I started watching this show from the beginning and thought, "Oh, okay, a cute little show with ghost stories in hotels."
Then I saw the segment about the man in the hotel where the telephone kept jumping off the hook. I saw this covered in "Paranormal Caught on Camera" and was more than a little surprised when they extended the story beyond what was shown on the aforementioned "Caught on Camera." Mainly because, they talked to the person who filmed the video for "Caught on Camera" and he didn't say a thing about "something" following him home. I kind of shrugged it off with the thought that maybe it was a time constraint.
But, after watching this latest show, where they "visit" a haunted hotel in Bisbee, AZ, The Copper Queen, I'm starting to question the show in its entirety.
I lived not too far from Bisbee for 10 years and have visited the Copper Queen many, many times. Sometimes I'd go for lunch or dinner, sometimes to stay the night for an article I was doing that included the place.
First of all, The Copper Queen was NEVER shut down and allowed to go to ruin. It's been a continuously running hotel since 1902. Not once has it been shut down and empty.
Second, the owners, the Rineharts, didn't renovate this building from the ground up. The Copper Queen is a beautiful old hotel that has always looked beautiful. Unless they're doing minor renovations on the place, I can't imagine what would be needed that would have them doing so much work? When the Rineharts bought the hotel, they bought a fully functional, completely finished, ready-to-go hotel, complete with an operating saloon and restaurant.
Third, the "archival footage" of the security cameras shown during the show definitely weren't taken at the Copper Queen. Like I said, I've been inside this hotel many, many times, and none of the footage even remotely looked familiar. The front desk? I have no idea where that came from because the front desk is connected to the wall on one side and is about 12 feet long or so. Also, behind it is a huge safe from when the miners and executives from it's early glory days would store their valuable in there. Also behind the front desk is a rack of room keys and mail slots. When facing the desk, to the right, behind the desk, is a small office.
Then there's the talk of a demon that attacks people? Nope. Complete lie. There's never been a tale attached to it about a demon that attacks people. I even called a good friend of mine who is a paranormal investigator and has actually been on some shows on the Travel Channel as an expert on hauntings in Arizona, to ask her if this was a new story. She said not only was it new, it was completely made up, probably for the show.
I was so thoroughly disgusted with such out-and-out lies being told about the Copper Queen I can safely say I'm done with the show. It's being removed from my scheduled recordings on my DVR and I'll never watch it again. The people behind the show are more interested in spreading lies for the sake of spicing things up. And here's the thing, the true story behind the Copper Queen is scary enough and good enough, they could have told the truth and people would have been impressed.
And I also find myself wondering about the integrity of the owners of the Copper Queen, that they'd go along with utter lies all in the interest of being on a television show. I mean, why? To get more people into your hotel? My integrity isn't for sale.
This show is so far from the truth, it's not funny. Knowing what I now know, that they lie to beef up a story, I'll never watch it again. If you're smart, you'll stop watching it, too.
