Britt Griffith Joins Amy Bruni, Adam Berry In 'Ghost Hunters' Exit, Jason Hawes To Appear (And Film) At TAPS Gathering

BY AARON SAGERS

The "Ghost Hunters" franchise continues to be haunted by more bad casting news. Following last week's announcement that Amy Bruni and Adam Berry were departing Syfy's unscripted paranormal series, investigator Britt Griffith followed suit Saturday with a social media statement that he'd also be leaving the show.

Posted on his public Facebook page at 1:20 p.m. ET, Griffith stated, "A bunch of you are asking me if I to [sic] am leaving ‪#‎GhostHunters‬ just like Amy and Adam. The short answer is; Yes...."

"It was an honor to work for Craig, Mike and Ita at Pilgrim Films and I wish them and Syfy nothing but success," Griffith also stated.

When reached for comment, Griffith told me his "release contract" prevented him from discussing the details of his departure. However, he did say, "I did not ask for more money or any special perks; it was simply time for me to move on."

But that timing is indeed intriguing. Griffith's departure comes as Syfy's longest-running reality series heads towards its 200th episode, which Griffith will be a part of, along with the tenth anniversary of "Ghost Hunters" and its tenth season. Moreover, his announcement comes immediately following Bruni and Berry's, along with a bit of a social media brouhaha and statements from series lead/producer Jason Hawes, which suggested the duo was making unreasonable financial demands. (Check out my breakdown of the situation that followed the initial Deadline report, along with my confirmed predictions about replacement cast members).

Griffith has been with "Ghost Hunters" since 2008. He departed the flagship show in 2010 to join its spinoff "Ghost Hunters International" (in episodes airing early 2011). He was briefly removed from that series due to derogatory statements he made during an interview, but was soon forgiven and back on "Ghost Hunters." He has since also hosted a "Britt's Gear Guide" on Syfy.com to accompany new "GH" episodes.

The paranormal investigator has also shifted towards an acting career in the past few years, most notably on the horror "The Black Dahlia Haunting" and in the new movie "Dead Sea," on which he also serves as executive producer.

To that end, Griffith said on his Facebook page he will "continue to produce movies for Micro Bay Features and may even take on an acting role or two."

With Griffith gone, the show likely needs three replacements. According to a source close to the show, I correctly predicted former cast members KJ McCormick and Dustin Pari would be returning to "Ghost Hunters." While McCormick hasn't said anything about the news online, Pari has retweeted multiple congratulatory messages without denying them and acknowledged on Twitter he was "just going in to help out."

So will the third "Ghost Hunters" replacement come from the Pilgrim Studios casting call that was posted last week? I won't put my money on it. As I previously stated, I don't think Hawes would want to bring an outsider into his group. Instead, I think Hawes is going to attempt to cast internally through TAPS (The Atlantic Paranormal Society) -- the ghost hunting team he co-founded, which is featured on the show -- while also try to mitigate any negative publicity garnered from the recent departures.

For instance, a source passed along a message sent late last night, June 1, from a TAPS Family management announcing Hawes would be appearing with a camera crew at the group's annual meeting -- which is taking place this weekend in Missouri.

According to the message, a camera person would be filming "at Jason's discretion," with the purpose of shooting Hawes and perhaps veteran "Ghost Hunters" cast members Steve Gonsalves and Dave Tango. Further, the post stated that management is uncertain whether filming would appear in an upcoming episode or "exactly what the implications are" beyond a focus on Hawes.

My source tells me Hawes has not been able to attend these annual meetings the last couple years due to last minute issues or illnesses. So this appearance from the organization's leader, who happens to be a television personality, has to be a big deal for these folks.

That's worth noting because I think a couple things will be happening at the event. First off, this filming is being assembled at the last minute, and one could surmise it is as a response to the exits of Bruni, Berry and Griffith. But if Hawes is bringing his own camera operator, and it isn't Pilgrim or a Syfy representative who has reached out to the event organizer, might the lead ghost hunter be conducting his own casting call?

If Hawes doesn't want Pilgrim casting an outsider, there would be few better opportunities than for him to connect with a TAPS Family team member and present them as a candidate for his show. A fringe benefit of this appearance is to collect video of Hawes interacting with a supportive group, and demonstrating his leadership abilities and personality.

After all, both "Ghost Hunters" and Hawes could use some positive PR right now. Regardless of which party is telling the truth about the reasons behind the cast turnover, his "Impossible Demands" reaction following the Deadline report on Bruni/Berry set off a series of contentious tweets.  As the marquee name of "Ghost Hunters," Hawes' TAPS Family appearance might be a fast way to achieve some good publicity. And I would guess this footage will appear online in a matter of days following the gathering.

There are still months ahead before "Ghost Hunters" returns with new episodes this October. Syfy has plenty of time to focus on the 200th episode and tenth anniversary, and whatever big special will accompany those milestones. But even as proof of the paranormal remains elusive, there is definitely evidence of a changing "Ghost Hunters" franchise.

What's in store for Season 8 of 'Ghost Hunters'?

Jason Hawes, courtesy Syfy

Now that Grant Wilson has departed the TAPS team, what is in store for the Ghost Hunters? According to Syfy, here is the rundown of the first four of 14 episodes of Season 8.5:

A SERIAL KILLER’S REVENGE
Wednesday, Sept. 5, 9 p.m. ET/PT
Charleston, South Carolina has the distinct honor of winning Ghost Hunters’ America’s Hometown Ghost Hunt contest. TAPS heads straight to the historic Old City Jail, where America’s first female serial killer, Lavinia Fisher, spent her last few days alive before her execution in 1820.

