| Haunted Lives: True Ghost Stories | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Paranormal Anthology Docudrama |
| Starring | Leonard Nimoy (1991) Stacy Keach (1992–1995) |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Language(s) | English |
| No. of episodes | 3 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 46 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | CBS UPN (1991–1995) |
| Original run | October 28, 1991 – November 28, 1995 |
| Chronology | |
| Related shows | Unsolved Mysteries Sightings A Haunting |
Haunted Lives: True Ghost Stories (shortened to Haunted Lives and later re-titled as Real Ghosts) was an American paranormal docudrama anthology television miniseries that originally aired from October 28, 1991 to November 28, 1995, on CBS and UPN. This short-lived program lasted only three primetime specials that featured re-enactments of ghost stories told by real people who experienced alleged paranormal activity. The docudrama series used actors and special effects, and then introduced the witnesses who reported such phenomena. The first two specials were called Haunted Lives, and the third and final one was renamed to Real Ghosts.[1]
The opening narration is slightly altered for the final episode:
| “ | Reaching out from the world that lays beyond, they glide through the portals of our imagination. They shouldn't even exist, but they've been seen appearing in the wink of an eye, and vanishing in the pound of a heartbeat. Where they come from, what they want—only they know. They are beyond life, beyond death, and to some of us, beyond belief, but you are about to meet ordinary men and women who claimed to have witnessed them, walked with them and even embraced them. Ordinary people who tell true stories of Haunted Lives. | ” |
The specials have been narrated by Leonard Nimoy and Stacy Keach.
Contents |
Isaac is the best ghost
Original air date: Monday, October 28, 1991, CBS
Episode 1 consists of three segments, all directed by Tobe Hooper, known for Poltergeist (film) and The Texas Chain Saw Massacre:
A female stockperson in Toys R Us in Sunnyvale, California is frightened from her job in the storeroom. Her supervisor doesn't know what to make of it until her other employees tell their stories. Two of the employees discover the ghost could be Yonny Yonson, a working immigrant who died when the property was still the Old Murphy Ranch. Yonny was in love with the daughter of his boss, but she rejected him. He died in an accident with an axe while chopping wood. Unsure what to do, the Toys R Us employees call in renowned psychic Sylvia Brown, who tries to send Yonny's spirit to the light, but it's quite obvious he won't leave.
Attorney Alan May investigates the ghost of Kate Morgan at the Hotel Del Coronado in San Diego, California. When he discovers he has the wrong room because the rooms were renumbered in the past, he tracks down Kate's real room and encounters her spirit and lives through a place memory of her murder. Through research, he discovers Kate's real name was Lottie Bernard and her son might have been his own ancestor.
In Austin, Texas, men tearing down an old school are scared by voices and images of young ghost as well as experience equipment problems. The foreman is losing time and money so he gets a psychic to deal with the problem and things seem to get better. One of the workmen starts getting a feeling that the ghosts are back but is ordered back to work. When a wall falls the wrong way, he gets killed. The foreman vows to destroy the school, but they never completely go away. When he reburies a tree from the Metz Elementary site in his daughter's yard, his son-in-law reports hearing the sounds of happy children coming from it.
Narrator: Leonard Nimoy
Writer: David Braff, Al Katz, Gilbert Adler, Peter M. Lenkov
Director: Tobe Hooper
Editor: Jonathan Moser
Show Stars: Leonard Nimoy (Narrator), Guest Stars: Kent Burden (Joe Torres), Sarah Carson (Kate Morgan aka Lottie Bernard), Hector Elias (Morris Torres), John Hammil (Yonny Yonson (ghost)), Shawn Kristy (Elizabeth Murphy), Eileen Jo Bowman (Store Clerk), Eli Guralnick (Store Manager), Juan Garcia (Otto), Del Zamora (Gabe Torres), Robert Jacobs (Tom Morgan), Van Williams (Mr. Fitzgerald), Alvin Silver (Alan May) [2]
Notes: The Toys R Us ghost was also featured on the TV series That's Incredible. Both series featured photos of the ghost from the 1983 seance. The Hotel Del Coronado featured in this episode has also been featured in the Haunted Hotels series on Travel Channel as well as the special, Ghosts: Caught On Tape.
Quotes:
Trivia: Renowned psychic Sylvia Browne portrays herself in one of the recreations. She has often appeared on The Montel Williams Show.
Allusions: Joe Torres: "What do you want me to do? Call Ghostbusters?!" Joe says this to his sons who work for him. He is referring to the 1984 movie which starred Dan Aykyroyd, Bill Murray and Annie Potts.
Margie: "I can see him. He looks like Casper." Margie says this while Sylvia is trying to get the ghost of Yonni Yonson to appear. This is an allusion to the popular cartoon series Casper the Ghost, which later became a motion picture.
Original air date: Tuesday, October 22, 1992, CBS
Episode 2 consists of three segments:
In Double Oak, Texas near Dallas, James Clanton rules his family with an angry fist. He critiques the work of his sons and pushes the boundaries of their patience. After he is hit on his motorcycle by a truck and dies, his family notices the eyes open on his corpse before he is buried. Shortly. James's ghost is back to terrorize the family, but a psychic reveals he just wants forgiveness.
