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E248: Popper the Poltergeist
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It all began on February 3rd, 1958 in a quaint suburban home in Seaford, New York; and, for the next few weeks, the Hermann family was plagued by an onslaught of bizarre and alarming occurrences. In total, the nearly 70 incidents caused by the force now known as Popper the Poltergeist were witnessed by the family, friends, law enforcement, journalists, and even a television audience. It was a case that science seemed unable to explain.
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Transcript
The Herman Family Haunting: An Introduction
00:00:00
Speaker
As the days grew shorter and shadows lengthen, our thoughts turned to the mysteries that lie beyond our understanding. The unexplained, the paranormal, the ghostly whispers that send shivers down our spine. This Halloween season, we're exploring a case that gripped the nation in 1958, the haunting of the Herman family home in Seaford, New York.
00:00:23
Speaker
This isn't your typical haunted house story. This was a media sensation, a story of a seemingly ordinary suburban family terrorized by an unseen force. So dim the lights, gather close, and prepare to be captivated by the story of Popper the Poltergeist.
00:01:18
Speaker
Welcome to Coffee and Cases where we like our coffee hot and our cases cold. My name is Allison Williams. And my name is Maggie Dameron. We will be telling stories each week in the hopes that someone out there with any information concerning the cases will take those tips to law enforcement. So justice and closure can be brought to these families. With each case, we encourage you to continue in the conversation on our Facebook page, Coffee and Cases podcast, because as we all know, conversation helps to keep the missing person in the public consciousness, helping keep their memories alive. So sit back, sip your coffee, and listen to what's brewing this week.
Personal Paranormal Experiences of the Hosts
00:01:57
Speaker
Okay, I keep wanting, I keep wanting to say Popper the friendly ghost, but he's not friendly. What's the other one you did? Yeah, I know. I'm going to reference it. I'll end up referencing it a couple of times. Maggie, I was curious though, when I was writing this, if you have ever experienced anything that you couldn't explain, something that made you think, maybe just maybe there's more to this world than we can see.
00:02:26
Speaker
I don't know. I mean, obviously it's not been anything like... that stands out. Yeah, because I can't think of anything. No ghost twin encounters. I have ah think I've told this story, but when I grew up, I had a TV in my room, but I could only watch VHS on the TV. The only TV that we had with cable or satellite dish was in the living room, and it was one of those pieces of furniture TV to know. And so one night, really late, I was sitting really close to the TV watching something, and I saw a lady walk out of my bedroom,
00:03:00
Speaker
she turned and waved at me and then went into the kitchen and she was a bigger lady she had on an apron and a bone and so the next morning i'm telling my dad about this and he was like yeah that was your memo little and he was like she died in your bedroom and he was like yeah that's exactly what she looks like and he showed me a picture and it was her but she was really freaking out like interesting i just saw a ghost so that's my big i guess like paranormal thing. Yeah. Well, I feel like it's that possibility that there's something beyond our understanding that makes the paranormal so fascinating and then honestly more than that terrifying. Sometimes, yeah. Well, our case this week is full of those unexplainable occurrences.
Unexplained Phenomena at the Herman Household
00:03:46
Speaker
And as I said, this is the story of Popper, ok who
00:03:51
Speaker
was a poltergeist who captivated the nation and left investigators scratching their heads. So we'll see what you think about it. Our story takes place in a family home located at 1648 Redwood Path in Seaford, New York, which was just about 30 miles from New York City and is a suburb of Long Island.
00:04:14
Speaker
And before you go picturing a historic home in your head, i was I'm going to stop you. This was a white and green three bedroom ranch style home. The picture of 1950s suburban normalcy. yeah So like a modern home for that time. Exactly. Yeah. It was built in 1953, just five years before the events of the story, which began on February 3rd, 1958. Which is interesting. that there's a poltergeist in a new home. and so The home had three bedrooms, one bathroom, a kitchen, a little dining room, a living room, and then a divided basement, which was made up of a playroom on one side and a utility room on the other. The home belonged to the Hermans, which included James Sr., a hardworking employee for Air France.
