Gacy’s Ghost: Hunting the Spirit of a Serial Killer (Investigating the Haunted)

By Richard Estep

The Sexton’s musings (spoilers are likely):

A very interesting location in this one. Alone the fact that this is an old theater that was converted into a living space is in itself fascinating. There are a lot of reviews that state they are skeptical that the spirit that is being dealt with is that of John Wayne Gacy. I suppose we shall have to see. Richard was introduced to this location by Brad Klinge of “Ghost Lab” and “Strange Curiosity”. Brad also wrote the forward to this book explaining how he came to become aware of this particular location. Brad and Richard’s investigative styles are very different from one another, most notably in that Brad likes to provoke responses via bullying. I can’t come up with another way to describe it. Do note that this is simply his style and that it does not seem to be how he is with the living. It also seems that he and the spirit have a pissing contest going and that this particular entity (Gacy or otherwise) seems to really get under Brad’s skin.

Like so many of Richard’s books this one starts out with a little bit of history. However it is not the history of the location itself but that of John Wayne Gacy. Being a true crime person I was familiar with the background. It’s horrific and heartbreaking all at once. Then he moves on to outline a little bit of the episode of “Strange Curiosities” and some of the experiences that were had there. Like I said Brad really seems to be locked into a game of who has the bigger dick with the entity there.

 Chapter three starts the investigation, sort of. Any time Richard is in Illinois it seems that he has to visit something pertaining to Abraham Lincoln. He absolutely adores Lincoln. This book is no exception to this. The night before the investigation begins the team attends a ceremony at Lincoln’s tomb. The next morning the team arrives at the theater and receives a tour from the owner, Robbin Terry, who seems to be a man after my own heart. I would totally have a collection of horror movie memorabilia if I had the funds to do so. The theater sounds like an amazing place. Haunted or not, I would totally live there! Just like I would live in a converted funeral home (“A Grave Undertaking”) too.

There are a couple of special guests that come on over to the investigation to help the team out. One of those people is a psychic names Lisa who seems to have a good grasp on the haunting that is occurring at the theater. The other is Brad Klinge who joins the team via video conference. His presence is for one reason only and that is to provoke a response from Gacy. Richard gives a warning in the book that if you are offended by harsh language and cussing that you probably should skip this part of the book. This said if you are here reading this post chances are you are not offended by these things because I myself speak fluent trucker with a sailor dialect and a construction accent. While they are on the horn with Brad they decide to start in the auditorium and then move to the balcony in the garage. Now the only way to get to this balcony is by an elevator that was put together by Robbin (the owner). Richard is not thrilled to be riding this thing and I don’t blame him. I hate elevators with a passion. Particularly ones in buildings that are super tall. I have this ongoing nightmare that I’m on the top floor in the elevator and it fails, plummeting down. It’s awful. I do think that if the elevator here were to fail the rider would be mostly okay but still I understand. 

On the second day the team is joined, for a bit, by another medium named Patty, who comes highly recommended by Robbin. After she departs the team conducts several Estes session in different locations. The last location yields some interesting results. From there they conduct a side trip, planned by Robbin, to his offsite garage (this man has a lot of collectables and storage places). Robbin has the actual Mystery Machine made by Hanna-Barbera as a promotion back in the day. Now that’s a fan! The team messes about for a bit (after all “all work and no play”…. And all that…) then head back to the theater to continue their investigation. There are varying results. This is the last night the team will be at the theater. They have one more chance to communicate with the entities of the R Theater. The team does a brief daylight session before heading home. Then comes the evidence review where they find some interesting things. Just goes to show that you never really know what results you actually got until this part of an investigation.

Chapter 13 returns to Gacy and some of the aftermath things surrounding him (like what happened to his house and that his brain is living in a jar at a doctors dwelling) and then Richard reflects on the investigation overall and he brings up some really interesting points. (Just a note about Bagans wanting to purchase the brain: there is nothing special about Zak Bagans other than the spelling of his name. He is a common, run of the mill, human being that is in the entertainment business. And being in the entertainment business means that money wins out over all else. This is not a dig, it is simply fact. What you see on TV is a character and nothing more. Unfortunately he is not doing the paranormal field any favors with spotting a demon in every bowl of fruit loops. But really his goal is not to further the field as stated previously and demons sell.) The last chapter is the afterword and an interesting afterword it is too. Just know that due to a frightening incident Robbin is no longer opening the Theater to investigations and based on what I just read I don’t blame him one bit.     

Closing thoughts:

I have an interesting perspective on those that we call serial killers. That phrase is utilized waaaaay too much by the world. A true serial killer is goes through periods of being active and inactive over a long period of time. They are very good a compartmentalizing their lives. They are masters of multi-tasking (really the only group of individuals that are any good at it). They can legitimately and expertly separate the old “work life, home life” scenario. Which is why you will hear neighbors say “he seemed like such a nice guy” and family state that they had no idea what was happening. To them they were a friend, a son, a brother, a husband, a father…to others they were their nightmare, their murderer. Their brains are just different, they function differently from the average individual and are definitely more rare than the world makes them out to be. They fascinate me to no end.

As for the haunting itself. Is it possible? Absolutely! We know that entities can become attached to objects so who’s to say the Gacy did not become attached to the armoire? There are so many great references to movies that I love in this book I just can’t even (these include “Tremors” and “Silence of the Lambs”). Oh and just a note – I would totally buy one of Gacy’s paintings. It would be a prophetic look into his mind, which for some may be considered a twisted, terrifying and sick want, but for me absolutely fascinating and perhaps enlightening. The better we understand, the better we can recognize and help (perhaps even save lives). Something to consider Ghoulies.

Happy Devouring!

The Sexton