The Conjuring conjured up (corny) a $41.5 million opening weekend, which set the record for the biggest opening for an original R-rated horror film. The previous record holder was
The Purge, with $34 million.
The film is based on "true" stories from Ed and Lorraine Warren, paranormal investigators, who were played by Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga. For me, it holds a personal connection as I grew up in the same town that the Warrens made their home. Over the years, I came into contact with them many times, although most of those moments came while I was working at the local liquor store.
I figured I would share a couple interesting tales. One is based on the Annabelle doll. A couple of decades ago, the Warrens used to open up their home around Halloween time and people could go into their museum (basement) to view their collection of possessed items. One such item, is the infamous Annabelle doll. You can see the original story of it in the video below, but one of the stories most people don't hear, and it may just be a myth, but growing up in the town we heard it often. It involved a couple, out on a date, and the boy proving that he wasn't afraid of the doll, which was in a glass case. He knocked on the glass, even though his girlfriend urged him not to repeatedly. When they headed home on the boy's motorcycle, it crashed! The boy was dead immediately, but the girl had not even a scratch on her. I never looked into it to see if it was true, but it is a story everyone from the area knows by heart.
Another story that I'd like to share, is that after graduating high school I came back home for a party. There I ran into a friend of mine who told me he was working as an apprentice for his father's plumbing company. He shared with me a creepy tale in which the Warrens frantically called his father early in the morning, I believe 2am, and asked that he hurry over. His father woke him and they hustled to their residence. Once there, the Warrens explained that they have holy water that constantly runs over the possessed artifacts in glass cases. Those are the most dangerous one's. They would further explain that the water stopped flowing at some point and needed to be fixed at once. My friend and his father worked quite quickly and resolved the issue, but what creeped out my friend was that the Warrens looked over them as they worked, as though they were protecting them from something evil.
All of that could be nonsense, but I figured I would share it with you, as I find it rather interesting.
Concept Art by Luca Nemolato
Concept Art by Jerad S. Marantz
Before there was Amityville, there was Harrisville. Based on a true story, “The Conjuring” tells the horrifying tale of how world renowned paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren were called upon to help a family terrorized by a dark presence in a secluded farmhouse. Forced to confront a powerful demonic entity, the Warrens find themselves caught in the most terrifying case of their lives.
THE CONJURING directed by James Wan, from a screenplay written by Chad Hayes & Carey W. Hayes. The cast includes: Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, Ron Livingston, Lili Taylor, Joey King, Shanley Caswell, Haley McFarland, Mackenzie Foy, Kyla Deaver, and Sterling Jerins.
ComicBookMovie.com, and/or the user who contributed this post, may earn commissions or revenue through clicks or purchases made through any third-party links contained within the content above.