Jessika M. Thomas  lists at Ranker - the ultimate source for lists and rankings in all categories

Jessika M. Thomas  - Lists at Ranker

Myths, lore, ghost stories, and urban legends from all around the United States.

American Legends

Monsters

Most people are familiar with Scotland&#39;s Loch Ness Monster, affectionately known as Nessie. She might be the most famous aquatic beast, but Nessie is the star of just one of many lake monster&nbsp;legends. In fact, there are plenty of United States lake&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/scary-sea-monster-legends/edira-putri" target="_blank">monsters</a>&nbsp;with their own stories and sightings.&nbsp;From a half-man, half-goat in Texas to the legendary <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/creepy-lake-champlain-stories/robert-f-mason" target="_blank">Lake Champlain&nbsp;Monster</a> in New York, the list of&nbsp;lake monsters within the US extends beyond your wildest imagination.&nbsp;

Are lake monsters real? Or are the reported sightings just fabricated tales&nbsp;meant for your amusement?&nbsp;Although some believe these creatures are nothing more than&nbsp;great camping stories, others have supposedly&nbsp;witnessed the creatures in person and have no doubt&nbsp;about their existence.

These United States Lake Monsters Will Make You Reconsider Your Summer Vacation Spot

General

United States Lake Monsters That Will Make You Reconsider Your Summer Vacation Spot

Jessika M. Thomas 

The best horror movies in every subgenre of horror. Whether it's evil dolls, terrible vacations, or anything in between, we've got a list for it.

Horror Movies About Everything

Lifestyle

When people think of <a class="edS-cl" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/strong-female-characters/anncasano?ref=internalCrossLinking_keyword">strong female leads</a>, they may recall&nbsp;films such as Lara Croft: Tomb Raider or perhaps The Hunger Games.&nbsp;While those are both great examples of female action heroes,&nbsp;horror films with female leads are also a common thing.

Since the early days of the genre, horror films and women screaming in terror have gone hand in hand. What started with&nbsp;&quot;scream queens&quot; - conventionally&nbsp;beautiful, terrified women who are usually rescued by men before the end&nbsp;of&nbsp;horror films -&nbsp;eventually turned to &ldquo;final girls&rdquo; or females who survive <a href="https://www.ranker.com/crowdranked-list/the-most-utterly-terrifying-figures-in-film" target="_blank">horror movie villains</a> and live to tell the story of what happened.

Like scream queens, final girls&nbsp;start out&nbsp;as damsels in distress,&nbsp;but modern final girls are strong enough to survive using their intelligence and brawn instead of by depending on a male to rescue them. More and more of these strong female horror films are making their way to the mainstream and to the <a href="https://www.shudder.com" target="_blank">horror streaming app Shudder</a>, which you can check out for a free seven-day trial and costs a fraction of a movie ticket ($5.99/month) afterwards.&nbsp;

The best female-led horror films tend to feature this new breed of final girls, as it&#39;s always exciting to see seemingly hopeless victims rescue themselves.&nbsp;

25 Most Essential Female-Led Horror Films

Film

20 Most Essential Female-Led Horror Films

John F. Kennedy assassination

Journalism can be a dangerous job, especially investigative journalism. History has documented numerous&nbsp;<a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/kidnappings-reporters-held-hostage/aaron-pruner" target="_blank">reporters who were&nbsp;kidnapped</a> or&nbsp;murdered&nbsp;because of knowledge they may have possessed, and some theorists believe one of them is Dorothy Kilgallen, an American journalist and TV&nbsp;game show personality who died of an alleged drug overdose in 1965.

Kilgallen was known&nbsp;for being a panelist on the TV show&nbsp;What&#39;s My Line?, along with the&nbsp;&quot;Voice of Broadway,&quot; a newspaper column she began writing in 1938. At its height, Kilgallen&#39;s column appeared in over 140 newspapers in the United States. Her articles mostly centered around celebrity gossip and show business, but one&nbsp;of her final research projects&nbsp;involved both politics and crime - the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. While&nbsp;investigating the case, however, Kilgallen&nbsp;passed, leaving many to speculate whether there was more to her death.

No one has ever proved anything other than what the autopsy claimed, but one modern lawyer and author, Mark Shaw, has taken it upon himself to investigate her life and death. Was Dorothy Kilgallen&nbsp;slain or was it merely a case of an accidental overdose? Shaw claims there may have been foul play and something more sinister than&nbsp;an OD, and is committed to opening a broader investigation into the mysterious story. Kilgallen may have been the <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/story-of-murdered-irish-journalist-veronica-guerin/harrison-tenpas" target="_blank">journalist who knew too much</a>&nbsp;-&nbsp;and paid the price for it.

