Cases Proposed by: Walter Semkiw, MD
Cases Affirmed through: Ahtun Re in a Ryerson-Semkiw Session
Article by: Walter Semkiw, MD
From Born Again International Edition, by Walter Semkiw, MD
Spirit Being Ahtun Re Won’t Reveal Contemporary Identities of Laurel & Hardy
I have worked with trance medium Kevin Ryerson, who has been made famous through his collaboration with Shirley MacLaine, since 2001. Since that time, a spirit being that Kevin channels named Ahtun Re has demonstrated to me that he has the ability to make past life matches with a high degree of accuracy. Cases that dramatically demonstrate Ahtun Re’s abilities can be reviewed at:
Core Reincarnation Cases Derived through Ahtun Re, Kevin Ryerson and Walter Semkiw, MD
A set of cases which dramatically demonstrate Ahtun Re’s ability to make valid past life matches involves the reincarnation cases of Laurel & Hardy. After working with Kevin Ryerson for a period of a few months in late 2001 and early 2002 and realizing that Ahtun Re was able to make what appeared to be accurate past life matches, I began asking about well-known people across time. For contemporary figures I asked about past lives, for historical figures, I inquired whether they had reincarnated in contemporary times.
Starting in 2003, I asked Ahtun Re whether Laurel and Hardy had reincarnated in contemporary times. Ahtun Re told me that they had, but he would not reveal to me who they were, which peeved me. When I inquired why he could not divulge their identities to me, Ahtun Re simply replied, “We cannot tell you at this time.”
Over the next year, I tried to circumvent his decree by hypothesizing matches. I would inquire whether various slim contemporary comedians may be the reincarnation of Stan Laurel and whether various chubby comedians may be Oliver Hardy reincarnated. To all my hypothesized matches, Ahtun Re would tell me that the proposed match was incorrect, but he still refused to tell me who Laurel and Hardy were in contemporary times. Having exhausted all the possibilities for matches that I could think of, I gave up and forgot about the issue for about a year.
Spirit Guide Ahtun Re does not Rubber Stamp Proposed Reincarnation Cases
At this juncture, I would like to point out that one of the reasons I have grown to trust Ahtun Re’s ability to make past life matches is that he does not “rubber stamp” proposed reincarnation cases.
On the contrary, most matches that people propose are deemed inaccurate by Ahtun Re. When I myself try to derive a past life match, many times Ahtun Re will tell me that I am inaccurate, but when the true match is found and then confirmed by Ahtun Re, it uniformly turns out to be a very compelling case. It is my experience with Ahtun Re, through monthly sessions that have taken place since 2001, and a database of over a thousand reincarnation cases, that gives me perspective on his ability to make accurate past life matches.
The Reincarnations of Laurel and Hardy: A Best New Comedy Team
Let us now return to the cases of Laurel and Hardy. As mentioned, since Ahtun Re would not reveal the contemporary identities of Stan and Ollie and he refuted my numerous hypotheses, I gave up on finding them. A year or two passed when my interest was suddenly rekindled by seeing a cover of an old Rolling Stone magazine that was placed in one of my exam rooms, which had on it a small headline on it, “Best New Comedy Team.” Despite going through every page of this magazine, I couldn’t find anything in it about a new comedy team, but I had the feeling that I should search the Internet for new comedy teams.
This occurred in November 2005 and when I searched the Internet, I found an web site advertising a show entitled, The Funniest Show in the World About the History of Comedy, Performed by Two Brothers, in Less Than Two Hours, For Under Twenty Bucks, which would be performed in January 2006 in New York City. I saw a picture of the two brothers, Josh and Danny Bacher, who called themselves the Bacher Boys, and a broad smile appeared on my face.
Not only were these two brothers naturally funny looking, they were funny looking like Laurel and Hardy were funny looking. I intuitively and deeply knew that I had found them. Josh, the older brother, was the skinny Stan Laurel character and Danny was the chubby Oliver Hardy. In fact, the only major difference in appearance between Stan and Ollie and Josh and Danny is that Oliver Hardy was much heavier than Danny is.
Spirit Being Ahtun Re Affirms Josh & Danny as Laurel & Hardy Reincarnated
In my next session with Kevin Ryerson, after refuting all my previous proposed matches that I had made for Laurel and Hardy, Ahtun Re confirmed that Josh and Danny Bacher are the reincarnated comedy team of Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy.
It is important for me to share that on Josh and Danny’s personal website, as well as the website of the theater they were performing at, there was absolutely no mention of Josh and Danny having any affinity for Laurel and Hardy.
