Skeptic: Promoting Science and Critical Thinking
Episode Notes for
The Columbus Poltergeist
(featuring James Randi)
FRAME 25: Famous photo of Tina Resch and the “flying phone.” Copyright © 1984 by The Dispatch Printing Company. Photographer: Fred Shannon.
James Randi
Early in March of 1984, the Ohio newspaper The Columbus Dispatch began to tell the tale of a 14 year old girl who was undergoing a terrible ordeal. Objects in her house began to fly across the room and smash. Clocks ran faster than normal. Silverware and china flew and broke. Several witnesses reported seeing these terrifying events and a newspaper man caught photos of a telephone flying through the air in front of the frightened teen.
Tina Resch, a foster child, was in the care of a couple who, over the course of 31 years would take care of over 250 foster children. Was she just seeking attention? Or was she being plagued by the terrifying paranormal phenomena known as a POLTERGEIST?
We talk with James “The Amazing” Randi on his recollections of this case and on the tragic life of a poltergeist victim. Randi highlights the case in his upcoming book, A Magician in the Laboratory (digital excerpt).
Additional Reading
- Tina Resch
- The Tina Resch (Christina Boyer) legal case
- William Roll, Parapsychologist
- The Guyra Ghost (Australian Poltergeist)
- The Enfield Ghost (Australian Poltergeist)
- Poltergeist (The Skeptic’s Dictionary)
Music
- Restless Spirits: Underscore by David Beard
- Restless Spirits: Beat C by David Beard
- Churchyard by David Beard
-
Monstertalk Theme: Monster
by Peach Stealing Monkeys
The views expressed on this program are not necessarily the views of the Skeptics Society or Skeptic magazine.
search
Donate to Skeptic
at no cost to you!
Planning on shopping at Amazon.com? Start your shopping by clicking the button below, and the Skeptics Society will receive a commission. Your prices for all Amazon products will remain exactly the same, yet you’ll provide essential financial support for the work of the nonprofit Skeptics Society.
See our affiliate links page for Amazon.ca, Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.de, and iTunes links.
FREE PDF Download
Top 10 Things You Should Know About Alternative Medicine
Harriet Hall, MD (aka the SkepDoc), shares her wit and wisdom about alternative medicine including: chiropractic, the placebo effect, homeopathy, acupuncture, and the questionable benefits of organic food, detoxification, and ‘natural’ remedies.
FREE PDF Download
Learn to be a Psychic in 10 Easy Lessons
Psychic readings and fortunetelling are an ancient art — a combination of acting and psychological manipulation. While some psychics are known to cheat and acquire information ahead of time, these ten tips focus on what is known as “cold reading” — reading someone “cold” without any prior knowledge about them.
Super Deal!
$8.95 autographed!
The Mind of the Market
by Michael Shermer
In this eye-opening exploration, Shermer uncovers the evolutionary roots of our economic behavior and explains how evolution shaped the modern economy.
ORDER the hardcover
Super Deal!
50% off the cover price!
now only $7.98 paperback
now only $10.98 hardback
The Bible
Against Itself
by Randel Helms
The Bible frequently seems to contradict itself. Randel Helms discusses these contradictions by looking at the cultural and historical factors that produced them.
ORDER the paperback
ORDER the hardcover