Ghost Hunters Recap 10.25.07: Episode 317 - Salem

Posted by Ron Martin on 10.25.2007

This week TAPS takes on the historic town of Salem, Mass. They investigate a haunted restaurant and a haunted hotel named after a famous writer that you will have to read the recap to find out who it is.

The day you circled on your calendar is finally here! It's probably Thursday by the time you read this and you know what that means. Last night the TAPS team investigated some spooky place; Evil Jason and Grant probably proved once again that they are the Alpha Males of the group, Tango did something funny and dummy Kris asked a stupid question but didn't ghost hunt.

Me thinks this week shall be different. Why? From the previews last week it looks like this episode was recorded with the old TAPS crew in tact. I specifically saw Donna and Lisa ghost hunting. This is good in another way. It means Kris may not appear in this episode.

This may be my personally most anticipated Ghost Hunters episode. For those of you who are not chronic readers of this column – shame on you, you should be! I guess for those one-and-outers, I'll explain some stuff. The TAPS team are ghost hunting in my personal favorite haunt tonight, Salem, MA. You may recognize the name. You know the place where 19 people were wrongfully executed for crimes they didn't commit. Oh, and one more was pressed to death with stones when he refused to plea either guilty or non guilty to the court. There just may be some haunting here, ya think?

I happened to beat TAPS to the punch (even though I am sure this episode was recorded a long time ago). I ghost hunted in Salem about three weeks ago. I am sure TAPS got extra special permission to ghost hunt a lot of places that I wasn't allowed to, but here are some of my findings in Salem.



This is a house in Salem where someone was murdered in the upper bedroom where the light shows up in front of the window. How do I know this? I've been on the many, many ghost tours in Salem of course. When I took this picture, I was actually waiting for a friend to hit up the bar across the street.



This is an interesting picture that I took near the old Town Hall. Anyone who's ever seen the movie Hocus Pocus might recognize it as the place where the Halloween party was filmed. Some people think it looks like cigarette smoke, some think it looks like the ghost of a skull trying to bite my head off. I don't smoke, but there were people about ten yards from me. Another shot I took two seconds or so later had nothing in it, but the town hall. Feel free to come up with your own theories.



Now, I'm not an advocate of "orbs" as spirits. There's a big movement in the paranormal community to discredit orbs because there is no way to prove they are spirits. I can dig that. Like I said, I'm not a huge proponent of orbs, but it should be mentioned that I only got orbs in graveyard pics and only at night.

The TAPS team will be investigating The Lyceum restaurant and Hawthorne Hotel. I have had the privilege of ghost hunting at neither. The Lyceum was supposedly the land of one of the victims of the witch trials though the location wouldn't make any sense. There is evidence that suggests Bridget Bishop (the victim) didn't even live in Salem. HBO once did a séance there trying to contact said victim. I do think however, this is supposedly the building where Alexander Graham Bell made the first long distance phone call, if the tours are too be believed.

Places I would rather have seen TAPS investigate that are haunted in Salem:



The abandoned jail that was shut down because it was deemed cruel and unusual punishment to be imprisoned there and once housed the Boston Strangler.

The building across the street from the jail. The foundation is built on the same ground where the remains of the Witch's Gaol was found. This is where the witchcraft victims were imprisoned while they awaited execution.

The House of Seven Gables. Just read the novel by the same name. The place is freaking haunted.

The Witch Dungeon Museum. This place is said to be haunted, but even if it weren't, it's pretty creepy to look at.

The Old Town Hall.

The Joshua Ward House. This place was named one of the most haunted houses in America by the Travel Channel. George Corwin's (the sheriff at the time of the witch trials) body was buried under the ground here for a time because the family (rightfully) feared the body would be abducted and desecrated because of his role in the trials. The body has sense been relocated, but there are tons of stories about this place.

Really. Enough about me. Let's get to some…

Ghostly Gossip

Spinoff

It's official, Ghost Hunters will have it's own spinoff show, kind of. Remember all those ghost hunters who quit TAPS? Well, they've formed a megasquad of ghost hunters who will travel throughout Europe doing what TAPS does in the US (and sometimes Europe). This team will include Donna and Brian as well as Andy, who popped in and out of the first couple of seasons. They also have their own version of Kris in the form of a girl named Shannon. The show debuts on Sci-Fi in January and I am sure it will be paired up with Ghost Hunters on Wednesday nights. I wonder if we'll get "Dude, Run!" in many different languages. For those of you who don't get this joke, e-mail me and I'll explain.

