While I was aware that both Ed & Lorraine Warren were in fact real people and that the events depicted in James Wan's 'The Conjuring' were based on true events, I never really bothered to look into the actual events behind the movie's inspiration. Hey, I may love horror, but I spook easily when it comes to the supernatural in real life. That said, I was discussing the film with a friend the other night that actually knew the Warren's and had been in their "occult museum," the room where they keep all the trinkets from all their previous cases and was asked if I'd ever seen the real Annabelle doll. The opening of 'The Conjuring' deals with a demonic entity in a doll that tricks it's way into the lives of two female students by pretending to be the spirit of a deceased little girl. And while the design of the doll was tweaked to be more frightening in the movie version, I was curious and looked up the original "Annabelle" case on-line. Below is Lorraine Warren with the real Annabelle doll.
Want to read more details on the actual Annabelle case? You can visit The Warren's website and read about it here. (The above pictures and this story in general creeps me out!) There's a ton of videos on You Tube telling their own versions of the Annabelle doll story, but instead I'll leave you with this intimate tour of the Warren's Occult Museum in Connecticut. You'll see the real Annabelle at the 5:19 mark!