 This episode is dedicated to the men and women of our armed forces and first responders. Whether you are currently serving or have served in the past, you are appreciated. It is because of your courage and sacrifice that we enjoy the freedoms and liberties we hold dear. And I, for one, appreciate every single one of you for protecting what many of us take for granted. So thank you. Welcome, Weirdos. I'm Darren Marlar and this is Weird Darkness. Here you'll find stories of the paranormal, supernatural, legends, lore, the strange and bizarre, crime, conspiracy, mysterious, macabre, unsolved and unexplained. Coming up this hour, everyone knows about Dracula. Most everyone has seen at least one film starring the undead bloodsucker or has read the novel by Bram Stoker. But only the real fans of Dracula know about the real people and true stories that inspired Bram Stoker to create the character. If you're new here, welcome to the show. And if you're already a member of our Weirdo family, please take a moment and invite somebody else to listen in with you. Recommending Weird Darkness to others helps make it possible for me to keep doing the show. And while you're listening, be sure to follow Weird Darkness on Facebook and Twitter and visit WeirdDarkness.com to find the daily Weird Darkness podcast. Watch streaming B horror movies and horror hosts 24-7 for free. Listen to free audio books that I've narrated. Send me your own true story of something paranormal that's happened to you or someone you know and more. You can find it all at WeirdDarkness.com. Now, bolt your doors, lock your windows, turn off your lights and come with me into the Weird Darkness. Most scholars believe Bram Stoker based his evil Count Dracula on a real-life 15th century prince in Wallachia, Romania. Vlad Dracula, Vlad, son of the dragon, or Vlad Tepis, Vlad the Impaler, as his story has come down through history, was a terrible man and a savage ruler. His brutality against enemy troops consisted of them sitting awkwardly on stakes with sharp points, and as their leg muscles gave out, the point of the stake would impale them through the length of their body. Thus, he was nicknamed Vlad Tepis, which means Vlad the Impaler. It is uncertain if he really drank the blood of his victims or if fanciful people created the tale later. Bram Stoker took note of Vlad's name, Dracula, and used it for his character. Vlad acquired the name Dracula because of his father's name, Vlad II, Vlad Dracul. It was Sigismund, king of Hungary and the future Holy Roman Emperor who initiated Vlad II into his society of knights. The name of the society was the Order of the Dragon and their purpose was to fight the Ottoman Empire during the Crusades. Hence, Vlad II took the name Dracul, which means the Dragon, or Dragonist. As noted, Dracula means son of the dragon. Sometime after his death, Vlad took on the nickname Vlad Tepid, that is Vlad the Impaler. Evidently, that was what he was most famous for. Vlad Dracula engaged in various wars and battles of the time, and enemy troops sometimes imprisoned him. During one of his imprisonments, a bishop described him. He was not very tall but very stocky and strong with a cold and terrible appearance, a strong and aquiline nose, swollen nostrils, a thin, reddish face in which very long eyelashes framed large, wide-open green eyes. The bushy black eyebrows made them appear threatening. His face and chin were shaven but for a mustache. This is certainly not the image we have of Dracula today. We are used to the home of Dracula being Transylvania, of course. But not all scholars point to Vlad the Impaler and Transylvania as the true root of Dracula. In fact, the home of the vampire might actually lie in Ireland. We'll look into that when Weird Darkness returns. If you'd like to see me in person, well, I would love to see you too. I'm taking the Weird Darkness SUV, now known as the Weirdo Wagon, all over the nation. I'm going to paranormal conferences, conventions, film festivals, paranormal and haunted expos, and I'm bringing my table of freebies with me, passing out all of that free swag like Weird Darkness keychains, phone stands, buttons, pins, stickers, magnets, and a whole lot more. And you can find out where I'm going to be in the weeks and months to come by visiting WeirdDarkness.com and then clicking on Road Trip. That's WeirdDarkness.com, and then click on Road Trip. And if there's an event that you think I need to be at that that's not already on the calendar, let me know about it by dropping me an email at Darren at WeirdDarkness.com. Darren is D-A-R-R-E-N. And again, you can see where the road trip is taking me by clicking on Road Trip at WeirdDarkness.com. Coffee. It's a necessity. Most of us can't be bothered to even be civil to our families until we've had our first cup of Joe. I could drink coffee all day, and often do, and now I've chosen an exclusive coffee just for the task, Weird Dark Roast Coffee. I love chocolate. I mean, who doesn't? So I specifically asked for a blend with at least a hint of cocoa, and Evansville Coffee, who roasts each bag to order, knocked it out of the park when they sent me a bag to taste test for approval. Weird Dark Roast Coffee has deep notes of cocoa, caramel, and a touch of sinister sweetness that makes it great hot or cold. Personally, I like to put a little milk in it when I'm drinking it hot, but it is amazing black and poured over ice. But now you can drink it too, and the only place you can find Weird Dark Roast Coffee is at WeirdDarkness.com. I'm so sure you'll love it that we've even set it up for you to get free delivery on your first order if you use the promo code Weird. I'm Darren Marlar. Welcome back to Weird Darkness. Interestingly, not all scholars point to Vlad as the only basis for Dracula, or even Transylvania. In fact, the true home of the vampire count might more accurately lie in Ireland. Now, as I am Irish in my blood, but not in my brain, many of the names here are beyond my ability to pronounce, but I will try nonetheless. In the North Dairy Area, between the towns of Garva and Dungiven, a district known as Glenelon, Glen of the Eagle, might give us a clue as to his origins. In the middle of the field, in the remote townland of Slotavarty, is an area known locally as the Giants Grave, but which may be more properly described as Lett Arbitach, or Arbitach's sepulcher. On the grave itself is a curling thorn bush under which lies a large and heavy stone. Originally there were more stones, the remnants of an old monument, but these have been removed over time by local farmers for building purposes. There was little doubt that the sepulcher was once an imposing place and that it is given the townland its name, but who was Arbitach? During the 5th and 6th centuries, the Glenelon area was a patchwork of petty kingdoms, each with its own local ruler or king. These kings may have been little more than tribal warlords, and there is ample evidence of their rule, but the countryside is dotted with hill forts, ancient wraths and early fortifications which marked their respective territories. Arbitach, according to tradition, was one of these chieftains. Local descriptions of him vary, some say that he was a dwarf, others say he was deformed in some way, but most agree that he was a powerful wizard and was extremely evil. So evil, in fact, that those over him who ruled wished to get rid of him. However, so terrified of him were they that they would not kill him themselves, and so they persuaded another chieftain, Cathan, to perform the deed for them. Cathan slew Arbitach and buried him standing up in an isolated grave. However, the following day, Arbitach returned, evil as ever, and demanded a bowl of blood drawn from the veins of his subjects in order to sustain his vile corpse. In great terror, the people asked Cathan to slay him once more. This Cathan did, burying the corpse as before, but the following day, Arbitach returned again, demanding the same gory tribute from his people. Cathan was puzzled, and depending upon the variant of the folktale, consulted either a local druid or an early Christian saint as to why Arbitach could not be killed. There are several hermitages in the area, according to tradition, the dwellings of particularly holy men. The most notable is Gortnamoya Forest on the very edge of Gleniland, where local people will still point out the saint's trek, a series of stations near to a holy well. Close by was said to have been the hermitage of a saint known as Aelgen, or John, who was credited with founding a place of Christian worship in the area. The site is still known as Churchtown, although any related foundation has long since vanished. A footprint on a stony prominence in the forest is also attributed to this saint, and is said that from here he flew from Gortnamoya to say Mass in his own foundation. His name further appears in several local place names, Killowen and Calarang, about 15 miles away, and McGilligan, about 20 miles away. It was to this saint that Cthon is believed to have gone. The venerable old man listened long and hard to the chieftain's tale. Arbitach is not really alive, he told the astonished Cthon. Through his devilish arts, he has become one of the Nehemiherb, or the Undead. However, he is Derg Deloy, or a drinker of human blood. He cannot actually be slain, but he can be restrained. He then proceeded to give Cthon instructions as to how to suspend the vampiric creature. Arbitach must be slain with a sword made from yew wood and must be buried upside down in the earth. Thorns and ash twigs must be sprinkled around him, and a heavy stone must be placed directly on top of him. Only then could the wizard be restrained in his grave. Should the stone be lifted, however, the vampire would be free to walk the earth once more. Cthon returned to Gledolin and did what the holy man told him. Arbitach was slain with a wooden sword and was buried upside down with thorns placed all around the grave site. On top of the actual grave, Cthon built a great elect, or sepulcher, which can be seen for miles around. This is now vanished but the stone remains, and a tree which grew from the scattered thorns rises above it. The land on which the grave is situated has acquired a rather sinister reputation over the generations. Locally, it is considered to be bad ground and has been the subject of a number of family disagreements over the years. In 1997, attempts were made to clear the land, and if local tradition is to be believed, workmen who attempted to cut down the tree found that their brand new chainsaw stopped without reason on three occasions. When attempting to lift the great stone, a steel chain suddenly snapped, cutting the hand off of one of the laborers and significantly allowing blood to