Smoke-like ghosts and an aggressive figure in a Fulton, Missouri, home
A caller who gives his name as [name withheld], in Portland, tells Art Bell he had a “ghost experience” in 1988 while a student at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri. He was in his cousin’s home with his cousin [name withheld] and a friend, [name withheld]. He says smoke-like, see-through figures appeared one after another in the living room: an older woman, three boys playing jacks, then a girl doing cartwheels. Then an angry man burst in and swung at him without making contact. He says he remembers little afterward, that the friends were whimpering, and that one of them quit school. He says it changed their lives.
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 2005.mp3”, starting at 1:20:50). Is this you, or someone you know? Ask for a correction or removal.
The story as told
[name withheld], calling from Portland, tells Art Bell he had [quote withheld] while a student at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri. He says he was in the living room of his cousin’s house with his cousin [name withheld] and his friend [name withheld]. The local station (out of Jefferson City) had signed off, leaving white noise on a small television. He says [name withheld] noticed images running in the snow for about five minutes, which then stopped, and that they turned the TV off and put on a record. He says the three then heard a large groan from the kitchen. He describes a figure like an older woman, made of black smoke and see-through, walking out from the kitchen area. Next, he says, three little boys appeared at their feet playing jacks on the hardwood floor. They were also smoke-like and see-through, two thin and one heavier, and the three men later agreed they remembered the same thing. Then a little girl he compares to Shirley Temple appeared doing cartwheels in place at the same spot. He says the figures wore period clothing, which he places at [quote withheld] and then “earlier.” He says the front door was then kicked in and an angry man ran in, pointing and yelling toward the kitchen. The man saw them, stared at [name withheld], came within three or four feet, and swung at him two or three times without making contact. [name withheld] says they then knew they were “just worlds apart.” He says he remembers little after that, that his friends were whimpering, and that one friend quit school afterward. He says it changed their lives completely.
Reported events, in order
- 0:19
The caller says he had a “ghost experience” in 1988 while a student at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri.
- 0:49
He describes the setting: the TV station signed off early, leaving white noise on a small television.
- 1:12
He says he was with his cousin [name withheld] and his friend [name withheld] in the living room of his cousin’s house.
- 1:49
He says [name withheld] noticed images running in the snow on the TV, which lasted about five minutes and then stopped.
- 2:17
While listening to a record, the three heard a large groan from the kitchen.
- 2:49
A woman-shaped figure made of black smoke, see-through, came out from the kitchen area.
- 3:22
Three small boys appear at their feet playing jacks, also smoke-like and see-through, two thin and one heavier.
- 4:19
A little girl, compared to Shirley Temple, appears doing cartwheels in place at the same spot.
- 4:53
The caller says the figures wore period clothing, which he places at [quote withheld] and “earlier.”
- 5:35
The front door is kicked in and an angry man runs in, pointing and yelling toward the kitchen area.
- 6:06
The man sees the caller, stares at him, comes within three or four feet, and swings at him two or three times.
- 6:28
The man fails to make contact. The caller sits up, they look at each other, and he says they were “worlds apart.”
- 7:00
The caller says he remembers little after that. His friends were whimpering in shock.
- 7:10
He says one friend quit school afterward and that it changed their lives completely.
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).
- interpretation· 0:19
The caller says he had what he calls a “ghost experience” in 1988.
- observation· 1:49
He says that after the local TV station signed off, images were visible running in the white noise of a small television.
- observation· 2:17
He says the three of them heard a large groan come out of the kitchen.
- observation· 2:49
He says he saw a woman-shaped figure made of black smoke that he could see through, with the wall and door visible behind her.
- observation· 3:22
He says three small boys appeared at their feet, playing jacks on the hardwood floor, also smoke-like and see-through.
- observation· 3:53
He says the three men later agreed they remembered the boys the same way, two thin and one heavier.
- observation· 4:19
He says a little girl appeared who reminded him of Shirley Temple, doing cartwheels in place at the same spot.
- observation· 4:26
He says the girl did cartwheels without moving from the spot where the other figures had appeared.
- observation· 4:53
He says the figures wore clothing he took to be of an earlier period.
- interpretation· 5:06
He places the clothing at [quote withheld] and then says “earlier,” suggesting a nineteenth-century or older era.
- observation· 5:35
He says a man burst through the front door, angry, pointing and yelling toward the kitchen area.
- observation· 6:28
He says the man swung at him two or three times and did not make contact.
- interpretation· 6:47
He describes the moment as one in which the two of them were “worlds apart,” his way of describing a separation between their realities.
- interpretation· 4:40
He says he does not know whether the term “shadow people” applies to what he saw.
- observation· 7:10
He says one of his friends quit school after the event and that it changed their lives.
- host statement· 7:35
The host describes the story as a different world or dimension opening up in front of the caller.
- host statement· 7:42
The host describes what he heard as several beings, a “whole collage” of them.
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 fairly detailed first-person story with details that could be checked (a place and named companions) and a coherent sequence. It scores above the [quote withheld] anchor (55). It does not reach the range of 70 and above because the caller does not engage with ordinary explanations, several transitions are hedged, and the vivid content rests on his word alone.
Evidence for and against
- Firsthand throughout: he says he was present with others ([quote withheld]).
- Concrete details that could in principle be checked: year (1988), town (Fulton, Missouri), college (Westminster College), TV source (Jeff City), and named witnesses ([name withheld], [name withheld]).