Some People Say This Reporter Was Murdered Because She Knew Too Much About JFK's Death

Was Dorothy Kilgallen Murdered Because She Knew Too Much About JFK's Death ?

Need to summon a spirit? Set up your Ouija board, light some candles, and follow these guides to get chatting with parties who have shuffled off this mortal coil and onto the next.

So You Want to Talk to Ghosts

Resting Places

How exactly do you hold a seance? The practice of speaking to the dead is nothing new, and seances&nbsp;can be traced back as far as the early 1700s. Abraham Lincoln&#39;s wife, Mary Todd Lincoln, is known to have conducted seances in the White House to contact two of her deceased sons. There are rumors of other presidents and first ladies holding seances in the White House as well.

Even though plenty of people have tried reaching out to spirits, it remains a taboo subject&nbsp;some consider blasphemous. However,&nbsp;others believe&nbsp;it is the safest way to contact&nbsp;loved ones who have passed, as more serious rituals - such as <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/how-to-summon-the-dead/lyra-radford" target="_blank">summoning the dead</a> - carry potentially dire long-term consequences.

If you&#39;re planning on conducting a proper seance, it&#39;s important&nbsp;to hold your ritual in a graveyard, as they&#39;re&nbsp;breeding grounds for the supernatural. Once there, you should follow all the ritual&#39;s steps carefully and zero in on a specific ghost so you can ask them questions they&#39;ll have insight on and leave them appropriate gifts. While&nbsp;<a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/how-to-summon-spirits-with-ouija-boards/jacob-shelton" target="_blank">Ouja&nbsp;summoning</a>&nbsp;is a popular way of making contact with the afterlife, there are actually a ton of ways for spirits to talk to the living, so be on the lookout for subtler abnormalities.&nbsp;

Calling out to the dead can be scary, but with a trustworthy group and the right preparation, you&#39;ll be an experienced medium in no time.&nbsp;

How To Conduct A Proper Seance In A Graveyard

How To Conduct A Seance In A Graveyard

Pop Culture

<a class="edS-cl" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/scary-prison-stories/stefanie-hammond?ref=internalCrossLinking_keyword">Prison horror stories</a> are rampant, and while no one knows that better than the prisoners, correctional officers have their own shocking tales. Many <a class="edS-cl" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/creepy-prison-guard-stories/christopher-shultz?ref=internalCrossLinking_keyword">prison guard stories</a> are just as wild as those of inmates, proving&nbsp;prisons can be&nbsp;violent and dangerous places -&nbsp;even for those paid to work in them.If you've ever wondered what a day in the life of a corrections officer&nbsp;is like, look no further than Reddit's <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AMA/comments/4hykmx/prisons_dirty_secrets_former_correctional_officer/" target="_blank">Ask Me Anything</a>&nbsp;section, where a former guard&nbsp;answered&nbsp;questions about the job and shared disturbing prison stories.&nbsp;

A Former Florida Prison Guard Divulged Secrets Of The System

Prison Guard Stories: What Working In Prisons Is Really Like

Culture

A belief in bad omens has&nbsp;been ingrained in most of humanity since&nbsp;childhood. Even the least superstitious people tend to avoid breaking mirrors, stepping on cracks, and walking under ladders. There are many bad omens and wives&#39; tales that have accumulated from every corner of the world since the beginning of time -&nbsp;some with long-lost and mysterious origins, others with well-documented ones.&nbsp;There are also&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/bad-omens-and-signs-you-are-going-to-die/amber-fua" target="_blank">bad omens</a>&nbsp;that, if you were born under a certain zodiac sign,&nbsp;you should be particularly careful to avoid.

The signs of the zodiac all have their own <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/weaknesses-according-to-zodiac/mariel-loveland" target="_blank">shortcomings</a>, and it&#39;s important to be aware of what mistakes may just give you a lifetime of bad luck.

Here Are The Omens You Should Watch Out For Based On Your Zodiac

Bad Omens To Be Cautious Of, Based On Your Zodiac Sign

Lists about infamous repeat murderers to chill your blood and remind you to lock your doors and windows and maybe keep a knife under your pillow.

Real Serial Killers

True Crime

When people hear about the wives of serial killers, they likely&nbsp;think of women who married a man after his conviction. There&#39;s <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/people-with-hybristophilia-who-married-killers/stephen-tompkins" target="_blank">a term for it -&nbsp;hybristophilia</a>, which refers to someone feeling&nbsp;aroused by&nbsp;being with a partner who has committed serious crimes.