soak into the ground. Although legends still abound in the locality of the man who was buried three times and of a fantastic treasure which was buried with him, few local people will approach the grave, especially after dark. This, then, in essence is the legend with its folkloric editions. But is it simply an isolated tale or does it fit into a tradition of Irish vampire tales which could have influenced Bram Stoker? The spilling of blood was not uncommon amongst the ancient Irish. Indeed, animal blood was ritually let under Christian directive upon St. Martin's Eve, the 11th of November. The roots of this tradition undoubtedly go back into pagan times and may have a connection with the returning dead. The horrors of the famine considerably added to the lore. The blood of pigs and cows supplemented a meager diet, either drunk in a raw state or made into relish cakes, a mixture of meal, vegetable tops and blood brought together in a kind of patty. Police names in many areas which were badly stricken by the hunger, for example in parts of Clare and Galway, reflect communal bloodletting sites. Although most cultures have vampire stories, such tales have a particular resonance in Ireland. Here, interest in and veneration of the dead seems to have played a central part in Celtic thinking. One of the great festivals of the Celtic year, the Feast of the Dead, celebrated on October 31st, Halloween, honored the returning dead from beyond the grave or from the other world. It was widely believed that these revenants were not vague and misty goats, but substantial and corporeal beings who demanded to be looked after and fed. Legends abound around the Knocklaid Mountain region, about 30 miles from Slotoparty, concerning women who returned from the grave and threatened to eat their relatives out of house and home. And there are several tales in the Amy area of South Firmana of women who returned from the tomb in order to take small children back with them. Such beings were said to beat upon windowpains late at night with long and extended fingernails, terrifying all within the household. A more sinister variant of the Revenant tale comes from the Dublin Mountains in which a priest returns from the grave in order to threaten his mother. The implication of the story is that he wishes to drink her blood and do her harm. However, a locked door prevents this, although the woman is badly shaken. More explicit vampire stories come from Kerry. Tales concerning blood drinking and flesh-eating ghouls were recorded in Sneem Parish by Todd Omershada, collecting for the Irish Folklore Commission in 1937, whilst vampiric beings were said to haunt the road on the Dingle Peninsula between Duncan and Bale and Ballyfaridder, near a spot known as Cosidon of Grace, where two streams twine. Further, during a lecture in 1961, the registrar of the National Folklore Commission, Sean O'Sullivan, himself a carryman, mentioned a site which he called Don Dracola, or Castle of the Blood Visage. This was allegedly a fortress high up in the McGillicuddy Reaks, which was inhabited by blood-drinking fairies. It was said to guard a lonely pass, but travelers in the region had to beware lest they become the prey of the Derg-dial-A. Unfortunately, O'Sullivan did not give any location for the evil fortress, nor does any further reference to it appear in any of his books. Neither does it appear in Brandon O'Caobin's list of place names for the barony of Drumcaron, which includes the McGillicuddy Reaks, and top of the May Habernay. This does not mean that it does not exist, and cultural historians, such as the late Cathal O'Sundair and Peter Bursford Ellis, have long been engaged in hunting through private papers to try to determine its location. Jeremiah Curtin in Irish Fairy Tales recounts another vampire story from the Dramalic parish County Cork. In the story, the blood-drawing ghosts, the dead person's name is given as Michael Derry, son of Edward Derry, this vampire is no drifting wraith but a corporeal figure who forced a young girl to carry him on her shoulders all through the countryside whilst he slit the throats of sleepers with an open razor. Mixing their blood with oatmeal, he sat in each house and gorged himself on the gruesome feast. The story probably has its origins in the famine period, but it strongly connects the consumption of blood-soaked meal with the returning vengeful dead. A legend from County Limerick mentions an evil abyss at Shangadolan Abbey during the late 16th to early 17th centuries, described as a woman of the Fitzgeralds, thus linking her to local nobility who allegedly drank the blood of novices in order to maintain her great age. She was further regarded as a witch and as a cup-tasser or prophetess whom the nobility of the countryside consulted before they made war on each other. After the abbey was abandoned she continued to live there and was known locally as the Black Hag. Her blood-drinking ghost, condemned to remain there because of her past iniquities, is still said to haunt the ruins of the place. A few other vampiric beings are strongly linked to local Irish aristocracy and chieftainship, as in the case of Obertuck. But we'll cover some of those when Weird Darkness returns. You can stay up to date on everything Weird Darkness by signing up for the email newsletter. Sign up for the Weird Darkness newsletter for free at WeirdDarkness.com. A creature, part of the darkness before God created the heavens and earth, has awakened. It had slumbered, hibernating from the light. Now it's hungry and wanting to feed. Bobby, a local kid and the police chief have gone missing. Everyone in the small town of Standard Illinois is turning to former Chicago cop Rob Aletto to find them. But as he starts his search, more people disappear. Rob is quickly overwhelmed. The night itself seems to come alive, taking these people. Aletto must find out why and discover a way to stop it before the entire town slips into darkness. Into Darkness by Jason R. Davis, narrated by Weird Darkness host Darren Marlar, the greatly anticipated sequel to Inside the Mirrors. Here a free sample on the audiobooks page at WeirdDarkness.com. A few other vampiric beings are strongly linked to local Irish aristocracy and chieftainship, as in the case of Obertau. Caragapuka Castle, the term puka, denoting an evil spirit, hence rock of the evil spirit, the ruins of which lie two miles west of Metcroom, County Cork is one such place. This was a 15th century McCarthy stronghold. It is still an impressive ruin and many locals still genuflect when they pass by it. The site is said to be haunted by a blood-drinking spirit which may attack travelers and is reputedly linked to Cormac Todd McCarthy whose stronghold this was in 1601. Cormac is still widely regarded as a traitor who betrayed his kinsmen to English domination in return for a knighthood and for being made sheriff of Cork. He is said to have supervised the execution of the rebel James Fitzgerald who was cut into little pieces when yet alive. The implication in many variants of this tale was that Cormac was actually possessed by an evil spirit which had come out of the rock on which his fortress stood. The castle was destroyed in 1690 during the Willamite conflict and has remained a ruin ever since. A similar legend concerns Todd Cowich or one eyed Todd O'Carroll, one of the dark princes of Ellie who slew his brother Thaddeus, reputedly a priest, across the altar rails in the bloody Chapel of Leap Castle in South Offaly. Because of this blasphemy, his evil soul was denied entry to the afterlife and must remain within the castle, sustaining itself on the blood of all that come near it. Both are sometimes referred to as Derrick Daly's which would seem to be an Anglicization of Derrick Dyle, a blood drinker or vampire. Many Irish locations bear reference to supernatural entities. Gleneskull County, Galloway in Irish is Gleann and Scale, the Valley of the Phantom. Drumerot in McGuire's Bridge, County Firmah is Droym O'Rott, the Ridge of the Apparition. Eneskull County, Cary is Abhaenna Scale, the River of the Phantom, and there are many others, each suggesting some visitor from beyond the dead. So Abertock can be placed firmly within a tradition of Irish nobility and chieftains who have shown an interest in the consumption of blood. How does this fit in with Stoker's creation of Dracula? The legend of the Vampire King was well known in many parts of Ireland and the tradition of the blood drinking dead was also recorded in Geoffrey Keating's The History of Ireland, written between 1629 and 1631. In Chapter 10, Keating made much of the name Mhairp, the history originally written in Irish, was translated several times, once into Latin in St. Mallow and Brittany in 1660 and then into English by Dermot O'Connor in 1723 under the title A General History of Ireland. But it was the historian and folklorist Patrick Weston Joyce who actually made connections between Abertock and the Irish vampire tradition. Joyce enthusiastically recounted the legend in his own book, A History of Ireland, Dublin, 1880, and it was 17 years before Dracula was published. It is believed Stoker, then a Dublin civil servant, read Joyce's work and presumably they Abertock legend with some relish. Around the same time, manuscript copies of Keating's work were placed on public display in the National Museum in Dublin. They were on loan from Trinity College Library which possessed two manuscript copies and the display included Chapter 10 on the Undead. Although Stoker himself could not read Irish, he had many friends and acquaintances who did and he may have received at least part of the work in translation. Might not the legend of the vampire king coupled with the strong tradition of blood drinking Irish chieftains and nobles were counted to him as a child by his slagoborn mother and the carry maids who worked about his Dublin home have eventually coalesced into the idea of Count Dracula? Certainly Stoker was not writing from any great experience of Eastern Europe. He had never been there and was relying heavily on tourist accounts of the region. His experiences may have come more directly from Irish folklore. Even the name has Irish resonances. In Irish, Dracula means bad or tainted blood and whilst it is now taken to refer to blood feuds between persons or families, it may have a far older connotation. So can we really consign the vampire to some remote part of Eastern Europe where he is unlikely to do us any harm? For all we know, Dracula may be lurking just around the corner. Another inspiration for Count Dracula was in fact a Countess. On December 26, 1609 or 1610 sources are not conclusive, Count Georgie Thurzo made an investigative visit to Zeth Castle in Hungary on orders from King Matthias and