The image is burned into the collective consciousness of anyone who likes a good scare. A grainy, black-and-white photo of a young boy with glowing eyes peeking out from a doorway. That boy wasn't supposed to be there. He wasn't even alive. Or so the story goes. When people talk about Ed and Lorraine Warren Amityville investigations, that "ghost boy" photo usually comes up first. It’s the centerpiece of a legacy that blurred the lines between suburban tragedy and supernatural phenomenon.
But honestly? The truth is way more messy than the movies let on.
Before the Warrens ever stepped foot in the house at 112 Ocean Avenue, the property was already soaked in blood. On November 13, 1974, Ronald DeFeo Jr. used a .35-caliber Marlin rifle to murder his entire family while they slept. Parents, siblings—six people in total. He later claimed voices in the house told him to do it. That’s the grim foundation. A year later, George and Kathy Lutz moved in with their three kids. They lasted exactly 28 days before fleeing in terror, claiming they were being tormented by a demonic presence.
That's when the Warrens entered the fray.
The Most Famous Séance in History
Ed and Lorraine Warren didn't just stumble into Amityville. They were brought in by a local news crew and the Lutz family themselves. By 1976, the Warrens were already becoming household names in the paranormal world, but Amityville propelled them into a different stratosphere of fame. They weren't just "ghost hunters." Ed was a self-taught demonologist—the only layman recognized by the Catholic Church at the time—and Lorraine was a clairvoyant and medium.
They arrived in March 1976.
The atmosphere was thick. Lorraine later described the house as having a "heavy" feeling that she could physically sense the moment she crossed the threshold. During their investigation, they held a televised séance. It was a chaotic, high-tension night. Ed was reportedly pushed to the floor in the basement by an unseen force. Lorraine said she felt a crushing sense of evil in the sewing room.
They weren't alone. Other investigators, like Gene Campbell and Mary Pascarella, were there too. While some skeptics argue the Warrens were just looking for a headline, those who were in the house that night spoke of a profound, bone-chilling cold that no heater could fix. It wasn't just about "ghosts." To Ed and Lorraine Warren, Amityville was a case of demonic infestation.
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The Infamous "Ghost Boy" Photo
During that 1976 investigation, a camera was set up on the second-floor landing, rigged to take infrared photos throughout the night. Most of the roll was boring. Just empty hallways. But one frame captured the image of a small boy looking out from a bedroom door.
Some believe it was the spirit of John DeFeo, the youngest victim of the 1974 murders. Skeptics, like researcher Paul Bartz, have pointed out that the boy looks remarkably like Paul Kaye, another investigator who was in the house that night. The "glowing eyes" could just be the infrared light reflecting off his pupils. It's a classic case of "believe what you see," but for the Warrens, it was definitive proof that the house was active.
Why People Think it Was a Hoax
You can't talk about Ed and Lorraine Warren Amityville without mentioning William Weber. He was Ronald DeFeo Jr.'s defense attorney. Years after the Lutz family fled, Weber famously claimed that he, George, and Kathy Lutz "created this horror story over many bottles of wine."
Basically, he suggested the whole thing was a calculated move to help DeFeo get a new trial based on "demonic possession" and to help the Lutzes make some quick cash.
It’s a compelling argument. The Lutzes did make a lot of money from the book and movie deals. However, George and Kathy went to their graves swearing the events happened. They even took lie detector tests—and passed.
The Warrens also stayed firm. They never backed down from their assessment that the house was haunted by something ancient and malevolent. Ed often argued that the DeFeo murders had "ripped a hole" in the spiritual fabric of the property, allowing something darker to crawl through.
The "Red Room" and Other Discrepancies
Critics love to point out the inconsistencies. In the book The Amityville Horror by Jay Anson, there are descriptions of the front door being ripped off its hinges and green slime oozing from the walls. When the police and subsequent owners checked, there was no damage to the door. No slime. No physical evidence of a demonic tantrum.
