that poor poor woman.

This is such a terrible story. The writer did a good job describing the whole experience of these people; this was the first time I read about the room they were held in. What a truly horrific experience and a twisted human being.

OMG how horrible to read these details. I can't believe this "father" could have treated his daughter and their children this way.

I can't wait for him to go to prison. His "new friends" will treat him right.

Maybe a bit inappropriate this soon...but,

I bet there`s going to be a movie.

My questions are

1. No family member other than the father went down to the basement in 24 years? Even if it was kind of a "maze" to get to the right spot, the homeowners would know the structure of the house. And sure, there are places I don't go in my house very often, but I've never refrained from going to any spot for more than a few months, max (the spot being the attic). And even if I don't go there, someone else does.

2. Why the hell didn't they try to escape? Even if there was a threat of "poison gas" - you'd think they'd still make the effort. Personally, I think I would risk the "poison gas" to make an attempt to get out.. it's well worth the risk to get out off a s**thole like that. And, they said this was all figured out because the woman wanted to be a good mother and send her daughter to the hospital when she was sick. But what about her parenting duties say, all the rest of the time? I guess trapping your kid in a cellar their entire life is acceptable, but if he or she gets sick then it's not. I'd be okay with being sick as long as my entire f**king life wasn't ruined as these kids' were. And I'm 19... the same age as the two downstairs kids. It's weird to think about my entire life and all of that just replaced with images of a cellar--

It's easy to say that from a rational perspective. But nothing about what this girl went through was rational. I have no doubts that the mental trauma this girl has been going through for (how many damn years was it? 20?) has left her a few cookies short of a dozen. This girl wasn't in a position to be rational.

Very good article. This is such a sad story.

Yeah, but thats only after a long number of years. Don't you as soon as you get locked there you'd try to think of a way out? I mean say you got stuck in an elevator. You're not just like eh, let me wait it out for a few days. You'll wait a few minutes, max, but then try to press the emergency call button, etc. and eventually pry open the doors with your hands. I think when she first got in there she would still be in touch with the real world enough to start thinking of a plan to escape. I mean she ran away from home three times, why would she have the rationality to do that but not to try to escape from the cellar?

I'm sure she didn't just get put in there and give up. I mean, for the first few months, she was *leashed* in the cellar, as well as being locked up. And it sounds like the door was electronically locked so that she would have needed help from the outside. Also, this guy is a "tyrant" personality who ruled his household with an iron grip (this being why the mom never came downstairs), so when he told them he had a gas system rigged if they attempted escape, I'm sure he was believable.

"For Elisabeth there was no way out. Fritzl threatened that poisonous gas would be pumped in if they tried to overpower him."




"Bubby (played by Hope) is a 35-year-old man who has never set foot outside his mother's (actress Claire Benito) two-room slum. She kept him from the world outside, telling him that there is poisonous gas out there and without the gas mask he will instantly suffocate."

One of my FAVORITE films btw..

I;m just amazed at the fact that she had 7 kids.. all with no hospitalization and was still a ble to produce more after that.. Maybe i'm not up on the medical field but damn.. she's a trooper..

They did it throughout history.

yea but they at least had sunlight and maybe some stitches or something, lol I dunno- and I dont think he had much experience in the medical field prior to that.. just weird to me

He did give them vitomin D pills.. that count?