Red eyes in a tree, a transforming figure, and a drive-by rescue
A caller who gives their name as [name withheld], from Birmingham, Alabama, describes to Art Bell events they say they have shared with their best friend [name withheld] since they met. They report a nighttime encounter in Huntsville: barking dogs, red glowing eyes in a tree, a neighborhood blackout, and a white tiger-like shadow that they say changed into an Egyptian man who promised protection. They then describe a Christmas incident in which they say they and [name withheld] were thrown back from a door shortly before a drive-by shooting passed the house. The call ends with [name withheld] saying they and [name withheld], now in Germany and at home, are still having the same strange dreams.
This clip comes from the source recording. AI chose where it starts and ends, so it may start or end a little early or late. The word-for-word transcript is not published. You can hear the source recording on the Internet Archive (file “Ghost to Ghost 1993.mp3”, starting at 1:40:19). Is this you, or someone you know? Ask for a correction or removal.
The story as told
[name withheld], calling from Birmingham, Alabama, tells Art Bell that they and their best friend [name withheld] have had strange events ever since they met, including seeming to know each other’s thoughts and sharing the same dreams. [name withheld], [name withheld] says, joined the army about two and a half years earlier, was hurt during basic training, and convalesced while [name withheld] was living in Huntsville. [name withheld] says that one night around three o’clock in the morning all the dogs in the neighborhood began barking. [name withheld] and [name withheld] went outside and saw nothing, then looked up into a tree and saw red glowing eyes. The dog stopped barking, and the neighborhood went black. [name withheld] says they learned the next day that all of southeast Huntsville had been in a blackout. [name withheld] describes a white tiger-like shadow walking up into the yard that changed into an Egyptian man. The man gave a name that [name withheld] says they later found belonged to a real Egyptian astrologer and mathematician who lived around 300 A.D. According to [name withheld], the figure said things like this would happen and that he would sooner or later tell and show them why. Since then, [name withheld] says, they have dreams about him, and the figure promised to protect them. [name withheld] was reportedly protected while in Germany. The high point of the story is last Christmas at [name withheld]’s parents’ house. [name withheld] says that as soon as they opened the door both of them were thrown back into the middle of the living room, the door shut, and about twenty seconds later a car came by in a drive-by shooting. [name withheld] ends by saying that they and [name withheld], now in Germany and at home, have both been having the same strange dreams, which they compared about four days earlier. Art thanks [name withheld] and asks to be kept informed.
Reported events, in order
- 0:16
[name withheld] says they and their best friend have had strange events whenever they are together, including seeming to know each other’s thoughts.
- 0:38
[name withheld] says their friend joined the army about two and a half years earlier.
- 0:42
Art asks [name withheld] to hold over a commercial break so the whole story can be heard.
- 1:13
Resuming, [name withheld] names their friend [name withheld] and says they share the same dreams. [name withheld] was hurt in basic training and convalesced while [name withheld] was living in Huntsville.
- 1:39
Around three in the morning the neighborhood dogs begin barking. [name withheld] and [name withheld] go outside and see nothing.
- 1:48
They look up into a tree and see red glowing eyes. The dog stops barking, and the neighborhood goes black. The next day they learn southeast Huntsville had a blackout.
- 2:11
A white tiger-like shadow walks up into the yard and changes into an Egyptian man. The man gives a name that [name withheld] says they later matched to a real Egyptian astrologer and mathematician of around 300 A.D.
- 2:41
The figure says things like this will happen and that he will sooner or later tell and show them why.
- 2:52
[name withheld] says that ever since, they and [name withheld] have dreams about the figure.
- 3:03
[name withheld] says the figure promised to protect them and that [name withheld] has had experiences of being protected while in Germany.
- 3:20
Last Christmas, at [name withheld]’s parents’ house, as [name withheld] opened the door both men were thrown back into the middle of the living room.
- 3:40
The door shut. About twenty seconds later a car came by in a drive-by shooting.
- 3:58
[name withheld] says that they and [name withheld], now apart (Germany and home), have both been having the same strange dreams, which they compared about four days earlier.
- 4:09
Art thanks [name withheld] and invites [name withheld] to keep the show informed. The call ends.
