1 00:00:02,640 --> 00:00:05,359 Speaker 1: The Hotel Cecil is probably best known as the site 2 00:00:05,380 --> 00:00:10,030 Speaker 1: for the very sad death of Elisa Lamb in 2013, 3 00:00:10,030 --> 00:00:12,270 Speaker 1: or maybe you know it as a setting in American 4 00:00:12,330 --> 00:00:15,630 Speaker 1: Horror Story. It turns out that Elisa was just one 5 00:00:15,990 --> 00:00:18,870 Speaker 1: in an unusually long line of deaths that took place 6 00:00:18,950 --> 00:00:21,790 Speaker 1: in the Cecil, which seems to have had way more 7 00:00:21,829 --> 00:00:24,119 Speaker 1: than its fair share of tragedy since it was built 8 00:00:24,260 --> 00:00:26,920 Speaker 1: in 1924. I'll leave it to you to get to 9 00:00:26,960 --> 00:00:32,489 Speaker 1: the bottom of what's up with the Hotel Cecil. Welcome 10 00:00:32,659 --> 00:00:41,940 Speaker 1: to Stuff You Should Know, a production of iHeartRadio. Hey, 11 00:00:42,020 --> 00:00:44,780 Speaker 1: and welcome to the podcast. I'm Josh Clark, and there's 12 00:00:44,860 --> 00:00:48,180 Speaker 1: Charles W. Chuck Bryant over there, and Jerry's hanging around 13 00:00:48,200 --> 00:00:53,199 Speaker 1: in the sun here, lurking like an unison spirit in 14 00:00:53,280 --> 00:00:58,779 Speaker 1: a haunted hotel. And this is Stuff You Should Know. 15 00:01:00,230 --> 00:01:03,250 Speaker 2: Yeah, can... We do a couple of quick announcements. 16 00:01:04,930 --> 00:01:05,430 Speaker 1: Yeah, sure. 17 00:01:05,990 --> 00:01:07,450 Speaker 2: Without singing that announcement song. 18 00:01:08,250 --> 00:01:09,830 Speaker 1: Did we have an announcement song ever? 19 00:01:10,190 --> 00:01:12,230 Speaker 2: Well, not us, but like summer camp. 20 00:01:12,950 --> 00:01:13,290 Speaker 1: Okay. 21 00:01:14,250 --> 00:01:14,890 Speaker 2: You never did that? 22 00:01:15,350 --> 00:01:15,509 Speaker 1: No. 23 00:01:16,550 --> 00:01:17,750 Speaker 2: Well, I'm not going to sing it now then. 24 00:01:17,970 --> 00:01:19,130 Speaker 1: I kind of want to hear it now. 25 00:01:19,690 --> 00:01:20,830 Speaker 2: No, no, no, no, no. 26 00:01:20,970 --> 00:01:23,920 Speaker 1: Was it like announcements, announcements? It's announcements time. 27 00:01:25,030 --> 00:01:29,919 Speaker 2: Sort of, almost. Yeah, that's close enough. Trigger warning for 28 00:01:29,959 --> 00:01:31,100 Speaker 2: this one. First announcement. 29 00:01:31,120 --> 00:01:31,720 Speaker 1: Mm-hmm. 30 00:01:32,290 --> 00:01:37,310 Speaker 2: Because there's some grisly stuff in here. I guess that's 31 00:01:37,330 --> 00:01:39,810 Speaker 2: all we need to say. And then also, we've been 32 00:01:39,870 --> 00:01:42,640 Speaker 2: remiss in that we haven't mentioned the fact that there's 33 00:01:42,670 --> 00:01:44,180 Speaker 2: a Stuff You Should Know board game out. 34 00:01:44,520 --> 00:01:46,520 Speaker 1: Yeah, it's not grisly at all. 35 00:01:47,380 --> 00:01:49,740 Speaker 2: No, it's very family-friendly, in fact. 36 00:01:49,900 --> 00:01:52,540 Speaker 1: It's one of the highest honors that's ever been bestowed 37 00:01:52,600 --> 00:01:56,280 Speaker 1: upon us in Stuff You Should Know, Chuck, because out 38 00:01:56,360 --> 00:02:00,170 Speaker 1: of the blue, out of nowhere, about a year and 39 00:02:00,190 --> 00:02:00,990 Speaker 1: a half ago, maybe? 40 00:02:02,300 --> 00:02:02,520 Speaker 2: Yeah. 41 00:02:03,440 --> 00:02:06,900 Speaker 1: Trivial Pursuit. The makers of Trivial Pursuit got in touch 42 00:02:06,920 --> 00:02:08,940 Speaker 1: with us and said, we want to do a Stuff 43 00:02:08,980 --> 00:02:11,880 Speaker 1: You Should Know Trivial Pursuit game. And they did. It 44 00:02:11,960 --> 00:02:13,250 Speaker 1: wasn't a practical joke. 45 00:02:13,990 --> 00:02:16,370 Speaker 2: The fine people at Hasbro, who I got to say, 46 00:02:16,389 --> 00:02:19,350 Speaker 2: I mean, we've worked with a lot of outside companies 47 00:02:19,389 --> 00:02:23,770 Speaker 2: for various projects. And boy, Hasbro is about as tight 48 00:02:23,850 --> 00:02:26,190 Speaker 2: and buttoned up and awesome as any company we've ever 49 00:02:26,230 --> 00:02:27,010 Speaker 2: worked with. Right. 50 00:02:27,030 --> 00:02:30,200 Speaker 1: But also like super friendly, super fun, super nice. 51 00:02:30,220 --> 00:02:30,540 Speaker 2: Amazing. 52 00:02:31,080 --> 00:02:34,220 Speaker 1: And not in that creepy, everybody's trying to be nice way. 53 00:02:34,260 --> 00:02:37,299 Speaker 1: They're all just a genuinely pleasant group to work with. 54 00:02:37,400 --> 00:02:39,899 Speaker 1: But yes, they are super buttoned up as well. Very 55 00:02:39,980 --> 00:02:40,680 Speaker 1: rare animal. 56 00:02:41,139 --> 00:02:43,820 Speaker 2: Yeah, they make games. They all seem like they make 57 00:02:43,880 --> 00:02:45,820 Speaker 2: games for a living, which would mean that you have 58 00:02:45,860 --> 00:02:48,540 Speaker 2: a pretty cool job. And developing the game with them 59 00:02:48,580 --> 00:02:52,079 Speaker 2: was fun. And the questions are based on real stuff 60 00:02:52,100 --> 00:02:56,160 Speaker 2: you should know, episodes. And it is not just Trivial Pursuit. 61 00:02:56,180 --> 00:02:59,310 Speaker 2: It is co-branded, so it is not Do not expect 62 00:02:59,350 --> 00:03:01,490 Speaker 2: to get the Trivial Pursuit game with the little pieces 63 00:03:01,530 --> 00:03:01,910 Speaker 2: of pie. 64 00:03:02,350 --> 00:03:02,690 Speaker 1: No, no. 65 00:03:02,730 --> 00:03:03,430 Speaker 2: Just want to be clear. 66 00:03:03,550 --> 00:03:05,590 Speaker 1: They said, we want to make up a brand new 67 00:03:05,650 --> 00:03:07,970 Speaker 1: game for this. Brand new game. And they did. They 68 00:03:08,310 --> 00:03:10,590 Speaker 1: made up a game. And this is the Stuff You 69 00:03:10,610 --> 00:03:12,010 Speaker 1: Should Know Trivial Pursuit game. 70 00:03:12,790 --> 00:03:14,740 Speaker 2: That's right. And you can get it wherever you get games. 71 00:03:15,200 --> 00:03:18,960 Speaker 2: I recommend your local little indie toy gaming store if 72 00:03:18,980 --> 00:03:21,300 Speaker 2: they have it. But otherwise, we would love to support. 73 00:03:21,440 --> 00:03:23,380 Speaker 1: You got a weirdo in your town who dresses up 74 00:03:23,419 --> 00:03:25,899 Speaker 1: in wizard clothes and goes to work? Go buy your 75 00:03:25,940 --> 00:03:26,299 Speaker 1: game there. 76 00:03:28,290 --> 00:03:29,610 Speaker 2: A great Christmas gift, by the way. 77 00:03:29,889 --> 00:03:33,950 Speaker 1: Yeah, for sure. Also, why just stop there? It's great 78 00:03:33,970 --> 00:03:37,240 Speaker 1: for dads, grads, moms, proms, everything. 79 00:03:38,760 --> 00:03:39,960 Speaker 2: I think it's like $ 20, right? 80 00:03:40,460 --> 00:03:46,660 Speaker 1: Yeah, it's like really, really reasonably priced, if you ask me. $ 20. $ 20. 81 00:03:45,880 --> 00:03:48,020 Speaker 1: You got two 20s in your wallet. You could buy 82 00:03:48,060 --> 00:03:51,360 Speaker 1: our book and the game at the same time. So 83 00:03:51,380 --> 00:03:56,180 Speaker 1: we did the TV show. We did a book. We 84 00:03:56,200 --> 00:03:59,130 Speaker 1: do a podcast. Don't forget our YouTube series. 85 00:04:00,230 --> 00:04:01,410 Speaker 2: Sure. You can. 86 00:04:02,530 --> 00:04:04,230 Speaker 1: And now Chuck. 87 00:04:05,310 --> 00:04:05,910 Speaker 2: And now the game. 88 00:04:06,190 --> 00:04:06,830 Speaker 1: It's amazing. 89 00:04:07,590 --> 00:04:08,710 Speaker 2: And now the Hotel Cecil. 90 00:04:09,210 --> 00:04:13,850 Speaker 1: Yes. On to the show. So I'm glad you did 91 00:04:13,870 --> 00:04:17,010 Speaker 1: that little trigger warning because there is some grisly stuff 92 00:04:17,050 --> 00:04:21,710 Speaker 1: in here. But there's also, I think, some like fact settings, 93 00:04:22,070 --> 00:04:26,099 Speaker 1: some facts straightening that, you know, we should do from 94 00:04:26,130 --> 00:04:30,500 Speaker 1: the outset because. One of the things that people who 95 00:04:30,600 --> 00:04:35,159 Speaker 1: get into the Elisa Lam story, which we'll talk about 96 00:04:35,180 --> 00:04:39,920 Speaker 1: in a little bit, quickly find that there are all 97 00:04:40,100 --> 00:04:45,120 Speaker 1: manner of Internet urban legends and myths and conspiracy theories 98 00:04:45,160 --> 00:04:47,750 Speaker 1: surrounding it. And none of those seem to be true. 99 00:04:49,029 --> 00:04:50,229 Speaker 2: It's pretty annoying, actually. 100 00:04:50,410 --> 00:04:53,010 Speaker 1: Yeah, it is very annoying. It's just so Internet-y, too. 101 00:04:53,070 --> 00:04:55,450 Speaker 1: You know what I mean? Yeah. 102 00:04:55,750 --> 00:04:58,350 Speaker 2: I mean, this... This goes on a lot these days, 103 00:04:58,410 --> 00:05:00,310 Speaker 2: but it seems like this one may be more so 104 00:05:00,350 --> 00:05:05,589 Speaker 2: than even others because the bizarre nature of one part 105 00:05:05,610 --> 00:05:08,860 Speaker 2: of this story. And I don't know. I found myself 106 00:05:08,880 --> 00:05:09,480 Speaker 2: slightly annoyed. 