First I will say that I love this segment - I think it has the most beautiful cinematography of any episode. However some things do not add up.

Georgia says that Sandra Jean Jenkins was born in 1895. The mysterious family photo was dated 1908. That would make the girl in the photo 13 years old. But the girl in the photo has her hair up. Around the turn of the century, girls didn't start wearing their hair up until they were 17. That means one of three things: 1) the date on the photo was wrong; 2) the girl broke tradition and wore her hair up earlier than usual; 3) Or Georgia was wrong about the birth date.

Then there is the date on the headstone. Sandra Jean's supposed grandmother, Mary Bevan Greene, was born in 1862. If Sandra Jean was born in 1895, that means Mary Bevan Greene became a grandmother at age 33. Anything is possible, but it seems unlikely that Sandra's grandmother and mother each had babies at around 16 and a half, but Sandra gets pregnant at around 18 and kills herself.

What does everyone think about this?

I think you make some excellent points but, then again, I consider that whole segment to have been pure hooey that the UM producers should have given Georgia,etc. the bum rush when initially pitched. :rolleyes:

First I will say that I love this segment - I think it has the most beautiful cinematography of any episode. However some things do not add up.

Georgia says that Sandra Jean Jenkins was born in 1895. The mysterious family photo was dated 1908. That would make the girl in the photo 13 years old. But the girl in the photo has her hair up. Around the turn of the century, girls didn't start wearing their hair up until they were 17. That means one of three things: 1) the date on the photo was wrong; 2) the girl broke tradition and wore her hair up earlier than usual; 3) Or Georgia was wrong about the birth date.

Then there is the date on the headstone. Sandra Jean's supposed grandmother, Mary Bevan Greene, was born in 1862. If Sandra Jean was born in 1895, that means Mary Bevan Greene became a grandmother at age 33. Anything is possible, but it seems unlikely that Sandra's grandmother and mother each had babies at around 16 and a half, but Sandra gets pregnant at around 18 and kills herself.

What does everyone think about this?

Well, pregnant and married at 16 would not have been a big deal. Pregnant at 18 and UNmarried would have been. Also, it is my understanding that a woman started wearing her hair up when she "debuted", basically when she started to look for a spouse, which could have been younger than 17, depending on where a girl lived, her maturity and possibly her socio-economic status.

That being said, I think the whole segment was hogwash. :)

As you aptly say, a load of hooey hogwash beautifully filmed.

What got me is Georgia describes repeatedly dreaming of, in the person of Sandra, visiting her grandmother's grave as a little girl. If you look at the date on the grave, obviously the grandmother died years after Sandra did.

Is there any independent confirmation on how Sandra actually died and whether Tommy Hix/Hicks ever even existed, or is it all invented?

As you aptly say, a load of hooey hogwash beautifully filmed.

What got me is Georgia describes repeatedly dreaming of, in the person of Sandra, visiting her grandmother's grave as a little girl. If you look at the date on the grave, obviously the grandmother died years after Sandra did.

Is there any independent confirmation on how Sandra actually died and whether Tommy Hix/Hicks ever even existed, or is it all invented?

Not only is there no proof of how Sandra died, but there's no proof she existed! Or Tommy. The segment claims this is because record keeping back in the day was hit or miss. How convenient!

Not only is there no proof of how Sandra died, but there's no proof she existed! Or Tommy. The segment claims this is because record keeping back in the day was hit or miss. How convenient!

So a family has a reunion and whoever IDs the group picture either skips or doesn't know a name. Years later a stranger finds the picture and spins a story to make the family look bad to draw attention to herself. NICE. :mad:

She also claims that she talked to the family about the photo, and they said "I don't know that girl's name, but she drowned out back."

Why weren't these people interviewed in the segment?

She also claims that she talked to the family about the photo, and they said "I don't know that girl's name, but she drowned out back."

Why weren't these people interviewed in the segment?

Even if they had been, family stories are notoriously inaccurate as I have learned through several years of amateur family research. Usually there's a grain of truth in the story, but like most oral tradition (or a good game of telephone) the story gets distorted as it comes through the years.

As for sketchy recording keeping, unless there was a fire that destroyed records, there should be birth, death and possibly even baptismal records (depending on their faith, obviously) for people at that time. There could even be an obituary in the newspaper archives and possibly mentions in the paper for community activities. I've done research on people in small towns during this time period. All of these things existed and I was not researching a family of much means.

Not only is there no proof of how Sandra died, but there's no proof she existed! Or Tommy. The segment claims this is because record keeping back in the day was hit or miss. How convenient!

And along with what Necco said, what about census records? In the 1700s and 1800s, the census records were often detailed enough to list all household members (and before it was abolished) the number of slaves owned, if the homeowner happened to own slaves.

I've read old census records that are very detailed and some that are informal. Some just count the population by stating, "Mr. John Smith and wife, 12 children."

So we are to believe that only 100 years ago, all records, census, real estate ownership, tax records, employment records, death certificates, birth certificates (and these were even issued when babies were born at home, which happened a lot back then), are all lost?

I've only heard of all such records being lost when fires or floods in the old records storage rooms caused them to be destroyed.

I can't believe how people try to pawn these frauds on us, thinking that we're too stupid to do a little research to find the truth, or even understand how the processes work.

