Hauntings of the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel

As chic as the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel is, it also has a reputation of being haunted. It is one of LA’s urban legends.

It’s in good company. There are more haunted venues along the 1.3 miles of Hollywood Boulevard known as the Hollywood Walk of Fame than anywhere in the world.

The posh Roosevelt Hotel opened in 1927 and has a star-studded history. It was often used for movie premiere after-parties, and it hosted the first Oscars.

Some of the famous people the hotel is known for both during their lifetimes and beyond are:

• Marilyn Monroe who lived at the hotel for two years early in her career, and posed for her first commercial photography shoot by the rooftop pool. She supposedly haunts her old room (1200), where many say they see Marilyn in the mirror. I should note, Marilyn is also said to be one of the ghosts haunting the Knickerbocker down the street
• The silver screen hunk Montgomery Clift stayed at the hotel for three months in 1952 during the filming of From Here to Eternity. Clift has been blamed for patting guests’ shoulders and watching maids in Room 928, where he stayed.
• Errol Flynn is rumored to have created his recipe for bootleg gin in a tub in the hotel’s barbershop. People have reported seeing his ghost, but nothing more specific than that.
• Shirley Temple learned to do her famous stairstep dance routine on the hotel stairs.  She may be the little girl in a blue dress guests have reported seeing.

Now that’s been said I hope it doesn’t scare you off from staying at the Roosevelt.  I plan to do a “proper post” on it soon.  The Roosevelt Hotel is one of first places I would recommend to friends visiting Hollywood.