Weird Darkness: Paranormal & True Crime Stories

On Easter Sunday, 1975, eight children hunted for eggs in the front yard of their grandmother's house in Hamilton, Ohio, while their uncle, James Ruppert, slept off a night of drinking upstairs. By that evening, eleven members of the family were dead inside, and the families who rented the house afterward kept moving out, telling of voices, slamming doors, and footsteps coming down the stairs.

FEATURED STORIES IN THIS EPISODE: Author Troy Taylor tells us about the horrors and hauntings of a murderous nightmare, taking place on the holiest day of the year. (“Easter Sunday Massacre”) *** Two young boys find a bloody shirt on a stone on the side of the road – and it leads to details of one of the most brutal murders in the history of Massachusetts. (“Massachusetts Butchery”) *** Why would a mother tell her daughter to never wander in their own backyard? (“Displaced Entities”) *** The true story of an actor who lost his fortune, his life, and his head. (“The Headless Ghost of St. Paul’s Chapel”) *** It probably comes as no surprise that nursing homes can be haunted. A Certified Nurse Assistant tells us his own personal experiences of it. (“Nursing Home Hauntings”) *** Plus, I’ll share a creepypasta that was specifically requested for me to narrate by one of you, my Weirdo Family. (“No End House”) *** “Doppelganger Confusion” *** “The Black Eyed Phenomenon – Not Just Kids?” *** “Is Your House On The List?” *** “Another Black-Eyed-Kids Encounter – Is This An Epidemic?” *** “What Caused Our Creaking Catwalk?” *** “In Reverse… The Doppelganger Student” *** “My Haunted In-Laws Place” *** “We Deliver, We Cater, We Scare” *** “Death In The Triangle” *** “The Mother Who Burned Her Daughter Alive”

CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…
00:00:00.000 = The Foreboding
00:00:56.557 = Show Open
00:02:38.104 = Easter Sunday Massacre
00:11:01.481 = Nursing Home Hauntings
00:14:15.816 = Massachusetts Butchery
00:22:35.239 = Displaced Entities
00:34:43.656 = The Headless Ghost of St. Paul's Chapel
00:39:52.902 = Doppelganger Confusion
00:42:52.349 = The Black Eyed Phenomenon – Not Just Kids?
00:44:53.175 = Is Your House On The List?
00:49:09.955 = Another Black-Eyed-Kids Encounter – Is This An Epidemic?
00:51:31.981 = What Caused Our Creaking Catwalk?
00:56:30.364 = In Reverse… The Doppelganger Student
01:00:38.909 = Death In The Triangle
01:24:24.896 = We Deliver, We Cater, We Scare
01:26:08.181 = My Haunted In-Laws Place
01:28:31.129 = The Mother Who Burned Her Daughter Alive
01:36:46.007 = Show Close
*** = Begins immediately after inserted ad break

*No AI Voices Are Used In The Narration Of This Podcast*

SOURCES and RESOURCES:
“Massachusetts Butchery” by Robert Wilhelm for Murder by Gaslight: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/44c96wvt
“Displaced Entities” by Stacy K for Your Ghost Stories: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/xafzpt29
“The Easter Sunday Massacre” by Troy Taylor for American Hauntings Ink: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/38dt633u
“The Headless Ghost Of St. Paul’s Chapel” by Jessica Ferri for The Line Up: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/yt49e66j
“Nursing Home Hauntings” by Morgan Jobe https://www.facebook.com/morgan.jobe
“Doppelganger Confusion” submitted anonymously: (link no longer available)
“The Black Eyed Phenomenon – Not Just Kids?” submitted by Roger M.: (link no longer available)
“Is Your House On The List?” submitted by Keith W: (link no longer available)
“Another Black Eyed Kids Encounter – Is This An Epidemic?” submitted by Rick R.: (link no longer available)
“What Caused Our Creaking Catwalk?” submitted by Amanda: (link no longer available)
“In Reverse… The Doppelganger Student” submitted by Paul: (link no longer available)
“My Haunted In-Laws Place” by Anna Olinick: (link no longer available)
“We Deliver, We Cater, We Scare” by Ian White: (link no longer available)
“Death In The Triangle: The History, Hauntings, and Horrors Of America’s Worst Factory Fire” by Troy Taylor and Rene Cruse from the book And Hell Followed With It: https://amzn.to/2I9MB2G
“The Mother Who Burned Her Daughter Alive” by Dennis McDougal from his book, Mother’s Day: https://amzn.to/2pGHCA4
(Over time links may become invalid, disappear, or have different content. I always make sure to give authors credit for the material I use whenever possible. If I somehow overlooked doing so for a story, or if a credit is incorrect, please let me know and I will rectify it in these show notes immediately. Some links included above may benefit me financially through qualifying purchases.)
WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.

