I don’t know about you, but as you might be able to guess, I’ve always been a sucker for any suggestion of the supernatural or extraordinary. As a kid I’d pour over Guinness World Record books until they fell apart at the spines, and I’d watch Ghost Adventures like an addict, believing every minute of it. It’s really interesting to think about what could possibly exist at the edge of our understanding, even if it means watching hours of Zak Bagans grasping at straws with a blinking music box. It’s this fascination that led me to the discovery that I’ll be sharing here shortly.
For context, these days I’m studying film editing at community college. It can be grueling sometimes, but I really enjoy it nonetheless. Last spring, I had an assignment to take some raw TV footage and cut it down into a smooth 15-minute runtime. All the footage comes from donations, so a lot of this stuff is old, mostly consisting of sitcom outtakes and the like. For my project, I started by digging through a big bin of VHS tapes; they take some time to transfer to mp4s, largely thanks to the school’s old tape player always breaking down, but I wanted to find something unique.
After picking through duds for about half an hour, I saw a tape near the bottom that caught my eye. It was labeled as an episode of “Eighth Wonders with Rocco Presley”. If you haven’t heard of it, it was basically Ripley’s Believe it or Not in the format of a traveling talk-show. Despite its age, it was one of my favorite shows growing up. I used to know every episode by heart, which isn’t too impressive since it only had one full season, but the point still stands.
I instantly dug the thing out and looked it over. The backside was scribbled with the phrase “Future Tech”, which didn’t bring anything to mind from what I could remember. I tried to temper my expectations, but I was thrilled with the prospect of seeing some long-lost footage from the unfinished Season 2. With the abrupt and gruesome end of the production, this was almost a sort of closure for me. I’ll get into all of that later, but I’m working in chronological order here.
After getting the tape running on my laptop, the window flicked to life with the light of a hanging lamp. The camera adjusted to its dim surroundings, revealing the scene of a basement filled with blinking servers, all surrounding a small CRT monitor. A small production crew was maneuvering in and out of frame around the cramped space, and Rocco Presley stood at the center fixing his tie. Within a few seconds, a clapper board came on screen, counting down from 3 before prompting Rocco to begin. I realized that this was, indeed, an unreleased segment, and from then on I was glued to the screen. Sure, I was supposed to be getting right to work, but you can’t blame me for getting distracted with something like this.
Given the nearly hour-long runtime, I can’t recall the whole thing word-for-word, but I’m pretty sure I’ve got the opening monologue right. “Here we are at the center of it all; this unassuming basement room in Carlsbad, California is where Calvin Renner turned wires and switches into a groundbreaking artificial intelligence capable of feats previously thought to be mere science fiction, or so he claims… let’s come in for a hands-on test and see what our PC technology expert thinks! Will he crack the hoax, or will he confirm an innovation of virtually unmatched proportions!”
Rocco walked back and took a seat at the monitor between two other middle-aged men, one of them portly with a wrinkled dress shirt and thin glasses, the other in a brown suit holding a gaunt face. I’d assume that other cameras were there to catch different angles, but Rocco covered the monitor from that view. The rounder one appeared to guide him on how to use the interface before he turned to face the other man and spoke again with his usual grin. “So, Professor Adams, what do you suggest we ask first?”
They went about asking it a series of random questions, taking a jovial tone with it. The computer performed arithmetic, described the operations of household appliances, and even held a simple conversation with Rocco about a recent baseball game. It incorrectly said the Mariners scored 12 points instead of 8, but it was impressive nonetheless. The whole time Adams was talking with Calvin about its construction and programming, which had a few awkward pauses that could be expected from a pair of stereotypical tech nerds. The whole thing felt like a proper tech demo, except the tech was way ahead of its time. In the moment I wondered why this didn’t reach any markets in the 90s, but I found out soon after. It was about halfway through the tape when things got weird.
They were just sitting there talking, when the computer began to emit a methodical beep. Not like a bomb or anything, it sounded more like a dial tone. The conversation died down and everyone looked at the monitor. Rocco was the first to speak up. “So what’s that noise mean?” For the first time, Calvin had no immediate answer. He just looked around at the machinery before stuttering “I-I don’t know, it just does that sometimes”. Rocco let out a bit of a chuckle. “Well you’re the one that built it right? Or did I just strike a chord with our mutual friend here?” Calvin, however, looked dead serious. “It’s not supposed to have audio outputs.” Adams was already peering around at the servers. “Probably a system error then. It’s muggy down here, maybe something’s been overheating.”
