The Trans-Alleghany Lunatic Asylum (formerly called Weston State Hospital) housed the criminally insane, including Charles Manson. Closed in 1994 as a hospital, it was reopened in August 2007 when it was bought by Rebecca Jordan.

Rebecca called TAPS when she began hearing reports from workers and tourists of phantom footsteps and doors slamming, disembodied voices, full-bodied apparitions, etc. The result is one of the most lively Ghost Hunters shows I’ve yet to see.

Source: Sci Fi Rewind
The Intermountain

People either love Paranormal State or hate it. Over the past several months, I’ve found myself somewhat entertained by the bashing Paranormal State has received since it launched. I hadn’t heard anything good about the show until I went to Amazon and read the reviews for the newly released DVD.

Two of the five-star reviews proclaimed that Paranormal State was better than Ghost Hunters and Most Haunted. Curious, I read them from beginning to end, hoping to find some unbiased information. When I didn’t get it, I decided to go to the A&E website to watch an episode.

Paranormal State is decidedly different than Ghost Hunters in that it’s scripted. I enjoyed listening to the history of the Willard Asylum (New York), but wasn’t impressed by Chris Coffey’s theatrics. He’s the psychic who rids himself from demon possession by slapping himself. Uh-huh. I was even less impressed by the ending, where they “vanquished” the spirits with a simple prayer.

That said, I was reminded of Ghost Hunters when they used an EVP device. Whether that device was real or a stage prop, I’m not sure. I came away from this show more skeptical than ever. If you’d like to judge for yourself, you can watch the videos at A&Etv.com.

Architect, Jonathan Rivers is devastated when he loses his wife in a tragic accident on the day she finds out that she’s pregnant. Just as he is leaving for work, he sees a man sitting in a parked SUV across the street. He ignores the man and goes to work, only to see him sitting on a bench in front of his office. The man identifies himself as Raymond Price, who found peace when he contacted his deceased son via EVP.

Raymond stops following him, and Jonathan tries to return to his normal life. One day, he is showing a building to one of his firm’s clients when they get stuck in the elevator. The lights go out, and then Jonathan’s cell phone rings. The caller is from Anna, his deceased wife. Her cell phone is lying in his dresser drawer at home, inside the plastic “personal effects” bag that the police had given to him.

The incident sends him to Raymond’s house, where he is shown video and voice recordings from dead people who had allegedly contacted his clients. At first, Jonathan is overwhelmed by the possibility of communicating with his wife. Then he becomes obsessed with the idea to the point where this obsession begins to take over his life. The bizarre incidents that take place help keep his obsession alive, despite warnings from a psychic and from Raymond.

“Not every spirit is nice,” Raymond had said.

Jonathan tries to piece together what is happening around him, while still searching for Anna. Raymond’s words fail to register until the explosive climax. Everything was tied up at that point, but the last scene is somewhat open-ended, suggesting a sequel of some sort.

I enjoyed this movie very much. Keaton did a great job portraying a grieving and obsessed widower. Although I didn’t like the static in the beginning of the movie, I thought the producers did a good job with the cinematography. There were plenty of spooky scenes and elements to make this a satisfying ghost story. Highly recommended.

The Lumber Baron Inn & Gardens was originally built by John Mouat, a Scottish lumber tycoon in 1890. In 1970, the 8,500 square foot mansion was converted into an apartment complex. One of the tenants was a seventeen year-old runaway, who was raped and murder inside her apartment. A friend of hers happened to stumble upon the murder as it occurred and was also killed. Their killer(s) was never caught.

Dina Everling and Christopher Moon of The Haunted Times Magazine have visited this place many times in order to learn the details of this brutal double murder. Using a specialized piece of equipment, the team was able to pick up EVP (Electronic Voice Phenomena) recordings from the girls, who gave them details about the double murder.

“The Lumber Baron experiences are always tough. We want so desperately to help the two murdered girls come to some peace with their deaths. Until the murderer is finally arrested and convicted, I don’t think that will happen. The girls replay their attack every day, and you can always feel the horror they felt on that fateful day.”