Annual funeral reported in the living room of a former funeral home
A caller tells Art Bell that their house used to be a funeral home. The caller says that every January 1, a funeral takes place in the living room and all the furniture is gone. The caller says they have gotten used to it and are not afraid of ghosts. The caller says they have talked to them and that the beings that do harm are demons. When pressed on how to tell the difference, the caller says you cannot really tell.
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 1996.mp3”, starting at 2:14:48). Is this you, or someone you know? Ask for a correction or removal.
The story as told
According to the caller, the house they are living in “right now” used to be a funeral home. The caller says that [quote withheld] there is [quote withheld] and that [quote withheld] Art Bell reacts, asking, [quote withheld] and later asks whether this makes the caller want to move. A reply that the transcript labels as the host’s, but that is likely the caller’s, says they have [quote withheld] and that [quote withheld] Bell then refers back to the caller seeing ghosts everywhere and beginning to see beings, and asks how the caller feels about that. The caller says it [quote withheld] and [quote withheld] Asked how the caller knows, they say [quote withheld] and when Bell presses, they say, [quote withheld] The caller adds that [quote withheld] When Bell asks how a person can tell the difference, the reply is, [quote withheld] Bell responds, [quote withheld] No location, age, time of day, or other witness is given.
Reported events, in order
- -1:-1:-1
The caller says the house they live in now used to be a funeral home.
- 0:04
The caller says that on January 1 of every year, a funeral is going on in the living room.
- 0:09
The caller says all the furniture is gone during that funeral.
- 0:18
The host asks whether this makes the caller want to move.
- 0:20
A reply that the transcript labels as the host’s says, [quote withheld]
- 0:29
A line says, [quote withheld]
- 0:32
The host refers to the caller seeing ghosts everywhere and beginning to see beings.
- 0:43
The caller says it does not really scare them and that the beings cannot harm them.
- 0:46
Asked how the caller knows, they say ghosts do not harm you.
- 0:51
The caller says they know because they have talked to them.
- 1:02
The caller says most of the ones that do hurt you are demons.
- 1:15
Asked how to tell the difference, the reply is that you cannot really tell.
- 1:18
The host says this has made his point and thanks the caller for the call.
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:-1:-1
The caller’s house used to be a funeral home.
- observation· 0:04
Every January 1, a funeral reportedly takes place in the living room.
- observation· 0:09
During the reported funeral, all the living-room furniture is gone.
- interpretation· 0:43
The caller says the beings do not scare them and cannot harm them.
- interpretation· 0:46
The caller says ghosts do not harm people.
- observation· 0:51
The caller says they have talked to them.
- interpretation· 1:02
The caller says most of the beings that hurt people are demons.
- interpretation· 1:15
The caller says you cannot really tell the difference between harmful and harmless beings.
- host statement· 0:32
The host says the caller is seeing ghosts everywhere.
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.
Firsthand but brief. The caller describes their own home and a recurring event with a specific yearly date and one concrete detail. But there is no location, no second witness, and no discussion of ordinary explanations. The sequence is coherent, though it is uncertain who is speaking in places.
Evidence for and against
- Firsthand story tied to the caller’s present home.
- A specific recurring date and a concrete detail: [quote withheld] and [quote withheld]
- The caller’s answers to the host’s questions are consistent with each other.
- No location, address, time of day, or description of the funeral itself.
- No second witness or physical trace is reported.
- The caller does not address ordinary explanations such as expectation or suggestion tied to the former funeral home.
- The labels showing who is speaking are inconsistent. Several lines labeled as the host appear from context to be the caller.
- The excerpt is very short.
- -1:-1:-1
- 0:04
- 0:09
- 0:51
What the model inferred (not said on air): This is my judgment of the quality of the telling, not a claim about whether the event happened.
There is only the caller’s word. A former funeral home and January 1 could be checked only if a location were given, but none is, and no documents or second witness are offered.
Evidence for and against
- The caller gives a recurring date and a building history that could in principle be checked if a location were given.
- No address, records, photograph, recording, or document is offered.
- No second witness speaks on air.
- No outside check was done.
- No outside check was requested or recorded.
- -1:-1:-1
- 0:04
What the model inferred (not said on air): The transcript contains nothing from anyone else that backs the caller up.
The picture of a funeral in the caller’s living room with the furniture gone is unsettling, and demons are mentioned. But the caller treats the situation as routine and harmless, which reduces any lasting dread.
Evidence for and against
- A funeral is reported in the living room, with the furniture gone.
- Demons are mentioned as harmful beings.
- The caller says they have [quote withheld] and that [quote withheld]
- No attack, threat, injury, or physical harm is reported.
- No visual description of the reported funeral is given.
- 0:09
- 1:02
- 0:29
What the model inferred (not said on air): Creepiness is scored as the effect on a listener, not as evidence about the events.
A haunted former funeral home is a familiar setup. But the yearly funeral replay on January 1 and the disappearance of all the living-room furniture give it a distinctive detail.
Evidence for and against
- A former funeral home combined with a yearly funeral in the living room.
- The detail that all the furniture is gone during the event stands out in this short story.
- A haunting tied to a former funeral home, or a replay of past events, is a familiar ghost-story setup.
- The caller does not explain the cause, so there are few story elements to judge.
- -1:-1:-1
- 0:09
What the model inferred (not said on air): This is my own originality rating. Comparison with the rest of the archive is not done in this excerpt.
Scoring confidence 0.55 · analysis confidence 0.62 · checked against outside sources: no · evidence available: The caller’s firsthand story only; No names or address; No second witness; No photograph, recording, document, or physical trace claimed or examined. The originality score blends the model's score (55) 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.
- Expectation or suggestion, tied to living in a former funeral home and to the recurring date, could shape a vivid mental image, a dream, or a remembered event. · The caller says the building is a former funeral home and ties the experience to a fixed yearly date, January 1. No witnesses or physical traces are reported.
- A recurring dream or imagination, not necessarily an event others could share, is one possibility that fits the few details in the transcript. · The story is very brief and gives no time of day, no other witnesses, and no description of the funeral itself.
What stands out
The story centers on a funeral that replays every year in a living room, not on a visible ghost, and the caller treats it as routine because it happens only one day a year. The later talk about ghosts, demons, and not being able to tell them apart sets it apart from an ordinary haunted-house story.
Related stories
Matched by shared recurring details, categories, and wording.