BOOOOO-OWLING

When: December 29th @ 8pm
Where: Pickwick Bowl 1001 Riverside Drive, Burbank (map)

A group of local bloggers (and some members of GHOULA) are meeting to bowl and have a good time. All are invited. Although, this event is open to the public, individuals are expected to pay for their own games and shoe rentals if they plan to bowl.

Although Pickwick Bowl has no ghost stories attached to it, at least none that the staff will admit to (update: for ghost story click here.), the historic bowling alley does have a connection to the "ghost culture" of Southern California.

Pickwick Bowl was the inspiration for one of the audio-animatronic "happy haunts" from Disneyland's Haunted Mansion. There used to be a sign in front of this leisure complex that featured a caricature of "Pickwick," the Dicken's character (and this establishment's mascot). It seems that Imagineers that would commute to work at WED enterprises (now Walt Disney Imagineering) just a few blocks away decided to pay tribute to the cheerful fellow on the sign they past everyday. Thus, in the ballroom scene of Disneyland's Haunted Mansion, a ghost hanging from a chandelier (also known by the name "Pickwick") was created to match the one at Pickwick Bowl.

THREATENED: Haunted Restaurant

Patrick's Roadhouse, a friend of GHOULA'S (or FOG), apparently may be shutting its doors for good (despite its brisk business) over a landlord/tenant dispute. Unfortunately, time may be running out if you want to experience this haunted SoCal treasure one last time.

(for more closure info...)

(even more closure info...)

(for Patrick's ghost stories...)

(to read about another threatened haunted property...)

If you know any new developements regarding this haunted property, please leave a comment below with the current info.

UPDATE: Patrick's Roadhouse will be allowed to continue for the next year, while the issues are sorted out.
(for more info...)

Fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-ghou-la

Happy (Haunted) Holidays from your friends a GHOULA.

The Roosevelt Hotel (pictured in the background of this festive photo) is one of the most famously haunted buildings in Los Angeles, featuring many ghosts of Christmas' past.

(for more info on the Roosevelt Hotel...)

Highlights from Dec. SWS

Perhaps it was the cold temperatures, but December's meet-up was made-up of a small but loyal group. That is until, a happy-go-lucky gregarious man of mystery joined our group. He was at the Formosa Cafe for a Birthday Party, but was apparently early since we were the only group there. Then as more member's of his party arrived, they joined our table. These new additions were a smart, lively, and fun-loving group, with many ghost stories of their own to tell. When the "birthday boy" himself arrived, he even had a couple of great stories. The waitress, when hearing all the shrieks and laughs, joined in on the fun with her own personal ghost story.

By the way, she claimed to have never experienced anything paranormal at the Formosa (and she works the late shift). However, when we told her some of the stories connected to the place as we were leaving, she did confess that she has felt the "ghostly goosing," but had always thought it was some strange static electricity that was creating the pinching sensation in her posterior.

(to read the Formosa's ghost stories...)

December's SPIRITS with SPIRITS

GHOULA meets for cocktails in haunted places on the 13th of each month. “SPIRITS with SPIRITS” is a casual gathering of regional ghost hunters. Open to all, from the curious skeptic to the passionate phantom pursuer. Make friends, and toast a ghost! Let's put the “Boo!” back into “booze.” All those who attend will receive a free G.H.O.U.L.A. button. If you already have, please wear it so others can find you.

THE DATE: December 13th, 2009 (Sunday)
THE PLACE: Formosa Cafe
(7156 Santa Monica Blvd., West Hollywood) map
THE TIME: 8pm to the witching hour

THE GHOST(S):

This famous local landmark has been in business since 1925, when prize-fighter, Jimmy "Your Host" Berstein, turned a decommissioned Hollywood "Red Car" (trolley) into a lunch counter and named it "The Red Spot." (Some sources claim it was actually called "The Red Post.") Eventually, he added a full kitchen and a dining room and changed the name to "The Formosa." In 1945, he became partners with chef Lem Quon, who created the cantonese menu and took the cuisine into a new direction. Incidentally, the "Red Car" is still there.