Rocco started to get up, but then the screen caught his attention. With him out of the way, the screen could be seen clearly. Instead of questions and answers it was displaying a grainy black and white picture. I couldn’t really tell what it was, almost like one of those AI photos where you can’t identify anything. It looked like some kind of animal, and between the flickering from the camera, I swear I saw it move. Rocco caught a glance at it, and that was where his showmanship started to fall away. He paused for a moment, then he just said “what is that?” He turned to Calvin, but Calvin had no words. The only sound was the even tone in the background. He repeated, “Calvin, what is that?” He just stuttered under his breath, staring blankly at the monitor. The scene kicked up a bit with lights on all the servers blinking rapidly and Adams trying the keyboard to no avail. My attention was fixed on him until the monitor suddenly sparked and the screen blasted to pieces, sending Adams stumbling backwards clutching his face. The whole setup powered off and everyone jumped, including me. The shock lasted only for a moment, but it was replaced with a sickening horror when the contents spilled out. Instead of wires and circuit boards, the only thing that poured out of the screen was a thick blackish-brown liquid. The beeping had already stopped, so the room sat in a dead silence as everyone watched the oil-like liquid spill out onto the floor.
As Mr. Adams started receiving medical attention for cuts on his face and neck, Calvin tried to give an explanation, but Rocco cut him off. “Are you trying to pull something on us?” The whole room tensed up a bit. I’d never seen Rocco Presley do so much as raise an eyebrow before, so this was unreal. Calvin had already collapsed into a panic. “I didn’t know it would do that.” Rocco immediately fired back. “What, aren’t you supposed to be the expert?” Calvin was practically cowering in his chair, trying to calm him down to no effect. “Did you even make it? Huh?” Rocco berated him as he squeaked out the phrase, “I don’t know where it came from.” At that point some of the crew tried to intervene, but there was no stopping Rocco. He just kept shouting, “you’re sick, Calvin!” I don’t know if that’s just what he was like off camera, but everyone seemed to be taken off guard.
Calvin got off his chair and tried to back away, but Rocco stood up in turn. Someone from the medical team tried to hold him back, but he shrugged them off, then shoved Calvin away. He must have slipped on the stuff from the computer, because he flew backwards and slammed his neck against the edge of the desk. Rocco was pacing around the room, yelling at him to get up, but Calvin was just lying there. Rocco started to cool down and shook him on the shoulder, but he didn’t move.
I clearly remember the room going dead quiet again. Rocco’s face went from bright red to pale white in an instant. People rushed from Adams to check on Calvin while Rocco collapsed into a seat, looking like his soul had left his body. If the concern for Calvin didn’t shock him, the concern for his career certainly did. With the set in tatters and calls to cut being made, the footage froze up and flickered into static. Somehow I only then noticed the smoke pouring out of the tape player. I scrambled to turn the thing off, but it was way too late.
This is the part that I’m still beating myself up about. I should’ve kept an eye on the tape player, but I didn’t, and now I’ve turned potential criminal evidence into a melted brick of plastic. I even had to explain myself to the fire department since the smoke detector went off. It’s not like I could tell them about what I saw, much less go to the police, so now you’re the ones that have to listen to me ramble about all this.
This incident sparked my curiosity more than anything else ever has, so I started digging. All reports suggest that the tape was recorded on August 22nd, 1991 during the main shoot for the segment. Calvin Renner was hospitalized with a broken back causing almost full paralysis, and the filming quietly went on pause.
It was only the next day when people started disappearing. Cameramen, editors, everyone on the set that day, they all left without a word and never came back. The missing persons count got higher with every headline I read. The families apparently begged police to investigate the Renner household, but they didn’t have anything on him, especially considering he wasn’t even there at the time. Besides, none of the neighbors were reporting any disturbances.
By August 28th there was no one left, the same day the so-called Carlsbad Bloodbath hit the press, and all of this came to a close. Whatever happened between those two points is the cause of much speculation, as well as the focus of my search. Among all the news coverage, interviews, and tabloids, one clear narrative emerged; these people weren’t quite right even before they went missing. Everything I found before definitely felt off, but this is where it gets really weird.
