Lady goes gaga for ghostbusting kit

British tabloid The Mirror is reporting Lady Gaga spent about $5,000 on paranormal investigative to rid her of a spirit at London's O2 arena where she stopped for her Monster's Ball tour.

Gaga told her people to get the equipment because she was afraid of "bad energy." Supposedly they then conducted a sweep of the backstage area after getting the gear from Dan Webb's "ghost-busting firm."

Webb says, "When I took the order for the kit I had no idea who it was for ... but then I checked the listings and saw who was playing the O2." He adds that "Her aide said the gear had to be robust as they were ­taking it on the road - so they must be doing this every­where Lady Gaga is performing."

So much for client confidentiality, eh Mr. Webb?

Anyhow, this is interesting but not particularly shocking about Gaga. Plus, it's not the first time she's shown up on this site for her paranormal pop culture connections.

UPDATE: Newsoxy reports that Gaga admitted to getting the gear after she says she was troubled by negative forces for weeks. Says writer Susan Harris, "Gaga originally thought she was experiencing a mental breakdown, or hallucinations, that usually come with schizophrenia. However, she is still convinced that unseen forces are haunting her."

'Ghost Whisperer' dead and buried

Despite rumors last week that ABC may be picking up CBS' canceled show Ghost Whisperer, it is simply not to be.

Reuters is reporting the long-running show starring Jennifer Love Hewitt as medium Melinda Gordon won't be "crossing over" to the rival network after the surprise cancellation.

Executive producers Kim Moses and Ian Sander said in a statement that, "after five wonderful seasons and over 100 episodes, we are disappointed to announce Ghost Whisperer will not be returning for a sixth season."

There's probably a good pun to be made here about the show becoming a specter, but we don't care enough are too choked up to try.

'Blood Oath': Mr. Dracula goes to Washington in new book

Combining vampires and politics sounds natural for anyone who's ever been sucked dry by taxes (amiright, amiright?), so Chris Farnsworth's new bloodsucker book Blood Oath - about an undead secret service agent who has protected the presidents for 150 years - sounds like a fun read.

The action book is getting pretty good reviews for its James Bond-as-vampire treatment, and for the compelling lead character of Nathaniel Cade, and has already been optioned for a movie, reports The Hollywood Reporter's Heat Vision blog.

I'll be cracking open the book this weekend because I'm a big vampire fan hungry for something that doesn't involve tweens - and something to pass the time until June 13.

The trailer for the book embedded after the jump ...

Ouija Boards: 120 years of spirited conversation

Even though Google didn't host a Doodle to celebrate it, we want to wish a happy 120th birthday to the Ouija talking board. While not the first talking/spirit/oracle/mystery/witch board, the Ouija is the most famous of the parlor games used for talking to "the other side." Created by the Kennard Novelty Company, the board became a sensation and commercial success under the leadership of William Fuld.

Consisting of a simple planchette and board with letters, numbers, and the words "Yes/No" and "Goodbye," the Ouija became a popular form of entertainment in the homes of many, not unlike Monopoly - as shown in the 1920s-1930s "William Fuld Dark Ouija Board" above and in this 1919 William Fuld Ouija display (Photos courtesy WilliamFuld.com). The boards even showed up in staring roles in movies and television.

Due to "Ouija-stitions" about the rituals of use, and the urban legends of the board, the game has developed a reputation for "opening doors" and for being a "gateway." But it really wasn't until a scene in 1978's The Exorcist that the board started to pick up a negative reputation that persists in paranormal popular culture today (see: Paranormal Activity).

Certainly, within most paranormal investigative circles, the Ouija is verboten. However, one must question whether the board is really all that different than other investigative tools for communication used in ghost hunting. As talking board historian, and good friend to this site, Bob Murch has pointed out, many of the call/response, yes/no questions investigators direct to blinking flashlights, Ghost Radar, K-II meters, etc. are the same suggested by the Ouija.

All the same, the spooky associations of the Ouija have helped the board survive to this day as slumber parties and dinner parties both continue to break out the board, turn off the lights and play with the taboo game (not to be confused with the game of Taboo, which, like the Ouija, is also manufactured by Hasbro). The basic board has even evolved beyond a cardboard platform and plastic planchette, and lives on in high-tech with a multitude of talking board iPhone apps.

For a detailed history of this fascinating and divisive game, visit Murch's Ouija site to get the complete story. And if you're feeling brave enough tonight and want to celebrate, head over to your local Toys "R" Us, pick up this glow-in-the-dark board for $23 (sold in the Family board game section), turn the lights down low and begin talking to the talking board. But don't blame us if it starts to talk back.

'Doctor Who' companion to take TARDIS to Loch Ness?

Because we sort of painted ourselves in the corner with paranormal pop culture instead of, say, "sci-fi pop culture," it's not often we get to talk about the awesomeness that is Doctor Who. But today, everything's coming up Milhouse.

It turns out Scots actress Karen Gillan, who plays the eleventh Doctor's companion Amy Pond (shown here), wants the TARDIS to hunt for Nessie. Gillan tells Scottish newspaper the Daily Record she's been badgering the show's Scottish producer to do a "Scottish special."  Sound like a lot of Scots? You betcha.

"The Scots are taking over," says Gillan. "I said to Steven that we should do something with the Loch Ness Monster in Inverness." She adds, "I would love to see someone like Billy Connolly in the show ... I just think we should have someone who's a big character and who is really funny. Someone like that,who is Scottish."