The Reality of Reality

The show has been getting some flak for Kris, Chris Fleming, CM Punk and the fakeass "calls" Grant and Jay sometimes get while working from Donna about a case.

Kris and Chris Fleming, I will not defend because Chris Fleming represents everything TAPS is supposed to hate about the paranormal community and Kris – well, she does look good in that t-shirt, right?

However, as I stated when talking about the show in my regular column A Fool's Utopia, I have no problem with CM Punk (a wrestler from the Sci-Fi wrestling show, ECW) ghost hunting with the gang last Halloween. He served two major purposes. 1) It was cross promotion as Ghost Hunters is a very highly rated show on Sci-Fi and ECW was still fairly new to the channel at that point. 2) CM Punk acted as the everyman for any first time viewers. Since the show couldn't cut to clips of TAPS explaining equipment and ghost hunting techniques to new viewers, they would explain them to CM Punk when he asked and thus to new viewers as well. I thought it was clever actually. In one episode, CM Punk showed more interest in the paranormal that Kris has in four episodes.

As for the set up calls/info about haunted places with Donna and the boys. Well, of course it's set up. What do you expect? The fact that Jason and Grant are actually terrible actors in these skits should actually be a relief to everyone. When they are acting more natural on the ghost hunts, we know it's real because they surely couldn't act that natural. My favorite though was when Donna was telling them about the Myrtles Plantation in New Orleans calling them for an investigation (Season 2). This was supposedly the first time Jason (before he was evil) and Grant had heard about this but behind Donna on the erase board was the team's travel plans for New Orleans.

Deleted Scenes from Last Week

More Tango. Tango must be so disappointed every time he sees an episode. He has like three scenes cut from every episode. Maybe he is actually the most prolific ghost hunter, but they just don't show it. Hmmm.

Also, the reverend from last week shows the gang the padded wall room in the basement of the church that mysteriously appeared during the episode even though we had never heard of it before that. Maybe that clip would have been something we need to see there Mr. Editorman.

Steve gets scared first a fly then a spider. The latter makes him take the Lord's name in vain in the House of the Lord. I wonder if Steve would be scared if it were a ghost of a spider?

Let's see if TAPS can do as good as me in the very haunted city of Salem, MA. Oh, and just for the record, I will probably be correcting mistakes made by the production if any facts are brought up about the witch trials, a topic I have studied at length. Already the website says 19 people were hanged there as witches in 1693. They almost got it right. It was 1692. Try Google, Mr. Webmaster.

Time for your weekly recap of…



I'm already stoked by the opening sequence because it's the old school TAPS team with Donna, Brian and Lisa minus dummy Kris. By the way, all the spooky places they flashed in the teaser? None of them were the Lyceum of the Hawthorne Hotel. Someone is gonna get hurt and have to go to the hospital. I'm wondering how well Steve is going to do because there are lots of bugs there.

We get a fake old call from Donna to the boys on the job. They've been saving this episode for a long time because Evil Jason has not yet arrived and rid the world of the original not so evil Jason.

The Pitch, Salem Massachusetts

As Grant would say – what the frick? The pitch? I've never seem "the pitch" before. Or maybe I have and have just completely ignored it. Okay, I guess we need a pitch.

Donna is super-hyped. So hyped that she has a whole file on different hauntings in Salem. Donna's whole pitch is "we should go see if it's haunted or not." Man, does she have a grasp for the actual point of the show or what?

Donna explains that the Hawthorne Hotel's sixth floor is haunted while they show a shot of said hotel and I try and see if I can see my friend's house in the shot, but alas, I can not. She also gives the case for The Lyceum, complete with supposed Bridget Bishop history.

Donna relates the story of how she went to Salem with her family when she was 11 and how the town gave her a feeling of mysticism. She went on a ghost tour, hung out in a room longer than everyone else and felt something. They keep showing shots of the House of Seven Gables so I am going to assume that this was where she went on the tour. It is a creepy house. She's always wanted to go back and corroborate what she felt on that day. Which is weird because she's only a two hour drive away. I'm over 1000 miles away and make it there once a year.