00:05:07
Speaker
Lucille senior seeing a registered nurse and their two children thirteen-year-old daughter Lucille who was named for her mother and twelve-year-old son James affectionately known as Jimmy who was named for his father.
00:05:26
Speaker
very gilmore girl yeah So, since mother and daughter share names and so did father and son, I'm going to refer to the parents by their surnames, so Mr. Herman and Mrs. Furman, and then the kids by their first names, Lucille and Jimmy. Unknowingly, in early 1958, the individuals in this tight-knit family were about to have their lives Turn it upside down. I'm intrigued. Maggie, imagine you are Mrs. Herman. okay It's a cold day on February 3rd, around 29 degrees outside. You've just welcomed your kids home from school. It's around 3.30 p.m. You're about to start dinner since your husband will be heading home from work soon.
00:06:06
Speaker
when chaos erupts. As in, like, the kids start botting with each other? No, as in weird things. Oh, okay. The three of them, Mrs. Herman, Lucille, and Jimmy, heard a series of loud pops.
00:06:21
Speaker
coming from different rooms of the house, whenever you know why. Like a light bulb blowing type pop? Yes, pops, loud pops. Imagine their shock Maggie when after exploring, they discover that bottles of all sorts, a bottle of liquid starch in the kitchen, shampoo and medicine bottle in the bathroom, and a bottle of bleach in the utility room down in the basement were all uncapped, their caps had blown off and the contents were spilling out everywhere. So this is happening. We're going out to dinner and pack our stuff. But you were probably like, what the heck is happening? I don't know if I'd be scared just yet, but I definitely- Like the bleach, I think I could explain that away. There's chemicals, there's probably something weird happened.
00:07:11
Speaker
I don't know about the rest of it though. Well adding to the unease of the situation a bottle of holy water on the parents dresser in the master bedroom because the Herman's were devoutly Catholic was turned on its side and its contents were also empty. So it's just random things and then like all around the water.
00:07:33
Speaker
Naturally, Mrs. Herman called her husband, who was still at work in New York City. And at first, he kind of tried to rationalize it. So he's like, okay, well, I'm going to be home in just a little bit. But he's thinking, okay, maybe, like you said, Maggie, maybe there was some kind of chemical reaction.
00:07:51
Speaker
you know and it happening to multiple bottles was just an oddity, just a coincidence. Or maybe there's humidity in the home, right? Because it's cold outside, it's warm inside. Maybe that's building up pressure in the bottles. And maybe these were like glass bottles and it's different than the plastic ones we have today. Correct. But when Mr. Herman arrived home, he inspected the bottles. Sure that his theory was going to be supported.
00:08:18
Speaker
But it wasn't. All of the bottles with caps that had, quote unquote, popped off were bottles with screw top lids. Oh, interesting. So these weren't caps just pushed down. So he's thinking, OK, well, how could they spontaneously pop open like that if you have to screw them off? Yeah, if you have to twist it.
00:08:44
Speaker
None of them obviously had ever seen anything like it, but it had happened and then nothing else happened. So as odd as it was, it was just kind of one of those things quickly dismissed. Two days passed, nothing more happened. However, on Thursday, February 6th, again, as the children returned home from school, more bottles had caps that popped off.
00:09:11
Speaker
So it's at the same time? Yes, at the same time, around 3.30. This time it was the bleach and the starch again, but also a bottle of rubbing alcohol, a bottle of nail polish, some detergent, and again, the holy water in the master bedroom.
00:09:32
Speaker
Okay, one time is weird. Two times means you've got to try to figure out what is causing this to happen. Because it's just too coincidental. Right. it's It's a pattern now, especially since it's happening at the same time with similar bottles.