I’ll start with an interview with the family of one of the mic operators. They said after the shoot, she became gradually more reclusive, eventually only leaving her study to eat once a day. Whenever asked about it, she just said she was having problems with work. She seemed sick, breathing heavily and breaking into coughing fits. Then she started talking about how she forgot something at the set, first in passing, then as a matter of urgency. It was three days after the shoot when she went missing. Later on, the photos of the operator’s personal sketchbook were released by her family, and there’s one drawing that caught my eye, shown below.
As for Renner, most folks chalk it up as mental conditions aggravated by his injury, but he became increasingly hysterical during his care, demanding to be released back to his house despite living alone and being paralyzed from the neck down. He was also noted to be having trouble breathing, which had no apparent connection to the injury. By the time the other shoe dropped and the big questions came to his door, he was completely unresponsive to anything outside his release. The cops couldn’t even discuss a deal for it; he was, quote, “mentally incapable of conversation”.
The big break only came about 20 years later when the police released a series of messages left on his home phone, all coming personally from Rocco Presley. I don’t think this site takes audio files, so I’ll just paste the transcript here.
TRANSCRIPT OF RECORDINGS OF TELEPHONE MESSAGES FROM ROCCO “PRESLEY” DAVIDSON FROM AUGUST 23, 1991 TO AUGUST 28, 1991
AUGUST 23, 1991 10:52 P.M. PRESLEY: (unintelligible) Mr. Renner? This is Rocco, uh Rocco Presley. (breathing) Now I bet I’m the last man you want to talk to right now, but I’m calling to apologize (short laughter) too little and too late, I get it, but listen, I-I don’t know what came over me last week. I mean I’m a public figure, so, obviously there’s all the issues there. If this got to the tabloids, I mean (breathing) that’s not just me on the hook, that’s the studio, the crew, everyone on the team. It’s on me to patch this up, and it makes sense if you don’t want to hear it, but you need to know that this affects a whole lot of folks besides me. There’s no words for how sorry I feel, and that’s why I wanted to reach out personally, not the suits back at the office. That wouldn’t be fair to you. I just don’t know what happened, I’m trying to work it out with a shrink. I (unintelligible) really, truly, that’s not something I do, it’s not a representation of me. Listen I’ll just wrap this up here, but please, call me when you can, and we can work this out. (END OF MESSAGE)
AUGUST 25, 1991 9:17 A.M. PRESLEY: It’s Rocco again, I never heard back from you. I get it, man, I really do, but we’ve gotta do something about this. I’ve got the station breathing down my neck, and I’m trying to sort this all out, for the sake of everyone on the team. I need an answer here, I haven’t slept a solid minute since the shoot. Honestly. (pause) Besides, uh, the crew needs more b-roll of the computer. I know that’s not the priority here, it’s just that they’re hounding me about it whenever I see them, and I tell them, “hey, we’ve got bigger problems so just work something out”, but they tell me, if we don’t get the footage, they’ll have to cut the whole thing. (laughter) I mean, wouldn’t that just be the cherry on top of this whole sh_tshow. (breathing) I’m in your hands right now, and everyone else too. Whatever it takes, I need you to call me back. (END OF MESSAGE)
AUGUST 26, 1991 1:13 A.M. PRESLEY: Listen, this isn’t the news I want to be bringing up, but word is they’re gonna sue if you don’t let us get more footage. I know you don’t want to talk to me, but at this point you’re on the line too. Y-your discovery isn’t like anything I’ve ever found, I want the world to see it. Don’t you want that too? (unintelligible) Both our sakes, please just call me back, that’s all it takes. (breathing) We need to fix this, Calvin. (END OF MESSAGE)
AUGUST 27, 1991 6:42 P.M. PRESLEY: Calvin, I can only hold the gates back for so long. (unintelligible) Trying to give you space but the studio’s had enough. We need more footage with the computer and you won’t let us get it. Hell, I don’t even know if you’re alive anymore, neither does anyone else I talk to. Do you want me to call the police, is that what you want Calvin? (breathing) I-I don’t know what to do here, you’ve put me in a corner and now I’ve gotta act. If you can hear this, now’s your last chance to pick up the phone before I have to send someone to your door. (END OF MESSAGE)
AUGUST 27, 1991 11:46 P.M. PRESLEY: (footsteps) You know what? F_ck it, we’re gonna talk this out one-on-one, no press, no crew, just you and me, us a-and (unintelligible). (breathing) This is all because of you Calvin, it all started when I used your stupid f_cking computer. (rustling) Can’t sleep, I can’t eat, I can’t THINK about anything outside of the basement. You did this to me, what happens next is on you, remember that. (END OF MESSAGE)
