This event is part of the Natural History Musuem’s “First Fridays” series. For more info on the event… http://www.nhm.org/site/activities-programs/first-fridays/january-2012

Discussion (6:30 pm): “The Believing Brain: From Ghosts and Gods To Politics and Conspiracies — How We Construct Beliefs and Reinforce Them As Truths” with Dr. Michael Shermer

Synthesizing thirty years of research, Michael Shermer upends traditional thinking about how humans form beliefs about the world. Simply put, beliefs come first, and explanations for beliefs follow. The brain, Shermer argues, is a belief engine. Using sensory data that flow in through the senses, the brain naturally looks for and finds patterns — and then infuses those patterns with meaning, forming beliefs. Once beliefs are formed, our brains subconsciously seek out confirmatory evidence in support of those beliefs, accelerating the process of reinforcing them — and round and round the process goes in a positive feedback loop. Shermer provides countless real-world examples of how this process operates, from politics, economics, and religion to conspiracy theories, the supernatural, and the paranormal. And ultimately, he demonstrates why science is the best tool ever devised to determine whether or not our beliefs match reality.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

GHOULA has many great things planned for the upcoming year.

But first, let’s take a last look back at 2011.

SPIRITS with SPIRITS continued its monthly meetings, visiting 11 new haunted restaurants/bars (and one gallery) in the Los Angeles area. Our October meet-up was at the world famous Comedy Store on the Sunset Strip with unprecedented access to the infamous haunted basement. Also in October, the LA Weekly declared (in their “Best of LA” issue) SPIRITS with SPIRITS and GHOULA was “The best weirdo tour of LA.” (To revisit the 2011 “SPIRITS with SPIRITS” locations see below)

We also brought back our “Haunted Films in Haunted Places” film series in October. In a partnership with the Echo Park Film Center’s Filmmobile, for a second year, we screened different movies with “haunted” in their titles in actual haunted locations that corresponded thematically with that film.

2011 was a great year for GHOULA, and judging from the surprises that are in the works, 2012 will be even better (at least until the world ends in December).

The SPIRITS with SPIRITS locations of 2011.

January – Antonio’s
February – Studio for SOCAL History
March – Maeve’s Residuals
April – Footsies
May – Sagebrush Catina
June – Hotel Figueroa
July – Basement Bar
August – Pig N Whistle
September – Plum Tree Inn
October – Comedy Store
November – Hamburger Hamlet
December – Boardner’s

(To view last year’s annual report…)

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.

THE DATE: December 13th (Tuesday)
THE PLACE: Boardner’s
1652 North Cherokee Avenue (Map)
THE TIME: 8:00pm to the witching hour

THE GHOST(S):

In the beginning, yuletide activities revolved around ghosts, demons and other weird creatures that dished out punishments to the naughty as a way of co-opting the pagan winter solstices ceremonies in place before “Christmas.” For this reason, some early American pilgrims felt this celebration was sacrilegious and/or satanic. However, as this “christian” holiday gained popularity, these more sinister traditions were pushed back to autumn and became the basis for today’s Halloween.

So let’s turn back the clock to a simpler time when darkness (and death) ruled the winter, and celebrate a local watering hole with a ghostly connection to Christmas…

Although, Boardner’s opened in 1942, this address had served as a bar for at least a decade before, making it one of the last great bars of Hollywood’s golden era, and as such, it is often used as a film location to evoke that era. It was used in Tim Burton’s “Ed Wood” (pictured above), since Ed Wood, arguably the worst film director in film history, frequented this tavern. The movie also depicts a fictional meeting between Wood and Orson Welles, arguably Hollywood’s greatest director, at the historic (haunted) Musso & Frank’s Bar and Grill across the street. Although, there is no proof that this event ever happened there, it is likely it may have happened at Boardner’s given that many of Hollywood’s elite (including Welles) could be found slumming it at Boardner’s, including a down-n-out, D.W Griffith, arguably the most important film director ever, who not only transformed movies from novelties into an art form, but he also turned Hollywood, from a farming community, into the center of the motion picture industry.

However, despite all the notable people who have past through its neon-lit entrance, today, most people know of Boardner’s because of its association with the infamous “Black Dahlia” murder case, where the naked body of an actress/singer/possible prostitute was found cut in half with a bloody smile carved into her face, lying “posed” in a vacant lot on Norton Avenue. While the “Black Dahlia,” aka Elizabeth Short, was living in Hollywood (one block away from Boardners), she frequented this establishment. Her drink of preference was supposedly beer. Incidentally, the moniker, “The Black Dahlia” is a reference to a popular movie of that time, “The Blue Dahlia,” which was written by another supposed Boardner’s regular, Raymond Chandler.

The grizzly Dahlia case kicked off a media frenzy, and despite all the scrutiny and investigations, the killer was never caught. Thus, its considered one of the great unsolved mysteries of Los Angeles with many solutions, theories, and suspects that are still discussed among Angelenos (including rumors that she was killed by Orson Welles). There is even a bus tour of all the Dahlia sites by Esotouric Bus Adventures. Recently, the Black Dahlia story has even been worked into the LA-centric TV series, American Horror Story, or rather the ghost of Elizabeth Short is now part of the show and part of their fictional haunted house’s mythology.

In real life, the actual ghost of Elizabeth Short is said to haunt the elevators of the Biltmore Hotel (officially the last place see was seen alive). However, there are claims that she may haunt other locations…

It is said that she visited all her old Hollywood hangouts during the “missing days” before this unknown actress became posthumously famous.