00:09:48
Speaker
When even more bottles popped their caps on Friday, February 7th, Mr. Herman thought he had it all figured out. Okay, what did he think? He believed that it wasn't the humidity at all. Now.
00:10:04
Speaker
He thought that it was his son, Jimmy, who just loved science. And maybe he was behind all of this. So I'd be like, cleaning products are expensive. So experiment on something else, Jimmy. bre eight Not holy water, just take water from the tap. Yeah.
00:10:20
Speaker
But he's thinking, okay, I bet Jimmy's behind this these last few days. This is just some huge elaborate prank. On Saturday, February 8th and Sunday, February 9th, Mr. Herman did not take his eyes off of Jimmy. Oh, to see if he's behind it. Yes. So he's thinking, okay, if my son is behind it, I'm going to catch him in the act of setting up a prank. Right. But in those days, he didn't see Jimmy tampering with anything. But where they're popping?
00:10:50
Speaker
That Sunday, again, bottles popped their caps. Turpentine, again the starch, and again the holy water. This time, upon investigating the bottles, they found them still moving back and forth. It was almost as if there had been an earthquake that only the bottles experienced, like they're shaking back and forth.
00:11:13
Speaker
But there had to be a logical explanation. Right, that doesn't explain the caps coming off. Yes, and Mr. Herman was still convinced that his son had done something to make all of this happen, like maybe put something in it and it just took a long time or he missed something in those two days. Yeah, poor Jimmy.
00:11:31
Speaker
So while Jimmy was brushing his teeth in the bathroom, Mr. Herman, he's gonna accuse him of it, throws open the door. He does accuse his son of being behind the bottle cap activity from the last few days. Jimmy it starts crying, denying having anything to do with the bottles. And Maggie, can you imagine being Jimmy in this situation? How old was he? He's 12.
00:11:55
Speaker
So, I mean, I get it from the dad standpoint, because, you know, kids are kind of mischievous around that age. But then from the kid standpoint, you all, I would always get so frustrated if I was blamed for something I didn't do. And you can't convince the other person, you know? Yes, I hate it.
00:12:13
Speaker
But as Mr. Herman is talking to Jimmy, as if on cue, whatever force was behind the popping bottle caps decided to answer the accusation. oh So as Mr. Herman and Jimmy were standing there, a bottle of medicine inexplicably moved across the vanity and fell into the sink.
00:12:35
Speaker
And then a bottle of shampoo moved in the opposite direction across the sink and fell into the floor. So Jim is like, see, yeah it isn't me. Yeah. At this point, James Senior, Mr. Herman, baffled. And at least if he were anything like me, probably a little freaked out, decided to call the police.
Police and Witness Accounts of Strange Events
00:12:56
Speaker
But what you say, like I'm in the bathroom, I just saw a shampoo bottle, a skirt across him my counter. I know. And that's the problem. So he calls the Nassau County Police Department. And this Maggie, this is where things start to get really interesting. At first, as you can imagine, the police were skeptical. yeah They were like, okay, either this is a prank call or the guy who was calling is drunk.
00:13:21
Speaker
But luckily, they could tell by Mr. Herman's voice that he was sober and that he was serious. Officer James Hughes was sent to the Redwood Path home. And it wasn't long, Maggie, until the officer witnessed the bizarre activity firsthand, thankfully. And he too realized that this was something truly unusual.
00:13:46
Speaker
especially when he not only saw but medicine bottles pop open, but the bottles were then launched through the air in the officer's direction. Oh, so it's like angry that the officer's there. What year did the Humpty do take place? It was many decades later.
00:14:07
Speaker
Okay, because I was just wondering, because I remember in the Humpty-Doo, they thought the family could be behind it using technology. But I'm wondering what type of technology this family would have had, which would not have been what they had when Humpty took place. Yeah, there's not really the technology to fake much of anything. Officer Hughes, after he saw this firsthand, he wrote a report on what he had experienced and the case was assigned to a detective.