107 00:05:09,500 --> 00:05:12,080 Speaker 1: I am, too, in the exact same way that I'm 108 00:05:12,120 --> 00:05:14,880 Speaker 1: annoyed by people who believe that the couple from The 109 00:05:14,980 --> 00:05:18,830 Speaker 1: Conjuring were like, you know, legit in real life. Right. 110 00:05:19,870 --> 00:05:20,289 Speaker 1: You know what I mean? 111 00:05:20,920 --> 00:05:21,160 Speaker 2: Sure. 112 00:05:21,339 --> 00:05:23,300 Speaker 1: But at the same time, it goes even further than that. 113 00:05:23,320 --> 00:05:25,599 Speaker 1: I think I ran across a couple of articles that 114 00:05:25,700 --> 00:05:30,000 Speaker 1: I really think struck home what's genuinely annoying and even 115 00:05:30,040 --> 00:05:33,479 Speaker 1: disrespectful about that is that like Elisa Lam died because 116 00:05:33,520 --> 00:05:37,960 Speaker 1: she had serious mental illness that had been diagnosed and 117 00:05:38,000 --> 00:05:41,219 Speaker 1: she wasn't managing properly with the medications that she was on. 118 00:05:41,560 --> 00:05:44,099 Speaker 1: And that happens a lot. And she died because of it. 119 00:05:44,600 --> 00:05:47,440 Speaker 1: And so to say that she was, you know, possessed 120 00:05:47,520 --> 00:05:51,370 Speaker 1: by evil spirits and Um, or that there were, you know, 121 00:05:51,440 --> 00:05:54,290 Speaker 1: ghosts at the Cecil or even that she was murdered 122 00:05:54,310 --> 00:05:58,710 Speaker 1: by an unknown suspect. It's really, it really, um, it 123 00:05:58,730 --> 00:06:01,770 Speaker 1: really disrespects the reality of the situation, which is, you know, 124 00:06:01,850 --> 00:06:05,230 Speaker 1: sad enough as it is. But at the same time, Chuck, 125 00:06:05,250 --> 00:06:07,240 Speaker 1: there's one more thing I have to caveat all this with. 126 00:06:07,650 --> 00:06:13,180 Speaker 1: It's understandable. The impulse to, to bring in, you know, 127 00:06:13,460 --> 00:06:17,100 Speaker 1: restless spirits and, you know, you know, the, It's just 128 00:06:17,160 --> 00:06:22,100 Speaker 1: conspiracy theories. It's understandable in this particular situation because of 129 00:06:22,140 --> 00:06:22,599 Speaker 1: the setting. 130 00:06:23,980 --> 00:06:27,050 Speaker 2: Yeah. And I guess, you know, the first part of 131 00:06:27,080 --> 00:06:28,990 Speaker 2: this show will be about the setting, which is the 132 00:06:29,730 --> 00:06:33,570 Speaker 2: Hotel Cecil in downtown Los Angeles, which is not open 133 00:06:33,610 --> 00:06:36,870 Speaker 2: right now. It may be open in the future. I 134 00:06:37,029 --> 00:06:39,910 Speaker 2: think they were doing a this thing was open in 135 00:06:39,930 --> 00:06:43,919 Speaker 2: the 1920s during the height of the Depression. And it's 136 00:06:43,960 --> 00:06:47,960 Speaker 2: a very large hotel, 19 floors, 700 rooms. And in 137 00:06:47,980 --> 00:06:51,860 Speaker 2: the 1920s, it was sort of like a big deal 138 00:06:51,880 --> 00:06:54,690 Speaker 2: for downtown Los Angeles. It was near a major rail station. 139 00:06:54,700 --> 00:06:58,030 Speaker 2: And it was kind of just what L.A. needed. And 140 00:06:58,050 --> 00:07:00,970 Speaker 2: it was kind of fancy schmancy for the time. And 141 00:07:02,210 --> 00:07:03,890 Speaker 2: over the years, you know, we'll talk a little bit 142 00:07:04,089 --> 00:07:08,240 Speaker 2: about the downfall. But at the time of Elisa Lamb's stay, 143 00:07:08,880 --> 00:07:12,290 Speaker 2: they had carved out three floors of and built a 144 00:07:12,330 --> 00:07:15,870 Speaker 2: separate lobby entrance to try and, uh, in an effort 145 00:07:15,910 --> 00:07:20,760 Speaker 2: to rebrand this hotel as something called stay on main, uh, 146 00:07:20,890 --> 00:07:22,950 Speaker 2: and that they had three kind of floors that were 147 00:07:22,970 --> 00:07:27,060 Speaker 2: a little bit redone cosmetically, uh, a little bit of 148 00:07:27,100 --> 00:07:30,840 Speaker 2: a nicer lobby that was, you know, sort of away from, um, 149 00:07:31,420 --> 00:07:34,020 Speaker 2: you know, some of the situations that we're going to 150 00:07:34,060 --> 00:07:36,500 Speaker 2: detail here in a second. Uh, but they did all 151 00:07:36,540 --> 00:07:40,160 Speaker 2: share a common elevator and, um, Elisa Lam was staying 152 00:07:40,180 --> 00:07:44,520 Speaker 2: in the Stay on Main section. Stayed on Main? 153 00:07:44,640 --> 00:07:44,920 Speaker 1: Mm-hmm. 154 00:07:46,640 --> 00:07:48,580 Speaker 2: But that's just to point out the fact that the 155 00:07:48,640 --> 00:07:52,760 Speaker 2: hotel was going to eventually supposedly undergo a massive renovation 156 00:07:52,840 --> 00:07:54,380 Speaker 2: and that it was all sort of put on hold 157 00:07:54,420 --> 00:07:57,480 Speaker 2: because of COVID. And I think now it's just being 158 00:07:57,670 --> 00:08:00,730 Speaker 2: sat on with some of the long-term tenants that are 159 00:08:00,750 --> 00:08:02,150 Speaker 2: protected to stay there. 160 00:08:02,230 --> 00:08:04,770 Speaker 1: Yeah, I think there's like 30. But there's, like you said, 161 00:08:04,770 --> 00:08:05,130 Speaker 1: 700 rooms there. 162 00:08:06,260 --> 00:08:06,480 Speaker 2: Sure. 163 00:08:06,580 --> 00:08:11,780 Speaker 1: But you said it, that the Cecil Hotel, which is 164 00:08:11,880 --> 00:08:15,440 Speaker 1: very much down at the heels now, started life in 165 00:08:15,480 --> 00:08:18,360 Speaker 1: a much different way where it was meant to be 166 00:08:18,420 --> 00:08:23,400 Speaker 1: like a pretty nice hotel designed for middle class travelers 167 00:08:23,480 --> 00:08:27,370 Speaker 1: to L.A. And that situation next to the rail station 168 00:08:27,850 --> 00:08:30,590 Speaker 1: was a big draw for it. It was definitely a 169 00:08:30,650 --> 00:08:33,650 Speaker 1: feather in its cap. And I saw it's in the 170 00:08:33,710 --> 00:08:39,110 Speaker 1: Beaux-Arts style. Um, it's not incredibly pretty from the outside, 171 00:08:39,170 --> 00:08:42,750 Speaker 1: but the inside lobby is still pretty neat looking. Sure. 172 00:08:42,790 --> 00:08:47,460 Speaker 1: Lots of terrazzo tile and, uh, columns and there's fake, um, 173 00:08:47,590 --> 00:08:50,660 Speaker 1: Roman statuary and a big clock and like the, at the, 174 00:08:50,770 --> 00:08:53,760 Speaker 1: over the check-in desk, it's really pretty and a really like, 175 00:08:54,080 --> 00:08:58,700 Speaker 1: you know, 1920s original, um, original style still, although it's 176 00:08:58,720 --> 00:09:01,400 Speaker 1: just kind of got this drab air that's kind of 177 00:09:01,440 --> 00:09:02,880 Speaker 1: fallen over it over the years. 178 00:09:04,290 --> 00:09:07,630 Speaker 2: Yeah, and that is in large part because, like you said, 179 00:09:08,230 --> 00:09:10,349 Speaker 2: there are a lot of unhoned people there today, a 180 00:09:10,580 --> 00:09:14,559 Speaker 2: lot back then. The area called Skid Row of downtown 181 00:09:14,580 --> 00:09:18,220 Speaker 2: Los Angeles is kind of right there. I used to 182 00:09:18,420 --> 00:09:20,680 Speaker 2: drive through that area sometimes when I lived in L.A. 183 00:09:20,720 --> 00:09:24,439 Speaker 2: when we would go downtown to eat sushi. Back then 184 00:09:24,500 --> 00:09:27,559 Speaker 2: when I lived there, downtown was not as much of 185 00:09:27,600 --> 00:09:30,059 Speaker 2: a destination unless you were going to Staples Center or something, 186 00:09:30,120 --> 00:09:33,660 Speaker 2: but it's made a real resurgence since I've left. and 187 00:09:33,740 --> 00:09:36,760 Speaker 2: kind of trying to build downtown back up. But Skid 188 00:09:36,800 --> 00:09:41,490 Speaker 2: Row is still an issue. And they're, you know, like 189 00:09:41,510 --> 00:09:44,110 Speaker 2: you said, that there are people there that work with 190 00:09:44,190 --> 00:09:47,949 Speaker 2: unhomed folks that are really trying their best to take 191 00:09:47,990 --> 00:09:50,220 Speaker 2: care of them. And the fact that that hotel is 192 00:09:50,270 --> 00:09:53,020 Speaker 2: right there, just sort of looming large is a bit 193 00:09:53,059 --> 00:09:54,439 Speaker 2: of a thumb in the eye. Yeah. 194 00:09:54,460 --> 00:09:57,150 Speaker 1: And I get the impression that the area that's now 195 00:09:57,250 --> 00:10:02,119 Speaker 1: Skid Row in Los Angeles had, at least since the 1880s, 196 00:10:02,140 --> 00:10:06,100 Speaker 1: kind of had an unusual reputation. It wasn't always, you know, 197 00:10:06,160 --> 00:10:08,540 Speaker 1: for people down on their luck or anything like that, but, 198 00:10:09,660 --> 00:10:12,020 Speaker 1: you know, it was a little more low rent than 199 00:10:12,059 --> 00:10:14,939 Speaker 1: other parts of Los Angeles. Like, there was just a 200 00:10:15,360 --> 00:10:17,819 Speaker 1: mishmash of all sorts of different people. It seemed like 201 00:10:17,860 --> 00:10:21,900 Speaker 1: really alive. And the Cecil was kind of built at 202 00:10:21,950 --> 00:10:24,949 Speaker 1: the outskirts of that between what would become Skid Row 203 00:10:25,350 --> 00:10:27,490 Speaker 1: and then one of the nicest parts of LA at 204 00:10:27,530 --> 00:10:32,510 Speaker 1: the time, Bunker Hill. And everything was hunky-dory for the 205 00:10:32,550 --> 00:10:36,030 Speaker 1: Cecil when it first opened in either 1924 or 1927, 206 00:10:36,030 --> 00:10:38,770 Speaker 1: depending on who you ask. I could not confirm one 207 00:10:38,790 --> 00:10:41,189 Speaker 1: way or the other because both dates have kind of 208 00:10:41,230 --> 00:10:45,130 Speaker 1: taken off so much. But when the stock market crashed, 209 00:10:45,170 --> 00:10:48,260 Speaker 1: that area that was just kind of colorful and a 210 00:10:48,280 --> 00:10:52,280 Speaker 1: little bit low rent that it quickly became Skid Row 211 00:10:52,370 --> 00:10:57,050 Speaker 1: as we understand it, beginning around the Great Depression. And 212 00:10:57,850 --> 00:11:01,969 Speaker 1: not only did the proximity to Skid Row kind of 213 00:11:02,030 --> 00:11:09,940 Speaker 1: like lower the Cecil Star rating, when the tenants started, 214 00:11:09,980 --> 00:11:12,680 Speaker 1: the hotel guests started to dry up, they had to 215 00:11:12,740 --> 00:11:16,440 Speaker 1: lower their rates and start catering to people of less means. 