Los Angeles is, in many ways, the land of artifice, so it shouldn’t be surprising that beneath the glittering facade lurks a dark and twisted history. Whether you've got a creepy role on the horizon and need some inspiration or are just looking for (free) activities that’ll make the hair on the back of your neck stand erect, here are a few of L.A.’s most spine-tingling spots. Check them out below—if you think you can handle it, that is.
The Suicide Bridge
Where: Pasadena
The spook: Built in 1912, the Suicide Bridge is actually named the Colorado Street Bridge, but it’s touted that lovely moniker since the 1930s when it was used with high frequency during the Great Depression for individuals to end their lives. Hundreds have used it for that purpose since, and it is said to be haunted by numerous ghosts, including one worker who fell into the concrete during its construction.
Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel
Where: Hollywood
The spook: The Roosevelt is the first of multiple hotels on this list (what is it about hotels that is so darn creepy?). With its reputation for having hosted tons of big stars during the Golden Age, many still supposedly hang around. Marilyn Monroe, for example, appears in the mirror of the suite she used to stay in when she first started to find fame, and Montgomery Clift can be seen skulking through the room he lived in while filming “From Here to Eternity.”
The Comedy Store
Where: West Hollywood
The spook: Now the Comedy Store, this Sunset Blvd. front used to be home to the mob hot spot Ciro’s back in the 1940s and 50s. Needless to say, the venue’s still-intact walls would have some gruesome tales to tell, and it is said to be haunted by hit men, in addition to a woman who performed illegal abortions downstairs as well as one of her “patients” who died during a procedure.
Del Monte Speakeasy
Where: Venice
The spook: This old school bar is still very popular today, thanks to its 1930s ambience and secret cocktail menu that’s only revealed in person. The hangout might even be made more appealing by the fact that many have reported seeing its former owner Frank Bennett, who died in 2003, hanging in his favorite booth in back. One woman also recounted having her hair pulled while she was alone in the bathroom, but that may just add to the authenticity, no?
Queen Mary
Where: Long Beach
The spook: In essence alone, a ship is rife with horror (isolated at sea, passengers have nowhere to run, etc.), but that’s just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to this docked ship. Many have reported seeing women in 1930s bathing suits in the dilapidated pool area of the Queen Mary, which was used as a luxury ship before being repurposed for military use. Others have recalled spooky tales from the kitchen area, where a chef was once murdered by soldiers, and a baby can also reportedly be heard crying in the third-class children’s room.
Cecil Hotel
Where: Downtown L.A.
The spook: Less known for ghost sightings than its real-life atrocities, the downtown hotel—which inspired a season of “American Horror Story”—hosted numerous murders throughout the 1920s and 30s before becoming a popular suicide locale by the ‘60s. Perhaps most spine-chilling, though, is the well-known and recent story of the tourist Elisa Lam, who was seen behaving strangely in the hotel’s elevator surveillance footage before her body turned up in its rooftop water tank. The mystery remains unsolved.
Knickerbocker Hotel
Where: Hollywood
The spook: The Knickerbocker was converted into a senior living facility in 1999 (which has an air of creepiness all its own), a sharp contrast to its status as a celebrity hotspot frequented by the likes of Marilyn Monroe and Elvis. Its Hollywood prominence means it was the epicenter to many Tinsel Town tragedies, including the death of director D.W. Griffith, who suffered a stroke and died under the hotel’s chandelier and is said to still lurk around the bar, while Monroe can supposedly be spotted freshening up in the ladies’ washroom.
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