Other than the title of their show, there was no description of what their show would contain. In other words, when I was about to contact the Bacher boys regarding their past life cases, I had no idea of how they would respond to being told that they are the reincarnations of Laurel and Hardy. As we will learn below, Josh and Danny had been reliving the lives of Laurel & Hardy ever since they were children.
Stan Laurel & Oliver Hardy Life Stories
Stan Laurel was born in 1890, in Ulverston, England, while Oliver Hardy was born in Harlem, Georgia, in the United States. Stan worked as a comedian in Glasgow and eventually came to the US, 
where he joined a touring group that included Charlie Chaplin, which eventually led him to Los Angeles. Stan, by the way, believed in reincarnation and this theme was featured in Laurel & Hardy’s classic movie, The Flying Deuces.
Oliver started performing as a singer in a minstrel show and as an adult, migrated to California and signed with the producer, Hal Roach. Leo McCarey, a director working for Roach, wanted to create a comedy team for film shorts made up of a skinny guy with a fat guy. McCarey brought Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy together for the project and the comedy team that would last over 20 years was born.
Ian Stevenson, MD Twin Study Supports Souls Plan Lifetimes
With the belief that I had found the reincarnations of Laurel and Hardy as two brothers, I wondered at the mechanism of how reincarnation and life works. If the cases of Stan and Ollie | Josh and Danny are valid, then a comedy team that came together from across the Atlantic Ocean in 1926 was now reunited as two brothers, who were performing comedy once again in New York City, 80 years later.
One set of twins were also twins in their prior incarnations.
In 9/31 or 29% of twin cases, the twins were friends, acquaintances or business associates. Other family relationships, such as being cousins, made up 6/31 or 19% of twin cases. In 5/31 or 16% of twin cases, the twins were married in the past incarnation. (1)
In the reincarnation cases of Burmese twins that were part of this analysis, photographs are available showing that physical appearance remained consistent from one lifetime to another. In the images provided above, Phyu reincarnated as San and Saipai reincarnated as Nyunt. Phyu and Saipai were sisters who were very close. They died as elderly women and reincarnated as the twins, San and Nyunt. To learn more, go to:
Burmese Twins Reincarnation Cases with Physical Resemblance
Ian Stevenson’s twin study dramatically shows that souls, including relatives, friends and business partners, can plan future lifetimes and be born together within families, as demonstrated in the Laurel & Hardy | Bacher Boys cases.
The Reincarnations of Laurel & Hardy were Raised Jewish: Change in Religion
Though I was living in San Francisco, I called the Theater for the New City, in Manhattan, where the Josh and Danny would be performing, and purchased tickets for their show. I also asked that the Bacher brothers contact me, indicating that I could make some connections for them in Hollywood.
As noted above, I had no idea how Josh and Danny would react when I would advise them that according to my work with Kevin and Ahtun Re, they are the reincarnation of Laurel & Hardy. Nothing on their website or the theater’s web site mentioned that they had any affinity for Laurel & Hardy. For me, the fact that there was no knowledge in advance regarding these matters made me especially impressed of Ahtun Re’s confirmation of these reincarnation cases.
Affinity Case: The Reincarnations of Oliver Hardy Reveal the Great Influence that Laurel & Hardy have Been on the Brother’s Lives
Danny Bacher telephoned me within a couple days. After discussing ways I could possibly help them in their careers, I told Danny about my book, Return of the Revolutionaries, and then carefully explained to Danny the principles of reincarnation that were emerging from cases researched by Ian Stevenson, MD of the University of Virgina, as well as cases solved through my work with Kevin Ryerson.
I asked Danny if he had any particular spiritual leanings and he replied, “We were raised Jewish.” I could tell that Danny was starting to wonder where this was going and what all this had to do with their comedy work. I then blurted out, “You and Josh have been confirmed to be the reincarnations of Laurel and Hardy by Ahtun Re, an Egyptian spirit guide channeled through Kevin Ryerson.”
After a moment, Danny replied, “I don’t know about this reincarnation stuff, but what you say is very interesting because by far, the biggest influences on our lives, in terms of our comedic development, have been Laurel and Hardy.”
I term reincarnation cases in which individuals are drawn to their own past lives “affinity cases.” An example of an affinity case is: Reincarnation Case of Dorothy Dandridge | Halle Berry
The Reincarnation of Oliver Hardy owns Ollie’s Pants & Suit–Astronomical Odds
What I learned next caused even me to be dumbfounded. Danny shared that he is one of the most extensive collectors of Laurel and Hardy memorabilia in the world. Danny has the actual pair of pants that Oliver Hardy wore in the famous dance sequence filmed in Way Out West. As pictured above, Danny has this pair of pants framed and behind glass on his bedroom wall.