216 00:11:18,230 --> 00:11:20,590 Speaker 1: And so the hotel just kind of stopped taking care 217 00:11:20,610 --> 00:11:23,630 Speaker 1: of itself little by little, starting around the Great Depression 218 00:11:23,670 --> 00:11:25,650 Speaker 1: and continuing on through World War II. 219 00:11:26,820 --> 00:11:29,940 Speaker 2: Yeah. And, you know, it kind of became a last 220 00:11:29,980 --> 00:11:35,320 Speaker 2: resort kind of destination for people with addiction problems, people 221 00:11:35,360 --> 00:11:39,420 Speaker 2: in the sex working industry. And, you know, it got 222 00:11:39,460 --> 00:11:43,230 Speaker 2: that reputation and pretty soon got a reputation for all 223 00:11:43,290 --> 00:11:46,150 Speaker 2: kinds of bad things happening there. There have been no 224 00:11:46,190 --> 00:11:50,150 Speaker 2: less than 15 or 16 what's classified, I guess, as 225 00:11:50,210 --> 00:11:55,380 Speaker 2: an unnatural death at the Cecil. Many people took their 226 00:11:55,390 --> 00:11:59,060 Speaker 2: own lives there. I mean, if you read down the 227 00:11:59,080 --> 00:12:02,080 Speaker 2: laundry list, it's like quite a few people ingested poison. 228 00:12:02,640 --> 00:12:05,520 Speaker 2: Quite a few people jumped or maybe were pushed out windows. 229 00:12:06,620 --> 00:12:09,860 Speaker 2: There have been some murders by gun. There have been 230 00:12:09,920 --> 00:12:14,699 Speaker 2: murders by strangulation. There have been sexual assaults. This one 231 00:12:14,740 --> 00:12:16,880 Speaker 2: sad case of a woman who gave birth to a 232 00:12:17,960 --> 00:12:21,440 Speaker 2: baby and was suffering from some sort of mental illness, 233 00:12:22,440 --> 00:12:26,819 Speaker 2: evidently thought her baby was born not alive and went 234 00:12:26,880 --> 00:12:29,680 Speaker 2: to throw the baby out the window. And it turns 235 00:12:29,720 --> 00:12:33,380 Speaker 2: out the baby was alive, then died. She was found 236 00:12:33,940 --> 00:12:38,140 Speaker 2: not guilty. I think temporary insanity was the plea there. 237 00:12:39,179 --> 00:12:44,339 Speaker 2: And just weird, kind of tragic, awful things happening. over 238 00:12:44,380 --> 00:12:46,500 Speaker 2: the years, time and time again at the Hotel Cecil. 239 00:12:46,860 --> 00:12:52,300 Speaker 1: Yeah, like another frequently referred to incident was where a 240 00:12:52,340 --> 00:12:57,390 Speaker 1: woman named Pauline Otten, she jumped from, I think, like 241 00:12:57,410 --> 00:13:00,430 Speaker 1: the ninth or tenth floor to take her own life 242 00:13:01,230 --> 00:13:05,010 Speaker 1: and landed on a guy who was a passerby who 243 00:13:05,490 --> 00:13:09,390 Speaker 1: happened to just be walking unluckily beneath the Cecil at 244 00:13:09,440 --> 00:13:12,700 Speaker 1: that moment on the sidewalk and was struck by Pauline. 245 00:13:13,600 --> 00:13:18,460 Speaker 1: And they were both killed. And that doesn't usually happen 246 00:13:18,500 --> 00:13:21,500 Speaker 1: very often. That's a pretty remarkable thing. And I know 247 00:13:21,540 --> 00:13:25,750 Speaker 1: that the most I could find was, I think, 18 incidents. 248 00:13:26,270 --> 00:13:28,650 Speaker 1: But it seems like those are just ones that have 249 00:13:28,690 --> 00:13:32,309 Speaker 1: been documented. There seems to be quite a bit more. 250 00:13:32,750 --> 00:13:36,850 Speaker 1: There was a Netflix series, I think a four-part series 251 00:13:36,910 --> 00:13:40,520 Speaker 1: on this recently. And they interviewed a woman who had 252 00:13:40,660 --> 00:13:46,839 Speaker 1: spent 10 years managing the Cecil. Um, and she said that, uh, 253 00:13:46,960 --> 00:13:48,960 Speaker 1: her name is Amy Price. She said that under her 254 00:13:48,960 --> 00:13:52,240 Speaker 1: 10 year tenure, at least 80 people died that she 255 00:13:52,300 --> 00:13:55,640 Speaker 1: knows of. And you can kind of imagine like, like, 256 00:13:56,320 --> 00:13:59,580 Speaker 1: you know, you could find newspaper write-ups from like the 257 00:13:59,620 --> 00:14:01,839 Speaker 1: twenties and thirties and forties when somebody jumps out a 258 00:14:01,900 --> 00:14:04,160 Speaker 1: window and definitely when somebody jumps out a window and 259 00:14:04,200 --> 00:14:07,160 Speaker 1: lands on a hapless pedestrian, like that's definitely going to 260 00:14:07,200 --> 00:14:10,260 Speaker 1: be documented and make news. But if somebody on skid 261 00:14:10,320 --> 00:14:13,670 Speaker 1: row overdoses and dies in this hotel, you know, You know, 262 00:14:13,730 --> 00:14:16,190 Speaker 1: is that going to be documented? So it's possible that 263 00:14:16,210 --> 00:14:18,670 Speaker 1: there are a lot more people who have died at 264 00:14:18,710 --> 00:14:24,630 Speaker 1: the Cecil under from unnatural causes over the years than 265 00:14:24,820 --> 00:14:27,260 Speaker 1: than just those 17 or 18. 266 00:14:27,260 --> 00:14:28,800 Speaker 2: Did you watch all of that documentary? 267 00:14:29,180 --> 00:14:30,680 Speaker 1: No, I haven't seen it actually yet. 268 00:14:31,180 --> 00:14:31,500 Speaker 2: OK. 269 00:14:31,660 --> 00:14:33,720 Speaker 1: Have you seen it? Yeah. 270 00:14:34,080 --> 00:14:37,680 Speaker 2: You know, I feel terrible because the director was is 271 00:14:37,760 --> 00:14:40,440 Speaker 2: the great Joe Berlinger, who actually had on Movie Crush. 272 00:14:42,240 --> 00:14:44,080 Speaker 2: In one of my favorite episodes where we kind of 273 00:14:44,100 --> 00:14:47,330 Speaker 2: just talked about documentary filmmaking, he's a legend. He did 274 00:14:47,370 --> 00:14:50,610 Speaker 2: the Paradise Lost series. He did that documentary on Metallica 275 00:14:50,670 --> 00:14:51,930 Speaker 2: when they were all in therapy. 276 00:14:52,490 --> 00:14:53,890 Speaker 1: Oh, yeah? Yeah. 277 00:14:53,910 --> 00:14:56,810 Speaker 2: I mean, he's just sort of a legend in the genre. 278 00:14:56,850 --> 00:14:59,690 Speaker 1: I saw he did the Ted Bundy tapes recently. 279 00:15:00,550 --> 00:15:02,630 Speaker 2: Yeah, he did that. And then he directed the movie 280 00:15:02,930 --> 00:15:05,050 Speaker 2: version with, what's his face? 281 00:15:05,170 --> 00:15:05,890 Speaker 1: Zac Efron. 282 00:15:07,410 --> 00:15:07,750 Speaker 2: With who? 283 00:15:08,200 --> 00:15:09,220 Speaker 1: I said Ryan Gosling. 284 00:15:09,640 --> 00:15:14,060 Speaker 2: Oh, okay. close. Another super handsome hunk. Uh, and that 285 00:15:14,080 --> 00:15:16,040 Speaker 2: was a good movie, but this wasn't so great. I 286 00:15:16,060 --> 00:15:18,340 Speaker 2: didn't love it. It felt kind of overlong and a 287 00:15:18,460 --> 00:15:20,240 Speaker 2: little salacious and like, yeah. 288 00:15:20,260 --> 00:15:22,270 Speaker 1: That's the impression I had from reading about it. 289 00:15:22,530 --> 00:15:24,570 Speaker 2: Yeah. So I was disappointed, but Joe is a great 290 00:15:24,610 --> 00:15:27,010 Speaker 2: filmmaker and a good guy. So I feel kind of bad. 291 00:15:27,190 --> 00:15:30,450 Speaker 1: I think that's a fair caveat. A great filmmaker and 292 00:15:30,470 --> 00:15:33,110 Speaker 1: a good guy can still make a hunk of poop. 293 00:15:33,130 --> 00:15:36,170 Speaker 2: Yeah. It wasn't a hunk of poop. It was all right. 294 00:15:36,570 --> 00:15:36,790 Speaker 1: Okay. 295 00:15:37,910 --> 00:15:41,160 Speaker 2: Uh, but maybe let's take a break and I'll, email 296 00:15:41,180 --> 00:15:42,420 Speaker 2: Joe and tell him I'm sorry ahead of time. 297 00:15:42,440 --> 00:15:43,060 Speaker 1: All right. 298 00:15:43,160 --> 00:15:44,100 Speaker 2: And we'll be right back. 299 00:15:44,120 --> 00:15:55,710 Speaker 1: So, okay. So the Cecil Hotel starts to get a 300 00:15:55,830 --> 00:16:11,560 Speaker 1: pretty big, not a great reputation, even around town. I 301 00:16:12,140 --> 00:16:15,480 Speaker 1: read an article on kcet.org, which I guess is a 302 00:16:15,520 --> 00:16:21,430 Speaker 1: PBS station in SoCal. And they said that local residents 303 00:16:21,510 --> 00:16:26,290 Speaker 1: started to refer to the Cecil as the suicide. That 304 00:16:26,330 --> 00:16:28,770 Speaker 1: was the name of the hotel for people around there. 