LEHIGHTON, Pa. — The setting: a 180-year-old hotel and farm that has garnered fame as a haunted attraction .
The timeline: a few days before May 4, which is Halfway to Halloween.
The challenge: confront the darkness that dwells within the Waldorf Estate of Fear to learn more about “24 Hours in Hell," an upcoming television series that will delve into the historical background and paranormal occurrences at the famed location at 6325 Interchange Road, Towamensing Township, Carbon County.
The setup
There’s gruesome lore that hangs heavy in the walls of the Waldorf, culminating in a macabre tale of good versus evil meant to lure visitors to the haunt and its attractions during Halloween and other special events.
But the sad and disturbing legend of the Waldorf estate is one of true gothic fiction.
There also are authentic paranormal occurrences in every part of the building backed by years of research, LehighValleyNews.com was told during a recent site visit.
That’s where lines blur, as “24 Hours in Hell” emerges as the latest byproduct of the renowned Hell House, LLC found-footage franchise (comprising the original 2015 supernatural horror film, two sequels and a spinoff).
Found footage is a cinematic technique in which all or much of the work is presented as if it were videos filmed or recorded by characters in the story, and later "found" and presented to the audience, a la “The Blair Witch Project.”
But the upcoming TV series focuses on real-life experiences, with Hollywood actor Santiago Cirilo (of “The Walking Dead” fame) headlining as the lead paranormal investigator.
Additional casting includes David Childers (known for appearances on more than 39 paranormal series on Travel Channel, Discovery+, and Sci-Fi), along with members of the local paranormal investigation group PARA (Palmerton Area Research Alliance).
The premise
The filming location is the Waldorf Estate of Fear, where boarded up windows, 1800s candelabras and real-life props (urns filled with actual human cremains, anyone?) create an unsettling feeling for visitors who wander through the musty, dimly lit environment.
Now, imagine being locked inside for 24 hours as things go bump in the night.
Angie Moyer, Sarah Grim and Laurissa Rex are part of the creative force behind the camera helping to capture it all.
Moyer is the owner of the Waldorf and director of “24 Hours in Hell.” Grim is a co-creator and producer, and Rex an assistant director and producer.
Rex, who said she’s a natural-born psychic medium, described how the three of them came together to investigate genuine paranormal activity at the site.
“Our communities are intertwined, but they're very separate," she said. "We knew each other because we're paranormal people, but the horror community and us [mediums] are really not intertwined.
Moyer added, “So we're trying to intersect and we're trying to intertwine. It's a bigger audience to play to.”
Grim and Rex said the building features a range of haunting types, including shadow people, elementals and portals.
The intensity of the hauntings increases because of the high energy levels in the house, the three said.
The pilot episodes of “24 Hours in Hell” will offer a two-part examination of the diverse hauntings at the Waldorf and how the house uniquely affected each individual.
The 'portal'
The goal of “24 Hours” is to fully immerse both the participant and the audience in the story, properly relaying the bizarre occurrences inside the building.
It’s beyond flickering lights, cold spots and sounds that come and go intermittently.
“During haunt season, my mom's phone battery goes dead in her room. My mom's gonna be 70 and yet she scares the s–t out of people,” Moyer said, laughing.
“Some nights her phone battery is full and it’s just sitting there. It's dead when we're done like five hours later. She's not using it.”
“There's probably between a dozen and 20 spirits at any given time."Laurissa Rex
Could such events be paranormal — related to spirits upset by technology? Some might think so, while others would correlate a drained cell phone battery to a rather ordinary problem in the area: lack of cell phone coverage, especially 5G.
But Grim said the very spirited structure has the ability to quantify belief among visitors in paranormal phenomena — especially if they’re able to interact with those in the afterlife.
“There's probably between a dozen and 20 spirits at any given time,” Rex said.
“There's some kind of portal in here where some of them come through. I think they're just attracted to the location because of the activity and the supercharged energy.”
The spirits
The spirits include a woman named Beatrice who appears in 1800s clothing with a high collar and a skirt and is very stern looking, according to Rex.
Another spirit is a woman named Amanda who likes to hang out at the bar, and a man in the kitchen named Keith.
Upstairs in one of the bedrooms, a child named Robbie also is particularly active.
“We don't know who really died here, we have no idea. Or they die in the vicinity. And they're attracted to the location for whatever reason, or they're lost, right?”Laurissa Rex
“When you take into consideration theories, paranormal theories, of how spirits get to places, either they’re organic to the location or they died on the location,” Rex said.
“We don't know who really died here, we have no idea. Or they die in the vicinity. And they're attracted to the location for whatever reason, or they're lost, right?”
All those stories play a significant role in the perpetuation of belief in what’s beyond, especially those taking part in the TV series.
And just like the "Hell House" movie franchise, “24 Hours in Hell” is getting word-of-mouth recognition without studio support, Moyer said.
She said the series trailer has caught the attention of multiple distributors and is scheduled to air on various platforms in 2025.
Three premiers are lined up, with the first taking place on (you guessed it) Friday, Sept. 13, at the Waldorf.
