bodies are always real. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Sun, 21 Sep 2025 20:20:00 -0000 trailer Violet Hour Media The Fear Archive is a darkly funny deep-dive into the real stories hiding under horror’s blood-soaked floorboards. Blending gallows humor with obsessive research, we uncover the never-before-discussed connections between reality and the films that terrified us. For fans of Last Podcast on the Left’s chaotic energy and Unspooled’s cinephile deep cuts, this is where true crime meets cult cinema and the bodies are always real. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices The Fear Archive is a darkly funny deep-dive into the real stories hiding under horror’s blood-soaked floorboards. Blending gallows humor with obsessive research, we uncover the never-before-discussed connections between reality and the films that terrified us. For fans of Last Podcast on the Left’s chaotic energy and Unspooled’s cinephile deep cuts, this is where true crime meets cult cinema and the bodies are always real.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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