As it happens, comedian Connolly (who, depending on your age, is best known to American audiences as Mr. MacGregor in Head of the Class or as Il Duce in The Boondock Saints) almost took over as the eighth Doctor before Paul McGann eventually became the Time Lord.

If the Scottish episode did happen, it wouldn't even be the first time Nessie would make an appearance on the show. Doctor fans might remember the Zygons tried to use the cryptid to wreak havoc back in 1975 - but back then the monster was just an alien cyborg known as a Skarasen.

'The Cryptid Factor': The best radio show you're not listening to

During a lively debate about the sense of humor and fun that sometimes goes missing in the paranormal world, I brought up The Cryptid Factor, my current favorite radio show that gets it right and keeps it light. I was shocked my friend, who keeps up on all things crypto, hadn't heard about the show. So this is an attempt to do my part and spread the word ...

The Cryptid Factor is a funny but informative New Zealand-based radio show about cryptids hosted by Rhys Darby (Murray from Flight of the Conchords), David Farrier and producer Leon "Buttons." The show includes interviews (Loren Coleman has alread been on), eyewitness accounts, good music and a lot of chat. Don't miss it.

It streams live on 95bfm Sundays from 9-11 a.m. in New Zealand, which means (thanks for the cheat sheet Craig):
12:00pm-2:00pm Sat (Los Angeles)
2:00pm-4:00pm Sat (Chicago)
3:00pm-5:00pm Sat (New York)

And while you're at it, follow the show on Twitter and Facebook. A promo for the show and the best of Murray from Conchords embedded for your enjoyment after the jump.

The Night Shift: Sardines in a Crypt

The Night Shift is the on-set diary of Fighting Owl Film's new independent supernatural-adventure-comedy of the same name currently in pre-production in Mobile, AL. Over the course of the next several weeks and months, you'll get an insider's peek at what it's like for filmmakers to craft a new entry of paranormal pop culture from Erin Lilley, a producer and actress on the film.

Sardines In A Crypt

When I was a kid, we used to play a game called "Sardines in a Can;"  it was like "Hide and Seek" except that one person hid and everyone else had to find him. Each time he was found, the seeker had to squeeze into the hiding spot with the original hider. The game continued until everyone was hiding in the same place, squished together like sardines. I hadn't thought about that game in years, and only bring it up now because I had to play a variation of it last week.

The new name is "Sardines in a Crypt."

Here's how you play: Start with a very small space (ex: a bedroom) and dress it to look like a crypt. Try to build a false door for the crypt too, as this will make the space even smaller. Then bring in furniture, props, small appliances or anything else that can take up space. Extra points if you can bring in an entire bed. Next, make sure you have plenty of light. Crypts can grow very dark, so the bigger and hotter the lights, the better. Finally, add in a camera, tripod, monitor and some sound equipment. Don't forget the boom mic!

By now, the space should be almost impossibly tight. But here's where the fun begins!

Rental Reviewer: 'The Uninvited'

Whether it features ghosts, monsters or aliens, no movie is too sacred from fresh critique when at-home critic Denise Purvis dons the guise of the Rental Reviewer and explores the best (and worst) of paranormal pop culture.

The Uninvited

Since I recently re-watched The Ring and rekindled my love for it, I decided to give The Uninvited a whirl because both are from the same producers. The film received mediocre reviews when it was released in January 2009 - and was certified "rotten" with 32 percent on RottenTomatoes - but did acceptable business for a horror movie and grossed about $29 million domestically.

The plot: The film opens with a devastating house fire that kills Anna’s (Emily Browning) terminally ill mother. This fire disturbed young Anna causing her to be institutionalized for attempting suicide. She has convinced herself that Rachel (Elizabeth Banks in a VERY unlikely role for her), her father’s girlfriend and previous nurse to her mother, caused the house fire in order to kill her mother so she could move in on her father (David Strathairn). Needless to say, little Anna and her sister Alex are a little tweaked out by Rachel and are involved in a series of shenanigans to try to figure out anything about her. There are some twists and turns in the plot, but generally this is fairly predictable and very unspectacular.

The scene: Of course, I have some serious fascinations with people twitching and morphing (like the spider-walking old dude in The Unborn). The most interesting scene in the film is when Anna’s boyfriend creeps into her window, starts stripping down and then the camera closes in on his spine and you hear it cracking and

The Conspiracy Nut Report: Satan's PIN & RFIDs

Known only as The Conspiracy Nut, this writer comments frequently on his theories of machinations, scandals and conspiracies in paranormal pop culture and their connection to the real world. The views reflected in The Conspiracy Nut Report are wacky and (probably, hopefully, maybe?) completely untrue, and definitely not those of ParanormalPopCulture.com.  However, they are fun to read and if you want more, follow him on Twitter.

RFIDs & Satan's PIN

Somebody is watching you right now!  Don’t bother to turn around; you can’t see them, but they can sure see you. In this electronic age, between security cams, cell phones, the Internet and citywide surveillance - not to mention all the satellites - more people are watching you than were watching Joanie Loves Chachi. So how is this paranormal?  Well, with the way things are going, it won’t be long before we all bear the mark of the beast. That’s right, I’m talking radio-frequency identification (RFID) chips, baby!