Was she at Boardner’s the night she was murdered? Did she meet her killer there for a drink, or a beer? Was it perhaps the film director that she wrote home about?

Could the dark presence witnesses feel in the tiny ladies room at the far end of the building be the tragic spirit of Elizabeth Short? Does she haunt her old haunt as some believe?

Although the bar is most known for its haunted bathroom (Boardner’s website even boasts about it), as well as odd electrical disturbances, there is an additional ghost that resides on the premises…

There is a room that runs parallel to the the bar on the other side of the north wall (accessed through the courtyard) known as B52 Club (a reference to the bar that occupied this address before Boardners), and home to Bar Sinister (LA’s best Goth Club). Inside the large loft-like space, generally only open during special events, there is a long stairway that goes to an upstairs office. Employees, late at night, have claimed to see a ghostly man at the top of those stairs, or have heard phantom footsteps walking up those steps.

The identity of this male spirit is unknown, but just as with the Dahlia, there are some likely suspects. Obviously, Steve Boardner, the Bar’s namesake, is one suspect, since he spent many hours in that room, using it both as an office and a place for him and his friends to play poker into the wee hours of the morning.

Secondly, it is said that for a period, there was a bed in that room, and the then owner allowed a homeless man to sleep there during the hours that the business was closed. According to this story, one morning, it was discovered that he had died in his sleep sometime during the night before. Interestingly, the historic (haunted) Miceli’s Restaurant, a block away, has an identical story of a homeless man dying in his sleep. Incidentally, Boardner and Carmen Miceli were close friends with signs in each of their establishments pointing patrons to the other establishment. Boardner gave Miceli the money to open his restauarant, back when Miceli was a busboy at the famous (haunted) night club, Ciro’s.

The leading contender for the ghost’s identity, however, is that of Kurt Richter, who purchased Boardner’s from Steve Boardner in 1980 (along with partner, Dave Hadley), and was co-owner of this landmark until he had a heart-attack, and died inside Bioardner’s while sitting at the bar in 1997…

…on Christmas Eve!

Merry Christmas everyone, and hope to see you there!

http://www.boardners.com/

(to read about last month’s haunted location… )
(to read about the ghosts of Musso & Franks… )
(to read about the ghosts of Miceli’s… )

The Ghosts:

Like a scene straight out of the movie Poltergeist, in the middle of rows of 1960′s era suburban neighborhoods, sits an 1860′s haunted house. This spot, deep in the San Fernando Valley, was also the original site of on a Native American village (like in Poltergeist). And as if that weren’t enough, the home is haunted by a little girl (also like Poltergeist).

The village mentioned above was home to the Chumash tribe that chose this land because of a fresh water spring nearby. The Chumash word for “water” is “canoga,” hence the modern day name for this area, “Canoga Park.” These waters also brought visitors, who traveled along the El Camino Real (Royal Road) to and from the San Fernando Mission.

Then in 1854, this region (and the west half of the valley) was sold by Andres Pico to Issac Lankershim, and it was converted into farms. In 1869, Alfred Workman, who managed the 13,ooo acres of wheat on the western edge of the property, was granted permission to build a house for himself and his bride on this spot. After falling into disrepair at the turn of the century, it was purchased by the screen-writing (husband and wife) team of Colin and Florence Clements. They restored the house, and held many parties on the property that were attended to by the movie stars of the day. The screenplay for The Wizard of Oz was even written within its walls. It was during these times that the home was nicknamed “Shadow Ranch.” Despite the ominous title, the moniker was chosen because of the huge eucalyptus trees surrounding the house for shade (planted on Workman’s wedding day). After the Clements, the Paulls family raised 13 children in this house. Then, in 1957, the city obtained the property to use as a community center, and in 1962, Shadow Ranch became one of the first ten places chosen by the City of Los Angeles as a Cultural Historical Monument (it’s #9).

Now, for the ghosts… As mentioned above, there is a little girl seen walking around the house, and following staff members. It is said that she likes to play in the house after hours, and when employees stay late, she tugs on their arm to remind them its time to leave so she can have the house to herself. There is a little boy on the second floor, who is seen (from outside) looking out of the upstairs windows. According to local legend, he died in an accident and was decapitated. There is a woman in a white Victorian dress, who walks through visitors of the house, and of course the ghost of Alfred Workman is said to haunt the house.

Interestingly enough, spirit sighting in this structure go back many decades. A cook for one of the families that lived in the home stated that he believed a ghost occupied a small hall next to the garage.

Also, in the 1970′s, the Valley’s chapter of the Society for Psychophysiological Research (SPR) held their monthly meetings in this building where experts were invited to give lectures on various aspects of the occult to their membership. More recently, GHOULA was told by staff that not a Halloween goes by without paranormal investigation teams and Ouija clubs requesting access to the house for late night activities and experiments.

Lastly, like most historic properties in Southern California, there are claims that 25,000 dollars worth of gold was buried on the property (somewhere near the house) by a group of bandits, who robbed a Wells Fargo stage coach on the nearby Santa Susanna Pass. While the Clements lived here, they complained that people were always digging up their lawn at night looking for the treasure. Other versions of the story, connect the notorious Joaquin Murrieta to the lost gold, who (like the little boy who haunts the house) also was decapitated after death. Coincidence?

(To see last week’s haunted screening location… )