Danny also has a full suit that Oliver Hardy wore, which is fitted on a manikin that stands in a corner of Danny’s bedroom. The boys have also acquired a jacket that Stanley Laurel wore, which is situated next to Ollie’s suit. This apparel, owned by Laurel & Hardy and now possessed by the reincarnations of Laurel & Hardy, are featured to the right. In addition, Josh and Danny lived together for many years in a townhouse with thousands of Laurel and Hardy artifacts on display.
What are the odds that I would call two unknown aspiring comedians, who nobody had heard of, who I was calling to inform that they are the reincarnations of Laurel and Hardy, based on the affirmation of an Egyptian spirit guide who has been dead for over 3000 years, and who turn out to have the actual clothing of Laurel and Hardy in their home as prized possessions?
A physician friend of mine assessed that the odds of this occurring by chance are astronomical.
View video of: Danny Bacher’s Laurel & Hardy Memorabilia Collection
Past Life Behavior & Music: Josh and Danny Drive around New York with Laurel & Hardy Theme Music
Another example of Josh and Danny’s extreme identification with Laurel and Hardy goes back to 1991, when the boys purchased their first car utilizing savings from their newspaper routes. Josh and Danny had created a cassette tape featuring music compiled from Laurel and Hardy’s movies. They would drive together around New York City and New Jersey in their Plymouth while playing music from Laurel and Hardy movies. The only thing that would be more suiting would be if they were driving a Ford Model T down Broadway.
Reflect on how unusual it is to make a custom tape of Laurel and Hardy theme music and play it while driving in one’s car. Note that Josh and Danny did this almost 15 years before I contacted them to inform them that they are the reincarnations of Laurel and Hardy. Again, what are the odds of this happening by chance?
Metaphysical Center of New Jersey: A Synchronistic Connection
Following our initial conversation, I sent Josh and Danny a copy of my book, Return of the Revolutionaries, and a videotape of Barbro Karlen telling her story of being the reincarnation of Anne Frank, which for me, is one of the most important of past life cases. I made plans to attend their show in New York because one, I wanted to meet the reincarnations of Laurel and Hardy, and two, I wanted to see if Josh and Danny could make people laugh like Laurel and Hardy did.
I then worked on arranging a reincarnation presentation while in New York, as a way to maximize the usefulness of my trip to the East Coast. I had recently presented at the New Life Expo in New York City in October 2005, where I was approached by Harriet Wagniere, the Director of the Metaphysical Center of New Jersey, who asked if I would consider speaking at their center in Wayne, New Jersey. At the time, I told her that I would love to, but I had no idea of when I would be back in the area, since I lived in California.
Now, since I would be in New York to see the Bacher Boys, I called Harriet to inquire whether if could speak at their center on that same weekend in January 2006. Though I had told Danny that I would keep the Laurel and Hardy match quiet until the brothers had time to digest it, I couldn’t resist sharing the secret with Harriet. I told her that I was coming to New York to meet the reincarnations of Laurel and Hardy. Harriet was surprised and asked, “Can I know who they are?”
After a fleeting moment of attempting to keep the matches confidential, I advised Harriet that I would tell her only if she would not divulge the information to anyone. Harriet agreed and so I let out the identities of the reincarnated Laurel and Hardy. Harriet then exclaimed, “I know Josh and Danny Bacher, I used to teach high school in Wayne and they were my students!”
When Harriet said that, I was a bit flabbergasted at the coincidence, yet at the same time, I have come to expect synchronistic events to occur as part of reincarnation research. In the end, this opportune coincidence resulted in the Metaphysical Center of New Jersey hosting my presentation at a venue in Wayne, New Jersey, located five minutes from where the parents of Josh and Danny live, which is about a 40 minute drive from New York City.
How do these synchronistic connections occur? One way is that our souls are aware of much more that we are aware of in our limited human consciousness. In the case involving Harriet, it may be that Ahtun Re knew that eventually I would discover the reincarnations of Laurel & Hardy, who Harriet knew as she was their schoolteacher in their contemporary incarnations. Communication between the Ahtun Re’s soul, my soul and Harriet’s soul regarding the upcoming identifications of Laurel & Hardy could have facilitated Harriet inviting me to speak at her metaphysical center.