00:14:36
Speaker
That detective. This is just so weird to me. Like, I mean, I appreciate it, but it's like, what do you invent? You're investigating the paranormal. Right. Well, or they're thinking at this point.
00:14:48
Speaker
Is there something scientific behind it that we need to figure out what it is? Like Mulder and Scully. There's something in the air, in the environment that's causing it. That detective, Joseph Tozzi, a seasoned officer and also a skeptic of the paranormal. Which is probably good. Yes. Initially suspected, just as Mr. Herman did, a natural explanation or even a hoax thinking again,
00:15:13
Speaker
Maybe Jimmy is behind all of it because Jimmy was present in many of the rooms where the incident occurred. But little Lucille may have been as well. That's true. So Detective Tozy had a serious talk with both children about the consequences of taking away manpower from the police force for offense. Oh, yeah. That's good though. This is important.
00:15:36
Speaker
Both of them denied any role in what was happening, but as a skeptic, Tozy still believed he would eventually get Jimmy to admit to how he'd orchestrated this whole fiasco. But again, I feel like this is how we get false confessions. I know you didn't. Yeah, right. However, Tozy's skepticism, just like that of the officer before him, quickly faded. He personally witnessed events when Jimmy was nowhere nearby.
00:16:05
Speaker
This force wasn't just messing with bottles anymore, Maggie. Things were escalating and no one had any clue why. But now there wasn't much of a break between instances. Between February 11th and the 15th, daughter Lucille had a perfume atomizer, which is one of those perfume bottles with her hand thumb on it. Fall over and spill perfume on her dresser when the room was empty.
00:16:34
Speaker
But I think what made the family even more sure that there might not be a scientific explanation for the event was that much of the activity, so tipping over, spilling of contents, happened to the bottle of holy water in the parent's bedroom.
00:16:51
Speaker
During one of those instances, Mr. Herman ran into the empty room to find the bottle on the floor with contents filled, and when he picked it up, the bottle felt warm. Like something had been holding it? Right. And remember, we saw that they used the heat scopes in the Humpty and Poltergeist and the stones were warm. Yeah. So I think this is a very common thing with Poltergeist.
00:17:17
Speaker
There's another one that I'm like, protect my myself. yes i protect you Maggie, there were other witnesses to the activity as well. On February 15, Maria Murtha, the children's second cousin, was in the Hermann home watching television with Lucille and Jimmy. She witnessed a porcelain figure begin to shake back and forth. Well, those things are creepy. so and then launch itself about two feet before just falling and crashing on the floor. Because Allison had a haunted porcelain doll. I did. It's porcelain. That's what's creepy. Surprisingly, in that instance, the figure did not break. But I'm sure it was definitely scary to see. That same figurine was discovered on the floor about two feet from the table on which it sat on February 17.
00:18:06
Speaker
This time Jimmy was in the bathroom and Lucille was in her bedroom. Then on February 19th, Mr. Herman and a neighbor were both sitting in the dining room. Mrs. Herman was in the kitchen, Lucille in the bathroom and Jimmy in bed when they all heard a noise. The same figure figurine was once again on the floor, two feet away from the table. And what natural explanation could there be for an item launching itself through the air, let alone the same item over and over? And not breaking. Yes. There's no scientific explanation. Right. I mean, maybe a window is open and a strong breeze blew through, but the doll would break. Right. So Mr. Herman turned to a different form of help.
00:18:51
Speaker
spiritual help. Yeah, my priest would have, well, I'm not Catholic, but had I been these people, I would have already had my priest over there. He contacted Father William McLeod from the Church of St. William the Abbot. Father McLeod came to the home armed with holy water And he sprinkled it in each room and left. And I didn't read in any of my research that the force, which was afterward dubbed either the Seaford Poltergeist because we're in Seaford, New York, or Popper, the poltergeist because of the popping caps. I didn't read anywhere whether he showed himself in Father MacLeod's presence
00:19:28
Speaker
So, I would imagine that the family initially believed that the spiritual visit had done the trick. I think it would just make the poltergeist more mad though. Well, yeah. In and you know in the few poltergeist cases that we have covered on the show, we do know that one little visit usually doesn't do the trick, and this was no exception.
