Filmmakers in the 1950s didn’t completely abandon the dry and dusty lore of the Devil even if it did seem audiences were now much more inclined to see threats in the form of atomic bombs, little green men in flying saucers, and giant monsters unleashed by man’s experiments with radioactivity. A new obsession with science and outer space seemed to temporarily put the Devil on hold, largely pushing the mysteries of black magic off the screen.

But the 1950s weren’t a complete loss when it came to the Devil onscreen. They not only introduced an unhinged underground filmmaker who would have a much bigger impact in the decade to come but 1957 also gave us what was, without question, one of the best satanic films of all time – one of the few truly effective films about black magic that can still give you a chill even nearly 70 years later.

The call came in as a fire. What firefighters found inside was far worse. In March of 1994, three people were discovered dead inside a Westlawn Avenue home in Decatur, Illinois. The investigation led police to James David Dyer, a man already feared by one of the victims and already named in a court order.

This episode follows the threats, the violence, the chase, and the aftermath of a case that left one town shaken.

Check out our new American Hauntings Podcast Network for even more spooky shows.

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This episode was written by Troy Taylor

Produced and edited by Cody Beck

Before rock-n-roll started taking America by storm in the 1950s, you wouldn’t find a minister or holy roller anywhere in the country who didn’t refer to the blues as the “Devil’s Music.”

During the Middle Ages, the Church told people that any kind of music that wasn’t about God was the work of the Devil. That became a popular refrain for church leaders – then and sometimes now. By the early twentieth century, it was jazz music – linked to the blamed of Storyville – that was being blamed for lewd and lascivious behavior.

Jazz seemed really bad – but then came the blues -- a form of music with an angry, wicked sound that conjures up visions of dive bars, pool halls, graveyards, and an abandoned crossroads in Mississippi where the Devil just might be waiting for the next hopeful guitar player to come along, looking for fame and fortune.

Then, with the blending of blues, country, hillbilly music, and more, rock-n-roll was born. It’s evolved in many ways over the years – but it’s always been trouble.