discovers Countess Elizabeth Bathory directing a torture session of young girls. Bathory was already infamous in the area for her torture and murder of servants and peasants, but her title and high-ranking relatives had until this point made her untouchable. Her bloodthirsty activities have led many to cite her as one of the first vampires in history. Bathory was born in Transylvania in 1560 to a distinguished family that included kings, cardinals, knights and judges. Though she counted many luminaries among her relatives, her family tree also featured some seriously disturbed kin. One of her uncles instructed her in Satanism while her aunt taught her all about sadomasochism. At the age of 15, Bathory was married to Count Ndadi and the couple settled in Zeth Castle. To please his wife, her husband reportedly built a torture chamber to her specifications. Bathory's torture included jamming pins and needles under the fingernails of her servant girls and tying them down, smearing them with honey and leaving them to be attacked by bees and ants. Although the Count participated in his wife's cruelties, he may have also restrained her impulses. When he died in the early 1600s, she became much worse. With the help of her former nurse, Ielona Jew and local witch, Dorota Zentis, Bathory began abducting peasant girls to torture and kill. She often bit chunks of flesh from her victims and one unfortunate girl was even forced to cook and eat her own flesh. Bathory reportedly believed that human blood would keep her looking young and healthy. Since her family headed the local government, Bathory's crimes were ignored until 1610, but King Matthias finally intervened because Bathory had begun finding victims among the daughters of local nobles. In January 1611, Bathory and her cohorts were put on trial for 80 counts of murder. All were convicted, but only Bathory escaped execution. Instead, she was confined to a room at the castle that only had slits for air and food. She survived for three years, but was found dead in August 1614. Another vampire, Bram, might have been aware of and incorporated into his own novel, is that of Varney, the vampire. Sir Francis Varney supposedly had great strength. He could use his eyes to cast a glamour over his victims, but once he looked away, the effect comes to an end. Even without using his eyes, Varney could be very charming and entertaining. He could be killed but is rejected by running water such as rivers and is revived by moonlight. He can't walk up walls although he seems to be good at scaling them or jumping on top of them, as the story goes at least. You could call Varney the original supervillain vampire. Varney the Vampire was in fact a weekly story that ran from 1845 to 1847 and was sold in eight parts for a penny. Yet it was supposedly an autobiographical saga written by the man himself. A rambling gorefest is the best way to describe it. The history of Sir Francis Varney is obfuscated, probably deliberately, by conflicting tales told by the character himself. He claimed to have been active during the reigns of Edward III and Henry IV, mentioned being an age of 180 years. Although it is not clear whether this is the whole span of his life or merely the length of time he has been a vampire, it would date him back to the 1530s. There was a reference to a Sir Francis Varney during the reign of Queen Elizabeth. His earliest recorded escapades were given a date of 1640, when Marmaduke Bannerworth died and the time around which he had his dealings with the Bannerworth family. But later he claimed to have become a vampire in the early 1660s. He allegedly slew his own son in a fit of rage late in the reign of Oliver Cromwell. Varney also claimed to have been called Sleighton during the reign of Edward III and Mortimer during the Interignum. Some things Varney claimed as truth. Varney attempted to recover a large sum of money from Bannerworth Hall, near the south coast of England and near Anderbury, where it had been hidden by Marmaduke Bannerworth, the former head of the family who had committed suicide. Varney eventually succeeded, but the Bannerworths also recovered their fortunes. Varney attempted a number of schemes to get married in order to break the curse which beset him. In Anderbury he once again encountered the Bannerworths. Varney traveled to Italy, but continued to try and break his curse through marriage. Back in London, Varney helped to save an heiress from being defrauded of her fortunes by her greedy uncle and aunt. Deeply depressed, Varney tried to end his existence by throwing himself into the sea from the ferry to Leith. His body was recovered by the Crofton brothers and he was revived by moonlight. Vowing revenge, he turned Clara Crofton into a vampire, but lamented over her when she was staked by a mob. Varney was persuaded to write something of his early history and told a tale of an adventure involving King Charles II and the Earl of Rochester. The story ends with a news report of Varney's suicide in the crater of Mount Bessuvius, reading, You can keep that for your pains and for coming into some danger with me, but the fact was that I wanted a witness to enact which I have set my mind on performing. You will say that you accompanied Varney the Vampire to the crater of Mount Bessuvius, and that, tired and disgusted with a life of horror, he flung himself in to prevent the possibility of reanimation of his remains. Before then the guide could utter anything but a shriek, Varney took one tremendous leap and disappeared into the burning mouth of the mountain. The only certain date in his history was Varney's final demise in Mount Bessuvius in 1713 where he leapt into the volcano killing himself, but not before 220 chapters and almost 1,000 pages had been printed. Sir Francis Varney of Radford Hall was one of the earliest vampires of popular fiction. Closer in style to the vampire Orlock from Nosferatu than to Dracula, Varney would be killed dozens of times only to return. Finally, he became disgusted with himself and his predatory existence and committed suicide by jumping into the volcano Mount Bessuvius. Varney is one of the first vampires to have fangs as this quote shows. With a plunge, he seizes her neck at his fang-like teeth, a gush of blood and a hideous sucking noise follows. Bizarrely, the author at first shied away from confirming the supernatural nature of Varney. At the end of his first meeting with a mortal family, Varney reveals he had only pretended to have demonic powers in order to scare them. And later, when he is shown to be a vampire, Varney appears to be as surprised as everyone else. More possible inspirations for Bram Stoker's Dracula coming up, including some beautiful white-skinned fairies up next. Podcast Commercial Free Along with commercial-free recordings of the weekly radio show Listen to chapters of audiobooks I narrate, even before the publishers or authors hear them. Get video updates about the Weird Darkness podcast and future projects that I'm working on before anyone else, and share your opinions on ideas to help me decide what to do in the Weird Darkness podcast in the future. You get all of these benefits starting at only $5 per month. Join the Darkness Syndicate at WeirdDarkness.com slash Syndicate. That's WeirdDarkness.com slash Syndicate. Welcome back to Weird Darkness. I'm Darren Marlar. If you like what you're hearing and you'd like to hear even more, you can check out the free audiobooks that I've narrated at WeirdDarkness.com. I've got creepy paranormal horror audiobooks there by Stephen King, H.P. Lovecraft, Charles Dickens, Robert Heinlein and more, and they are all free to listen to. You can find all of the audiobooks that I've narrated on the audiobooks page at WeirdDarkness.com. Coming up in tonight's Sudden Death Overtime content, which you can only get in the podcast, somebody had to be the first to tell a story of vampires, but it was not Bram Stoker. In fact, it was almost 150 years before the novel Dracula that the first creative mention of a vampire took place in the form of a poem, which I will recite for you in tonight's Sudden Death Overtime content in the Weird Darkness podcast. We now continue with a few more possible inspirations for Bram Stoker's Dracula. According to Scottish mythology, Balvin Sith, or the white women of the Scottish Highlands, were beautiful female fairies with vampire-like tendencies. In these tales, a Balvin Sith would rise from the grave to feed at night. She would use her enchanting appearance to seduce her victims, which were usually traveling men. Using her alluring spell, the Balvin Sith would puncture or slit the neck of her victim with her sharp talons. She would then suck out every drop of blood from the victim and leave his withered corpse behind before crawling back to her grave. In addition, the Balvin Sith would only hunt during late hours when the sun was down because they couldn't tolerate the sunlight. Obviously, these folktales predate Stoker's toothy menace. Years before Stoker was obsessively researching for his book, another vampire story was written in Ireland that he likely took inspiration from. Mentioned earlier, Carmilla, a novella by Joseph Sheridan Lafonneau could be called the original vampire novel of modern Europe. Written in 1871, the novella is a first-person account from Laura, a young English woman who falls prey to a beautiful vampire. In some detail, Laura tells us of a curious incident that brings Carmilla, a stranger, into her home. At first, she is scared of the newcomer, who looks exactly like a specter that she'd seen in a nightmare when she was a child. But these feelings quickly subside and are replaced by an ardent relationship that blossoms with intensity. In the meantime, panic arises as maidens from nearby towns are afflicted by a mysterious illness that causes their deaths. Eventually, Laura herself becomes ill and has recurring nightmares of a giant cat that attacks her at night. As a strange twist of fate, a general who has lost his knees to the illness comes to visit Laura's father. He is now aware of the reality of vampires and is on the hunt for milarca, as he knew Carmilla. When the two unexpectedly come face to face, a fight ensues and Carmilla, now exposed, flees. After the incident, Laura is taken back and guarded by several people. Meanwhile, her father, the general, and a vampire hunter find Carmilla's hidden tomb, drive a stake into her heart, decapitate her, and burn her remains. Laura recovers her health but never fully and continues to be haunted by the memory of Carmilla for the remainder of her short life. Most scholars agree that Carmilla heavily influenced Dracula, as elements of the first appear in the latter, though modified or amplified. The aesthetic of the female