Because of its proximity to the studio directly across the street, the celebrities who have dined/drank here (and continue to do so) are too numerous to mention. John Wayne is said to have been such a regular customer that he was allowed to sleep off his drunken stupors in the booths and make himself breakfast in the kitchen the next morning. Elvis supposedly used to make special trips there for a simple ham sandwich (the kind Berstein used to make back when it was a lunch counter), and famous gangster Bugsy Seigal used to use the office to conduct business. His personal locked safe is still there. (Some sources claim it was actually gangster Mickey Cohen). As a publicity stunt years ago, a locksmith broke into the safe to reveal its secret, lost contents. Despite a claim by a local psychic, who telepathically looked inside this safe on a previous occasion and had seen "envelopes filled with names, a ruby ring, and two deeds to property in Nevada" it turned out to be empty. Although, over the years, the neighborhood has changed, the clientele has changed, and even the studio has changed (from Hampton Studios to Pickford-Fairbanks Studios to United Artists to Samuel Goldwyn to Warners Hollywood), the Formosa has stayed the same serving up beer, wine, and spirits.

It seems that over these same years, "spirits" of a different kind have also been present. Employees late at night claimed to have experienced all sorts of paranormal activity from seeing "shadow people" darting around to strange noises (without an apparent source) such as voices and the jingle-jangle of crashing silverware. That said, there are two notable ghosts that seem to haunt the bar. There is the phantom man that has been seen sitting in a booth (but only in the reflection of the bar's large mirror), and there is the frisky spirit of Lem Quon who "gooses" and pinches employees that he feels need to get busy (just as he did in life).

But, there is another spirit (aside from booze and boo's) that has been present here... the "spirit of giving." One of the truly remarkable pieces of this cafe's history is that at one time Jimmy Berstein used to pay for a full Thanksgiving dinner for local orphans. It started with 75 orphans the first year, but as the years passed, it grew larger and larger, incorporating all of the local orphanages, until 1500 kids were being fed at the Formosa (and in surrounding tents) on this holiday. Not only did he pay for dinner and entertainment, but also paid for all the buses needed to transport all the kids, and he gave each child a silver dollar to take home with them. Hopefully, that is the kind of good will we will see more of this holiday season.

(to read about last month's SPIRITS with SPIRITS location...)

Highlights from Nov. SWS

What a great evening! Thanks to all who came out. Thanks to the "regulars." Thanks to the many "first-timers," who joined the fun. And a special "thank you" to the management, who gave our group an all access tour of the upstairs offices, where the ghosts supposedly reside. Despite all the decades that have past since it was a humble farm house, so little seems to have changed in that area of the "house."

We heard some new stories, including one about two workman hired by the city to do restoration on the historic building. One left, leaving the other to saw wood alone in one room. After awhile, the electric saw stopped. When he went to investigate, he discovered that the extension cords that ran through another room had gotten unplugged. He plugged them together, and went back to his sawing. After a while, the saw stopped again, and again the extentetion cords were unplugged from each other. Thinking that his co-worker was playing a trick on him, he tied the two cords to such a tangle of knots that nothing could separate them. Sure enough, when he went back to saw, the power stopped, and when he investigated the cords were untagled and separated. It was at this monent that he looked out the window, and into a window of a neighboring building, to discover the other workman busy at restoration work in that building several yards away. The man was alone in the building,... or was he?

Employees also claimed that they have seen the elderly ghost of Senora Consuelo de Bonza (pictured in the portrait above) wandering through the restaurant.

The manager also revealed that in the adjoing building to the south, several bodies were found buried in the basement during another restoration project. Apparently, there is no foul play suspected, they just believe , at one time, people buried their dead there.

According to all the stories we heard that night, this restaurant is just the tip of the iceburg, in terms of paranormal activity on Olvera Street.

(to read abouth the ghosts of this location...)

(to read a review of this night...)

November's SPIRITS with SPIRITS

GHOULA meets for cocktails in haunted places on the 13th of each month. “SPIRITS with SPIRITS” is a casual gathering of regional ghost hunters. Open to all, from the curious skeptic to the passionate phantom pursuer. Make friends, and toast a ghost! Let's put the “Boo!” back into “booze.” All those who attend will receive a free G.H.O.U.L.A. button. If you already have, please wear it so others can find you.

Note: The management has agreed to allow our group into the (normally closed to the public) haunted area of this historic restaurant. So, come out and experience this rare opportunity to go inside one of the city's oldest buildings.