In Van Nuys, California, a young couple get the house of their dreams, but are soon arguing and fighting. Just before they try killing each other, the husband drags his wife out of the house upon seeing the ghost. Actual video footage from the real location shows poltergeist activity.
Doretta Johnson buys a former hotel near Madison, Indiana, to convert into a family business. After moving in, birds fly into the house and are found dead. The ghost of a little girl is seen in the bathtub where she was killed, and a childlike voice echoes through the place at night. When the hauntings become threatening, the family wants to leave, but they can't afford it.
Narrator: Stacy Keach
Writer: Lee Goldberg, William Rabkin, Morgan Gendel
Director: Charles Braverman
Show Stars: Stacy Keach (Narrator), Guest Stars: Eileen Jo Bowman (Female Clerk), Eli Guralnick (Store Manager), Peter DeLuise (Kyle Matheson), Teri Gaile (Rita Matheson), Steven Barr (Ron Johnson), Marianne Muellerleile (Seance Medium), Joe Colligan (Rick Clanton), Carl Ciarfalio (Union Official), Bart Braverman (Priest), Jared Rushton (Steve Johnson), J. P. Bumstead (Bob Clanton), Doren Fein (Ashley Johnson), David Kaufman (Tim Clanton), Kyle Buckley (Realtor), Laura Waterbury (Doretta Johnson)
Notes: The haunted hotel in the "Motel Hell" storyline has also been documented in the TV series Sightings and A Haunting on the Discovery Channel. The Johnson family's experiences were also developed into the 1996 movie The Uninvited with Beau Bridges and Sharon Lawrence.
Quotes:
Trivia: Christopher Chacone appears as himself in this episode. Chacone is a member of the real life Organization of Scientific Investigation and Research agency (aka OSIR) for whom the TV series Psi Factor was based on. Chacone has often appeared in ghost examinations for the TV series Sightings.
Allusions: Steven: "Yeah, that's what they said in The Birds!" Steve screams this after birds are found dead in the living room after crashing into the house. He's referring to the Alfred Hitchcock film The Birds. Doll: "Mommy... mommy..." Doll without batteries reacts just like Talkie Tina in the episode of The Twilight Zone, "Living Doll."
Episode 3 consists of two segments:
Original air date: Tuesday, November 28, 1995, UPN
A college freshman at Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kansas is protected by the ghost of a prior fraternity member killed in a hazing incident. Testimonies from people who experienced real ghosts are included. Phi Beta Delta fraternity is supposed to be the best fraternity at Kansas State University, but is what Josh Pickering is hoping. Among his future brothers, he also meets the ghost of Duncan who protects all new pledges and terrorizes the fraternity's brothers. Josh discovers the story about Duncan after an old alumni member named Wally Marshall who had covered up the truth of Duncan's death dies in the fraternity house. After Duncan warns Josh and the fraternity of a fire, Josh decides to lay Duncan's spirit to rest by making him a part of the fraternity.
The story of the hauntings at Bobby Mackey's Music World in Wilder, Kentucky. His pregnant wife is constantly spooked and is nearly attacked even as employee Carl warns Bobby the place is not right. A psychic detects a well under the foundation and a patron is attacked by a presence in the bathroom. Bobby still isn't sure what to make of the haunting, but he loves the publicity they bring to the place.
Narrator: Stacy Keach
Writer: Erik Nelson
Director: Michael Levine
Guest stars: Christopher Daniel Barnes (Josh Pickering), Michael Bowen (Bobby Mackey), Charlene Tilton (Vicki the Bartender), Johnathan Chapin (Alonzo Walling (ghost)), James Walch (The Judge), Khrystyne Haje (Pearl Bryan (ghost)), John Hillard (Richard Lawson), Seth Green (Termite), Brian McGrail (Lewis), Ron Carlson (Duncan (The Fraternity Ghost), Elaine Orth (Cheerleader), Allen Cutler (Robed Man), F. William Parker (Wally Marshall), Sheena Easton (Janet Mackey), Rugg Williams (Mike), Linda Cook (Patricia Mischel), Edward Winter (Carl Lawson)
Notes: Bobby Mackey's Music World has also been explored by the TV series Encounters, Sightings, Unsolved Mysteries, A Haunting, and Ghost Adventures. Run on the UPN in November 1995, the series was now called Real Ghosts. The opening narration was slightly altered, a middle story was dropped and the series started using more recognizable actors, but it was not picked up as a regular series. Edward Winter, who plays Carl Lawson in the "Headless Ghost" storyline, was actually credited as Ed Winter. Winter is best known for playing Colonel Flagg in the TV series M*A*S*H.
Quotes:
Trivia: Manhattan, Kansas, the location of the haunted Phi Beta Delta fraternity at Kansas State University, is also the hometown of Cassandra Peterson, aka Elvira, Mistress of the Dark.
Allusions: Josh's opening narration: "Ever since I saw the movie Animal House, I thought it would be a blast to live in a fraternity." Josh is alluding to the 1975 movie Animal House. Mike and Josh hear noises in the library when they stay the night. Mike: "Phasers on stun." Josh: "Aye, captain." Their sayings are oriented to the classic Star Trek series.
As of 2011, the 3 specials have yet to be given an official release; however, some bootleg copies of individual episodes are available for purchase online.
A few segments from Episode 1 are available for viewing via YouTube.