But what about <a class="edS-cl" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/people-with-hybristophilia/stephen-tompkins?ref=internalCrossLinking_keyword">women who married serial killers</a> before or during their crimes? Did they know about their spouses&#39; <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/double-life-reveal-stories/jude-newsome" target="_blank">double lives</a>? Were they scared to go to the police? Were they in denial? Did they not care? Wives of serial killers could genuinely remain oblivious&nbsp;to their husbands&#39; doings, as it&#39;s common for&nbsp;serial killers to lead double lives.&nbsp;

A wife&#39;s response to her husband&#39;s&nbsp;serial crimes can range from denial to disbelief, with some spouses harboring suspicions, and others refusing to believe they married&nbsp;a murderer. Also, not all of these marriages have ended in divorce.&nbsp;

12 Women Who Were Married To Notorious Serial Killers

Graveyard Shift

For police officers, unsolved crimes can prove&nbsp;extremely stressful. Often, officers&nbsp;have to&nbsp;think outside the box to finally crack these&nbsp;elusive cases. They must deal with a mountain of pressure from victims&#39; families, as well as from the news and online media circuses. Sometimes police have no leads or suspects, and unfortunately, cases turn cold. Many cold cases remain unsolved, but&nbsp;sometimes officers receive information and tips long after the crime occurred, causing them to reopen and re-examine old files.

Starting in 2007, the Florida&nbsp;Department of Law Enforcement and Department of Corrections&nbsp;implemented a new way to help police solve long-forgotten cases. They distributed &quot;most wanted&quot; playing cards printed with&nbsp;crucial information about cold case crimes, hoping inmates might recall information about a suspect or victim and&nbsp;then&nbsp;anonymously reach out to police. Authorities distributed these cards throughout jails and prisons in the United States and other countries, including&nbsp;Australia, to resolve cold cases with the help of attentive inmates.

'Cold Case Playing Cards' Distributed Among Prisoners Can Lead To Cases Being Solved

Prisons Use Cold Case Playing Cards To Solve Crimes

Nine Inch Nails

Nine Inch Nails arrived on the music scene like a wrecking ball and left a wave of destruction behind. Frontman&nbsp;Trent Reznor&nbsp;released explosive and confrontational music that bowled over fans and enraged critics as he battled infamy, drug addiction, and a string of vicious controversies.&nbsp;During the '90s, Nine Inch Nails were <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/best-nine-inch-nails-songs/voteable" target="_blank">one of the biggest bands</a> on the scene,&nbsp;and they continue to tour and release music today.Despite weathering the kind&nbsp;of controversial press typically reserved for hip-hop and death metal, Reznor managed to keep a level of privacy and an air of mystery by focusing on the music. Because of this, surely there are things you didn't know about Nine Inch Nails.Continue reading to learn some of the craziest stories about Nine Inch Nails as well as Nine Inch Nails band facts.

Nine Inch Nails Scared The Hell Out Of People, But Trent Reznor's All About The Music

10 Things You Never Knew About Nine Inch Nails

Lists about bizarre real crime stories that are almost unbelievable - but are actually 100% true.

Stranger Than Fiction

For some burglars, a perfectly planned robbery is&nbsp;too good an opportunity to pass up. While you might think brute force is the easiest way to steal a fortune, sometimes a subtler approach yields best results, as is evidenced by the slew of&nbsp;robbers who disguised themselves as employees to burglarize stores.&nbsp;These well-planned robberies have taken place at a variety of stores and restaurants including <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/worst-things-to-happen-at-walmart/jacob-shelton" target="_blank">Walmart</a>, Target, Apple, and <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/the-13-most-violent-things-that_ve-happened-at-a-mcdonald_s/ihateeverything" target="_blank">McDonald's</a>. While many of the&nbsp;clever burglars were looking for quick cash, others were hoping to score some&nbsp;expensive headphones, flat screen television sets, and iPhones.Although most got away with their crimes, a few&nbsp;were captured and are now serving lengthy jail sentences.&nbsp;

Times Robbers Dressed Like Store Employees For a Robbery

13 Times Robbers Dressed Like Store Employees For a Robbery

First comes trial, then comes guilty, then comes sentencing to years locked away with people even more dangerous than you are. Join us on a whirlwind tour of prison!

Prison: Behind the Bars

Criminals

As con artist Steven Jay Russell <a href="https://www.independent.ie/lifestyle/king-con-a-passion-for-escape-26569243.html" target="_blank">once</a><a href="https://www.independent.ie/lifestyle/king-con-a-passion-for-escape-26569243.html" target="_blank"> </a><a href="https://www.independent.ie/lifestyle/king-con-a-passion-for-escape-26569243.html" target="_blank">said</a>,&nbsp;&quot;I don&#39;t think I&#39;m cleverer than the police, but I managed it because they think anyone who is a [crook]&nbsp;is stupid, and they&#39;re complacent. I think anyone can escape from anywhere.&quot; Sure enough, the most elaborate escape schemes in prison history involve&nbsp;<a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/1962-alcatraz-prison-escape-attempt-with-decoys/cleo-egnal" target="_blank">decoys</a>,&nbsp;knives transported in hunks of frozen meat, and&nbsp;<a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/helicopter-prison-escapes-list/alby-thompson" target="_blank">helicopter hijackings</a>.

