Sweeney was convicted of voluntary manslaughter, sentenced in November, 1983, and released in 1986 after serving only 3 years, 8 months of a 6 and a half year sentence. His sentence is controversial to this day. 

"Poltergeist", the film in which Dunne appeared, had been released earlier that year, in June.

12-year-old Heather O'Rourke (Carol Anne Freeling) died of septic shock in on February 1, 1988 at the Children's Hospital in San Diego. What had been thought to be a bout of ordinary flu launched her into cardiac arrest during the drive to the hospital as bacterial toxins set loose by a bowel obstruction made their way into her bloodstream. Her heart was successfully restarted and she was flown by helicopter to the larger Children's Hospital where she underwent an operation to remove the obstruction. The toxins destroying her system proved too much, and she died on the operating table.

The circumstances surrounding her passing rendered her death even more of a shock than it otherwise would have been.  She went overnight from a little girl who had the flu to a dead little girl who expired during an operation to save her life. Of course such an unexpected death would fuel rumors, especially when considered in conjunction with Dominique Dunne's murder only six years earlier.

O'Rourke appeared in all three Poltergeist movies.  Poltergeist III had been completed at the time of her death although it had yet to be released, which lead to rumors that she had expired during shooting and a double had to be used to complete the picture.  Gary Sherman eventually decided to use a double and shoot the alternate ended.  In an interview he said that the worst time of his life was carrying that little girl out of the church in a casket.   

The other two deaths were of seasoned actors well into their careers, both suffering from serious illnesses that would in time take their lives. Because their deaths were not unexpected, only rarely is either one mentioned in connection with the Poltergeist "curse."

60-year-old Julian Beck died of stomach cancer on September 14, 1985 at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York. Beck died during the end of filming  and the release.  Unlike O'Rourke, his death was not unexpected; he had been battling the cancer for 18 months.

53-year-old Will Sampson died on 3 June 1987 in a Houston hospital after receiving a heart-lung transplant 6 weeks earlier. The cause of his death was ascribed to severe pre-operative malnutrition and post-operative kidney failure and fungal infection. It has been said he knew his chances for survival were small due to his weakened condition prior to surgery.  Samson was probably best known for his potrayal of the indian in "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest."

There have also been rumours of strange things happening on set, but there is almost no info on these happenings.  The E! True Hollywood story of the Poltergeist Curse is very interesting, and I would recommend you trying to find it. 

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Considered the scariest movie of all time, "The Exorcist" won two Acadamy Awards after it's release in 1973.  One for Best Adapted Screenplay, and the second for Best Sound.  Most people would think that the book (written by William Peter Blatty) is a made up story.  Well it's not.  A similar incident occured in New England with a 13-year-old boy; but this is not what we're discussing today.  Today, we are talking about "The Exorcist" curse.

Due to the accidental deaths and fires on set, and even supposed mental breakdowns from the young Linda Blair (Regan), some would say that an actual demon was trying to stop the filming of this movie.  Some rumours state that four to nine people died during the fifteen month fiming period.  Jack McGowen had just wrapped up filming his small part for the film when he died of a heart attack.  Another rumor states that the man who Regan said would die up there was accidently killed while filming.  There were other deaths too.  One was that of Max Von Sydow's brother and Linda Blair's grandfather. A night watchman for the set, a crewmember that refrigerated the bedroom for the exorcism scenes, and a cameraman's newborn baby were also part of the unexplained deaths.  There was also strange behavior and panic by the cast and crew reported by while filming.  Future interviews from the makers of the film have them saying that the filming was a very creepy experience.  Another big rumor was that the set caught on fire on night when no one was there.  It still remains a mystery to what caused the fire. 