BTW, the genealogical society of Utah has pedigrees on just about everyone. Back in 1965, my grandma got tons of them on several of her ancestors, and all of the info was correct. IMO, those folks will know if these "dream people" ever existed.

I think it has the most beautiful cinematography of any episode.

I fully agree. I felt the segment had a certain artistic beauty that later episodes seem to lack. The surreal images are enhanced by the eerie score. This most definitely was one of UM's greatest efforts in creating a mood.

Does anyone know if Georgia Rudolph gave any additional interviews or television appearances? There's seems to be limited information on the web.

Even if they had been, family stories are notoriously inaccurate as I have learned through several years of amateur family research. Usually there's a grain of truth in the story, but like most oral tradition (or a good game of telephone) the story gets distorted as it comes through the years.

As for sketchy recording keeping, unless there was a fire that destroyed records, there should be birth, death and possibly even baptismal records (depending on their faith, obviously) for people at that time. There could even be an obituary in the newspaper archives and possibly mentions in the paper for community activities. I've done research on people in small towns during this time period. All of these things existed and I was not researching a family of much means.

If there was a fire that destroyed records, then wouldnt there be a record of the fire?

Also, even if there were no birth records, certainly there would be a news story about a drowning. That seems like something big for a small town.

Also, even if there were no birth records, certainly there would be a news story about a drowning. That seems like something big for a small town.

Unless the family were so prominent and influential as to be able to suppress the details, you'd think so. In some cases, news stories of gruesome events were a lot more graphic and detailed back then than often happens today.

Since I posted this on two other threads dealing with Georgia Rudolph, it may as well go here, too. http://www.starlightinnerprizes.com/Rudolph-Medical.htm It's a website explaining how she is a 100% phony fraud!

Count me in as someone who loves this segment because of the cinematography. The music was also really great. The subject matter itself was a tad unbelievable, and I could have done without seeing Rudolph in her nightgown, but I find myself watching this segment every now and again. It's very well done.

I did a search, and Rudolph is also apparently now a psychic in addition to being reincarnated. She was a guest on Geraldo's show years ago and was a star attraction at a metaphysical bookstore in 2004 in California. I'm really sorry I missed that because for only $80 I could have had an hourlong psychic reading from her.

Since I posted this on two other threads dealing with Georgia Rudolph, it may as well go here, too. http://www.starlightinnerprizes.com/Rudolph-Medical.htm It's a website explaining how she is a 100% phony fraud!

What an interesting life she's leading this time. A reincarnated psychic who can diagnose disease in people from their auras is certainly better than what she went through in her last life that was chronicled on "Unsolved Mysteries" as Sandra Jean Jenkins. I don't see how she'll top all this in her next life. I'm sure Ms. Rudolph has utilized her psychic powers to see what her next life has in store for her, however.

I want to believe that this is true, just because it's such a beautiful story. But unfortunately there's a such thing as common sense.

Great story, up to a point, with a few holes in it.

Although I still don't believe in reincarnation, I'm tempted to take the case of a guy who had the memories of a WWII soldier, Eddie somebody, who had a friend named Walter Pilgram? much more seriously.

Did you guys also hear about the guy from Florida who was Tommy Hicks?? Yeah, this story gets better and better. Apparently this guy had been having visions of Tommy Hicks and he was watching UM the night the Georgia Rudolph story aired and he couldn't believe it.
He was put under hypnosis by Rudolph's shrink and told exactly the same story as Rudolph.

Anyway, this story is too unbelievable. I think she's a very smart lady. That's what I think. And she knows how to capitalize.

Yeah, they showed the supposed Tommy once and then dropped the story with no followup, but continued to rerun the original segment.

IMO, Georgia Rudolph is like all the other new-age psychic "metaphysists" - at best, delusional and at worst, con artists.

I'm going to re-watch this segment and see what information, if any, I can find on "Sandra." The claims that records from OH in the late 19th-early 20th century don't exist just is false, period. Certainly, there were omissions, but there are copious historical records if you know where to find them (a task made much easier today with record digitization).

While belief in reincarnation is essentially a matter of faith, the segment presents enough verifiable facts that can be shown to be true or untrue. A couple of basic facts/assumptions:

1. If records, etc. are found substantiating Rudolph’s story, it doesn’t really prove it one way or the other since very little can’t be discovered from historical records, old newspapers, etc.

2. The opposite, however, is not the case. If no records can be found substantiating her story, it must be a fatal flaw. While, of course, records are not perfect, only those totally ignorant of American history and genealogy can make the absurd claims that all records are “destroyed” or “covered-up.” For instance, state-wide vital records begin in Ohio in 1867, so the births, marriages, and deaths of at least some of the individuals named should be easily discoverable. The census began in 1790 and with the exception of the 1890 census and a few states in the earlier years, fully complete. Sure, not every person and not every thing was recorded, but most every American family can be traced back, albeit with different levels of ease and completion.