Upon recapture, escapees&nbsp;typically&nbsp;face tighter security, harsher restrictions, and even longer sentences.&nbsp;Authorities, meanwhile, rarely&nbsp;elaborate on the details&nbsp;of escape attempts&nbsp;for fear of inspiring others. Many&nbsp;offenders, however, end up escaping again.

Some convicted offenders who escaped sought the adrenaline rush, while others say they needed a way to kick the boredom of prison life;&nbsp;many merely want their freedom.&nbsp;Though&nbsp;inmates on the loose and breaches in &quot;maximum&quot; security may concern those on the outside, many prison break stories are so smart you can&#39;t help marveling at&nbsp;their ingenuity.

Here Are All The Craftiest Ways Criminals Have Broken Out Of Prison

The 14 Craftiest Ways Criminals Have Broken Out Of Prison

In the entertainment industry, shows and movies about cops and lawyers are considered especially great. These are their stories.

Book 'Em, Danno

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit

No one denies the immense appeal of&nbsp;Law &amp; Order: Special Victims Unit, which has reliably churned out new episodes since its 1999 debut. But like any massively successful franchise, the show falls into all sorts of predictable&nbsp;SVU cliches. As is the case with other <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/crime-tv-shows-and-series/reference" target="_blank">popular crime shows</a>, you can expect to find predictable SVU&nbsp;plots almost every other episode.&nbsp;And if it isn't doling out outrageous storylines,&nbsp;SVU&nbsp;gives you flat-out lies about how law enforcement actually runs.&nbsp;For most fans, the show's banality is something they've grown to love. While many episodes feature engaging plot twists and juicy mysteries, the cliches&nbsp;are unavoidable.Law &amp; Order: SVU&nbsp;may not be the only show guilty of&nbsp;procedural cop show tropes, but it certainly is one of the most prolific.

The Most Infuriating 'Law &amp; Order: Special Victims Unit' Tropes

The 15 Most Infuriating 'Law & Order: SVU' Tropes That Need To Stop

Unspeakable Times

Many look back on their high school years fondly, remembering them as the best time of their life. For others, the thought of&nbsp;high school brings back <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/elementary-school-teachers-discuss-gross-students/alexfurlin" target="_blank">painful memories</a>&nbsp;of being bullied. No matter what type of school someone attended, they likely know all about bullies - whether through personal experience or stories.Some students <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/kids-standing-up-to-bullying/anabel-conner" target="_blank">stand up to bullies</a> and put a stop to the mistreatment. Others, meanwhile,&nbsp;suffer from the life-long effects of being beaten up, called names, or having their school days made a living hell. For&nbsp;those who dealt with bullying in high school, however, sharing stories of their harassment on Reddit&nbsp;can prove cathartic.

People Share Their Stories Of Sadistic High School Bullying

Real People Share Their Heartbreaking High School Bully Stories

Whether you've experienced disembodied voices or&nbsp;only heard the creepy stories, scientific explanations for this phenomenon exist. Sleep deprivation, drug use, carbon monoxide poisoning,&nbsp;and even&nbsp;high levels of caffeine can trigger the relatively common occurrence of&nbsp;auditory hallucinations. Mental disorders, such as schizophrenia, can also cause people to hear voices.For others, however, only&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/freaky-paranormal-stories/amandasedlakhevener" target="_blank">supernatural encounters</a>&nbsp;can explain mysterious voices.&nbsp;From hearing a&nbsp;family member&nbsp;calling out your name - while in the house alone -&nbsp;to warnings from ghostly voices of impending doom, many people hear something unexplainable and become&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/true-unexplained-stories/lea-rose-emery" target="_blank">confused about why it happened</a>.

People Describe Hearing Inexplicable Voices

People Hearing Voices: 20 Inexplicable Real Stories

White House

Most people in America are familiar with 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, AKA the White House. However, not everyone realizes <a class="edS-cl" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/pictures-of-the-oval-office-for-each-us-president/kellen-perry?ref=internalCrossLinking_keyword">the Oval Office</a> is&nbsp;one of the most haunted locations in the US.&nbsp;There are several creepy White House stories involving&nbsp;ghosts&nbsp;and other attic horrors. Both Jane Pierce and Mary Lincoln reportedly held s&eacute;ances while residing there,&nbsp;with Abraham Lincoln&nbsp;in attendance at least once.&nbsp;One of the most puzzling <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/presidential-ghost-stories/amandasedlakhevener" target="_blank">White House ghost stories</a> involves the spirit&nbsp;of a teenager who was repeatedly spotted&nbsp;during William Taft's presidency. Nicknamed &quot;The Thing,&quot; the ghost liked to reach out and touch White House servants, though few ever saw it physically appear. For whatever reason, President Taft was infuriated by the tale, so most discussion of&nbsp;The Thing was wiped from historical records.&nbsp;

There Is Compelling Evidence A Mysterious Teenage Ghost Called 'The Thing' Haunted Taft's White House

Did A Mysterious Teenage Ghost Haunt Taft's White House?