305 00:16:29,430 --> 00:16:32,780 Speaker 1: And it just, it just kind of like, it just 306 00:16:32,820 --> 00:16:35,460 Speaker 1: kept going. Like every time, you know, maybe a couple 307 00:16:35,480 --> 00:16:39,220 Speaker 1: of years would pass without some high-profile death in the hotel, 308 00:16:39,280 --> 00:16:41,760 Speaker 1: and then it would happen again. And it would just 309 00:16:42,100 --> 00:16:46,450 Speaker 1: reaffirm everybody's ideas that that place just wasn't quite right. 310 00:16:46,620 --> 00:16:48,550 Speaker 1: There was something wrong with it, almost like it was 311 00:16:48,590 --> 00:16:52,550 Speaker 1: a magnet for that kind of tragedy, you know? Yeah. 312 00:16:52,610 --> 00:16:55,390 Speaker 2: I mean, I think most major cities have had at 313 00:16:56,070 --> 00:17:00,970 Speaker 2: least one of these hotels that just sort of is inexpensive, 314 00:17:01,510 --> 00:17:03,330 Speaker 2: maybe in the wrong part of town, and has a 315 00:17:03,370 --> 00:17:07,570 Speaker 2: reputation sometimes for Lurid activities and checking in and not 316 00:17:07,609 --> 00:17:12,109 Speaker 2: checking out. And this was L.A. 's and L.A. for 317 00:17:12,150 --> 00:17:13,010 Speaker 2: sure had more than one. 318 00:17:13,250 --> 00:17:13,830 Speaker 1: Sure. 319 00:17:14,150 --> 00:17:18,340 Speaker 2: It did not help their reputation in the 1980s when 320 00:17:18,930 --> 00:17:22,080 Speaker 2: Richard Ramirez, a.k.a. the Night Stalker and one of the 321 00:17:22,780 --> 00:17:27,380 Speaker 2: more sensational serial killers in American history. He stayed there 322 00:17:27,440 --> 00:17:31,520 Speaker 2: for a while and lived there and apparently brought body 323 00:17:31,540 --> 00:17:34,880 Speaker 2: parts back to the Cecil Hotel. Said Cecil like I'm British. 324 00:17:36,260 --> 00:17:40,130 Speaker 2: Cecil Hotel from some of his victims to ingest there. 325 00:17:40,150 --> 00:17:45,070 Speaker 2: And that's certainly like super creepy. Wait, did you say ingest? 326 00:17:45,150 --> 00:17:48,770 Speaker 2: I hadn't come across that. Did he eat that victim's eyeballs? 327 00:17:49,910 --> 00:17:55,929 Speaker 2: I think so. Wow. He wasn't like, I don't think 328 00:17:55,970 --> 00:17:58,649 Speaker 2: he was Dahmer level, but he was known to eat 329 00:17:58,730 --> 00:18:02,560 Speaker 2: some body parts. There's a great documentary on his his 330 00:18:02,600 --> 00:18:03,100 Speaker 2: case too. 331 00:18:03,260 --> 00:18:03,580 Speaker 1: Yeah. 332 00:18:03,619 --> 00:18:04,320 Speaker 2: Super disturbing. 333 00:18:04,380 --> 00:18:07,200 Speaker 1: Yeah. That's on Netflix as well. I think, um, if 334 00:18:07,240 --> 00:18:09,940 Speaker 1: I'm not mistaken, but, um, one thing I hadn't realized 335 00:18:09,960 --> 00:18:12,100 Speaker 1: before that I ran across when I was researching some 336 00:18:12,140 --> 00:18:15,730 Speaker 1: of his stuff was how he was caught. It's just 337 00:18:15,830 --> 00:18:17,270 Speaker 1: absolutely triumphant. 338 00:18:18,369 --> 00:18:21,710 Speaker 2: It was a mob of people in a neighborhood. 339 00:18:22,950 --> 00:18:25,810 Speaker 1: He was spotted. He saw himself on the front page 340 00:18:25,850 --> 00:18:29,699 Speaker 1: of the newspaper and just instinctively started running, tried to 341 00:18:29,760 --> 00:18:33,800 Speaker 1: carjack a woman, uh, hit her, was seen hitting her 342 00:18:33,820 --> 00:18:38,879 Speaker 1: and an older man basically ran over and helped the woman, 343 00:18:39,280 --> 00:18:43,600 Speaker 1: pulled Richard Ramirez out of his car. And the woman 344 00:18:43,859 --> 00:18:46,479 Speaker 1: whose car it was, husband came over and started beating him. 345 00:18:47,470 --> 00:18:50,330 Speaker 1: And he tried to get away and just an increasingly 346 00:18:50,390 --> 00:18:53,170 Speaker 1: large mob chased him and would beat him and he'd 347 00:18:53,210 --> 00:18:54,990 Speaker 1: get away some more and they'd chase him down and 348 00:18:55,070 --> 00:18:56,790 Speaker 1: catch him again. And they finally pinned him down and 349 00:18:56,810 --> 00:18:59,290 Speaker 1: waited for the cops to come. That's how he was caught. 350 00:18:59,730 --> 00:19:02,169 Speaker 2: It's the best. It's so great. A caveat that I'm 351 00:19:02,210 --> 00:19:05,590 Speaker 2: not down with mob justice, but a group of people 352 00:19:06,030 --> 00:19:09,690 Speaker 2: finding a serial killer on the street and like subduing him. 353 00:19:09,790 --> 00:19:11,150 Speaker 2: I'm way OK with that. 354 00:19:11,170 --> 00:19:13,730 Speaker 1: No, I totally am. In this particular instance, like I'm 355 00:19:14,050 --> 00:19:16,990 Speaker 1: all fine with that. That kind of justice for sure. 356 00:19:17,450 --> 00:19:20,460 Speaker 2: Yeah. And a badge of honor for East L.A. because 357 00:19:20,840 --> 00:19:23,859 Speaker 2: the entire city of Los Angeles was I mean, it 358 00:19:24,000 --> 00:19:25,240 Speaker 2: was a scary situation there. 359 00:19:25,359 --> 00:19:28,780 Speaker 1: Yeah, I can imagine. That's where Cheech Marin was born, 360 00:19:28,980 --> 00:19:30,459 Speaker 1: according to that one song of his. 361 00:19:32,260 --> 00:19:32,680 Speaker 2: That's right. 362 00:19:33,859 --> 00:19:36,680 Speaker 1: So the Night Stalker, he was not the only serial 363 00:19:36,720 --> 00:19:40,200 Speaker 1: killer that checked in there. He actually inspired just a 364 00:19:40,240 --> 00:19:42,869 Speaker 1: few years after he was convicted in, I think, 1989. 365 00:19:42,869 --> 00:19:45,210 Speaker 1: I think like in 92, maybe 93, there was another 366 00:19:45,230 --> 00:19:54,980 Speaker 1: serial killer named... Jack Unterweger, who was Austrian, who had 367 00:19:55,240 --> 00:19:57,609 Speaker 1: already been convicted, I think when he was like 19 368 00:19:57,609 --> 00:20:01,629 Speaker 1: or early 20s, of killing a woman by strangling her 369 00:20:01,670 --> 00:20:06,070 Speaker 1: with her own bra and went to prison. He was very, 370 00:20:06,109 --> 00:20:09,690 Speaker 1: very smart, very charming. He used this to basically get 371 00:20:10,660 --> 00:20:14,100 Speaker 1: early parole. He convinced the public that he was actually 372 00:20:14,180 --> 00:20:17,060 Speaker 1: reformed and apparently was held up as like a great 373 00:20:17,119 --> 00:20:21,940 Speaker 1: example of how, you know, the, the, the prison system 374 00:20:22,060 --> 00:20:26,700 Speaker 1: could rehabilitate someone. And it was just a complete false fabrication. 375 00:20:27,100 --> 00:20:30,940 Speaker 1: He was basically posed as a true crime journalist. Like 376 00:20:30,980 --> 00:20:34,700 Speaker 1: he reinvented himself as that went to LA and other parts. 377 00:20:34,720 --> 00:20:37,530 Speaker 1: He went to Europe, traveled through Europe a little bit too, 378 00:20:37,590 --> 00:20:40,680 Speaker 1: but also ended up in LA and, to do research 379 00:20:40,800 --> 00:20:44,240 Speaker 1: on his true crime novels. Went along on ride-alongs with 380 00:20:44,260 --> 00:20:49,900 Speaker 1: the LAPD and ended up using that to scout victims. 381 00:20:50,340 --> 00:20:52,790 Speaker 1: He killed three sex workers, and the whole time he 382 00:20:52,830 --> 00:20:56,170 Speaker 1: was staying at the Cecil Hotel, and they think probably 383 00:20:56,250 --> 00:21:00,629 Speaker 1: as an homage to Richard Ramirez, or at least a 384 00:21:00,690 --> 00:21:01,870 Speaker 1: connection to him, you know? 385 00:21:02,550 --> 00:21:06,090 Speaker 2: Yeah, so that, I mean, at this point, like, the 386 00:21:06,150 --> 00:21:09,430 Speaker 2: reputation for the hotel... It's not the kind of thing 387 00:21:09,490 --> 00:21:14,500 Speaker 2: that is going to appear online 15 years ago when 388 00:21:14,720 --> 00:21:18,020 Speaker 2: young people like Elisa Lam are searching for an inexpensive 389 00:21:18,119 --> 00:21:22,040 Speaker 2: place to stay. And sadly, that's exactly what happened was 390 00:21:22,859 --> 00:21:26,830 Speaker 2: a Canadian traveler. She was 20, 21 years old, was 391 00:21:27,070 --> 00:21:29,570 Speaker 2: on her way kind of up the West Coast traveling 392 00:21:29,590 --> 00:21:33,530 Speaker 2: by herself. Her parents were a little unnerved by her 393 00:21:33,570 --> 00:21:36,230 Speaker 2: traveling by herself. So she was asked to check in 394 00:21:36,290 --> 00:21:39,219 Speaker 2: every day, which she was doing. Uh, and at the 395 00:21:39,260 --> 00:21:41,879 Speaker 2: time it was, uh, you know, they had kind of 396 00:21:41,960 --> 00:21:44,659 Speaker 2: dorm style rooms, kind of youth hostel style rooms where 397 00:21:44,680 --> 00:21:47,100 Speaker 2: you had bunk beds and a shared bathroom. And so 398 00:21:47,119 --> 00:21:49,840 Speaker 2: you could stay there. It was a traveler's hotel. And 399 00:21:50,000 --> 00:21:53,189 Speaker 2: if you, uh, you know, I hate to say it, 400 00:21:53,200 --> 00:21:55,320 Speaker 2: but if you, if you didn't know much about LA, 401 00:21:55,440 --> 00:21:57,859 Speaker 2: you may end up at the hotel Cecil because you 402 00:21:57,880 --> 00:21:59,899 Speaker 2: could stay there for like 75 bucks a night or 403 00:21:59,940 --> 00:22:00,520 Speaker 2: something like that. 404 00:22:00,640 --> 00:22:03,380 Speaker 1: Yeah. From what I could tell, stay on Maine did 405 00:22:03,400 --> 00:22:06,230 Speaker 1: a really good job of making their you know, using 406 00:22:06,270 --> 00:22:08,629 Speaker 1: their website to their advantage and making it seem like 407 00:22:08,650 --> 00:22:13,540 Speaker 1: this is a really hip happening spot. And I mean, 408 00:22:13,660 --> 00:22:16,240 Speaker 1: in some ways they were kind of like just a 409 00:22:16,260 --> 00:22:18,820 Speaker 1: little ahead of their time because apparently that area around 410 00:22:18,859 --> 00:22:22,020 Speaker 1: Skid Row in downtown LA is like the hippest spot 411 00:22:22,080 --> 00:22:25,490 Speaker 1: to live in now again. But at the time it 412 00:22:25,530 --> 00:22:30,910 Speaker 1: was still really, really Skid Row-y basically. 