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Mail Bag! Flynn, Mulholland Farm and Ghosts!

01 Dec

The morning Mail Bag brings this from Audie, who says this may not be new, but take a look!

Thanks, Audie …

— David DeWitt

 
8 Comments

Posted in Flynn-related, Mail Bag

 

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  1. Jack Marino

    December 2, 2018 at 5:56 am

    Just a couple of corrections to this Mulholland farm story about the ghost. Barrymore’s body wasn’t taken to Flynn’s house that was an idea they all had while they were all having dinner at Flynn’s. They were all drunk and you can read the story in Buster Wile’s book MY DAYS WITH ERROL FLYNN. It’s that night a drunken Raoul Wash believes it happen. He told the story so many times for the rest of his life that it became an urban legend.

    In 1978 to May of 1988, I was going up to Mulholland on a weekly if not daily basis. It was if I was the new owner and I took a lot of my friend from Hollywood up to the house. I got to know the last owner Steve Weiss who was the guy that tore it down. I believe the City of LA gave him a lot of problems and it all had to do with not paying off certain Inspectors for not pulling the right permits. This is what he hinted to me. I don’t know how true any of that is. I can tell you that there was NO FIRE to the house in 88 before it was torn down. I was there the day before he had it knocked down and I went up there the day after. All that was left was the wooden platform.

    That rumor of Flynn’s house caught fire probably came from the time Susie Hamblin was burning Christman wrapping 1960, in the chimney that was in the den. Some of the ambers when on the roof where Errol had built the nursery and the roof caught fire. Stuart went out there and use a garden hose to put out the shingles that caught fire. He then had that room enlarge for all their Western gear

     

    • Gentleman Tim

      December 2, 2018 at 7:30 am

      Thank you, Jack!

      I’ve seen the rumor of a fire is sometimes accompanied with the rumor of a murder. Any input on that one!!

      “The Mulholland house stood vacant after Rick Nelson’s death. During that time, darkness seemed to completely envelop the place. A gang broke in and murdered a girl in the living room. Then a mysterious fire burned half the house.”

      www.lauriejacobson.com…

       

      • Jack Marino

        December 4, 2018 at 6:14 am

        Tim, I know Laura and have read her stuff, she was on my show once to promote her book. When Ricky died the twins lived in the house until all his estate was settled and his e wife put the house up on the market in April of 87. That is when I got up there, my partner in my film knew the broker and asked him if I could go up there. I use that broker’s name everything I wanted to go into the place and I had a full year to see the place. I only regret that I didn’t take a lot more pictures of every wall, closet, bathrooms. At that time I didn’t know about the telescope or the crawl space behind the bar where you could go to the end where there was a mirror you could see into the bathroom that a lot of women used up there. There was also a space in the wall from Flynn’s bedroom that he could go through the panel in the fireplace and walked down to the front door that was facing the mountain and he could get out of the house fast. If I had known then what I know now I would have photographed it all.

        If there was a murder in the house it would have been in the LA TIMES for three weeks. I had heard that way up in the hills about the house there were a lot of hobos living up there and there was a cave and in that cave or area someone was murdered but that wasn’t during the time Ricky was there or after he died. You have to remember anything that happens near Flynn’s house or on the grounds, it made the papers.

        I was told in the book Helter Skelter about the Manson murders. The night of the killings Charlie drove up to Flynn’s house that was owned by the Hamblins at that time. He got out of the car and jumped over the fence to look into the big picture window and he saw photos of all the Hamblin grandchildren and a painting of Jesus Christ. I have seen that painting of Christ in Susie Hamblin’s house when Bob Matzen, Mike Mazzone and I went to the house to interview the Hamblins. Charlie got back into his car and said there were too many kids in that house. He drove off from there to where Sharon Tate was.

        Again, I was all over that house in 87 to 88 when it was on the market and the house wasn’t burned down or any fire damage to it.

