Free Guided Night Hikes in (Haunted) Griffith Park

The Date: Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays
The Time: Hikes start at 7:00pm (so get there before 7:00pm)
The Location: Griffith Park
(Meet at the Upper Merry-Go-Round Parking Lot)  [MAP]

(for more info check http://angeles.sierraclub.org/griffith/location.asp)

Note: This event is not hosted by GHOULA. This is just a local (ghost related) event that exists independently that GHOULA wants its members to know about. As such, guides and staff at this event may not wish to discuss this landmark's haunted history.

The Ghost(s):

The ghosts said to haunt this city park are numerous. From men on horseback to women dressed in white. It is said that these are the oldest ghost stories in Los Angeles with sighting dating back to the 1800's. And even today, it is said that there are so many sightings still, that the ranger's office has a special form just for ghostly encounters.

http://angeles.sierraclub.org/griffith/location.asp

BOOOOs Alert!

THIS JUST IN: Haunted Linda Vista Hospital in the LA TIMES

http://articles.latimes.com/2012/may/16/business/la-fi-linda-vista-hospital-20120516

May's SPIRITS with SPIRITS

GHOULA meets for cocktails in haunted places on the 13th of each month. “SPIRITS with SPIRITS” is a casual social gathering of regional ghost hunters and those that just like ghost stories. 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 (square) G.H.O.U.L.A. button. If you already have one, please wear it so others can find you, without asking the staff about our group.

THE DATE: May 13th, 2012 (Sunday)
THE PLACE: INK (Sweet Lady Jane)
8360 Melrose Ave, West Hollywood (Map)
THE TIME: 8:00pm to the witching hour

THE GHOST(S):

Even though it is a given that there doesn't seem to be any set rules for ghosts and hauntings, there are a handful of persistent ghost stories in Los Angeles that seem to defy all reason and logic. The quintessential example of this is the "Houdini Mansion" in Laurel Canyon. Despite there being no proof that Harry Houdini ever even visited this stately manner (or the guest house across the street), people for decades have claimed to see the great magician's ghost wandering around the property. Another such example is the ghost of film director, Orson Welles, sitting at his favorite table at the Sweet Lady Jane Bakery on Melrose...

For a good period of time in the late 1970s/early 1980s, there was no trendier restaurant in Los Angeles than Ma Maison on L.A.'s equally trendy Melrose Ave. The restaurant consisted of a small bungalow house (presumably a hold over from when this commercial area was residential) that contained a kitchen, restrooms, a hostess station, and one table. The patrons were forced to dine in the patio (presumably the original house's front yard), which was covered with a tacky layer of bright green astro-turf to conceal the hard asphalt underneath.  Despite the delicious food created by chef Wolfgang Puck (and the high prices) the outdoor setting had all the charm of a parking lot. However, one of the great quirks of Ma Maison was that when you stepped up to the front door to the hostess station to be seated, on just about any given day, if you looked to your right, you would see (usually seated alone) at the one indoor table, the legendary Orson Welles. Although he is widely considered one of the great film directors to ever come out of Hollywood, at this point in his career he was morbidly obese and better known for the TV commercials he appeared in for Paul Masson Wine ("We will sell no wine before its time").

As the years went by, Welles passed away, Ma Maison moved to another, similar location further east on Melrose, and opened a cooking school, before moving out of the area completely. The original structure where Welles enjoyed countless lunches and dinners was torn down, when the block was redeveloped (and address numbers changed). The Sweet Lady Jane Bakery opened, and over the years employees and patrons claim to see the ghost of Orson Wells at a table in the back, where "his table" was originally located. Or, they smell his cigars (which he used to buy at the long gone Wittners Cigars a few blocks away) in that area.

That is the tale that is repeated in just about every ghost guide book of Hollywood or Los Angeles, as well as many paranormal TV Shows, and its a good story. The only problem is that Sweet Lady Jane is not exactly in the same spot that Ma Maison called home (like they all claim).  Ma Maison was actually pushed back from the street, and covered more ground to the east, so Wells' famous table was not located inside the dinning area of this bakery.

Is it possible, that the ghost of Orson Welles has re-situated himself around another table (and a spot that held no attachment to him in life)? Sure. After years of lunches and dinners, is his ghost seeking out dessert? Maybe. Or, has a ghost at Sweet Lady Jane been mistaken for the ghost of Orson Wells because of the proximity to the site of his favorite eatery? That's also possible.