Past Life Behavior: Josh & Danny Replicate the Relationship of Laurel & Hardy
I saw Josh and Danny perform on January 14, 2006 and I found myself laughing out loud, much as I had laughed at the antics of Stan and Ollie. Though they are of a different generation, they are just as funny and they relate to each other just as Stan and Ollie did. Josh, the skinny brother, plays the role of the innocent, sometimes confused one, who can break down whimpering when a plan goes wrong, while Danny, the slightly chubby brother, plays the role of the more sophisticated, intelligent and worldly one, who inevitably gets tripped up by Josh’s antics.
Reincarnation & Past life Talent: Josh & Danny Create a Silent Movie
The highlight for me was a silent movie that Josh and Danny created for their performance. It was as humorous as any silent movie that Hal Roach ever created, filled with slapstick, a gorilla on the loose, a Keystone cop and a blind girl who evokes empathy and at the same time, accidentally gives Danny a nasty whack to his private parts with her white cane. In that silent film and indeed, in the entire show, Josh and Danny reenacted the comedic development of Laurel and Hardy, much as Peter Teekamp replicated the artistic development of Paul Gauguin and Alexandra Nechita replicated the work of Picasso.
Reflect on the fact that not many modern-day comics create a 1920’s style slapstick silent movie as part of their act. I myself had never seen a modern-day silent movie, until I saw the one that Josh and Danny created. To view a version of their film adapted for the Internet, please go to:
Josh & Danny Bacher’s Silent Movie: The Wrong Arm of the Law
I was honored to have Josh and Danny, as well as their parents, Joel and Jane, attend my presentation on reincarnation research the day following the Bacher Boys’ New York City show. This presentation took place in Wayne, New Jersey. One can view the bringing of us together by Harriet Wagniere as a coincidence, but as discussed above, it also can be perceived as the work of spiritual guidance.
Consider the case of Captain Robert Snow and how he was brought to New Orleans by his wife, where he found the portrait of the hunchback woman, as well as his past lifetime as Carroll Beckwith. Though Captain Snow’s wife and Harriet Wagniere may not have had a telepathic voice tell them what to do, intuitions and desires can be just as effectively in coordinating events.
Affinity Reincarnation Cases: As Kids, Josh and Danny are Obsessed with Laurel & Hardy Dolls
The Bacher Boys and their parents found the proposal that Josh and Danny are the reincarnation of Laurel and Hardy intriguing and they noted correspondences. Josh was born on August 22, 1976, eleven years after Stan Laurel died. When Josh was born, he was given a set of Laurel and Hardy dolls by his cousin Sally. Joel and Jane Bacher relate that their son, Josh, loved the Laurel and Hardy dolls and they became his very favorite toys.
Danny was born on January 15, 1978, about 2 years after Josh and about twenty years after Oliver Hardy had died. Over the preceding years, Josh had played with the Laurel and Hardy dolls so intensely that when Danny was born, only the rubber heads still survived. Throughout their childhoods, Josh and Danny continued to play with the Stan and Ollie heads and they still have them, decades later.
As young children, Josh and Danny would often imitate Laurel and Hardy. Josh was always Stan and Dan was always Ollie. Danny would draw Oliver like mustaches on his toys and he himself would wear an Ollie mustache made out of black felt, which he would affix to his upper lip with transparent tape. While Danny wore his Ollie mustache, Josh would imitate Stanley, scratching the top of his head.
Josh and Danny acted like Stan and Ollie whenever they could and Joel and Jane Bacher, their parents, reflect that it was challenging, though entertaining, going out into the world, doing shopping and chores, along with little Laurel and Hardy (hopefully not too much property, such as pianos and automobiles, were destroyed in the process).
Further, Mr. Bacher, a trial attorney, relates that at their birthdays, the boys would always insist on showing Laurel and Hardy silent films, which were borrowed from the local library. As they grew up, Josh and Danny would develop comedy routines based on Laurel and Hardy, as well as other comedians old and new, which culminated in their January 2006, New York, Off-Broadway debut. Their self-proclaimed mission is to: “Bring joy and laughter to a world in need of a good laugh.”
View the Reincarnations of Laurel and Hardy Performing Again
View the The Bacher Boys silent movie, The Wrong Arm of the Law, in which Josh & Danny have created their own slapstick comedy. The Bacher Boys made this movie before Walter Semkiw contacted them regarding their past lives as Laurel & Hardy.