00:19:58
Speaker
Now, for our listeners who don't know much about the difference between spirits, I don't either. But I do know that the word Kulturgeist itself means noisy spirit, and it's from the German. So these are not your typical spectral figures. Kulturgeists are known for physical disturbances, so... Yeah, thank Harry Potter pe people, peace, the Kulturgeists. Yes, objects moving, things breaking, noises, even sometimes physical attacks. Because they're not like demons.
00:20:28
Speaker
Right? I mean, no I don't think they're an entity that's associated with a purse. Okay. But it's, as you can tell, we have limited knowledge on yeah these things. My mommy always said, put good things in your head, get things to come out. That's what we try to do. And I didn't learn this until researching this case because I'd never really thought about it before.
00:20:54
Speaker
But there's clearly a difference between a possession when an entity affects and attacks a person and an infestation where the entity affects and attacks a specific locale. So what we had here is an infestation in the home.
00:21:12
Speaker
And what's most intriguing about poltergeist that we have discussed before is the link often made between poltergeist activity and adolescence, especially girls going through puberty.
Exploring Theories: Poltergeist or Psychokinesis?
00:21:24
Speaker
So the theory is that this intense hormonal and emotional change during the stage of life somehow translates into psychokinetic energy, which is where you can move things with your mind.
00:21:37
Speaker
subconsciously manifesting as these disturbances, meaning that the person responsible doesn't even know that they're causing it. Oh, so like in this case, Lucille would be subconsciously making these items fly across rooms because she's going through puberty. Right. it So if she would get anxiety or frustration or whatever, yes, that it would manifest itself in the movement. I was trying to manifest me some donuts in my house. Here's the thing. Eating shampoo bottles you know across the room. I'm getting older. And researchers don't even say it. Also link Poultry productivity to women going through menopause. And reading that in my research made me even more nervous because number one, I'm only 45, but I'm getting older and closer to that time in my life.
00:22:28
Speaker
And number two, I have an adolescent girl in my home. That's true. So I got really freaked out while I was doing this research and I was like, am I going to get? I'm a boy. I am so. guys And then at the same time, I may have just tried to move my stapler with my mind just to test the effect.
00:22:46
Speaker
I was like, can I do it? And it didn't it didn't move. but Meanwhile, you're going to come home when Ronnie's going to be like, yeah, so at like 3.30 this afternoon, I was in the kitchen and the stapler on the office desk just flew across the room. If he did, I would call you crying. In this instance, though, even though it's normally associated with teenage girls, they thought it could be coming from Jimmy.
00:23:12
Speaker
because of his presence in so many of the rooms where again these things are happening. By February 20th, 1958, the disturbances escalated further. Another porcelain figure smashed against a desk an ink bottle popped open spraying ink on the wall. I'd be mad about that one. And a sugar bowl flew off the table all while Detective Tozy was present. So they do not like law enforcement? No. Concerned for his family safety, James Senior decided to move the family away to a relative's house for the night while Detective Tozy stayed behind. That's great.
00:23:58
Speaker
the activity stopped in the family's absence. Oh, but even with the detective there. it was just So you can imagine what that signaled to the skeptics at least. Yeah, that the family was behind it. Yeah.
00:24:13
Speaker
when the poultra cast doesn't like to fame exactly When the family returned the next evening, so did Popper. The sugar bowl again flew off the table. This time it shattered. A bookcase in Jimmy's room toppled over while the room was empty. As Jimmy was doing his homework, his record player moved 15 feet across the room.
