Forty years ago, Hollywood made gremlins loveable—portraying them as adorable, furry creatures. Their folkloric origins are far more sinister.

For centuries, a fork-tailed mythical creature that lurks in the pinelands of the Garden State has served as a reminder of the horrors that result when reproductive freedoms are destroyed.

Where did the myth that English men (and probably women) were hiding tails beneath their clothing come from? And what was that about eggs?

In stories from around the world, foxes offer rewards or punishments to humans, play tricks on their fellow animals, and sometimes transform into foxy ladies.

Around the fourteenth century, folk and literary traditions concerning elves, demons, and other creatures coalesced into a unified fairy kingdom.

From 1857 to 1889, he could be found walking a 365-mile loop in western Connecticut and eastern New York. Everybody recognized him, but no one knew his name.

Ariel epitomizes mermaids now, but these beguiling creatures precede her by millennia, sparking imaginations the world over with a hearty embrace of otherness.

Where did potato chips come from? How about clams casino? Are the origin stories for these foods true, or do they fall into the category of “fakelore”?

Read on, but beware, these tales of spine-tingling ghosts and eerie spirits...

In order to invent a legendary hero of the Wild West, John Adams shook himself free from his life as shoemaker in Massachusetts.