More episodes, additional podcasts, books, original music, in-depth paranormal and true-crime articles, and much more at https://weirddarkness.com.

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow has a pumpkin, a headless Hessian, and a schoolmaster everybody feels sorry for. Disney gave us a lovable Ichabod Crane and Tim Burton gave us a hero. Washington Irving's schoolmaster was a different man than most of us remember, and the author had other plans for him than we remember too… right down to the last page and how his story ends.

BOOK: “Church of the Undead: Book One – Wendigo, Zombies, Werewolves, And Other Subjects You’d Never Hear From Your Pastor’s Pulpit”: https://link.amazon/B0bls4tMo

EPISODE BLOG PAGE (includes sources and print version): 
https://weirddarkness.com/ichabod-crane-sin-of-sleepy-hollow

READ or DOWNLOAD the full transcript of this episode: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/m7mcvab6

Weird Darkness® and Church Of The Undead™ are trademarked. Copyright © 2026.

More episodes, additional podcasts, books, original music, in-depth paranormal and true-crime articles, and much more at https://weirddarkness.com.

More episodes, additional podcasts, books, original music, in-depth paranormal and true-crime articles, and much more at https://weirddarkness.com.

Two days after alien visitors wiped out the human race in a single hour, a widowed anthropology professor sits alone in a room with his books and one blank wall that annoys him, and then someone knocks on the door.

SOURCES and RESOURCES: “Knock” by Fredrik Brown: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/4cc9433d

WeirdDarkness® | Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness | Midnight In The Macabre™

More episodes, additional podcasts, books, original music, in-depth paranormal and true-crime articles, and much more at https://weirddarkness.com.

Halloween horror the way radio told it, with an organ sting, a host’s voice coming out of the dark, and a story nobody wanted to switch off before the end.

CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…
00:00:00.000 = Show Open
00:01:30.028 = The Whistler, “Break Away” (March 09, 1952)
00:30:56.299 = Witch’s Tale, “Graveyard Mansion” (March 06, 1933)
01:01:08.275 = Dark Fantasy, “Death Is a Savage Deity” (January 30, 1942) ***WD
01:24:48.378 = Escape, “Three Skeleton Key” (November 15, 1949) ***WD
01:53:44.931 = Inner Sanctum, “Corpse For Halloween” (October 31, 1949) ***WD
02:19:48.620 = Mysterious Traveler, “Death Has Cold Breath” (March 29, 1949) ***WD
02:45:21.725 = Quiet Please, “The Thing on Fourble Board” (August 09, 1948)
03:10:29.512 = The Weird Circle, “Heart of Ethan Brand” (February 13, 1944) ***WD
03:36:14.507 = Witch’s Tale, “Frankenstein” (July 17, 1935) ***WD
04:03:58.982 = Dark Fantasy, “Man With The Scarlet Satchell” (March 06, 1942) ***WD
04:28:34.436 = Escape, “Bloodbath” (June 30, 1950) ***WD
04:56:21.988 = Mysterious Traveler, “Fire In The Sky” (August 28, 1951) ***WD
05:25:42.312 = Quiet Please, “Very Unimportant Person” (December 05, 1948) ***WD
05:55:16.741 = Suspense, “Fugue in C Minor” (June 01, 1944)
06:24:50.387 = The Weird Circle, “Doll” (December 24, 1944) ***WD
06:49:55.660 = Dark Fantasy, “Pennsylvania Turnpike” (March 20, 1942) ***WD
07:14:25.535 = Escape, “Earth Abides, Part 1” (November 05, 1950) ***WD
07:43:09.730 = Escape, “Earth Abides, Part 2” (November 12, 1950) ***WD
08:12:02.276 = Quiet Please, “Northern Lights” (January 30, 1949) ***WD
08:40:58.836 = Suspense, “House in Cyprus Canyon” (December 05, 1946) ***WD
09:07:39.198 = Dark Fantasy, “Coffin For Two” (May 15, 1942) ***WD
09:30:57.215 = Weird Circle, “Feast of Red Gauntlet” (February 27, 1944) ***WD
09:58:20.779 = Show Close