00:24:36
Speaker
A statue of the Virgin Mary flew 12 feet across the master bedroom striking a mirror. A bookcase filled with encyclopedias overturned in the cellar and you know how heavy that was. yeah A detective estimated that it weighed at least 75 pounds and they're like okay this little kid Jimmy isn't gonna be doing this without somebody seeing it.
00:24:59
Speaker
A heavy glass centerpiece from the dining room table flew up and struck a cupboard. A globe but flew out of Jimmy's room, nearly hitting a reporter from Newsday, David Kahn, who was at the home to report on the activity. Oh, this little poltergeist is not happy.
00:25:16
Speaker
As you can imagine, Maggie, word of the strange happenings at the Herman House spread like wildfire. It became the media sensation with reporters, photographers, television crews descending upon their quiet neighborhood, all there to see, as one story put it, I love this, quote, the revolt of the bottles.
00:25:36
Speaker
I feel like that should be a um oh lord like a twilight zone episode the revolt of the bottles but unlike other poltergeist that don't like to be caught on camera oh proper like it yes photographer john gold who was there to document the events watched as his flash bulbs lifted off a table and hit a wall and perhaps most strikingly Maggie Tozzi was with Jimmy in the basement when a 100 pound bronze horse statue flew across the room hitting Toby in the list. I feel like did he have a broken bone? I didn't believe that he did. Jimmy was nowhere near it. And even if he was, that's 100 pounds. But Tozy still accused him of having like, I know that you did something to make that happen. And again, Jimmy's sobbing. And Tozy's like, OK, I believe him. you know yeah i would just He was kind of trying to lie to him and say, I saw that you did something. But clearly, Jimmy couldn't have done it.
00:26:41
Speaker
Popper also started knocking on the walls at this point, knocking pictures off the walls and closing people down in the basement. Oh, no. No, Popper. News of a haunting brought with it even more people who wanted to witness the activity firsthand. Why would you? But yeah, but you do.
00:27:04
Speaker
Or people who believed that they had an explanation for the events, either natural or supernatural. I can't wait to hear some of those. Some of them are crazy. The story even made it into life. i was seen Here is a picture. House of the Flying Objects. Yeah, the story. The article, like Maggie just said, it was called House of Flying Objects. And it starts with a picture of several individuals staring at an overturned bookcase. that had necessarily fallen over. And the caption reads, in the cellar of the bedeviled home, the Herman's gaze at bookcase that mysteriously fell over. to grant As I mentioned, the public attention brought a flood of theories and advice, some more outlandish than others. People suggested Martians. ok They suggested a vengeful Indian chiefs
00:27:58
Speaker
spirit. Even some people suggested that the Russians were tunneling underneath Long Island to attack. We're in the 50s. So they tunneled ah across the ocean.
00:28:12
Speaker
yeah All the way to Long Island. and The family received countless letters, some offering logical explanations, others filled with condemnation and accusations of the family harboring, quote, tricks of Satan, end quote, and people yelling at various members of the Herman family to repent. Even though they're devoutly Catholic. Yes.
00:28:37
Speaker
There were people from many different religions too who came to try and rid the family of this spirit and manifestation. One man came dressed in a blue suit. He prayed and recited and the family home for 10 minutes or longer. And then finally yelled to the family that they had been forgiven.
00:28:55
Speaker
Well, apparently Copper didn't agree because he kept up his things. He's like, no, they haven't. Right. It was obviously a lot to handle. And to make matters worse, as you saw in the most recent events, the poltergeist activity had intensified. Larger objects were being moved, things were breaking, and there was a palpable sense of fear in the air. Detective Tozy, ever the skeptic, and trying his darnedest to find a scientific explanation tirelessly pursued every possible lead. He consulted the Air Force ruling out sonic booms. He contacted RCA to eliminate radio waves as a cause. And he even had the Long Island Lighting Company set up this oscilloscope that could detect underground vibrations. Oh, to see if it really was the Russians?
