The Unexplained S1E5 Bedtime Stories: The Legend of Boogeyman

The Chira Project is covering different types of bedtime stories that will scare the pants off of little children. If you know of any kind of scary bedtime story, please share it with us. This is our Fifth bedtime story is none other than... Boogeyman!

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Who gave birth to Boogeyman? 
Slender Man gave birth to the iconic legendary scariest monster to have known to existed in the realm where only children could see and that is know other than Boogeyman. 


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Who is Boogeyman? 
He is the monster that hides under your bed or in your closet. 


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When was Boogeyman born? 
1505 But most active in the 16th and 17th Century.  

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Where is the Boogeyman from? 
America and then International. 

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The Boogieman Is Coming

Boogieman, also spelt as bogeyman, boogyman, bogyman, boogieman, boogey monster, is a legendary ghost-like monster. Having no precise appearance and conceptions like the other famous monsters, the Boogie man can change significantly even from house to house, within the same community, led on by the imagination of a child or a person. He is just a formless personification of terror.

Boogie monster can be used figuratively to indicate a person or thing of which someone has an unreasonable fear. Parents are often heard telling their naughty child of a Boogieman hiding under his bed or in his bathroom, all in an effort to make them behave.

The bogeyman legend is believed to originate from Scotland. These famous monsters are sometimes called: bogles, boggarts, or boggers. The word bogey is drawn from the Middle English bogge/bugge. The word Boogie man can also be linked to many similar words in other European languages: boeman (Dutch), buse (Nynorsk), bøhmand (Danish), pookha (Irish Gaelic), pwca, (Welsh) etc... 

The Boogie monster and the stories related to them can vary by region or within the same community too. The bogeyman can be a male or a female, and in others cases, even both. In some parts of the world, boogyman can scratch your window at night, maybe manifest in a "green fog" or hide in his favorite places like closets or under the bed, behind the bathroom doors. It is also believed that a wart can be transmitted to someone by the bogeyman. He can also punish children who suck their thumbs or for any general misbehavior.

To conclude, we can see that the bogyman or the boogey monster is a legendary fictional creature, feared by just anyone. Although his looks aren't really known, but nevertheless, he manages to scare the daylight out of anybody. http://www.thehouseofmonsters.com/boogieman-legendary-fictional-creature.html

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Creepy: 15 Bogeymen From Around The World

By: Jamie Frater October 24, 2009

The bogeyman is a legendary ghost-like monster. The bogeyman has no specific appearance and conceptions of the monster can vary drastically even from household to household within the same community; in many cases he simply has no set appearance in the mind of a child, but is just an amorphous embodiment of terror. 

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This list looks at 15 bogeymen from around the world.
http://listverse.com/2009/10/24/15-bogeymen-from-around-the-world/ 

1. Japan- The Namahage visits each house on New Year’s to ask if any misbehaving children live there. If the parents are able to report that their children are not lazy and do not cry, he moves on to the next house.

2. Korea- The Korean bogeyman is called Kotgahm, which is the word for persimmon. The legend is that a mother told her crying child that she would feed him to a tiger if he did not behave. A passing tiger, hearing the threat, waited outside the door for his meal. Instead, the mother gave the child a persimmon, a kotgahm, and the crying stopped. The tiger thought the kotgahm must be a terrifically fierce creature to be more frightening than a tiger. Today, the kotgahm is most often visualized as an old man with a mesh sack who carries naughty children away.

3. Spain and Mexico- Duérmete, niño, duérmete ya.
Que viene el coco y te comeráGo to sleep child, go to sleep now.

The coconut man will come and eat you.If you think of a coconut as a head, with the three holes the features of a face, you can see how El Coco might be transformed in the mind of a child to a hairy little man. During the 16th and 17th centuries in Spain, there were orphan collectors, who took children away in sacks. The misbehavior? Refusing to go to bed and sleep.

4. Finland- One of the most unusual of the world’s bogeys is Groke, a giant blue blob who is so lonely and sad that the ground beneath her feet freezes as she walks. She is not malevolent, just lonely. But she frightens people, and they run from her.

5. England- There are many theories about the origin of the word “bogeyman.” One is that it devolved from “buggy man,” the driver of the cart picking up corpses during the Black Plague that decimated Europe. As in the United States, the bogeyman may be nothing more clearly defined than a mist or fog, scratching at windows, or he is sometimes thought of as a tall, gaunt, scarecrow-like man.

6. Scotland- The boggart is a malicious fairy who causes personal calamities, small and large. It sometimes puts a cold hand on people’s faces at night. You must not name it, or it will become unreasonable and follow your family wherever you go. A horseshoe over the doorway will protect you from boggarts.