'Ghost Hunters' promo offers peek at new beginnings

Grant Wilson is gone but the rest of the TAPS teams is still on the hunt for paranormal evidence. In the new promo for Ghost Hunters on the Syfy network - returning for season 8.5 on Sept. 5 - the team seems to take on some nasty entities who like to scratch.

Also, Tango mentions that "rules are changing," so what rules is he referring to? And who will step up to take Grant's place? Our bet is on Steve. Finally, did we catch a glimpse of a new female investigator?

Stay tuned for answers...

'Ghost Hunters' promises shocking news

Hawes and Wilson, courtesy Syfy

If you were watching Ghost Hunters on Syfy last night, you know that the promo for the Feb. 15 episode promises the "most important news" in the show's history.

Let's break it down, shall we? The ominous announcer voice talks about a "team member's shocking announcement" as Grant Wilson nervously tugs on his waistband. That is followed by Amy Bruni at a table - surrounded by investigators Adam Berry, Britt Griffith, Steve Gonsalves and Dave Tango - asking if they "think it's bad news or good news" (kudos to Griffith for ever being the actor in the shot with his shifty, knowing eyes). The news likely doesn't involve anyone sitting at that table. The next shot is of Gonsalves tearing up (which is a complete anomaly unto itself) and Tango biting his lip, so that suggests they were shocked, so the news isn't about them. Then we see the team lining up for hugs, with Bruni hugging someone wearing a gray top. Note that Wilson is in a gray North Face fleece. Wilson is heard in voiceover saying, "this is just crazy." The next scene is Hawes and Wilson outside, talking to one another. Wilson is postured defensively (arms crossed) while Hawes is shifting on his feet and positioned almost aggressively as he says, "It is what it is." In a series of quick cuts, we also see a dry-eyed Hawes, a teary-eyed Wilson, more of Gonsalves crying (!) and Griffith saying he feels like he's going to puke.

Based on how the promo is edited, it certainly suggests that Grant Wilson is exiting the show and that Jason Hawes will be sticking around. That seems fairly certain.

The fairly far-out prediction is that Hawes fired Wilson, or that it could be presented to look that way. That would be a shocker, and we're doubtful about that. Plus they wouldn't want to turn Hawes into a bad guy character on the show. But whatever Hawes' role is, he clearly doesn't look happy.

More likely is the dude just wants to spend time with his family after doing the show for more than seven years, and who could blame him? It could also mean something more of a downer involving illness, etc., but it would seem like the promo would be edited with more of a sensitive tone if that were the case (and we certainly hope it's not).

The other outlying answer might involved Berry since there are no reaction shots or soundbites from him, but that would be a large amount of fanfare surrounding his departure if so. Unless he killed a client or something.

...Or maybe they're just bringing back "villain" Brian Harnois.

'Ghost Hunters' recap: Dead and Breakfast

L-R: Steve Gonsalves, Britt Griffith, Haily Hawes, Amy Bruni,
Adam Berry, Dave Tango from 'Ghost Hunters'
Halloween Special. Courtesy Syfy 

BY AMANDA POOLE

Location: Thomas House, Red Boiling Springs, Tenn.
History: The Thomas house was built in 1890 by the Cloyd family. Many of the family members perished in the home over the years. The original house burnt down and was rebuilt in 1924.

Claims: The homeowners live in the now bed-and-breakfast and report many strange occurrences. They hear footsteps and whistling, and have seen full body apparitions. The two most frequent apparitions are of an old woman whom the homeowners believe to be Mrs. Cloyd, and of a little girl who they call Sarah.

Investigation: Jason and Grant start on the second floor, and soon began to hear footsteps. As they walked around the area, searching for the source of the noises, they hear very clear and loud whistling. With no explanation on who was making the sound, Grant calls it, “freaking wild."

Pennhurst Asylum: Site of 'Ghost Hunters Live' Oct. 31 show

1934 photo of Pennhurst

ParanormalPopCulture.com has exclusively learned that Pennhurst Asylum in Spring City, Penn., will be the site of Syfy's Ghost Hunters Live Halloween show on Oct. 31. The asylum, just 45 minutes away from the Philadelphia airport, was founded in 1908 as a way to deal with the mental and physically ill of society. This will mark the second time in 2011 that the TAPS team will visit the site. The first was investigation was last March's "Pennsylvania Asylum" episode.

Originally known as the Eastern Pennsylvania Institution for the Feeble Minded and Epileptic, the asylum was founded on at-the-time progressive ideas about dealing with the "defectives" of Southeastern Pennsylvania. Over time rampant allegations of abuse emerged from within Pennhurst's walls. Overcrowding and neglect led to patients being drugged, restrained, locked up and left for long periods as a form of control; patients were also often left to fend for themselves over nights and weekends when doctors or staff were absent. Patient rape and beatings by staff were additionally reported. Focus was placed on the deplorable conditions of Pennhurst in a 1968 five-part expose series by NBC10 news (which you can watch here). The institution was then at the center of a major lawsuit in 1977, which was heard in the U.S. Supreme Court in 1980, that established the constitutional rights of the mentally ill patients had been violated. This was the nation's first lawsuit of its kind. Pennhurst forcibly closed in 1986 and has since become known as one of the country's most haunted locations.

What's interesting about the choice of Pennhurst for the live show is that the location hosts a Halloween haunted house attraction. Even though the Pennhurst campus takes up 112 acres with more than 20 buildings, it would seem the haunted attraction could provide unique challenges to securing the investigation site.

