Saint Louis University Revisits the Real Exorcism That Inspired The Exorcist
Jesuit Scholars, Students, and Horror Enthusiasts Gather to Discuss the 1949 Case Behind the Legendary Film
Welcome, dear readers of Occult World, to a story where faith, fear, and film history intertwine.
At Saint Louis University, curiosity about one of the most unsettling events in American religious history still lingers—an exorcism that inspired The Exorcist, one of cinema’s most terrifying classics.
A Student’s Curiosity Rekindles an Old Mystery
Zach Grummer-Strawn, a junior studying theology and sociology, admits he has never actually seen The Exorcist—the 1973 horror masterpiece that defined supernatural cinema. Yet he walks the same campus that once housed the 1949 exorcism that sparked it all.
“I’d like to believe it’s the real thing,” he says. “But you just can’t know. That’s part of why we’re here—it’s the pursuit of truth. And it’s such a great story.”
Just in time for Halloween, Jesuit scholars and horror enthusiasts filled the university’s Pius XII Library for a special discussion revisiting that haunting episode. About 500 people crowded into the aisles and leaned against pillars to hear about the case that still defines modern notions of possession.
Revisiting “Robbie” and the 1949 Exorcism
The event focused on the month-long exorcism of a boy known only by the pseudonym “Robbie.” In early 1949, Jesuit priests treated the troubled youth at the university’s former Alexian Brothers Hospital after reports of violent behaviour and inexplicable phenomena.
Guest speaker Thomas B. Allen, author of *Possessed: The True Story of an Exorcism *(1993), joined university scholars to reflect on the enduring mystery.
Was the boy truly possessed by demonic forces—or suffering from mental illness, trauma, or abuse?
As Allen and the panel explained, absolute proof remains beyond reach.
“Like many of religion’s great questions,” one scholar observed, “it ultimately comes down to faith.”
Between Faith and Skepticism
Father Paul Stark, vice president for mission and ministry, opened the discussion with a prayer from the Church’s Exorcism Handbook, calling on God to “fill your servants with courage to fight that reprobate dragon.”
“If the devil can convince us he does not exist,” Father Stark warned, “then half the battle is won.”
Among the crowd, several locals spoke of family ties to the story that has haunted Saint Louis for generations. One man recalled living near the suburban home where the 13-year-old boy stayed that winter. Another said she was related to Father William Bowdern, the lead exorcist who, after consulting the city’s archbishop, performed the ritual but never spoke of it publicly—except to tell Allen years later that it was “the real thing.”
The Priests Who Faced the Unknown
Father Bowdern died in 1983. His assistant, Father Walter Halloran, later shared that he had always been torn between belief and doubt.
“He talked more about the boy, how much he suffered, and less about the rite,” Allen recalled.
“He told me, ‘I simply don’t know.’ And that is where I leave it. I just don’t know.”
Allen continues to guard Robbie’s anonymity, even as journalists and researchers still attempt to trace the boy’s later life.
The Legacy That Won’t Fade
One attendee, Gary Mackey, 59, an accountant, left work early to join the discussion. He wasn’t sure whether The Exorcist represented truth or artistic fiction—but he vividly remembered seeing it decades ago.
“I saw the movie when I was 19 and it scared me to death,” he said. “I think it’s the scariest film ever made.”
The original novel’s author, William Peter Blatty, confirmed in a 2011 interview with The Huffington Post that the 1949 case was indeed the story’s inspiration.
Blatty re-imagined the setting at Georgetown University and changed the afflicted child into a girl—but the heart of the tale remained unchanged: the eternal struggle between faith and possession.
Reflections from Occult World
At OccultWorld.com, we preserve such accounts not merely as horror history but as mirrors of human belief.
From the St. Louis exorcism to the Amityville haunting and beyond, each case challenges our understanding of evil, consciousness, and the unseen.
Whether psychological or supernatural, the 1949 story continues to ignite debate—proof that the true horror may lie not in spinning heads or flying objects, but in our unending quest to separate faith from fear.
Explore More on Occult World
- Exorcism and the Catholic Rite of Deliverance
- Demonology and the Law of Invitation
- Haunted America – True Cases of Possession and Faith
- Ed and Lorraine Warren – Modern Investigators of Evil
Sources
- Associated Press – Alan Scher Zagier, “Saint Louis University Scholars Examine 1949 Exorcism That Inspired The Exorcist,” June 2021.
- Thomas B. Allen – Possessed: The True Story of an Exorcism, HarperCollins (1993).
- The Huffington Post – Interview with William Peter Blatty (2011).
- Saint Louis University Archives – Jesuit Mission and Ministry Department Event Records (2021).