Thomas B. Allen (Author)
Encyclopedia
Thomas B. Allen is an American author
and historian
. He resides in Bethesda, MD. He is also the father of science fiction writer Roger MacBride Allen
. Allen is a contributing editor to National Geographic.
in 1949. Allen tracked down the sole survivor of the team that performed the exorcism, Father Walter Halloran
as well as a copy of the diary kept by the team leader, Father William S. Bowdern
. It was upon this case William Peter Blatty
based the events of his novel, The Exorcist
. First published in hardcover in 1993, the book was reissued as a revised paperback in 2000 to coincide with the release of a made-for-cable film Possessed (2000 film)
starring Timothy Dalton
as Father Bowdern. The film kept close to the facts as presented in Allen's book for the most part but did add some cinematic scares.
Allen's Possessed has been criticized by Mark Opsasnick, who claims to have proven that the subject of the exorcism on which Blatty based his novel resided, not in Mount Rainier, Maryland, but in Cottage City, Maryland
. Opsasnick describes other assertions in Allen's book as questionable or inacurrate as well.
and the case his book details. Allen adopts a neutral point of view as to the reality of possession, preferring to let the facts and witnesses speak for themselves and allowing the reader or viewer to decide for him- or herself if such things are real.
Allen has co-authored numerous books with Norman Polmar. He has also written numerous mystery novels.
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
and historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
. He resides in Bethesda, MD. He is also the father of science fiction writer Roger MacBride Allen
Roger MacBride Allen
Roger MacBride Allen is an American science fiction author. He was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut and grew up in Washington, D.C., graduating from Boston University in 1979. His father is American historian and author Thomas B...
. Allen is a contributing editor to National Geographic.
Publication and film
His most famous book to date is Possessed. It is a retelling of the true story of a teenage boy from Mt. Rainier, Maryland who went through the rite of exorcismRoman Ritual
The Roman Ritual is one of the official ritual works of the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church. It contains all of the services which may be performed by a priest or deacon which are not contained within either the Missale Romanum or the Brevarium Romanum...
in 1949. Allen tracked down the sole survivor of the team that performed the exorcism, Father Walter Halloran
Walter Halloran
Father Walter Halloran, SJ was a Jesuit Roman Catholic Christian priest who, at the age of twenty-six, assisted in the exorcism of Robbie Mannheim, a thirteen year old Lutheran boy in St. Louis, Missouri who it is said became possessed after using a Ouija board...
as well as a copy of the diary kept by the team leader, Father William S. Bowdern
William S. Bowdern
Father William S. Bowdern, S.J. was a Jesuit Roman Catholic priest in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. He was the author of The Problems of Courtship and Marriage printed by Our Sunday Visitor in 1939. He was a graduate of and taught at St. Louis University High School; he also taught at St....
. It was upon this case William Peter Blatty
William Peter Blatty
William Peter Blatty is an American writer and filmmaker. The novel The Exorcist, written in 1971, is his magnum opus; he also penned the subsequent screenplay version of the film, for which he won an Academy Award....
based the events of his novel, The Exorcist
The Exorcist
The Exorcist is a novel of supernatural suspense by William Peter Blatty, published by Harper & Row in 1971. It was inspired by a 1949 case of demonic possession and exorcism that Blatty heard about while he was a student in the class of 1950 at Georgetown University, a Jesuit school...
. First published in hardcover in 1993, the book was reissued as a revised paperback in 2000 to coincide with the release of a made-for-cable film Possessed (2000 film)
Possessed (2000 film)
Possessed is the name of a 2000 Showtime original movie starring Timothy Dalton, based on events appearing in the book Possessed by Thomas B. Allen, which is inspired by the exorcism case of Robbie Mannheim;...
starring Timothy Dalton
Timothy Dalton
Timothy Peter Dalton ) is a Welsh actor of film and television. He is known for portraying James Bond in The Living Daylights and Licence to Kill , as well as Rhett Butler in the television miniseries Scarlett , an original sequel to Gone with the Wind...
as Father Bowdern. The film kept close to the facts as presented in Allen's book for the most part but did add some cinematic scares.
Allen's Possessed has been criticized by Mark Opsasnick, who claims to have proven that the subject of the exorcism on which Blatty based his novel resided, not in Mount Rainier, Maryland, but in Cottage City, Maryland
Cottage City, Maryland
Cottage City is a town in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,136 at the 2000 census. Cottage City is a small, quiet community lying between Eastern Avenue , Brentwood, Colmar Manor, and the Anacostia River...
. Opsasnick describes other assertions in Allen's book as questionable or inacurrate as well.
Media
Since publication of the book, Allen has been a frequent guest on talk shows, entertainment shows and history shows that discuss exorcism in general, demonic possessionDemonic possession
Demonic possession is held by many belief systems to be the control of an individual by a malevolent supernatural being. Descriptions of demonic possessions often include erased memories or personalities, convulsions, “fits” and fainting as if one were dying...
and the case his book details. Allen adopts a neutral point of view as to the reality of possession, preferring to let the facts and witnesses speak for themselves and allowing the reader or viewer to decide for him- or herself if such things are real.
Allen has co-authored numerous books with Norman Polmar. He has also written numerous mystery novels.
External links
- Thomas B. Allen His Homepage
- Interview at the Pritzker Military LibraryPritzker Military LibraryThe Pritzker Military Library is a research library for the study of military history in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded in 2003 by COL James N. Pritzker, IL ARNG to be a non-partisan institution for the study of "the citizen soldier as an essential element for the preservation of...