It must be stated that if Rudolph is able (through hypnosis) to give detailed accounts of Sandra Jean’s life, she certainly should be able to give many specific details – birthdates, names, places, etc. that should be easily verifiable. It doesn’t appear from the segment, at least, that this kind of questioning was done (which must be regarded as suspect, since if the story is true, you’d think those promoting it would want it to be verified). Nonetheless, certain information is presented as facts: her name was Sandra Jean JENKINS. She lived in Newport, Washington Co. OH. Her grandmother was Mary Bevan GREENE, lived 1862 to 1939. Her grandfather was James R. GREENE, lived 1857 to 1947. The GREENE family was prosperous. Sandra Jean was engaged to Tommy HICKS, son of Tom and Jenny HICKS, who also lived in Newport. Tommy died in a riverboat accident in 1914. Sandra Jean committed suicide shortly thereafter. Her exact age was never stated, but she and Tommy were both in their late teens.

Right off the bat, certain things just don’t seem to add up. The riverboat culture and atmosphere Rudolph described is anachronistic. By the “turn of the century” Marietta was an industrial boomtown, with oil, iron mills, and railroads the main industries. It likely would have been dirty, polluted, and hectic, not the idealized image presented in the segment. Tommy’s “death” would have clearly made the newspapers. A well-to-do family such as the GREENEs would be much more likely to leave records. Lastly, as pointed out by others, the dates don’t make sense – it’s hard to believe Mary Bevan GREENE was a grandmother in her early 30s (and she certainly wouldn’t be the “older lady” described by Rudolph.

So, to the records. Since Sandra and Tommy both died in 1914, they’d last be in the 1910 census, aged in their early teens, and living in Newport.

There is no JENKINS family living in 1910 Newport. In fact, there is no Sandra Jean JENKINS enumerated anywhere in the United States, in any census, that even remotely matches the information provided.

There is no Tommy HICKS in the 1910 Census for Newport. In fact, there is no HICKS family in Newport, ever. There is a HICKS family living in Marietta, however this family again does not remotely match the information provided.

This is all the more striking when we return to reality; specifically to the only person in Rudolph’s tale who certainly existed, “grandmother” Mary Bevan GREENE. In sharp contrast to the lack of records for “Sandra” and “Tommy,” Mary was quite easy to trace:

Mary BEVAN was born 14 August 1862 in Newport, Washington Co. OH. Her parents were John H. and Sarah A. (HINMAN) BEVAN. She married James R. GREENE, 30 December 1879, in Newport, Washington Co. OH. The couple had nine children – Olive (b. 1880), William (b. 1882), Myrtle (b. 1884), Glenna (b. 1887), Haskell (b. 22 August 1889), Maris (b. 1892), Howard (b. 1896), Luther (b. 1898), Lillian (b. 1900), and Estella (b. 1903), all born in Ohio, presumably in Newport. The family did not apparently own any paddleboats. James’s occupation in 1880 is given as “Huckster,” in 1900, he was an “oil pumper.” In 1910, the family was living in Texas! Specifically in Goodlett, Hardeman Co. where James was apparently trying his hand at farming. In 1920, they lived in Osage, Benton Co. AR, where James was still farming. I can’t find the family in the 1930 census. They could have come back to Ohio, where they have tombstones, however, this appears unlikely, as Mary died 27 March 1939 in Benton Co. AR (Centerton, according to one source).

No one with the name Sandra Jean or surname Jenkins ever appears living with this GREENE family and the fact that the family moved from Newport before 1910 puts Rudolph’s story seriously in doubt.

Just to play devil’s advocate, however, Mary’s oldest daughter, Olive, WAS, biologically, old enough to have a daughter born about the turn of the century. There is, however, nothing I could find indicating she had done so. In 1900, Olive (aged 20) was still unmarried, living at home with her parents in Newport, and working as a teacher. She was no longer with them in 1910 and a quick search did not find her enumerated as “Olive Greene,” so the presumption would be she got married between 1900 and 1910, although I cannot find a marriage record or any family history for her on-line.

From this brief exercise and based on the actual information I was able to find (and this was a couple of hours spent on a day off – I’m absolutely positive that someone really researching this family could flesh it out fairly quickly, especially since Mary has actual grandchildren living), I must conclude that the tales told by Rudolph regarding Sandra Jean JENKINS have no basis in reality.

The simplest way to prove Georgia Rudolph is a fraud is to acknowledge that there's no scientific proof of resurrection being possible. Unless that has changed since earlier today, then it's clear that she is, at the very least, mistaken about what she "remembers."

The simplest way to prove Georgia Rudolph is a fraud is to acknowledge that there's no scientific proof of resurrection being possible. Unless that has changed since earlier today, then it's clear that she is, at the very least, mistaken about what she "remembers."

There's no scientific proof of any religious belief or faith and little to no historic proof of most of them either; that doesn't make them fraudulent, per say, just more matters of faith.

To expose someone like Georgia Rudolph, however, you don't need to go there (especially since arguing on matters of faith is almost always a pointless task). The simple fact that the verifiable information she claims is false means she is false. Reincarnation may or may not be real, but that's not really the question that should be asked: Georgia Rudolph is not the reincarnation of Sandra Jean Jenkins because Sandra Jean Jenkins did not exist.

There is no JENKINS family living in 1910 Newport. In fact, there is no Sandra Jean JENKINS enumerated anywhere in the United States, in any census, that even remotely matches the information provided.

There is no Tommy HICKS in the 1910 Census for Newport. In fact, there is no HICKS family in Newport, ever. There is a HICKS family living in Marietta, however this family again does not remotely match the information provided.