Claims
Each claim is labeled as something the person telling the story noticed (observation), what they made of it (interpretation), something others told them (hearsay), or something the host said (host statement).
- observation· 1:39
[name withheld] says that around three o’clock in the morning all the dogs in the neighborhood began barking, prompting [name withheld] and [name withheld] to go outside.
- observation· 1:48
[name withheld] says that when they looked up into a tree they saw red glowing eyes.
- observation· 2:02
[name withheld] says the neighborhood went dark and that the next day they learned all of southeast Huntsville had been in a blackout.
- observation· 2:11
[name withheld] says a white tiger-like shadow walked up into the yard.
- observation· 2:18
[name withheld] says the shadow-like form changed into an Egyptian man.
- interpretation· 2:24
[name withheld] says the figure gave a name that they later identified as that of a real Egyptian astrologer and mathematician living around 300 A.D.
- observation· 2:48
[name withheld] says the figure told them things like this would happen and that he would later tell and show them why.
- interpretation· 3:03
[name withheld] says the figure said he would be there to protect them, and that the figure has never really left them.
- observation· 2:52
[name withheld] says that ever since then they and [name withheld] have dreams about the figure.
- hearsay· 3:03
[name withheld] says [name withheld] has had experiences in Germany in which the figure protected [name withheld] (reported secondhand, from [name withheld]).
- observation· 3:20
[name withheld] says that last Christmas, at [name withheld]’s parents’ house, as soon as [name withheld] opened the door both of them were thrown back into the middle of the living room.
- observation· 3:40
[name withheld] says the door shut by itself and that about twenty seconds later a car came by in a drive-by shooting.
- observation· 3:58
[name withheld] says that they and [name withheld], now in Germany and at home respectively, have both recently been having the same strange dreams, which they compared about four days earlier.
- host statement· 3:00
Art Bell states, as a summary question, that the figure has never really left the caller.
Scores, with reasons
An AI model gave these scores using a fixed set of scoring rules (scoring-v1). They are editorial judgments and rough guides, not the odds that anything paranormal happened. How scoring works.
This is a clear, fairly specific firsthand account with a claimed second witness. But no one else backs it up on air, and one central element (the transformation) gets no ordinary explanation at all. Computed from components: source proximity 20, specificity 12, internal consistency 12, alternative explanations 8, calibration 6.
Evidence for and against
- Firsthand account from a named caller in a named city, with concrete places (Huntsville, Birmingham, Germany) and times (about 3 a.m., last Christmas, four days ago).
- The story holds together: a promise of protection made at the first encounter is later matched by the door incident and by [name withheld]’s reported protection in Germany.
- The drive-by detail is the kind of specific event (a shooting on a residential street) that could in theory be checked.
- The central event (a tiger-like shadow turning into an Egyptian man) has nothing that can be checked independently and rests solely on the caller’s word.
- The most checkable claims, the blackout and the identity of the Egyptian astrologer and mathematician, are stated as things they “found out” rather than shown or checked ([quote withheld]).
- Garbled transcription and mislabeled speakers (“white bingo tiger,” lines labeled as the host’s that are plainly the caller’s words) make parts of the sequence hard to pin down.
- The figure’s name and the identity of the historical Egyptian are garbled and cannot be checked from the transcript.
- It is not clear how much of the [name withheld] material [name withheld] saw firsthand and how much [name withheld] is relaying.
- 0:03
- 1:48
- 2:24
- 3:40
What the model inferred (not said on air): I treated the caller as a direct witness of the yard and door events (high source proximity). I lowered specificity because the names, dates, and blackout claim are asserted rather than shown. I lowered calibration because the caller states the Egyptian identification as established fact. No component is based on vocal delivery.
Only the caller’s word, with details that could be checked named but not examined, and a second witness claimed but not present on air. This places the story in the 11 to 25 range.
Evidence for and against
- The caller gives names and place names ([name withheld], [name withheld], Birmingham, Huntsville, Germany) that could in principle be followed up.
- [name withheld] points to two things that could in principle be checked: a blackout across southeast Huntsville and the existence of an Egyptian astrologer and mathematician of around 300 A.D.
