Ever had a friend approach you with a story that starts with “This happened to a friend of a friend of mine…?” What you’ve heard is probably an urban legend—the contemporary version of a folktale.
Supposedly true, these stories are often morbid, amusing, and cautionary. Such stories exist in every culture, kept alive by word-of-mouth and the internet.
What is an Urban Legend?
Urban legends (sometimes called contemporary legends, urban myths, or urban tales) are a type of folklore that takes place in urban and suburban settings. They’re often framed as true though the details of the story are almost always second-hand (from a friend of a friend, a cousin of mine, heard from a teacher, etc).
Urban legends are sensational by nature, attracting much attention and speculation from those who hear of them. As such, they usually involve mysterious phenomena, unexplained perils, and troubling events.
Because they get passed around so much, many of these stories are altered in the telling, often to make it local to the place they’re currently being told. Some are passed on with minor changes, while others often birth new stories due to being changed so much.
Examples of Urban Legends
Some urban legends are full-fledged stories, containing plots and characters. Others are more generic, with core details that get modified from one telling to another.
Here are some of the most popular urban legends currently making the rounds. You’re probably familiar with most of these, albeit with slight differences.
1. Alexandria’s Genesis
Alexandria’s Genesis is a supposedly rare genetic mutation that turns people into perfect human beings. Those who have these are said to have purple eyes, shimmering pale skin, and well-proportioned bodies. They also don’t gain weight, don’t experience menstruation but are still fertile, produce little to no bodily waste, and can live over 100 years old.
2. Bloody Mary
This is perhaps the most famous urban legend. You know how it goes: go to a mirror, say the name “Bloody Mary” a specific number of times, and something will appear in the mirror.
A few versions of the tale say you’ll see a glimpse of your future husband or a skull if you were going to die before marriage. But the most popular version talks about a malevolent spirit or witch covered in blood who will either scream, curse, strangle, steal the soul of, or scratch the eyes of the person who summoned it.
3. The Hook
Most versions of this start the same way: a couple is in a car listening to the radio when the announcer suddenly informs them about an escaped lunatic from a nearby institute. Depending on which version you know, the second part can simply be suspenseful or gory.
Sometimes the couple will go home only to find a hook embedded in their car. Other times they’ll spot a figure watching them nearby. The man goes to confront the figure (who disappears) and returns to find his lover butchered with a hook. Or the man ends up hanging on top of the car, his fingernails scraping against its roof.
4. The Vanishing Hitchhiker
It’s simple. While driving a car, someone picks up a passenger. Everything’s normal until poof! They vanish from the car without it ever having stopped.
Some versions involve a woman in white, who drivers encounter at night. Those who pick her up either die gruesome deaths or get the biggest scare of their lives.
5. Bizzare Food
Multiple urban legends include food, especially those from fast food establishments. Some of these are:
- McDonald’s uses earthworms in their burgers.
- Filipino steamed dumplings are filled with cat meat.
- Combining pop rocks and soda will make your mouth explode.
- KFC uses mutant chickens.
- Chicken nuggets are made of “pink goop”.
- Don’t swallow watermelon seeds or they’ll grow in your stomach.
- Gum stays in your stomach for seven years.
- Halloween candy is laced with drugs or sharp objects.
- Carrots help with night vision.
6. Animal Man
Maryland has an urban legend about a half-man, half-goat creature that murders people with an ax. Some versions say that Goatman was once a local scientist who mutated because of a failed goat experiment. He’s often credited for canine deaths, attacking lovers, and chasing cars.
The Mothman is another such hybrid who haunts parts of West Virginia. It is said to be a bipedal humanoid with mothlike features and glowing eyes. Reports talk about the creature lurking outside homes, chasing cars, and stealing dogs.
7. The Call is Coming From Inside the House
The setup: It’s late at night and a teenage babysitter is watching tv after putting the kids to sleep upstairs. The phone rings and the unknown caller tells her to “check the kids.” She dismisses the call as a prank, but the caller dials back numerous times.
Frightened, she calls the police, who trace the call. After the stranger calls again, the police phone back and tell her to leave the house immediately. It turns out, the calls were coming from inside the house, with the stranger waiting upstairs after having already killed the children.
Urban Legends on Screen and Paper
A lot of urban legends have served as the basis of some books, movies, and series, especially in the horror and mystery genres. Here are just a few examples.
1. When A Stranger Calls
Jill Johnson arrives at a luxurious home, ready for what she expects to be an ordinary babysitting job. The children are now asleep, and Jill settles in for the night. Then the phone rings…
At first, she thought it was a prank. But with every other call, the voice becomes more frightening. Soon, the ringing of the phone fills up the night, turning Jill’s routine job into a nightmare.
2. Supernatural
Supernatural has tackled many urban legends in its episodes, including Bloody Mary (Season 1, Episode 5), the Hook (Season 1, Episode 7), Devil in the Crossroads (Season 2, Episode 8), and the Woman in White (Season 1, 14-15).
3. The Ring
Rachel Keller, a journalist, is asked to investigate her niece’s death. What she discovers is a series of bizarre accidents revolving around a mysterious tape.
Everyone who has watched the tape has died in exactly seven days. Now that Rachel knows its contents, she must also find a way to save herself from an unstoppable force out for vengeance.
4. Soylent Green
Overpopulation, pollution, and global warming have caused severe shortages in water, food, and shelter. As the gap between the rich and poor widens, the world begins to look for necessary alternatives.
The answer? Soylent Green. But while more flavorful and nutritious than other products, its main ingredient breaks one of humanity’s oldest taboos—eating other people.
5. Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz
Moshing together urban legends with other types of folklore, this collection of horror stories for children features many familiar tales. Some of them involve a dress doused in poison, Bloody Mary, dolls coming to life, and a spider bite that swells and releases thousands of spiders.
6. Unwind by Neil Shusterman
Organ harvesting is a staple element in urban legends. From waking up with your kidney gone to full-on body horror, it’s something that many of these tales have explored.
Here, a world gone mad from war has decided on taking its 13-18 year-olds to harvest camps. There, their bodies are dissected and their body parts are stored for later use.
The Lure of Urban Myths
People love urban legends, even if they don’t believe them. They’re food for thoughts for some people and opportunities to gossip for others.
They’re not just sources of entertainment though. Since urban legends are adjusted to their audience, they reflect certain characteristics of society, whether prejudices, collective anxieties, or morals.
This is why a lot of urban legends also serve as cautionary or morality tales. Often, the victims of their horror or humor are those who stray from certain standards and end up hurt, dead, or in trouble. Strong emotions such as shock, disgust, and surprise are used to further drive home a message.
What’s your favorite urban legend? Share it in the comments below!
If you enjoyed this post, then you might also like:
- What Is a Tall Tale? Origins and Examples
- Dark Fairy Tales: The Disturbing Stories Behind Your Childhood Favorites
- 12 Folk Horror Films That Will Make You Shudder
Cole is a blog writer and aspiring novelist. He has a degree in Communications and is an advocate of media and information literacy and responsible media practices. Aside from his interest in technology, crafts, and food, he’s also your typical science fiction and fantasy junkie, spending most of his free time reading through an ever-growing to-be-read list. It’s either that or procrastinating over actually writing his book. Wish him luck!