THE DATE: November 13th, 2009 (Friday the 13th!)
THE PLACE: La Golondrina Cafe
(17 West Olvera Street, Los Angeles) map
THE TIME: 7:00pm to 9:30pm (closing time)

THE GHOST(S):

In 1885, Guiseppi Covaccichi built his home and winery next to an alley that at the time was known as "Vine Street" (or sometimes "Wine Street"), because of all the other wineries in the immediate area. Despite this fact, that modest home is for some strange reason today known as the Pelanconi House (who was one of many in a string of former owners), and the dingy alley was also mysteriously renamed after one of the other families in the area to "Olvera Street." Although these reasons may have been lost to history, thankfully the house and street were not. This is largely due to a local activist, Mrs. Christine Sterling, who in the 1920's made it her mission to preserve the Alvila Adobe (the city's oldest adobe structure) and the Pelanconi house (the city's oldest brick structure) for future generations and to turn the decaying slums known as Olvera Street into "The Mexican Street of Yesterday in the City of Today." As part of her plan, she convinced a local businesswoman, Senora Consuelo de Bonza, to move her popular eatery into the old Pelanconi House (and the adjoining warehouse). After cleaning, renovating, and blessing ("to remove the evil spirits"), La Golondrina reopened its doors to the public in 1930. Not only is it the oldest business on Olvera Street today, but it also holds the distinction of being the first place in Los Angeles to serve "Mexican" food (as opposed to "Spanish").

Although Senora Consuelo de Bonza is no longer with us, her portrait still hangs in the dining room, and some say her spirit still remains as well. In addition to the sounds of disembodied footsteps trailing throughout the empty restaurant, witnesses have claimed to see a woman (sometimes described as young) dressed in a white gown floating up the stairs to the "third" floor (originally the second floor), as well as inside the private offices on that floor. Even though this apparition is generally believed to be Senora de Bonza, it is quite possible the ghost could be a member of one of the many families that resided in this home over the years, since these offices are where the house's bedrooms were once located. It is also worth mentioning that the canal (known as the "mother ditch") that brought water to this cluster of buildings and farms from the Los Angeles River ran very close to this house and would surely have been visible back then from one of the upstairs windows. Although, this waterway in many ways represented life to this community, sometimes it also represented death. It was not uncommon in our city's early (wild west) days for murdered bodies to be disposed of in that ditch, or for drunken souls to meet their accidental end there. Perhaps this "woman in white" is connected to a long ago unsolved murder (or accidental death), as a victim or one who mourns for a lover who met his demise in the dark muddy waters that rolled past this former haunted house.

(to read more ghost stories of this haunted location...)
(to read about last month's SPIRITS with SPIRITS location...)

REAL GHOSTS with REEL GHOSTS

THE DATE: October
THE TIME: check schedule

THE PLACE: The Westwood Avco
(10840 Wilshire Blvd.) map
THE MOVIE: Paranormal Activity (2009)

THE PRICE: $10.00

Come out and see a movie about ghosts in an actual haunted theater!

The Westwood Avco Theater is said to be the home of a phantom patrons in the balcony and a little girl in the lobby... (read more)

R.I.P. Vic Mizzy

Local composer Vic Mizzy has gone to the great beyond. One can only hope that his spirit will linger long enough to play his organ one last time with invisible fingers like the scene in "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken" for which he composed the ghostly music that Don Knotts hears coming from the haunted house (located in Los Angeles). (read more...)

REAL GHOSTS with REEL GHOSTS

THE DATE: October 24 (Saturday)

THE TIME: 8:00pm
THE PLACE: The Alex Theater
216 North Brand Boulevard, Glendale (map)
THE MOVIE: The Haunting (1963)

THE PRICE: $13.50

Come out and see a movie about ghosts in an actual haunted theater!
The Alex Theater is said to be the home of phantom bride and ghostly couple... (read more)

GHOULA WANTS YOU!

Date: October 24 (Sat)

Time: 2:00pm-5:00pm

Where: Eagle Rock Plaza

(2700 Colorado Blvd.,Los Angeles )

SUPPORT THE ARTS!

In an effort to find local artists/writers for GHOULA COMICS, we will be reaching out to the community. If you are interested in being involved in this ghostly venture come by our table and visit with representitives of GHOULA and learn more, as well as meet some of the artists involved, who will be on hand to sign copies of their own locally-based supernatural comic-books.

Sceduled to appear:

Michael Aushenker (HOLY GHOST! El Gato)
Javier Hernandez (El Muerto)

Rafael Navarro (Sonambulo's Strange Tales)

REAL GHOSTS with REEL GHOSTS

THE DATE: October 25-26

THE TIME: 9:15 Pm pm

THE PLACE: The New Beverly Cinema
(7165 W. Beverly Blvd.) map
THE MOVIE: 13 GHOSTS (1960)

THE ADMISSION PRICE: $7.00

Your chance to see this movie about ghosts in an actual haunted theater!