7. Bahamas- The Small Man has a rolling cart and captures children who are out after sundown. If he gets you, you will become a Small Person yourself, and ride in his cart forever.

8. Bulgaria- The anti-Santa Claus, Baba Yaga’s evil partner, Torbalan lurks in the shadows in Bulgaria, waiting to snatch misbehaving children and carry them away in a sack.


9. Czech Republic and Poland- Bubak is a scarecrow-like man who hides on riverbanks, making sounds like a lost baby to lure adults as well as children. He drives a cart driven by cats and weaves clothing for the souls he has stolen.

10. Netherlands- The Bolman has claws and fangs. He hides under your bed or in your closet waiting to grab you and put you in the basement if you don’t sleep.

11. Philippines- Pugot Mamu is a gigantic, headless shape-shifter who lives in trees and deserted houses. Self-beheaded, he eats children through the hole in his neck.

12. Quebec- The Bonhomme Sept-Heures – the seven o’clock man – may have been taken from the English “bone setter,” an old name for a traveling medicine man. The seven o’clock man steals children, but can only get you if you are awake.

13. Norway- The Nokken, a lake monster, will get you if you don’t come in when called.

14. Trinidad and Tobago- The Jumbies live here, post-death misbehavers. They are shape-shifters, so children are taught not to play with random animals. There are several ways to defeat Jumbies, however. You can leave your shoes outside; Jumbies have no feet and will spend the night trying to get the shoes on. You can leave a container of sand or rice outside the door; Jumbies will have to count each grain. You can cross a river; Jumbies won’t cross water. You can leave a rope with many knots; Jumbies will have to untie each one.

15. Italy- Italy has l’uomo Nero, a tall man with an unseen face, a heavy coat and a black hat. He hides under the table and parents knock on the table to warn their children that l’uomo Nero is present and will take them away if they don’t eat their dinner.

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What is the origin of 'Boogeyman'?
The bogeyman is less a mythic creature and more a folk loric monster created, most likely by parents who used this nonspecific creature to keep their children in bed and not out in the night playing unsupervised. The difference between mythology and folklore can be differentiated by the message of the tale and how that message endeavors to explain the phenomenon of life and the trials and tribulations that come with living. Mythology tends to be more religious in nature and offers life lessons to help the listener or reader of that myth better understand their own life.



Thus, most stories of the Old and New Testaments can be considered mythology, the stories and legends of the Greek and Roman gods can be considered mythology and even the tale of Luke Skywalker in Star Wars and any of the various comic book heroes such as Superman, Batman, Spiderman and Ironman can be counted among mythological tales. Folklore and urban legends on the other hand do not offer any life lesson and more intended to entertain by scaring or amusing the listener or reader. The legend of the bogeyman, also known as the boogeyman, boogyman, or bogyman has a vast and varied history, which is another way of saying that no one is quite certain when or where the legend of the bogeyman first began. As if often the case with folk lore, the origins of such stories are less important than the effect the tale has upon its listeners or readers.


Even the etymology of the word remains uncertain and may ultimately be derived from the Middle English word bugge which means frightening spectre. There are, however, words such as the German variation bogge, the Welsh word bwg, the Scottish/Gaelic word bocon and other such variations as boggart, boggy, and bubbear all of which refer to some sort of goblin or other horrifying monsters. The term bogeyman may also come from the Scottish word bogle which means ghost or hobgoblin dating back to the early 1500's and was popularized by 19th century English poets such as Sir Walter Scott and Robert Burns.

There also claims made that the word is a derivation of a popular name assigned to Napoleon Bonaparte by the British who called Napoleon boney and claimed that later evolved into boneyman. Whatever the veracity of this etymology, boney as a description of Napoleon was certainly used to scare children of that day. The term may have also began with the people of Indonesia from the word bugis which was a term ascribed to the pirates who preyed in the Straits of Malacca. It was, according to this theory of the etymology, European sailors who came across this word and the tales that came with it and took it back home and used the word bugisman to scare their children into behaving.

Yet there is even another source which described the bog men who supposedly lived in the peat bogs of English moors. The fear of these bog men was that they would come walking off the moors as zombie like monsters. In other cultures there is the bag man of Brazil called hombre de la bolsa or del saco, hombre de la costa, or the portuguese word homen do saco. The legend of del saco serves the same function of the bogeyman, which is to scare children and tells a tale of a bum or hobo who carries a sack on his back much like Santa Clause and steals children who have misbehaved to sell them on the black market. In Bulgaria the children are told the same tale only this monster is known as torbolan.