The first time TAPS investigated Pennhurst, Grant Wilson reported hearing a disembodied voice saying "Spring City;" Jason Hawes and Grant both saw a shadow figure; Adam Berry and Amy Bruni heard dragging noises; audio was collected of a voice saying "go home" along with an EVP of a giggling child. Whether the ghosts of Pennhurst exist or not, the tragedy of this location was all too real. Pennhurst has also been featured on Ghost Adventures in 2009 and Paranormal Challenge in 2011.

What do you think about Ghost Hunters investigating Pennhurst for Halloween? Do you think there is a better location? Will you watch? Who would you like to see as a guest investigator? Do you want to see Josh Gates back as a host? Sound off on our forums.

'Ghost Hunters' Hawaii sneak peek

As you probably heard, Ghost Hunters are kicking off their summer season tonight at 8 p.m. with an hourlong investigation of Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. To tease the event a little, we thought we'd share a couple images Grant Wilson sent our way.

The first is the control tower of Pearl Harbor, which Wilson tells us was "untouched since the attack."

The second, is of Hangar 79. Wilson says look closely and, "you can see the bullet holes in the windows from the Japanese Zero planes strafing the building."

Also, an interesting fact about the GH Hawaii episodes (which also include some guests like Josh Gates): They were being filmed during the tragic Japanese eathquake and tsunami last March. The TAPS crew actually was on alert, and had to take cover in an old Frito-Lay factory during the initial tsunami warning, when Hawaii appeared to be in danger.

Syfy gives 'Ghost Hunters' Season 8, 20 eps in 2012

According to a news release:

"Ghost Hunters, Syfy’s longest-running original reality series, has been renewed for an eighth season.  Since its 2004 premiere, Ghost Hunters has spawned two spin-offs (with over 200 episodes among the three series), cementing its place as the #1 paranormal franchise in cable. 20 all-new episodes for season eight are slated to premiere on Syfy in 2012.

On Wednesday nights at 9pm for nearly seven years, Ghost Hunters has set the standard for paranormal series, offering viewers spine-tingling cases from the files of TAPS (The Atlantic Paranormal Society) - led by Rhode Island plumbers Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson.

To date, season seven (premiered February 2010) has attracted 1.1 million Adults 25-54 and 1 million Adults 18-49.

The next episode of Ghost Hunters airs at a special night and time: Wednesday, June 1 @ 8pm and features an hour-long case in Hawaii.  Guest Josh Gates (Destination Truth) joins the team as they investigate paranormal claims at the Pacific Aviation Museum in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.  The museum’s original plane hangars stand as they did on the fateful morning of December 7, 1941, and still bear the bullet holes and bomb craters from the attacks that precipitated U.S. involvement in World War II.  Visitors and employees alike have reported several startling experiences at the museum, suggesting that the site’s history has made it a hub for paranormal activity.

Ghost Hunters is produced in association with Craig Piligian's Pilgrim Films and Television (Dirty Jobs, The Ultimate Fighter, My Fair Wedding).  Piligian and Thomas Thayer, along with Rob Katz and Alan David, serve as executive producers."

Paranormal Pop Culture Film Fest: Stanley Hotel, Colo., May 6

Ghosts are heading to the famous Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colo., this week - and they're bringing a few zombies, demons and other supernatural beings with them - to entertain amateur investigators and your favorite paranormal celebrities from Ghost Hunters, Fact or Faked: Paranormal Files and Psychic Kids.

In a first for "The Shining" hotel and a paranormal convention of this size, and sponsored by ParanormalPopCulture.com, Beyond Reality Events and TAPS ParaMagazine, three highly-anticipated paranormal films will be shown as part of a "Paranormal Pop Culture Film Fest" at The Stanley Hotel beginning Friday, May 6, 2011, and continuing through Sunday, May 8.

The festival films - Grave Encounters, Ghost From The Machine and The Night Shift - will be shown in conjunction with a weekend event that includes presentations and investigations of The Stanley with TAPS members and Ghost Hunters Britt Griffith, Amy Bruni and Adam Berry; Ben Hansen and Bill Murphy from Fact or Faked; psychic/medium Chip Coffey from Psychic Kids and Paranormal State; and Paranormal Pop Culture historian Aaron Sagers.

"I'm really excited to add another great element to our events," says Griffith, one of the event organizers. "For a long time our guests and investigators have been able to have fun learning about the paranormal - and actually investigating with us - but now they'll be able to check out cool new paranormal movies too."

Each film included in the festival, shown previously in limited releases, has picked up good buzz. 

Having only made its world premiere April 22 at the Tribeca Film Festival, the found footage film Grave Encounters, is a buzzed-about movie directed by "The Vicious Brothers." When the crew of a ghost hunting show, led by arrogant investigator Lance Preston (Sean Rogerson) is locked down with its small team in the abandoned Collingwood psychiatric hospital (which is actually a real facility in British Columbia), they're filming one another as they seek proof of hauntings from the institution's dark past. But when the team begins to encounter activity, they learn too late that the building itself is alive and isn't ready to let the investigators go. Often compared to the smash hit Paranormal Activity, Cinema Blend calls the horror a "scary and enjoyable experience," while The L Magazine says Grave Encounters is a "f---ed up mindfreak."

According to the official synopsis, Ghost From The Machine "explores the grey area between life and death and how science may be the bridge between the two." When his parents die, Cody must raise his younger brother James. To cope with his loss, Cody explores the "science" of the supernatural. While ignoring his duties to his brother, he invents a machine to be a conduit to the afterlife. After befriending engineer Tom, who is dealing with his own grief, Cody's machine becomes more successful than intended - and has opened a door to something that threatens the safety of the living. Written and directed by Matt Osterman, and starring Sasha Andreev, Variety calls the slow-build intellectual suspense film an "impressive feature debut" and and "reminiscent of The Sixth Sense in its subtle creepiness."

