News
New Orleans: Crimes in a Cursed City
The city of New Orleans is known for its jazz music, crazy parties, creole food, are carefree attitude. However, unbeknownst to many visitors who flock to this city every year to let the good times roll, the Big Easy has a very dark underbelly. As much as New Orleans attracts those looking for a good time, it also attracts those with darker motives.
The Crescent City has always had an air of violence and mystery about it, as well as a violent past. With bloodshed in the streets during wartime and a rich history in the dark arts, Nawlins is a perfect storm for those embracing the darker side of life. As much as the beloved city breeds art, it also breeds killers.
Delphine LaLaurie
One of the most infamous ghost stories to escape the Crescent City is in fact rooted in a good amount of truth. While the story of Delphine LaLaurie and her mansion of horrors has changed over the years like a bad game of telephone, the bare bones are still quite shocking.
From socialite to sociopath, LaLaurie survived two husbands before moving into her mansion on Royal Street in the French Quarter. An aura of suspicion regarding the deaths of her first two husbands always followed LaLaurie, as did the questioning of the treatment of her slaves.
What occurred behind the mansion walls of her well established home? Rumors of the mistreatment of her slaves filled the streets and gossiped on everyone’s lips, but no evidence was ever brought forward to substantiate these claims. Not until a fire broke out in the residence in 1834.
Upon entering the home responders discovered the origin of the flames had begun in the kitchen. The family’s cook, a seventy year old slave, was chained to the oven by her ankle. She admitted to setting the fire as a suicide attempt out of fear of being taken to the upstairs room as punishment. She explained once you were taken to the attic you were never seen again.
The responders made their way to the top floor of the mansion, and what they found was beyond horrifying. Accounts tell us that seven slaves were found in the mansion’s attic, most of them suspended by their necks, all of them having been mutilated in one way or another. Their limbs were stretched and obvious signs of emaciation and physical abuse marked their bodies. Some even wore spiked collars to keep their head in an upright position. When investigators explored the grounds of the estate two deceased bodies were unearthed, one of them a child.
Upon hearing of the abuse that occurred within LaLaurie’s home, angry citizens rioted and attacked the mansion. The mob destroying everything inside the walls. Unfortunately the family escaped local justice and fled to Paris where any further accounts of their lives went undocumented.
The Axeman of New Orleans
The Axeman of New Orleans is a serial killer who terrified the streets of the Big Easy from May 1918 to October 1919, injuring and killing up to a dozen victims.
Very little is known about the Axeman. Many of his victims met their demise by, you guessed it, an axe. Usually the murder weapon used in these crime was the victim’s own axe. Others met their fate by a straight razor. Surprisingly nothing was ever taken from the victim’s residence, which implied the attacks were not motivated by robbery.
One connection police made was that most of the victims were Italian immigrants, or Italian-Americans, which suggested an ethnic related motive. Other professionals in the field hypothesized the murders were motivated by sex. They believe the Axeman’s real motive was to seek out a woman to murder, and the men who were killed or injured in the home were just mere obstacles at the time.
As quickly as the murders began they ceased. Even to today’s professionals in the field a motive is unclear, but one thing is certain; the Axeman has never been identified and his stories of murder and mayhem still haunt the streets of New Orleans.
The Vampire Killings
While this next double murder did not occur in New Orleans, the killer fled to the Crescent City with his vampire fledgling and clan members. That’s right, at the time of his crime Rod Ferrell believed he was a 500 year old vampire, and he, with his clan of fellow vampires, fled to the home of darkness, mystery, and romance portrayed in their favorite novels The Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice.
The crime Ferrell committed was the double slaying of the parents of his young fledgling Heather Wendorf. Wendorf told Ferrell living at home with her parents was “hell” and she wanted to run away with him, but she knew her parents would never let her go.
To free his fledgling from her homebound restraints, Ferrell and fellow vampire cult member Howard Scott Anderson entered the Wendorf home where he beat both of Heather’s parents to death. Rod then burned a ‘V’ into Richard Wendorf, Heather’s father, after he brutally bashed his head in with crowbar.
Thinking they would find acceptance in New Orleans, the clan fled from the crime scene in Eustis Florida to the Big Easy in a car they stole from the crime scene. Mere miles from their destination they were arrested at a Howard Johnson hotel when one of the members called their mother for money, who in turn tipped off the police to the group’s whereabouts.
Through unsubstantiated claims, those who have spoken to Ferrell from his time behind bars claim he still believes he is immortal.
The Bayou Blue Serial Killer
Ronald Dominique, also known as the Bayou Blue Serial Killer, took advantage of the welcoming and open gay community in New Orleans. Dominique stalked the bars and clubs in the city, using them as his own personal hunting ground from 1997 until his inevitable arrest in 2006. He sought out men who he thought would be willing to have sex with him for money.
Dominique claims his initial motive was just to rape these men, but to avoid the consequences of being caught and persecuted by the law, he decided killing them would ensure their silence of his crime. He killed at least twenty three victims over a ten year period before his capture by authorities on December 1, 2006. Dominique pled guilty to first degree murder to avoid the death penalty.
