EP 86: RONALD DOE - THE REAL EXORCIST!

Written By Dylan Cantu

In our second special October episode we continue to explore the idea of poltergeist in movies/real life. We decided to use The Exorcist for this week's episode and can I just say this episode is one of the craziest ones yet. The story behind the exorcist starts in 1949 and follows the 4 month traumatic experience of Ronald Doe, a 14 year old boy from Cottage City, Maryland. In early 1949 strange things started to happen in Ronald's life like knocking sounds from inside his room walls, his bed sliding around the room and his unexplainable ability to speak Latin, a language he never knew. After seeking help from almost everyone available, it seemed like hope was lost until a team of Catholic priests got involved. So what happened? How do we know these stories? Was he really under a poltergeist? Take a listen to this week's episode and find out.

The Exorcist Movie Poster

 

The Exorcist Movie Trailer

 

Father E. Albert Hughes

 

Father Walter H. Halloran

 

William Bowdern

 

The two homes of Ronald Doe

 

SOURCE MATERIALS:

For the story:

  1. Sinn, S. (2012, July 11). The Eight Stages of a Poltergeist Haunting. Living Library. Retrieved October 11, 2022, from https://livinglibraryblog.com/the-eight-stages-of-a-poltergeist-haunting/

  2. Saint Michael's College. (n.d.). Who is Saint Michael? Saint Michael's College. Retrieved October 11, 2022, from https://www.smcvt.edu/about-smc/who-is-saint-michael/

  3. Oxford Languages & Google.com. (n.d.). Jesuits. Google.com. Retrieved October 11, 2022, from https://www.google.com/search?q=Jesuits&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en-us&client=safari#crs=q:jesuit%20college,stick:H4sIAAAAAAAAAONgfcRYyC3w8sc9YamMSWtOXmNM4uL0zCtJLSpOTS4RUuZi9y9ILUrMSxGSEBLjEnHOz8lJTU8tDs3LLAMqySzJTC0WMkAoUgXq4AxKzUksSU0JyQfqYHPNK8ksqRTikeLi4t

  4. Vincent, I., & Morphet, J. (2021, December 20). Is 'The Exorcist' a true story? What happened to Ronald Hunkeler. New York Post. Retrieved October 11, 2022, from https://nypost.com/2021/12/20/is-the-exorcist-a-true-story-what-happened-to-ronald-hunkeler/amp/

  5. Yang, M. (2021, December 20). Boy whose case inspired The Exorcist is named by US magazine. The Guardian. Retrieved October 11, 2022, from https://amp.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/dec/20/the-exorcist-boy-named-magazine

  6. DeLong, W., Wikimedia Commons, & Public Domain. (2021, October 5). Roland Doe And The Chilling True Story Of 'The Exorcist'. All That's Interesting. Retrieved October 11, 2022, from https://allthatsinteresting.com/roland-doe-the-exorcist-true-story

  7. ATG Tickets. (n.d.). The Real Life Exorcism That Inspired The Exorcist | Blog. ATG Tickets. Retrieved October 11, 2022, from https://www.atgtickets.com/blog/the-real-life-exorcism-that-inspired-the-exorcist/

For the Video:

  1. ryy79, Youtube, & Friedkin, W. (2009, January 18). THE EXORCIST - Trailer - (1973). YouTube. Retrieved October 11, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDGw1MTEe9k

For the Image:

  1. DeLong, W., Wikimedia Commons, & Public Domain. (2021, October 5). Roland Doe And The Chilling True Story Of 'The Exorcist'. All That's Interesting. Retrieved October 11, 2022, from https://allthatsinteresting.com/roland-doe-the-exorcist-true-story

  2. PatricksMercy, & Flickr. (2016, September 27). Alexian Brothers Hospital Ad St. Louis, MO 1968. Flickr. Retrieved October 11, 2022, from https://www.flickr.com/photos/65359853@N00/29354042983

  3. CBC Radio, Rockey-Harris, B., & Discover/Getty Images. (2021, October 6). A couple bought their dream home. Then they learned it was The Exorcist house. CBC. Retrieved October 11, 2022, from https://www.cbc.ca/radio/asithappens/as-it-happens-the-tuesday-edition-1.6200205/a-couple-bought-their-dream-home-then-they-learned-it-was-the-exorcist-house-1.6200208

  4. AP Photo/ The St. Louis Post Dispatch & TheJournal.ie. (2013, October 31). Meet the reverend who participated in the 1949 exorcism that inspired The Exorcist. TheJournal.ie. Retrieved October 11, 2022, from https://www.thejournal.ie/meet-the-reverend-that-inspired-the-exorcist-book-and-movie-1152718-Oct2013/

  5. Skeptical Inquirer. (n.d.). Demoniac: Who Is Roland Doe, the Boy Who Inspired The Exorcist? Skeptical Inquirer. Retrieved October 11, 2022, from https://skepticalinquirer.org/2021/10/demoniac-who-is-roland-doe-the-boy-who-inspired-the-exorcist/

  6. IMDb. (n.d.). The Exorcist (1973). IMDb. Retrieved October 12, 2022, from https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070047/

Dylan Cantu
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