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Ghost house: Glassell Park family opens home to visitors in search of the paranormal
One of the "ghost writer" Polaroids communicates "anything is possible." Some believe it's the paranormal trying to communicate with those inside a home in Glassel Park.
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COURTESY OF BILL MURPHY
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One of the "ghost writer" Polaroids snapped inside a home in Glassel Park spells out a message.
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COURTESY OF BILL MURPHY
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The white, hazy image on this Polaroid photo spells out the word "yes." Paranormal investigators have found that if you ask a question inside the "ghost writer" house in Glassel Park that sometimes you'll get an answer.
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COURTESY OF BILL MURPHY
)
You may get a chance on Friday and Saturday to communicate with ghosts.
Paranormal investigators are hosting tours of a house in Glassell Park that is home to a case known as “ghost writer.”
John Huckert and his family have lived there for more than 20 years – and believe they may not be alone. They’ve snapped hundreds of Polaroid photos inside the home. The pictures show white, hazy images and words appear in response to questions like … are you there? One photo shows an answer: Y-E-S.
Bill Murphy of the Syfy Channel’s “Fact or Faked: Paranormal Files” has studied the “Ghost Writer” case.
“If you ask a silly question - questions that would be meant for you to personably benefit from it - there would be no response," Murphy said. "John and the others are the first to say, once this started, we asked if we could get lottery numbers and there was like no answer. It would be a like a regular Polaroid.”
Murphy will host the “ghost writer” tours – one Friday night and another on Saturday night.
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He said he'll present some of the "ghost writer" Polaroids at Dearly Departed on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood. Then, vans will stop by to pick up tour-goers for a jaunt to the "Ghost Writer" house.
“It looks kind of creepy when you walk up the hillside, itself," Murphy said. "There’s a series of concrete steps that have been there for over a hundred years depressed into the hill. You approach this wooden balcony and then you gain entrance to the house and it’s a very tight house. It’s a working-class neighborhood although the yards are quite large. You walk into the living room and there’s a brick fire place immediately to the center. It’s like a curved, round, original fireplace. Along the rear wall is where the images seem to appear.”
Murphy said he invites attendees to bring Polaroid cameras to capture their own images. He said other cameras don't have the same effect inside the "ghost writer" house.
“There is a lot of film out there that when you try to use it, it does not result in an image, just a blank, brownish sort of haze to the whole thing and you really can’t get a great photograph," he said.
There's at least one potential hiccup in Murphy's plan. The standard Polaroid 600 film can be pricey (like five dollars or more per exposure, depending on where you buy it) since it's difficult to find. The photo company stopped making the instant film four years ago.
“I’m bringing film that I was recently able to obtain,” Murphy said. “I think I have enough that hopefully we’ll get some good images.”
Murphy said the tour is open to those 16 years or older (so leave the kids at home).
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More information about tickets and schedules is available here.
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