Holding its world premiere at the "Paranormal Pop Culture Film Fest," the adventure-comedy The Night Shift asks the question, "What if you could live forever?" Sounds cool, but things get tricky when you have to spend an eternity stuck guarding a cemetery with only a limbless corpse as a friend. Based on the Fighting Owl Films original short film, the feature revolves around night watchman Rue Morgan who spends the nights fighting zombies (and other supernatural scourges) and his days pining for graveyard dayshifter Claire. Fangoria called the short film a "very entertaining effort" with "light hearted good humor." The star of The Night Shift, Erin Lilley, is also a contributor to ParanormalPopCulture.com.

"These are all great movies on their own," says Britt Griffith. "They are going to be hits with regular movie audiences, so the fact that we get to show them together as part of our event - to a crowd of paranormal lovers, ghost hunters and fans of all these TV shows - that makes this all the cooler."

The "Paranormal Pop Culture Film Fest" marks the first time paranormal investigative films have been shown as part of a paranormal investigative event, and the first time each movie has been shown together. An inspiration for Stephen King's The Shining, the festival is also a first of its kind for the historic Stanley Hotel.

Tickets are still available for the weekend event and film festival at BeyondEvent.net/stanley.

Syfy 'Ghost Hunters' premiere sneak peek

The TAPS team is back on Syfy for Season 7 of Ghost Hunters, and the top-rated paranormal show is shaking things up with some new equipment and a couple other surprises in what is billed as the biggest, scariest season. In tonight's premiere at 9 p.m. EST, Jason and Grant visit Alexandria, La., to check out local haunts The Hotel Bentley, Finnegan’s Wake Tavern and Diamond Grill Restaurant. 

According to Syfy:

While at the Diamond Grill, Jason and Grant search through the kitchen for some paranormal activity.  We assume it’s probably not the best area to search with knives and sharp objects hanging around, but they decide to scope it out anyways.  Jason quickly sees a big black mass down the hallway as it jumps into another room after he felt like it was staring back at him before the hairs on his own neck stand up.  The thrill of the hunt leaves Jason feeling excited about the sighting, but he’s still shaken up by his encounter.

Here's a sneak peek at the premiere. Also, in case you hadn't seen it yet, check out the slick new Ghost Hunters promo touting Season 7. Embracing the scare factor of the show is an exciting new marketing move on the part of the Syfy network (along with a new logo, shown above).  Do you think it will work?

Can't watch tonight's Ghost Hunters premiere alone? You're in luck: ParanormalPopCulture.com is hosting a liveblog viewing party online, beginning at 8:30 p.m. EST. So come visit this space for fun and contests.

Ghost Hunters of Christmas Present, Season 6 finale

Tonight marks the Season 6 finale of Ghost Hunters and they are signing off from 2010 on a holiday note.

As part of Syfy's Christmas week, the team heads to the Christmas Farm Inn in Jackson, NH.

According to Syfy:

"Built back in 1778, ownership of the Inn has changed hands several times since its construction. With one proprietor having died on site, the TAPS team is keen on getting to the bottom of reports of the paranormal. While it may be Christmas time all the time for patrons of the estate, it’s time to get down to business for the Ghost Hunters."

On another Christmas/Ghost Hunters note, columnist Laura Merwin of Masslive.com came up with a cute "12 Days of Ghost Hunters" holiday card for her weekly blog.  We wanted to feature it here and give her points for being way more festive than us.

TAPS/Eastern State Penitentiary Liveblog Contest Winners

After receiving hundreds on entries, there could only be seven winners from the Ghost Hunters/Eastern State Penitentiary trivia question contest. Congratulations to everyone who entered, and please keep an eye on this blog for future contests.

Also, a big thanks to Eastern State Pentientiary and Beyond Reality Events for contributing prizes. 

By the way, Gov. Gifford Pinchot sentenced Pep the Dog to ESP, The Dead Milkmen filmed the video for "Punk Rock Girl" at the prison and a plaque commemorates inmates who served in WWI.

$50 off Rolling Hills event: DeeVideo
Yearlong subscription to TAPS Paramag: JudyLC830
Yearlong subscription to TAPS Paramag: Hollywood0414
Eastern State Penitentiary Mug: HorsLuvr2
Eastern State Penitentiary T-shirt: LucyChance
History of Eastern State Penitentiary book (autographed by author Fran Dolan): ChristianeElin

Limited Edition, autographed "Tara Normal" comic: Richie Ace

Please email contest@paranormalpopculture.com with your name and address to collect your prize.

Ghost Hunters/TAPS liveblog investigation of Eastern State

Stanley Hotel liveblog

The Ghost Hunters/TAPS take on The Stanley Hotel, part two

[Editor's Note: This is a follow-up to Part One of the Ghost Hunters/Stanley Hotel]

The sprawling Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colo., is more than a luxurious resort in the Rockies; it’s a symbol for so many stories from America’s past.

It stands on land wrested from a greedy British Earl who had acquired it in an illegal land grab. It was built with the wealth and adventurous spirit of F.O. Stanley, the ingenious creator of The Stanley Steamer automobile. It opened in 1909 with superior amenities and technology for the time, and became a destination for the nation’s powerful, but was also a boon to the residents of the town below.

Then, in the mid-1970s, the historic landmark became a pop-culture one when author Stephen King checked into the hotel for one night with his wife Tabitha and stayed there alone on the final night of the hotel’s season. Roaming the empty halls, King developed the plot for The Shining, a horror classic about a haunted hotel out to destroy a snowed-in family of caretakers.