vampire, for example, is very much the same in both stories. They have rosy cheeks, big eyes, full lips, and almost irresistible sensuality. There's also the vampire hunter who comes to the rescue and imparts his knowledge of the obscure on the confused victims. Even the narrative frame of Stoker's masterpiece is quite similar to Luffa News, first-person accounts from the victims. But what makes Carmilla so endearing are not its similarities to other works of the genre, but its distinct differences. Most notably the fact that the story is centered around two female characters, whose complicated relationship is colored by thinly veiled lesbian undertones. The novella was written during the Victorian era, a period known for its strict moral laws and sexual repression, so no wonder vampire novels rose into prominence. The premise of these novels is that even the most pure of hearts cannot resist the supernatural seduction. This idea was extremely attractive for the Victorian upper class, especially women whose desires have always been rigidly restricted. However, powerlessness does not mean redemption or absolution, as these powers are understood to be evil and tied to devilish forces. In almost every vampire story, the women who are preyed upon meet their deaths, unless the men in their lives come to their rescue. As such, the vampire trope simultaneously provided an outlet for repressed sexual desires and a moral lesson on the danger of succumbing to such desires. In this sense, Laura is the perfect victim of vampire literature. She is at once repulsed and drawn to the vampire, both wishes to succumb to and withdraw from her feelings for the strange and beautiful creature. And the fact that the beautiful creature is an irresistibly lovely woman only makes her feelings more confusing. Quote, I experienced a strange tumultuous excitement that was pleasurable, ever and anon, mingled with a vague sense of fear and disgust. I was conscious of a love growing into adoration and also of abhorrence." Laura isn't alone in her feelings. While we're given to understand that most of her victims are of no importance to her, Carmilla is genuinely enamored of a few of them. She seems to have fallen for her victim. With gloating eyes, she drew me to her, and her hot lips traveled along my cheek in kisses, and she would whisper, almost in sobs, You are mine. You shall be mine. You and I are one forever. In these moments of frenzied rapture, she implies that for them to become one, Laura must die. To drink Laura's blood was to become one with her forever. As it stands, Carmilla is the antithesis of the heteronormative and male-centered world in which vampires were constricted to after Dracula. It has inspired several remakes, as well as a plethora of lesbian vampire tales, including a Canadian web series of the same name. Given the historical context, it's not surprising that the novella did not gain much attention when it was initially written. Now, though, more than 150 years after the release of the novel, perhaps it's time for Carmilla to rise from the grave. I have a lot more vampiric facts and folklore to share with you, and it'll take me two hours to fit it all in, so if you don't get both hours of the Weird Darkness radio show where you're listening, you'll want to subscribe to the podcast so you can hear it all after tonight's show is over. You can subscribe to the podcast at WeirdDarkness.com or search for Weird Darkness wherever you listen to podcasts. Weird Darkness is a production and trademark of Marlar House Productions. I'm Darren Marlar. Thanks for joining me in the Weird Darkness. Hey Weirdos, keep listening. Hour 2 of the Weird Darkness radio show is coming up! Hey Truckers, if you're on the road behind the wheel of a tractor trailer for a living, I have a contest just for you. Every month, I'm doing a random drawing from entries I receive in the Deadhead Truckers Contest. Go to WeirdDarkness.com slash Truckers and register to win. If I draw out your name, you'll win two Weird Darkness Trucker t-shirts, two travel mugs, a large pillow and a blank hardback journal. If you listen to Weird Darkness because handling 18 wheels alone on the road by yourself just isn't scary enough, then this monthly contest is for you. Register to win at your next 10-100 and visit WeirdDarkness.com slash Truckers. That's WeirdDarkness.com slash Truckers. This episode is dedicated to the men and women of our armed forces and first responders. Whether you are currently serving or have served in the past, you are appreciated. It is because of your courage and sacrifice that we enjoy the freedoms and liberties we hold dear. And I for one appreciate every single one of you for protecting what many of us take for granted. So thank you. In the world of entertainment, the creatures known as vampires have transformed from frightening monstrous beasts to well-groomed glittery hunks. However, could regarding vampires as solely fictitious creatures be somewhat inaccurate? Maybe so. The truth is, some historical people were well-known and feared for their real-life vampire tendencies. And among criminals, there has been a long-standing tendency to believe they were vampires. In fact, the Irish author Bram Stoker was said to be inspired by many real-life sources for his novel, Dracula. Some of these sources for Dracula included people who were basically Dracula in real life. In 1897, Bram Stoker released his gothic horror masterpiece, Dracula. The tale followed the journey of Count Dracula, a vampire relocating from Transylvania to England in search of new blood. While Stoker's Dracula character has been the inspiration for many classic horror movies and subsequent vampire tales, he is certainly not the first vampire to strike fear into people's minds or imaginations. Although it may be hard to believe that the inspiration for Dracula could be based on actual historical figures, there is a slew of novels, places and events that may have inspired the famed author. In fact, his son even stated that his father thought of Dracula after a nightmare he had from ingesting too much crab. Although his son's statement is laughable, some inspirational occurrences are more morbid in nature. Still, whatever events and things Dracula is based upon, the idea of a blood-sucking, immortal, monster, fictitious or not is nothing less than terrifying. I'm Darren Marlar and this is Weird Darkness. Welcome, Weirdos. I'm Darren Marlar and this is Weird Darkness. Here you'll find stories of the paranormal, supernatural, legends, lore, the strange and bizarre, crime, conspiracy, mysterious, macabre, unsolved and unexplained. Coming up this hour, everyone knows about Dracula. Most everyone has seen at least one film starring the undead bloodsucker or has read the novel by Bram Stoker. But only the real fans of Dracula know about the real people and true stories that inspired Bram Stoker to create the character. If you're new here, welcome to the show. And if you're already a member of our Weirdo family, please take a moment and invite somebody else to listen in with you. Recommending Weird Darkness to others helps make it possible for me to keep doing the show. And while you're listening, be sure to follow Weird Darkness on Facebook and Twitter, and visit WeirdDarkness.com to find the daily Weird Darkness podcast. Watch streaming B horror movies and horror hosts 24-7 for free. Listen to free audiobooks that I've narrated. Send me your own true story of something paranormal that's happened to you or someone you know and more. You can find it all at WeirdDarkness.com. Now, bolt your doors, lock your windows, turn off your lights, and come with me into the Weird Darkness. People have been dreaming up horrible monsters and malicious spirits for centuries. The Vampire, a seductive, undead predator, is one of the most inventive and alluring creatures of the bunch. It's also one of the most enduring. Vampire-like creatures date back thousands of years and pop up in dozens of different cultures. So before we talk about Dracula, let's see where the various elements of the vampire legend come from and we'll examine some grounded scientific explanations for apparent vampirism. We'll also look at the psychological significance of these creatures and find out about some real-life counterparts to the supernatural vampire. The vampires in contemporary books, movies, and television shows are incredibly elaborate creatures. According to the predominant mythology, every vampire was once a human who, after being bitten by a vampire, died and rose from the grave as a monster. Vampires crave the blood of the living whom they hunt during the night. They use their protruding fangs to puncture their victims' necks. Since they are reanimated corpses, the living remains of a deceased person vampires are often referred to as the undead. They can still pass as healthy humans, however, and will walk undetected among the living. In fact, vampires may be attractive, highly sexual beings, seducing their prey before feeding. A vampire may also take the form of an animal, usually a bat or a wolf, in order to sneak up on a victim. Vampires are potentially immortal, but they do have a few weaknesses. They can be destroyed by a stake through the heart, fire, beheading and direct sunlight, and they are wary of crucifixes, holy water and garlic. Vampires don't cast a reflection, and they have superhuman strength. This vampire figure, with its particular combination of characteristics and governing rules, is actually a fairly recent invention. Bram Stoker conceived it in his 1897 novel, Dracula. Other authors reinterpreted Dracula in a number of plays, movies and books, but while the specifics are new, most of the individual elements of the legend have deep roots, spanning many regions and cultures. We are going to look at some of the more notable vampire ancestors. Nobody knows when people came up with the first vampiric figures, but the legends date back at least 4,000 years to the ancient Assyrians and Babylonians of Mesopotamia. Mesopotamians feared Lamastu, or Lamastu, a vicious demon goddess who preyed on humans. In Assyrian legend, Lamastu, the daughter of sky god Anu, would creep into a house at night and steal or kill babies, either in their cribs or in the womb. Believers attributed sudden infant death syndrome and miscarriage to this figure. Lamastu, which translates to she who erases, would also prey on adults, sucking blood from young men and bringing disease, sterility and nightmares. She is often depicted with wings and bird-like talons and sometimes with the head of a lion. To protect themselves from Lamastu, pregnant women would wear amulets, depicting Pazuzu, another evil god who wants to feed the demoness. So what do vampires and Lamastu have to