Here is a brief history of this little demon:  

Invented in 1969 and patented in 1973, but only now becoming commercially and technologically viable, RFID tags are essentially microchips and the tinier, the better. Some are only 1/3 of a millimeter across. These chips act as transponders (transmitters/responders), always listening for a radio signal sent by transceivers or RFID readers. When a transponder receives a certain radio query it responds by transmitting its unique ID code, perhaps a 128-bit number, back to the transceiver. Although some do, most RFID tags don't have batteries. Instead, they are powered by the radio signal that wakes them up and requests an answer.

Paranormal Pop Passion: 'Gabriel'

Each week paranormal romance author Caden Leigh will give her take on love and sex in both mainstream and supernatural entertainment. The Florida-based scribe of The Silver Septagram, published by Captiva Press, always has an opinion on what's hot - or not.

Gabriel (2007)

Synopsis: The war over purgatory has begun. The righteous Angels must defeat the corrupt Fallen, who have turn perdition into their own personal playground. The souls held in the dark limbo are forced to do the Fallen's bidding. So far, all the archangels (known as Arcs) sent to put an end to the ominous dominion have fallen short. Gabriel is mankind's last hope to save netherworld, and he must transform into a human to enter this middleground.

Sensual Gabriel (Andy Whitfield) roams the streets of purgatory, which has become a gritty cityscape, while new emotions, needs and desires twist in his mind. Luckily for the viewer, he has delicious Jade (Samantha Noble) to help him adapt. Jade is the former archangel Amitiel, who has been defeated in battle and  forced to give up her wings. 

Passion Points: I waited patiently for the love scene. The sexual tensions intensified through out the movie between the hero and heroine. Finally, the anticipated scene was delivered. Unfortunately, it was like watching daytime television - under the sheets, a few peek-a-boo scenes, hungry sensuous kissing, but not the rawness I expected. All in all, 'Gabriel' left me tepid and unable to reach a desired boil.

Demand a Google Ouija Doodle!

This Friday marks the 120th birthday of the Ouija talking board, and to celebrate, we're requesting you email Google to host a Google Ouija Doodle - like the cool playable one they created for Pac-Man's 30th last week. Regardless of your feelings on its use (yeah, yeah it opens doors and is a gateway), the Ouija is a significant part of paranormal pop culture.

To request this Ouija Google Doodle for this Friday, May 28, email proposals@google.com. The more requests they receive, the better the chances this will happen.  Also, to learn more about the history of the Ouija, please visit the site of our good buddy Bob Murch, the talking board historian, and his online home of the Ouija, WilliamFuld.com.

'Amityville Horror' house up for sale

Have a love of haunted history and a cool $1.15 million to spare?  Then head out to Amityville in Long Island, NY, to buy the house where evil was a landlord (cue music)...

Built in 1927, the five-bedroom Dutch Colonial house, "set sideways" and located on a canal, is the site where Ronald DeFeo Jr. murdered six family members in 1974. It is also the home where George Lutz and wife Kathleen lived.

After moving in in 1975, 28 days later (never a good number), the Lutzes moved out because of evil ghostly happenings in the building - which was also investigated by Ed and Lorraine Warren. The tale cemented the home's place as one of the most famous in modern paranormal pop culture, and was the basis for Jay Anson's 1977 book, The Amityville Horror: A True Story, along with the James Brolin and Margot Kidder movie in 1979 and the updated 2005 film starring Ryan Reynolds.

According to Newsday and Luxist, James Cromarty bought the house in 1977 after the bank foreclosed on it and lived there 10 years without incident. He and his wife sold the house in 1987 to Peter and Jeanne O'Neill and they sold the house in 1997 for $310,000 to the current owner.

The realtor's listing states the waterfront home is located on 108 Ocean Ave. - changed from the previous address of 112 Ocean Ave. to protect owners' privacy - has 3,600 square feet, 11 rooms, hardwood floors, a solarium and boathouse.

The realtor fails to mention the, shall we say, "colorful" history of the house and opts for a side view of the house. This front view, taken by me, is slightly more recognizable but still different from the forboding structure made famous in the movies. If you're considering purchasing this property, there's probably a huge "buyer beware" sticker attached, but there's been no word about supernatural activity in the home since the Lutzes left.

Finally, based on a personal visit, this is a gorgeous, quaint neighborhood that make bleeding walls almost worth it for this price.

Fool moon fever: Teenage werewolves new teenage vampires

We've expected for some time that werewolves would be the next paranormal pop culture pets after vampires and zombies. Now, aside from True Blood's Alcide or Team Jacob's crowd, MTV is preparing to shoot their horror series Teen Wolf, based off the 1985 Michael J. Fox van-surfing comedy classic.

What we didn't predict, but should have in a bitingly sarcastic post, is the I Was A Teenage Werewolf subculture that would emerge as a result of the werewolf's rise. Yes, teen wolves are the new teen vampires (which were the new emo, which were the new goth).

In the video embedded below is the story of "Wolfie Blackheart" and his club - sorry, "wolf pack" - in San Antonio, Texas. It would seem Wolfie, along with other high schoolers are howling, putting in fangs and animal contact lenses, and wearing leashes and stapling plush tales to their dumb asses as a way to rebel - wait, I'm sorry, as a way to express themselves and find community. The pups claim they don't want to be scary, but the detail of a missing dog's skull being found in Wolfie's possession is just a tad glossed over in the video.

And the money quote from a teen wolf in the "news" segment: "We're not a gang at all ... gangs are poseurs; they just want attention." Riiiight.

Personally, this strikes me as a connect-the-dots non-trend the media enjoys cooking up (Really? Van Helsing as inspiration?). Still, even if this is happening only at a handful of schools, as Dread Central puts it, "suddenly the vampire lifestyle seems more dignified."