The Ghost Hunters/TAPS take on The Stanley Hotel, part one

The hollow plastic sound of a Big Wheel rolling down corridors populated by twin girl specters in blue dresses, and the rampant property damage incurred by a tidal wave of blood and reckless axe usage, are the indelible sensory associations with the 1980 Stanley Kubrick film, The Shining – and by extension, with the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colo., that stood in for the fictionally haunted Overlook Hotel.

Yet the cinematic Overlook shares less in common with the Stanley than it even does with the Overlook from Stephen King’s literary source material upon which The Shining is based. Instead, as any casual paranormal investigator or ghost story enthusiast knows, the spooks that supposedly frequent the Stanley are as interactive, albeit less murderous, than those of celluloid.

The tales make the Stanley one of the most famous North American spectral spots of apparitional appeal; a haunted hotspot where spirits may gather to roam the hallways, play the piano and carry on as if on permanent vacation. Those tales are also what attracted the TAPS team there twice in 2006 for a televised Ghost Hunters investigation and live Halloween event, and for the July 7 Ghost Hunters Academy season finale – as well as several times since for ticketed events.

The original episodes yielded amazing evidence that rank among the show’s best and earned the “haunted” seal. Each team member seems to have a favorite part of a Stanley investigation after the shows and events.

“The Stanley was one of the big ones we’d always wanted to get to and once we did, it did not disappoint,” says Jason Hawes who says he looks forward to each investigation there – and to pulling pranks on fellow TAPS members if there’s an axe handy.

“Hey brother, it’s The Shining hotel. How can you resist?”

Investigate The Stanley Hotel with TAPS

After watching the Live Ghost Hunters investigation tonight, get into the act by joining the team at The Stanley Hotel on Nov. 5-8.

Visit Beyond Reality Events to purchase tickets for the investigation of the historically haunted hotel with TAPS and Chip Coffey.

If you can’t visit, follow along with Paranormal Pop Culture expert Aaron Sagers’ live audio/video blog of the TAPS investigation:

• Saturday, Nov. 6
• Midnight, EST
• www.beyondrealityevents.com

'Ghost Hunters' premiere sneak peek

Chip Coffey and Amy Bruni investigating the Otesaga
Hotel, January 2010. Photo by Aaron Sagers

Alright TAPS-heads and para-philes, Christmas has come a day early with this sneak peek of Wednesday night's premiere episode of Syfy's Ghost Hunters. There appears to be a lot of good locations popping up this season (technically the second half of the sixth season).

The first episode takes place at the Otesaga Hotel in Cooperstown, NY. I was lucky enough to join TAPS at the hotel last January before the team filmed, and let me tell you, it was fun watching them investigate a fresh location not famous for ghost stories. I think this will be a good one.

Also, as an added bonus, I've included a photo of Amy Bruni and Chip Coffey during our time in a supposedly very active room of the hotel, that may or may not be haunted by a child ghost.

Ghost Hunters airs Wednesdays, 9 p.m., ET.

'Tara Normal' gets graphic: Making of a comic book series

Each week artist Howie Noel, creator of online comic heroine and savvy paranormal pop-culture investigator Tara Normal, checks in with a "making-of" blog entry about his upcoming graphic novel, Tara Normal and the Case of the Boyfriend Robbers From Outer Space. Howie uses this space to give a first look at artwork and to update readers on the pain and suffering of writing a full-length comic book. When not blogging, Howie also contributes a special edition of the Tara Normal strip to TAPS Paramagazine and spends way too much time on Twitter @hcnoel.

'Tara Normal' gets graphic: The cover

(ahem, in best Troy McClure voice) Hi, I'm H.C. Noel (Howie Noel). You may remember me from such sneak previews as the Tara Normal One-Panel Preview...


So, I recently became represented by the awesome literary agent Bree Ogden of Martin Literary Management. She's currently helping me bring my creation Tara Normal to the literary world in the form of a cool series of paranormal graphic novels. Right now Tara investigates with TAPS, the stars of SyFy's Ghost Hunters, in her own comic in their Paramagazine.

But my graphic novel series will explore how she became a professional paranormal investigator in the first place. I'm really excited to share her backstory and all of her supernatural adventures with you. Along the way, I'm going to offer some behind-the-drawing desk information about my journey in making my paranormal comics, and I"ll give you a sneak peek on how I create my art.

So the best place to start with the artwork of the first book is the cover. I had several thumbnail sketches and my wife Shelley helped me choose the one that had the most exciting composition. From there I penciled and inked it. The coloring stage, which I do in Photoshop, is always an exciting step in creating my comic art. I get to do cool effects and lighting and in this series, I'm really going to try and push the moodiness factor more than I have in other artwork.

The cover for Book 1: Tara Normal & The Case of the Boyfriend Robbers From Outer Space features my version of aliens, and on this cover, they have red eyes to make them appear creepier and help them stand out on the blue background. I went with a more painterly approach when I colored Tara than I usually do when I work on the webcomic.

I'm really happy with the result and I'm looking forward to continuing to color the rest of the book this way.

My wife helped me revamp the Tara Normal logo for the cover. I wanted it to be more slimy and realistic so an actual photographic of slime makes up the 3D effect on the logo. I also reworked the shiny highlights. She also worked on the placement and design of the subtitle text creating a very cool lightning graphic to go behind the words to add an extra element to the cover.

I really hope you enjoy this look behind-the-scenes and I can't wait to share more art of Tara Normal next week! In the meantime, please check me out tonight (Tues, July 27) at 8 p.m., ET, as I join Jeff Belanger on his show, 30 Odd Minutes to discuss all things Tara.

