Hey, it's Michelle Newman, and this episode has one of the most unusual ranges of stories we've ever put together in one sitting. Let's get into them.
Erica from San Diego, now living in Eastern North Carolina, calls back with a story from her traumatic childhood. During her parents' violent fights, a mysterious friend named Sally would appear to comfort her in a shared bedroom closet she used as a safe space. Sally had an elongated face, oversized hollow eyes, and a near-permanent frown, unsettling to look at but never frightening to Erica, who says Sally always asked if she was okay. Erica later asked childhood friends from the same block if they remembered Sally. None of them did.
Bobby from Little Rock, Arkansas calls in with a story that reframes an entire piece of American urban legend. The Hook Man story that terrified generations of teenagers is not fiction. It came directly from the real, unsolved 1946 Texarkana Phantom Killer case, a masked gunman who murdered five people parked on lovers' lanes before vanishing without a trace. Bobby's grandmother lived through it as a teenager and passed down the true version of the story her whole life.
Rob from Eugene, Oregon calls in with a backcountry camping story from the Cascades that has left him unwilling to return. He and his friend Chris were circled for two hours by something walking upright on two legs, staying just out of firelight the entire time. At 3 AM, slow, deliberate breathing came from directly outside their tent. Whatever it was walked away on two legs. Rob has not been back. Chris has given up backcountry camping entirely.
And Cindy Ketron from Avon, Indiana returns with a story about her family's Pekingese, Tamara, adopted after her previous owner passed away, along with the unsettling detail that everyone who had contact with the dog before them had died. The first night, Tamara growled at something invisible, a window flew open, the lights cut out, and the bedroom door opened and closed on its own. Once Cindy promised the spirit that Tamara would be cared for, the activity stopped. They kept the dog for ten more years.
00:00 Intro
00:56 Erica from San Diego and her childhood friend Sally
08:40 Bobby from Little Rock and the real origin of the Hook Man legend
12:11 Rob from Eugene, Oregon and the thing that circled their campsite
18:24 Cindy Ketron from Indiana and the haunted Pekingese
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Theme music: Sexy Sax by Cool Cascade
Production: Newman Media