413 00:22:31,520 --> 00:22:33,800 Speaker 2: Yeah. And it could be it could be, you know, 414 00:22:33,840 --> 00:22:34,520 Speaker 2: could be dangerous. 415 00:22:34,700 --> 00:22:36,220 Speaker 1: Yeah. And I think it still is. But I think 416 00:22:36,270 --> 00:22:38,790 Speaker 1: it's just becoming more and more gentrified and it's becoming, 417 00:22:38,810 --> 00:22:41,949 Speaker 1: I guess, less dangerous in that sense. But at the 418 00:22:41,990 --> 00:22:44,690 Speaker 1: time when Elisa Lam showed up in 2013, it was 419 00:22:44,990 --> 00:22:47,050 Speaker 1: you know, it was it was a dangerous place to be. 420 00:22:47,109 --> 00:22:52,140 Speaker 1: But this particular spot was just full of, you know, 421 00:22:52,380 --> 00:22:56,879 Speaker 1: especially European kids on basically budget holidays. 422 00:22:57,320 --> 00:22:57,780 Speaker 2: Yeah. 423 00:22:57,820 --> 00:23:01,730 Speaker 1: Staying in L.A., basically in hostels. And I know originally 424 00:23:01,810 --> 00:23:04,450 Speaker 1: she was put into a room with a couple other 425 00:23:04,490 --> 00:23:06,939 Speaker 1: girls that I think were traveling together, but she was 426 00:23:06,980 --> 00:23:11,220 Speaker 1: traveling alone. So it was very hostile, um, and not 427 00:23:11,320 --> 00:23:14,129 Speaker 1: hostile with an E. Right. Well, yeah, there's an E, 428 00:23:14,160 --> 00:23:17,140 Speaker 1: but it's in a different place than you'd expect. Um, 429 00:23:17,640 --> 00:23:20,709 Speaker 1: youth hostily. It was very youth hostily. Like she was 430 00:23:20,869 --> 00:23:22,590 Speaker 1: put in a room with other people at first. 431 00:23:23,690 --> 00:23:25,650 Speaker 2: Yeah. LA didn't have a lot of that. I remember 432 00:23:25,710 --> 00:23:30,199 Speaker 2: there was a youth hostel in Venice that, uh, For 433 00:23:30,240 --> 00:23:31,920 Speaker 2: some reason, I always wanted to stay there when I 434 00:23:31,960 --> 00:23:33,100 Speaker 2: lived in L.A. I was like, I'm going to go 435 00:23:33,140 --> 00:23:35,460 Speaker 2: down and stay in that hostel one night because the 436 00:23:35,500 --> 00:23:39,040 Speaker 2: beach was so far. The beach was really far when 437 00:23:39,090 --> 00:23:40,270 Speaker 2: you lived on the east side and you kind of 438 00:23:40,290 --> 00:23:42,830 Speaker 2: never went over there much unless someone came to town 439 00:23:42,869 --> 00:23:43,750 Speaker 2: and wanted to go to the beach. 440 00:23:43,770 --> 00:23:44,770 Speaker 1: Oh, that makes sense. Sure. 441 00:23:45,330 --> 00:23:47,230 Speaker 2: So, and, you know, I was broke back then, so 442 00:23:47,310 --> 00:23:49,250 Speaker 2: it could have been like a little staycation. 443 00:23:49,650 --> 00:23:50,399 Speaker 1: Did you ever do it? 444 00:23:51,150 --> 00:23:51,430 Speaker 2: Nah. 445 00:23:51,609 --> 00:23:51,810 Speaker 1: No. 446 00:23:53,170 --> 00:23:54,810 Speaker 2: It's one of those things you think about late night 447 00:23:54,830 --> 00:23:57,119 Speaker 2: and then you wake up the next day and you're like, nah. 448 00:23:57,130 --> 00:24:00,840 Speaker 1: Yeah. You blew all your money on Taco Bell instead? 449 00:24:02,220 --> 00:24:03,600 Speaker 2: Oh, man. I miss Taco Bell. 450 00:24:03,980 --> 00:24:04,640 Speaker 1: Do you? I don't. 451 00:24:07,140 --> 00:24:08,869 Speaker 2: I mean, I didn't eat it that much, but I 452 00:24:08,990 --> 00:24:09,830 Speaker 2: haven't had it in years. 453 00:24:10,250 --> 00:24:12,150 Speaker 1: I've had too much, I think, was my problem. 454 00:24:12,869 --> 00:24:16,830 Speaker 2: Oh, okay. Was that the deal? By the way, side note, 455 00:24:16,850 --> 00:24:20,270 Speaker 2: speaking of weird late night foods, we had a guy 456 00:24:20,310 --> 00:24:22,429 Speaker 2: on our front door camera the other day come in 457 00:24:22,470 --> 00:24:25,710 Speaker 2: the middle of the night and leave a package. And 458 00:24:25,730 --> 00:24:28,179 Speaker 2: we were like, what is this? We went out the 459 00:24:28,220 --> 00:24:32,420 Speaker 2: next day and it was a bag full of crystals. Wow. 460 00:24:33,060 --> 00:24:36,310 Speaker 2: And I think it was a delivery, like a door 461 00:24:36,330 --> 00:24:36,930 Speaker 2: dash or something. 462 00:24:36,950 --> 00:24:39,290 Speaker 1: Oh, crystals. I thought you meant like amethysts. 463 00:24:39,590 --> 00:24:41,709 Speaker 2: No, no, no. I mean, tiny square sliders. 464 00:24:42,190 --> 00:24:43,690 Speaker 1: He had the wrong address. 465 00:24:44,510 --> 00:24:45,070 Speaker 2: I think so. 466 00:24:45,450 --> 00:24:49,020 Speaker 1: Either that or your daughter has mastered the telephone by now. 467 00:24:50,040 --> 00:24:51,979 Speaker 2: It was really weird. And of course, the first thing 468 00:24:52,020 --> 00:24:56,300 Speaker 2: I did was feel terrible that someone's late night munchies 469 00:24:56,340 --> 00:24:57,220 Speaker 2: didn't get satisfied. 470 00:24:57,280 --> 00:24:59,700 Speaker 1: Did you eat them the next morning? Just as a homage? 471 00:24:59,720 --> 00:25:00,760 Speaker 2: Oh, God, no. 472 00:25:00,800 --> 00:25:03,700 Speaker 1: No, no, no. No? You don't like crystals? Or was 473 00:25:03,720 --> 00:25:05,100 Speaker 1: it because it was sitting there overnight? 474 00:25:05,800 --> 00:25:08,320 Speaker 2: Both. I never was into crystal for some reason. 475 00:25:08,700 --> 00:25:09,880 Speaker 1: Man, I like crystals. 476 00:25:11,310 --> 00:25:13,170 Speaker 2: It was the thing. I just was, I don't know why. 477 00:25:13,490 --> 00:25:15,010 Speaker 2: I think I was just a Waffle House guy. 478 00:25:15,910 --> 00:25:18,609 Speaker 1: I don't, I'm fine with Waffle House too. The big 479 00:25:18,630 --> 00:25:20,810 Speaker 1: problem with crystals though, Chuck, I'll tell you, is they're 480 00:25:20,869 --> 00:25:25,190 Speaker 1: fries or Probably the worst fries of any fast food. 481 00:25:25,290 --> 00:25:30,550 Speaker 1: They're the most bland. Somehow, if you just bit into 482 00:25:30,590 --> 00:25:33,670 Speaker 1: a raw potato, it would be less bland and tasteless 483 00:25:33,710 --> 00:25:35,570 Speaker 1: than if you ate a Crystal's Fry. 484 00:25:35,990 --> 00:25:36,470 Speaker 2: Yeah. 485 00:25:36,490 --> 00:25:37,330 Speaker 1: I don't know how they do it. 486 00:25:38,890 --> 00:25:41,170 Speaker 2: And if you're from the other places in the country, 487 00:25:41,850 --> 00:25:44,210 Speaker 2: White Castle is sort of an analog to Crystal. 488 00:25:44,270 --> 00:25:45,250 Speaker 1: Yeah. Yeah. 489 00:25:46,350 --> 00:25:51,340 Speaker 2: Anyway, this is not an episode of the Doughboys. This 490 00:25:51,380 --> 00:25:54,230 Speaker 2: is stuff you should know. And back to Elisa Lam, 491 00:25:55,450 --> 00:25:57,560 Speaker 2: she was supposed to be there for about, I think, 492 00:25:57,640 --> 00:26:02,900 Speaker 2: four days and check out on February 1st and did 493 00:26:03,000 --> 00:26:04,919 Speaker 2: not get in touch with her parents like she had 494 00:26:04,960 --> 00:26:09,540 Speaker 2: been doing each day. She had been seen shopping for 495 00:26:09,600 --> 00:26:12,379 Speaker 2: books at a nearby bookstore and then bought some books. 496 00:26:13,220 --> 00:26:15,530 Speaker 2: And this is one of the things in the documentary, like, 497 00:26:16,050 --> 00:26:17,750 Speaker 2: you know, they didn't really have any footage of her 498 00:26:17,830 --> 00:26:21,300 Speaker 2: with any other people inside the hotel. before her disappearance. 