NOT that I believe an iota of this story, but I'm curious if there might have been folks named 'Alexandra Jean Jenkins' and 'Thomas Hicks' during that time who simply went by their nicknames. I don't think it was common to name girls 'Sandra' as a formal name (nor to name boys 'Tommy') back then as it is today.

NOT that I believe an iota of this story, but I'm curious if there might have been folks named 'Alexandra Jean Jenkins' and 'Thomas Hicks' during that time who simply went by their nicknames. I don't think it was common to name girls 'Sandra' as a formal name (nor to name boys 'Tommy') back then as it is today.

There were no JENKINS or HICKS living in Newport (including spelling variations), so while certainly possible in theory, it is not the case.

Thanks for taking the time and trouble to learn all this.

I fully agree. There is no way to "prove" reincarnation. You believe it, or you don't. For instance, I said I was willing to extend the benefit of the doubt to the young man claiming his fear of water originated from having died in WWII, or at least, somehow channeling the memories of someone who had. That person, though, at least existed. His relatives were found and verified the other man's story. Not so with Georgia Rudolph, whose story was completely false, and, it seems, deliberately invented.

for your information Georgia Rudolph is for real if it had not been for her my family would have never knew how my uncle died and who his killer was she help us and the law would not she is a great woman

for your information Georgia Rudolph is for real if it had not been for her my family would have never knew how my uncle died and who his killer was she help us and the law would not she is a great woman

It's too bad mrsallen doesn't give any names, dates or details about his uncle, or his killer. I've worked almost every homicide within a 500 mile radius of Marietta, Ohio for nearly 20 years now, and there is only one case in which Georgia Rudolph has been given glorifying credit for helping to solve. And that case, as with her claims of reincarnation, leaves many, many unanswered questions. Too many for me to rest comfortably with, so I have done considerable work and research on that supposedly solved case, and have shown the portions in which 'the truth' as told in a court room and on national tv could not possibly have been correct.
As far as our cops not helping people, that's not correct either. We have some great cops here in Washington County, Ohio, but you have to realize they can only work with actual evidence and information. If people refuse to get involved and take a chance, then no one can solve the case. Psychic information can only go so far ..... I know because I have pushed it to the limit. After that you must have circumstantial and incriminating evidence. Even then, it's never a guaranteed thing. It does not depend on our cops. It depends on our prosecuting attorneys, and therein lies the problem folks.

I watched this segment a few days ago and was really struck by the cinematography too. Just those scenes of the girl walking through the cemetary, riding through the snow, about to commit suicide in the lake, etc. etc. really captivated me. It was fantastic work.

TBH I really liked that segment and I thought her case was legit. I'm really surprised that all of you think she's a fake--what about that guy saying that she could not have described the ice cream shop with so much accuracy (the one in Ohio that had shut down years before she was born). And UM did say that a Sandra Jean Jenkins existed.

Well I found some proof that her grandmother existed, apparently Sandra Jenkins was from a rich family and her grandmotehr's family were notable Newport,Ohio residents.

http://www.newportohiohistory.com/subpage65.html

Her grandmother was Mary Bevan Greene and according to this photo ^ it was taken in 1939 and according to her gravemarker, she died in 1939. She's the old woman third from the left, bottom row. Actually, someone stated on the finda gravesite that Mary could have been her mother (Sandra's).

Find a grave for Sandra:
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=10305142

Those find a grave entries look really suspicious...it's as if someone just added them after watching the UM segment.

Yeah screw the find a grave sites they aren't legit with the exception of "her grandmother" because I found evidence that Mary Greene did exist and was a member of the newport, ohio community. However I did find something interesting in regards to the man who claimed to be the reincarnation of Tommy Hicks.

In an online document, (www.aeces.info/Top40/Cases_51-75/case60_strangers-lovers.pdf) the man said where he proposed to Sandra "was on the riverbed near Gordon greene's house". Gordon greene was a prominent member of the Newport, Ohio communtiy and ran the Greene line river steamboats along the Ohio River during this time period. One of his ships sank in 1918.

However I did find a geneology site that stated that Mary B. Greene had a daughetr who died in 1906 at the age of 14. If Mary is her grandmotehr, I can't seem to find a link to a Jenkins relative, but the online document states that possibly Sandra Jean Jenkins is a pseudonym for the actual identity of the girl. Sandra does not seem to be a very "Edwardian" (this time period) name to me to begin with.

here's info on Gordon green:
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~kycampbe/marygreene.htm

Yeah screw the find a grave sites they aren't legit with the exception of "her grandmother" because I found evidence that Mary Greene did exist and was a member of the newport, ohio community. However I did find something interesting in regards to the man who claimed to be the reincarnation of Tommy Hicks.

In an online document, (www.aeces.info/Top40/Cases_51-75/case60_strangers-lovers.pdf) the man said where he proposed to Sandra "was on the riverbed near Gordon greene's house". Gordon greene was a prominent member of the Newport, Ohio communtiy and ran the Greene line river steamboats along the Ohio River during this time period. One of his ships sank in 1918.