Grant talks about Salem being the land of the witches. For some reason, this makes Jason think of his family. Jason bemoans the fact that he has to spend so much time away from his family. It should be noted that nothing was mentioned about families before or after this. The clip is just stuck in there for no reason at all. Other than Jason thinks his family is a bunch of witches. Donna is really, really excited. If you're so excited, how come you've never just driven up there? You live in Rhode Island. It's not that far.

Case #1: The Lyceum, Salem, Massachusetts

The Investigation

For some reason, the bartender of the Lyceum is the one giving the tour, not the owner. She immediately tells them the ghost of Bridget Bishop is there. They cut to Jim McAllister who is a local historian (and pretty good tour guide). He explains Bridget Bishop was the first executed and gives a little info as to why. He never says Bridget's land was where the Lyceum is today. If anyone wants to know more about Bridget, email me.

The bartender immediately starts dropping names like Edgar Allen Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne connected with the Lyceum. It used to be a lecture hall, obviously. Another employees claims to have seen the apparition of Bridget on or near the stairs on the second floor. Grant goes on to explain that if people have seen Bridget walking on the second floor and the up the stairs that didn't exist when she was on the property, that's the sign of an intelligent haunting – one that can interact with you. Steve asks why the bartender thinks this haunting is Bridget and the bartender basically says because they took her home away. Bridget's home that is. She fails to mention that it also makes an excellent promotional tool for a business in Salem. Bridget likes to play with the lights as well as throw glasses that never break. She also shows up in the reflection of the mirrors and you can smell apple blossoms when she's around.

They have jackets on and the leaves have turned. This would have to have been filmed almost a year ago, if not over a year.

Jason and Grant are in the kitchen and are smelling perfume, but not apple blossoms. They move upstairs when Jason (not yet evil) gets a phone call. It's his wife. His son fell pretty badly so he has to book. Apparently his kid broke his arm. We're down one ghost hunter. Grant is going to pair up with Lisa and sends Brian and Steve upstairs. Are we seeing the origins of Evil Jason?

The mirror hasn't been cleaned in awhile so Brian and Steve declare the apparitions in the mirror to be matrixing – your mind making something into a form you are familiar with, such as faces.

Lisa and Grant are in the bar. Lisa tries some EVP work. When she asks a question, two computers turn on by themselves. The computers go off. Lisa tries EVP again and the computers come on. Perhaps they're voice activated? A receipt prints out of the machine that just says "1:26 Good Morning." They decide it's just machine tomfoolery.

Brian and Steve notice that car headlights driving by hit the mirrors and cast all kinds of weird shadows on the walls.

Grant explains the importance of Donna to the team (ironic that she is actually no longer part of the team, then isn't it?) and how she started as a client. Her experiences started in Salem and everyone is hoping for some closure for her. Donna explains when she was in fourth grade she once acted as an accidental medium for an automatic writing session.

They wrap up having found nothing. Me thinks the bartender is going to be upset.

Rhode Island Hospital

I think is the person who gets seriously injured. Talk about bait and switch. Jason's kid's arm is broken in a couple of places from falling while playing. The kicker here is since this was recorded a year ago, the thing is way healed by now.

The Findings

They skipped the Analysis, so that means they didn't find anything. And….I'm right. Steve says they didn't find anything. Steve gets to take the place of Jason at the Reveal. But…will he get to fist bump Grant in the end? Only time will tell, my friends. Only time will tell.

The Reveal

I'm thinking Robin (the bartender) is going to act like the computers/receipt thing is proof the place is haunted even though I'm willing to bet my house that that happens all the time there. If I had a house. Aha! Of course Robin has never seen anything like it. Whatever. Lots of computers print "Good Morning" when they are first turned on. Like every other person on here whose place isn't haunted, Robin is disappointed but still thinks The Lyceum is haunted anyways.

Status: Not Haunted.

No fist bump. You suck, Steve.

Grant and Donna check out the Bridget Bishop stone at the Salem Witch Trials memorial. Each victim (20 in all) has a stone slab sticking out of the memorial. The stones look like this…



Of course the one they looked at said "BRIDGET BISHOP" on it. I just didn't happen to take a picture of that one on my latest trip. If anyone would like to see more pics of the memorial or know more about it, email me.

Grant and Donna resume their tour at the House of Seven Gables where Donna had her experience as a kid. I knew it! They are actually standing in the same area where I drank a cup of Chaider a few weeks ago. Donna says the place still feels wicked weird. Grant theorizes if they had treated witchcraft back in the day like TAPS treats the paranormal today, a lot of lives could have been saved. Oooh, they show the abandoned prison and the Joshua Ward house – why couldn't they have investigated those?!

