We watch movies to escape reality. Even horror films are designed to entertain us away from thinking about that big report that's due or whether or not you'll get the rent paid on time. It's fun to watch a bunch of no-name teenagers get chopped up, simply because we know it's not real. But, the world is a weird place. If you give it half a chance, it might surprise you with how much more vicious and horrible real life can be. Sure, if you kill Jason Voorhees in real life he stays dead. But, in real life, Jason Voorhees is a clever smooth talker who gets away with it a lot longer than you'd think. On top of that, people in real life seem to be a lot more horrifically creative than most Hollywood writers. From something as simple as needles in candy bars to the unimaginable horror of having to eat your own flesh, we offer this list of horrific, real horror stories.
Real Horror Stories
The real world can often be far more terrifying than the worst horror film. Here are some real horror stories that make Camp Crystal Lake seem like a quaint vacation spot.
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By Evan Saathoff October 28, 2011 |
| 11 | Real Life Vampire |
Obviously vampires don't exist in the real world. There are no fanged immortal creatures out there who burn in sunlight and die if they don't drink blood. That doesn't mean, however, that there aren't people out there who wish they were vampires. They can't live forever or grow fangs at will, but they can totally cover the blood drinking part.
Take this real horror story, for instance. When James P. Riva was 23-years-old, Riva murdered his grandmother. Then, he opened her heart so he could drink her blood. He did this because he thought he was a 700-year-old vampire. He thought his grandma was a vampire, too. According to him, she'd been drinking his blood while he slept... during the day... in a coffin... I guess. That part's unclear because he burned the house down afterwards.
| 10 | Nun Crucifixion |
If you think of some of the most sacrilegious stuff you could put in a horror film just to make it more evil, crucifying a nun would have to rest near the top of your list. Guess what? It happened in real life, and not that long ago either.
This real horror story starts in 2005. A Romanian Orthodox priest chose to crucify one of his nuns, Maricica Irina Cornici, because he thought she was possessed by the devil. Four non-possessed nuns helped him with the task. According to the report, she wasn't even possessed in the classically recognizable Exorcist fashion. She just talked back to him in front of his congregation. That's all the proof he needed, apparently.
| 9 | The Mauerova Family |
This one has it all: a cult, torture, cannibalism, and family. If it were a movie, you probably wouldn't watch it because it's full of those over the top details that always come off as something trying too hard, but this is a real horror story.
In 2008, Klara Maurova and her sister Katerina were arrested for torturing Klara's 8-year-old and 10-year-old sons. The act was an effort to make them religious slaves to the cult they belonged to, known as The Grail Movement, by breaking their wills.
Along with some other relatives, Klara and Katerina put the kids through all kinds of misery, but the award goes to skinning one boy's arms and making him eat it.
The scariest part? The mother received only a nine year sentence.
| 8 | Tug of War |
How can an innocent game of tug of war turn horrific? A couple cases of ripped-off arms might do the trick.
In 1997, sixteen hundred Taiwanese guys set up a massive tug of war game to celebrate the 52nd anniversary of Japan's leaving Taiwan. The rope snapped as soon as the pulling began, ripping off two men's left arms in the process. Forty-five others were injured as well. Amazingly, this real horr story has a happy ending, as both the men's arms were successfully reattached, though with lesser function. So probably no more tug of war, then.
| 7 | Bread Mouse |
Few things are as icky as the real horror story of munching into some good food you're really looking forward to, only to bite down on a dirty rodent. That very nearly happened to Stephen Forse who found a dead mouse smashed into the corner of his loaf of bread.
Forse had already eaten some of the bread and was making sandwiches for his children when he made the discovery. Premier Foods, the company who made the bread, was ultimately fined for low sanity standards, but that does little to alleviate the nightmares brought up by the incident. Of course, the whole thing could be considered a bonus if you happen to be someone who likes to eat mice.