- An ordered, coherent sequence from the TV sign-off to the man’s exit, with consistent answers to the host’s questions (“Human. Human, definitely.”; the period clothing).
- He claims all three shared the perception ([quote withheld]).
- The most vivid claims rest entirely on the caller’s own word. The two named companions do not speak.
- Key elements are hedged or vague: [quote withheld] [quote withheld] and he never accounts for how the sequence connected.
- The caller’s earlier experience with TV static bleeding through is unremarkable.
- He says plainly that he does not know what term applies ([quote withheld]), leaving the nature of the event open.
- The labels showing who is speaking shift several times for what appears to be one caller. Some host lines look wrongly given to the caller and the reverse.
- The caller says he is hurrying ([quote withheld]), so the story may be compressed.
- It is not clear whether the place was a house or an apartment. Both are said: “my cousin's house” and [quote withheld]
- 1:12
- 5:35
- 4:40
What the model inferred (not said on air): The weighting of the components is an editorial judgment. The story is specific and in order, but it is self-reported and only loosely calibrated.
The story gives names, a year, a town, and an institution that could in principle be checked, and it claims co-witnesses, which places it in the scoring guide’s range of 11 to 25. Nothing was examined on air, so it does not rise above that range.
Evidence for and against
- Details that could be checked are given but not checked: 1988, Fulton, Missouri, Westminster College, and the named companions [name withheld] and [name withheld].
- The caller claims other witnesses to the same experience ([quote withheld]), which the scoring guide places in this range.
- No physical evidence is offered: no photograph, recording, document, or trace.
- The two claimed co-witnesses never speak on air. Their agreement is stated only by the caller.
- No outside check is recorded, so the score is capped at 50.
- Whether the named companions could or would confirm anything is not addressed.
- 0:49
- 4:08
What the model inferred (not said on air): Placing it in that range is a judgment. The caller supplies only stated, unchecked details.
Child ghosts seemingly at play and a violent adult ghost that singles out the caller, set in a friend’s living room at night, give a lasting sense of unease. It stops short of reported harm or a lasting threat to the body.
Evidence for and against
- Intrusion into a living room at night, right beside the caller.
- A succession of silent, see-through figures, including children, in ordinary poses (playing jacks, doing cartwheels), an eerie contrast.
- The smoke described as [quote withheld] and the language of anger.
- A hostile man rushing in, pointing and yelling, then staring into the caller’s face and swinging at him from three or four feet.
- Aftermath detail: friends “whimpering” and one quitting school.
- The tone at points is conversational and even lightly joking ([quote withheld]).
- No injury is reported, and the attempted blow does not connect ([quote withheld]).
- The story ends on a recap rather than on an ongoing threat.
- The caller does not describe the mood of the figures beyond “angry” and the sense of being “worlds apart.”
- 3:22
- 6:06
- 7:00
What the model inferred (not said on air): This is a judgment about the story’s effect, not its truth, and does not rest on the caller’s vocal delivery.
The story uses a familiar [quote withheld] frame but combines two distinctive features: the description of the figures as smoke, and the progression from silent playing children to a violent adult who cannot connect.
Evidence for and against
- The layered sequence of an older woman of black smoke, three smoke boys playing jacks on hardwood, a girl cartwheeling in place, and then an abusive man who cannot make contact is an unusual combination.
- The description of the figures as acrid plastic-burning smoke, and the lead-in through TV white noise, is a distinctive framing.
- His phrase about being “worlds apart” from the attacking figure is an unusual closing image.
- The individual motifs are common in this archive: see-through figures, child ghosts, period clothing, a violent ghost, a haunted home.
- The [quote withheld] and [quote withheld] are familiar ghost-story frames.
- How new this is compared with the rest of the archive cannot be judged from this single excerpt.
- 3:53
- 6:47
What the model inferred (not said on air): The provisional model score is a judgment from the content. The comparison with the rest of the archive is not worked out here.
Scoring confidence 0.60 · analysis confidence 0.66 · checked against outside sources: no · evidence available: The caller’s firsthand story only.; Two companions are named as also present and as agreeing on the story, but neither speaks on air. Their agreement is stated by the caller, not independently confirmed.; No photograph, recording, document, or physical trace is offered or examined.; No outside check was made.. The originality score blends the model's score (58) 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.
- A shared hallucination while awake, or a misperception by all three, in which one person’s reaction shapes what the others report seeing. · The caller describes a long, late evening after the TV station signed off ([quote withheld]), sitting with others and listening to a record. He does not mention sleeping or dozing.
- Over-reading of ordinary late-night, low-light effects: shapes read into dim rooms, static bleeding through on the set, and unexplained house noises such as a groaning sound from plumbing or settling. · He describes watching images in TV static before anything else happened ([quote withheld]), which has ordinary explanations (a distant station bleeding through). The sequence that follows is described as immediate.
- A vivid, dreamlike episode while falling asleep, experienced in the living room while relaxing late at night. The caller does not say he was lying down or sleeping, so this fits only loosely. · The story is a continuous sequence of several different figures appearing in the same spot, described as [quote withheld] with no pause or gap reported between them.
What stands out
The story chains several different figures into one continuous sequence in the same spot in the living room: a smoke-like woman, three boys playing jacks, and a girl cartwheeling in place. It ends with an aggressive man whose blows reportedly cannot land, which the caller describes as being “worlds apart” from him. The figures are described as made of acrid plastic smoke and fully see-through rather than pale or shadowy.
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