499 00:26:21,340 --> 00:26:24,240 Speaker 1: Well, she was also reported to be constantly by herself too, 500 00:26:24,280 --> 00:26:26,160 Speaker 1: by people who saw her. Yeah. 501 00:26:26,200 --> 00:26:30,200 Speaker 2: I mean, she was traveling alone. So that, that makes sense. But, um, she, 502 00:26:30,380 --> 00:26:33,100 Speaker 2: she did get handed off. There were two gentlemen that 503 00:26:33,160 --> 00:26:36,220 Speaker 2: handed off a kind of a largest, uh, large-ish box 504 00:26:36,260 --> 00:26:36,580 Speaker 2: to her. 505 00:26:36,600 --> 00:26:37,080 Speaker 1: Oh yeah. 506 00:26:37,340 --> 00:26:40,690 Speaker 2: On camera in front of the hotel. And of course 507 00:26:40,710 --> 00:26:43,050 Speaker 2: the internet sleuths are like, who are these guys? What 508 00:26:43,090 --> 00:26:45,790 Speaker 2: was in the box? And apparently in the box were 509 00:26:45,810 --> 00:26:48,550 Speaker 2: these books that she got because she had spoken with 510 00:26:48,570 --> 00:26:51,250 Speaker 2: the book read, um, seller, um, About like the size 511 00:26:51,290 --> 00:26:52,490 Speaker 2: of them. And boy, I don't even know if I 512 00:26:52,510 --> 00:26:55,449 Speaker 2: can carry these. And I think had them delivered to 513 00:26:55,470 --> 00:26:58,950 Speaker 2: the hotel or whatever. So kind of nothing to see here. 514 00:26:59,150 --> 00:27:01,890 Speaker 2: And another example of how annoying this case can be 515 00:27:01,930 --> 00:27:04,510 Speaker 2: with people online speculating like wrong stuff. 516 00:27:04,670 --> 00:27:04,890 Speaker 1: Yeah. 517 00:27:05,650 --> 00:27:05,810 Speaker 2: Yeah. 518 00:27:06,369 --> 00:27:08,669 Speaker 1: Can be a little annoying for sure. But yes, so 519 00:27:08,710 --> 00:27:12,550 Speaker 1: she was she was alone traveling alone. I think she 520 00:27:12,750 --> 00:27:15,750 Speaker 1: started out in San Diego or at least her last 521 00:27:15,930 --> 00:27:18,030 Speaker 1: stop had been San Diego. Her next stop was going 522 00:27:18,050 --> 00:27:21,660 Speaker 1: to be Santa Cruz. And yeah, her parents have been like, okay, 523 00:27:21,680 --> 00:27:25,220 Speaker 1: you need to call us every single day. And she 524 00:27:25,260 --> 00:27:29,600 Speaker 1: had been pretty faithfully until that February 1st came and 525 00:27:29,619 --> 00:27:32,180 Speaker 1: went with no call. And I believe they pretty much 526 00:27:32,240 --> 00:27:35,660 Speaker 1: immediately contacted the hotel and the LAPD and said, hey, 527 00:27:35,680 --> 00:27:38,960 Speaker 1: you know, our daughter hasn't checked in. Can you see 528 00:27:38,980 --> 00:27:41,790 Speaker 1: what's going on? I don't know if they did it 529 00:27:41,869 --> 00:27:45,369 Speaker 1: on February 1st or not, but in pretty short order, 530 00:27:45,410 --> 00:27:49,439 Speaker 1: the LAPD determined that She she was just gone. She 531 00:27:49,480 --> 00:27:52,420 Speaker 1: wasn't she was nowhere to be found and that there 532 00:27:52,440 --> 00:27:55,340 Speaker 1: was some suspiciousness going on for sure. 533 00:27:56,340 --> 00:27:58,570 Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, they did a thorough inspection. They went 534 00:27:58,609 --> 00:28:01,090 Speaker 2: to her room. They had found that the hotel had 535 00:28:01,730 --> 00:28:04,390 Speaker 2: gathered all her stuff and bagged it and was holding 536 00:28:04,430 --> 00:28:09,369 Speaker 2: it in storage, which was regular protocol when someone doesn't 537 00:28:09,410 --> 00:28:12,490 Speaker 2: check out and just leave stuff. Nothing shady going on there. 538 00:28:12,510 --> 00:28:16,370 Speaker 2: They checked around the hotel in the alleyways and sidewalks. 539 00:28:16,410 --> 00:28:18,890 Speaker 2: They checked up on the roof. They didn't find anything. 540 00:28:18,910 --> 00:28:23,210 Speaker 2: And things got really strange. And I guess we should 541 00:28:23,230 --> 00:28:26,230 Speaker 2: take another ad break here. But things got really strange 542 00:28:26,310 --> 00:28:29,830 Speaker 2: when the hotel sent them footage from inside the elevator 543 00:28:30,210 --> 00:28:32,280 Speaker 2: of the Cecil Hotel. And we'll get to that right 544 00:28:32,320 --> 00:28:32,660 Speaker 2: after this. 545 00:28:51,560 --> 00:28:54,000 Speaker 1: All right, Chuck. So Elisa Lam is now known to 546 00:28:54,060 --> 00:28:56,459 Speaker 1: be missing. She left her stuff behind at the Cecil 547 00:28:56,480 --> 00:28:59,280 Speaker 1: Hotel and she didn't check out. She didn't call her 548 00:28:59,320 --> 00:29:04,700 Speaker 1: parents as she usually did. And she's officially a missing person. 549 00:29:06,140 --> 00:29:08,880 Speaker 1: Within a couple of days, I think maybe February 6th, 550 00:29:09,000 --> 00:29:12,420 Speaker 1: the police held a press conference and explained what was 551 00:29:12,460 --> 00:29:17,900 Speaker 1: going on to the public. And basically asked for everybody's help. 552 00:29:18,000 --> 00:29:20,900 Speaker 1: And if anyone had any info, you know, where did 553 00:29:20,940 --> 00:29:24,070 Speaker 1: she go? Where is she? How's she doing? Is she OK? 554 00:29:25,550 --> 00:29:28,170 Speaker 1: And I guess I don't I didn't see anything about 555 00:29:28,250 --> 00:29:31,910 Speaker 1: any get any crazy leads or anything like that. It 556 00:29:31,950 --> 00:29:35,870 Speaker 1: doesn't seem to have really kind of captured the public's 557 00:29:35,930 --> 00:29:38,790 Speaker 1: interest at first. And I saw there's this guy named 558 00:29:38,830 --> 00:29:43,640 Speaker 1: Josh Dean who's written written several articles on the Elisa 559 00:29:43,680 --> 00:29:48,780 Speaker 1: Lam disappearance. And I believe one of the ones that 560 00:29:48,840 --> 00:29:52,210 Speaker 1: he wrote kind of pinpoints why there wasn't a huge 561 00:29:52,710 --> 00:29:56,010 Speaker 1: public interest in the first like week or even two 562 00:29:56,610 --> 00:30:00,910 Speaker 1: of her case. It was because Christopher Dorner had gone 563 00:30:01,010 --> 00:30:04,990 Speaker 1: on his rampage against the LAPD, basically declared war on 564 00:30:05,010 --> 00:30:08,610 Speaker 1: the LAPD and was killed in, I think, the mountains 565 00:30:08,650 --> 00:30:12,590 Speaker 1: of San Bernardino in a standoff, like right when Elisa 566 00:30:12,630 --> 00:30:16,150 Speaker 1: Lam went missing. So not only was the public's attention 567 00:30:16,250 --> 00:30:19,910 Speaker 1: on this, especially in L.A., the LAPD's attention was definitely 568 00:30:20,010 --> 00:30:22,930 Speaker 1: on that as well. So Elisa Lam was kind of 569 00:30:22,990 --> 00:30:26,620 Speaker 1: like this faint little chirp in this huge maelstrom at 570 00:30:26,660 --> 00:30:27,060 Speaker 1: the time. 571 00:30:28,420 --> 00:30:29,560 Speaker 2: They ain't chirping in Maelstrom. 572 00:30:30,260 --> 00:30:31,940 Speaker 1: It's the best I could come up with on short notes. 573 00:30:31,960 --> 00:30:33,060 Speaker 2: It's amazing. Are you kidding me? 574 00:30:33,080 --> 00:30:33,460 Speaker 1: Oh, thanks. 575 00:30:34,680 --> 00:30:35,350 Speaker 2: You just made that up? 576 00:30:35,480 --> 00:30:38,000 Speaker 1: Yeah. Yeah, I did. You like it? 577 00:30:38,920 --> 00:30:40,810 Speaker 2: Yeah, but I just have a feeling that next time 578 00:30:40,870 --> 00:30:42,710 Speaker 2: I'm in your house, it's going to be like, that's 579 00:30:42,730 --> 00:30:44,510 Speaker 2: going to be carved into your desk or something. Right. 580 00:30:45,550 --> 00:30:46,610 Speaker 1: It's on a t-shirt. 581 00:30:47,270 --> 00:30:50,850 Speaker 2: Right. That you put, you make Momo wear that t-shirt 582 00:30:50,870 --> 00:30:51,230 Speaker 2: every day. 583 00:30:51,310 --> 00:30:52,910 Speaker 1: That's right. 584 00:30:53,050 --> 00:30:55,150 Speaker 2: Yeah. And you know, the other big reason was until 585 00:30:55,190 --> 00:30:59,600 Speaker 2: this footage actually came out of the elevator in uh, car, then, 586 00:30:59,700 --> 00:31:03,700 Speaker 2: you know, that's when, um, that's when the public's attention 587 00:31:03,870 --> 00:31:04,740 Speaker 2: really caught hold. 588 00:31:04,790 --> 00:31:05,770 Speaker 1: That changed everything. 589 00:31:06,470 --> 00:31:08,670 Speaker 2: Yeah. I mean, there's no way around it. It's, it's 590 00:31:08,910 --> 00:31:12,470 Speaker 2: a very sort of unsettling. And I remember when this happened, uh, 591 00:31:12,870 --> 00:31:14,490 Speaker 2: before any of the facts of the case were kind 592 00:31:14,510 --> 00:31:17,750 Speaker 2: of out, I remember looking at this video and it 593 00:31:18,030 --> 00:31:20,410 Speaker 2: is very unsettling and it does appear to be very 594 00:31:20,470 --> 00:31:24,560 Speaker 2: creepy and that, uh, a young woman gets on an elevator, um, 595 00:31:24,710 --> 00:31:27,840 Speaker 2: very kind of casually presses all the center buttons, uh, 596 00:31:28,350 --> 00:31:30,560 Speaker 2: on all the floors. I think they determined she was 597 00:31:30,630 --> 00:31:33,420 Speaker 2: on the 14th floor and sort of pressed all the 598 00:31:33,460 --> 00:31:38,620 Speaker 2: floors on the way down. Elevator doesn't do anything. The 599 00:31:38,640 --> 00:31:41,820 Speaker 2: doors don't shut. She moves to the back corner and 600 00:31:41,880 --> 00:31:45,820 Speaker 2: sort of standing there. She goes and she looks outside 601 00:31:45,860 --> 00:31:48,300 Speaker 2: of the elevator both ways a couple of times in 602 00:31:48,320 --> 00:31:51,240 Speaker 2: the hallway and then kind of retreats back quickly. At 603 00:31:52,360 --> 00:31:55,440 Speaker 2: one point, she steps out into the hallway and appears 604 00:31:55,500 --> 00:31:59,260 Speaker 2: to be gesturing towards somebody or she's at least making 605 00:31:59,300 --> 00:32:02,140 Speaker 2: hand gestures to the right down the hallway. 