Syfy's 'Fact or Faked: Paranormal Files' team speaks

There was a time when you’d gather around the campfire and everyone had a ghost story to tell. Now, thanks in large part to the reality-TV paranormal genre, it seems everyone has a story with accompanying video.

When Ghost Hunters premiered on the Syfy network in 2004 it popularized the notion anyone could pick up a video camera and possibly find evidence of the paranormal - and so they did. Along with the dozen other similar programs that dominate cable, seemingly thousands of amateur ghost busters and monster hunters launched Web sites and YouTube channels to show off their proof of the supernatural.  And it would seem just as many set out to spoof or goof those serious-minded investigators with hoaxes.

That’s where former FBI agent Ben Hansen and his team (above and right) on Syfy’s new show Fact or Faked: Paranormal Files comes in.

Premiering tonight at 10 p.m. EST, the show is a paranormal MythBusters; as opposed to other programs in the genre that looks into claims, this one switches it up slightly and essentially investigates the investigators.

Instead of seeking their own evidence or taking on clients, per se, Hansen’s crew of supposedly three years – which includes scientist Bill Murphy and journalist/Destination Truth alum Jael De Pardo along with an effects specialist, photography expert and stunt expert – explores video submissions and famous paranormal footage to determine which can be validated or debunked through experimentation.

For instance, in the first episode, the team tears through a few appetizer videos before selecting on two to investigate: The viral “ghost car” video from Georgia that shows a motorist evading police at “supernatural speeds” before phasing through a solid fence, and a collection of extraterrestrial lights over Phoenix, Az. The team travels to the spots where the events happened to interview eyewitnesses and recreate the video events.

In a recent interview, team leader Ben Hansen, scientist Bill Murphy and Executive Producer John Brenkus spoke about Paranormal Files (after the preview below):



Q: When did you know that you wanted to investigate ... was it when you were with the FBI or earlier in your life?

Ben Hansen: Okay, well I actually was about 10 years-old, my father got me kind of interested in this. We used to watch sci fi movies, we used to watch like The Thing and The Fly and those types of things late at night. And he got me interested in UFOs, he started bringing me books to read on it.

I wasn’t really aware at the time but he had a connection with his father, my grandfather. He worked actually at Wright Patterson Air Force Base, I don’t know if you know about that base, it’s where supposedly some of the wreckage from Roswell was sent.

Well my grandfather worked there as a civil engineer and throughout the years of talking with him he always kept his oath of secrecy that he made with the projects he was working on. But in so many words he let my father know that we’re not alone. So this kind of piqued an interest in my father and in turn he and I kind of bonded on this level where we became just tremendously interested in mostly UFOs.

I remember seeing E.T. when I was younger and really becoming interested in the possibility of life on other planets. So to kind of go back, no, I was not, per se, investigating the subject in any professional or official sense when I was working with the Bureau or with any other agency. But I always kept it as kind of a hobby until I developed a group and we kind of got into the ghost hunting and other aspects of it.

Bill Murphy: I’m just going to comment quickly about what really attracted me to the show. First off I should state that Ben and I had been operating in the same circles for years ... and so when Ben and I met we developed a very quick rapport and we realized we’re on the same page but maybe taking it from different angles.

Ben’s formal experience has been in law enforcement. Myself, I’ve been involved in the paranormal for a couple of decades, it kind of goes way back with my family.

And with my family and growing up as a child with it was very skeptical. It was almost like I’m listening to the older folks talk about the tales and just about sort of skipped through it without necessarily putting a whole lot of weight into it. Until I got old enough to see that these things were kind of going on around us but I wasn’t satisfied with just hearing the tales nor was I satisfied with what I thought my own perceptions were.

I thought I needed to be able to validate these experiences through technology. And so I set about to begin the documentation process. So when Ben and I met and we spoke it was just like instant connection. And so I felt that this opportunity for me was a really good fit because I had been the skeptical believer, if you will.

... And sometimes that isn’t a popular position to take when you’re entrenched in the paranormal community. The community looks for gratification from evidence but is it the evidence of the paranormal? Is it misidentification? Is there an explanation that science more readily accepts? Well this show takes a look at all those things and all those possibilities and we come up with the best possible answer.

Q: What is the most convincing evidence that you’ve picked up off the show that viewers will not see. Also, have you had a moment where you or any of your team, has encountered something that really couldn’t be proven through evidence but you just had to believe it; you just bought into it even though you couldn’t support it?

Ben Hansen: That’s a good question. Two questions. Bill do you have something off the bat, I’ve got a few.

John Brenkus: Let me actually just jump in first ... I think that one of the first things is in the debut show you’ll see that we investigate some mysterious lights in Arizona and we genuinely - I was there on the shoot - we were all there on the shoot and genuinely we caught something that we simply can’t explain.

We all witnessed it and we were extraordinarily fortunate to capture it on tape and you know it’s one of those things that we caught that we can’t say for absolutely certain that it is something paranormal but it’s certainly something that’s unexplainable as of today.

I’m really excited to share it with the audience, that was definitely one of the highlights of the series so far.

Ben Hansen: And that’s really big for John to say that. John is actually one of the biggest skeptics ever. I could bring him a UFO on his lawn and he’d say it was fake.

Bill Murphy: You know, I have to agree with John. John, that was an amazing moment to have happen and it was ... to be there while it occurred, it’s one of things where you know can you believe your own eyes? Because seeing is supposed to be believing and in that case we had to believe our eyes. But what I’ve learned since then ... is that sometimes seeing is not believing.

