The True Case That Inspired The Exorcist Movie – And It All Began with a Ouija Board

A NASA engineer was once the boy who inspired The Exorcist.

Jun 06, 2025

Case File: The Real Case Behind The Exorcist
Case No.: 49MD-1949-MO
Classification: Paranormal Phenomenon – Demonic Possession
Location: Cottage City, Maryland, USA
Date of Incident: January – April 1949
Filed by: Catholic Clergy and Eyewitnesses
Status: Closed – Phenomenon Resolved

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Incident Summary

It began with a Ouija board.

In January 1949, a quiet, introverted 13-year-old boy from Cottage City, Maryland—known to the world as Roland Doe—attempted to contact his recently deceased Aunt Harriet. She had been a spiritualist and had introduced him to the board, encouraging him to explore the spirit world. After her death, Roland tried to reach her on his own.

What happened next would ignite one of the most terrifying cases of alleged demonic possession ever recorded.

At first, the family heard scratching sounds coming from the walls. Furniture shifted on its own. The boy’s mattress shook violently at night. But the disturbances escalated quickly. Roland began to speak in voices not his own. He entered trances. Words like “hell” and “evil” appeared scratched into his skin, carved by unseen forces. Holy water had no effect. Religious items were thrown across the room. Roland developed an intense aversion to anything sacred.

Medical and psychiatric evaluations found nothing physically wrong. Desperate, the family turned to their Lutheran minister. When his prayers failed and the phenomena only worsened, they contacted the Catholic Church. What had begun as a child’s game had opened a door that would not easily close.

Phenomena Overview

Supernatural Physical Marks: Deep scratches and welts appeared on Roland’s body, often forming words. Witnesses said they appeared in real time, as if clawed into him by invisible hands. These wounds would sometimes vanish and reappear days later.
Violent Outbursts and Inhuman Strength: Roland hurled grown men across rooms with apparent ease. He bent heavy metal objects and freed himself from restraints. His voice would deepen, and his body language shifted entirely, as if possessed by another presence.
Contorted Body and Trances: Witnesses described seeing his back arch at impossible angles, his limbs twisting in unnatural directions. During trances, Roland would speak of death, blaspheme against the Church, or stare blankly while his body moved on its own.
Speaking in Tongues and Blasphemies: He shouted in Latin, German, and Aramaic—languages he had never studied. He recited reversed prayers, insulted clergy with knowledge he should not have had, and occasionally mimicked voices of people not present in the room.
Levitation and Telekinetic Events: His body reportedly levitated in front of multiple witnesses. Chairs would topple, crucifixes would fall from walls, and doors slammed without wind or movement. Religious icons seemed to vibrate or fly from shelves during exorcism prayers.

Investigation Overview

Initial Clergy Involvement

Father Albert Hughes from Washington, D.C., was the first to attempt an exorcism at Georgetown Hospital. During the rite, Roland tore a spring from the hospital bed and slashed Hughes across the arm, ending the session in blood. Hughes, traumatised by the attack, withdrew from the case.

The St. Louis Intervention

Fearing for their son’s safety, the family sent him to stay with relatives in St. Louis. There, Jesuit priests William Bowdern and Walter Halloran were brought in. A third priest, Father William Van Roo, also assisted from the shadows.

Over the course of nearly a month, they performed a series of exorcisms following the traditional 1614 Rituale Romanum. These sessions were relentless and exhausting, often beginning in the evening and stretching into the early hours of the morning. Roland would convulse, curse, spit, and sometimes speak in languages none of them understood.

Each night was a brutal confrontation: guttural voices, physical attacks, sacred objects tossed by invisible hands, and prayers shouted over the boy’s howls. The smell of sulphur would fill the room. Cold spots would form and linger. Yet the priests pressed on, documenting each session carefully.

The Final Confrontation

On April 18, 1949, after hours of spiritual combat, Roland awoke from a trance and screamed, “I am Saint Michael!” Witnesses reported a voice—clear, strong, not his own—declaring that the demon had been cast out. Moments later, Roland fell back onto the bed, unconscious. The air in the room changed. It was quiet for the first time in weeks.

The exorcism was declared successful. The doorway the Ouija board had opened was, at last, closed.

Investigation and Evidence

Eyewitness Testimony: Priests, family members, and hospital staff all submitted detailed accounts. Father Halloran, who would later serve in Vietnam as a military chaplain, confirmed the levitation and voice changes until his death in 2005.
Medical Reports: Roland was subjected to psychological and physical evaluations. None could explain the symptoms or behaviours. No diagnosis fit. One attending psychiatrist privately admitted to witnessing phenomena he could not rationally explain.
Church Records: Fr. Raymond Bishop kept a detailed daily log of the exorcism sessions. While some records remain sealed, portions were leaked and later verified by Jesuit contacts. The consistency and depth of the reports continue to confound skeptics.

Press Coverage and Public Reaction

The case remained relatively unknown until author William Peter Blatty, then a student at Georgetown University, heard whispers of the events. Years later, he used the case as the inspiration for his novel The Exorcist, published in 1971.

The film adaptation, released in 1973, became a global phenomenon and changed the horror genre forever. Audiences fainted, vomited, and fled from theatres. It was banned in multiple countries. Critics described it as "a film that reached into the soul and tore something out."

The story followed 12-year-old Regan MacNeil, who becomes possessed after contacting a spirit through a Ouija board. Her mother, a successful actress, seeks help from doctors, psychiatrists, and eventually the Catholic Church. Two priests—Father Merrin, an experienced exorcist, and Father Karras, a man struggling with his faith—attempt to save her. The climax of the film mirrors Roland's story: levitation, voices, supernatural strength, and a final, sacrificial battle between light and darkness.

Blatty altered names, gender, and setting—but the core story was rooted in truth. The invitation was made through a Ouija board. The possession followed. And so did the fight to reclaim a soul.

The Story

It began with a question whispered into a wooden board: “Are you there?”

Roland Doe didn’t know what he was inviting in when he placed his fingers on the planchette. But something answered—and it never let go.

After his Aunt Harriet’s death, Roland used the board to seek comfort. But instead of reaching her, he opened himself to something else—something that claimed his body, mind, and soul.

His room became a battlefield. Night after night, drawers slammed, chairs flew, guttural growls echoed through the walls. His body convulsed, marks appeared, objects levitated. Doctors stood baffled. Ministers failed. Only the ancient rites of the Catholic Church offered a path forward.

Jesuit priests prayed until their voices cracked. They were attacked, scratched, spat upon, and watched sacred items ripped from their hands. Still, they returned—night after night—because this child’s soul was not yet lost.

And it was reclaimed. On a spring night in 1949, Roland collapsed onto his bed. The demon was gone. The silence that followed was unlike anything they had experienced—thick, holy, absolute.

His name was hidden for decades. But the truth eventually surfaced. Roland Doe was Ronald Edwin Hunkeler, a gifted man who went on to work at NASA as an engineer. He helped develop heat shields for space missions. He held multiple patents. He contributed to the safety of Apollo astronauts.

He lived in anonymity, never speaking publicly of what happened. Colleagues described him as quiet, intelligent, kind. He retired peacefully, surrounded by family.

Ronald died in 2020 at the age of 85. His story, once cloaked in secrecy, now serves as a reminder: no matter how deep the darkness, with the right help, recovery is possible. Possession did not define his life. He reclaimed it—and used it to help humanity reach the stars.

What began with a Ouija board ended in deliverance—and became the inspiration for one of the most terrifying stories ever told.