Black Dahlia Part 1: The Biltmore Hotel (Los Angeles, CA)
09/27/23 • 91 min
1 Listener
Hadley and Alyssa dive into the life and gruesome death of Elizabeth Short—better known as the Black Dahlia—whose unsolved murder spurred Hollywood’s most persistent ghost story. Working to uncover whether or not the iconic Millennium Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles was the last place she was seen alive, the hosts retrace Elizabeth's final steps through her unmailed letters, stories from people who knew her, and eye-witness testimony. Having tracked her movements up to the evening of January 9, 1947, when she was seen leaving the lobby of the Biltmore, Alyssa and Hadley review all the possible sightings that may prove Elizabeth was seen elsewhere in Los Angeles the following week. They also sift through the many chilling stories of paranormal activity reported by Biltmore guests in recent years, which have many people convinced that Elizabeth’s spirit remains at the hotel. Later, the hosts learn about several top suspects in the case, including one who stands out among the rest.
CREDITS
Alyssa Fiorentino - Co-host & Producer
Hadley Mendelsohn - Co-host & Producer
Jessy Caron - Producer & Audio Editor
Jacob Stone - Sound Editor & Mixer
To advertise on the show: https://www.advertisecast.com/DarkHouse or email us at [email protected].
RELATED LINKS
Ghost Captured in the Biltmore Hotel by Ginny Myers Sain (PHOTO): bit.ly/45UCN85
‘Childhood Shadows’ by Mary Pacios: https://amzn.to/4532RwC
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Hadley and Alyssa dive into the life and gruesome death of Elizabeth Short—better known as the Black Dahlia—whose unsolved murder spurred Hollywood’s most persistent ghost story. Working to uncover whether or not the iconic Millennium Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles was the last place she was seen alive, the hosts retrace Elizabeth's final steps through her unmailed letters, stories from people who knew her, and eye-witness testimony. Having tracked her movements up to the evening of January 9, 1947, when she was seen leaving the lobby of the Biltmore, Alyssa and Hadley review all the possible sightings that may prove Elizabeth was seen elsewhere in Los Angeles the following week. They also sift through the many chilling stories of paranormal activity reported by Biltmore guests in recent years, which have many people convinced that Elizabeth’s spirit remains at the hotel. Later, the hosts learn about several top suspects in the case, including one who stands out among the rest.
CREDITS
Alyssa Fiorentino - Co-host & Producer
Hadley Mendelsohn - Co-host & Producer
Jessy Caron - Producer & Audio Editor
Jacob Stone - Sound Editor & Mixer
To advertise on the show: https://www.advertisecast.com/DarkHouse or email us at [email protected].
RELATED LINKS
Ghost Captured in the Biltmore Hotel by Ginny Myers Sain (PHOTO): bit.ly/45UCN85
‘Childhood Shadows’ by Mary Pacios: https://amzn.to/4532RwC
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Previous Episode
Taylor Swift's Holiday House (Watch Hill, RI)
Alyssa—a longtime “Swiftie”—leads us in a deep dive into the history of Holiday House, Taylor Swift’s oceanfront mansion in Watch Hill, Rhode Island. The co-hosts turn their attention to “the last great american dynasty,” a track off of Swift’s 2020 album Folklore, from which we learned that, just like us, she too enjoys digging into the history of her own home and learning about the people who lived there before her. In the song, Swift sings about the fascinating life of Rebekah Harkness—an American socialite who purchased Holiday House in 1948 with her second husband, Standard Oil heir William Harkness. Following her husband’s death, Harkness spent much of his fortune hosting lavish parties, buying her own ballet company, and pissing off her neighbors in the small resort community of Watch Hill along the way. After scouring through old newspapers and reading ‘Blue Blood,’ the out-of-print biography on Rebekah’s life, Alyssa breaks down the song line by line, revealing which of the wild anecdotes mentioned in the song are true (did Rebekah really dye her neighbor’s dog key lime green??), which aren’t, and what’s missing. She also shares her own theory about the lyrics, and why she thinks they may suggest that Holiday House is haunted by Rebekah’s ghost. Later, the co-hosts discuss Swift’s own struggles since buying the home in 2013, including her many (horrifying) encounters with stalkers trying to gain access to the property.
CREDITS
Alyssa Fiorentino - Co-host & Producer
Hadley Mendelsohn - Co-host & Producer
Jessy Caron - Producer & Audio Editor
Jacob Stone - Sound Editor & Mixer
To advertise on the show: https://www.advertisecast.com/DarkHouse or email us at [email protected].
RELATED LINKS
Holiday House old postcard (PHOTO): bit.ly/3qG8dzS
‘Blue Blood’ by Craig Unger: https://amzn.to/3sjhuy9
‘Watch Hill Through Time’ by Chaplin Bradford Barnes: https://amzn.to/45Bbb7B
“Taylor Swift: A former resident of your house would like to meet you” The Day (ARTICLE): bit.ly/44sIhpm
Watch Hill Historic District Nomination Form (PDF): bit.ly/3OKhWx4
Rebekah Harkness or Jane Lynch? (PHOTO): bit.ly/3KQigt5
Daimoku - Nam myoho renge kyo - 15 minutes (VIDEO): bit.ly/3OHG6bi
‘Blue Blood’ recap series by @JessiSwiftTok (TIKTOK): bit.ly/44iUsVt
‘Blue Blood’ analysis by @Kristina Parro (TIKTOK): bit.ly/3qLttnG
Westerly RI including Taylor Swift's house...Ocean House Watch Hill DJI Phantom 4 Drone view in 4K (VIDEO): bit.ly/3OJjo2B
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Next Episode
Black Dahlia Part 2: The John Sowden House (Los Angeles, CA)
With a better understanding of the victim, Elizabeth Short, Hadley and Alyssa set their sights on the Black Dahlia’s suspected killer: prominent California doctor George Hodel. Dr. Hodel lived in the John Sowden House—Frank Lloyd Wright Jr.'s surrealist magnum opus in Los Feliz—from 1945 to 1950, until he abandoned his family and fled the country after the home was bugged by the district attorney's office. Following the trail of a popular theory, the hosts explore the history of Sowden House, from its magnificent Mayan Revival architecture and many former owners to the events and evidence that have led many to believe it was the site of Elizabeth Short’s murder.
CREDITS
Alyssa Fiorentino - Co-host & Producer
Hadley Mendelsohn - Co-host & Producer
Jessy Caron - Producer & Audio Editor
Jacob Stone - Sound Editor & Mixer
To advertise on the show: https://www.advertisecast.com/DarkHouse or email us at [email protected].
RELATED LINKS
Sowden House, 5121 Franklin Avenue, Los Angeles (PHOTOS): https://bit.ly/3PBihm5
‘Black Dahlia Avenger’ by Steve Hodel: https://amzn.to/468kDj4
Root of Evil: The True Story of the Hodel Family and the Black Dahlia (PODCAST): https://bit.ly/45iciIU
Historic American Buildings Survey, Sowden House (PDF): https://bit.ly/3ZwglA1
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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