do with the book of Genesis and Adam and Eve? You might be surprised. We'll return to vampires when Weird Darkness returns. Paranormal experiences, encountering extraterrestrials, extraordinary states of consciousness, spiritual phenomenon, encounters with non-human entities that can't be explained by science. These stories of what people have come across are ubiquitous here on Weird Darkness, and often those who've had these encounters choose to stay quiet and not even tell close friends or family out of fear of ridicule, and they suffer silently, trying to deal with the internal horror of what they've experienced. If I'm describing you or someone you know, there is now a place you can turn to for professional counseling from experts who, unlike others in their field, are open to the paranormal, supernatural, and extraterrestrial experiences of others, and they're not there to explain away your experience but to help you recover from it and move forward with living. I'm referring to the Opus Network. If you want to reach out for help or learn more, look for the Opus Network towards the bottom of the Hope in the Darkness page at WeirdDarkness.com. I'm Darren Marlar. Welcome back to Weird Darkness. If you're looking for Weird Darkness merchandise, you can find t-shirts, buttons, hoodies, office supplies, clothes for your kids, stickers, magnets, copy mugs, and a whole lot more with all your favorite Weird Darkness designs. You can find something for you or the weirdo in your life by clicking on store at WeirdDarkness.com and we're adding designs on a regular basis, so if you haven't checked it out recently, you might want to do so. Click on store at WeirdDarkness.com. We were talking about Dracula and vampires and the folklore that goes along with them, including the demon Lamastu, where pregnant women would wear amulets with the head of a lion to protect themselves from Lamastu. But Lamastu also has a very interesting connection to the creation of the world. Lamastu is closely associated with Lilith, a prominent figure in some Jewish texts. Accounts of Lilith vary considerably, but in the most notable versions of the story, she was the original woman. God created both Adam and Lilith from the earth, but there was soon trouble between them. Lilith refused to take a subservient position to Adam since she came from the same place he did. In one ancient version of the legend, Lilith left Eden and began birthing her own children. God sent three angels to bring her back, and when she refused, they promised they would kill 100 of her children every day until she returned. Lilith in turn vowed to destroy human children. Accounts of Lilith as a child killer seem to be taken directly from the Lamastu legend. She is often described as a winged demoness with sharp talons who came in the night, primarily to steal away infants and fetuses. Most likely, the Jews assimilated the figure of Lamastu into their tradition, but it is also possible that both myths were inspired by a third figure. While she is often depicted as a terrifying creature, Lilith also has seductive qualities. The ancient Jews believed she would come to man at night as a succubus. The ancient Greeks feared similar creatures, notably Lamia, a demoness with the head and torso of a woman and the lower body of a snake. In one version of the legend, Lamia was one of Zeus' mortal lovers. Filled with anger and jealousy, Zeus' wife, the goddess Hera, made Lamia insane so she would eat all her children. Once Lamia realized what she had done, she became so angry that she turned into an immortal monster, sucking the blood from young children out of jealousy for their mothers. The Greeks also feared the Empusai, the malicious daughter of Hecate, the goddess of witchcraft. The Empusai who could change form came up from Hades, the underworld, at night as beautiful women. They would seduce shepherds in the field and then devour them. A similar creature, the Baobansith, shows up in Celtic folklore. Vampire-like figures also have a long history in the mythology of Asia. Indian folklore describes a number of nightmarish characters, including Rakshaasa, gargoyle-like shapeshifters who preyed on children, and Vitalla, demons who would take possession of recently dead bodies to wreak havoc on the living. In Chinese folklore, corpses could sometimes rise from the grave and walk again. These keiwei were created when a person's pa'o, or lower spirit, did not pass on to the afterlife at death, usually because of bad deeds during life. The pa'o, angered by its horrible fate, would reanimate the body and attack the living at night. One particularly vicious sort of kei, known as kuangshi, could fly and take different forms. The kuangshi was covered in white fur, had glowing red eyes, and bit into its prey with sharp fangs. Nomadic tribes and traveling traders spread different vampire legends throughout Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. As these stories traveled, their various elements combined to form new vampire myths. In the past 1,000 years, vampire legends have been especially pervasive of Eastern European contributions. The Dracula legend and the modern vampire legend that came out of it was directly inspired by the folklore of Eastern Europe. History records dozens of mythical vampire figures in this region, going back hundreds of years. These vampires all have their particular habits and characteristics, but most fall into one of two general categories. Demons or agents of the devil that reanimated corpses so they could walk among the living, or spirits of dead people that would not leave their own body. The most notable demon vampires were the Russian upir and the Greek, Rekolikus. In these traditions, sinners, unbaptized babies, and other people outside the Christian faith were more likely to be reanimated after death. Those who practiced witchcraft were particularly susceptible because they had already given their soul to the devil in life. Once the undead corpses rose from the grave, they would terrorize the community, feeding on the living. By many accounts, these undead corpses were required to return to their grave regularly to rest. When townspeople believed that someone had become a vampire, they would exhume the corpse and try to get rid of the evil spirit. They might try an exorcism ritual, but more often they would destroy the body. This might entail cremation, decapitation, or driving a wooden stake through the heart. Bodies might also be buried face down so the undead corpses would dig deeper into the earth rather than up into shallower ground. Some families secured stakes above the corpse so it would impale itself if it tried to escape. The vampires of Moldavia, Wallachia, and Transylvania, now Romania, were commonly called Strigoi. Strigoi were almost exclusively human spirits who had returned from the dead. Unlike the Upir or Bracolicus, the Strigoi would pass through different stages after rising from the grave. Initially, a Strigoi might be an invisible poltergeist, tormenting its living family members by moving furniture and stealing food. After some time, it would become invisible, looking just as the person did in life. Again, the Strigoi would return to its family, stealing cattle, begging for food and bringing disease. Strigoi would feed on humans, first their family members and then anyone else they happened to come across. In some accounts, the Strigoi would suck their victims' blood directly from the heart. Initially, a Strigoi needed to return to the grave regularly, just like an Upir. If townspeople suspected someone had become a Strigoi, they would exhume the body and burn it or run spikes through it. But after seven years, if a Strigoi was still around, it could live wherever it pleased. It was said that Strigoi would travel the distant towns to begin new lives as ordinary people and that these secret vampires would meet with each other in weekly gatherings. In addition to undead Strigoi referred to as Strigoi Mort, people also feared living vampires or Strigoi Vayu. Strigoi Vayu were cursed living people who were doomed to become Strigoi Mort when they died. Babies born with abnormalities such as a tail-like protrusion or a bit of fetal membrane tissue attached to the head, called a col, were usually considered Strigoi Vayu. If they Strigoi Mort living among humans had any children, the offspring were cursed to become undead Strigoi in the afterlife. When a known Strigoi Vayu died, the family would destroy its body to ensure that it would not rise from the grave. In other parts of Eastern Europe, Strigoi-type creatures were known as Vampir or Vampire, most likely a variation on the Russian Upir. Western European countries eventually picked up on this name and Vampir, the A-M-P-Y-R, later changed to Vampire as we know the spelling today, entered the English language. In the 17th and 18th centuries, Vampire hysteria spread throughout Eastern Europe. People reported seeing their dead relatives walking around attacking the living. Authorities dug up scores of graves, burning and staking the corpses. Word of the Vampire scare spread to Western Europe, leading to a slew of academic speculations on the creatures as well as Vampire poems and paintings. These works in turn inspired an Irishman named Bram Stoker to write his Vampire novel, Dracula. There have been monsters among us lurking in the darkest corners of America, preying on children since the first settlers arrived on our shores. They have always been with us, stalking the innocent from the days of the original colonies to the gilded age, the depression and beyond. These monsters are not the stuff of fiction. They are blood curdlingly real and they still walk among us, always looking for their next victim. In the chilling book, Suffer the Children, Troy Taylor shines a light on the darkest tales of horror and hauntings from American history and presents a terrifying collection of dark crimes perpetrated against our most tender victims, our children. His most disturbing book yet includes nightmarish tales from the 19th century, when the good old days were never good. Like the monster of the Northwood, the pocusette horror and the girl in the cellar and continues into the modern day with the counts of the Clarkson Woods, America's first school massacre, Wineville chicken coop murders, Babes of Englewood, Suzanne Degnan, the Girl Scout camp massacre, the perfect murder of Bobby Franks and many more. Be warned, this is not a book for the faint of heart. These are tales containing brutal, agonizing and terrifying scenes of horror. Suffer the Children, American Horrors Homicides and Hauntings, Dead Men, Do Tell Tale Series Book 15 by Troy Taylor. Hear a free sample on the audiobooks page at WeirdDarkness.com. I'm Darren Marlar, welcome