With All Hallow's Eve upon us, I thought iit appropriate to take some time to write a bit about the spookier side of historic preservation in Los Angeles. Haunted houses and other locations are standard fare for such articles and PreserveLA holds no exception. For the otherworldly curious, the following is a list of a few of our city's better known haunted historic places...

Have a safe and happy Halloween!!

• Hollywood Forever Cemetery 6000 Santa Monica Blvd, Los Angeles, CA Legend has it that a black-veiled woman brings fresh flowers to Rudolph Valentino's grave every week.

• Hollywood Sign
  Mt. Lee in Griffith Park, Los Angeles, CA
  Local folklore says that a struggling young 1930s actress' suicide act is still played out around this famous L.A. landmark.

• Site of Harry Houdini's Hollywood Home
  2400 Laurel Canyon Blvd, Los Angeles, =en">2400 Laurel Canyon Blvd, Los Angeles, CA
  Some say that the ghost of Houdini does not rest in peace and that he still walks where his beloved castle once stood.
  
  
• Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel
  7000 Hollywood Blvd, Hollywood, CA
  Reported apparitions include those of Hollywood legends--and former guests--Marilyn Monroe and Montgomery Clift.
  
  
• Pantages Theatre
  6233 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, CA
  It's been reported that eccentric billionaire Howard Hughes haunts his former theatre.
  
  
• Universal Studios Hollywood
  100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, CA
  Some say they've seen a black-caped Lon Chaney Sr. running along catwalks tinkling a chandelier removed years ago.

• Thelma Todd's Roadside Rest Cafe
  17575 Pacific Coast Highway, Pacific Palisades, CA
  Thelma Todd still walks her restaurant, or at least that’s what the owners of a building on the Pacific Coast Highway have claimed for years.
  
  
• Grauman's Chinese Theatre
  6925 Hollywood Blvd, Hollywood, CA
  One urban folklore claims the ghost of actor Victor Killian makes strange sounds and moves objects in search of his killer.

• George Reeves Residence
  1579 Benedict Canyon Drive, Beverly Hills, CA
  The death of Superman remains an unsolved mystery. Could this be why his ghost is still said to haunt his former Benedict Canyon Drive home?

• Virginia Hill Residence
  810 Linden Drive, Beverly Hills, CA
  This home is reportedly still haunted by the panicked presence of Bugsy Siegel as he scrambles for cover, attempting to hide from the bullets that killed him.
  
  
• The Queen Mary
  1126 Queens Hwy, Long Beach, CA
  The "Ghosts and Legends Tour" includes stories of mysterious sightings like splashes and wet footprints around the long-drained first-class swimming pool, including that of a little girl in a white dress.
  
  
• Silent Movie Theatre
  611 N Fairfax Ave, Los Angeles, CA
  The spirits of two former owners are said to haunt this venue honoring Hollywood's Golden Age.

For even more spooky places in Los Angeles, check out the following:

http://www.prairieghosts.com/hollywood.html
http://www.haunted-places.com/paranorm.htm#CALIFORNIA
http://hotels.about.com/od/hauntedlosangeles/

Bela Lugosi, the stage name of actor Béla Ferenc Dezső Blaskó, is an epithet that immediately conjures up images of vampires, werewolves, and other monsters. The actor was well known as one of Hollywood's darkest leading men, so it seems appropriate to pay tribute to him this Halloween. Think of Lugosi as you watch everyone who is dressed-up in dracula costumes parading around the neighborhood, or Sunset Boulevard, as the case may be...in fact, you probably already do.

Lugosi is likely best remembered for his portrayal of Dracula in the American Broadway stage production, and subsequent 1931 film, of Bram Stoker's classic vampire story. His interpretation of Stoker's villain forever defined the role, and evokes the imagery that we think of today.

Lugosi wasn't really a vampire, of course. He lived in the Hollywood Hills like many actors have done before and since. Awhile back, I was asked by a PreserveLA reader whether I knew anything about where Lugosi lived in Los Angeles, and if his residence remained intact. Here is what I found:

A quick Google search revealed that Bela Lugosi had a residence in at the late 1930s at 2227 Outpost Drive in the Outpost Estates neighborhood of the Hollywood Hills. According to the neighorhood association's website, developer Charles Toberman built the residence as a model home in 1935. Toberman wanted to use the house to demonstrate a radically new type of construction. The house was built entirely of steel, and heralded as being "termite proof and fireproof, earthquake resistant and impervious to wear and shrinkage." Lugosi is said to have immediately purchased the residence upon its completion.

Later in his career Lugosi moved into a little flat at 5620 Harold