THE OUIJA BOARD
One of my favorite subjects when it comes to big screen scares is the use of the Ouija, board aka “The Spirit or Talking Board.” While you may not have a ton of flicks to chose from when it comes to this mysterious portal to the other side, you can always check out what happened to the lovely Tawny Kitaen in the 1986 thriller WITCHBOARD – or Ami Dolenz in WITCHBOARD 2 (1993). If you’d prefer something a little more high brow, let us not forget the quick Ouija reference, Captain Howdy and the horrific possession that Linda Blair had in THE EXORCIST. And if you are keeping score, Blumhouse brought solid scares with the 2016 prequel OUIJA: ORIGIN OF EVIL – and no I’m not going to count the awful 2014 original.
Recently, I had the great pleasure of being interviewed by Robert Murch who is an expert on the history of the Ouija board – Nick will tell you a little more about him in a bit. Along with Nick and Elizabeth Saint from VIDI.SPACE, Mr. Murch is bringing fans a fascinating look at the history, the horrors and everything you could ever want to know about the board. As I was being interviewed, Robert and I began to follow the rules and ask the board a series of questions. The questions were sharply answered, and as the session continued, a small scab on my arm began to bleed. Nothing touched it. Nothing even came close. This old and bloodless scab just started to bleed a steady stream or red down my arm. It stopped as the interview came to a close. And yes, I believe we have this captured on video.
After that particular experience, I was curious as to what Nick’s thoughts are on using a Ouija board, and how often it is part of his own investigations. He gave his own unique and fascinating insight on this mysterious “Talking Board” that some simply call a game, but others believe there is more to than simply a cool thing to do at a party. Here is what Mr. Groff had to say about his own beliefs and experiences with Ouija.
"Throughout my journey I have been in contact with a lot of different types of Spirit Boards. I’m still here to share my stories so I guess they can’t be that bad, right? An experience that stands out the most occurred during an investigation of the infamous ZoZo demon. Weird things started happening in the house while using the Ouija board. The planchette was moving, my name was coming through on the audio devices and dogs started howling in the background outside. At first, like any logical mind I thought it was just the other person moving it, but all the elements coming together like that definitely set the tone for what turned out to be a very strange investigation.
During that investigation, I had a chance to speak to Robert Murch, world's foremost collector, historian, and expert on Ouija and Talking Boards who also serves as the Chairman of the Board for the Talking Board Historical Society. He gave me insight into the history and research he's acquired throughout his life revolving around these intriguing spirit boards that really shed some light on a different perspective.
Since a child, I have always been fascinated by all things mysterious and paranormal. Ouija boards, for many years, have been a go to item for human beings that wish to attempt communication with the other side by using their own minds and bodies to interact with something else beyond our realm. The scariest film I saw when I was kid was "The Exorcist" which used a small scene of a child playing the Ouija board that later triggered a full blown possession upon the child. Another film that used the Ouija board was "Witchboard" by Kevin Tenney. I had the pleasure of meeting him recently and learning more on the backstory of why he wrote and directed the film the way he did.
After hearing and meeting hundreds of different people on my journey, I have learned that people are the main conduit for spirit communication and the Ouija boards are just the tools to enhance the experience. Similar to when older televisions would get static on the screen and with just the right antenna or adjustment of the antenna the video signal would come through clearer. The person using the Ouija board is the interesting part of the experience, because of beliefs and intent being put into the spirit board. As for doorways to the other side, that's for you to find out… as everyone has a different story to share."
So get out your Ouija Board, and invite some mysterious entity into your humble abode. This week it was Ouija, in the next column we may be talking about the very thing hiding in your closet or lurking underneath your bed. Stay turned for the next Nick Groff Investigates… if you dare!