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National frenzy over 'Crying Boy' cursed paintings
IN 1985, The Sun ran a story about a number of cursed paintings in Rotherham, known as the 'Crying Boy Paintings.'
The story followed the aftermath of a house fire in Rotherham, in which a chip-pan blaze gutted the terraced council house of Ron and May Hall.
Only this chip-pan fire was different - hung in the badly damaged downstairs of the house was the framed print of a toddler with tears rolling down his face, completely untouched by the blaze.
The story grew into a national frenzy, thanks to the digging of Sheffield Star reporter John Murphy, who discovered that the local fire brigade had fought fifty fires in which the kitsch painting had survived.
The then Rotherham fire station manager Alan Wilkinson said the fires were all caused by human carelessness, such as cigarettes or chip pans.
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But once The Sun had ran with the story, it grew. More and more reports of cursed paintings started to pour in.
Sandra Kaske, of Kilburn, North Yorkshire, said she and her sister-in-law had been the victim of several devastating fires since they had bought their Crying Boy prints.
The cheap prints - available in department stores - had proved particularly popular in working class northern towns.
Headlines included 'Blazing Curse of the Crying Boy and 'Tears for Fears.'
Dr David Clarke, who has researched the subject, has discovered there are at least five different versions of the picture painted by an elusive Spanish artist called Bruni Armadio, who worked under the pseudonyms of Giovanni Bragolin and Franchot Seville.
Last year Dr Clarke wrote a cover-story on the urban legend in the monthly publication The Fortean Times, which specialises in supernatural stories.
He will be speaking about the subject on BBC One's The One show in autumn, when he will also appear on a BBC documentary on UFOs, presented by Danny Dyer.
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Weather for Sheffield
Saturday 26 May 2012
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Temperature: 9 C to 21 C
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