Unfortunately, Sweet Lady Jane is too tiny (and generally too crowded) a space for our meet up, so we will will be meeting at the bar a couple of doors down, close to where Orson Welles sat for so many years alone. It should be noted that the current management claims that INK is not haunted by his ghost, but it's worth pointing out that this location has had a high turnover of restaurants since the wildly successful Ma Maison left. Is there a certain overweight spirit that sabotages any business that tries to replace his second home just as a psychic that visited a previous incarnation of this location (a sushi place) suggested?

Come out and find out for yourself, peek in on Sweet Lady Jane's Bakery, socialize, have a drink (or a glass of wine that is not sold before its time), and ponder the unpredictable nature of the ghost of one of Hollywood's most unpredictable mavericks.

(to read about last month's haunted location... )
(to see a map of previous SPIRITS with SPIRITS locations... )

April's SPIRITS with SPIRITS

GHOULA meets for cocktails in haunted places on the 13th of each month. “SPIRITS with SPIRITS” is a casual social gathering of regional ghost hunters and those that just like ghost stories. 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 (square) G.H.O.U.L.A. button. If you already have one, please wear it so others can find you, without asking the staff about our group.

THE DATE: April 13th, 2012 (Friday the 13th)
THE PLACE: The Coral Cafe,
3321 Burbank Blvd. Burbank (Map)
THE TIME: 8:00pm to the witching hour

THE GHOST(S):

"I still get the creeps, I still get a funny feeling driving over to Burbank"
--Tim Burton (2006)

Despite its seemingly benign, 1950's suburban appearance, beneath the sunny surface of Burbank lurks the twisted dark place that shaped the childhood of filmmaker, Tim Burton (which he lampooned in "Edward Scissorhands"). Additionally, it is the unlikely home of Halloweentown and Dark Delicacies. In 1952, the California Crime Commission singled it out as a hotbed of Mafia activity. Plus, due to its ties to the aero-space industry, it probably has had more airplane crashes than any other city in the world. Also, it is home to a few haunted locations...

The most famous of which is probably a neighborhood coffee shop named The Coral Cafe (a fixture of Burbank since 1957), and known locally as the "Haunted Cafe" because of its appearance on the Biography Channel's "My Ghost Story" (and other TV shows) and the rather dubious "security camera" video tape of a supposed ghost following a staff member around the restaurant that has been circulating for the last few years.

That famous "ghost caught on video" footage aside, The employees, and some regulars, do believe that this diner is haunted by a harmless spirit or spirits. Although, there has been a sighting of an "old lady" seated in one of the booths, most of the activity seems to occur in the bathrooms. Invisible hands turn on and off the faucets and open and close the stall doors. Why do ghosts and bathrooms seem to go together like cafeterias and Jello?

Are these disturbances from the same ghost, or is it two separated entities haunting different ends of the same building?

Almost a century ago, alfalfa fields occupied this section of Burbank, and they were owned by Burbank's most famous resident, James J. Jeffries aka "Big Jim" or "The Boilmaker" or "The Great White Hope." Jeffries (the namesake of nearby Jeffries Street) was one of the great Heavyweight Champions of all time, but he is best remembered for his involvement in "The Fight of the Century" where (as an older man) he was lured (with money) away from his Burbank farm back into the ring to fight the first African-American Heavyweight Champ, Jack Johnson. This battle of the races was the only time that Jeffries was knocked down, and Jeffries admitted that even on his best day he was no match against Johnson.

Years later, in the 1950's, Jim Jeffries elderly wife was killed in a car accident not far from their home. A few months later, Jeffries followed her with a fatal heart attack at age 77. All remnants of their farm are now long gone. Incidentally, after his death, the Jeffries barn (pictured below) was purchased by Walter Knott and moved to Knott's Berry Farm where it is still used today as the "Wilderness Dance Hall" (and as a maze for their Halloween Haunt), and where employees still see Jeffries' large ghostly figure. But, what about her ghost? Could the old lady seen at the Coral Cafe be spirit of Mrs. Jeffries?

Lastly, there is a "phantom monk" that has been seen in various locations in the San Fernando Valley, who is always traveling in a north-west direction (presumably repeatedly making the journey between the San Gabriel Mission and the San Fernando Mission). The Coral Cafe sits in his path. Could the restaurant's disturbances be connected to him passing through?

So, come out to the historic Coral (haunted) Cafe, and have some dinner, or dessert, or a drink, or just mingle with ghosts.... See you there!

(to read about last month's haunted location... )
(to see the imfamous Coral Cafe ghost tape... )
(to see a map of previous SPIRITS with SPIRITS locations... )