(ADU) = Air Date Unknown
(LQ) = Low Quality
***WD = Remastered, edited, or cleaned up by Weird Darkness to make the episode more listenable. Audio may not be pristine, but it will be better than the original file which may have been unusable or more difficult to hear without editing.

https://weirddarkness.com/halloween-radio-dramas-stay-tuned-for-terror

More episodes, additional podcasts, books, original music, in-depth paranormal and true-crime articles, and much more at https://weirddarkness.com.

Ghosts, killers, and things that knock on the door after dark, played by the actors and sound-effects crews of radio's golden age for audiences who had nothing to look at but the dial.

CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…
00:00:00.000 = Show Open
00:01:30.028 = Inner Sanctum, “Wailing Wall” (November 06, 1945)
00:28:37.696 = Lights Out, “It Happened” (May 11, 1938)
00:57:53.236 = Mercury Theater, “The Hitch Hiker” (June 21, 1946) ***WD
01:24:06.274 = Murder at Midnight, “Kabalah” (December 30, 1946)
01:50:09.311 = Mysterious Traveler, “Death Laughs Last” (September 24, 1944)
02:17:12.677 = Mystery In The Air, “Horla” (August 21, 1947) ***WD
02:45:56.196 = Quiet Please, “Pathetic Fallacy” (February 02, 1948) ***WD
03:14:58.799 = Suspense, “Sorry, Wrong Number” (February 2, 1944)
03:44:43.607 = The Unexpected, “Mercy Killing” (April 11, 1948) ***WD
03:59:03.157 = The Weird Circle, “A Terrible Night” (January 23, 1944)
04:25:30.416 = The Whistler, “Witness at the Fountain” (September 09, 1946)
04:54:49.939 = Dark Fantasy, “The Headless Dead” (January 23, 1942) ***WD
05:19:16.968 = Escape, “Country of the Blind” (March 20, 1949) ***WD
05:48:52.483 = The Hall of Fantasy, “Idol of Kromm Kroc” (May 04, 1953) ***WD
06:13:34.310 = Inner Sanctum, “Undead” (December 18, 1945) ***WD
06:39:51.483 = Lights Out, “Death Robbery” (July 16, 1947)
07:09:40.247 = Mysterious Traveler, “Visiting Corpse” (August 10, 1948) ***WD
07:37:50.085 = Mystery In The Air, “Black Cat” (September 18, 1947) ***WD
08:05:24.288 = Quiet Please, “Whence Came You” (February 16, 1948) ***WD
08:34:50.793 = Suspense, “Donovan’s Brain, Part 1” (May 18, 1944) ***WD
09:02:40.318 = Suspense, “Donovan’s Brain, Part 2” (May 25, 1944) ***WD
09:31:17.532 = The Weird Circle, “Tell-Tale Heart” (January 30, 1944)
09:58:23.227 = Show Close

(ADU) = Air Date Unknown
(LQ) = Low Quality
***WD = Remastered, edited, or cleaned up by Weird Darkness to make the episode more listenable. Audio may not be pristine, but it will be better than the original file which may have been unusable or more difficult to hear without editing.

https://weirddarkness.com/old-time-radio-horror-static-from-the-grave

More episodes, additional podcasts, books, original music, in-depth paranormal and true-crime articles, and much more at https://weirddarkness.com.