NEW YORK — The Destination America network’s “Exorcism: Live!” on Friday could either turn out to be the scariest pre-Halloween program on television or the ghostly version of Al Capone’s vault. There isn’t much middle ground.
The mostly live, two-hour telecast will culminate in an attempt to rid a suburban St. Louis home of supposed malevolent spirits. The boy who was the subject of the head-turning 1949 exorcism immortalized in William Peter Blatty’s 1971 book, “The Exorcist,” and subsequent movie, briefly lived in the Bel-Nor, Mo., house.
“This, to me at least, is probably the quintessential American horror story,” said Henry Schleiff, group president at Discovery Communications who oversees the network.
Only 3 years old, Destination America is available in about half of the nation’s TV homes.
Schleiff brought up Capone’s name unbidden, to promise “Exorcism: Live!” will be different. The reference to Geraldo Rivera’s 1986 special where he opened the gangster’s vault to find next to nothing has become shorthand for much-hyped television programs that fail to deliver.
“I don’t know if I believe in ghosts,” he said. “But I believe in research, and it says 60 percent of people believe in ghosts. I genuinely believe this will be an entertaining and informative show and I’m very proud to be associated with it.”
The exorcism of the boy known as Roland Doe was completed outside of the house, but there’s evidence bad vibes remain there, said Jodi Tovay, who developed the special.
The boy who was the subject of the 1949 exorcism is still alive. Now 80 and living in the Washington, D.C. area, he guards his privacy and declined to participate in the special, Tovay said.