The French tell a similar tale only the creature is known as le croque mitaine, (the mitten biter). In Germany the bogey man is called Der Swartz Mann, (The Black Man), which is not a physical description of his skin color, but a description of his character and his proclivity towards hiding in dark places such as the closet or under the bed. The Greeks call him Babaulos, who also hides under beds. In Hungary the creature is known as mumus, and in the Netherlands, Boeman, Boezeman, Boezehappert, Jan Haak, Manetje met de Haak,and at least half a dozen other names. The story of the bogeyman is known throughout all of Europe and besides the countries all ready mentioned can be heard in Italy, Poland, Norway, Switzerland and Romainia, to name just a few.

The legend can also be found in the folk tales of Iran, Iraq, and India making any historical account of the origin of the bogeyman as hopeless the children who have misbehaved and now must face this mysterious and undefined creature who is prolific across the world.

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Links: 
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_origin_of_WHO#slide=1 (58 Slides)
http://quotetoremember.blogspot.com/2013/04/boogeyman-2005.html

http://www.mnn.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/stories/where-did-the-bogeyman-come-from
http://www.ask.com/question/legends-of-the-boogeyman

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The Legend of Boogeyman S1E5

The Unexplained S1E4 Bedtime Stories: The Legend of Slender Man

The Chira Project is covering different types of bedtime stories that will scare the pants off of little children. If you know of any kind of scary bedtime story, please share it with us. This is our Fourth bedtime story is none other than... Slender Man!

Slender Man (a.k.a Slenderman) is a mythical creature often depicted as a tall, thin figure wearing a black suit and a blank face. According to the legend, he can stretch or shorten his arms at will and has tentacle-like appendages protruding from his back.

Depending on the interpretations of the myth, the creature may cause memory loss, insomnia, paranoia, coughing fits (nicknamed “slendersickness”), photograph/video distortions and can teleport at will. The urban legend has inspired fan arts, fictional creepypastas and a mockumentary series in the style of the 1999 indie horror film Blair Witch Project. As the character has grown in popularity, he’s gained a number of other nicknames including The Operator, Der Großmann, Mr. Slim, The Administrator, Daddy LongLegs, Mr. Thin, The Tall Man, The Thin Man and Slendy.

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On June 8th, 2009, a “’paranormal pictures” photoshop contest was launched on the Something Awful (SA) Forums. The contest required participants to turn ordinary photographs into creepy-looking images through digital manipulation and then pass them on as authentic photographs on a number of paranormal forums. Something Awful users soon began sharing their faux-paranormal creations with layered images of ghosts and other anomalies, usually accompanied by a fabricated witness account to make them more convincing.

On June 10th, SA user Victor Surge (real name Eric Knudsen) posted two black and white photographs of unnamed children with a short description of “Slender Man” as a mysterious creature who stalked children.

“We didn’t want to go, we didn’t want to kill them, but its persistent silence and outstretched arms horrified and comforted us at the same time…” – 1983, photographer unknown, presumed dead.


One of two recovered photographs from the Stirling City Library blaze. Notable for being taken the day which fourteen children vanished and for what is referred to as “The Slender Man”. Deformities cited as film defects by officials. Fire at library occurred one week later. Actual photograph confiscated as evidence. – 1986, photographer: Mary Thomas, missing since June 13th, 1986.

On June 11th, 2009, Victor Surge continued to improve upon the myth by adding another picture and a fake doctor’s account. The following day, SA user LeechCode5 posted a photograph of a burning building with a Slender Man back story. On June 14th, SA goon TrenchMaul reused the Slender Man character for his own story. The original thread, which still remains active today, extends for 46 pages as of June 2011.

Where did the legend of slender man come from? As far back as Ancient Egypt, even farther back than that maybe in the caveman times but there was no document of no such thing at that time; only in Ancient Egypt and Germany.  In Ancient Egypt there is a symbol of a man with no face and multiple arms. It reminds me of The Gentleman from the episode "Hush" from Buffy the Vampire Slayer. He is also called "Slendy" or "The Operator".

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Here are a couple of links where you can learn more about The Slender Man...
http://theslenderman.wikia.com/wiki/Slender_Man
http://urbanlegends.about.com/od/horrors/a/The-Slender-Man.htm
http://www.mythicalcreaturesguide.com/page/Slender+Man

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The Legend of Slender Man S1E4

The Unexplained S1E3 Bedtime Stories: The Legend of La Llorona

La Llorona: The Weeping Woman
Mythic Figure Throughout Time and Region

The Chira Project is covering different types of bedtime stories that will scare the pants off of little children. If you know of any kind of scary bedtime story, please share it with us. This is our Third bedtime story is none other than... La Llorona!