Case #2: Hawthorne Hotel, Salem, Massachusetts

The Investigation

Dustin and Tango are in. Jason, Brian and Lisa are out for this one. Unlike the Lyceum the Hawthorne sends out the General Manager for TAPS. Tour starts in the library. The GM wants to know if the hotel is haunted or not so she can sell it to guests as either haunted or not. That makes sense. I think the ghosts must have stolen all the books out of the library cuz there isn't any in it. Tables and chairs and things like to move around down here. In room 325 the bathroom makes lots and lot of noises. Toes are touched in 325 – the bastards! The sixth floor is very active with ghosts being mischievous, such as stealing keys and the like. Grant immediately starts a ‘speriment by placing his keys in the same spot where keys have disappeared before. Dustin immediately puts a camera right on the keys.

Dustin explains that Salem is a cool town but because of the history some of the local stories have taken a life of their own and the team has to be able to differentiate between story and reality. Tell it to Donna. Her nips have been standing at attention almost all episode. Speaking of Donna, she reiterates again how the town has a creepy but wonderful feel to it. I second that.

Grant puts Donna with Dustin because Dustin will be able to separate fact from story, baby! They head to room 325 and the haunted bathroom. That will be the most requested room next October I guarantee it. Donna surmises that the toe tickling may be due to a vent at the end of the bed. Water rushes through the pipes in the walls making lots of noise.

Tango and Steve are in 628 and see the chandelier moving on its own. Steve asks if an entity can move the keys off the table. The camera shakes ‘no'.

Grant is now with Donna in 3-1 where they find a guestbook. In the guestbook is the occasional ghost story.

Steve and Tango are back in 325. Maybe they will hear rushing water in the walls as well. Despite the general manager saying there was no access to the room adjacent to 325 that it shares a bathroom with, Steve simply opens and walks through that room's door. Huh. Guess that was pretty simple.

The Analysis

Tango and Steve are on analysis. Somehow Dustin always manages to wiggle out of this part as well. That sneaky sumbitch. I got 10 to one that Tango sees something that is really nothing. Uh-oh! Tango finds something. Someone owes me money.

The Findings

Hey, we didn't get a chance to see if Tango screwed up. A somewhat humanoid shape shows up in the corner of the thermal imaging camera in the basement. Steve explains that he thinks it might be the image of someone bouncing off a mirror. Grant agrees. In another piece something pops up from behind a bed while a light is bouncing off the walls. Grant immediately recognizes this as part of the thermometer equipment. They got nothing.

The Reveal

Steve is with Grant again on the reveal because they are best buds now. Can you Jason for going evil? They try to soften the blow for the GM by giving their traditional, we didn't catch anything but doesn't mean there isn't anything speech. She buys it hook, line and sinker.

Status: Not haunted.

Oooh, Grant gives a good analogy equating doing an investigation in one night to watching an hour of security tape for a convenience store. Just because the place wasn't robbed in that one hour doesn't mean it's never been robbed. Nice. You go, Grant.

Donna is not going to give up on Salem. There is hauntings there; she just hasn't found it yet. It could be because you guys didn't even get close to looking in the right places!

No first bump because we don't fist bump with dudes who scream like third grade girl when they see a spider.

Aww. TAPS bought balloons for Jason's broken boy. Lisa was at Jason's house with a nurse's outfit on. I'm not going to make any accusations, but I'm not going to act like it didn't happen, either. If you'd like to know more about what Lisa likes to do in a nurse's outfit, email me.

How funny is it that the episode ends with Jason declaring that TAPS is a family and they all hang out together and love each other when exactly half of his "family" quit this past summer.

NEXT WEEK

Next week is Halloween and TAPS six hour live investigation. Don't expect much of a pregame show from me next week as this is going to be a beast for me to get for you guys. They are investigating Waverly Hills Sanatorium in Louisville, KY – not too far from me.

From the commercials it looks like you are getting Jason, Grant, Steve, Tango and, sigh, the dude from freaking Destination Truth. You'll also most likely get Dustin and Kris, though they weren't prominently shown. Oh, and the winner of the ghost hunter contest on scifi.com. They got some pretty cool stuff last time they were there. Check out the episode on scifi.com or you can probably find it on youtube as well, I'm sure.