10 Terrifying Real Events That Inspired the X-Files

5. Drive

When a high speed car chase ends in Vicky Crump’s head exploding and her husband being escorted to the hospital in hand cuffs, Scully and Mulder travel to Nevada to investigate. Once there, Mulder finds himself taken hostage by Patrick Crump, a desperate man determined to head west at high speeds to alleviate the pain in his head and prevent it from exploding as his wife’s did. It’s left to Scully to find a solution that will save her partner, and she soon discovers that Crump is the victim of a brainwave experiment that can lead to intense inner ear pressure and fatality if he fails to travel toward the Pacific coast.

The inspiration for this episode comes from two different government programs, Project ELF, a U.S. Navy experiment involving long waves and Project HAARP, a U.S. Army experiment involving electromagnetic radiation in the ionosphere. While the government claims that both HAARP and ELF are for research purposes with thoughts toward better communication; conspiracy theorists believe the real purpose of these projects are more sinister, with the creation of new and deadlier weapons being the real motive behind the expensive projects.

4. The Field Where I Died

After receiving a tip that a religious cult is caching weapons and abusing children, a raid is staged at the Temple of the Seven Stars, resulting in the arrest of cult leader Vernon Ephesian along with his wife Melissa and several other followers. Because they can only be held for so long without definitive proof, Ephesian and his followers are released, but another search of the compound for weapons is planned. Knowing that he won’t be able to withstand further police interference, Ephesian instructs his men to open fire on the investigating agents while he and the rest of the cult members drink poison to evade capture.

Two different cults were the inspiration for this episode. The Branch Davidian Seventh-day Adventists of Waco, Texas gained notoriety in 1993 when they and their leader David Koresh engaged in a two month stand-off that ended in the death of Koresh and 82 of his followers.

The Jonestown massacre was also a source of inspiration for this episode. On November 18th, 1978 Jim Jones ordered his followers to drink cyanide laced kool-aid in a South American Jungle community after Congressman Leo Ryan visited the compound to evaluate the welfare of Jones’ followers. Those who refused to drink the poison were later shot. 909 people died in total.

3. Home

Home gained a lot of notoriety due to the fact that it was the first episode of The X-Files to receive a viewer discretion warning due to content that included incest and abuse. The discovery of a severely deformed baby in Pennsylvania soon leads Scully and Mulder to the Peacock brothers, who are found living in squalid conditions without even the basic amenities such as electricity and running water. Initially, it’s thought that the brothers had kidnapped a woman, raping her in order to father the child. But eventually Scully and Mulder find that there is evidence of incest in the family that involves the mother of the Peacock clan.

Much of this episode was influenced by the story of the Ward brothers, four illiterate brothers who lived on a farm near Syracuse, New York. The ward brothers lived in unbelievable squalor and were awkward in their behavior, demonstrating very little in the way of social skills. In 1990, Delbert Ward was accused of killing his brother William while he was sleeping. He was later acquitted due to lack of evidence.

2. Oubliette

Lucy Householder was kidnapped by a deranged man and held captive in darkness for five years before making her escape. Several years later, Scully and Mulder investigate the kidnapping of Amy Jacobs, a young teenager who was kidnapped from her bed much as Lucy had been. During the course of the investigation, it comes to Mulder’s attention that while at work, Lucy collapsed and suffered from a nosebleed at the same time that Amy was kidnapped. While Scully thinks that Lucy may be involved in the kidnapping, especially after it’s determined that her nosebleed consisted of an additional blood type that matches Amy’s, Mulder is convinced of the woman’s innocence and believes that she can help them to find the missing girl. Lucy begins to display spontaneous injuries that coincide with the injuries that Amy is receiving from her kidnapper, and it’s determined that a psychic link between the two has developed. Ultimately, Lucy gives her life in order to save Amy, an act facilitated by the psychic bond that they shared.

This episode was heavily influenced by the kidnapping of 12-year old Polly Klaas, whose kidnapping and murder were a primary news topic when this episode aired. On October 1st, 1993 Richard Allen Davis entered Polly’s bedroom where she was having a slumber party and carried her away at knife point after tying up her two friends and placing pillowcases over their heads. Later that evening, a call was made to 911 that a vehicle was stuck in a ditch about 20 miles north of Petaluma, California where Polly was kidnapped. Deputies investigated the call, not knowing about the kidnapping. Davis was the driver of the vehicle. After searching the car and running his license, a tow truck was called and Davis was free to go. On November 28th, 1993 the owner of the property where Davis had been stuck found scraps of clothing that matched items that Polly was wearing at the time of the kidnapping, which eventually led to the arrest of Davis. On December 4th, he confessed to kidnapping and strangling Polly and led police investigators to the shallow grave where he buried her. It’s believed that Davis killed Polly and hid her body in the woods near the ditch where his car was stuck. He later returned to retrieve the body after the deputies had left.

1. The Erlenmeyer Flask

Scully and Mulder investigate the case of Dr. William Secare, a man who appears to have bled green blood after being shot by the police before disappearing without any other trace. Later, when Secare is picked up by an ambulance, a poisonous gas is released from his body when paramedics attempt to insert a needle into his chest. It’s later determined that Secare is actually a human-alien hybrid whose blood is toxic to humans.

The scene involving the release of poison gas from Dr. Secare was directly inspired by the case of Gloria Ramirez. In February 1994, 31-year old Ramirez was rushed to a California hospital due to the effects of late stage cervical cancer. It was noted that her skin had an odd oily sheen, and when her blood was drawn, small particles were seen floating in it. Ramirez also had a fruity, garlicky odor coming from her mouth, and her blood gave off a strong smell of ammonia. Soon after drawing her blood, one nurse fainted while another developed breathing issues. Another nurse also fainted and later awoke without the ability to move her arms or legs. Six individuals had health issues attributed to working on Ramirez, some requiring hospitalization. Ramirez died a short time later due to her cancer. It was eventually speculated that Ramirez had been using dimethyl sulfoxide as a treatment for her cancer. Defibrillation that she received could have converted it to dimethyl sulfate, which would have been toxic to those exposed to it. While this theory is the most popular one, it has never been definitely proven.