La Llorona is a Mexican legend that started back in 1502. http://www.lallorona.com/1legend.html La Llorona also called the weeping woman is a tale that originated from the later variants of Aztec fertility goddess called Coatlicue. More to that it originated in Mexico and was also told in Central and South America. It is about a young lady who chose love over her children and decided to drown them. This eventually caused her death and her ghost was forced to come back to the world to look for the children. Do you think La Llorona is real? 80% said yes and 20% said no. But, what do you think?

There are different version's to this story. So the following will be stories from all kinds of people across the world.

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La Llorona - A New Mexico Ghost Story

Retold by: S. E. Schlosser

Version I
Once there was a widow who wished to marry a rich nobleman. However, the nobleman did not want to raise another man's children and he dismissed her. The widow was determined to have the nobleman for her own, so the widow drowned her children to be free of them. When she told the nobleman what she had done, he was horrified and would have nothing more to do with her. As she left him, the widow was overcome by the terrible crime she had committed and went to the river, looking for her children. But they were gone. She drowned herself and her spirit was condemned to wander the waterways, weeping and searching for her children until the end of time.

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Version II
Once a poor man was married to a beautiful woman who lived in his village. The couple was very much in love, but the man insisted that they were too poor to have any children. When he found out his wife was pregnant, the man was very angry. He told the woman they could not keep the child. After the birth of his son, the man drowned the child in the river. His wife, too weak from giving birth to get up from the bed, pleaded in vain with her husband to spare the life of her child.

Several more sons were born to the couple, and the poor man drowned every one. The day the poor man took his fifth child to the river, his wife followed even though she was still weak and bleeding from giving birth. When he threw the child in the river, the woman went in after her son, determined to save the boy even though she did not know how to swim. The woman and her baby were swept away by the current and they both drowned.

The very next night, the woman's spirit returned to the river beside her home, wailing and searching for the sons she had lost. At first, the poor man was terrified by the spirit of his wife. He begged her to return to the spirit realm. But she did not hear him.

Night after night, the woman returned to the river, wailing and wringing her hands in her grief. The poor man became angry. But he could not stop the ghost of his wife from searching for her sons.

Finally, the sound of the wailing woman drove the man mad. He grabbed a knife and jumped into the river after the spirit to kill her. But the poor man did not know how to swim. The current swept him away and he drowned.

From that day to this, the spirit of La Llorona -- the wailing woman -- still haunts the waters and lakes, weeping and wailing and searching for her sons.

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La Llorona - A Hispanic Legend: The Weeping Woman

By Joe Hayes

This is a story that the old ones have been telling to children for hundreds of years. It is a sad tale, but it lives strong in the memories of the people, and there are many who swear that it is true.

Long years ago in a humble little village there lived a fine looking girl named Maria Some say she was the most beautiful girl in the world! And because she was so beautiful, Maria thought she was better than everyone else.

As Maria grew older, her beauty increased and her pride in her beauty grew too When she was a young woman, she would not even look at the young men from her village. They weren't good enough for her! "When I marry," Maria would say, "I will marry the most handsome man in the world."

And then one day, into Maria's village rode a man who seemed to be just the one she had been talking about. He was a dashing young ranchero, the son of a wealthy rancher from the southern plains. He could ride like a Comanche! In fact, if he owned a horse, and it grew tame, he would give it away and go rope a wild horse from the plains. He thought it wasn't manly to ride a horse if it wasn't half-wild.

He was handsome! And he could play the guitar and sing beautifully. Maria made up her mind-that was, the man for her! She knew just the tricks to win his attention.

If the ranchero spoke when they met on the pathway, she would turn her head away. When he came to her house in the evening to play his guitar and serenade her, she wouldn't even come to the window. She refused all his costly gifts. The young man fell for her tricks. "That haughty girl, Maria, Maria! " he said to himself. "I know I can win her heart. I swear I'll marry that girl."

And so everything turned out as Maria planned. Before long, she and the ranchero became engaged and soon they were married. At first, things were fine. They had two children and they seemed to be a happy family together. But after a few years, the ranchero went back to the wild life of the prairies. He would leave town and be gone for months at a time. And when he returned home, it was only to visit his children. He seemed to care nothing for the beautiful Maria. He even talked of setting Maria aside and marrying a woman of his own wealthy class.

As proud as Maria was, of course she became very angry with the ranchero. She also began to feel anger toward her children, because he paid attention to them, but just ignored her.

One evening, as Maria was strolling with her two children on the shady pathway near the river, the ranchero came by in a carriage. An elegant lady sat on the seat beside him. He stopped and spoke to his children, but he didn't even look at Maria. He whipped the horses on up the street.

When she saw that, a terrible rage filled Maria, and it all turned against her children. And although it is sad to tell, the story says that in her anger Maria seized her two children and threw them into the river! But as they disappeared down the stream, she realized what she had done! She ran down the bank of the river, reaching out her arms to them. But they were long gone.