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Does that mean the Warrens were lying? Not necessarily. Paranormal experiences are often subjective. Lorraine’s "visions" weren't something you could photograph. Ed’s "struggles" in the basement weren't caught on video. To a skeptic, this is a red flag. To a believer, it's just the nature of the supernatural.
The Impact on the Warrens' Career
Before Amityville, the Warrens were local celebrities in New England. After Amityville, they were global icons. This case provided the blueprint for the modern paranormal investigation: the combination of religious authority (Ed) and psychic intuition (Lorraine).
It also paved the way for the The Conjuring universe. While the films take massive creative liberties, the core of their "Amityville" involvement remains a major plot point in the franchise. It established them as the people you call when the priest says he can't help.
But the fame came with a price. They were relentlessly mocked by the scientific community. James Randi, the famous stage magician and skeptic, frequently targeted the Warrens, calling them "frauds" and "charlatans." Despite the heat, they kept going. They built their Occult Museum in Monroe, Connecticut, housing artifacts they claimed were cursed—including the "real" Annabelle doll.
The Amityville case remained their most polarizing file.
What Subsequent Owners Say
Here’s a weird fact: none of the families who lived in the house after the Lutzes have reported anything supernatural.
The Cromarty family, who moved in right after the Lutzes fled, lived there for a decade. Their biggest problem wasn't demons; it was tourists. People would show up on their lawn at 3:00 AM, looking for ghosts. They eventually sued the Lutzes and the book publisher for "invasion of privacy" and "misrepresentation."
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James and Barbara Cromarty even went so far as to change the address from 112 Ocean Avenue to 108 Ocean Avenue and replace the famous "eye" windows with standard rectangular ones. They wanted the world to forget the house was supposed to be haunted.
If the house was truly a portal to hell, why did it suddenly go quiet? Ed Warren had an answer for that. He believed that the house "fed" on the specific energy of the Lutz family. Without them, the entity went dormant. It's a convenient explanation, sure, but it’s consistent with how the Warrens viewed the paranormal—as a relationship between a person and a place.
Examining the Evidence Today
If you look at the Ed and Lorraine Warren Amityville case through a 2026 lens, it’s a fascinating study in folklore. We have better tools now. Thermal imaging, high-speed cameras, and digital audio recorders. Back then, it was mostly Polaroids and gut feelings.
Researchers like Joe Nickell have spent decades debunking the claims. He points out that many of the "supernatural" events described by the Lutzes match up perfectly with the plot of a movie called The Exorcist, which had been released shortly before they moved in.
Yet, the legend persists.
Why? Because the story of a young family being chased out of their dream home by an invisible evil is terrifying on a primal level. It taps into our fears about the safety of the home and the secrets that old houses keep.
Practical Realities for Paranormal Enthusiasts
If you're interested in exploring the history of the Warrens or the Amityville case, there are a few things to keep in mind.
- Respect the Neighborhood: The Amityville house is a private residence. The current owners are not interested in tours. Don't be that person who lingers on the sidewalk.
- Study the Primary Sources: Don't just watch the movies. Read the original 1976 news reports. Look at the crime scene photos from the DeFeo murders. The reality is often more chilling than the Hollywood version.
- Acknowledge the Nuance: It doesn't have to be "100% real" or "100% fake." Many researchers believe the Lutzes experienced real stress and sleep deprivation, which may have manifested as hallucinations or exaggerated fears, which the Warrens then interpreted through their own religious framework.
The legacy of the Ed and Lorraine Warren Amityville investigation is one of the most significant chapters in American ghost lore. Whether you see them as pioneers of the paranormal or savvy promoters of a tall tale, they changed the way we talk about the things that go bump in the night.
To dig deeper into this history, your best bet is to look into the work of researchers like Steven Novella or the archives of the New England Society for Psychic Research (NESPR), which the Warrens founded. Understanding the cultural context of the 1970s—a time of deep societal anxiety—helps explain why the world was so ready to believe in a haunted house on Long Island.