Dan Aykroyd comes from a long line of ghost hunters, said Chrissy Iley in the London Telegraph. His father—a seemingly practical man who gave his son a lawn mower for his 12th birthday—wrote an encyclopedic book on the subject. And his great-grandfather was a spiritualist who regularly hired a medium to hold séances at his home in Kingston, Ontario. “He channeled all kinds of personalities in the old farmhouse by the lake,” says the Ghostbusters star. Aykroyd still lives in the farmhouse, which he says has “a history of spiritual activity that would blow your mind.” He’s been awoken by strange noises and unexplained lights. Guests have reported invisible hands pulling back the sheets. His mother, the family skeptic, hasn’t been immune. “When she was nursing me, an old couple came to the end of the bed,” says Aykroyd, 59. “[When] the image faded away, she pulled out an album and saw it was my great-grandfather and his wife coming to approve the new child.” Those ghostly visitations have convinced Aykroyd that death is merely a transition. “Everyone fears the cut of the blade. It doesn’t matter after that. I know the spirit survives.”
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.
Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.