Spirits Willing--to Educate

The life of a notorious bandit, the bizarre death of a cult figure and the history of a Chumash leader will be some of the local lore presented during ghost tours starting Friday at Strathearn Park.

The Simi Valley Historical Society and the Ventura County Cultural Assn. are hosting the tours to celebrate Halloween and give residents a fun dose of education about pioneers and characters from the area.

The tours are open to adults and children of all ages and will run between 6 and 9 p.m. Friday, Saturday and Sunday and on Oct. 29-31.

Each group will number about 20 people, with tours starting every 10 minutes and running about 45 minutes.

Tickets, available at the gate, are $5 for adults and $3 for children. The park is at 137 Strathearn Place.

“It’s a joint fund-raiser to educate the community about some of its historical figures and highlight the park,” said Jan Glasband, an event spokeswoman. “It’s a really great Halloween activity for families.”

Some of the proceeds will be used to fund youth art programs in the county.

During the tours, vignettes will be staged in front of several historical buildings at the park, Glasband said. Twenty-two actors will don costumes and ghostly makeup to portray the historical figures.

“There are scripts for each actor and there will be monologues and scenes between two and three actors, and some of the actors will talk directly to the audience,” Glasband said.

Simi Valley resident and playwright Angela Randazzo wrote the production based on facts documented in the book “Simi Valley: A Journey Through Time.”

Among characters that tour participants will hear from is Chumash Indian Chief Zalasuit, who was head of the largest of three Chumash villages that were once in northern Simi Valley at what is now Tapo Canyon.

Zalasuit, who died in 1813, had several wives and eight children.

Another actor will portray Milwaukee-born Ray “Crash” Corrigan, who became known as Crash after he did a western serial with John Wayne titled “The Mesquiteers.”

In 1937, Corrigan bought property at the west end of Simi Valley, which has been well-known for years throughout the entertainment industry as Corriganville, where westerns and television shows are shot.

A look at the city’s less mainstream past will be highlighted in a skit centered on Krishna Venta, founder of the W.K.F.L. Fountain of the World cult in Box Canyon.

“There were several of those sorts of groups at one time,” Glasband said. “Actually, the area was rife at one time with cults. The knolls area appealed to them.”

Venta, who proclaimed himself Jesus Christ, died in 1958 when two former members of his commune detonated dynamite and killed Venta and themselves.

Another skit will be about Tiburcio Vasquez, a bandit who fancied himself a Robin Hood-like character, rode into Simi Valley in 1874 and terrorized travelers staying for the night. A year later, he was captured near Hollywood and hanged.

Stories about the area’s first postmaster, the operator of the stage station at the foot of the Santa Susana Pass, ranchers and a beekeeper will also be staged.

DETAILS

The Ghost Tour will be held in Strathearn Park, 137 Strathearn Place, between 6 and 9 p.m. Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Oct. 29-31. $5 for adults and $3 for children. Information, 529-3611.

*

Tip of the Week: The eighth annual Ventura Boys & Girls Club Haunted House at Harbor Village in Ventura will start at 6 p.m. Friday. The haunted house is for children 12 and younger who are accompanied by an adult. It will also be open from 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday and on Oct. 29-31. Admission is $3 for children. The village is at 1591 Spinnaker Drive. Call 644-0169 for more information.

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