00:29:49
Speaker
Well, just some vibrations underground that maybe we don't sense as people, all to no avail. Even a physicist from Brookhaven National Laboratory, Robert Zeider, got involved using dowsing rods to investigate the property. ah His theory of underground streams causing a magnetic field was actually debunked by a geological survey. gang The local fire department came to look at the well on the property, curious if somehow a change in the water level could have caused a disturbance in the home, settling in the house, something that the water level hadn't changed for five years.
00:30:30
Speaker
One person reached out with another possible reasonable theory. The contact, some sources said it was a letter to the family, others said it was called to the detective, had come from Helen Connolly, who lived in Revere, Massachusetts. Seeing the media, she had reached out because she too had experienced unexplainable things in her home. She had seen moving furniture and other events that were not caused by the paranormal. They were caused by a downdraft in her fireplace. I mean, it moved furniture? Apparently. Interesting. I guess. So once she had her fireplace
00:31:08
Speaker
the spout on the roof with her fireplace capped with a metal turbine, like one of those metal bulbs with the vent that she turned, everything had stopped. So maybe she suggested the Herman should try the same solution. But Maggie, almost immediately after the cap was installed, a porcelain figure flew across the room so hard that it left a dent in the wood where it struck. I bet the family was like, well, that wasn't a problem. Yeah.
00:31:38
Speaker
At some point though, and I couldn't clarify when in my research, even though every article mentioned it, Popper even showed his activity to television audiences. Oh, he likes the thing. Yes, whatever Popper was, he enjoyed an audience.
00:31:54
Speaker
And it was clear that none of the tested scientific explanations were causing his commotion.
Investigations and the Media Sensation
00:32:02
Speaker
Enter the parapsychologists. As the disturbances continued to spiral out of control, news of the Hermann Haunting reached the parapsychology laboratory, yes, there used to be a place like that, at Duke University. It's like, yeah, thank goodness.
00:32:20
Speaker
yeah Intreat by the reports, Dr. J.B. Rine's assistant, Dr. J. Gaither Pratt, traveled to New York to observe the situation firsthand. They knew that generally speaking, poltergeist activity, it's usually stopped by the time the news travels about it, so it's it's usually much too fast for researchers interested in studying it to see it in action.
00:32:44
Speaker
They moved quickly here right because they don't want to miss. Yes, this is our chance. Maggie, Dr. Rine and his team were pioneers in the field of parapsychology and their work focused on psychokinesis or PK, which is again the moving with your mind.
00:33:02
Speaker
So they said, okay, we've got to see this in action. Dr. Pratt in particular had a theory. He believed that someone in the house, just like with the psychokinesis with poltergeist activity, was unknowingly causing the events through this psychokinesis. But meanwhile, how cool would it be if he was like, yeah, bitch, you have psychokinesis and then you could like train that? I know. I know, that would be kind of cool. Like you said, bring me the donut from the kitchen so I don't have to move.
00:33:32
Speaker
As you might've guessed, suspicion fell on young Jimmy. In the Herman case, Jimmy was actually near the disturbances over 75% of the time. And for many incidents, he was the only witness. So that's why they're going straight to him. However, like we discussed, Detective Tozy had already ruled out the possibility of Jimmy deliberately causing the events. So they think, okay, if he is doing it,
00:34:00
Speaker
He doesn't mean to be doing it. Right. Maybe he's just like when people are blaming him, something goes across the room. It's because he's angry or something. Yes. Dr. Pratt during his visit spent time getting to know Jimmy, playing cards, helping him with homework, trying to observe any unusual behavior. And strangely enough, especially because we know Popper takes advantage of nearly every opportunity to perform,
00:34:24
Speaker
During Pratt's visit, despite two instances that happened just after his arrival of a lamp turning over and a bread plate flying from the table, the poltergeist activity completely ceased. So I wonder if Jimmy just was in need of some melo tension. Maybe. Maybe that's it.
