By David Laurell

In the winter of 1949, a deep freeze had fallen upon the Maryland home of the Hoffman family. Perhaps it was the furnace that was producing the strange scratching sounds that 14-year-old John and his grandmother began hearing. It wasn’t. The sounds continued even when the furnace was not running. When they did stop, they were followed by the sounds of muffled drumbeats, footsteps and the sudden death of John’s Aunt Dorothy.

In the wake of Dorothy’s death, unexplainable activity increased – food flew off tables, beds shook, furniture toppled and red welts formed in the shape of profane words on John’s skin. Physicians, psychiatrists and a local priest were called in, all leaving baffled.

Scared and desperate, John’s mother took him to St. Louis, hoping a change of location would end the odd occurrences. When the manifestations instead intensified, she contacted a Jesuit priest who pinned two crucifixes to the boy’s pillow and began a series of prayers. Nothing out of the ordinary occurred during the priest’s visit, but when he left, one crucifix flew off the bed that then began shaking violently.

In March of 1950, the Archbishop of St. Louis gave the priest permission to begin the formal rite of exorcism. During the ritual, John suffered violent seizures, screaming fits, spewed profanity and spoke foreign languages in a voice other than his own. Two weeks later, as the exorcism continued, John exploded in such forceful spasms it took five men to hold him down. At the conclusion of that episode, John shouted: “Satan! I am St. Michael. I command you to leave his body now!” The room fell still and a smile came to John’s face as he quietly and peacefully uttered: “He is gone.” John Hoffman grew up to live a healthy, normal life with no memory of the possession.

When a Washington, D.C. newspaper reported that story, it caught the attention of a Georgetown University student by the name of William Peter Blatty, who thought it would make for an interesting novel.

Twenty years would pass before Blatty acted on the idea, and in 1970, Harper & Row published “The Exorcist,” which went on to top the “New York Times” Bestseller List for 55 weeks. With the book’s success, Hollywood came courting and Blatty negotiated a deal with Warner Bros. to write and produce the film version.

Many well-known directors were offered and turned down the project before William Friedkin accepted the job. Charged with casting the film, Friedkin tested over 600 young actresses for the role of Regan MacNeil – the girl who becomes demonically possessed. He finally decided on an unknown actress who had been doing television commercials and modeling for various clothing catalogues since she was a baby – Linda Blair.

“The Exorcist” was released in December of 1973 and it hit with a fire-and-brimstone thunderclap of Biblical proportions. The controversial film was denounced by religious leaders as blasphemous and touted by critics as being the most horrific story ever captured on celluloid. It grossed over $160 million dollars, won a Golden Globe for Best Dramatic Film and received ten Academy Award nominations – winning for Best Adapted Screenplay and for Best Sound. It still ranks as one of the greatest horror films of all time.

Today, 38 year later, Linda Blair’s devilish days are long behind her as she has embraced the angelic work of rescuing, fostering and adopting dogs – mostly American pit bull and Staffordshire terriers. Now serving as the founder and president of the Linda Blair WorldHeart Foundation that she established in 2003, Blair, who will turn 53 in January, is as serious, socially conscious and intelligent as she is charming, girlish, flirtatious and extremely funny. Her bombastic laugh comes easily, frequently and is totally infectious. She is kind, spiritual, a bit bawdy, and always down-to-earth.

BLAIR BEFORE BEELZEBUB

Born in St. Louis, Missouri, the Blair family moved to Connecticut when Linda was just two years old. With their newfound proximity to New York City, her mother, Elinore, looked into having her kids do modeling and television commercial work. “She thought it would be a good way for her children to build some future security, so she got all three of us involved with an agency,” Blair recalls. “My brother and sister were a bit shy and not that interested, but I was, because my mother said if I made money and saved it, I could buy a horse – which was my dream.”

Beginning when she was just five, Linda went on to appear in numerous magazines, over 75 commercials, and a soap opera. While her career was clearly taking off, it was never the one she wanted. “I felt acting just wasn’t for me,” she says. “I remember one day, we were driving past the U.N., and I told my mother I would like to quit acting and buckle down on my school work because I really wanted to be a veterinarian.”

Elinore understood and it was decided that, following the obligations they had agreed to, Linda’s acting career would come to an end. Shortly thereafter, that changed when her agent called to say that a search was on for a girl of Linda’s age to appear in the film version of “The Exorcist.”

DEALING WITH THE DEVIL

“They gave us a bit of an idea of what would be expected and I remember thinking it was really weird stuff,” laughs Blair. “They asked me to audition and called me back a few times. I met with William Friedkin, who asked me and my mother to read the book. It was really over my head and the story didn’t really bother me because I was raised Protestant. We never talked about the devil, and certainly not exorcisms, so to me it was just a made-up story.”

Following extensive make-up and screen tests, Linda was offered the role of Regan – a challenge for any actress much less a 13-year old. “Although I was very young, I knew what I was saying was profanity,” says Blair. “But I didn’t really understand what the words meant. I was just an actress doing lines. Billy (Friedkin) was always very kind and considerate in the way he worked with me and he spent a lot of time preparing me for those difficult scenes.”