There were also strange happenins at screenings for the film.  They were filled with people vomiting, fainting, and breaking into hysterics. "The Exorcist" has proven to have some of the strangest audience reactions of all time. For some reason, the death tolls rose in the areas surrounding Georgetown after the movie was released. Heart attacks were recorded all over the world during premiers.  There was even a lightning strike that destroyed a 400-year-old cross during the Italian premiere at the Metropolitan Theatre in Rome.  Some of these rumours have been confirmed false, but many still believe that something was trying to stop the film.  Although there were no incidents on the film's sequels, the original director for the prequel Exorcist: The Beginning, John Frankenheimer, died before filming began.

If the film is cursed, has it returned with the death of the original director for the The Beginning?  And will it continue to plague the cast and crew of the prequel?

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After this movie's release in 1994, "The Crow" became an instant cult favorite.  Based, on a comic book and starring Brandon Lee, the film is about Eric Draven and his fiancee who are brutally murdered one night.  Then, a year later, the Crow brings his soul back to seek vengeance and earn his eternal rest.

During rumors that "The Crow" set was cursed, many accidents happened. A carpenter was severely burned after the crane in which he was riding struck high-power lines; then a disgruntled sculptor who had worked on the set drove his car through the studio's plaster shop, doing extensive damage. Later, another crew member slipped and drove a screwdriver through his hand and a lorry full of equipment mysteriously went on fire.

And there's also Brandon Lee's (Eric Draven) mysterious death during filming.  They were filming a flashback scene to show how he really died.  He was going to be shot with .44 Magnum which was not a prop, but a fully functioning firearm.  The gun was loaded with blanks, they are as loud as real bullets, but whe fired only the harmless cardboard wadding which they are packed is ejected from the gun.  But when the gun was fired, Lee fell to the floor with a wound the size of a quarter in his left abdomin.  Apparently, the metal tip of one of the dummy bullets had somehow pulled loose from its brass casing and killed Brandon Lee.    

Even the T.V series, "The Crow: Stairway to Heaven" could not escape the curse of tragedy. Veteran stunt co-ordinator Marc Akerstream was killed while working on an explosive stunt involving a rowboat near a shoreline. Everything was working fine but when the stunt exploded a piece of debris shot up into the air, cleared a tree and struck Akerstream on the head. He was flown to a nearby hospital, where he later died.     

Perhaps the Crow was working during the production of the film and the series, and maybe it will continue to work in the following years.

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In 1976, "The Omen" was released which was a hit.  It follows the story of an American ambassador who learns that his son is actualy the antichrist. 

On the first day of filming, a crew member was in a car accident which destroyed a company car. Harvey Bernhard was driving Richard Donner to his apartment, as Donner was getting out of the car,  another came round the corner, tore the door off of the car and trapped Donner between the two.  The crew shot a scene at Windsor Safari Park including lions, that was eventually cut. The day they finished shooting with lions, a guard was killed by two of them.  A flight from LA to London with Gregory Peck on it was hit by lightning, and an engine was knocked out. Then eight hours later, a plane with the screenwriter, David Seltzer, on board was also hit by lightning.  The crew had hired a private jet, which they would use to some ground scenes. However, the charter company had become booked, and so the Omen's crew flight was canceled. It took off with business men on board. The jet crashed onto a road, crashing into another car, which crashed into another car, killing all which included the wife and child of the jet's pilot who were in the second car.

Then, after "The Omen", the special effects director John Richardson, went to Holland to make "A Bridge Too Far", with his girlfriend. He was involved in a car crash, and his girlfriend was beheaded, just like David Warner was

In "Damien Omen II", the curse continued.  The best friend of William Holden was stabbed while they were on holiday. Also, the entire cast came down with a rare form of influenza, even though no outbreaks had been reported. 

Were these deaths and accidents coincidences?  Or were they an omen for the filming to stop? 

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Whether they were deaths or accidents, these supposedly cursed movies may make you think a little.  Despite the fact that some of the rumors have been proven false, there are still questions concerning the ones that haven't.  So if you're an upcoming filmmaker, think twice before doing horror.

-Decayer