However I did find a geneology site that stated that Mary B. Greene had a daughetr who died in 1906 at the age of 14. If Mary is her grandmotehr, I can't seem to find a link to a Jenkins relative, but the online document states that possibly Sandra Jean Jenkins is a pseudonym for the actual identity of the girl. Sandra does not seem to be a very "Edwardian" (this time period) name to me to begin with.

here's info on Gordon green:
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~kycampbe/marygreene.htm

As I showed before, the Mary Bevan Greene specifically identified as Sandra's grandmother lived in Texas during the time of Rudolph's tale and died in Arkansas in 1939. Some of her actual grandchildren are almost certainly still living.

Georgia Rudolph's tale is destroyed by ACTUAL EVIDENCE. She is a fraud and a lier. It's that simple. If anyone can't believe that, I have a bridge to sell you... and I know a Nigerian prince who'd like to talk to you about his fortune.

Since I posted this on two other threads dealing with Georgia Rudolph, it may as well go here, too. http://www.starlightinnerprizes.com/Rudolph-Medical.htm It's a website explaining how she is a 100% phony fraud!

That website is weird (the rest of it, I mean, not the page about Rudolph). The author lists a bunch of cases and talks about her own dreams, I think. I couldn't really follow what she was trying to say. Is she indicating that ALL of the cases she mentions are somehow related?

ETA- this is the list of supposedly related cases she writes about. http://www.starlightinnerprizes.com/CaseDirectory.htm

IMO, Georgia Rudolph is like all the other new-age psychic "metaphysists" - at best, delusional and at worst, con artists.

I'm going to re-watch this segment and see what information, if any, I can find on "Sandra." The claims that records from OH in the late 19th-early 20th century don't exist just is false, period. Certainly, there were omissions, but there are copious historical records if you know where to find them (a task made much easier today with record digitization).

Great work with your other posts. It is dishonest of Unsolved Mysteries to not inform the viewer of Rudolph's psychic background. On another end, it is annoying when these people call themselves "metaphysicists." Metaphysics is a difficult, deep field in philosophy, and it is doubtful that these hucksters could grasp basic metaphysical problems much less the more advanced metaphysical problems of the twentieth-century. But I suppose if a term sounds high brow and mystical enough, some will cling to it and distort its meaning.

The find a grave for Sandra Jean does in fact list itself as folklore, there is that at least.

It appears Ms. Rudolph has slipped her earthly bonds.

http://www.newsandsentinel.com/page/content.detail/id/570785/Georgia-Ann-Smith-Rudolph.html

And her obituary says that she "loved practical jokes" and "telling a good story". Which I can certainly believe. However, I don't think the part that says her psychic abilities helped solve crimes the police were investigating is true.

Does anyone have this episode recorded? The whole story has interested me since I watched it in 1990. My ancestors are from Ohio...Cadiz, Harrison County. And the Cinematography of Turn of the Century Paddle-wheel boats in 1914 was just Stunning & Sumptuous. Even if it was not archival film as we know lol. It was just an Awesome episode just wish there was more veracity to it of course.

The segment was pretty well-acted and beautifully and lavishly filmed...the only reasons for showing it so often. The story was a lot of hooey. :p

This episode is one of my favorites too, though, I do not believe the story itself about Sandra Jenkins and Tom Hicks---but UM did a fine job with the production of this episode.

While an interesting story, when you start to pick it apart you see a number of things just do not really add up (ie Jenkin's grandmother having been born in 1862, making her a grandmother at 33, no record of the accidental death of Tommy Hicks, nor the death of Sandra).

I work on and off as an amateur genealogist and I'm familiar with Ohio records from the time period in question.

While it is true vital records are not always perfect--and yes, 100 years ago record keeping generally wasn't quite as thorough as today, I would find it highly improbable not just one, but two deaths of young people from prominent families in the area would escape note in local newspapers, nor be mentioned in city/county/state vital records (Ohio began keeping state-wide vitals in 1867).

The US Census of 1900 and 1910 have no listings for JENKINS or HICKS families living in Marietta, Ohio--or even within the US, that even come close to the information provided.

Sandra's grandmother, Mary Bevan GREENE, did in fact live in Marietta in 1900, but she and family removed from the state by 1910, first to Texas and then Arkansas, where she died in 1939 (her remains buried in Marietta).

Georgia Rudolph probably just picked her gravestone at random, with little attention to the obvious date conflicts and improbabilities with the story she proceeded to concoct. In short, Georgia Rudolph's story is a work of fiction.

I'm with everyone else that this story was baloney, but pretty to watch. What did everybody think about the update with the guy coming forward claiming he was the reincarnation of Tom Hicks?

I'm with everyone else that this story was baloney, but pretty to watch. What did everybody think about the update with the guy coming forward claiming he was the reincarnation of Tom Hicks?

At first I thought it was pretty weird, then since they never followed up I thought it must not have amounted to anything. I now think he was probably conspiring with Georgia Rudolph, since these characters were entirely invented and they can't have been communicating with the spirit of anyone, unless the spirit also enjoyed practical jokes and decided to prank them both by haunting them with false memories. The likeliest scenario was he was found to have a direct connection to her so his story was buried, but they had spent so much effort filming hers they continued to rerun it even though it made them look foolish for falling for such stuff.

I'm with everyone else that this story was baloney, but pretty to watch. What did everybody think about the update with the guy coming forward claiming he was the reincarnation of Tom Hicks?

