Filling in for George, guest host Dave Schrader (email) welcomed Christopher Lutz, who revealed the horror he experienced as a seven-year-old living through the infamous Amityville haunting. He commented some common misconceptions and shared his insights on what actually took place in the house. "It's not like you see in the movies," Lutz said. Those movies suggest the terrifying paranormal phenomena reported by the Lutz family may have been related to a previous tragedy that occurred in the house—the 1974 slaying of the DeFeo family by eldest son Butch. "Nothing I experienced in that house, personally, do I consider to be one of the DeFeo family members," he added.
Lutz talked about finding the entrance to a secret room within his closet where Butch stashed things like whisky and pills that he did not want his parents to find. He recalled seeing an oddly high number of flies congregate on two windows in the house, noting how unusual it was to have so many of the flying insects around during the chilly month of December. He mentioned Father Ray Pecoraro, who came to bless the house on the day his family moved into it. Lutz believes the priest's story about feeling an unseen hand slap him in the sewing room and hearing a voice say, "Get out." He addressed those who believe the story is a hoax, pointing out that his family left everything behind, including a prized boat and Harley-Davidson motorcycle.
Lutz said the biggest misconception was about his step-father George, portrayed as both victim and hero in the book and movies. According to Lutz, his father is to blame for the horrible events that occurred in the house. "There was a very different part to this that got left out and that was George being involved with the Occult and practicing it, and calling up spirits," he said. Lutz believes his father's practice of transcendental meditation and using mantras to call upon dark entities created a "psychic storm" which afflicted the entire family and even followed them after they moved. Associates Tim Yancey and Jason Gowen joined the conversation in the third hour. The men described George as spiritual, nurturing, kind, and credited him for helping them get through their own haunting encounters.
What Happens When We Die?
In the first hour, ghostbuster, author, psychic and teacher Echo Bodine discussed her latest work on the afterlife (Related Video). The soul is attached to the body by a silver cord which gets severed at the time of death allowing the soul to exit, she explained. Sometimes the soul can depart before the body dies in a painful accident, Bodine added. Spirits stay behind for a variety of reasons, she continued. "They're afraid to go to the other side because of things they did in their life and they're afraid they're going to get sent to hell," Bodine revealed. Spirits can go to the other side at anytime but often will not because they wish to avoid change, she noted. Bodine also shared details from her investigations, including one in which an angry spirit slammed her against a wall and tried to suffocate her and another at Bobby Mackey's Music World in Kentucky, where a ghost named Buck showed her how he steals energy from humans to physically manipulate objects in the bar.