Lists of real criminals and details about the bizarre, disgusting crimes they committed.

Insane True Crime & Criminals

Who doesn&#39;t love a bizarre&nbsp;true crime story? The proliferation of documentary series, podcasts, and other true crime tales prove&nbsp;humans&nbsp;have <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/the-most-bizarre-true-crime-stories-in-history/justin-andress" target="_blank">an unorthodox fascination with crime stories</a>. Whether it&#39;s&nbsp;<a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/strange-true-crime-twists/jacob-shelton" target="_blank">twists&nbsp;in true crime stories</a>, crazy loopholes in the law,&nbsp;or the implausible details&nbsp;of a jaw-dropping case, the world of crime can captivate, horrify, and amaze.

Beyond the gruesome details, strange facts and figures about crime in the United States may surprise you.&nbsp; For instance, there&#39;s&nbsp;a <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/yellowstone-zone-of-death/stephanroget" target="_blank">national park in the US</a> where murder is technically legal. If you&#39;ve ever wondered what type of vehicle is the most frequently stolen,&nbsp;or how many states have no laws against necrophilia, then check out what statisticians and researchers have confirmed regarding true crime trivia.

Weird Crime Facts Even The Most Seasoned True Crime Enthusiasts Probably Don't Know

11 Weird Crime Facts That Even Crime Enthusiasts Probably Don't Know

It has been referred to as the &quot;Bonnie and Clyde Syndrome,&quot; but its medical title is hybristophilia&nbsp;—&nbsp;a paraphilia or condition in which one feels sexual arousal or has an affinity for people who do reprehensible things. These negative acts range&nbsp;from &quot;small&quot; offenses like&nbsp;cheating or lying to&nbsp;terrible crimes such as serial murder and assault. The condition is different than someone&nbsp;who may be physically attracted to a criminal despite their crimes; a person with&nbsp;hybristophilia is drawn to the person because of the crimes they committed. Those who identify as having&nbsp;hybristophilia&nbsp;often become pen pals, start fan sites, and form&nbsp;relationships with the accused&nbsp;— some have even&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/people-with-hybristophilia-who-married-killers/stephen-tompkins" target="_blank">married&nbsp;criminals</a>&nbsp;while the inmates are still incarcerated. Famously, some <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/famous-serial-killers-a-list-of-serial-killers-in-history/web-infoguy" target="_blank">serial killers</a> have inspired&nbsp;fan clubs and groupies, consisting primarily of women who are drawn to their extreme bad-boy aesthetic.What causes the sexual paraphilia known as hybristophilia, and what is it like to have it? Though the clinical research about the subject&nbsp;still leaves much to be uncovered, the stories about hybristophiles&nbsp;and those who fall in love with serial killers do reveal some of the fascinating&nbsp;affinities human beings can form.

The Psychology Behind Prison Pen Pals

The Psychology Behind Prison Pen-Pals

To many people, Darlie Router did the unthinkable: she murdered her children. On June 6, 1996, the 26-year-old mother of three called the police, reporting that an intruder had broken into her Rowlett, TX, home and stabbed her and two of her sons. Routier survived the attack, but the wounds proved to be fatal for Devon, 6, and Damon, 5. Within weeks, she was arrested in connection with her children&#39;s murder. A jury found her guilty and sent her to <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/exonerated-people-on-death-row/melissa-brinks" target="_blank">death row</a>.

However, Routier and her family have always maintained her innocence, and further review of her trial supports her story. The following list collects Darlie Routier murder controversy facts. While she has been called a heartless <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/family-annihilators/cat-mcauliffe" target="_blank">child killer</a> and compared to <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/andrea-yates-case/amandasedlakhevener" target="_blank">Andrea Yates</a>, it may be possible Routier is just a victim herself and innocent of murder. Routier&#39;s&nbsp;story has been featured on the 2018 crime documentary series The Last Defense. 
&nbsp;

She's On Death Row For Killing Her Children, But She Swears She Is Innocent

Darlie Routier Is On Death Row For Killing Her Children, But She Swears She Is Innocent

Horrifying facts and disturbing details about real cases that shocked.