Maybe he's just an attention-seeking nutbar. After all, people like that do exist.

I'm with everyone else that this story was baloney, but pretty to watch. What did everybody think about the update with the guy coming forward claiming he was the reincarnation of Tom Hicks?

I recall UM aired the updated version of this story with the supposedly reincarnated Tom Hicks, then decided to pull it.

From there on, when this episode was aired on reruns, it excluded the updated part of Tom Hicks alleged reincarnation. I don't know why it was decided to exclude that part from then on. I have never even seen the updated version of the episode.

I think whoever it was (forget his name) that claimed to be the reincarnation of Tommy Hicks was in collusion with Georgia Rudolph.

Yeah screw the find a grave sites they aren't legit with the exception of "her grandmother" because I found evidence that Mary Greene did exist and was a member of the newport, ohio community. However I did find something interesting in regards to the man who claimed to be the reincarnation of Tommy Hicks.

In an online document, (www.aeces.info/Top40/Cases_51-75/case60_strangers-lovers.pdf) the man said where he proposed to Sandra "was on the riverbed near Gordon greene's house". Gordon greene was a prominent member of the Newport, Ohio communtiy and ran the Greene line river steamboats along the Ohio River during this time period. One of his ships sank in 1918.

However I did find a geneology site that stated that Mary B. Greene had a daughetr who died in 1906 at the age of 14. If Mary is her grandmotehr, I can't seem to find a link to a Jenkins relative, but the online document states that possibly Sandra Jean Jenkins is a pseudonym for the actual identity of the girl. Sandra does not seem to be a very "Edwardian" (this time period) name to me to begin with.

here's info on Gordon green:
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~kycampbe/marygreene.htm

I was sent a link to this discussion today by my sister. We are great granddaughters of Mary Bevan Greene, and granddaughters to her daughter, Estelle Irby (Greene). I remember when this episode came out, though not all the details. I believe my grandmother was contacted about it and stunned to see her own mother's grave like that on TV.

I am writing here because another daughter who died at the age of 14 in 1906 was mentioned. I got chills when I read it. That would be Marie Greene. She is my great aunt and I was always told I resembled her and I had a lot in common with her. She wrote poetry and I used to just feel a strong connection to her. I have long wished to find anyone who may have information on her than what I do.

My grandmother never had any recollection of the names used in the story and I never did either, nor did my mom (they are both gone now).

What IS odd is there was (according to my grandma) always random whispers involving the death of Marie. Her official death was supposed to have been heart related and she suffered female issues. But there were always rumors involving a possible love and a potential drowning. My grandma was only a toddler at the time and never know a lot beyond that.

Anyway I wanted to chime in here, myself and my sister who sent this, being related to this.

This is just hilarious, reminds me of the Anna Anderson is Anastasia of Russia segment, about as hokey as well. Was this concocted just to launch her pyschic career one wonders, or was she just deluded? Was she in cahoots with the other guy who came forward, or was he just an attention seeker? 25 minutes on this-sweet lord.

I think the original airing of this story was on or around Valentine's Day. I have some advertising for it on an old tape. The voiceover guy in the commercial says something like "can long lost lovers from the past be reunited?" so they were definitely playing up the love affair portion in honor of Valentine's Day. Maybe that is what motivated the guy to come forward later and claim to be the reincarnation of Tommy Hicks, but IDK.

I like to imagine that Georgia Rudolph internally freaked out over this guy coming forward to claim he was Tommy Hicks' reincarnation because he was stealing the attention, but couldn't say anything without blowing her cover :lol:

Also, even if there were no birth records, certainly there would be a news story about a drowning. That seems like something big for a small town.

Not if she was pregnant and unmarried at the time. That makes her a non-person and her story would have been hushed up.

In her dream, It is a young girl visiting the grave of Grandmother Greene. Greene did not die until 1939, when "Sandra Jenkins" would have been 44....not a young girl

The real mystery is whether Georgia Rudolph actually believed her own nonsense or was she a huckster in search of fame?

I like to imagine that Georgia Rudolph internally freaked out over this guy coming forward to claim he was Tommy Hicks' reincarnation because he was stealing the attention, but couldn't say anything without blowing her cover :lol:


All of this.


But I don't care. It's one of my favourite segments and I'm selectively ignoring all logical evidence to the contrary on this one just because. :lol:

Just wanted to respond to some posts from years ago that said Georgia Rudolph had become a psychic. The Georgia Rudolph from the reincarnation story on Unsolved Mysteries is not the same Georgia Rudolph that made a living as a psychic. That woman’s name was Georgia Anne Rudolph.

Just wanted to respond to some posts from years ago that said Georgia Rudolph had become a psychic. The Georgia Rudolph from the reincarnation story on Unsolved Mysteries is not the same Georgia Rudolph that made a living as a psychic. That woman’s name was Georgia Anne Rudolph.

Sorry to bump a thread that has been inactive for awhile, but I just watched this segment again tonight and I wanted to respond specifically to this comment.