Seriously, am I the only one who misses Marilyn Manson right now?

Hot Topic enters sales 'Twilight'

Is Stephenie Meyer's vampire franchise entering its twilight years?  It's too soon to tell, but it would seem so, according to Hot Topic - the faux-goth/punk mall store (for teens who want to rebel at retail prices).

As reported on Friday in The Wall Street Journal, last week Hot Topic a worse-than-expected 13 percent decline in April same-store sales. The figures are "worse than analysts' expectations of a 7.9% decline and following prior-year growth of 3.1%. For months, Hot Topic's results were bolstered by merchandise tied to the popular vampire film Twilight, but sales have slid of late." Moreover, as reported in TheStreet.com, Hot Topic isn't really expecting the release of Eclipse, the third Twilight Saga film installment, to bolster sales that much.

The Hot Topic numbers may be the second part of a trend that began with Lagardère - the parent company of Hachette Book Group (the Twilight Saga publisher) - which showed a 6.5 percent drop in sales from the most recent quarter compared to last year. The reason for the drop, according to Lagardère: "The expected erosion in Stephenie Meyer sales".

As business news Web site BNET astutely notes, "The problem with building a business model based on trends is that a runaway train of success can end in a screeching derailment based on the whims of 14-year-olds" who may be on to the next big thing and less likely to buy up every Twilight-branded product.

Tara Normal: One Panel Preview

Each week at Paranormal Pop Culture, we give you a taste, morsel, delicious crumb and even appe-teaser of a new Tara Normal comic contained in one single panel from the upcoming installment of the adventures the coolest comic paranormal investigator out there. You will be left with many questions (What will happen next? How will Tara get out of this jam? What does it all mean? Why is there gratuitous comic nudity on display??), but few answers - until the next day when you can head over to TaraNormal.com to see the entire entry. We also encourage online harassment of creator Howie Noel at the site and on Twitter @hcnoel. Enjoy!

Tara Normal: One Panel Preview of ...
Case #2: The Men Who Stare At Goatmen, Scene 28

This week Captain Unknown Soldier, host of Captain Unknown Soldier's Scary Movie Show, tells Tara Normal his origin story ...well, actually he just hands her a copy of his origin story issue from his comic book series.

But, is it a limited edition comic? Will Captain Unknown Soldier sign it? With his own name? Will he instruct Tara on proper polypropylene bagging a collector's issue like this?

Find out tomorrow at TaraNormal.com.

'Lost' & 'Empire Strikes Back': Pop culture milestones, same weekend

'Empire Strikes Back,' courtesy LucasFilm

It is a dark time for the Candidates. Evading the dreaded Smoke Monster, a group of island castaways led by Jack Shephard have escaped the Widmore sub and established a new temporary base on the remote Dharma Island. The evil demigod Man In Black, obsessed with finding Shephard, is dispatching a final plan to kill the survivors and escape the far reaches of the island …

On May 21, 1980, The Empire Strikes Back opened in theaters and has been received as not just a great film in its own right, but as one of the best blockbusters and finest sequels in movie history. On Sept. 22, 2004, Lost premiered on ABC and has since become one of the most celebrated dramatic shows in television history.

It seems fitting – and worthy of the prologue/plot mashup above—that the 30th anniversary of The Empire Strikes Back occurs on the same weekend that Lost will conclude with the two and a half hour series finale. In addition to being personal favorites that blew my mind, earned slavish devotion and launched countless conversations, both are significant pop culture institutions that changed what many of us can expect from entertainment, but also what entertainment can expect of us.

As a child, The Empire Strikes Back was a film I loved and loathed. It was my first “What? Aw, hell no!” movie. It ended on a down note where the villains won, the Big Bad made a shocking reveal that stomped the hero’s soul and the audience was left with a three-year cliffhanger. I was too young to remember much about

Ohio Ghost Society brings life back to cemetery

Just a quick round of kudos for the Nearly Everywhere Ohio Ghost Society. The Newark Advocate reports the paranormal investigative group is giving back to a local cemetery with volunteer cleanup work. Ghost hunting groups are often supporting historic locations through fundraising and paid investigations, but this goes above and beyond.

The full article:

An Ohio ghost group is taking its love of ghosts and respect for the dead to a cleanup of an old city cemetery. The Nearly Everywhere Ohio Ghost Society plans to spruce up Rowland Cemetery in Canton on Saturday. The group's goal is to remove litter, mow grass and place about 40 toppled headstones back on their bases. Society president Andy Pearson said he was appalled by what he saw when he visited the cemetery. The 2.3-acre site, with its last burial eight years ago, has graves dating to the early 1800s, including the remains of some of Canton's earliest residents.

The Night Shift: Sweaty Like The Wolf

The Night Shift is the on-set diary of Fighting Owl Film's new independent supernatural-adventure-comedy of the same name currently in pre-production in Mobile, AL. Over the course of the next several weeks and months, you'll get an insider's peek at what it's like for filmmakers to craft a new entry of paranormal pop culture from Erin Lilley, a producer and actress on the film.

Sweaty Like The Wolf

Scene: Exterior Cemetery, Night.

A young woman runs among ancient headstones, screaming for our hero to rescue her. The cause of her distress, a snarling wolfman, is hot on her heels. The young woman races to a nearby obelisk, hiding behind it in hopes the wolfman will miss her. He doesn't. Under the light of the full moon, the two play a game of cat and mouse around the old monument. The wolfman sees his chance for attack and swipes his claws at the young woman and ...