back to Weird Darkness. Have you seen the Monster Channel? It has horror hosts, B horror movies, retro tv commercials and a whole lot more and you can watch it any time absolutely free 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days out of the year on the Weirdo Watch Party page at WeirdDarkness.com. That's also the same page where we have our monthly Weirdo Watch Party, so be sure to check there and see when our next party is going to be so you can join us as we all watch together and laugh in the hysterics. It's the Weirdo Watch Party page at WeirdDarkness.com. In Eastern European folklore, you could ward off a vampire by scattering seeds on the ground, either on top of the vampire's grave or outside your house. Vampires were said to be obsessive creatures and they were compelled to count all the seeds. If you hid a nail in the seeds, it would prick the vampire midway through the count. The vampire would then drop the seeds and have to start all over again. So I guess you could say the count must count. No wonder Count Dracula was always counting on Sesame Street. Let's go further now, a bit more in depth regarding the origins of vampires in general and then to Dracula himself and what inspired author Bram Stoker to create the character. Abraham Bram Stoker, a theater manager and part-time novelist, was not the first author to feature the vampire in a literary work, but his version is the one that really caught on. This is largely due to the novel's unforgettable villain, Count Dracula, as well as the foreboding setting. Stoker arrived at both elements through extensive research. He set much of the action in the mysterious mountains of the Transylvania province of Romania and he based his vampires on Eastern European and Gypsy folklore. Selectively sampling from several versions of the vampire myth and adding some details of his own, Stoker formed the standard for the modern vampire. Unlike the vampires in the Eastern European tradition, Stoker's monster loses power in the sunlight, is repelled by crucifixes, and has acute intelligence. Interestingly, Stoker's vampires do not have reflections, while many earlier vampire creatures were fascinated by their own reflection. Stoker's research also turned up a name for his villain. The original Dracula was a real person, Prince Vladislav Bessarab, who ruled Wallachia in the mid-1400s. His father was known as Vlad Dracul, translated as either Vlad the Dragon or Vlad the Devil, in recognition of his induction into a society called the Order of the Dragon. Vlad Jr. was sometimes referred to as Vlad Dracula, meaning son of Dracul, but most often he was called Vlad Tepis, meaning Vlad the Impaler, a reference to Vlad's predilection for impaling his enemies on long wooden stakes. We'll look more closely at Vlad the Bad in a few minutes. Stoker's fictional villain is not closely modeled after Vlad, outside of just the name, though they are sometimes linked in movies based on Stoker's novel. Mainly, Stoker borrowed the name of the Prince as well as his social standing. Unlike the wandering, homeless Trigoy, Stoker's vampire was a wealthy aristocratic type, hiding out in a grandiose castle. In the 1927 play, Dracula, and the film adaptation that followed in 1931, Bella Lugosi embraced this aristocratic notion, playing the count as a suave, sophisticated gentleman. This play also introduced Dracula's familiar outfit, black formal wear and a billowing black cape. In the novel, Dracula, the count is described as a withered, ugly old man, more like Max Shrek's portrayal in the 1922 silent film adaptation Nosferatu, then Lugosi's presentation. But the suave Dracula caught on, showing up in scores of vampire movies, television shows and cartoons. The vampire has continued to evolve over the years, as novelists and filmmakers reinterpret and expand the mythology. In Anne Rice's popular novels, she takes vampires to the next level, giving them a conscience and a range of emotions. In her work, vampires are not necessarily evil, they are presented as real, rounded people. On the television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer, creator Joss Whedon pursued similar ideas, exploring the idea of a vampire with a soul. While the majority of vampire scholars focus on the cultural roots of vampire lore, which we will sink our fangs into shortly, some historians have looked to actual physical origins of vampires. There is no scientific evidence of actual vampires, but there are a number of real medical conditions that might result in vampiric behavior or appearance. One of the most interesting vampire diseases is porphyria. Porphyria is a rare disease characterized by irregularities in production of hem, an iron-rich pigment in blood. People with the more severe forms of porphyria are highly sensitive to sunlight, experience severe abdominal pain and may suffer from acute delirium. One possible treatment for porphyria in the past might have been to drink blood, to correct the imbalance in the body, though there is no clear evidence of this. Some porphyria sufferers do have reddish mouths and teeth due to irregular production of the hem pigment. Porphyria is hereditary, so there may have been concentrations of sufferers in certain areas throughout history. A more likely physical root of vampirism is catalepsy, a peculiar physical condition associated with epilepsy, schizophrenia and other disorders that affect the central nervous system. During a cataleptic episode, a person essentially freezes up. The muscles become rigid so that the body is very stiff and the heart rate and respiration slow down. Someone suffering from acute catalepsy could very well be mistaken for a corpse. Today, doctors have the knowledge and tools to accurately determine whether or not someone is alive, but in the past people would decide based only on appearance. Embalming was unknown in most of the world until relatively recently, so a body would have been put right in the ground as is. The cataleptic episode can last many hours, even days, which would allow enough time for a burial. When the person came to, he or she might have been able to dig themselves out and return home. If the person did suffer from a psychological disorder such as schizophrenia, he or she might have exhibited the strange and disturbing behavior associated with vampires. The behavior of actual corpses might have suggested vampirism as well. After death, fingernails and hair often appear to continue growing, but they don't. It is actually the surrounding skin receding which just gives the impression of the growth, the impression of life. Gases in the body expand, extending the abdomen as if the body had gorged itself. If you were to stake a decomposing corpse, it would very well rupture, draining all sorts of fluids. This might be taken as evidence that the corpse had been feeding on the living. While these conditions might have fueled a fear of the undead, the root causes of vampire lore are most likely psychological rather than physical. Death is one of the most mysterious aspects of life, and all cultures are preoccupied with it in some degree. One way to get a handle on death is to personify it, to give it some tangible form. At their root, Lamastu, Lilith and similar early vampires are explanations for a terrifying mystery, the sudden death of young children and fetuses in the womb. The Strigoi and other animated corpses are the ultimate symbols of death. They are the actual remains of the deceased. Vampires also personify the dark side of humanity. Lilith, Lamastu and the other early vampire demonesses are the opposite of the good wife and mother. Instead of caring for children and honoring a husband, they destroy babies and seduce men. Similarly, undead vampires feed on their family rather than supporting it. By defining evil through supernatural figures, people can get a better handle on their own evil tendencies. They externalize them. The appearance of so many vampire-like monsters throughout history, as well as our continued fascination with vampires, demonstrates that this is a universal response to the human condition. It is simply human nature to cast our fears as monsters. One modern variation on the vampire legend is the psychic vampire. These modern vampires claim that they crave psychic energy from others and have the power to drain it without the person's knowledge. Psychic vampires typically attempt to drain life-force energy through meditation and concentration. If they do not feed, they say, they will become weak as if they had not eaten. According to some believers, this sort of vampire has been around for thousands of years. Some claim this phenomenon inspired the undead vampires of folklore. In modern movies and books, vampires can take the form of a vampire bat, a real animal that feeds on blood. In actuality, vampire bats don't usually kill their prey and they pose little threat to humans. In fact, they are small, reclusive, docile animals. Vampiric shapeshifters go back thousands of years, but the particular connection to vampire bats is fairly recent. Vampire bats are only found in Central America and South America, so the Europeans and Asians who originally conceived of these monsters didn't know about them. When European explorers discovered the strange animals, they were soon incorporated into the vampire myth. Up next on Weird Darkness, how real people and events, and some of the lore we just covered, helped Bram Stoker to create the most well-known and terrifying vampire of them all. If you or someone you know is struggling with depression, dark thoughts or addiction, please visit the Hope in the Darkness page at WeirdDarkness.com. There, I've gathered numerous resources to find hope and solutions. For those suffering from thoughts of suicide or self-harm, there is the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, as well as the Crisis Text Line. Both have trained counselors at all hours to help those in need, and the page even includes text numbers for those in the U.S., Canada, United Kingdom and Ireland. Those struggling with depression can get help through the Seven Cups website and app, and there's information for anyone to read more about what depression truly is and how to identify it through our friends at ifred.org. There are resources for those who battle addictions, be it drugs, alcohol or self-destructive behavior, along with help for those related to addicts. The page has links to help you find a therapist or counselor, to find help for those who have a family member with Alzheimer's or dementia, help for those in a crisis pregnancy, and more. These resources are always there when you or someone you love needs them on the Hope in the Darkness page at WeirdDarkness.com. This is Weird Darkness. I'm Darren