GHOULA's Annual Report

(Alhambran F.E. Ormsby, creator of the 13 month calendar, 1929)

We're Back! As many of you have realized, GHOULA has been pretty quiet the last couple of years with the notable exception of having a presence at GHOULA's favorite Halloween Convention MIDSUMMER"S SCREAM. In 2016, we even curated an exhibition of haunted/cursed objects (Click here to see pictures of the exhibit).

Founder/organizer/guide/host Richard Carradine needed a little break from all these spooky events we were doing. Well, the break time is over, and its time to get back to work. GHOULA will be up and running again in 2018 with more new events (and some old favorite events). This is largely due to the help from another local ghost expert, Connor Bright (aka "The Paranormal Pixie"). Many of you met Connor on our resurrected Haunted Red Line Subway Tour last October. Richard will be taking a more behind the scenes role organizing the upcoming events, while Connor will take on the hosting/guiding duties.

The question that we are asked most often at GHOULA HQ is "When is SPIRITS with SPIRIT coming back?" So, let's address this first... We took a break from our monthly meet-ups in historic (haunted) bars to concentrate on other events we wanted to do, namely off-beat ghost events that celebrate the twisted history our city. That temporary hiatus continued when all events went on hiatus, and GHOULA took a break. This year we will bring back SPIRITS with SPIRITS in the six months leading up to October on the 13th of those months (starting May 13th).

As for the other planned events for 2018, you are going to have to wait and see. So, keep checking or blog (www.ghoula.org) and our facebook page, this is where we will announce these upcoming events. You can also sign up on our mailing list, and we'll send you an email with the info. Hope to see you soon.

WELCOME!

In the event you have stumbled across this page, and know nothing about GHOULA. We are a social club dedicated to the preservation of greater L.A.'s rich haunted history, and the promotion and celebration of this local lore through ghostly gatherings, events, and publications. We are open to all, from the curious skeptic to the passionate phantom pursuer. In the past, we have done walking tours, bus tours, and even subway tours exploring our city's strangest ghost stories. We have produced theatrical revues in historic haunted locations (creepy puppet shows, free outdoor screenings, dances that conjure the spirits, etc). We have even published books about this stuff (see sidebar to the right). We have curated perfumes that bring to life LA's stinkiest phantoms, created exhibits of local haunted artifacts, but what people generally know us from are our meet-ups in haunted bars ("Spirits with Spirits"). Basically, we like to tell ghost stories about Los Angeles' darker history, while exploring our city. If you are in to that kind of stuff (and if you are still reading this, we're going to guess that you are), then we are the club for you! Please subscribe for our mailing list (upper left corner) and we will notify you about our next ghostly gathering. Thanks!

ALL A-BOOOO-OARD!

Yes, that's ghost stories and public transit. What could be scarier? Is there a better way to explore the haunted history of Los Angeles than by traveling underground from location to location via our very own (dead) Red Line Metro Subway?

We will meet-up at Union Station (the starting point for the Red Line) and then travel through 13 stops to the North Hollywood Station (at the end of the line), getting off and on along the way. In addition to Union Station and the North Hollywood Station, we will stop at few other stations, step off the train, rise to street-level, and discuss the ghosts and haunted sites visible from that spot before going back aboard to the next stop on our tour.

Come out and hear spooky tales about a spirit solider, a vanishing padre, and a ghostly car. As well as many other phantom figures from our past that haunt our present.
(see a review of this tour here...)

When: October 1st, 8th, 15th, 22nd, 29th
(Every Sunday in October)

Time: Tour starts at 6 pm (tour is about 3 hours)

Meeting Place: The palm tree-lined island in front of Union Station's main entrance.
800 North Alameda Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012 (map)

Price: FREE (donation-based) tour

Note: you will need a Metro Pass ($7 for "Day Pass" + $1 for a "Tap Card")
Please purchase the Metro Pass (not a "Metrolink" ticket) before the meet-up to save time. The machines can be confusing, so look for metro day fare and not "add fare."

Your Guide: CONNOR BRIGHT

This paranormal historian has traveled the globe, working alongside experts in the field as well as film and television crews. She calls Los Angeles her home and the spirits of the city her friends. With her former partner she founded "What's Your Ghost Story?" an online community for people to share paranormal experiences and seek answers from experts. Connor has also worked with Los Angeles Hauntings Ghost Tours, guiding people through LA's haunted histories. It was through LA Hauntings that Connor met Richard Carradine of GHOULA when they collaborated on the Haunted Houdini Tour of Los Angeles. Connor looks forward to being your host on this year's GHOULA Red Line Metro Tour!



Parking: Since everyone participating in the tour will need a Metro Day Pass to ride the subway, it is advisable to park at one of the pay lots ($3.00) provided by the Metro at either the North Hollywood Station (our end point) or the Universal City Station (or any of the other lots on connecting Metro lines), and then just take the Subway to Union Station to meet-up with the group The lots around Union Station are expensive and they may close early. Free street parking is available around the North Hollywood station, but please read posted signs concerning parking regulations.

MIDSUMER SCREAM! 2016

Thank you to all who came out to the Midsummer Scream Halloween Convention, and checked out our pop-up Museum of Paranormal History which focused on cursed or haunted memorabilia connected to Southern Californian ghost lore (pictured above with GHOULA founder Richard Carradine). Thanks to all the collectors that allowed us to show these unique objects and paintings, especially the San Fernando Valley Pioneer Cemetery which let us remove one of their haunted tombstones for the weekend. I'm happy to report, that despite the legends about these curious grave markers, no one was hurt while the memorial was transported, and sadly no ghost were seen as a result of its temporary displacement. Plus a special thanks to local authors Michael Aushenker, Victor Avila, and Marla Brooks for signing copies of their books about local ghosts. It is quite possible that last weekend could be the only time that all those local spooky items will ever be on display together, so we want to give the organizers of this amazing convention the biggest thanks of all for allowing us to create this paranormal project.

We had a blast and we will definitely be back next year! So. if you missed our Museum of Paranormal History, don't miss next year's all new exhibit!

Also thanks to the LA Weekly for their shout out to our collection of haunted artifacts!
photo by Jared Cowan
http://www.laweekly.com/slideshow/halloweens-horrors-and-haunts-emerged-early-for-midsummer-scream-7202199/31