'Lost' auction lets you never leave the island

So you left the mysterious island and things weren't as peachy as you'd hoped when you returned home? You found yourself growing an awful beard, becoming an addict and seeing the ghost of your dead father?

Well, even though want to scream "We Have To Go Back!" the good news is you never have to leave, and you can continue living your island dreaming with the Lost prop auction being held at Profiles In History.

Featuring 100 very cool items from the show, find your own Lost experience. Included in the items are Locke's knife set, Jin's wedding ring, Mr. Eko's walking stick, Charlie's DriveShaft ring, Hurley's winning lottery ticket, Desmond's DHARMA/Swan Station failsafe ring, and more.  And since you're bound to get hungry and thirsty while evading a smoke monster, pick up a bottle of DHARMA rum and some DHARMA food too.

'Entertainment Weekly' obsessed with death of 'Lost'

Like most of us who have dedicated the last five and a half years to it - and stuck it out despite Nikki, Paulo, Bai Ling and hiatuses - Entertainment Weekly is going gaga with goodbyes to Lost.

Led by "Doc" Jeff Jensen, the magazine has led exhaustive, thought-provoking coverage of the show (seconded by Jimmy Kimmel for exhaustive, light-hearted coverage), so it seems a natural fit for the publication to go a little nuts as we head into the weekend of the finale on May 23.

With the end in site, EW apparently has death in mind, since the coverage includes some fun tidbits on "30 Key Deaths," interviews with the dead, and my favorite, the Lost "Portraits of the Dead." Show here (actor Harold Perrinaeu who played "Michael" and is otherwise a gifted musician), the photos are creepy in concept and evoke memento mori "death portraits."

Kudos to EW, and especially photographer Michael Muller, for making me squirm with these too-realistic death portraits of characters we came to know.

'Ghost Whisperer' canceled

After 106 episodes aired on CBS since its premiere in 2005, Ghost Whisperer starring Jennifer Love Hewitt has expired in the eyes of the Eye network.

But Melinda Gordon fans should have faith since EW is reporting Whisperer will be resurrected for another life at ABC - which just happened to Medium last year when CBS picked up the show from NBC.

Ghostbusters haunt NYC (sorta), 'Ghostbusters 3' still on track (really)

Remember the opening scene of 1984's Ghost Busters in the New York Public Library reading room where a ghost is shown brushing up on lit? Well, the spontaneous joy guerilla group Improv Everywhere certainly does.

The group, known for pulling off "missions" to inject a little harmless humor in people's lives staged an event in the famous reading room to remind people of the movie - and, with the library's help, to remind folks that the budget-strapped institution is cool.

The gag begins with three "ghosts" in white sheets with eyeholes cut out, separately making their way into the room to take a spot at a computer (to look up "Could a person come back to life after they die?") or browse through a reference book. At one point a security guard talks to the ghost, and although the audio can't be heard in the video below, the guard reportedly asked, "Sir, what are you doing?" The ghost's reply: "Um… haunting the library."

The affair attracts some giggles, but when four 'busters make their way into the reading room to look for specters, observers begin snapping away with cellphone cameras and getting into it. A chase ensues and the Ghostbusters run the sheeted specters out of the library and into the streets of Manhattan.

Truly classic work, Improv Everywhere.  Plus, you reminded me of an important news bit: FilmShaft reports Harold "Egon Spengler" Ramis confirms that GB3 is still on, and will hit theaters in Dec. 2012. That confirms what Dan Aykroyd told me in March.

And what of the on-again/off-again involvement of Bill Murray, who told David Letterman it's his nightmare? He sounds like he's warming to the idea and told Coming Soon he was thinking, "You know, maybe I should just do it. Maybe it'd be fun to do ... the guys are funny and I miss [Rick] Moranis and Annie [Potts] and Danny [Aykroyd]. Those people are some people that were really, you know, I miss them. I think that's really a big part of it."

Although Murray adds that the plotline about him being killed early in the film and returning as a ghost has been his joke, and is "sort of half-true, half-joke."

Tara Normal: One Panel Preview

Each week at Paranormal Pop Culture, we give you a taste, morsel, delicious crumb and even appe-teaser of a new Tara Normal comic contained in one single panel from the upcoming installment of the adventures the coolest comic paranormal investigator out there. You will be left with many questions (What will happen next? How will Tara get out of this jam? What does it all mean? Why is there gratuitous comic nudity on display??), but few answers - until the next day when you can head over to TaraNormal.com to see the entire entry. We also encourage online harassment of creator Howie Noel at the site and on Twitter @hcnoel. Enjoy!

Tara Normal: One Panel Preview of ...
Case #2: The Men Who Stare At Goatmen, Scene 27

In this week's preview, Tara questions Captain Unknown Soldier, the host of the "Scary Movie Show" - and the Dungeon Master of an "elite" command unit of monster hunters.

Tara wants to know how Cap is involved in the Goatman mystery and how he knows about her. 

Also, who is the Goatman victim that Mayor Bowie told them about?

Find out tomorrow at TaraNormal.com.

Louisa May Alcott gets monster mashup treatment

At what point will we have tapped every literary/real-life historical figure monster mashup possible?  Never, I suppose, but after Abraham Lincoln, Jane Austen (and her Mr. Darcy), Charlotte Bronte, H.G. Wells, Mark Twain, Lewis Carroll, L. Frank Baum, Mary Shelley, Elvis and now The Beatles have been attacked by vampires, zombies, sea monsters, zombie and aliens, the Frankenstein monster, a mummy, more monsters and more zombies, the trend is officially getting tired.