It's pretty clear that the Georgia Rudolph from the segment and the Georgia Rudolph psychic are the same person. An easy internet search reveals she grew up in Ohio which is how she knew what she knew, a fact that UM left out or wasn't aware of. She was a nurse who later moved to WV and had a Youtube channel. She was older, a little thinner, but the voice is the same. I'm not sure why she did what she did but I am with others who say that while this story is crap, it was filmed beautifully.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHiZZNeUXJk&list=PL99F311DCC886DF1C

She said that she tried to keep her abilities secret for most of her life. LOL.

See attached pictures of Georgia Ann Rudolph (psychic). Same person from our segment.

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/S/pv-target-images/e563ada06cd7a7df2b207085a33bb53d894f1d89347c1e9abcee6089d0c73750._V_SX268_.jpg

This is just hilarious, reminds me of the Anna Anderson is Anastasia of Russia segment, about as hokey as well. Was this concocted just to launch her pyschic career one wonders, or was she just deluded? Was she in cahoots with the other guy who came forward, or was he just an attention seeker? 25 minutes on this-sweet lord.

Did you ever see the show in search of ....with Leonard Nimoy. They did several hokey shows, the funniest/ hokey episode was on Anna Anderson, lol. A cranky old lady and gold digging husband. I enjoyed that show a
Precursor to Unsolved Mystery.

Did you ever see the show in search of ....with Leonard Nimoy. They did several hokey shows, the funniest/ hokey episode was on Anna Anderson, lol. A cranky old lady and gold digging husband. I enjoyed that show a
Precursor to Unsolved Mystery.

Actually, Anna Anderson was the gold digger. The husband was from one of his area's most prosperous families.

Sorry to bump a thread that has been inactive for awhile, but I just watched this segment again tonight and I wanted to respond specifically to this comment.

It's pretty clear that the Georgia Rudolph from the segment and the Georgia Rudolph psychic are the same person. An easy internet search reveals she grew up in Ohio which is how she knew what she knew, a fact that UM left out or wasn't aware of. She was a nurse who later moved to WV and had a Youtube channel. She was older, a little thinner, but the voice is the same. I'm not sure why she did what she did but I am with others who say that while this story is crap, it was filmed beautifully.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHiZZNeUXJk&list=PL99F311DCC886DF1C

She said that she tried to keep her abilities secret for most of her life. LOL.

See attached pictures of Georgia Ann Rudolph (psychic). Same person from our segment.

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/S/pv-target-images/e563ada06cd7a7df2b207085a33bb53d894f1d89347c1e9abcee6089d0c73750._V_SX268_.jpg

She's certainly gotten a lot of mileage out of those circa 1975 glasses!

I'm the great granddaughter of the Greenes she claims as her grandparents. I posted my comments above in 2017. I guess nobody reads comments anymore before commenting. It's a shame because crazy as it all may sound and be, this is my family. My grandma watched this episode having NO idea she would see her parents' grave in it.

My sister found this in my search for more information on Marie Greene who died at age 14, my grandma "Estelle Greene's" older sister. Her death was said to be heart or female related (somewhere in storage I have her death memorial, but it's in another state), but there were always whispers about a secret lover and a drowning, long before this story came up.

The name is all wrong, but it IS pretty odd that the story could be similar to that of my great aunt.

I'm the great granddaughter of the Greenes she claims as her grandparents. I posted my comments above in 2017. I guess nobody reads comments anymore before commenting. It's a shame because crazy as it all may sound and be, this is my family. My grandma watched this episode having NO idea she would see her parents' grave in it.

My sister found this in my search for more information on Marie Greene who died at age 14, my grandma "Estelle Greene's" older sister. Her death was said to be heart or female related (somewhere in storage I have her death memorial, but it's in another state), but there were always whispers about a secret lover and a drowning, long before this story came up.

The name is all wrong, but it IS pretty odd that the story could be similar to that of my great aunt.

Thanks for coming forward and providing us with some insight into the family history that provides the backdrop to this case. It must be strange to have had your family history played out in the spotlight like that, for your grandmother to have watched UM and suddenly find that your family and its history to be talked about in this context

I still don't quite understand the part about how Mary Greene was a grandmother at such a young age. It was one of the things that struck me when I first saw Georgia Rudolph visit and locate the grave in this segment -the age difference between Mary Greene and her alleged granddaughter seemed to be too narrow. I seem to remember either freezing or rewinding that particular shot of the gravestone to make sure I was reading the year of her birth and death properly. And, yes, I did also wonder why Georgia Rudolph would have memories of her alleged past incarnation visiting her grandmother's grave, when the grandmother died years after her past incarnation was supposed to have. It all didn't make sense to me

I read in another thread in here that Georgia Rudolph was actually born in Ohio. Perhaps she knew someone in her town (a family friend, the family of a school acquaintance or something like that) who had known the Greene family and was aware of the gossip and speculation over the death of Marie Greene and that's how she came up with the story around it. Or perhaps she just became entranced with the story of this young woman and got so caught up in the fantasy that she convinced herself she had been this young woman in her past life. (by the way, if it's true that she initially came from Ohio and therefore had a connection with the state in which this all occurred, UM should have disclosed this -I'm sure they knew)

I am a spiritual person and am open to the idea of reincarnations (and have had my own experiences with strange dreams, although not of past lives) but, the more I hear about the background and context of this case, the more sceptical I am of its authenticity. I do agree about the beautiful cinematography for this segment, though. UM did a great job on that

Here is a great article from a disillusioned viewer. https://medium.com/write-mother-thrive/i-wanted-to-believe-the-hoax-as-a-child-now-im-not-so-sure-afc79e683181

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/186414311/sandra-jean-jenkins?shem=sswnst

Her "therapist" was full of it. Clearly. She was full of it. Clearly. Watch/read some James Randi. This entire "mystery" is 250% crap.

