CASE STUDY:

THE AMITYVILLE HORROR HOUSE

There exists many revival styles in America, one of the most well-known pieces of Dutch Colonial architecture is 112 Ocean Avenue, Amytyville, Rhode Island New Jersey. The house was subject to a book and several film adaptations due to its significant history of brutal murders and an infamous paranormal haunting.

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On November 13, 1974, Ronald Defeo Sr.; his wife, Louise; and their two sons and two daughters were shot whilst they slept. The surviving family member, Ronald Jr., confessed to the murder and was sentenced to 25 to life in prison. (Broderick 2012) explains that Ronald’s outburst was originally blamed on a ‘paranormal’ influence;

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“Defeo’s attorney, William Weber, claimed his client heard voices driving him to kill. Could these same voices have been the ones tormenting the Lutzes?”

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This is in reference to George and Kathy Lutz, who only 2 weeks after Ronald Jr.’s sentencing, moved in. The couple and their 3 children ‘experienced’, over the course of the next 28 days, what would become one of the most famous hauntings in the world.

 

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THE CULTURAL EFFECT

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The most interesting point about 112 Ocean Avenue is that many of the ‘horror’ related history - much of the links toward the paranormal - have been declared hoaxes. Ronald Jr. changed his story often, making him an unreliable source of credibility. However, many stand by both Ronald’s original statement that it was a demonic presence that drove him to kill and with the Lutzes’ reports of paranormal activity.

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The Lutzes reported many, that some would deem fabricated, disturbances in their time at the home, Joe Nickell (Nickell 2004) describes the story as;

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“A bogus admixture of phenomena: part traditional haunting, part poltergeist disturbance, and part demonic possession, including elements that seemed to have been lifted from the movie The Exorcist”

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It seemed that the entertainment value provided by the family and their book deal with author Jay Anson, would provide them with a rush of support and wealth after paperback rights sold for nearly $200,000, and film rights, which Anson owns exclusively, for another $200,000 (Reilly 1978). It seemed that even after it was common knowledge that the entire story was a hoax, the alleged stories have provided a perfect catalyst for many directors, with there being currently 19 films in the series.

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James F. Broderick (2012) wrote about paranormal happenings being adapted into film in his book Now a Terrifying Motion Picture!. The Amityville horror may be one of the most influential stories of the 20th century, setting the scene for many horror films to come after the widely successful original film was released in 1979 (Broderick 2012);

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“The movie opens with an exterior long shot that exploits the now-famous façade of the Ocean Avenue house, with its triangular attic windows glowing like the eyes of some possessed jack-o-lantern”

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Broderick describes the features of the house (see fig 20 & 21), which in this scene, the original building was used. Even since the knowledge of the fabricated events in the 70’s, those who are passionate about both the paranormal and of the story itself seem to continue to stay blissfully ignorant, or purposefully, to truly appreciate the lore, myth and legend or 112 Ocean Avenue.

 

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THE ARCHITECTURAL EFFECT

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The style of the house is not short of the Queen Anne Victorian Revival (1880-1910­) being built in 1927. It resembles many of the trend decisions portrayed in the popular magazines of the time which featured large advertisement for ready-made architectural plans including blueprints and an illustrated visual.

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“Advancing technology also played a role in spreading the Queen Anne style across the country, with pre-cut architectural details readily available and affordable thanks to mass-production and railway distribution.” (Historic New England 2017)

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Even in the time when these buildings were first designed for the magazine (see fig. 22), many became bored by the over-exaggerated quaintness, Krystal D'Costa (D'Costa 2016) writes for the Scientific American describing the way in which this previously popular style was slowly dying;

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“These homes quickly became the McMansions of this era as critics such as Hamlin Talbot decried the style as a blight upon the American landscape, labelling them "wooden monstrosities."

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It may be that the pre-conceived notion that this style of architecture holds a deep-rooted negativity that drives the Amityville Horror House’s story into not just a horror story, but a representation that this 19th century architectural style would inevitably experience it’s “monstrous” nature.

 

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CONCLUSION

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Through this body of research, it is evident that 112 Ocean Drive has left a mark on horror fiction, and too has the style of architecture become tainted by the story, spreading worldwide. Some would argue that New England was already a spectacle for haunting suspicion.

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Even with the Amityville Horror House and its buried sense of negativity, (a sense which may not have such an honest origin) it is evident that many buildings of this era were already corrupted by the adverse nature of the design. It is unclear which aspect has molded the attitude toward the house, but it is widely thought that the extensive story told by the Lutzes truly animated this otherwise generic building, in a way exhilarating this forgotten architectural style.