00:34:41
Speaker
Pratt then brought in another parapsychology researcher, William G. Roll, and together they interviewed the family. And afterward Pratt told reporters, quote, the family was much too shaken for it to be a colossal hoax. Despite the long activity during Pratt's initial visit, Popper returned with a vengeance just a few days later. So was it after they leave?
00:35:07
Speaker
They do leave, they end up coming back and then they they are able to witness it. ok But after they leave the first time, the few days right after, a dish flew out of a cabinet, a nightstand flipped over, a bookcase flipped over and over in the basement, flower vases shattered. Now the parents, particularly the initially skeptical Mr. Herman,
00:35:30
Speaker
saw things like the nightstand turn a 90 degree angle and fall on its side right in front of him with not a soul near it. So he's like, we're moving. OK, yeah. And just as it appeared that Popper was back for more.
00:35:49
Speaker
The family haunting finally came to an abrupt end on March 10th, 1958, just a little over a month after it began.
The Unresolved Mystery of Popper the Poltergeist
00:36:00
Speaker
And remember, that's not uncommon for the poltergeist activity to just abruptly abruptly end.
00:36:06
Speaker
The last recorded incident involved a bleach bottle losing its lid in the basement popped off when the family minus Mr. Herman who was away on business and Dr. Pratt and Mr. Roll were present.
00:36:21
Speaker
In total, there were 67 documented disturbances during that short period. Several times in that short period, things had escalated so much that the family had stayed outside of their home, a total of six nights Despite the efforts of detectives, scientists, physicists, a priest, and even parapsychologists, Maggie, no definitive explanation for the events at the Herman House were ever found. Mrs. Herman later reflected on the experience after the family moved. you know Right, obviously.
00:36:57
Speaker
Telling reporters, quote, I don't think there is a definitive solution. It was just one of those things with no rhyme or reason to it. But there was a definite physical force behind it, end quote.
00:37:11
Speaker
Maggie, the Herman case is one of the most well-documented poltergeist cases in history because he liked to perform. We have police reports, scientific and investigations, and eyewitness accounts from multiple credible sources. Yet even with all that, the mystery of Popper remains unsolved. So it makes you wonder,
00:37:36
Speaker
Was it Jimmy? Was it something else entirely? Like something scientific that maybe they didn't think of at the time? Or was it, as some believe, a true poltergeist?
Scientific Explanations and Community Engagement
00:37:48
Speaker
A mischievous or even malevolent entity from beyond our understanding? What are your thoughts? I mean, I feel like they pretty much covered like the scientific stuff. I mean, things that you wouldn't have even thought about doing.
00:38:04
Speaker
The cool factor in me wants to say that somebody was moving things with their mind without realizing that they were doing it. The scared academy wants to say that it was like a scientific thing. That way it has some type of explanation. sleep to know Yeah. Yeah. I know with this one, if it is a Jimmy, I don't think he intentionally did anything.
00:38:27
Speaker
And that, Sleuthhounds, is what makes this story the inspiration for the 1982 horror film Poltergeist so perfect for Halloween. It reminds us that sometimes, even in the most ordinary places, the unexplained can lurk just beneath the surface. Thanks for joining us for this spooky tale of the paranormal. Sweet dreams, everyone, or should I say, especially tonight, as this case lingers in your mind.
00:38:57
Speaker
sweet screams. um again please like and join our facebook page coffee and cases podcasts to continue the conversation and see images related to this episode as always follow us on twitter at casesoff on instagram at coffee case's podcast or you can always email us suggestions to Coffee and Cases podcast at gmail dot.com. Please tell your friends about our podcast so more people can be reached to possibly help bring some closure to these families. Don't forget to rate our show and leave us a comment as well. We hope to hear from you soon. Stay together. Stay safe. We'll see you next week.