After principle photography ended, Linda returned to Connecticut. “I just went home and started high school in September – never gave the film much thought – never heard much of anything about it,” Blair says with a shrug. “Then we got word that Warner Bros. was planning on releasing ‘The Exorcist’ as a Christmas movie so it would be released in time for Oscar consideration. They did, and it took the world by storm.”

According to Blair, with no preparation, her life was swept up in a whirlwind of controversy and the glare of the media spotlight. “I couldn’t believe what was happening. In November, I was a high school student and by January, the film had won a Golden Globe and I was nominated for an Academy Award,” she says. “I had been working in the business for 11 or 12 years, but there was no hoopla associated with anything I ever did. Then, literally overnight, my entire world dramatically changed and I became one of the most controversial people in the world.”

Recalling it as an extremely confusing time, Blair believes the only thing that got her through it was the foundation instilled in her by her parents. “I was always taught honesty and to treat people the way you would want to be treated,” she says. “That was not what I was encountering. The press reported I was in a mental institute because I had been traumatized by making the film. The media was writing about what kind of parents would allow their child to do this kind of role. The Catholic Church and other religious groups were up in arms wanting to ban the film. There were people who thought I was the devil and would have nothing to do with me. Satanists thought of me as a kindred spirit and that caused all kinds of problems. Then, on top of all that, Warner Bros. sent me out on a worldwide press tour. I challenge anyone, much less a teenager, to survive that.”

Saying it took her a long time to come to terms with “The Exorcist,” Blair reasons that doing the film was a double-edged sword. “It was a tremendous opportunity that I am extremely grateful for,” she says. “But it also hurt me career-wise and made me out to be a freak to some people.”

THE CONTROVERSY CONTINUES

In the wake of “The Exorcist,” Blair went on to appear in “Airport 1975” and an NBC World Premiere Movie – the highly publicized and controversial “Born Innocent” that dealt with the physical, psychological and sexual abuse of a teenage girl. The film pushed the envelope – showing graphic content never before seen on American television, including a highly controversial rape scene.

“During that time I also did “Sarah T.: Portrait of a Teenage Alcoholic,” another film that caused an uproar, which made me even more controversial. Then, to add to the controversy, Warner Bros. called and asked that I read a script for a sequel to “The Exorcist.” I didn’t want anything to do it, but the Warner people were persistent. Finally they told me it would star Richard Burton. Well, come on, who’s going to say no to that!? Not me,” she laughs. “They also offered me an extraordinary amount of money and moved my mom and me to Beverly Hills.”

Following the 1977 release of “Exorcist II – The Heretic,” Blair says she entered the most difficult time of her life. “My weight was a big issue back then and I was going through a lot personally,” she explains. “I had become close friends with the band Lynyrd Skynyrd. They were like family to me and my mother, and in October of 1977, three members of the band were killed in a plane crash in South Carolina. I was more than devastated,” Blair recalls. “Then, right after that, a close friend died in a horse-riding accident and then another from an overdose. It was a terrible time for me and I was not in a good place.”

Taking a year off, Blair finally felt ready to work again appearing in a string of films including “Stranger in Our House,” “Wild Horse Hank,” “Roller Boogie" and “Ruckus.” “After those films, work became scarce,” says Blair. “It was the era of the big macho films with Stallone and Schwarzenegger and there was not much work for actresses of my age. Jodie Foster went back to school, Melanie Griffith started a family, and I made my theatrical debut in a play called ‘Women Behind Bars.’”

A COMICAL CROSSOVER

In the late 1980s, Blair appeared in two comedy films “Night Patrol” and “Up Your Alley.” “That was really out of character for me,” says Blair. “In this business, if you do comedy, you do comedy, if you do drama, you do drama. There’s not a lot of crossover. But I enjoyed it and the director, of ‘Up Your Alley,’ Bob Logan, told me I had talent for doing comedy. He was the one who came up with the idea of doing a comedy spoof of ‘The Exorcist.’ Everybody thought that was funny except me. I couldn’t find any humor in it – there’s nothing funny about Regan. But he wrote a script called ‘Repossessed’ and asked what it would take for me to do it. At the time, Tom Hanks was an up-and-coming actor and I thought he would be great as the young priest. I also thought Leslie Nielsen would be absolutely perfect for the older priest, so I told Bob I would do it if he could get Tom Hanks and Leslie Nielsen. He came back two days later, said Leslie Nielsen was on board and I choked.”

Blair says she harbored concern about doing “Repossessed,” because she knew it would bring up a lot of the old controversy. “I was also concerned about how I would create this character and not make a fool of myself or of the original film. I ended up basing the character on Jack Nicholson. Nancy Aglet is Jack Nicholson in “The Shining” – she’s The Joker. Throughout that entire shoot, with every scene, I kept asking myself: ‘What would Jack do?’”