The next morning, a traveler brought word to the villagers that a beautiful woman lay dead on the bank of the river. That is where they found Maria, and they laid her to rest where she had fallen.

But the first night Maria was in the grave, the villagers heard the sound of crying down by the river. It was not the wind, it was La Llorona crying. "Where are my children?" And they saw a woman walking up and down the bank of the river, dressed in a long white robe, the way they had dressed Maria for burial. On many a dark night they saw her walk the river bank and cry for her children. And so they no longer spoke of her as Maria. They called her La Llorona, the weeping woman. And by that name she is known to this day. Children are warned not to go out in the dark, for, La Llorona might snatch them and never return them. 

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La Llorona - One Woman, Many Stories
By Angelica Galicia

The eve of the conquest of Mexico -Tenochtitlan by Hernan Cortes and his Spanish army was plagued by omens that Miguel Leon–Portilla enumerates in his book, “Broken Spears: The Aztec Account of the Conquest of Mexico”. Based on codices as well as from memories of the period, Portilla describes a woman who the natives called Cihuacoatl (the serpent woman), who wandered among the temples of the great ‘Mexica’ capital announcing a tragedy: “O-h-h, my children, the time for our departure draws near. O-h-h-h, my children! Where shall I take you?”

However, it was during the colonial days when the legend of the weeping woman gained the necessary strength to filter into Mexican folklore, and although there are innumerable versions as to the origin of this macabre and heartrending cry, the most popular one is told in detail herein:

Every night at eleven, when the curfew sounded in the capital of New Spain, the inhabitants would shut themselves in their houses of mud and stone. The streets were left deserted. It was then that the darkness and the silence were torn by the long and distressing wails of a woman. “Oh, my children”, she repeated monotonously, causing even the bravest hearts to shudder.

Those who dared to look out from their windows managed to see the silhouette of a woman dressed in white, floating above the street’s stone pavement; she would stop at the city’s Main Square. Later, the ghostly figure would head in the direction of Texcoco Lake, where she’d disappear with the first rays of the dawn.

But, just who was this woman whose face could not be discerned? Why did she cry so pitifully? According to the story, there was once a beautiful native woman who fell deeply in love with a Spanish gentleman. The gentleman felt a great passion for her, but relations between a nobleman and an Indian woman was positively regarded with disapproval, so he maintained his romance with her in secret. Three children were born to the mother, who adored and tirelessly cared for them.

Over time, the woman sought to formalize her relationship with the gentleman, who began to evade her. She soon found out that he had agreed upon a convenient marriage to a wealthy Spanish lady. Humiliated by the man she loved so much, the woman was driven totally mad and drowned her three children in a river. She committed suicide afterwards. At the gates of Heaven, the woman was asked about her little ones. “My Lord, I don’t know where they are”, she replied.  Thus, she was condemned to search for them for all eternity.

There are those who assure that, in her zeal to be accepted into Heaven, the murderess Weeping Woman carries away the firstborn children between the ages of 1 and 5 years-old to present them before God as her children. That’s why the proximity of her cries is so feared by all.

Other versions affirm that the woman who wanders about crying nightly among the labyrinth of building in Mexico City is none other than ‘Malinche’;  Hernan Cortes’ mistress, who’s accused of having betrayed her race because of  her love for the conqueror.

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The Legend of La Llorona S1E3

La Llorona( The Weeping Woman)
















Links: 
http://abclocal.go.com/kfsn/story?id=9307416

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Llorona

http://www.legendsofamerica.com/gh-lallorona.html

http://ambergriscaye.com/25years/lallorona.html

http://cclitgirl.hubpages.com/hub/legend-of-la-llorona-or-weeping-woman

The Unexplained S1E2 Bedtime Stories: The Legend of Candyman

The Chira Project is covering different types of bedtime stories that will scare the pants off of little children. If you know of any kind of scary bedtime story, please share it with us. This is our Second bedtime story is none other than... Candyman!

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The Crime of the Candyman
The Dick Who Ruined Pixy Stix
Written By Michael Price

What was your favorite candy to find in your Halloween loot after you came home from a long night of door-knocking and faking adorable for the neighbors? Gun to my head, my answer would have to be Pixy Stix. There’s something about that tart rush of pure pulverized sugar that put my mind in the right loopy place for the newest Tree-house of Horror installment.

