For Robert Damon Schneck, author of The President?s Vampire, researching age-old stories about vampires, ghosts, mummies and serial killers from his Bath Beach home and elsewhere is not about blood, gore or fright. It is about history.
Although he does not seek to explain paranormal phenomena or solve murders, the process of delving into legends and newspaper tidbits that nag at him reveals unexpected facts about American culture, said the aspiring ?historian of the strange? from one of his local offices ? the McDonald?s at 1983 86th Street, where he spends up to two hours per day and does most of his writing.
?I avoid explanation in my books because I don?t think anyone knows and I doubt they ever will know,? Schneck said about the nature of paranormal phenomena. ?The frustrating thing is when something happens that you think you should be able to explain but can?t,? he said from behind his Ouija board, crystal ball and 1966 plaster Bigfoot track from California.
?Over time the explanations change but the phenomena stays the same,? he added.
Schneck, who has a fine arts background and describes himself as a misanthrope, said McDonald?s is an ideal work environment for him, despite not eating the food, because, ?You need to fight against the distraction, so you concentrate better.?
Schneck also spends time at Istanbul Fast Food at 2202 86th Street, where he wrote the children?s book Detective Notebook: Are You Psychic? last summer. The book was published by Sterling.
Although trips to the New York Public Library at 455 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan are sometimes necessary to pull old newspaper articles out on microfilm, the library environment is ?too quiet, too hot, and the bathrooms are too far away,? Schneck said. Being allergic to dust and waking up around sunset also make library visits difficult.
In Schneck?s latest book, which took two years to write, is subtitled Strange-but-True Tales of the United States of America, and published by Anomalist Books in 2005, the author discusses the mysterious disappearance of five Newark boys in 1978, the discovery of a miniature mummy known as Pedro near Casper, Wyoming in 1932, and many other tales.
In the course of his research, stories often prove to be hoaxes or cases of misinformation, but even those disappointments lead to other revelations.
In the case of Pedro, Schneck wondered not only whether the mummy was a cannibal pygmy or radioactive mutation, as had been surmised, but asked the questions: ?Why were all these people looking for mummies in 1932? Why were people finding mummies in 1932??
His answer: they were trying to supplement their incomes during the worst years of the Depression.
In the case of the disappearing Newark boys, who were black, Schneck said there were questions about whether the case had gone unsolved due to racism, but concluded that that was not the case. Rather, police at the time were merely unable to find any clues, he said. ?I think the police really worked hard. If there are no clues you can?t manufacture them.?
In the process of researching the story that his 232-page book is named after ? which comes from a Brooklyn Daily Eagle story that turned out not to be true ? Schneck determined that although a sailor named James Brown, who was accused of killing two others on the Indian Ocean in the late 19th century and drinking their blood, did not in fact drink anyone?s blood, he did pay his lawyers in whale oil, which Schneck found equally intriguing.
?The story just wasn?t true,? he said after collecting ship logs, letters and hospital records. ?He did stab someone to death, [but] where the vampire [part] came in, I have no idea.? Newspaper fact checking was poor in the 1880s and 90s, he explained, and yellow journalism was popular.
Schneck said he is surprised that New York City does not have more paranormal legends to research, but said, ?Brooklyn has had some strange things happen.?
Among them are stories of a poltergeist following a family in Bay Ridge Apartments only a few years back, and a winged man seen flying over Coney Island in the 19th century.
Schneck grew up in Paramus, New Jersey, visiting his grandmother in Bath Beach frequently and eventually moved into her apartment about five years ago when she passed away.
His attraction to history stems in part from the fact that its characters are dead, and therefore unlikely to be upset by his probing, unlike the live people he dealt with as a magazine journalist for several years.
?I love digging. I love finding things. The Internet was just my dream come true,? he said.
Schneck said his book writing job is ideal for his personality, and added, ?I?ve never had a normal job in my life. I?m not a normal person.?
Finding unexpected twists is one of the best parts. ?One of the things I like about research is you?re looking for one thing and you find something else,? he said. ?I always think that?the research gods are kind to the diligent.?
For more information, visit www.anomalistbooks.com/schneck.html.
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