The New Beverly Cinema is said to be the home of a phantom projectionist, and an audience member apparition... (read more)

REAL GHOSTS with REEL GHOSTS

THE DATE: October 24th (Saturday)

THE TIME: 11:00pm

THE PLACE: The Silent Movie Theater

(611 N. Fairfax Ave.) map

THE MOVIE: Haunted Cop Shop (1987)

THE PRICE: $10.00

Come out and see a movie about ghosts in an actual haunted theater!

The Silent Movie Theater is said to be the home of a phantom projectionist and a disappearing/reappearing blood stain in the lobby... (read more)

GHOULA GHOST HUNT 09

Here are some of the photos from a "ghost hunt" organized by GHOULA, conducted at three of the grand movie palaces in Los Angeles' historic Broadway corridor. The evening was documented by a crew from KTLA news.

(to read about the ghosts of the Tower Theater...)
(to read about the ghosts of the Palace Theater...)
(to read about the ghosts of the Los Angeles Theater...)
(for more photos...)

OUTSIDE THE THEATERS...


The group marches down Broadway, hitting one theater after the next. In the background, the neon marques for the Palace Theater and the Los Angeles Theater can be seen.

Our two psychics for the evening, Mindy and Psychic Lee Barron (ghostswanted.com).

THE TOWER THEATER...

While the cameraman was setting up the camera to interview Richard Carradine (club president), and while everyone else waited in the lobby, the cameraman saw a dark figure (male) walk into the door in the "box seat" to the right of the stage. That door goes in to a small room, that has no other doors, windows, or any other way out. Before the interview, he confessed his sighting off camera. When the other GHOULA members were allowed into the auditorium, shortly thereafter electro-magnetic anomalies where discovered in that doorway. No one except the cameraman, the producer, and Mr. Carradine knew about the sighting before the investigation began.

Craig unpacks his equipment in the lobby of the Tower Theater. We conducted this investigation on Oct. 12, which was the date that the Tower Theater originally open to the public 87 years before.

GHOULA members got strange and inconsistent electro-magnetic readings inside this lounge attached to the men's restroom, underneath the Tower Theater's auditorium.

This is the stairs down to the restrooms, where one of the previous ghost sightings occurred. According to an interview Ghoula conducted, it was on these stairs that one witness felt a hand grab his arm and pull him down.

Richard explores the room under the stage, where according to legend a female performer died in a fire. This unverified incident is believed to be the origin of the woman ghost seen on the Tower's stage.

The is the secret projection room (inside the projection booth) where the ghost of a projectionist has been seen in the past.

THE PALACE THEATER...

In this picture, the infamous third balcony of the Palace Theater can be seen in the shadows.

These are the outdoor stairs to the separate entrance to the infamous third balcony (and the only way to get there).

This is the corner of the stage, where the ghost of a woman has been seen walking towards the stage (as demonstrated by Mindy).

These are some pictures of the old theater seats collected under the Palace's auditorium.

THE LOS ANGELES THEATER...

REEL GHOSTS with REAL GHOSTS

THE DATE: October 18-19 (Sun-Mon)
THE TIME: 9:15 Pm pm
THE PLACE: The New Beverly Cinema

(7165 W. Beverly Blvd.) map

THE MOVIE: The Ghost and Mr. Chicken (1966)

THE ADMISSION PRICE: $7.00

Your chance to see this movie about ghosts in an actual haunted theater!

The New Beverly Cinema is said to be the home of a phantom projectionist, and an audience member apparition... (read more)

Highlights from October's SWS

GHOULA would like to thank the very small, but loyal members who braved the freak rain storm to come out and tell stories and eat loads of garlic (but not necessarily in that order).

Pictured above is "Dracula's Grotto," The Stinking Rose's secret dining area, located below the the "normal"dinning area, at the end of a hidden tunnel at the far end of the building (in what was once Lawry's wine cellar).

(to read about the SPIRITS of this location...)

October's SPIRITS with SPIRITS

GHOULA meets for cocktails in haunted places on the 13th of each month. “SPIRITS with SPIRITS” is a casual gathering of regional ghost hunters. Open to all, from the curious skeptic to the passionate phantom pursuer. Make friends, and toast a ghost! Let's put the “Boo!” back into “booze.” All those who attend will receive a free G.H.O.U.L.A. button. If you already have, please wear it so others can find you.

