Top 10 Little-Known Halloween Facts

Halloween is America's second largest commercial holiday, but how much do you really know about its history and traditions? The Examiner lists the top ten little-known Halloween facts.

Halloween, celebrated on Oct. 31, originally started as nothing more than an autumn harvest festival. Today, the holiday is associated with ghosts, costumes and, of course, candy. It has long been thought that Halloween is the one day of the year the dead can return to earth. It is estimated that Americans spend more than $6 billion each year on Halloween, which makes it the United States’ second largest commercial holiday.

Below are The Examiner’s top 10 facts and trivia not necessarily known about Halloween:: Read more

Time Traveler in 1920 Charlie Chaplin Footage?

Filmmaker George Clarke has spotted something unusual in some "behind the scenes" footage of  Charlie Chaplin's 1920 film The Circus. In the brief clip, a woman walks into frame talking while holding a small, thin device up to her ear. If the film were made today, we would assume she was talking on a cell phone, but this is 1920. Clarke thinks that the woman is a time traveler, but if the device is a cell phone, to whom would she be talking?

Air Force Academy Now Welcomes Pagans

Finding enough recruits to fight America's endless wars must be getting tougher. The U.S. Air Force Academy, which not long ago discriminated against non-Christians, is now welcoming pagans.

Just a few years ago, the Air Force Academy was considered such an evangelical hothouse that the place got sued for its alleged discrimination against non-Christians. Today, the Academy is boasting of its thriving pagan community — and its friendliness towards spell-casters.

In a press release issued Thursday, the Academy features Tech. Sgt. Brandon Longcrier (pictured), “the lay leader for the Academy’s Earth-Centered Spirituality community, which includes Wiccans and Pagans from various traditions.” (It’s part of a larger effort by the school to promote an image of tolerance.) Read more

Two Psychics Lead Son to Mother's Prized Necklace 25 Years after Fatal Accident

A son discovers mother's prized necklace at the scene of a road crash that killed her 25 years earlier - after tips from TWO psychics.

A son whose mother died in a motorbike crash 25 years ago has found her golden necklace at the scene of the tragedy - after being tipped off by two psychics.

Mother-of-three Angela Bishop, 42, was killed when the motorbike she was on with husband Michael, now 70, collided with a car in Cornwall in 1985.

The nurse's beloved necklace, which she wore every day, was never found until son Richard Bishop, 48, was inspired to search for it after meetings with the mediums.

Now Richard and his wife Paula claim they found the gold cross necklace at the site of the crash. Read more

Southern Sasquatch Footprint Found in Florida

This footprint was found by Timothy Fasano in the Florida Green Swamp. H believes that it was made by a large Southern Sasquatch.

Are Ghosts and Shadow People One and the Same?

Are ghosts and shadow people one and the same? Paranormal researchers disagree.

Shadow people are paranormal shadow-like creatures that people usually see in their peripheral vision. Reports suggest that they do not appear to reflect light and that their appearance is essentially a silhouette in black.

They usually have no discernible features beyond the general outline of their form. However, shadow people have been reported to have shifted into a more human form and in these instances it is said that sometimes features such as glowing eyes and sometimes mouths or nostrils are discernible.

Reports of shadow people, sometimes called shadow folk, shadow men, or shadow beings, have many similarities with ghost sightings, so many similarities that many paranormal experts consider ghost and shadow people one and the same.

However, other experts disagree and claim that shadow people are a separate phenomenon from ghosts for a variety of reasons. Read more

11 Homes That Are Haunted by Dead Celebrities

America is fascinated by celebrities, so why not dead celebrities, too? Zillow.com has found eleven homes that are haunted by dead celebrities, from Marilyn Monroe to Errol Flynn. An enterprising person could organize a Halloween tour of the ten that all located in the Los Angeles area..

Generally, A-list celebrities enjoy a sweet life of luxury, power and pampering when they hit the big time, so when their time is up on earth, it's no wonder they don't want to leave it.

Zillow.com has picked out 11 shocking tales of celebrity haunted homes. Read more