        When I was up there I wanted to send the night up there with my wife Louise but she was in her ninth month with our son. She wouldn’t do it thinking she would be so nervous she figures she would give birth up in Flynn’s bedroom. She always said if she wasn’t pregnant she would have stayed up there with me. I wanted to spend the night up there with some friends just in case we saw Errol’s ghost we were going to have a lot of vodka and scotch ready. At that time no one would go up there with me. After the house was gone they all said they would have all gone up there then,.I wanted to have some witnesses in case the old boy showed up for a drink or two!

         

    • David DeWitt

      December 2, 2018 at 4:26 pm

      Great, Jack! As I have said before on the blog, back in the day I was in LA two or three times when the house was still standing, and never got up to explore Mulholland to my everlasting regret! But your photos and stories about it and the wonderful book that came out about it that you contributed to (Errol Flynn Slept Here …) really help me feel better! And going up to the gate with Tom McNulty and his wife Jan during the LEGENDARY 2009 100th Birthday Party for Errol you and Louise put on in Burbank, was great, too …

       

      • Jack Marino

        December 4, 2018 at 6:35 am

        Dave, it was too bad we didn’t know each other in 87 and 88 I would have brought you up to the house and I bet you would have stayed in the house with me at night. That would have been historic if we saw or felt anything in the house. We both could have written about it, the night we spent with Errol Flynn’s ghost drinking. LOL

        The party was a big success and Louise and I was always grateful that it went off without a hitch. I was so impressed that all you Flynn guys all came out here for this party that lasted three days and three nights. It was a time to remember. I would love to have another one here at the new house I have mixed feelings about doing it again.

         

        • David DeWitt

          December 4, 2018 at 5:44 pm

          I have thought the same thing many times, Jack. We would have stayed up all night and I am sure Flynn would have slammed a door somewhere just to see us jump up! Then laugh like hell … If you ever did it again, Jack, there are people who missed it who would move Heaven and Earth to be there. So many people have heard the stories and regret not being there, or getting invited. Some people you two would love! It is a great thing you met Steve and Genene Randall, finally. Bob Peckinpaugh, writer Stephen Youngkin, many others, all say, PLEASE let me know if you do it again. With a twinkle in his eyes, actor Paul Picerni (Mara Maru) at the party said, See you at the next 100 year party for Errol, right? Jack, it was the MOTHER OF ALL Errol Flynn birthday parties … You could probably get Rory over there for another one … she was in Australia for that bash but would have loved to be at your party, too. I owe my close friendship with Rory to you. Will see her Thursday …

           

  2. Gentleman Tim

    December 2, 2018 at 6:05 am

    Thank you, Audie, but …

    Don’t Be Afraid of No Ghosts!

    If Mulholland was haunted, Father Dowling and Sister Steve would have most definitely solved the mystery and thoroughly exorcised the house and all eleven acres. Plus, I doubt any evil spirits would have hung out there listening to Stuart Hamblen singing his beautiful Gospel songs.

    Those two could solve anything, anywhere. (Except for the Chicago Cubs century-long World Series drought, concerning which they apparently didn’t have a ghost of a chance.)

    After Party Ghost List

     

    • Jack Marino

      December 4, 2018 at 6:26 am

      Tim, the Hamblin grandkids told me that the room where Barrymore stayed in none of the kids would go into that room The Aunt and Uncle stayed in that room. None of the adults felt any presence of anything at all.

      Deirdre told me that when she went to the house when she was older she saw her Dad nail the trapped door over the see-through mirror, so the kids couldn’t open it and fall through. Every so often the four nails would be on the floor,

      The Hambiins grandson told the same story to me. Stuart would nail the trapped door shut and they would later find the four nails out of the wood and on the floor. I told them too bad your Grandfather didn’t countersink the nails or screws to see if anyone was coming in from the hill up into the attic and pulling the nails out. I never saw any damage to the wood where the holes were for the nails. If a ghost were taking them out there would be no damage but if it was human and they were countersunk you would see damage to the wood.

      They day Errol Flynn died the Hamblins were eating supper and the news came over the radio and they told me that the house began to shake and the pipes in the walls began to bang loud. Stuart went outside to where the heater was and it was empty of water so that would make the pipe bang if anyone had a steam heating in their home would remember. To have it happen the moment Errol death came over the radio….. is anyone’s guess