In addition, view the Reincarnation Exploration television pilot, created by Josh and Danny, which features Josh & Danny’s reaction to being told of their proposed past lives. In addition, archival footage provided by their parents shows how Josh and Danny created slapstick movies as children, replicating the comedic development of Stan & Ollie.
In Reincarnation Exploration, Josh & Danny’s parents are interviewed, who relate that their sons extensively pretended that they were Laurel & Hardy when they were young. In addition, the Bacher Boys’ huge Laurel & Hardy memorabilia collection is shown, including genuine clothing worn by Laurel & Hardy.
Spirit Being Ahtun Re’s Ability to Make Accurate Reincarnation Identifications
Josh & Danny began replicating the behavior, abilities and talent of Laurel & Hardy, as well as collecting Laurel & Hardy memorabilia, years before Walter contacted them regarding their being the reincarnations of Stan & Ollie. Further, before Walter contacted the Bacher Boys about their past lives in 2005, he had no knowledge of Josh and Danny’s childhood Laurel & Hardy behavior, including making slapstick movies, nor did he know of their Laurel & Hardy collection. Lack of this knowledge prior to Walter contacting Josh and Danny makes Ahtun Re’s confirmation that the Bacher Boys are the reincarnations of Laurel & Hardy impressive.
Principles of Reincarnation & Understanding Past Lives
These compelling reincarnation cases demonstrate the following features:
Physical Resemblance in Past Life Cases: Josh and Danny exibit uncanny resemblances to Laurel and Hardy. One difference is that Oliver Hardy was much heavier than Danny Bacher is.
Past Life Innate Talent: The Bacher Boys have replicated the comedic development of Laurel and Hardy, as demonstrated in their performances in The Funniest Show in the World About the History of Comedy, Performed by Two Brothers, in Less Than Two Hours, For Under Twenty Bucks, and in their videos featured on this page.
Planning Lifetimes and Relationships Renewed through Reincarnation: The comedy team of Laurel and Hardy have reincarnated as two brothers. These cases dramatically demonstrate how souls can plan lifetimes, as Laurel and Hardy engineered incarnations within the same family.
Ian Stevenson, we have noted, studied 31 twin cases where past lives were objectively validated. He found that in all 31 cases, the twins had close relationships in prior incarnations. As such, it appears that planning of lifetimes in family groups is a common phenomenon.
Spirit Being Involvement: The Laurel and Hardy reincarnation cases were derived through the assistance of Ahtun Re, a spirit being channeled through Kevin Ryerson.
In addition, it is possible that guidance by spirit beings caused Harriet Wagniere, the Director of the Metaphysical Center of New Jersey, to ask me to speak at her center when we met at the New Life Expo in New York City in October 2005, before I had identified Josh and Danny as the reincarnations of Laurel and Hardy.
Her invitation allowed me to present evidence of reincarnation to the Bacher Boys, as well as their family and friends, which I believe helped enlist the support of these individuals. Please note that Harriet’s request occurred just before the matches involving Josh and Danny were made. As such, if Harriet’s request was truly guided, it may be that my association with the Bacher Boys was predestined.
Change in Religion: Laurel and Hardy were both Christian, whereas Josh and Danny were raised Jewish. Joel Bacher, their father, is Jewish while their mother, Jane, was born into a Christian family.
Affinity Cases: Josh and Danny were obsessed with Laurel and Hardy since they were toddlers. As such, they appear to have been innately attracted to their own past life personas. Though Josh was given a set of Laurel and Hardy dolls as a child, which could have stimulated interest, this does not explain their obsession with Laurel and Hardy in adulthood, as evidenced by Danny becoming a world-class collector of memorabilia involving Stan and Ollie, or their decision to become professional comedians and performers.
Recall that Danny has a genuine suit and pair of pants that were worn by Oliver Hardy in his bedroom, which he obtained at substantial cost. Also, back in 1991, the boys created a cassette tape featuring music from Laurel and Hardy movies, which they would play as they drove around in their car. At the time that I contacted Danny in 2005 to advise him that he was identified as the reincarnation of Oliver Hardy, I had no knowledge of Josh and Danny’s obsession with Laurel and Hardy. The odds of this occurring by chance are extremely small.
I term these types of cases “affinity cases,” where individuals are naturally attracted to their own past lives.
Another dramatic affinity case is the: Reincarnation Case of Dorothy Dandridge | Halle Berry
View: Bacher Boys Silent Movie: The Wrong Arm of the Law
View: Reincarnation Exploration TV Pilot featuring the Laurel & Hardy | Bacher Boys Cases