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Pazuzu (The Exorcist)
Pazuzu is a fictional character who is the main antagonist in ''The Exorcist'' horror novels and film series, created by William Peter Blatty. Blatty derived the character from Assyrian and Babylonian mythology, where the mythic Pazuzu was considered the king of the demons of the wind, and the son of the god Hanbi. In ''The Exorcist'', Pazuzu appears as a demon who possesses Regan MacNeil. Pazuzu is often depicted as a combination of animal and human parts with his right hand pointing upwards and his left hand downwards. He has the body of a man, the head of a lion or dog, eagle-like taloned feet, two pairs of wings, a scorpion's tail, and a serpentine penis. Appearances Novels Pazuzu first appeared in William Peter Blatty's ''The Exorcist'' in 1971. The novel is about a 12-year-old girl, Regan MacNeil, possessed by a demon. The demon is later revealed to be Pazuzu; though never explicitly stated to be the demon, two references were made about his statue, which was uncovered i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Exorcist (franchise)
''The Exorcist'' is an American horror film, horror media franchise that originated with William Peter Blatty's The Exorcist (novel), 1971 horror novel (itself inspired by the 1949 exorcism of Roland Doe) and most prominently featured in a The Exorcist, 1973 film adaptation of the novel, spawned many subsequent prequels and sequels although none of them (excluding the The Exorcist (TV series), television series) compared positively to the original. All of these installments focus on fictional accounts of people possessed by Pazuzu (The Exorcist), Pazuzu, the main antagonist of the series, and the efforts of religious authorities to counter this possession. The films have grossed over $661 million at the worldwide box office and the novel has sold over 13 million copies. 20th Century Fox Television developed a 2016 The Exorcist (TV series), television series as a continuation of the 1973 film, to generally positive reviews. As of 2020, a Reboot (fiction), reboot of the film series, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Exorcist (play)
''The Exorcist'' is a play by John Pielmeier based on the novel of the same name by William Peter Blatty and is part of ''The Exorcist'' franchise. The story revolves around a young girl, Regan MacNeil, who is possessed by a demonic spirit. Her mother, Chris, seeks out the church to perform an exorcism. Production history In February 2008, American playwright John Pielmeier expressed an interest in adapting William Peter Blatty's novel of the same name into a play and soon met with Blatty. He then began working on a script for the play, in which the first draft was completed in ten days. Los Angeles premiere (2012) The play had its world premiere at the Gil Gates Theater at the Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles from July 3 until August 12, 2012. It was directed by John Doyle, designed by Scott Pask, lighting design by Jane Cox, sound design by Dan Moses Schreier with music by Sir John Tavener. Teller (of magicians Penn & Teller) served as a creative consultant. The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eagle
Eagle is the common name for the golden eagle, bald eagle, and other birds of prey in the family of the Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of Genus, genera, some of which are closely related. True eagles comprise the genus ''Aquila (bird), Aquila''. Most of the 68 species of eagles are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just 14 species can be found—two in North America, nine in Central and South America, and three in Australia. Eagles are not a natural group but denote essentially any kind of bird of prey large enough to hunt sizeable (about 50 cm long or more overall) vertebrates. Etymology The word "eagle" is borrowed into English from and , both derived ultimately from ("eagle"). It is cognate with terms such as , and . It is broadly synonymous with the less common English term "erne" or "earn", deriving from , from , in which it acts as the usual word for the bird. The Old English term is turn derived from and is cognate with other synonymous ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lion
The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'', native to Sub-Saharan Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body (biology), body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the tip of its tail. It is sexually dimorphic; adult male lions are larger than females and have a prominent mane. It is a social species, forming groups called prides. A lion's pride consists of a few adult males, related females, and cubs. Groups of female lions usually hunt together, preying mostly on medium-sized and large ungulates. The lion is an apex predator, apex and keystone predator. The lion inhabits grasslands, savannahs, and shrublands. It is usually more diurnality, diurnal than other wild cats, but when persecuted, it adapts to being active nocturnality, at night and crepuscular, at twilight. During the Neolithic period, the lion ranged throughout Africa and Eurasia, from Southeast Europe to India, but it has been reduced to fr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Regan MacNeil
Regan Teresa MacNeil (born April 6, 1959) is a fictional character in the 1971 novel '' The Exorcist'' and one of the supporting characters in its 1973 film adaptation and the 1977 film '' Exorcist II: The Heretic'', while being one of the main protagonists in the first season of the television series '' The Exorcist'' (2016–2017). She was portrayed by Linda Blair in both films and by Geena Davis in the television series. Blair reprised the role in the 2023 film '' The Exorcist: Believer''. Character Regan MacNeil is a 12-year-old girl and the daughter of actress Chris MacNeil ( Ellen Burstyn). Regan is caught between her mother's grueling working schedule and the fact that her parents are in the process of an acrimonious divorce (her father is in Europe and is not seen in the film), and she had an older brother named Jamie, who died at the age of three because of an infection. She is named for the character of the same name in William Shakespeare's '' King Lear''. She i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hanbi