AUGUST 28, 1991 12:53 A.M. PRESLEY: (engine noise, laughter) You know I lied, I lied to you Calvin. There’s no studio, no crew, no suits at the office. To tell you the truth I haven’t talked to them since the shoot. I haven’t talked to anyone! They keep calling and calling and I just don’t pick up! (laughter) I guess we’re the same like that, huh? (breathing) What did you expect me to do? You don’t talk to me, leave me to ROT with my own thoughts, lay back while I sit through this hell that you put me in. And I’m not talking about the guilt or the stress, no-ho! (laughter) You know EXACTLY, what I’m talking about. You knew from the start when you called my goddamn office. Me, Adams, everyone on the set! You did this to us, and for what? What do you get out of this? You’re sick, Calvin. You ruined us all, just for whatever perverted satisfaction this gives you. You won’t even let us see it again. You spent all this time keeping us from relief you know we need, but not anymore. I’ll tell you what, I can’t give you what you deserve, but I’ll sure as hell try. You’re about to see what happens to people like you. (END OF MESSAGE)
The police arrived at the house a few hours later, finding the scene that was later dubbed as the Carlsbad Bloodbath. The name comes from the rumor that the cramped basement held so much viscera that the floor was completely submerged in a shallow pool of blood, and from the photos I’ve seen, I’d say it’s credible; scattered among the servers and monitors were the remains of every person in the video, all mauled and disfigured like they’d been eaten alive. I knew I shouldn’t have looked at the pictures, but I couldn’t resist the curiosity, and believe me when I say I regret it. Every photo is burned in my head; twelve innocent people, reduced to a mess of gore at the bottom of a basement.
Among all the bodies, Rocco was still alive, but he died on the way to the hospital. Given the autopsy photos, I’m shocked he made it that far; simply put, insides were outsides, everything below the waist was practically gone, and it took a solid minute to figure out where his face was supposed to be. Besides all that, police found a snub-nose revolver with his prints, but it was left halfway down the stairs to the basement. There was however a bullet hole in the ceiling, implying that he wanted to make his presence known. In fact, going over my notes, I think it was the gunshot that got the police to finally investigate the property.
Forensics found that they’d all died at different times, with as much as a few days between some. Not just that, but bruising patterns proved that the victims were all alive for several hours as they were being mutilated, and there was no sign of a struggle. It was like they just laid down to die, taking a willing part in the whole ordeal.
Editor’s Note: the autopsy revealed a “viscous substance” surrounding the brain and flowing down from it in excess, coating the throat and lungs.
Obviously I had to find out more, so I started looking into the aftermath. Apparently it took the local PD three days to make an official statement, and they couldn’t even provide a cause of death beyond the obvious physical trauma. Newspapers speculated about a possible cannibal serial killer on the loose, but there were never any similar deaths before or after to back it up. Besides, anyone who saw the autopsy can tell you no human could’ve physically done that.
If you think Calvin got away because he was stuck in the hospital, unfortunately no such luck. He was the only one who died somewhere other than the basement, but he was killed the same way: All torn up in his hospital bed like a wild animal had crawled through his second-story window, matching notes with the brain and lungs, and nobody heard a thing. Whatever killed these people, it was silent, smart, and capable of tracking its targets down when needed.
As for the computer, it’s like it never existed; when Renner’s possessions went up for auction, there wasn’t so much as a mouse or keyboard on the list. Wherever it all went, there’s no public record of it. Then there was that phrase; “I don’t know where it came from.” I can only assume he was referring to the monitor since, unlike traditional PC setups, it seemed to be the source of everything. Renner’s previous accreditations should have offered some clues as to how he got his hands on it, but that’s the thing; he had no previous accreditations. All I found was an associates degree in computer science and a short-lived tech support job at Fry’s. Our boy genius just came out of the blue, and instead of research institutes or newspapers, he reached out only to talk shows. It seems like his number one priority was to get his “work” on camera. Honestly nothing has fit quite right with this guy from beginning to end.
I wish I had more to share, but there’s nothing else I can find. This is where all of you come in; I’m passing all of this information along to see if anyone knows any possible connections. It doesn’t matter how tangential it seems, I need to see more. This case has been on my mind for months now, and I refuse to believe the trail ends here. I won’t stop looking, but for now, I have to take a break and try to get some sleep. The best I can do beyond that is organize my findings to show to others. Thank you all so much for reading; it’s such a relief to finally share this with more people.