Stupid attention whore in need of real therapy, but she found her match in the quack she saw.

TOMMY

I love that whoever posted the photo and info for Sandra Jean Jenkins took time to troll to this degree, or really bought the entire thing hook, line and sinker.

I still don't quite understand the part about how Mary Greene was a grandmother at such a young age. It was one of the things that struck me when I first saw Georgia Rudolph visit and locate the grave in this segment -the age difference between Mary Greene and her alleged granddaughter seemed to be too narrow. I seem to remember either freezing or rewinding that particular shot of the gravestone to make sure I was reading the year of her birth and death properly. And, yes, I did also wonder why Georgia Rudolph would have memories of her alleged past incarnation visiting her grandmother's grave, when the grandmother died years after her past incarnation was supposed to have. It all didn't make sense to me

I read in another thread in here that Georgia Rudolph was actually born in Ohio. Perhaps she knew someone in her town (a family friend, the family of a school acquaintance or something like that) who had known the Greene family and was aware of the gossip and speculation over the death of Marie Greene and that's how she came up with the story around it. Or perhaps she just became entranced with the story of this young woman and got so caught up in the fantasy that she convinced herself she had been this young woman in her past life. (by the way, if it's true that she initially came from Ohio and therefore had a connection with the state in which this all occurred, UM should have disclosed this -I'm sure they knew)

I am a spiritual person and am open to the idea of reincarnations (and have had my own experiences with strange dreams, although not of past lives) but, the more I hear about the background and context of this case, the more sceptical I am of its authenticity. I do agree about the beautiful cinematography for this segment, though. UM did a great job on that

I did the same thing--taped it and froze the tape to read the gravestone--and wondered the same thing about the young girl visiting the grave of someone who hadn't died yet. I did read on some website that Georgia Rudolph concocted the story while staying with a friend in Ohio and I may have posted a link to that website on a thread about her here.

Even if they had been, family stories are notoriously inaccurate as I have learned through several years of amateur family research. Usually there's a grain of truth in the story, but like most oral tradition (or a good game of telephone) the story gets distorted as it comes through the years.

As for sketchy recording keeping, unless there was a fire that destroyed records, there should be birth, death and possibly even baptismal records (depending on their faith, obviously) for people at that time. There could even be an obituary in the newspaper archives and possibly mentions in the paper for community activities. I've done research on people in small towns during this time period. All of these things existed and I was not researching a family of much means.

This is very old but I feel compelled to reply because of a funny thing I came across in my own research of my family.

When I was researching my mom's family, I was able to find newspaper articles that mentioned all of her siblings. But for some reason, my mom was never mentioned. There was a birth announcement for all of her siblings and other articles that mention them. But my mom was nowhere to be found. It's like she didn't exist.

Now, my mom bears a striking resemblance to her parents so she was born to them so this isn't a secret adoption story. I'm not sure why her birth wasn't announced, especially since her older and younger siblings were in the paper. I'm also not sure why she doesn't appear in other articles.

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/186414311/sandra-jean-jenkins?shem=sswnst

There's a lively debate going on in the "Flowers" section:
"RIP Sandra I know you were very much real"
vs.
"You make a great woman, RIP even though you're a work of fiction"

I just rewatched the segment and reread this thread and some things stood out to me:

1. Unsolved Mysteries DID mention that she was born in Columbus, Ohio but then said she moved around before ending up in Macon, Georgia.

2. Georgia Rudolph died in Parkersburg, West Virginia, which is right across the Ohio River from Marietta, Ohio. She seemingly moved to the area at some point after the segment aired.

And more importantly....

3. "Sandra Jean" is so obviously not an actual name of someone who lived at the turn of the century that I am amazed anyone bought this BS. Sandra was a relatively uncommon name at the time and it actually peaked in popularity around the time Georgia was born in the late 1940s. The addition of the middle name "Jean" dates it pretty well to someone who would have been a twenty something in the late 60s - 70s. It's such a time period name for Georgia's youth that it doesn't pass the smell test. If you're going to make up a fake person from the 1910s, do some VERY basic research. If your dreams tell you that a girl alive in 1914 has the same name as someone who could be found on a disco dance floor then your dream is obviously BS.

By far my least favorite segment as a kid. I haven't even watched it in years. I doubt it has aged very well. I hated all the reincarnation stories. Including that nutty broad who thought she remembered Pearl Harbor. Just attention seeking people who waste everyone's time.

By far my least favorite segment as a kid. I haven't even watched it in years. I doubt it has aged very well. I hated all the reincarnation stories. Including that nutty broad who thought she remembered Pearl Harbor. Just attention seeking people who waste everyone's time.

That whole segment was a waste of good cinematography. The period shots were really well done, it's just unfortunate that it was done in service to complete BS.

I just don't buy it seems A woman wanted attention and made up a fake story to get on national television.