In Sumerian and Akkadian mythology (and Mesopotamian mythology in general) Hanbi or Hanpa (more commonly known in western text) was the lord of evil, lord of all evil forces ( Udug) and the father of Pazuzu. Aside from his relationship with Pazuzu, very little is known of this figure. Some have connected Hanbi to Helel, the Jewish name generally equated to Lucifer in Christian thought. However, Hanbi's characteristic of being a shadow born in the underworld, different from the Sumerian gods ( Dingir) of the underworld, would make him more similar to the concept of the Jewish shedim and se'iri or the Islamic shaitan. See also * List of Mesopotamian deities Deities in ancient Mesopotamia were almost exclusively Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic. They were thought to possess extraordinary powers and were often envisioned as being of tremendous physical size. The deities typically wore ''melam'', a ... References Mesopotamian gods Mesopotamian demons Evil gods P ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pazuzu
In ancient Mesopotamian religion, Pazuzu () is a demonic deity who was well known to the Babylonians and Assyrians throughout the first millennium BCE. He is shown with "a rather canine face with abnormally bulging eyes, a scaly body, a snake-headed penis, the talons of a bird and usually wings". He was believed to be the son of the god Hanbi. He was usually regarded as evil, but he could also sometimes be a beneficent entity who protected against winds bearing pestilence and he was thought to be able to force the demoness Lamashtu, his rival, back to the underworld. Amulets bearing his image were positioned in dwellings to protect infants from Lamashtu and pregnant women frequently wore amulets with his head on them as protection from her. As an Apotropaic magic, apotropaic entity, he is considered as both a personification of a destructive and dangerous wind, but also as a repellant to other demons, one who safeguards the home from their influence. In particular he protects ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Babylon
Babylon ( ) was an ancient city located on the lower Euphrates river in southern Mesopotamia, within modern-day Hillah, Iraq, about south of modern-day Baghdad. Babylon functioned as the main cultural and political centre of the Akkadian-speaking region of Babylonia. Its rulers established two important empires in antiquity, the 19th–16th century BC Old Babylonian Empire, and the 7th–6th century BC Neo-Babylonian Empire. Babylon was also used as a regional capital of other empires, such as the Achaemenid Empire. Babylon was one of the most important urban centres of the ancient Near East, until its decline during the Hellenistic period. Nearby ancient sites are Kish, Borsippa, Dilbat, and Kutha. The earliest known mention of Babylon as a small town appears on a clay tablet from the reign of Shar-Kali-Sharri (2217–2193 BC), of the Akkadian Empire. Babylon was merely a religious and cultural centre at this point and neither an independent state nor a large city, s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Assyria
Assyria (Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , ''māt Aššur'') was a major ancient Mesopotamian civilization that existed as a city-state from the 21st century BC to the 14th century BC and eventually expanded into an empire from the 14th century BC to the 7th century BC. Spanning from the early Bronze Age to the late Iron Age, modern historians typically divide ancient Assyrian history into the Early Assyrian period, Early Assyrian ( 2600–2025 BC), Old Assyrian period, Old Assyrian ( 2025–1364 BC), Middle Assyrian Empire, Middle Assyrian ( 1363–912 BC), Neo-Assyrian Empire, Neo-Assyrian (911–609 BC), and Post-imperial Assyria, post-imperial (609 BC– AD 240) periods, based on political events and gradual changes in language. Assur, the first Assyrian capital, was founded 2600 BC, but there is no evidence that the city was independent until the collapse of the Third Dynasty of Ur, in the 21st century BC, when a line of independent kings starting with Puzur-Ashur I began rulin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Film Series
A film series or movie series is a collection of related films in succession that share the same fictional universe, or are marketed as a series. It is a type of series fiction. This article explains what film series are and gives brief examples of movie series. The body shows a list of the most popular film series and franchises in the United States and Canada. Description Sometimes the work is conceived from the beginning as a multiple-film work—for example, the '' Three Colours'' series—but in most cases the success of the original film (or an original series in the case of the '' Skywalker Saga'') inspires further films to be made. Individual sequels are relatively common but are not always successful enough to spawn further installments. As of 2024, the 34 films of the Marvel Cinematic Universe form the highest-grossing film series even when adjusted for inflation, surpassing J. K. Rowling's Wizarding World (11 films), ''Star Wars'' (12 films), Ian Fleming's James B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Horror Fiction
Horror is a genre of speculative fiction that is intended to disturb, frighten, or scare an audience. Horror is often divided into the sub-genres of psychological horror and supernatural horror. Literary historian J. A. Cuddon, in 1984, defined the horror story as "a piece of fiction in prose of variable length... which shocks, or even frightens the reader, or perhaps induces a feeling of repulsion or loathing". Horror intends to create an eerie and frightening atmosphere for the reader. Often the central menace of a work of horror fiction can be interpreted as a metaphor for larger fears of a society. History Before 1000 The horror genre has ancient origins, with roots in folklore and religious traditions focusing on death, the afterlife, evil, the demonic, and the principle of the thing embodied in the person. These manifested in stories of beings such as demons, witches, vampires, werewolves, and ghosts. Some early European horror-fiction were the Ancient Greeks and Ancie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Antagonist
An antagonist is a character in a story who is presented as the main enemy or rival of the protagonist and is often depicted as a villain.About.com, Literature: Contemporary "Antagonist." Online. 18 October 2007. * Retrieved 25 March 2015. * Retrieved on 27 March 2015. * Retrieved on 27 March 2015. * Retrieved on 27 March 2015. Etymology The English word antagonist comes from the Greek ἀνταγωνιστής – ''antagonistēs'', "opponent, competitor, villain, enemy, rival," which is derived from ''anti-'' ("against") and ''agonizesthai'' ("to contend for a prize").Types Heroes and villains The ...[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
