Devil of a Jersey Boy

11/04/2009

A Hellish Encounter?

It's a New Jersey legend that's had a longer run than Bruce Springsteen. The presence of a mysterious monster in the state's Pine Barrens, a densely forested area untouched by development, has kept residents and visitors curious for centuries. "Lost Tapes" offered one of the more recent tales of the Jersey Devil sightings, by a family headed home from a day at the beach.

The Stark family--Greg, his pregnant wife Wendy, daughters Christina and Joey, along with yellow lab Cooper--had spent a sunny day at the Jersey shore. Instead of taking the direct route home, Greg opted for the scenic path, bordered by tall trees. Distracted by his daughters arguing in the back seat, Greg was jolted by the car's sudden crash on what had been an empty road. An animal of some kind, he decided, getting out to inspect the damage. But no beast was lying in the road, and when Cooper bolted out of the car into the woods, Greg followed, instructing Wendy and the girls to wait. And wait.

How It Began

Wendy wasn't thinking about the Jersey Devil legend, rooted in 1735. That's when a woman named Leeds, wracked by the pains of childbirth for the 13th time, reportedly said, "Let it be a devil." And the infant, born apparently healthy and normal, morphed into a dragonlike creature. Experts in Jersey Devil lore suggest the critter had the wings of a now-extinct crane, the body of a skinny horse and a horned head with some resemblance to a shaggy bison. Add a pointy tail and the very image would send settlers scurrying.

Wendy and her daughters, hoping to find Greg, came to an abandoned house just as they heard crashing branches and loud growling. But taking refuge in the old place brought more confusion and fear: spray-painted grafitti of skulls, the number 13, and "It's Alive." Before the Starks could figure out exactly WHAT was alive, Greg came racing in to join them, as angry roaring outside grew louder. Wendy told the girls to hide,and they found refuge under an old staircase, even as Wendy and Greg armed themselves with broken wooden slats, ready to do battle. They were so right to prepare. That beast, walking upright on hooved feet, broke through the door, its massive head a terrifying sight.

It must have been a surge of Wendy's protective mother instincts that turned her into a slamming, screaming machine that sent the devilish beast into retreat. But what a cost: Wendy, weeks from her due date, began labor pains, but vowed NOT to deliver her baby in the house permeated by evil. Even as darkness fell, the Starks were still far from the road where their empty car sat. Could they outrun the Devil to safety?

Amazingly, Greg kept his family on track and the four ran in a ragged line to the car, just as the beast reached the edge of the woods. A local hospital stitched Greg's minor injuries,and delivered Wendy's baby boy. Good citizens, the Starks reported the strange and scary encounter to local police, who dutifully investigated and found ... nothing. No trace of the monstrous beast, or sadly, of the Starks' dog. And no further sign of the lurking Devil, whose legend gets another mysterious chapter.

Watch this clip about the Jersey Devil from Lost Tapes!

Lost Tapes airs Tuesdays at 10PM e/p. Get the Schedule.