In Cold Blood

Rebecca Schaeffer

<a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/celebrities-who-have-been-attacked/celebrity-lists" target="_blank">Fans who are obsessed with their idols</a>&nbsp;have done some very tragic, public damage over the years.&nbsp;In 1980, John Lennon was gunned down by Mark David Chapman. In 1995, Latina songstress Selena was shot to death by the woman who ran her fan club,&nbsp;Yolanda Saldivar. In 2004, Pantera guitarist Dimebag Darrell was shot by a super fan while he was performing on stage. On July 18, 1989, Rebecca Schaeffer was shot to death by a fan outside of her Los Angeles, CA, apartment in a tragic example of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/top-13-most-outrageous-celebrity-stalkers/jennifer-lee" target="_blank">when&nbsp;stalkers turn into murderers</a>.&nbsp;Robert John Bardo was obsessed with several celebrities including&nbsp;Schaeffer. In his head,&nbsp;Bardo&nbsp;had built up a relationship with the actress, but&nbsp;the reality of it was entirely different. Eventually, he hired a private investigator who easily obtained the&nbsp;21-year-old actress's home address from the California DMV. Armed with this knowledge, Bardo&nbsp;showed up on Schaeffer's&nbsp;doorstep not once but twice, and the second time he pulled out a gun.&nbsp;With Rebecca Schaeffer's tragic&nbsp;death, however, came staunch&nbsp;anti-stalking laws not only in California but across the United States&nbsp;in an effort&nbsp;to&nbsp;stave off such a heinous crime happening again.&nbsp;

It Took This Up-And-Coming Actress’s Tragic Death To Change Anti-Stalking Laws

How Rebecca Schaeffer’s Tragic Death Changed Anti-Stalking Laws

Amazing, disgusting, and downright unsettling things discovered in unexpected places. When was the last time you poked around in your own crawlspace? 

Lost and Found

Death

There&#39;s something sad and gripping about bodies found in unexpected places.&nbsp;Even though the stories are usually horrific, one tends to be curious about such random discoveries. Some bodies are left out in the open for anyone to come across and find. In fact, some highways and forests have become synonymous with <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/murder-dumps/mariel-loveland" target="_blank">body dumping grounds</a>.&nbsp;

The following list includes some of the strangest places bodies have been found. Some were uncovered in everyday&nbsp;places like church or a Walmart, while others were <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/dead-bodies-discovered-in-public-12-strange-stories/rachel-stewart" target="_blank">found in public</a>, like in a shopping cart on the street. Whatever the case may be, the person who made the discovery will not forget about it anytime soon.&nbsp;

The Strangest Places Bodies Have Been Found

The Strangest Places Dead Bodies Have Been Found

Manhattan's Lower East Side was a rough place to live&nbsp;in the late 1980s, but even those&nbsp;brave enough to call Alphabet City home still&nbsp;remember the gruesome details of the&nbsp;Daniel Rakowitz girlfriend murder. Also known as the &quot;Butcher of Tompkins Square&quot;,&nbsp;Rakowitz was found guilty of&nbsp;murdering and dismembering&nbsp;his 26-year-old girlfriend, Monika Beerle. The killing occurred on August 19, 1989, and despite Rakowitz telling others in the community about the murder, it took a month for police to figure out what happened.&nbsp;This case covers a sensational array of details: drug dealing, cults, devil worship, cannibalism, and <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/serlal-killers-and-murderers-who-thought-they-were-gods/laura-allan" target="_blank">a man with a God complex</a>. While the complete tale includes a fair amount of speculation and gossip, the real story is still as brutal as the rumors.

The Story Of ‘The Butcher of Tompkins Square Park,’ Daniel Rakowitz

Bambi Woods

In 1978, Bambi Woods starred in the highly publicized adult film Debbie Does Dallas. Woods went on to reprise her role as a fictional Texas Cowgirl in two sequels,&nbsp;released in 1981&nbsp;and 1985, respectively.

Her&nbsp;Debbie&nbsp;days featured a few other roles peppered in, and many assumed Woods&#39;s rising star would make her a household name in the film industry. Instead, the exact opposite happened. Woods <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/people-who-disappeared-mysteriously/alby-thompson" target="_blank">seemingly vanished</a>&nbsp;after the third installment of Debbie, and has not been seen or heard from since then.&nbsp;

Woods was a part of the &quot;<a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/facts-about-golden-age-of-adult-movies/melissa-sartore" target="_blank">Golden Age of P*rn</a>,&quot; an era where regulations were nonexistent and safety was secondary to profit. Many&nbsp;theories as to why Woods disappeared delve into this culture; some believe&nbsp;the actor wasn&#39;t ready for all of the attention, while others claim an alleged OD ended her life.&nbsp;

Bambi Woods Was The Hottest Adult Film Star Of The 1970s - And No One Knows What Happened To Her

Bambi Woods Was The Hottest Porn Star Of The 1970s - And No One Knows What Happened To Her

Lists about astrology and what the stars have in store for you.