But somewhere down the line I had to kick the habit, and not by choice. One Halloween, my parents wanted to check my haul – not to beam with pride at just how much candy I’d finagled, nor to see just what kind of sugar-rush they could expect over the next several weeks – but to ditch all the Pixy Stix straight in the trash. Turns out they’d heard something on the news about a wacko replacing the crystalline deliciousness with (take your pick):

1) cocaine
2) meth
3) poison
4) anthrax
5) pure powdered Armageddon

Jumbo Pixy Stix are awesome. Right up until the convulsions, that is. And the vomiting. And the passing out. And the dying en route to the hospital.

Chances are if you lived in a suburban neighborhood with typically reactionary suburban parents, you had something similar happen to you, too. Or maybe it was razor blades in candy apples. Or acid-filled bubble gum. Or metal shavings mixed in amongst the coconut ribbons of a Mounds bar. It was an epidemic sweeping the nation! said breathless news reports with all the self-seriousness and unearned certitude that really was sweeping the nation in the late ’80s.

But did you — or your folks – ever really know anyone who came down with anything more serious than a stomachache after eating Halloween candy? Of course not. The “epidemic” was nothing more than the upswing of the eternal ebb and flow of moral panics in this country.

Sort of. OK, so the odds of it ever happening to you are probably smaller than encountering the honest-to-goodness alien ghost of Dracula (scratch that; the sexy alien ghost of Dracula) on Halloween, but a few kids really have run afoul of some poisonous or booby-trapped candy given to them by exactly the kind of madman your parents worried themselves sick over.

The case most pertinent to my own candy love affair happened in 1974. Eight-year-old Timmy O’Bryan (his actual name, not a Lifetime movie adaptation name) went trick-or-treating in his suburban Houston neighborhood like every other kid. His costume has been lost to time, but it being 1974, he was probably Sad Richard Nixon or Patty Hearst Kidnapper. Anyway, he made his rounds, knocked over some pumpkins, egged some houses – whatever mischief kids got into back then – and returned home to dig into his sugar sack and catch the Halloween special of Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids.

His father, Ronald Clark O’Bryan, ever helpful, suggested this big ol’ Jumbo Pixy Stix right here. Man, does that look good, and don’t you want to eat this one first, Little Timmy, son whom I adore and cherish? And Timmy, being the adored and cherish little son he was, complied. Hell, I would've, too. Jumbo Pixy Stix are awesome.

Right up until the convulsions, that is. And the vomiting. And the passing out. And the dying en route to the hospital.

When doctors autopsied the boy, they found he’d been poisoned with cyanide. With some CSI¬ trickery, they traced the poison to the Pixy Stix he’d eaten. The town freaked. Pixy Stix were tossed out by the thousands. Neighbor turned on neighbor. The police questioned everyone who’d handed out candy that night. Who was this sick creep handing out deadly goodies?

Well, if you’ve ever seen a true crime show, you know where this is headed. Ronald O’Bryan was a man deep in debt and, curiously, he’d only months prior taken out a size-able life insurance policy on his children. It didn't take Columbo to figure out what happened. The elder O’Bryan had laced a Pixy Stix with cyanide earlier in the night and surreptitiously slipped the tainted treat into his son’s bag.

The crime earned him the nickname “The Candyman,” and Texas officials eventually executed him on March 31, 1984. News reports note that college kids showed up wearing Halloween masks to cheer on his execution.

Can you blame them? That was the man that 10 years ago had caused their parents to chuck out much of their Halloween haul. But the damage to the American psyche was much deeper, and the crime inspired a moral panic that continues to this day. In a few days, you’ll see blog posts and news reports imploring parents to check their children’s stash and toss out anything suspicious. And to an overly cautious parent, those warnings will lead to the wholesale slaughter of millions of Mike and Ikes, Gummy Worms, Jolly Ranchers and Sugar Daddies. What a waste.

The weird thing about moral panics, though, is their ability to fulfill their own destinies. The panickers play the victims in their own invented tragedy, but there’s always some sicko willing to play the villain. And so in the wake of little Timmy O’Bryan’s unfortunate demise at the hands of his father, a few random pseudo-copycats have popped up, no doubt inspired by the public’s gruesome imagined epidemic. In 1988, someone poked a needle into a candy apple in Maryland. And reports pop up every now and then of kids, having heard the legends, spiking their friends’ candy with razor blades or needles as a prank. But the O’Bryan case remains the only one on record of a child dying from tainted Halloween candy.

So if you’ve got a kid, ease off the caution pedal a bit this year. Relax. No one spiked his or her Pixy Stix with cyanide. Let the little goblin enjoy some sugar in peace for just one night, damn it.

Of course, doesn't hurt to take out a life insurance policy on them. You know, just in case.

****************************************************************************


"Resistant is futile,
When it is the
Candyman who,
Got you hooked.
Fear the legend,
Fear the Candyman!"

