The Amityville Horror

This isn’t an article about ghosts and demons. You’ll have to look elsewhere for that. This is about an infamous home and a horrific tragedy. It’s about November 13, 1974.

On a quiet Amityville street in the early evening hours on the date above, a 23-year old man named Ronald DeFeo murdered his parents and two siblings with a rifle. He was convicted of the crimes and, thankfully, remains behind bars to this day. The tragedy shocked everyone on the island.

Over the years, DeFeo has told numerous tales about what occured that evening, blaming his parents in one version, and his sister in a couple of others, of actually committing the murders.

None of his versions have ever been found to have a shred of credibility.

And that’s really where the story should end, except it doesn’t.

A few years after the murders, a horror novel was released, weaving a fanciful supernatural tale of demons and possession inside the Amityville home. It flew off of bookshelves.

The book was purported to be a true story (a wonderful oxymoron), but when the story was scrutinized a little more closely, it had a million holes.

That’s never stopped Hollywood before. Movies and more books and more movies followed, each telling a more incredible version of events. Each completely made up.

The only thing that ever really happened in that house is a series of tragic, senseless murders.

Tales of the “Amityville Horror House” continue to victimize the local residents who would love nothing more than a little peace and quiet. But people have always loved a ghost story. If you visit, please be respectful of your surroundings.

What do you remember about the 1974 tragedy? Have you driven by the house? I’d love to hear all of your recollections in the comments section below.