The Midnight Club on Netflix includes eight principal actors, one of which is the audience’s persona, Ilonka. The story starts when Ilonka getting diagnosed with cancer in the thyroid. When the doctors who prescribe conventional treatments give up, Ilonka takes to the internet to search for an answer. She finds out about the existence of Brightcliffe Hospice and the way one resident, Julia Jeyne, apparently had a complete recovery. Ilonka convinces her foster father to allow her in hopes of the same outcome. The sprawling land in which Brightcliffe is situated is a landmark. The 1940s saw it was home to a cult called Paragon. If you’re wondering if Paragon is an actual cult, we’ve got the answer. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Is Paragon a Real Cult?
“The Midnight Club’ is based on the name book published in the Year 1994 written by Christopher Pike. We first discover the history of Paragon by reading Ilonka’s account of Brightcliffe. Mark Nurse Practitioner, is describing while welcoming Ilonka and her foster dad into the house upon his arrival. The home was built in 1901 by the logging industrialist Stanley Oscar Freelon and his wife, Vera. In the depression Era, it was used as an interim house. Paragon purchased the property following that.
The show Paragon was established in 1931 by Regina Ballard, a woman who lost her husband to pneumonia and their son to polio. The show’s founder, Regina Ballard, created Paragon to promote a healthy lifestyle concept. As time went on, the idea became different. Regina was greatly influenced by her ancestors from the Greek religion and began to worship the Five Sisters of Healing: Panacea Hygeia, Iaso, Aglaea and Aceso. At some point, Regina started to use the name of the goddess of the past as an alternative name. Four additional women played the role of the other four goddesses.
Under Regina’s guidance, Paragon delved deep into the Greek religion, even going through the process of making ritual sacrifices. Regina’s child, Athena, became increasingly concerned over her mother’s conduct. One night, she took the other children away from home and called the police. But authorities discovered all adult cult members killed, except for Regina herself. Regina was then taken to a mental health centre. A few years later, Julia sought Regina out to try and cure her fatal illness.
Any real-world cults don’t inspire Paragon. However, as the show demonstrates, there were quite a few during the 1940s and 1930s, such as the I AM Sect, Silver Legion, and the Psychiana Movement. But, the Silver Legion was primarily a Nazi-sympathizing and fascist-inspired operation in America. Interestingly, the people who founded the I AM Sect were mining engineer Guy W. Ballard and his wife, Edna.
What Is the Hourglass Sign?
For people who were part of the Paragon, the hourglass symbol was a symbol of the time. The Paragon model of an hourglass is notably different from the iconography traditionally associated with the instrument, which is often a symbol of death. The top of the Paragon hourglass was blacked out to indicate that the sand was falling from the top part. The experts believed that several times could turn the hourglass.
This could mean it is possible that Regina, as well as her followers, believed they could reverse time and heal any disease. They adorned their entire Brghtcliffe property and their own by using their Paragon hourglass. In one of the last scenes of the season, we see the hourglass image in the neck of Dr Stanton’s neck. It suggests that she is nothing less than Athena.