606 00:32:02,160 --> 00:32:05,719 Speaker 1: Yeah. And they're unusual hand gestures. They're not like the 607 00:32:05,800 --> 00:32:08,160 Speaker 1: normal hand gestures you might make. They're not at all 608 00:32:08,240 --> 00:32:12,540 Speaker 1: subtle or casual or almost even like, like, you know, 609 00:32:13,660 --> 00:32:15,640 Speaker 1: you might not even realize you're using your hands when 610 00:32:15,660 --> 00:32:19,380 Speaker 1: you're talking sometimes. Like these are, these are more gesticulations 611 00:32:19,460 --> 00:32:21,400 Speaker 1: than just mere gestures. You know what I mean? 612 00:32:22,200 --> 00:32:25,070 Speaker 2: Yeah. And you know, there's, there's no doubt. And eventually 613 00:32:25,130 --> 00:32:28,060 Speaker 2: she kind of, leaves around to the left and exits 614 00:32:28,100 --> 00:32:30,240 Speaker 2: to the left and the door stays open for a 615 00:32:30,240 --> 00:32:33,840 Speaker 2: while before it shuts um but there's no getting around 616 00:32:33,860 --> 00:32:36,280 Speaker 2: the fact that it having known nothing and knowing that 617 00:32:36,360 --> 00:32:39,500 Speaker 2: this person disappeared uh this young woman and then you 618 00:32:39,560 --> 00:32:42,980 Speaker 2: see this it seems very suspicious um. 619 00:32:43,040 --> 00:32:45,720 Speaker 1: And creepy i don't think it's creepy i think. 620 00:32:45,620 --> 00:32:47,640 Speaker 2: It looks i don't even think it looks that creepy 621 00:32:47,660 --> 00:32:50,340 Speaker 2: it looks to me like That she is trying to 622 00:32:50,360 --> 00:32:52,620 Speaker 2: get away from someone and is afraid someone has followed 623 00:32:52,640 --> 00:32:55,640 Speaker 2: her or is gesturing at a person who she feels 624 00:32:55,680 --> 00:32:57,770 Speaker 2: threatened by. It's what it looks like to me. I 625 00:32:57,790 --> 00:33:02,050 Speaker 2: know other people online talk about otherworldly spirits. And she's 626 00:33:02,470 --> 00:33:05,790 Speaker 2: like you said earlier, she's conjuring spirits with her hands. 627 00:33:05,810 --> 00:33:09,410 Speaker 2: Like I just that never occurred to me. It just 628 00:33:09,430 --> 00:33:11,910 Speaker 2: looked like she might be in some kind of peril 629 00:33:11,970 --> 00:33:14,030 Speaker 2: and was trying to get away from someone. Right. 630 00:33:15,190 --> 00:33:17,160 Speaker 1: But that's creepy in and of itself, you know. 631 00:33:17,990 --> 00:33:21,750 Speaker 2: Yeah, I just mean not creepy in, like, a supernatural, like, 632 00:33:21,770 --> 00:33:22,650 Speaker 2: what's going on here way. 633 00:33:22,970 --> 00:33:24,810 Speaker 1: No, I think the thing that really, when it really 634 00:33:24,850 --> 00:33:27,700 Speaker 1: turns creepy to me is when she turns around and 635 00:33:27,740 --> 00:33:32,720 Speaker 1: hides in the corner of the elevator. Like, she's hiding. 636 00:33:33,180 --> 00:33:36,760 Speaker 1: And then the second part that's genuinely creepy is when she, like, 637 00:33:37,320 --> 00:33:39,650 Speaker 1: leans out and, like, looks both ways and then kind 638 00:33:39,690 --> 00:33:42,990 Speaker 1: of jumps back into the elevator. It's just, I mean, 639 00:33:43,210 --> 00:33:45,170 Speaker 1: it's really hard not to kind of put yourself in 640 00:33:45,210 --> 00:33:49,229 Speaker 1: her shoes. And she's clearly frightened. And to see somebody 641 00:33:49,330 --> 00:33:52,290 Speaker 1: frightened like that, it's creepy. 642 00:33:53,170 --> 00:33:57,239 Speaker 2: And you're waiting on someone to enter the elevator, but 643 00:33:57,260 --> 00:34:02,020 Speaker 2: that never happens. And with the internet sleuthing, you couldn't 644 00:34:02,040 --> 00:34:05,100 Speaker 2: really make out the time code very well. And so 645 00:34:05,280 --> 00:34:07,300 Speaker 2: all the people online are like, well, why can't you 646 00:34:07,340 --> 00:34:10,040 Speaker 2: make out the time code and the timestamps? Like what 647 00:34:10,060 --> 00:34:12,200 Speaker 2: would degrade that and not the rest of it? And 648 00:34:13,180 --> 00:34:17,920 Speaker 2: then they think they decoded it and there's almost a 649 00:34:18,160 --> 00:34:21,320 Speaker 2: full minute missing in the hotel. Cecil edited out a 650 00:34:21,360 --> 00:34:24,020 Speaker 2: portion clearly. And before they send it to the cops and, 651 00:34:24,520 --> 00:34:26,520 Speaker 2: and they interviewed the woman and that you were talking 652 00:34:26,540 --> 00:34:28,200 Speaker 2: about the manager. And she was like, no, of course 653 00:34:28,239 --> 00:34:31,430 Speaker 2: we didn't edit anything out. Like we were horrified by 654 00:34:31,469 --> 00:34:33,550 Speaker 2: this disappearance. It just sent him everything we had. 655 00:34:34,290 --> 00:34:37,290 Speaker 1: Right. Plus I'm sure also that most of the employees 656 00:34:37,330 --> 00:34:39,990 Speaker 1: that stay on main know exactly how to edit video 657 00:34:40,130 --> 00:34:43,549 Speaker 1: out before handing things over to the cops. Anyway, it 658 00:34:43,590 --> 00:34:46,830 Speaker 1: is LA. That's true. That is a good point. Actually. 659 00:34:47,530 --> 00:34:49,489 Speaker 2: But I don't buy it. I think it was, it 660 00:34:49,590 --> 00:34:53,170 Speaker 2: is what it was, which was, uh, a person in 661 00:34:53,210 --> 00:34:57,370 Speaker 2: an elevator who had some, uh, was having some mental 662 00:34:57,430 --> 00:35:00,399 Speaker 2: issues and, you know, we'll get to that in a second. Um, 663 00:35:01,280 --> 00:35:03,319 Speaker 2: and I think, you know, it's sort of like, uh, 664 00:35:03,460 --> 00:35:07,120 Speaker 2: the easiest explanation of the video, at least to me, 665 00:35:07,140 --> 00:35:08,860 Speaker 2: it seems to be the most accurate. 666 00:35:09,219 --> 00:35:12,299 Speaker 1: All right. Um, that, that's what I buy. That's how 667 00:35:12,340 --> 00:35:16,270 Speaker 1: I buy it too. Um, So that video was released 668 00:35:16,310 --> 00:35:19,190 Speaker 1: on February 13th, and now all of a sudden the 669 00:35:19,230 --> 00:35:23,780 Speaker 1: public is taking notice. She becomes an internet meme almost 670 00:35:23,880 --> 00:35:28,020 Speaker 1: overnight with people watching and analyzing that video, like you 671 00:35:28,040 --> 00:35:30,839 Speaker 1: were saying. And yet they still can't find her. No 672 00:35:30,880 --> 00:35:32,660 Speaker 1: one has any idea where she is. It's been two 673 00:35:32,700 --> 00:35:35,850 Speaker 1: weeks now since she went missing. This video is out there. 674 00:35:36,350 --> 00:35:40,650 Speaker 1: The entire internet is on the case now. And it 675 00:35:40,690 --> 00:35:43,070 Speaker 1: wasn't until a couple days, I think two days after 676 00:35:44,070 --> 00:35:47,880 Speaker 1: The video came out, Chuck, that one of the guys, 677 00:35:48,000 --> 00:35:51,600 Speaker 1: one of the custodians of the Cecil Hotel of Stay 678 00:35:51,660 --> 00:35:55,260 Speaker 1: on Main, I should say, was asked to go check 679 00:35:55,420 --> 00:35:59,300 Speaker 1: on the water supply on the roof because the Cecil 680 00:35:59,340 --> 00:36:06,130 Speaker 1: Hotel used gravity fed water. They had four 1,000 gallon 681 00:36:06,250 --> 00:36:10,100 Speaker 1: tanks on the top of the roof. And when you 682 00:36:10,320 --> 00:36:12,980 Speaker 1: open the tap, the water would come pouring down from 683 00:36:13,020 --> 00:36:16,180 Speaker 1: those tanks into your room and out the faucet. And 684 00:36:16,239 --> 00:36:18,960 Speaker 1: some of the tenants, I don't know if it was 685 00:36:19,020 --> 00:36:21,460 Speaker 1: just the hotel or some long-term tenants, but they were 686 00:36:21,500 --> 00:36:24,800 Speaker 1: complaining that the water pressure had suddenly gotten really low 687 00:36:25,580 --> 00:36:29,509 Speaker 1: and that the water that was coming out had a 688 00:36:29,530 --> 00:36:33,560 Speaker 1: strange odor and taste and weird kind of color to it. 689 00:36:34,180 --> 00:36:38,100 Speaker 1: And so they dispatched the custodian to the roof Um, 690 00:36:38,420 --> 00:36:40,420 Speaker 1: and he went and checked and I think as he 691 00:36:40,460 --> 00:36:43,959 Speaker 1: was approaching the, the main water tank, I think tank 692 00:36:44,020 --> 00:36:47,259 Speaker 1: number one, he noticed that the hatch was open and, uh, 693 00:36:47,500 --> 00:36:50,620 Speaker 1: in very short order made a, the, the grizzly discovery 694 00:36:50,680 --> 00:36:53,320 Speaker 1: of Elisa Lamb's body. Yeah. 695 00:36:53,600 --> 00:36:55,400 Speaker 2: He was, uh, he was kind of like the super, 696 00:36:55,460 --> 00:36:58,739 Speaker 2: he was a maintenance guy. His name is Santiago Lopez 697 00:36:59,460 --> 