For more Candyman quotes, go to:
http://baronessofblades.deviantart.com/favourites/48334489










****************************************************************************

The Legend of Candyman S1E2


















Christina Aguilera - Candyman (Edit)

Candyman trailer

For more information about the Hollywood Horror movie, "Candyman" please go to:
http://fascinationwithfear.blogspot.com/2010/10/31-days-31-faves-candyman.html

5 Best Beauty Bargain Buys

We gave six skin, hair, and professional makeup experts $40 each and sent them shopping to prove that you can look great without breaking the bank. It was never so easy and affordable to get gorgeous.


This post is going to be all about multi-purpose, cheap, yet amazing products.

1) Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser:
This is a perfect face wash for people with super dry or sensitive skin. But, you can also use it as a body wash, or use it to wash your makeup brushes. It has a lot of uses, and works very well, as it is super gentle, and a great cleanser.

2) E.L.F. Makeup Brushes:
These brushes are incredible! You can get some for a dollar, or some for three dollars. They are durable, soft, and work just as well as more expensive brushes.

3) Maybelline Eyeshadow Quads:
Maybelline sells eyeshadow quads with 4 pigmented, buttery, and quality eyeshadows for around $5-6. They have many different colors, from blues, to pinks, to neutrals! Most are shimmery, so they give you a wide-eyed look. These eyeshadow quads are definitely worth it!

4) Revlon Super Lustrous Lipsticks:
Revlon has some of the best lip products in the business. They have a variety of finishes, from matte to pearl to cream. They have MANY many shades, and some have been around since the 50s! This is one of the best lipstick ranges, and they are all about $4-6. Definitely recommend!

5) Sinful Colors Nail Polishes:
These are pretty good quality, and have an amazing shade range! They are $2 each, and last a while too. They don’t chip for a couple days, and aren’t streaky or unpigmented. These are some of my favorite nail polishes, and they are definitely amazing!

Thanks for reading! Stay beautiful! xoxo

50 DIY Decorating Tips Every Girl Should Know

Sometimes the key to giving your home a much-needed update does not involve a major overhaul and a costly renovation. In fact, a few new pillows, reorganized bookshelves, and thoughtful DIY centerpieces are oftentimes all you need to give your space a newly decorated look. The trick to successfully updating your home without spending a fortune is thinking outside the box. For instance, painting a door in lacquer black will absolutely add an instant dose of glamour of to your home, and sometimes just changing your light bulbs can make a world of difference. To that end, we have compiled 50 of our favorite DIY decorating tips. Because seriously, there is no excuse for living in a space that does not feel like home.

1. Decorate your walls on the cheap.

Add a grid of clean, white frames displaying black-and-white photos—a cheap trick for adding a touch of glamour to empty walls.

2. Hang a shelf to create the illusion of space.

Make a narrow room appear wider with a long shelf that can also double as a mantel to display various objects of your choice.

3. A mirror will instantly transform a room.

Add a mirror into your space, which will instantly make a room look bigger reflecting the surrounding colors and patterns.

4. Add a rug to redo your space without renovating. 

For an instant update add a large sisal rug to your space, which will give it an instant modern and clean feel. Looking to do something more glam? Add a shag rug or a zebra print.

5. Pillows are your friend.

Revamp your sofa without spending a fortune changing up your accent pillows.

6. Paint the interior of your closet.

Yes, your closet deserves some attention too! Paint the interior of a closet a fun color for a nice surprise when you open it up.

7. All about the accent wall.

Painting a room with clean bold stripes will instantly update it.

8. Get creative with paint.

Wall colors set the tone of a room. Looking to add a dose of cool? Paint your doors black and the trim white.

9. Change up your lighting.

Upgrade your light fixtures with a mix of finishes like antique brass hardware.

10. To instantly transform your living room. 

An interesting DIY decorating tip: Drop cloths make great DIY slipcovers. They look like old homespun linen, but cost a fraction of the price.

11. Ombré your walls. 

Instead of painting walls one flat hue, paint the bottom one shade and the top another.

12. Organize random objects with trays.

Organize items like TV remotes and other knickknacks on a pretty tray placed on a coffee table or a side table.

13. Paint lampshades for a completely fresh look.

Buy an inexpensive paper shade and paint it red, which will add a romantic and flattering touch to any room.

14. Change up your artwork displays.

Put pieces in unusual places, like above a door, or in the kitchen or a bathroom, to add some freshness to your space.

15. Wallpaper the back of shelves.

Paper the back of a cabinet or bookshelf in wallpaper or even faux-snakeskin for an unexpected decor surprise.

16. Update your light bulbs.

Experiment with different light bulbs in your sconces and chandeliers. For instance, try using clear bulbs, or even a pink tone.

17. Create ambiance with DIY candles.

Put votive in old jam jars to create a casual, romantic centerpiece.