Tired of hearing about vampires? For those seeking refuge from those other dwellers of the night, come out and join us at one of the most anti-vampire restaurants in the Los Angeles area.

THE DATE: October 13th, 2009 (Tuesday)
THE PLACE: The Stinking Rose

(55 N. La Cienega, Beverly Hills) map
THE TIME: 8:00pm to the "Witching Hour"

THE GHOST(S):

There is a saying in the restaurant business that all you need is one truly good entree to make your restaurant a success. Based on this idea, Lawrence Frank started a business venture that many of his friends and colleagues thought was crazy. His plan was to open a very fancy restaurant that served a lavish prime-rib dinner with all the trimmings (in the midst of the Great Depression). His strategy was to limit the menu to just that one meal, thereby cutting many of the costs associated with running a restaurant, and subsequently he could pass the savings on to the customers. To keep his budget low, he purchased the almost worthless swamp land on the east side of La Cienega Blvd. He opened his restaurant in 1938, and called it "Lawry's," which he thought was a fancy-sounding mispronunciation of his own name Larry. To complete the experience, he even had a staff member costumed in a chef's white uniform (with a fake gold medal around the neck) to slice the meat at the table. Enough struggling families were able to treat themselves once and a while to a reasonably priced meal fit for a king that the restaurant became a success. Walt Disney would later try to copy this formula for his Plaza Inn Restaurant in Disneyland, which also served cheap prime-rib dinners.

As Lawry's client base grew (and the prices increased), the restaurant moved into a bigger building across the street in 1947. It was at this location that Lawry's invented "valet parking" to make the patrons feel even more special. Needless to say, other restaurants followed, and the swamp was converted into the world's first "restaurant row." Lawry's continued at this location, until 1993, when it moved back across the street (to its original site) and the Stinking Rose (with great food all its own) moved in.

Although, Lawry's no longer occupies this location, it appears that someone (or something) from that era still does. Various members of the kitchen staff have told GHOULA that there are strange happenings in the kitchen. After hours, the pots, pans, and other cooking tools seem to move by themselves, and appear in strange locations immediately after the staff have cleaned them and put them away for the night. One employee told a story about the time he and a co-worker were taking out the trash. As they hauled the bags into the dumpster behind the building, they heard an almost deafening crash (coming from the open door to the kitchen) followed by the clanging sounds of pots bouncing and rolling on the floor. They looked at each other and ran back inside, only to discover the kitchen just as neat and orderly as when they left it moments ago. Is this the playful ghost of Lawrence Frank, who spent so many years in this building, turning his restaurant into the corporate empire, whose Lawry branded food items can now be bought in super markets? Or, is it the frustrated spirit of a talented chef, who was forced to make the same meal over and over again, everyday for years? Come to the Stinking Rose and find out.

http://www.thestinkingrose.com/

(to see last month's SPIRITS with SPIRITS location...)

REAL GHOSTS with REEL GHOSTS

THE DATE: October 10th (Saturday)

THE TIME: 11:00pm

THE PLACE: The Silent Movie Theater

(611 N. Fairfax Ave.) map

THE MOVIE: Spooky Encounters (1980)

THE PRICE: $10.00

Come out and see a movie about ghosts in an actual haunted theater!

The Silent Movie Theater is said to be the home of a phantom projectionist and a disappearing/reappearing blood stain in the lobby... (read more)

GHOSTBUSTERS SCREENING!

Date: October 11, 2009 (Sunday)
Time: 7:30pm

Place: Forever Hollywood
( 6000 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood) map

Admission: 5 cans of food

Here's your chance to see this classic comedy in a haunted cemetery and fight hunger. (read more)

The Biltmore Hotel, the Central Library, and Dan Ackroyd's former residence are just a few of the local locations that have a connection with this comedy classic. (read more)

REAL GHOSTS with REEL GHOSTS

THE DATE: October 2 (Fri.)

THE TIME: 8:30 pm

THE PLACE: The Warner Grand (478 W 6th St., San Pedro, CA) map
THE MOVIE: Thirteen Ghosts (1960)

THE ADMISSION PRICE: $13.00

This is your chance to see this movie about ghosts in an actual haunted theater!

This screening is part of a "Fright Night" event with a live show, a second feature (Night of the Living Dead), and many surprises. (for more info...)

The Warner Grand is said to be the home of the ghost of a film fan... (read more)