Sometimes you can’t believe what you’re seeing and there’s an alternate explanation but in the case of what happened in Arizona, that was a truly phenomenal occurrence to have happen. And I’m glad it did, to that point it was early in the morning, we were all damp and cold and I think nobody was aware of the environment once our eyes were on the sky and we saw what we saw.

It was quite a sight for us.

Ben Hansen: Talk about something that maybe that you’ve seen not on the show, something the best evidence of something you’ve experienced that wasn’t on the show.

Bill Murphy: Yeah, that was one of the questions. Well something that has happened - and again, I think everybody here on the show is focused on looking for an explanation that you can personally accept easier as opposed to moving it into the category of being paranormal. But with that being said, I went to a location in Colorado where there were reports of some sort of - it wasn’t necessarily TK (telekinesis) what was happening there, it was people were being - reporting being touched and shoved by an unseen force. And I found that to be interesting because I kept hearing thing from a lot of people. So when I was there, I was going through the location and yeah, it’s a beautiful historic place.

Although I was enjoying the architecture, I walked through this area of the hall and it was like I had dozens of vibrating cell phones in every pocket. It felt like all the sudden everything vibrated on my body. And I stopped, I was like, "Hey, what was that?"

And I backed up, took a couple steps back and I felt it a second time but wasn’t as strong as the first time. And I had to sort of just not laugh but I shook my head in disbelief in going these reports have a validity. There is something here but what is it? As it turned out, there could be an explanation for what people described as being touched by an unseen force and it has its roots in hard science. It has its roots in the geology of a location and sometimes there are enough characteristics of a locale that when they come together they can cause a phenomena that can be perceived as being paranormal.

If you took an interdisciplinary approach to it and combined sciences, then you can come up with a rational explanation that can be considered paranormal because it’s hard to duplicate that and that is one of the requirements for something to move from theory to fact. Can you replicate it? Can you replicate this effect?

Paranormal phenomena isn’t always repeatable even in a lab and that’s what makes it confounding. Because you can’t deny the existence of these events but they don’t adhere to the protocols that are in place for something to move out of the theory range. But you have to look at people trend setting of this thing to happen. If something happens over and over and over, you know there’s a certain credibility that comes from the accumulation of witnesses.

And if you can sort of demonstrate how it can happen scientifically then voila, we’ve done our job from a science perspective.

For me, having the experience of an unseen force seeming to press against you, was quite astounding but it wasn’t what we thought it was. You weren’t being touched by an external force, it was a shape change to the skeleton and to the skull as a result of piezoelectric activities of the minerals in the location. So you feel your skin moving but it’s happening under the skin as opposed to on top of the skin.

Q: That still leaves the question of something that you just really had to believe even though you couldn’t back it up with any evidence or any science.

Ben Hansen: Let me give you an example of something well my two examples. The first one was when I was recently out of college, this is actually the very first time I tried doing an EVP session. I had seen there’s a local ghost hunter group that would play their clips on the radio and things, and you kind of take it with a grain of salt, just as everyone else who listens to these things. And you may even somewhat believe, but you just put it in the back of your minds because you get up and go to work the next day ... it doesn’t really change the impact of your life until you actually hear one of these things yourself.

I was in a memorial - a war memorial park with my sisters and a couple of friends - and we were kind of doing the Halloween thing and going there and doing some recordings. And we’re standing next to this war memorial and I’ve got two recorders going and I was telling my friend I really wish I could have brought them there before they had cleared out a lot of the trees because it looked a lot more spooky and I could have showed them something that would really scare them. Well nothing really happened during the whole investigation until I got home and played the set.

And this was one of the old analog recorders and I played it back and I didn’t even need to slow it down the first time; very clearly I heard the voice of either a small child or a woman. It sounded like it was whispering right against the microphone which really creeped me out because you’re thinking if this is like a person they would have to have been right at my hip.

That’s where the recorder was and it says, “Get brother.” I knew where the females were in the group and my sister was about 15 feet away; we went through every elimination, it couldn’t have been this person, couldn’t have been that person. It gave us the chills.

I played it back for my family over and over and I had to face the realization that quite possibly I had captured something that was not a living person ... there are many theories on to what EVPs are, but the phenomena is real in the same sense I’ve witnessed objects in the sky that - I myself am a licensed pilot, I love going to air shows and things - I’ve seen aircraft that have done things that conventional crafts do not do. And beyond that, I can’t say what it is but the phenomena is real.

So I think I forgot the original question!

Q: Just what would make you a believer even though you couldn’t back it up with evidence.

Ben Hansen: Not just in a paranormal sense, but there’s a lot of things like Bill was starting to say. You know there’s this dichotomy of seeing and believing. Can we believe everything that we see, and if we don’t see something does that mean we shouldn’t believe in it? So I think a lot of people, especially the viewing audience may never have had an experience of their own but there’s a lot of people who believe. And kind of, by proxy or vicariously, you’re able to see through the eyes of what these people are seeing and that’s the great thing about our show.

Many people would not be able to go out to the places we’ve been to. And by bringing them our experience through our eyes I think there is a way that you can believe without actually seeing yourself.

Q: So it’s the absence of evidence is not the evidence of absence scenario then.

Ben Hansen: Correct. I think all discoveries, major discoveries started out with a phenomena that they couldn’t quite explain. Look at electricity and how it was discovered, well you saw the effects of it but did you actually see electricity - what it was doing? And so people started setting up controlled experiments to find out well how can we test that. And I think that’s where we’re at in the paranormal field a lot of times.

We believe it because we know something has happened, has affected one of our senses. Whether we’re able to capture it on film or audio or some other way to demonstrate it to somebody else may be another question.

Q: So what’s the challenge with the tools you have in the field to spot something that could be faked?