Still, that hasn't prevented Porter Grand and Lynn Messina from getting into the act with their Louisa May Alcott Little Women riffs, Little Women and Werewolves and Little Vampire Women. As reported by Entertainment Weekly, both Little books are already on shelves so you don't have to wait one more second for the literary carnage and the carnage of literature.

One final thought: If the mashup trend can insert monsters and ghouls into stories where there were none, is there potential with the opposite where nice, mundane things occur in classic horror?

Would anyone read a mashup of H.P. Lovecraft - The sweet phone Call of Cthulhu's mom?
How about Edgar Allan Poe - The Tell-Tale romantic Heart?
No?

'Phasma Ex Machina' trailer intrigues, creeps out

Nothing jumps out in a "gotcha" moment; there are no rotted corpses or bloody walls or even ghostly little kids with blank stares. Yet the trailer for the indie ghost flick Phasma Ex Machina (embedded after the jump) is incredibly eerie.

The film, written and directed by Matt Osterman, centers around the main character of Cody (Sasha Andreev shown here), who is raising his younger brother after their parents' death, when he decides to create a machine that will act as a conduit to the other side. Enlisting the help of electrical engineer Tom (Matthew Feeney), Cody is successful, but when the dead returns, they learn there are

'Supernatural,' 'Vampire Diaries' renewed

Not even the Apocalypse can keep Supernatural down. Despite the throwdown with Lucifer (Mark Pellegrino, left, who also plays godlike Jacob on Lost), and the plotline that was supposed to end the show, The CW will be bringing the series back for a sixth season.

Also returning is The Vampire Diaries, which has developed into a reliable ratings draw.

The Night Shift: Deja Vu to You

The Night Shift is the on-set diary of Fighting Owl Film's new independent supernatural-adventure-comedy of the same name currently in production in Mobile, AL. Over the course of the next several weeks and months, you'll get an insider's peek at what it's like for filmmakers to craft a new entry of paranormal pop culture from Erin Lilley, a producer and actress on the film.

Deja Vu to You, and You, and You

This week's night shoots gave me the strangest combination of deja vu and out-of-body experience. I know those are two great tastes that don't normally go great together, but I can explain. When we filmed the short version of The Night Shift, I played the cowboy vengeance demon, Trigger ('cause when your husband casts you because you look shriveled and corpse-like, well, how can a girl refuse?). And this week we shot some of Trigger's first scenes.

Now, when I played the role, the costume was a little weak, and the make-up consisted of an old mummy mask we hot glued to a full-face ninja mask. This go round, the costume and make-up are much higher quality, but it's still very odd to stand there, boom mic in hand, and run audio on someone else saying your lines and performing your actions.

Especially since I'm not the audio person.

That leads me to another little instance of deja vu: 

'True Blood': From book to TV to comic books

The new True Blood comic based on the HBO series, (which, in turn, is based on Charlaine Harris' Sookie Stackhouse "Southern Vampire" series) will debut at July's San Diego Comic-Con, but the four alternate #1 covers are out now.

Developed by show creator Alan Ball and TV writers Elisabeth Finch and Kate Barnow, and co-written by David Tischman and Mariah Huehner, the initial plot of the IDW Publishing six-issue miniseries (previewed on Facebook) focuses on the cast being stuck in Merlotte's with a hungry beast.

For my money, most of the covers look fun and capture the sexy, playful spirit of the show, but Cover 3 - featuring Tara, Jason and Sam - looks goofy. Tara's eyes are just a tad too droopy, Jason is apparently doing his best James Van Der Beek, and not one vampire is featured.

What do you think? Will you read a TB comic or is the show's third season premiering June 13, and the latest Sookie novel Dead In The Family, enough of the Bon Temps crowd? See the embiggenable other covers after the jump ...

'The Cryptid Files' explores children's fiction, Loch Ness

Combining the adventurous inclinations of wondrous youngsters with the mysteries of cryptids is such a natural creative fit, but yet so few people make good use of it within paranormal pop culture. A few notable exceptions include The Water Horse (the Dick King-Smith book and film) and The Secret Saturdays.

Having not read it, I cannot say for certain if British author Jean Flitcroft's new young reader book series The Cryptid Files falls within the same category as the aforementioned two, but I've high hopes.

Revolving around Vanessa, a 12-year-old Irish girl seeking to complete her mother's quest to uncover the mystery creatures of the world, the first book kicks off with a quest for Nessie. Instead of taking chapters to head to Scotland, the story begins fast with a gripping prologue where the girl ends up deep in the drink of the loch. The same pace is again set right away with the as-yet unreleased follow-up featuring Chupacabra.

The book has yet to be published in the United States just yet, but it can be found through Amazon. If you've kids, or just a cryptid fix, check it out.

Zombies 'Play Dead' in new football film

Before this week, I hadn't heard much about Play Dead, but after munching on the film's Web site, I'm digging this "Friday Night Lights of the Living Dead" football/zombie flick.

Based on Ryan Brown's new book, the horror comedy is about high school football team, the Killington High Jack Rabbits, murdered by rivals. When the players rise as walking dead zombies, they decide to exact revenge and save their souls in one last big game "of salvation and damnation."

