Jaunted

Attractions

The Magic Castle

October 23, 2006 at 4:43 PM | 0 Comments

The Magic Castle in Hollywood is a very apropro attraction for the Halloween season. Home to The Academy of Magical Arts, Inc. and a sort of golf club for professional magicians (minus of course, the golf club), the Magic Castle looks like a haunted house both inside and out.  A mansion built in 1908, the "castle" went through many incarnations, first as a multi-family home, then an elderly care home and a small maze of apartments before TV writer Milt Larsen turned it into a private club for magicians in 1963.

Today, the decor is dark, freaky and a bit gothic. But don't be too scared. There's all sort of hokey haunted tricks going on from a piano that mysteriously plays any song on request (we asked for "Oops I Did It Again" and we got that) to a chirping ghost bird to paintings that move to real-live magicians hanging around to do card tricks.

The castle however does feature live performances in proper theaters with stages, pretty assistants and oddball names like the Parlour of Prestidigation and the Palace of Mystery.

You can also dine there as the restaurant serves dinner each night and brunch on Saturdays and Sundays, along with several bars.

However unlike most Haunted Houses, the Magic Castle is a members-only place. So you need to know someone to get in and when you do, you must abide by the castle's dress code which state coat and tie are required for men (no denim, no zippered jackets, sweatshirts or sneakers) and women should be in a cocktail dress , skirt or matching pantsuit.

This may sound stuffy but in a town where people still wear Uggs with jean skirts and Ryan Seacrest t-shirts, it's quite refreshing.

Insider Tip: If you go this weekend, that is if your Magic Castle connection lets you go this weekend, costumes are strongly encouraged.

[Photo: Comic Mummy]

Ann Arbor

People are Strange

April 24, 2006 at 10:05 AM | 0 Comments

For a college town, Ann Arbor is famous for quite a few things: A historical football stadium, Zingerman's Deli, even the Has Dash. Are tiny doorways for magical fairies about to be added to the list? God, we hope not.

Over the course of the last year, tiny doors have appeared on buildings all across Ann Arbor. Ann Arbor's very own fairy expert--though he denies making the doors--claims that they are appearing because fairies have been displaced from their pastoral roots and are now acclimating to the urban environment. Further information on the fairy door are available here.  

We can't wait until the fairy tour gets combined with the tailgate parties for this year's Michigan-Michigan State game.

[Image via myelectricsheep/Flickr]

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