Written In the Stars

Zodiac

In theory, it would be nice to get along with everyone. In reality, we all meet people whom&nbsp;we dislike, loathe, or consider enemies. Perhaps this is due to&nbsp;something the person said or did, but you may find yourself hating someone because of their zodiac sign.

Yes, just like <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/least-compatible-astrology-signs/madame-ruby" target="_blank">there are incompatible&nbsp;astrological&nbsp;pairings</a>, you can also determine your worst enemies by zodiac signs. Some of these partnerships may start out amicably - even passionately - but destiny leads these star signs&nbsp;to become adversaries.

Which Zodiac Sign Is Your Worst Enemy?

Celestial Object

Which Zodiac Sign Is Your Worst Enemy According To Your Own?

There is nothing as unsettling as the feeling you’re being watched. For these victims of peeping Tom crimes, that weird feeling was unfortunately justified.&nbsp;These people who were caught being peeping Toms went to great lengths to get a voyeuristic glimpse at an unsuspecting person. While some of them didn’t appear&nbsp;to have a certain <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/weird-crimes-that-had-no-motive/jacob-shelton" target="_blank">motive</a>&nbsp;for committing the creepy crimes, others had a very clear, sexual objective.&nbsp;

These Peeping Toms Took Things To A New Low

12 Unsettling Stories About Peeping Tom Crimes

On November 26, 2001, 13-year-old Derek King snuck up on his sleeping father&nbsp;and beat him to death with an aluminum baseball bat. Derek&rsquo;s younger brother, 12-year-old Alex King, was implicit in the plan to <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/people-who-killed-their-parents/ranker-crime" target="_blank">kill their father</a>, 40-year-old Terry King. The boys then set fire to their home in Cantonment, FL, to cover up the crime. The boys confessed to Escambia authorities once investigators suspected foul play. Reports alleged the King brothers killed their father at the prompting of convicted child molester Rick Chavis.&nbsp;

The courts charged the Kings <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/most-brutal-kid-crimes/mariel-loveland" target="_blank">as adults</a> and sentenced Derek to eight years in prison. Alex received seven years in a juvenile detention center. Both Derek and Alex were released by 2009, and the convicted killers reentered society after spending a third of their young lives behind bars. Derek continues to live in Florida. After Alex was briefly re-incarcerated in 2011 for a parole violation, he relocated to Texas upon his release. The courts also charged Chavis with his involvement in Terry King&rsquo;s death, as well as other counts, and sentenced him to 35 years in prison.&nbsp; 
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The King Brothers Received Help Adjusting To Life After Being Imprisoned For Murdering Their Father

Life After Prison For The King Brothers, Who Murdered Their Dad

Lists about real men and women who have achieved everyone's childhood dreams to become astronauts, fly through outer space, and even walk on the freaking moon.

Men on the Moon

Apollo 11

NASA is not lying to you about the Moon landings; the Apollo missions <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/how-the-moon-landing-changed-history/kellen-perry" target="_blank">really did land on the lunar surface</a>, and there is an abundance of proof out there for anyone interested in facts instead of fiction. While debunking Moon landing conspiracies could be a full-time job for those who know the facts, one can only marvel at the tenacity of conspiracy theorists&nbsp;in their endless quest to perpetuate the lie that NASA never landed on the Moon. Interestingly enough, the most significant piece of evidence to support NASA's claim isn't really evidence, per se; at least not in the physical sense so much as in good ol' everyday common sense.&nbsp;The single greatest proof that&nbsp;NASA's Apollo Mission landed on the Moon just as they claimed lies in the simple, undeniable fact that if it had&nbsp;been a hoax, there is no shortage of people out there who are qualified to expose the lie. Not only qualified, but extremely motivated to do so if doing so were possible in the first place. Do not forget,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/all-manned-apollo-missions/amylindorff" target="_blank">NASA accomplished this feat</a> during the height of the&nbsp;Space Race with the former Soviet Union, and nothing would have pleased the Communist State more than exposing <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/nixon-speech-for-moon-landing-failure/stephanroget" target="_blank">President Nixon</a> and&nbsp;the United States of America as frauds. They did not, simply because&nbsp;they could not. That in itself is&nbsp;pretty substantial evidence the Moon landing wasn't fake. But if you still need a little more convincing in the form of fact-based science, there's a wealth of that to go around as well.

