The Exorcist
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- This article is about the novel published in 1971. For the article about the film released in 1973, please see The Exorcist (film).
| Author | William Peter Blatty |
|---|---|
| Country | USA |
| Language | English |
| Subject(s) | Exorcism |
| Genre(s) | Horror |
| Publisher | Harper & Row Publishers |
| Released | 1971 |
| Media type | |
| Pages | 340 pages |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-06-100722-6 (reprint) |
| Followed by | Legion |
The Exorcist is a horror novel written by William Peter Blatty first published in 1971. It is based on a supposedly genuine 1949 exorcism Blatty heard about while he was a student in the class of 1950 at Georgetown University, a Jesuit and Catholic school. The exorcism was partially performed in both Cottage City, Maryland [1] and Bel-Nor, Missouri. [2] Several area newspapers reported on a speech a minister gave to an amateur parapsychology society, in which he claimed to have exorcised a demon from a thirteen-year-old boy named Robbie, and that the ordeal lasted a little more than six weeks, ending on April 19, 1949.
Contents |
[edit] Plot summary
An elderly Jesuit priest named Lankester Merrin is leading an archaeological dig in northern Iraq and studying ancient demon-worship relics, sensing that his discovery of a bizarre sculpture has released an evil force. Meanwhile, a young girl named Regan MacNeil, living in Georgetown, Washington D.C. with her famous actress mother, Chris MacNeil, becomes inexplicably ill. She undergoes a disturbing series of psychological and physical changes.
After unsuccessful medical tests and treatment, Regan's mother turns to religion. Regan is examined by priest and psychiatrist Father Damien Karras, a Jesuit at Georgetown University who feels that he has lost his faith. At first he is not convinced of the diabolical nature of the case and attributes the girl's problems to a complex of psychological disorders. In a last ditch effort to appease the mother and hopefully cure Regan's "possession", he turns to the local Bishop, who (after consultation with the Jesuit president of Georgetown) appoints Father Merrin to perform an exorcism with the assistance of the still doubt-ridden and rational Karras. The lengthy exorcism tests the priests, both physically and spiritually, and ultimately restores Father Karras' faith, leading him to give his life to save Regan's. It is interesting to note that the demon possessing Regan went by the name of Pazuzu, an actual ancient Sumerian demigod whom Father Merrin had battled years before, and whose statue he encountered at the archeological dig in the opening scenes of the novel, shortly after which Regan instinctively-- and ominously-- makes an orange Play-doh figurine of the Pazuzu statue after playing with a Ouija board.
[edit] Film adaptation
The novel was made into a successful Academy Award-winning horror film in 1973, with the screenplay written by Blatty. The film originally contained several key sequences from the novel, which were cut prior to release by director Friedkin over Blatty's protests. The deleted scenes—and some new digital effects—were inserted into the re-release subtitled "The Version You've Never Seen" in 2000.
[edit] Trivia
- While he was writing the novel, William Peter Blatty was collecting unemployment benefits. [3]
- William Peter Blatty based the character of Chris MacNeil on his good friend Shirley MacLaine. Prior to the 1973 production, MacLaine attempted to have a movie made of Blatty's novel and interested Lew Grade in backing the project, but the plans fell through. According to one of Blatty's subsequent books describing the making of the film, MacLaine's adopted daughter Sachiko was the subject of curiosity and ostracism after the film's release, as it was at once apparent that Chris was meant to be MacLaine, and Sachiko's classmates and even some teachers assumed that Sachiko had been possessed and had perhaps committed the murders and sexual atrocities described in the book.
- According to Rev. Father William O'Malley (who played Father Joseph Dyer in the film), the events depicted in the film are approximately 80% true. He claims the big discrepancies between the movie and reality were: it was a boy who was possessed, not a girl; the possession did not occur in Georgetown, but just outside DC in Cottage City, MD; and the color of the "pea-soup vomit" was not green. He claims that nearly everything else in the movie actually occurred.
- Author William Peter Blatty once won $10,000 on the Groucho Marx television show "You Bet Your Life" (1950). When Groucho asked what he planned to do with the money, he said he planned to take some time off to "work on a novel." This was the result.[4]
- The name of the boy who was subject of the "true" exorcism that inspired Blatty's novel was Ronald Hunkeler. After he was "cured" he went on to attend Gonzaga College High School in Washington, DC, graduating in 1954. He was later a scientist with NASA. Understandably, he refuses all interviews regarding his exorcism. At last account, he was rumored to be living in Laurel, MD.
- Blatty followed the novel with a sequel, Legion. The movie Exorcist III was based on this novel and directed by Blatty.
[edit] External links
- The Haunted Boy of Cottage City: The Cold Hard Facts Behind the Story that Inspired The Exorcist, by Mark Opsasnick
- St. Louis Exorcism Case
- The Exorcist Fansite
- Washington Post article and interview with Blatty
Novels: Exorcism • The Ninth Configuration • Legion
Original films: The Exorcist (1973) • Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977) • The Exorcist III (1990)
Prequel films: Exorcist: The Beginning (2004) • Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist (2005)
Other: The Ninth Configuration (1980) • Repossessed (1990) • Possessed (2000)
