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In 1973, The Exorcist terrified audiences around the world. But the story that inspired it began more than two decades earlier with a 13-year-old boy, a group of Jesuit priests, and a case that remains controversial more than 75 years later.

In this Halloween bonus episode, Michael Walker and Steven Dudley examine the real 1949 case of Ronald Hunkeler — the boy whose alleged possession and exorcism helped inspire William Peter Blatty’s The Exorcist.

We dig into Father Raymond Bishop’s 29-page case report, the strange events the priests claimed to witness, the weeks of exorcism attempts, and what reportedly happened on the final night when Ronald suddenly declared:

“He’s gone.”

But was Ronald actually possessed?

Was there another explanation for what the priests witnessed?

And how much of the story that eventually became The Exorcist was rooted in the real case?

We also rewatched The Exorcist for the first time in more than 30 years and take a fresh look at the film itself — what still works, what surprised us, and whether one of the most infamous horror movies ever made still holds up more than 50 years later.

So after looking at the movie and the case that inspired it...

WAS RONALD REALLY POSSESSED?

EPISODE CHAPTERS

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▶️ Catch up on our Patterson-Gimlin investigation:

Part 1 — Patterson-Gimlin Film: Hoax? Or the Best Bigfoot Evidence Ever?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BX3Ses9Oij4

Part 2 — Patterson-Gimlin Film: The Final Verdict
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1X6FBRf7AM

The new documentary Capturing Bigfoot takes another look at the Patterson-Gimlin film and introduces newly surfaced footage that some believe could finally settle one of the longest-running debates in Bigfoot history.

But does it really close the case?

In this bonus episode, Michael Walker and Steven Dudley review Capturing Bigfoot, examine the new footage and the claims surrounding it, and compare what appears in the newly discovered film to Patty in the original Patterson-Gimlin footage.

We also take a closer look at some of the documentary’s claims about Roger Patterson, the history surrounding the film, and whether the evidence presented actually changes what we concluded in our original two-part investigation.

What did we find compelling?

What raised new questions?

And after seeing Capturing Bigfoot for ourselves...

CASE CLOSED?

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#CapturingBigfoot #Bigfoot #PattersonGimlin #PattersonGimlinFilm #Patty #Sasquatch #BigfootEvidence #RogerPatterson #BobGimlin #BluffCreek #BigfootDocumentary #Cryptozoology #Cryptids

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▶️ Catch up on Part 1:
Patterson-Gimlin Film: Hoax? Or the Best Bigfoot Evidence Ever?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BX3Ses9Oij4&t=3047s

Nearly sixty years after Roger Patterson and Bob Gimlin filmed a mysterious figure walking across Bluff Creek, the argument still hasn’t gone away.

In Part 2 of our Patterson-Gimlin investigation, Michael Walker and Steven Dudley turn to the biggest challenges to the film’s authenticity: the alleged costume, Bob Heironimus’ claim that he was the man inside the suit, the competing hoax stories, Patterson’s motives and credibility, the original footprint evidence, and what researchers and experts have concluded after decades of analysis.

We also take another look at the evidence that continues to make the film so difficult to dismiss.

After examining the arguments from both sides, it’s time to answer the question we started with:

Was the Patterson-Gimlin film an elaborate hoax… or could it really be the best Bigfoot evidence ever captured?

And where do we land?

THE FINAL VERDICT.

EPISODE CHAPTERS

0:00 — Part 2: The Case for and Against the Patterson-Gimlin Film
1:06 — The “World’s Greatest Hoaxes” Documentary
4:26 — Bob Heironimus and the Conflicting Hoax Claims
6:54 — Sasquatch Odyssey: Footprints, Suits, and Skepticism
10:09 — Peter Byrne and Forensic Analysis of the Film
12:03 — Jeff Meldrum, 3D Anatomy, and the Unusual Gait
14:28 — Bob Gimlin Returns to Bluff Creek
17:00 — Muscle Movement, Injuries, and Patty’s Anatomy
21:47 — Kinesiology Experts Examine the Walk
23:30 — Bill Munns and the 1967 Costume Problem
26:00 — Stanford Researchers and Modern Film Analysis
28:05 — Could an Unknown Primate Still Exist?
32:59 — Jeff Meldrum and the Bluff Creek Footprints
37:00 — Capturing Bigfoot and the New “Rehearsal” Footage
42:51 — Comparing Bob Heironimus’ Costume to Patty
45:39 — What Capturing Bigfoot Actually Claims
47:33 — Steven and Michael Give Their Final Scores
50:13 — What Evidence Matters Most?
54:56 — Final Thoughts: Why the Film Still Endures
55:59 — Next Episode: The Exorcist


🎞️ Watch a public-domain version of the Patterson-Gimlin film:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Patterson_Gimlin_Bigfoot_Film_Unedited.webm

🎥 Patterson-Gimlin film — stabilized version:
Source: Mr Luci (@mrluci96)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPlRr_OfxZI

📄 Dr. Jeff Meldrum — “Ichnotaxonomy of Giant Hominoid Tracks in North America”:
https://www.cryptomundo.com/wp-content/uploads/meldrum2007_ichnotaxonomy_of_giant_hominoid_tracks_in_north_america.pdf

👀 KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR A BONUS EPISODE
We’ll be taking a closer look at footage featured in the Capturing Bigfoot documentary, breaking down the evidence, examining what stands out, and giving our own take on what we think it shows.

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Check them out here:
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⭐ Follow us:
@inquiriumpodcast

#Bigfoot #PattersonGimlin #PattersonGimlinFilm #Sasquatch #BigfootEvidence #Patty #RogerPatterson #BobGimlin #BobHeironimus #BluffCreek #Cryptozoology #Cryptids #CapturingBigfoot

Explore more:
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