Hobnobbing With Goblins

Historic downtown Santa Paula will become a giant stage of spookiness this month when a cast of ghoulish characters lines the streets to tell real and made-up tales of terror.

A woman’s horrific murder in bed and a spirit that haunts churches up and down the Santa Clara River Valley will be featured on Ghost Walk ‘99, an annual city tradition.

“Most of the characters are real or the facts in the stories are real,” said Mary Alice Henderson, the event’s coordinator.

A team of volunteer researchers studied murders, accidents, suicides and other untimely deaths dating far back in the city’s history to write the script for the walk.

Ghost Walk, hosted by the Santa Paula Theater Center, is in its sixth year of spooking people during the month of October. Each year the characters and stories change, as well as the location of the event.

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Variety, the organizers say, keeps the show mysterious and fun. This year, though, the walk returns to where it started in 1993, in front of historic churches and other buildings dotting the main drag.

“As our daring visitors grope through the deserted streets and darkened alleyways, they will have unexpected encounters with eight speaking specters,” Henderson said.

Well, she’s exaggerating, a little.

The hourlong walks will be guided by volunteers--including politicians, lawyers and doctors--wearing striped painter’s caps and reading from scripts. Each guide will lead about 20 people.

In addition to the narratives, the guides talk about local history, architecture and colorful trivia along the route, which spans about a mile.

Along the walk, visitors will see several short performances by actors from the local theater, along with a few surprises.

Tours start Saturday and leave every 15 minutes between 6:30 and 9 p.m. There will also be tours Sunday and on all remaining Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through Oct. 31.

Starting at the Mill, an old lima bean warehouse turned giant antique store, walkers will head to the front of the First Christian Church, where a character will tell the story of a ghost who once haunted a house in Ventura and now travels to churches throughout the area.

“Rueful Rosa” will lament ill-fated marriages and try to persuade young brides to think twice about bad men and prearranged nuptials.

Next, the tour crosses the railroad tracks and stops at a site where a young woman, who was left behind when her husband went to work in the oil fields, is surrounded by rodents brought in by heavy rains.

At First Presbyterian Church, the story of a woman shot dead in her bed by her jilted gigolo will unfold. It’s a tale from the city’s history that happened in 1926, Henderson said.

The city’s great fire of 1903, the legend of the Billiwhack monster--half man, half goat--and a beautiful hitchhiker who wears white and haunts drivers will also be on the walk.

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Meanwhile, Headless Joe will wander around with his stump of a noggin.

In past years, the show has been a huge success, attracting more than 1,800 people and raising $10,000 to help maintain the theater center.

“My favorite part is that we are bringing history to people without them really realizing it,” Henderson said.

The walk is not for the very young. Children must be at least 7, and parents are discouraged from bringing babies in backpack totes. Strollers are not allowed.

The cost is $7 for adults, $4 for children and any student with a student ID card. Reservations are recommended and can be made by calling the Santa Paula Theater Center at 525-3073.

People who just show up should go to the Mill at 212 N. Mill St. to buy tickets.

On the weekend of Oct. 23 and 24, walkers can enjoy “Evening of Songs Reflecting the Season & Halloween” performed at the Mill by the Isbell & McKevett School Chorus.

And running in conjunction with the Ghost Walk is the theater’s new season opener, Henry James’ “The Turn of the Screw,” a gothic thriller. Call 525-4645 for tickets.

DETAILS

Ghost Walk ’99 starts at the Mill, 212 N. Mill St. in Santa Paula; Saturday and Sunday and Oct. 22-24 and 29-31. Tours begin every 15 minutes between 6:30 and 9 p.m. The cost is $7 for adults and $4 for children 7 and older. Call 525-3073 for reservations.

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Tip of the Week:: Moorpark College’s Child Development Center will host “Discovery Day” from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at 7075 Campus Road in Moorpark.

The semiannual fund-raiser is held both for fun and to raise awareness of age-appropriate learning programs. Children 2 to 12 can “mine for gold” in a sandbox, “dig for fossils” in ice, “buy groceries” in a store and other activities. There will be a band, a visit from a real toy maker, and students and animals from the teaching zoo. Food and drinks will be available for purchase. The cost is $4 per child and $2 per adult. For more information, call 378-1401.

Ideas for Jaunts can be forwarded to holly.wolcott@latimes.com.