The movie premieres at New York City's Zombie Crawl on May 30, which looks friggin's sweet, and the trailer follows after the jump.

Zombie Beatles book 'Paul is Undead' movie on way

Abraham Lincoln battles vampires, Jane Austen dispatches zombies and sea monsters and Elvis unravels mummies.

But when it comes to The Beatles, they have to be unique and walk an Abbey-normal Road (see what I did right there?  Nice, right?). Hence, Alan Goldsher's book, Paul is Undead: The British Zombie Invasion, which casts the Fab Four as re-animated corpse rock stars - instead of as the monster hunters - that was just optioned for a movie by Double Feature.

With Seth Grahame-Smith's novel Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter being adapted by Tim Burton, and Natalie Portman planning on starring in the onscreen version of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, the famous face/supernatural mashup is big right now in paranormal pop culture.

As far as the book goes, Paul is Undead hits shelves June 22 and sounds so wrong but very right. Read the synopsis after the jump.

'Super 8' teaser online

There are still so few details about the plot of Super 8, the J.J. Abrams-directed and Steven Spielberg-produced flick hitting theaters in 2011, but teased before Iron Man 2.

The Super 8 Web site is up, but so far just shows a blank, flitting film strip - which might coincide with New York mag's Vulture blog report the movie is about "a bunch of kids who are shooting a movie with a Super 8 camera in the seventies or eighties. When they develop the film, they notice that there's an alien creature in the frame." However, Lost maestro Abrams says, "It has nothing whatsoever to do with Cloverfield," which shoots down Vulture's theory the film is connected to his 2008 monster production.

Personally, I like a good mystery production, and love the idea of a year of teasing and theorizing with a Slusho!-style viral marketing campaign from Abrams and Spielberg. And if anyone can make a giant monster/alien flick worth waiting a year for, it's these two.

The teaser trailer playing now before Iron Man 2 is embedded after the jump.

'The Haunting in Georgia' in pre-production

Following the $77 million commercial success of (critically panned) supernatural horror flick The Haunting in Connecticut, Lionsgate's follow-up/companion piece The Haunting in Georgia is in pre-production with an August start date for a 2011 release. So far we know Tom Elkins is directing David Coggeshall's script.

The Haunting ... movies are "true stories" loosely based on Discovery Channel's A Haunting series, available on DVD, varies from creepy to cheese. The show took off because of the excellent John Zaffis and Warren-led Connecticut case.

The Georgia synopsis, which sounds pretty dang close to Connecticut, is:

Shortly after moving into their ideal new home, a couple grows concerned when their young daughter begins encountering mysterious strangers that no one else can see. The couple's greatest fear is realized when they themselves begin to witness terrifying phenomena in and around the house, providing clues that could unlock a chilling mystery that has remained a closely guarded secret for generations.

George A. Romero, king 'of the Dead' attacks NYC

If you're in New York City this weekend, do not miss out on the chance to see zombie master George A. Romero during a film retrospective at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

The weekend kicks off May 15 and includes an 8 p.m. screening of the latest (and fifth) Romero zombie film, Survival of the Dead, followed by a Q&A with the director. The original 1968 Night of the Living Dead (shown) will also show on Saturday, along with the non-zombie flick, The Dark Half.  The weekend retrospective continues on Sunday with showings of Monkey Shines and Creepshow.

The trailer for Survival of the Dead embedded for your enjoyment after the jump ...

Tara Normal: One Panel Preview

Beginning this week, myself and the folks at Paranormal Pop Culture are proud to introduce a collaboration with Tara Normal, the coolest comic paranormal investigator we've had the fortune of ogling. Each week we'll give you a taste, morsel, delicious crumb and even appe-teaser of a new Tara comic contained in one single panel from the upcoming installment. You will be left with many questions (What will happen next? How will Tara get out of this jam? What does it all mean? Why is there gratuitous comic nudity on display??), but few answers - until the next day when you can head over to TaraNormal.com to see the entire entry. We also encourage online harassment of creator Howie Noel at the site and on Twitter @hcnoel. Enjoy!

Tara Normal: One Panel Preview of ...
Case #2: The Men Who Stare At Goatmen, Scene 26

In this panel, we see Captain Unknown Soldier, host of the "Scary Movie Show," arrive to ... do what, exactly?

He's saying something that may be of importance to Tara as she hunts for tips at the shack of the murderous goatman's latest victim.

Maybe he wants to team up and fight the goatman together. Or perhaps he's just scolding her for drop-kicking his wizarding buddy Ted from Scene 25. Or perhaps he's just sharing laundry tips on how to keep red spandex tights vibrant.

Find out tomorrow at TaraNormal.com

The Night Shift: First day of shooting

The Night Shift is the on-set diary of Fighting Owl Film's new independent supernatural-adventure-comedy of the same name currently in pre-production in Mobile, AL. Over the course of the next several weeks and months, you'll get an insider's peek at what it's like for filmmakers to craft a new entry of paranormal pop culture from Erin Lilley, a producer and actress on the film.

First Day of Shooting

The good news is we're pretty much on schedule, and have some downright fantastic looking footage. The bad news is: It hasn't come easily. Not by a long shot.

When I think of Saturday, and our first day of shooting, the word "disaster" comes to mind.  "Catastrophic" and "plagued" are right up there with it. Now, I could sugarcoat this or pull some PR spin tactics and tell you that it was a learning experience, or that we're referring to it as a dress rehearsal, but I respect you too much to do that. Besides, this is a blog about filmmaking, and rough days happen, so here you go.

