10 True Ghost Stories That Inspired Horror Films

The Possession is a film about a young girl buying an antique box from a yard sale, unaware that inside hides a malicious spirit. Opening the box leads to an evil spirit taking over her body, and her estranged parents must join forces to break the curse put upon their daughter.

The real story is an intriguing one, with the antique box existing as a charming wine cabinet. Originally bought from an estate sale by Kevin Mannis, the cabinet was allegedly home to a dybbuk - a malicious spirit from Jewish mythology. The first known owner of the cabinet was a Holocaust survivor who picked it up in Spain before moving to America, but was so terrified of the cabinet she never once opened it.

After being purchased by Mannis, the first thing he did was break every horror movie rule and open the cabinet. Typical. Inside it contained various miscellaneous items, including two 1920s pennies, a lock of blonde hair, a small golden wine goblet, one dried rose bud, and a single candle holder.

Immediately after purchasing the box, which he intended to give as a gift to his mother, his shop was destroyed - and his string of bad luck only got worse. After giving the box as a present, his mother suffered a stroke and returned it, upon which he tried to give it away to many friends before they claimed a foul smell and recurring nightmares, giving it back each time.

He eventually managed to sell it on eBay to a student, who then had similar experiences - as well as falling ill to a flurry of painful illnesses and experiencing a plague of mice that would die throughout his home - and grew terrified to the point of losing his hair.

The box is now housed safely in a museum, though the owner still experiences the strange smell and suffers curious diseases linked to the dybbuk.