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Movies
‘The Strangers’ Invaded Coachella in Instagramable PR Stunt
Renny Harlin’s reboot of The Strangers isn’t coming out until May 17, but those murderous home invaders are making a pit stop at Coachella first.
In the latest Instagramable PR stunt, the studio behind the film decided to have the trio of masked intruders crash Coachella, a music festival that takes place for two weekends in Southern California.
This type of publicity began when Paramount did the same thing with their horror movie Smile in 2022. Their version had seemingly ordinary people in populated places look directly into a camera with an evil grin.
Harlin’s reboot is actually a trilogy with a more expansive world than that of the original.
“When setting out to remake The Strangers, we felt there was a bigger story to be told, which could be as powerful, chilling, and terrifying as the original and could really expand that world,” said producer Courtney Solomon. “Shooting this story as a trilogy allows us to create a hyperreal and terrifying character study. We’re fortunate to be joining forces with Madelaine Petsch, an amazing talent whose character is the driving force of this story.”
The movie follows a young couple (Madelaine Petsch and Froy Gutierrez) who “after their car breaks down in an eerie small town, are forced to spend the night in a remote cabin. Panic ensues as they are terrorized by three masked strangers who strike with no mercy and seemingly no motive in The Strangers: Chapter 1 the chilling first entry of this upcoming horror feature film series.”
The Strangers: Chapter 1 opens in theaters on May 17.
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Movies
‘Alien’ Returning to Theaters For a Limited Time
It’s been 45 years since Ridley Scott’s Alien hit theaters and in celebration of that milestone, it is headed back to the big screen for a limited time. And what better day to do that than Alien Day on April 26?
It also works as a primer for the upcoming Fede Alvarez sequel Alien: Romulus opening on August 16. A special feature in which both Alvarez and Scott discuss the original sci-fi classic will be shown as a part of your theater admission. Take a look at the preview of that conversation below.
Back in 1979, the original trailer for Alien was kind of terrifying. Imagine sitting in front of a CRT TV (Cathode Ray Tube) at night and suddenly Jerry Goldsmith’s haunting score begins to play as a giant chicken egg starts to crack with beams of light bursting through the shell and the word “Alien” slowly forms in slanted all caps across the screen. To a twelve-year-old, it was a scary pre-bedtime experience, especially Goldsmith’s screaming electronic musical flourishes playing over scenes of the actual movie. Let the “Is it horror or sci-fi?” debate begin.
Alien became a pop culture phenomenon, complete with kid’s toys, a graphic novel, and an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects. It also inspired dioramas in wax museums and even a frightening setpiece at Walt Disney World in the now-defunct Great Movie Ride attraction.
The film stars Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerritt, and John Hurt. It tells the tale of a futuristic crew of blue-collar workers suddenly awakened out of stasis to investigate an undecipherable distress signal coming from a nearby moon. They investigate the source of the signal and discover it’s a warning and not a cry for help. Unbeknownst to the crew, they have brought a giant space creature back on board which they find out in one of the most iconic scenes in cinema history.
It is said that Alvarez’s sequel will pay homage to the original film’s storytelling and set design.
The Alien theatrical re-release will take place on April 26. Pre-order your tickets and find out where Alien will screen at a theater near you.
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News
Home Depot’s 12-Foot Skeleton Returns with a New Friend, Plus New Life-Size Prop from Spirit Halloween
Halloween is the greatest holiday of them all. However, every great holiday needs amazing props to go with it. Luckily for you, there are two new amazing props that have been released, which are sure to impress your neighbors and frighten any neighborhood children who are unfortunate enough to wander past your yard.
The first entry is the return of the Home Depot 12-foot skeleton prop. Home Depot has outdone themselves in the past. But this year the company is bringing bigger and better things to their Halloween prop lineup.
This year, the company unveiled its new and improved Skelly. But what is a giant skeleton without a loyal friend? Home Depot has also announced that they will release a five-foot tall skeleton dog prop to eternally keep Skelly company as he haunts your yard this spooky season.
This bony pooch will be five feet tall and seven feet long. The prop will also feature a posable mouth and LCD eyes with eight variable settings. Lance Allen, Home Depot’s merchant of decorative Holliday gear, had the following to say about this year’s lineup.
“This year we increased our realism within the animatronics category, created some impressive, licensed characters and even brought back some fan favorites. Overall, we are most proud of the quality and value we are able to bring to our customers with these pieces so they can continue to grow their collections.”
But what if giant skeletons just aren’t your thing? Well, Spirit Halloween has you covered with their giant life size Terror Dog replica. This massive prop has been ripped out of your nightmares to appear frighteningly on your lawn.
This prop weighs in at almost fifty pounds and features glowing red eyes that are sure to keep your yard safe from any toilet paper throwing hooligans. This iconic Ghostbusters nightmare is a must have for any fan of 80s horror. Or, anyone who loves all things spooky.
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