For starters, the weather that's been absolutely gorgeous for weeks decided to turn on us with gray skies and tropical storm force winds. Then the camera decided to act up, which led to several hours of phone tag with the Director of Photography (DP), who was called out of town at the last minute with a family emergency.  The girls on the crew had a blast watching my cute, curly hairstyle fall and tangle into a mess that no hairbrush could handle, despite the use of three different anti-humidity hair products, one of which was so strong that it will literally take the color off of your hair if you use too much. The icing on the cake was when Herbie, our robotic skeleton, broke.

Not the robotics, but the actual skull, itself ...

New photos surface of Amazon pink dolphins

While they don't technically fit into the cryptid category - because there is proof of their existence and science can explain them - the Amazon pink dolphin, or boto as they're also known, are so rarely sighted that they may as well be creatures of mystery.

But not to photographer Kevin Schafer, who says he is the first to photograph them in 2008, and who will be showing off his work in June's National Geographic. In an interview with AOLNews, Schafer calls the photos a "project of a lifetime."

The male Amazon pink dolphin gets its bubblegum pink color because of scar tissue from fighting with other males, but interestingly the color has nothing to do with the shapeshifter legend of the dolphins. Within South American Amazon River folklore, the boto transforms into a handsome man at night to impregnate human women - or to sometimes lure men and women to underwater cities, wearing a hat to cover its blowhole while in human form - only to return to the river as a dolphin in the morning.

Schafer apparently didn't photograph any transforming dolphins, but to read more about how these creatures affect the Amazon culture, visit eco-adventurer writer Bill Belleville's site to read an excerpt about the boto from his book, Sunken Cities, Sacred Cenotes and Golden Sharks: Travels of a Water-Bound Adventurer.

Michael Imperioli joins ghost & mortgage horror 'Foreclosure'

The Hollywood Reporter revealed today actor Michael Imperioli (The Sopranos) would be leading the new mortgage crisis/haunted house horror Foreclosure.

Written and directed by Richard Ledes, the story has a tagline of "ghosts don't move out" and "sets its action in a nearly empty, economically depressed neighborhood block, amid the real-life context of the mortgage crisis where so many homes are bank-owned." It's set to begin filming in Queens, NY, next week.

For Imperioli, who also starred in The Lovely Bones and wrote/directed The Hungry Ghosts, this isn't his first work with a paranormal theme. It is unclear what his role will be in the movie, but we're crossing our fingers he is haunted by the ghost of his ex-girlfriend, FBI mole Adriana, who annoyingly calls him "Chris-tuh-fuh" for two hours.

ABC News: Russian governor alien abduction victim

God bless journalist Alexander Marquardt of ABC News. The guy is an accomplished reporter who has covered U.S. presidential elections and is now based in Moscow as a correspondent.  But for right now, he is most known for his alien politician story.

Marquardt reported yesterday about the strange story of Kirsan Ilyumzhinov - the wealthy chess champion and Russian governor of the Buddhist Republic Kalmykia shown here - who revealed on TV last week he was an alien abductee. Ilyumzhinov claims he was taken from his Moscow apartment to a space ship where aliens communicated with him telepathically. He added the aliens weren't ready to reveal themselves to humanity, but were willing to show him around the ship and to let him leave. Ilyumzhinov also claims he has three eyewitnesses to the event.

As if that's not juicy enough to make it into mainstream network new, ABC also reports Russian parliamentarian Andrei Lebedev wants Ilyumzhinov interrogated by President Dmitry Medvedev. Lebedev made a written request to the president and expressed concerns that Ilyumzhinov may dished to the aliens on secret information, and wonders how much the governor told the aliens about his job. Lebedev also wonders how Ilyumzhinov's visit has affected the governor’s ability to perform his duties.

So not only is it interesting, and a nice chunk of paranormal pop culture, that a politician is claiming to be an abductee and that other members of his government believe/suspect him and that the Russian head-of-state may get involved, but this has picked up traction in the mainstream media and become big news - and is unfortunately the largest story poor Alexander Marquardt will likely ever cover.

On the upside, maybe Marquardt will at least get a cool alien abduction lamp as a gift from Ilyumzhinov for his troubles. 

UFO lamp beams up cattle, beams down cool

Now this is one piece of DIY home art that oozes otherworldly style. Created by artists Jason Dietz, these Alien Abduction Lamps will be featured at the Bay Area Maker Faire May 22-23, reports Make magazine.

Standing at 5-feet 5-inches tall, the paranormal pop culture lamps are made out of recycled glass tubes, light diffusers and acrylic rings. They hold 10 gallons of water each, and use a series of different lights with an air pump that produces the tractor beam bubbles. Dietz says, "the theme is a cow being abducted out of a grassy pasture - look carefully to see the cow in the giant plasma tube."

Check out the lamps in action in the video after the jump.

'Sasquatch vs. Chupacabra': Clash of the crypto titans

I don't know how they got these two to sign on for a project together since they're both so busy with artsy flicks and nature documentaries - oh, and with evading discovery too, of course.  And yet it looks to be happening.

In 2010, from the director and producer team of Fred Olen Ray (Sea Snakes, The Lair), and Kimberly A. Ray (Woke Up Dead, Komodo vs. Cobra, Megaconda), "cryptozoology meets the crypt" in Sasquatch vs. Chupacabra.

I haven't been this excited since De Niro and Pacino shared screentime in Heat.