(1997)
BEHIND-THE-BLACK-CURTAIN.ONION
CLICK HERE FOR VIDEO
*Note: The tape has been edited down though it was recorded in real time. The raw footage is available here.
[Video Transcription: edited version]
Time of Day: Morning/Afternoon.
Content: Two men in ski masks drive along a dirt road. Both sides of the road are lined with trees. The footage is time stamped: May/21/1997.
Abrupt cut: The men walk deep in the forest, one holds the camera, the other checks a compass. They walk on. The woods are wet from rain.
From afar they spot short structures. Hanging leaves obscure the view, the camera zooms in. It is a small town.
Abrupt cut: The men walk on the street of the town. The street is littered with leaves. No people appear to be on the street. The traffic light ahead is turned off. They place the camera lense against the glass window of a business to look inside. The business is a hair cuttery. The floor is spotted with black chunks of hair. The mirrors and desks are muted brown by thick layers of dust.
Abrupt cut: One of the men stands at a corner. He stares at the camera hands folded in front of him as if posing for a photo. The camera tilts up. The building behind the man reads "Woodland Sheriff's Department."
Abrupt cut: The men walk toward a house, the address number reads 44. The man ahead turn to the camera. "Forty Four Lantern Lane. April's house," he says. They walk inside.
Abrupt cut: In the kitchen, the camera pans to a dog bowl. The word "Cherry" is written in light red. The camera aims to the back yard. An above ground pool sits filled with stillwater. Mosquitoes hover over it in a black cloud.
They move upstairs and enter the master bedroom. One man pulls open the closet and inspects the clothes inside. His eyes lock on something at the far end of the closet. His partner asks what he sees. The man reaches deep and pull something back.
It is a mask. Black fur covers the snout. The head is round and furless like a pig's. Small antlers rise from the back.
Reaching in again, the man pulls a second mask. A monkey's grin and ursine eyes. They are not animals but rather the mockery of them.
Abrupt cut: The two men are back in the woods, on their way back to their car when the cameraman stops. The man ahead also stops. The cameraman points to something deep in the forest.
A burnt down house.
Abrupt cut: The two men approach the what remains of the house in the woods when the cameraman pans.
There are three more houses in the forest.
Abrupt cut: Inside one of the homes, the camera man explores the first floor while his partner walks up the stairs to the second floor.
A picture frames sits angled atop a mantle. The cameraman leans close to it. The photo shows the woods, though it is taken at night and is nearly impossible to make out any detail.
The cameraman turns as he continues to explore. He pulls open a drawers from a nearby bureau. A VHS sits inside. It is black without any labels. He takes it out and places it in his satchel. He aims the camera up to the staircase leading to the second floor and whistles for his partner. There is no response from above.
He climbs the stairs, knocking and calling, all four rooms are empty.
Abrupt cut: The cameraman moves to another house, he pans right and left while he speed-walks through the woods, searching.
Abrupt cut: He runs through the second and third homes.
Abrupt cut: The cameraman sits on the dirt road, his breath is heavy. He has given up the search.
Abrupt cut: The camera faces a television set in a modest home. Outside traffic can be heard.The screen flicks on, fades blue. The television displays the word PLAY at the top left corner of the screen. The screen turns black as a video begins to play.
*(The following is the only known footage of the incident.)
VIDEO:
From inside a home, the camera is vaguely aimed at a set of windows veiled by white curtains. The camera is steady and low, as if set on a table. The day beyond is gray. Overcast.
For a few moments, there are no sounds save for the hiss of the camera's own microphone.
Then, distant shouts and screaming bleed in from the street. It is impossible to distinguish the voices, though they are many.
A woman's voice, far but clear can be heard: "What is that?" she screams, confused and afraid. And again, "What is that?"
Daylight fades from the windows.
The tape ends.
YOU ARE READING
Woodland, MA
HorrorA collection of Letters, Emails, Diary entries and more documentation found in the town of Woodland, MA after the incident. The Massachusetts Town and Counties Historical Society has gathered these items in hopes of shedding some light on the horri...