After “Repossessed,” Blair returned to Connecticut to be with her mother, who had been diagnosed with cancer. “I spent a lot of time with her until she passed in 1994,” Blair recalls. “Then, just as I was getting ready to restart my career, my father and I were involved in a really bad hit-and-run accident in Florida. I suffered severe trauma to my nervous system. I was always crying and couldn’t walk right. My body was constantly contorting.”

EMBRACING ANIMAL WELFARE

During her recuperation, Blair, a lifelong animal lover, decided the time was right to get a dog. “That was the beginning of an entirely new chapter of my life,” she says. “It was when my rescue work began. I had been involved with animal organizations prior to that, back when I had a little Jack Russell terrier stolen. When he was taken, I begged and screamed and went to the press, but never saw her again. That horrible situation led me to Chris DeRose who was a former cop and actor who founded Last Chance for Animals. I could not have had a better tutor and mentor. Chris taught me about animal rights and that was the groundwork that led me to what I do now – animal welfare. I don’t consider myself to be an animal rights person. I am not an extremist. I believe in the promotion of animal welfare and that the way to do that – to make a change – is by a Gandhi-style movement.”

Blair says that as much as DeRose inspired her to become an animal welfare activist, it was a stray dog that endeared her to a breed that is as controversial as she herself has been. “One day, I saw a stray pit bull wondering near my house,” she recalls. “I approached him very cautiously and he came up to me and was very friendly. I walked around trying to find out where he lived. I put up flyers, but no one responded. So, I kept him, named him Sunshine, and he changed my life forever. He brought joy back into my life for the first time in many years and showed me how misunderstood pit bulls are – how funny and sensitive they can be.”

Moving to Burbank, Blair started working with a dog rescue. “I started reading and educating myself on pit bulls,” she says. “Then I became educated on the plight of farm animals and adopted a vegan lifestyle. That inspired me to write my book, “Goin’ Vegan” (Sunny Harris & Associates, Inc., 2001).

Blair says becoming a vegan had a huge impact on her health. “When I was 19, I had been hospitalized for stress and improper eating,” she revealed. “That was when I learned I was allergic to dairy. I had been eating creamy foods because of the stress and that was just ripping me apart inside. I began to educate myself about nutrition. I eliminated all fast foods and dairy, and then ultimately became a vegan. My body reacted to that and stabilized itself. Once I adopted a vegan diet, I never had a problem with weight again. For anyone who has any sort of medical problem, I encourage them to look at their nutrition. There is so much great information and natural foods and remedies out there today.”

Along with the health benefits, Blair also encourages a vegan diet to maintain a youthful appearance. “People tend to have me locked into their minds as a 13 year old,” she laughs. “When they meet me, it kind of hits them that I’m not 13 anymore. So I am conscientious of the way I look and I really work at caring for my skin. That goes back to when I was making ‘Airport 1975.’ I was sitting next to Gloria Swanson, who had a train case on her lap. A train case is a make-up bag. She noticed me watching her and said: ‘Young lady, let me offer you a bit of advice – always take care of your skin.’ I never forgot that and always did. I can only think of two times in my life that I didn’t remove my make-up at night.”

After establishing her foundation in 2003, Blair realized her Burbank home was no longer conducive to the rescue and fostering work she was doing. That led to her purchasing a property 30 miles north of Los Angeles that has become the home of the Linda Blair WorldHeart Foundation. Along with rescuing, fostering and adopting dogs, Blair also heads up the organization’s educational and outreach programs. She is extremely hands-on with the day-to-day operations and calls for help that have taken her all over California and to New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

“I have worked very hard and am extremely proud of the work we are doing,” say Blair. “As the economy has declined, we have had more and more people calling and crying, saying they have lost their homes and have no place for their dogs. We are facing the biggest crisis in American history when it comes to pets. There has never been this amount of animals being turned into shelters and ending up at rescues. People can’t afford them. Grants and donation are harder to come by. It’s really a rough time.”

While constantly fighting the demon of a bad economy, Blair maintains an angelic outlook. “This is my place in the world – in life – to try to make a difference and to try to change this horrible situation,” she says. “I am doing everything I possibly can to raise the awareness of this situation. This is a problem that needs the help of anyone who can help. We have the same needs as every local shelter and rescue. We are always in need of blankets and food. For those who want to help us, or a shelter or organization in their local area, they can volunteer – give of their time. Others may have the wherewithal to donate money, or their services, or expertise, or creativity. Everyone who wants to do something can easily find a place where they can make a difference.”

When asked if her commitment to the welfare of animals means she will not be appearing on the screen anytime soon, Blair becomes coy. “Oh, you never know. I have a few things in the works that, if they come to fruition, will really surprise people. I do have some plans,” she says with a devilish little smile. “But you know what they say: Ya wanna make God laugh – tell him your plans.”

For more information on adoptions, or to donate to the Linda Blair WorldHeart Foundation, click on www.borninnocnet.net or www.lindablairworldheart.org