Bill Murphy: Okay, well one of the criteria that we have ... is a strong eyewitness. And so if there are multiple witnesses ... that makes for a really strong case because you’re talking about something that is not just a piece of video ... where they shot it but something that physically is there that other witnesses have come forth and said they’ve seen.

And there could be 911 calls or news reports or whatever it takes, reporting an object or a sighting or some sort of event that’s happened. Those are strong cases, so the video is bolstered by multiple eyewitnesses or if there are limited eyewitnesses then there’s a credibility you have to look at.

What are the motivations for this video being posted? And if we get there we really don’t pull any punches to try to replicate the video. So the challenges are something that I don’t think we’ve had stop us. Generally we try to stop at nothing once we’re there to demystify the video. I mean we stop at nothing. Really extreme stuff and it’s a lot of fun.

Ben Hansen: When we do come up against those cases that are very difficult, either they’re done very well in CG, we’re just not sure, that’s where I like to use my experience and focus on the poster or the witness who shot this video or provided this photo. For me, it’s a lot easier sometimes to find the signs of deception through the person themselves, and with my experience, I’ve conducted thousands of forensic interviews. On the show, it’s no exception. I like to isolate the witness and use the neutral questions and everything that I would do in a real criminal investigation and try to see if there’s deception there. More likely than not, when people are pinned down and asked if they faked something, most people are not good liars.

So I rely more on that. Bill usually heads up the clarification of images and things like that. I focus on the human aspect. When you finally encounter someone that is faking and you pin them down, I mean you kind of need these people to do your job, they make you sharper and they help put the truth out there.

Q: So are you kind of happy when you find the fakes? Are you happy when you encounter the people that are trying to pull off fake fraud because you need them? And have you examined other paranormal shows and looked at what they consider evidence? Have you made judgments based on that?

Ben Hansen: That’s a really good question ... I’ve seen on blogs, I’ve read people saying you guys should investigate this show or this show, kind of funny.

No, we’re not in the business of telling other people how to investigate or what to do. And as far as being happy about catching a hoaxer, I think sometimes the initial discussions I’ve had with people and the title of the show, sometimes they’re a little confused that we are just trying to evaluate hoaxes or not.

And that’s not the case. When we say fact or faked, faked could also be not that they purposely faked it but that it was a phenomena that is naturally occurring that they captured. In fact ... I’m not going to throw a percentage out there but there’s a great amount of cases we’ve gone out on where I find that the witness is very credible. Even from the start I’m not out trying to prove that they faked this video. Moreso, I’m trying to find out what it was they captured on video. Does that make sense?

So it’s not always was the video hoaxed or not, it’s was the situation a fake situation in that was it natural or other explanation or not.

But yes, if you do find someone who’s purposely gone out of their way to try to pull the wool over your eyes and you’re able to show them that it’s not real, it is kind of satisfying because I think in the professional community of people who really give their whole professional life to investigate the paranormal, it’s disheartening. It really detracts from the real work that’s going on when someone wastes someone else’s time doing this.

I love the fakes if people add a disclaimer: "Look what I was able to produce!" But that’s where the responsibility and accountability comes in so I think it is kind of fun to maybe catch someone every now and then if they really had that intention.

John Brenkus: I think when you see the structure of the show we have this situation room where we sit around and discuss clips. That’s really where you find a lot of the blatant fakes ... When we go out to investigate it we have the cooperation of everybody involved with that case from the people that shot the tape to the eye witnesses to everybody.

So I think that unearthing something that was intentionally faked is probably going to be the rarity because we have the cooperation of everybody involved with the case. It won’t rise to the level of being a case that we’re going to investigate if we can determine that it’s fake before we ever go out in the field.

There are just too many cases out there that meet our criteria that we wouldn’t really waste our time going out into the field and investigating it if we already know that it’s fake. So the cases that wind up being the meat of the show are the ones that we feel are compelling footage with a credible eyewitness and something that is testable.

Bill Murphy: Many occasions evidence of paranormal activity is recorded by accident. Somebody is out there shooting the birthday party in the backyard for example and then something happens and the camera was rolling. They capture that, so those people, they’re looking for either validation of their material or they’re looking for an explanation. So there are many times, just as curious as we are ... it’s not like a lot of people that are out there just trying to fool the team.

I mean I’m sure the Internet is full of that but we do use that filtering process that John mentioned and those are kind of fun to look at but they’re easily dismissible.

Q: You’re not necessarily going to set out to investigate other shows, but on the flip side, are there either shows or investigators doing things you respect?

John Brenkus: Not just because it’s on Syfy, but Ghost Hunters does a great job of bringing a scientific approach to the ghost hunting world and really looking at it. And I think Syfy is doing a great job of covering this topic in a way that an intelligent audience can really enjoy. I think they’ve been very intelligent about not just pandering to an audience and saying, "Look, this must be a ghost." They really like to explore and get into it and I think that that whole group has done some really good work. And we’re really looking to build on the success that Syfy has had and take it to the next level.

Ben Hansen: For me, I just watched an excellent documentary last night, and it was on Syfy, but the one about inside the secret government warehouses. I think it was really well done. They got as far as I think they could in researching that. I like the work that George Knapp in Las Vegas has done breaking the Area 51 story and the Skinwalker Ranch - The book that he co-authored about Skinwalkers. I love reading those things because, especially in books, you have a lot more time to get in depths of the details and see their methodology and what they do.

I try to build on that and I would love to be able to - we’re kind of constrained in some senses. We can’t go out for months to a location and set up an experiment. But those pioneers of the field are those that I really try to follow and respect.

Fact or Faked: Paranormal Files airs Thursdays, 10 p.m., EST on Syfy.