At this point, everybody knows that the original case of The Amityville Horror is a total fabrication. The original seventies film was based on the allegedly non-fiction book about a haunting of a house in New York state, which turned out to be full of totally made up sensationalistic stuff which the author was widely discredited for including. Nevertheless, some legitimately spooky stuff has followed the film adaptations of the book, with some of the most extreme coming with the 2005 remake starring Ryan Reynolds and Melissa George. A few weeks before shooting, a dead body washed up on shore nearby to the set. When production started, Reynolds reported that several crew members had all started to wake up at exactly 3.15 in the morning, every night, mirroring what happened to his character in the movie. All of those cast members also sensed a presence in their rooms. Then there was another real life tragedy connected to the production. The real-life Kathy Lutz, played by Melissa George in the film, died of emphysema whilst the remake was being filmed. George Lutz attempted to sue the filmmakers, claiming he hadn't consented to the movie, only to die of a heart attack before the case was resolved.
Tom Baker is the Comics Editor at WhatCulture! He's heard all the Doctor Who jokes, but not many about Randall and Hopkirk. He also blogs at http://communibearsilostate.wordpress.com/