Marlar. Do you have a true paranormal story that's happened to you or someone you know? Share it by clicking on Tell Your Story at WeirdDarkness.com. Or you can call the dark line toll-free at 1-877-277-5944. That's 1-877-277-5944. I might use your story in a future episode. Now for the most famous bloodsucker of them all, Dracula. Dracula is popular even outside of Halloween and there's no surprise there. He is one of the primary evil beings living in pop culture. The history of vampires goes back perhaps thousands of years to ancient superstitions, but what is the origin of Dracula as we know him today? In general, people believe the history of Dracula is an open and shut case, beginning and ending with Vlad Tepus, Vlad the Impaler. However, there may be more to the story than meets the eye. It seems Bram Stoker also used other vampires, Irish legends, real people in history, and true events all as a basis for Dracula. In examining the history of Dracula the novel, we must first examine early fiction. During the 1700s, well before Dracula came out in 1897, there was a period of vampire obsession in Europe. Many countries had long-standing superstitions about them. The fictional literary works about vampires that began during this period indicate that the concept of Dracula was not unique to Stoker. Heinrich August Ostenfelder wrote a poem with a classic romantic vampire theme called The Vampire in 1748. In it, a vampire longs for a young woman, but he is frustrated because the young woman listens to her Christian mother who tells her that she should stay away from him. She warns her daughter that he is not mortal. The vampire vows to creep to her bed while she's sleeping to give her the kiss that will drain the young woman's blood and take her life with it. I'll share the entire poem with you a bit later. Another piece suspected of influencing Stoker is Carmilla. This was a novella by Joseph Sheridan Lafannu that was published in 1871, 26 years before Dracula. This story also contains romantic themes of vampiric longing. However, unique in its concept for its time, the female vampire, Carmilla, desires a female protagonist. Although a number of fictional writings were produced during this time, one in particular relates directly to Stoker's version. Gottfried August Burger wrote a ballad in 1773 called Lenore. The phrase, for the dad ride fast, was in the ballad and Stoker used that same line in his novel Dracula. Is it possible that Vlad Dracul and Abartak, in combination with literary work that began in the 1700s, were responsible for sparking Bram Stoker's imagination? Regardless of the true history of Dracula, the creation of Bram Stoker's novel could not be confined to the printed page. The 1922 silent film Nosferatu stole much of its plot from Stoker's book. So much of the plot, in fact, that Bram Stoker's widow won a lawsuit against the makers of the film. The best known film version of the novel, a classical horror romance, is the 1931 film starring Bella Legosi as the undead master of his castle. The long dark cape and white clothes that resemble some kind of tuxedo have been burned into the public's mind as to how a vampire should look. Legosi, however, looked nothing like the description of Dracula in Stoker's novel, which described the creature as a tall, old man. Clean shaven saved for a long white mustache and clad in black from head to foot without a single speck of color about him anywhere. Over time, the movies have been good for Dracula. According to an online movie information site, Dracula appears in more than 200 international films and growing. There are undoubtedly more to come. Clearly, there are many versions of the vampire story, and it seems that the history of Dracula may have many inspirations. As mentioned before, most scholars believe that Bram Stoker based his evil Count Dracula on the real-life 15th-century prince in Wallachia, Romania, Vlad Dracula, or Vlad, son of the dragon, or also known as Vlad Tepis, Vlad the Impaler, as his story has come down through history, he was a terrible man and a savage ruler. His brutality against enemy troops consisted of them sitting awkwardly on stakes with sharp points, and as their leg muscles gave out, the point of the stake would impale them through the length of their body. Thus, he was nicknamed Vlad Tepis, which means Vlad the Impaler. However, impaling was not his only method of torture and murder. Vlad was as creative as he possibly could be. People also knew him to boil his victims or cut off their limbs and other body parts. Additionally, Vlad mutilated organs, skinned and scalped people, or simply had animals eat them. It is not clear where he initially got the idea for this kind of torture, but the reports say that he even used these methods on innocent women and children. Saxon records indicate that Vlad Tepis killed between 40,000 and 100,000 people. It is uncertain if he really drank the blood of his victims or if fanciful people created the tale later. Bram Stoker took note of Vlad's name, Dracula, and used it for his character. Vlad acquired the name Dracula because of his father's name, Vlad II, Vlad Dracula. I have a lot more vampiric facts and folklore to share with you, and it'll take me two hours to fit it all in, so if you don't get both hours of the Weird Darkness radio show where you're listening, you'll want to subscribe to the podcast so you can hear it all after tonight's show is over. And while the radio show is just on the weekends, I upload episodes for the podcast seven nights per week. You can subscribe to the podcast at WeirdDarkness.com, or search for Weird Darkness wherever you listen to podcasts. You can follow the show on Facebook and Twitter at Weird Darkness, and please tell others about the show who love the paranormal or strange stories, true crime, monsters, or unsolved mysteries like you do. Doing that helps make it possible for me to keep doing the show. And if you'd like to be a part of the show, you can call in to the dark line toll-free and tell your own true paranormal story, or a story that's happened to someone you know. That number is 1-877-277-5944. Again, the toll-free number is 1-877-277-5944. You can also email me anytime at darren at WeirdDarkness.com. Sources used for this episode include History.com, Ranker.com, Atlas Obscura.com, InternationalHero.co.uk, HowStuffWorks.com, The University of Iowa's Victorian Wiki, Google Books, and HistoryIreland.com. Weird Darkness is a production and trademark of Marlar House Productions. And now that we're coming out of the dark, I'll leave you with a little light. Romans 8 verses 38 and 39, For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. And a final thought. People are so quick to judge others' faults, but never quick to point out their own. I'm Darren Marlar. Thanks for joining me in the Weird Darkness. Don't go anywhere, weirdos, because sudden death over time is up next. Winter has Louisville in its grip and former FBI agent Dallas Powell has his hands full with car trouble, cat trouble, and trying to keep the derby city branch of true blood investigations and security ink solvent. When a juicy insurance job comes his way, he jumps at it. But the discovery of a decades-old murder spawns a veritable blizzard of violence, and Dallas finds himself right in its path. Winter Wonderland, a Dallas Powell mystery by T. Lee Harris, narrated by Darren Marlar. You're a free sample on the audiobooks page at WeirdDarkness.com. Long before Bram Stoker released Dracula, there was the very first time a vampire appeared in creative literature. Heinrich Assenfelder's short poem, The Vampire, published in 1748. As I promised, I will recite it for you now in its entirety. My dear young maiden Klingif, unbending and fast and firm, to all the long-held teachings of an ever-faithful mother, as folk along the face, hayduck-like, do believe in vampires that bring death. Like I said, it's a short poem. Although the poem isn't necessarily gruesome, it does portray the vampire figure in a sexual manner as he tries his hand at seducing a young woman by threatening her faith in religion. According to scholars, the vampire is more of a metaphor for the death and destruction of Christianity than a Dracula figure. However, the poem does describe the aggressor as having vampire characteristics, such as draining his victim of her blood, having her succumb to death, and his embrace being cold, suggesting he is undead. Another poem, or in this case a ballad, might also have been inspirational for Stoker. In 1773, a German poet named Gottfried Auguste Berger wrote a spectral ballad poem called Lenore. The ballad tells the story of a woman named Lenore who deeply longs for her lover, who is off fighting in a war. One night she is visited by a ghostly writer who masquerades as her beloved. However, the spectral being is actually death himself who has come to take Lenore to meet her unfortunate demise. Although there is no mention or implication of actual vampires throughout the ballad, it is said that Lenore had a significant role influencing vampire literature, including Stoker's Dracula, in which he included the line from the ballad, The Dead Travel Fast. Another vampiric novel before Dracula was the novella The Vampire, released in 1819 written by John Poladori. The vampire, spelled with a Y, is recognized as one of the first English stories ever written about vampires, and it changed perspectives on how vampires were represented. The vampire written by John Poladori was actually first attributed to Lord Byron after having his conference at Geneva with Percy Shelley and Mary Godwin, who we now know as Mary Shelley, a Frankenstein fan, Shelley's future wife, along with several other notable figures. Lord Byron initially had hired John William Poladori as a personal physician that traveled alongside him in his travels. At the Geneva Convention while everyone was writing their ghost stories, John Poladori was also at work on his own. When Byron became bored of his own work, Poladori borrowed his idea and came up with this tale. Poladori, having a terrible relationship with his employer, took Byron's original idea and changed it around, making it more of a caricature of Byron. It was eventually mistakenly published under Byron's name. Although many critics in the time would disagree, the vampire was actually a huge success. Many reviews at the time, such as the Edinburgh Monthly Review, did not take kindly to such a mistake. Many reviewers took the extract of the letter from Geneva, included as a preface to the vampire, as a way to humiliate and degrade Lord Byron for writing, as the reviewer states it, a filthy tale. This preface was used as a way to attribute the writing to Lord Byron when in fact there is no mention of Byron