18. Mix and match your furniture.

Modernize your interiors adding in an acrylic table or modern side tables in chrome.

19. Don’t forget about your ceiling.

Decorative ceiling tiles can add texture to a room. On the other hand, simply paint a ceiling a different color from the rest of the room.

20. Change up the floor.

When wood floors are not in the best condition, paint or stain them.

21. Update your bathroom without renovating.

Instead of spending a fortune renovating a bathroom simply, buy new towels, curtains, and a shower curtain to update the space.

22. Create a DIY coffee table.

Are large books taking over your coffee table? Stack similar-colored ones several feet high so that they become the table.

23. Turn a side table into a bar cart.

Lusting after a bar cart but don’t want to spend the money? A side table can become an instant bar station! Place an ice bucket, glasses, and your favorite liquors on it to create the look.

24. Reupholster small pieces.

Instead of buying new furniture, reupholster an old chair to give it a completely new look.

25. Update your door.

Doors are part of your decor too, so why not paint one a glossy black or even pastel pink? It will give your room that instant wow factor.

26. Decorate with fruit.

Get some wicker baskets or nice bowls and fill them with Lady apples, pears, or English walnuts to create an easy, elegant centerpiece.

27. Start an indoor garden.

Pot plants in an assortment of vintage ceramics and line them up on a windowsill.

28. Turn your favorite book into art.

Art does not have to be a huge investment. Cut out 20 pages from a favorite book. Buy 20 inexpensive frames and place them side by side in rows on a wall.

29. Change your entryway instantly with wallpaper.

Wallpaper your front entry with a bold paper. The first impression is everything.

30. Add a luxe throw into your space. 

A Mongolian lamb’s wool throw or a faux fox throw will add instant luxury into your space whether draped over a couch or at the end of a bed.

31. Spray paint your boring old chairs.

Spray paint your boring dining room chairs black to instantly transform their look.

32. All about the dimmers.

The single cheapest makeover solution is adding dimmers throughout your home.

33. Don’t renovate your kitchen, update the hardware. 

Change out your kitchen cabinet hardware for a brand new look.

34. Bring the outside in and the inside out. 

Use indoor furniture for an outdoor gathering and bring outdoor furniture inside for an unexpected twist to your living spaces.

35. Consider wall decals.

Wall decals, which come on sheets like temporary tattoos, are a great and inexpensive way to spruce up a room.

36. Organize your books by color.

Get creative by stylishly organizing bookshelves by color, rather than size or theme.

37. Get floral.

Do not underestimate the power of flowers. Perk up any room with a bouquet (and when in doubt go straight for white peonies).

38. Give your furniture unexpected roles.

Re-purpose a chrome bath cart to serve as a side table or a minibar, stocked with drinks and snacks.

39. Create a wall of clocks.

Dream of cities you would like to visit by hanging clocks dedicated to their time zones. This is a particularly great idea for an office.

40. Create a cool vase with sequins from an old dress.

Have a sequin dress you do not wear anymore? Remove the sequins and sprinkle them into a vase of flowers. Voila, you have one of the coolest centerpieces around.

41. Freshen up your shower curtain.

Tie shower curtains on with bows, large Lucite squares, or anything other than basic metal rings to add personal touches to a bathroom.

42. Create a place for those special family photos.

Instead of framing all of your family photos, put snapshots in a bowl on a table where everyone can sift through them. Trade old images with new ones every so often.

43. Mix up your plates.

Mix together that stash of china from your grandmother, and various other plates you have collected through the years, alternating with your everyday white, to freshen up your dinner table.

44. Give your bedding a quick update with monogram pillows.

Instead of buying all new bedding, update what you have with a set of monogrammed pillowcases in a bold color that ties into your decor.

45. Use your windowsills to display cool objects.

Pep up a windowsill with some quirky accessories. Consider transforming a bunch of kids plastic farm animals by spray painting them in a bold color.

46. DIY a headboard with wallpaper.

Trace your desired headboard shape on your wall, and apply wallpaper. Voila, you’ve got an impromptu headboard.

47. Don’t save your best for the living room.

Do not save all your best decor pieces for the living room. Put a fancy lamp or painting in a more unexpected spot, like the kitchen.

48. Update a boring bookcase with some paint.

Dress up a white bookcase by painting the outside edges in black.

49. Freshen up your couch with some cool fabric.

You do not need to reupholster a couch to give it an update. Use a richly patterned fabric to cover a couch or chair without the cost.

50. Re-purpose your old necklaces.

Take those old rhinestone necklaces and turn them into curtain ties.

There you have it! We would love to hear from you, about your favorite DIY decorating tips and tricks in the comments section below!