Strange and creepy happenings beset an average California family, the Freelings: Steve, Diane, teenaged Dana, eight-year-old Robbie, and five-year-old Carol Ann, when ghosts commune with them through the television set. Initially friendly and playful, the spirits turn unexpectedly menacing, and, when Carol Ann goes missing, Steve and Diane turn to a parapsychologist and eventually an exorcist for help.