- A second witness is claimed throughout the story (“me and him,” [quote withheld]).
- No photograph, recording, document, or physical trace is offered.
- No witness other than the caller speaks on air. [name withheld]’s experiences in Germany are relayed secondhand.
- Nothing was checked on air. The blackout and the historical Egyptian are only asserted.
- The blackout claim cannot be dated precisely from the transcript.
- The Egyptian’s name is unclear, so even the claim that could be checked cannot be pursued from this text.
- 2:02
- 3:03
- 3:58
What the model inferred (not said on air): I applied the scoring guide’s range for [quote withheld] The claimed backing from [name withheld] is a claim, not backing, and no outside check was done.
Disturbing images (eyes in a tree, a blackout, a figure shifting from animal to man) and a real threat (a drive-by shooting) that is left unresolved, though the figure is framed as protective rather than malevolent.
Evidence for and against
- Red glowing eyes in a tree at about three in the morning while dogs bark and the neighborhood goes dark is a strong, unsettling image.
- The shape-shifting figure walking into the yard is an intrusion into a home at night.
- The door incident ends in a drive-by shooting, and the story is left open, with the same dreams continuing in two different countries.
- The story is told as one of protection rather than threat: the figure is said to keep them safe, which softens the tone.
- The caller’s own tone is mild ([quote withheld]), and the call ends with Art’s brief thanks rather than any escalation.
- Whether the caller links the door incident to the figure is implied but never stated directly.
- 1:39
- 2:02
- 2:18
- 3:40
What the model inferred (not said on air): My judgment of creepiness is about the story a listener hears, drawn from the sequence of images and the unresolved ending, not from any claim about real events.
A familiar “guardian spirit” pattern carries distinctive content: the tiger-to-Egyptian change, the named historical astrologer, and the door-throwing rescue before a drive-by. These lift it above stock elements.
Evidence for and against
- The form is unusual: a white tiger-like shadow that becomes an Egyptian man who names himself after a historical astrologer and mathematician.
- The protection is shown by two men physically thrown back from a door twenty seconds before a drive-by shooting.
- The story ties together telepathy, identical dreams across two countries, and a shared ghostly figure in one ongoing relationship.
- Red glowing eyes in a tree, barking dogs, and a blackout are familiar parts of this type of story.
- A protective spirit guide is a recurring pattern in the genre.
- The garbled “white bingo tiger” phrase means the animal form is not fully certain.
- Originality is provisional pending comparison with the rest of the archive.
- 2:11
- 2:24
- 3:20
What the model inferred (not said on air): This is a provisional judgment from the content. The comparison with the rest of the archive described in the scoring guide is not available from a single story, so the score reflects the model’s judgment only.
Scoring confidence 0.50 · analysis confidence 0.55 · checked against outside sources: no · evidence available: The caller’s firsthand account (telephone call, no documents or recordings offered); A second witness ([name withheld]) is repeatedly claimed but does not speak on air; Claimed details that could be checked but were not checked on air: a local blackout in southeast Huntsville and a historical Egyptian astrologer and mathematician living around 300 A.D.. The originality score blends the model's score (68) with how rare the story's details are across the archive. This method is still provisional.
Ordinary explanations to consider
These are possibilities only. None is a finding about what happened.
- The shine from the eyes of a nighttime animal (cat, raccoon, owl) reflecting light from a tree, with the dogs reacting to the animal, could account for the reported red eyes. · [name withheld] says all the neighborhood dogs began barking and that they then saw red glowing eyes in a tree.
- An ordinary local power failure in the area that night, reported independently the next day, could explain the darkness the caller describes. · [quote withheld]
- A sudden rush of air or a forced door closing (wind, a pressure difference, or someone outside), plus a coincidental drive-by, are possible ordinary readings of the door event. · [name withheld] describes both friends being thrown backward as [name withheld] opened the door and the door shutting, followed by a drive-by shooting about twenty seconds later.
What stands out
The protective figure is described as first appearing as a white tiger-like shadow that becomes an Egyptian man. The caller links him to a named historical astrologer and mathematician of around 300 A.D. The protection is shown by the two friends being physically thrown back from a door seconds before a drive-by shooting passes the house.
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