Yes, We Really Landed On The Moon And Simple Science Debunks All The &quot;Evidence&quot; Of A Conspiracy

15 Simple Facts Debunking Moon Landing Conspiracy Theories

Lists of confessions from real people who should probably find a good therapist and talk this out.

That's Messed Up

Secrets

Secrets can stay buried for years without ever coming to light, but sometimes it&rsquo;s the darkest secrets within us that we can&rsquo;t help but share. If anything it has become even easier nowadays thanks to the Internet, creating a place where people share their darkest secrets without anyone being the wiser as to who they are.

Here are some creepy stories from Reddit of seemingly normal people with terrifying secrets. Some stories can be so shocking that&nbsp;it&#39;s hard to believe <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/creepy-real-stories-no-one-believes/michaelchoi" target="_blank">they are actually true</a>, but perhaps that&#39;s the part of the appeal of sharing online. Sometimes the truth can be stranger than fiction.&nbsp;

People Reveal The Most Horrifying Secrets Seemingly Normal Folks Confessed To Them

Crimes committed in funeral homes can range from necrophilia to the illegal sale of body parts to the improper disposal of a corpse. People rely on <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/morticians-on-dead-bodies/christopher-shultz" target="_blank">after-death</a> service providers to take care of loved ones in a caring and respectful manner. Morticians, embalmers, undertakers, funeral directors, and others who work in a <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/creepy-stories-from-funeral-home-workers/rosa-pasquarella" target="_blank">funeral home</a> are exposed to circumstances everyday people usually are not. While dependable professionals run most mortuaries, there are occurrences of staff members enacting unexpected crimes.&nbsp;

However, not all crimes committed in a funeral home or crematorium result from negligent workers or owners. In some cases, a third-party gained entry to the premises and carried out acts of desecration, abuse of a corpse, and even theft. When a business is responsible for crimes against <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/cemetery-crimes/elle-tharp" target="_blank">the dead</a>, authorities often shut down the operations or suspend the parlor&rsquo;s license. In extreme cases, those convicted of criminal misconduct face jail time.&nbsp; 
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These Grisly Mortuary And Funeral Home Crimes Are The Definition Of Disrespecting The Dead

Grisly Funeral Home Crimes: From Stacking Corpses In Caskets To Armed Standoffs

There is a huge amount of curiosity&nbsp;surrounding the <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/last-words-that-sound-fake-but-are-true/gordon-cameron" target="_blank">last words people say before they pass</a>.&nbsp;Some people have even gone to&nbsp;Reddit&nbsp;to share their stories about the last words that were spoken by people they knew -&nbsp;and many of the stories are pretty bizarre. The final words spoken by people are of interest mostly because of&nbsp;who the person was or what relationship they had with those they left behind. Interestingly, a large number of&nbsp;people&nbsp;want to&nbsp;find&nbsp;out what <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/dying-words-last-words-spoken-by-famous-people-at-death/notable-quotables" target="_blank">famous people said</a> as they were nearing their ends.

Other people&nbsp;are drawn to the <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/last-words-spoken-by-criminals-before-execution/notable-quotables" target="_blank">last words of condemned inmates</a>, wondering if the convicted showed any signs of remorse - or if&nbsp;they were defiant until their last breath. Others ponder if perhaps any secrets were revealed. Even still,&nbsp;many are curious about ordinary people&#39;s last words. People feel as though there is a lesson to be learned that only people nearing the end have knowledge of - and just might share. Naturally, <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/creepy-stories-from-people-who-work-in-hospitals/trent-walker" target="_blank">people who work in hospitals</a> hear more final partings than anyone else&nbsp;- and here is a collection of stories in which medical professionals describe their patients&#39; last words.&nbsp;

Doctors And Nurses Reveal Their Patients' Creepiest Last Words

Christine Chubbuck

Considering the level of violence on TV today, it&#39;s no wonder that most people hardly even pause when they hear about murder and mayhem on the&nbsp;local news. The Hollywood version of dying has desensitized most of society to the degree that it shouldn&#39;t even be a surprise when videos of the real thing become so popular. From the video Faces of Death to people who <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/deaths-on-live-tv/christopher-shultz" target="_blank">took their own lives on&nbsp;TV</a>, there are always those who want to witness the genuine article.&nbsp;

Such was definitely not the case back in the mid-&#39;70s when just cartoon violence and mild profanity were thought to be a bit too much. It was during this time that the first on-air suicide occurred, and the shock was absolute. The questions were endless. But unlike the ones who would follow in the digital age, the video of Christine Chubbuck&nbsp;taking her life was viewed only by the TV&nbsp;audience and her colleagues at the station, leaving everyone else to wonder what happened. Almost 50 years later and nearly all the questions have yet to be answered, and the video footage itself remains a mystery.

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