or the story itself. Even the opening paragraphs of the vampire suggest that the work was done by some other author by the unknowable description of the city of Athens. The reviewer suggests that Byron, having spent many years on and off in Athens, would not have made those errors regarding the landscape of Athens and its surrounding areas. All of this was for the sake of saving Byron's reputation. The story centers around the relationship Lord Strongmore evokes with women. However, there are very few situations where the women are given a voice or even a name. In the beginning, the narrator describes mothers of eligible daughters and ladies as hunters seeking out the aristocratic Strongmore out of curiosity and a determination to win over such a mysterious figure. When the two most notable women, Ionthe and Miss Aubrey, are approached, they are given names, but very little agency. They are seduced, just like many others. Comparatively, the story is clearly an allegory for sexual seducing but also of rape. In the case of Ionthe, a violent encounter is outwardly displayed as an aggressive and overtaking force. The strong sexual connotations are outlined by Ionthe's parents who describe the vampire's orgies in the forest. By the 18th and 19th centuries, these events were known as an occasion of feasting and revelry, especially one characterized by excessive drinking and indiscriminate sexual activity. The quietness of the encounters and the women's subsequent admittance in many cases create the allegory for the vampire. In this story, the monster is otherworldly, but what makes him monstrous are his attacks. Ionthe is another example of women's powerlessness in the story. She is described as a frank, infantile being, echoing the familiar themes of the child bride in Victorian times. She is attractive to Aubrey because of her innocence but remains unaware of Aubrey's advances. It is almost as if her innocence is that of ignorance as the fact that she is uneducated and foreign is reiterated several times. Despite being the one who introduces Aubrey to the idea of the vampire and her knowledge of their actions and locations, Ionthe becomes the victim. Ms. Aubrey too is apparently blinded by Strongmore's seduction and power. It is likely that given the number of women that Strongmore exposed through sexual conquests, he would have a reputation that Ms. Aubrey would have some indication to. But as with the entire story, the women are completely unable to withstand a man's sexual advances in the form of powerful seduction. They are portrayed not so much as victims but those who gave in to vice and desires. After Aubrey becomes friends with Lord Strongmore and accompanies him in traveling, Aubrey finds himself in numerous instances where he feels the need to betray. These betrayals begin to occur at the same time Aubrey starts to question Lord Strongmore's true character. This happens after Aubrey secretly prevents Strongmore's rendezvous with the daughter of a lady whose house he often visited. After the prevention, Aubrey abandons Strongmore and travels by himself to Greece. He betrays Ionthe who warns him not to travel through the forest during the night as it is believed to be the resort of the vampires in their nocturnal orgies. He promises Ionthe he won't go when it is dark, but his occupation in his research makes him forget about when the sun sets, thus he ends up traveling through the forest too late and the vampire kills Ionthe. After Ionthe's death, Aubrey is reconciled with Lord Strongmore. They resume their travels together and are attacked by robbers. Strongmore is shot, but before he dies he makes Aubrey swear Ionthe. Aubrey's oath is to not impart his knowledge of Strongmore's crimes and death for a year and a day. However, when Aubrey returns home to England, he notices Lord Strongmore is still alive. The lordship continually reminds Aubrey of his oath, causing Aubrey to become mentally distressed. Aubrey's anxiety worsens and he wishes he could reveal the monster's secret. Due to the consequences of his previous betrayals, Aubrey forces himself to keep his oath. Unfortunately, Aubrey's sister marries Lord Strongmore, who ends up killing her. The vampire does not take betrayal lightly. He avenges Aubrey for his betrayals and does not give Aubrey an option in regards to the oath. He sets up a double-edged sword scenario. That is, if Aubrey breaks his oath, the vampire will avenge him for it, but if he doesn't break his oath, he will already have murdered Aubrey's sister. This scenario instills suspense in the reader due to Polidori's creation of a relentless, sinister villain. Whether or not there is a vampire in the vampire novel, it's not as clear-cut as the title would suggest. There is evidence to suggest that there is or isn't a vampire. The ambiguity stems from Aubrey's deteriorating mental condition and deterioration that he acquired during his first encounter with what he assumes to be a vampire. Quote, Aubrey being put to bed was seized with a most violent fever and was often delirious. In these intervals, he would call upon Lord Strongmore and upon Iamte by some unaccountable combination he begged of his former companion to spare the being he loved. At other times, he would implicate maledictions upon his head and curse him as her destroyer. It is this moment in the text that first suggests that Aubrey's memory is not to be trusted. In this moment, Aubrey seems to be unable to remember if Iamte has been killed or is still in danger from the vampire. During Aubrey's recovery, the text tells us that Lord Strongmore chanced at this time to arrive in Athens. The text gives us reason to believe that Lord Strongmore was not present in Athens when Aubrey encounters the vampire. But it also gives evidence to support Lord Strongmore's vampirism, such as his return from death, although his death is never seen. Virtue is defined as the conformity of one's life and conduct to moral and ethical principles, uprightness, and rectitude. With the Victorian age being the successor to the Romantic Era, we often see the remnants of some of the ideas that were prominent of the Romantic Era included in the Victorian Age. The term virtue and the idea of a person being virtuous is one that can be seen lingering throughout the years. Authors of the Romantic Era, such as Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Friedrich Schiller, and Lord Byron often wrote of characters aiming to achieve a virtuous state in order to be a well-rounded, appropriate human being in all ways possible. Since we know John William Poladori's The Vampire, a tale, originates from a work of Lord Byron's, there is no question that there is a definite inclusion of vice and virtue. There are several mentions of both vice and virtue in The Vampire, a tale, most of which pertain to women. The idea runs parallel to the theme that women of the time should be proper, pure, and whole. The importance of women being virtuous and pure is focused around those ladies in which Lord Strongmore pursues. Originally, we perceive that he pursues them as companions and that sexual affection is his goal. It is not until later in the story we can infer that Lord Strongmore is actually attracted to the pure woman because of his thirst for blood. The pure of heart and soul is seen as the ideal choice for The Vampire of this time, which in a way sets a standard for the future. Vice and virtue are two themes that are important in the story not only because the attainment of virtue was a common desire of the time, but also for the fact that the recognition of the pure of heart establishes targets throughout the story for Lord Strongmore or The Vampire himself. Historical events had a big influence on the Bram Stoker Dracula novel as well. Dr. Stoker, the famed author's great-grand nephew, was invited to Sligo, Ireland by the local Bram Stoker society where he confirmed a cholera epidemic in town in 1832 inspired the story of Dracula. Bram Stoker's mother, Charlotte, grew up in Sligo. According to Dr. Stoker, when his great-granduncle's mother moved to France, Bram Stoker asked her to write down what she remembered from the premature burials in Sligo during the cholera outbreak and send them to him, confirming he must have used the accounts to inspire his tale of the undead. Burial records from Sligo in 1832 are seven pages longer than the years prior. According to historian Dr. Fiona Gallagher, anywhere from 700 to 1000 people perished within a six-day period, most of whom suffered a fever in the hospital. To prevent spreading the disease, people were buried right away, some before they had actually passed. When Bram Stoker was sick as a child, his mother reportedly told him stories about what happened in Sligo. During his visit to Sligo, Dr. Stoker presented a storyboard at St. John's Cathedral in Sligo where some of the infected were laid to rest. It is very possible Bram Stoker took inspiration from an essay as well. In 1885, author Emily Gerard published an essay explaining Transylvanian folklore. The essay titled Transylvania Superstitions spoke about Nosferatu and vampires in full detail. It mentions that there are two types of vampires, those who are illegitimate offspring and those bitten and turned into vampires. Her essay goes into detail regarding a vampire's lust for blood, and she describes the gruesome method of killing a vampire. This involves exorcisms, decapitation and using a stake or burning the heart. Published before Dracula, Transylvania Superstitions was a significant influence on Stoker, who studied it thoroughly before creating Dracula. And one more inspiration, which is how bats became associated with vampires. In 1510, an Italian explorer and historian named Pietro Angera added to vampire lore when he described large, blood-lusting creatures that were accused of predatory activities. After returning from his exploration, Pietro wrote about his terrifying encounter with bats. He described them as creatures of substantial size that would assault men as they slept at night. He further goes on to say that the creatures bit the men with their venomous teeth. Although these creatures were large bats, they would later be referred to as vampiros. Additionally, in the 1860s, an English explorer named Richard Burton would further describe the vampiros as demonical creatures with saucer-like eyes that fed from human blood. Hey weirdos, be sure to click the like button and subscribe to this channel, and click the notification bell so you don't miss future videos. I post videos seven days a week, and while you're at it, spread the darkness by sharing this video with someone you know who loves all things strange and macabre. If you want to listen to the podcast, you can find it at WeirdDarkness.com.