The document discusses the origins of the fictional character Slender Man. It explains that in 2009, a Photoshop contest on an online forum called Something Awful led to the creation of two black and white photographs depicting a mysterious, tall figure referred to as Slender Man stalking and abducting children. The idea for Slender Man was likely also inspired by villains from amateur adventure games from the early 2000s that depicted similarly tall, faceless men. The name and backstory have since been expanded upon in various online stories and games.

1. Research Into Online
Sensation: Slender man

2. Where did Slender man come
from?
• On June 8th, 2009, a “’paranormal pictures” Photoshop
contest was launched on the SomethingAwful Forums. The
contest required participants to turn ordinary photographs into
creepy-looking images through digital manipulation and then
pass them on as authentic photographs on a number of
paranormal forums. Something Awful users soon began
sharing their faux-paranormal creations with layered images
of ghosts and other anomalies, usually accompanied by a
fabricated witness account to make them more convincing.
On June 10th, SA user Victor Surge posted two black and
white photographs of unnamed children with a short
description of “Slender Man” as a mysterious creature who
stalked and abducted children. Slender man appeared In
each missing child’s most recent photo before the
disappearance's

3. History – How was the idea
•
created?
The creation of “Slender Man” may have been also inspired by an ongoing series of amateur adventure games
titled “Chzo Mythos”. In the games, one of the main villains is called “Cabadath” and is sometimes referred to as
“Tall Man.” Making his first in-game appearance in Trilby’s Notes, the character was portrayed in the third
installment as a tall, thin man dressed in a long, black, high-collared coat with tails that reach to the floor and
having a blank face. Throughout the adventures, the Tall Man can be seen stalking and trying to kill the main
character.
ALSO:
• DerGroßmann is german for “The Great Man” and is often translated into The Tall Man. It is rumored to be a
German folklore concerning a tall boogeyman existing since the 16th century, which was introduced to the mythos
as an “In Game” point of origin for the creature. It was first first used in the Slender Man web series Tribe Twelve
and has then been reused in many creepy creations. Other recurring names are Schwarzwald (“The Black forest”),
an actual place in Germany where the creature is said to have first appeared.

4. Permission from Victor Surge (The
creator of slender)