00:37:02,080 Speaker 2: and he's in the documentary too. Um, I don't think 698 00:37:02,100 --> 00:37:03,990 Speaker 2: he saw the hatch cause the hatch is on top 699 00:37:04,010 --> 00:37:06,830 Speaker 2: of the tank. But he went to go and he 700 00:37:06,870 --> 00:37:08,549 Speaker 2: said it was a routine thing if there was any 701 00:37:08,590 --> 00:37:11,230 Speaker 2: kind of water issue was to climb the ladder to 702 00:37:11,250 --> 00:37:13,009 Speaker 2: the tanks and go look and see what was going 703 00:37:13,130 --> 00:37:16,870 Speaker 2: on because there's probably a clog or something. And he 704 00:37:16,969 --> 00:37:22,910 Speaker 2: saw her body naked about a foot below the water, 705 00:37:22,930 --> 00:37:26,410 Speaker 2: just sort of suspended there. And, you know, when they 706 00:37:26,430 --> 00:37:29,009 Speaker 2: interviewed this guy in the documentary, it's really sad. You know, 707 00:37:29,050 --> 00:37:30,339 Speaker 2: he was sort of at the center of a lot 708 00:37:30,380 --> 00:37:34,740 Speaker 2: of this with interviews and He he was speaking through it, 709 00:37:35,010 --> 00:37:37,330 Speaker 2: I guess not through a translator, but through subtitles. But 710 00:37:37,530 --> 00:37:40,330 Speaker 2: he was clearly, you know, still very upset about this. 711 00:37:40,430 --> 00:37:44,270 Speaker 2: And it scarred him to see this woman floating in 712 00:37:44,290 --> 00:37:47,299 Speaker 2: the tank. And he knew immediately who it was and 713 00:37:47,400 --> 00:37:50,140 Speaker 2: called down to the hotel manager who we've been talking 714 00:37:50,180 --> 00:37:52,700 Speaker 2: about and said, you know, she's she's up here in 715 00:37:52,719 --> 00:37:56,899 Speaker 2: the tank. And, you know, the cops came. They found 716 00:37:56,940 --> 00:37:59,290 Speaker 2: her clothes, which were determined to be the same clothes. 717 00:37:59,910 --> 00:38:02,830 Speaker 2: She was wearing in the elevator video kind of at 718 00:38:02,850 --> 00:38:06,149 Speaker 2: the bottom of the tank. They had sunk. And, you know, 719 00:38:06,250 --> 00:38:09,680 Speaker 2: immediately the new mystery is not what's going on in 720 00:38:09,719 --> 00:38:12,200 Speaker 2: this video. Although, you know, that played a part because 721 00:38:12,219 --> 00:38:14,160 Speaker 2: they were still trying to figure that out as far 722 00:38:14,180 --> 00:38:17,860 Speaker 2: as foul play goes. But was how she made it 723 00:38:17,920 --> 00:38:20,339 Speaker 2: in here and and why she made it in there. 724 00:38:20,800 --> 00:38:24,900 Speaker 1: Yeah, because she she it was like the hatch is 725 00:38:24,960 --> 00:38:27,660 Speaker 1: not easy to get. in or out of, they had 726 00:38:27,700 --> 00:38:29,900 Speaker 1: to like cut her out of the, they had to 727 00:38:29,920 --> 00:38:31,380 Speaker 1: cut a hole in the bottom of the tank so 728 00:38:31,400 --> 00:38:33,920 Speaker 1: they could access it, right? They couldn't just pull her 729 00:38:33,960 --> 00:38:37,020 Speaker 1: back out of that hatch. So that's kind of weird 730 00:38:37,060 --> 00:38:40,680 Speaker 1: in and of itself. She's also nude. That also kind 731 00:38:40,700 --> 00:38:43,900 Speaker 1: of added to the mystery of the whole thing. And 732 00:38:43,940 --> 00:38:49,180 Speaker 1: then also the, you know, the coroner, when he made 733 00:38:49,340 --> 00:38:52,880 Speaker 1: his toxicology report available, he basically said it was, he 734 00:38:52,900 --> 00:38:57,240 Speaker 1: wasn't able to make any conclusive statements find any conclusive 735 00:38:57,280 --> 00:39:00,640 Speaker 1: results because there wasn't enough blood to take a sample from. 736 00:39:01,040 --> 00:39:03,860 Speaker 1: You know, she just kind of permeated the water in 737 00:39:03,880 --> 00:39:07,880 Speaker 1: that her blood had. And it wasn't you just couldn't 738 00:39:07,900 --> 00:39:10,219 Speaker 1: like take a water sample and be like, oh, yeah, 739 00:39:10,260 --> 00:39:12,790 Speaker 1: there's no you know, there's no drugs in here or 740 00:39:12,830 --> 00:39:16,129 Speaker 1: anything like that. So all of that combined really kind 741 00:39:16,190 --> 00:39:21,419 Speaker 1: of just. just took that mystery, you know, that people 742 00:39:21,440 --> 00:39:23,600 Speaker 1: had been primed to start thinking about with that video 743 00:39:23,640 --> 00:39:26,060 Speaker 1: and then just blew it through the the roof you 744 00:39:26,100 --> 00:39:29,900 Speaker 1: know i mean the the the water being you know 745 00:39:29,980 --> 00:39:33,060 Speaker 1: going to other people's taps in the hotel and you 746 00:39:33,080 --> 00:39:35,300 Speaker 1: know lisa lamb basically being a part of that water 747 00:39:35,600 --> 00:39:40,950 Speaker 1: really kind of solidified her legendary status or the legendary 748 00:39:40,989 --> 00:39:43,810 Speaker 1: status of her mystery i think in people's imagination anybody 749 00:39:43,830 --> 00:39:46,430 Speaker 1: who comes across that case can't help but like let 750 00:39:46,469 --> 00:39:49,150 Speaker 1: the mind wander in that respect Oh. 751 00:39:49,180 --> 00:39:51,380 Speaker 2: For sure. I mean, the idea of drinking water and 752 00:39:51,400 --> 00:39:54,380 Speaker 2: bathing in water with a decomposing body. I mean, the 753 00:39:54,420 --> 00:39:58,460 Speaker 2: body was in a pretty rough state of decomposition at 754 00:39:58,500 --> 00:40:02,380 Speaker 2: that point. They did do, obviously, in the autopsy, they 755 00:40:02,420 --> 00:40:06,820 Speaker 2: didn't find any signs of foul play. There were obviously 756 00:40:06,860 --> 00:40:11,960 Speaker 2: no obvious wounds. There were no internal wounds. There was 757 00:40:12,000 --> 00:40:16,279 Speaker 2: no strangulation. They pretty much said this doesn't look like 758 00:40:16,340 --> 00:40:19,350 Speaker 2: foul play at all. Um, the one, one of the 759 00:40:19,390 --> 00:40:23,130 Speaker 2: mysteries was how she got up there because you, um, 760 00:40:23,510 --> 00:40:25,330 Speaker 2: if you want to go just through the regular staircase 761 00:40:25,370 --> 00:40:27,830 Speaker 2: to the rooftop, and this is not a rooftop that you, 762 00:40:28,469 --> 00:40:30,270 Speaker 2: you know, it doesn't have like a rooftop hangout area 763 00:40:30,310 --> 00:40:33,230 Speaker 2: or whatever, although people, you know, there was plenty of 764 00:40:33,270 --> 00:40:36,430 Speaker 2: graffiti and beer bottles and drug needles. And so people 765 00:40:36,489 --> 00:40:39,030 Speaker 2: would make their way up there. But, uh, if you 766 00:40:39,070 --> 00:40:41,440 Speaker 2: go through the regular door, it's one of the, um, 767 00:40:41,640 --> 00:40:46,360 Speaker 2: alarm doors, which would trigger downstairs and all throughout the lobby. Um, 768 00:40:46,500 --> 00:40:48,370 Speaker 2: that never came on. and you have to have a 769 00:40:48,390 --> 00:40:51,940 Speaker 2: key to disable it, but there is a fire escape, uh, 770 00:40:52,670 --> 00:40:55,790 Speaker 2: entry with a ladder basically for the last, like for 771 00:40:55,810 --> 00:40:58,969 Speaker 2: the last story, it's a little precarious, but she could 772 00:40:59,010 --> 00:41:01,850 Speaker 2: have just simply gone out the window to the fire 773 00:41:01,890 --> 00:41:04,049 Speaker 2: escape and climbed up the ladder and then up the 774 00:41:04,070 --> 00:41:08,430 Speaker 2: ladder to the tanks. It's not, you know, it's a little, um, 775 00:41:09,210 --> 00:41:10,910 Speaker 2: it would be a little bit of a scary trip 776 00:41:11,030 --> 00:41:15,259 Speaker 2: up that ladder, I think. But, uh, considering what happened, she, she, 777 00:41:15,640 --> 00:41:18,130 Speaker 2: clearly was, uh, was not in a good place mentally. 778 00:41:18,170 --> 00:41:20,250 Speaker 2: So I think that's completely believable. 779 00:41:20,730 --> 00:41:24,070 Speaker 1: That journalist, Josh Dean, um, went in, I think, 2015 780 00:41:24,070 --> 00:41:28,870 Speaker 1: to see the CISO himself. He had, uh, gotten obsessed 781 00:41:28,910 --> 00:41:32,469 Speaker 1: with the, the, um, case. So he went and kind 782 00:41:32,510 --> 00:41:36,300 Speaker 1: of investigated it in person. And, um, he quickly found 783 00:41:36,340 --> 00:41:39,819 Speaker 1: that open window was still open, uh, and the fire 784 00:41:39,860 --> 00:41:43,610 Speaker 1: escape was easily accessible. And, um, in the, uh, I 785 00:41:43,630 --> 00:41:46,550 Speaker 1: think one of his articles is called American Horror Story, 786 00:41:47,110 --> 00:41:50,270 Speaker 1: which is a reference to what I think the hotel 787 00:41:50,310 --> 00:41:53,270 Speaker 1: season of American Horror Story was based on or inspired 788 00:41:53,310 --> 00:41:57,930 Speaker 1: by Elisa Lam's disappearance. But there's a picture that he 789 00:41:57,989 --> 00:42:01,680 Speaker 1: took of that ladder leading from the fire escape on 790 00:42:01,719 --> 00:42:05,960 Speaker 1: the 15th or 14th floor up to the roof. And 791 00:42:06,540 --> 00:42:08,540 Speaker 1: all you see is up, like you just see the 792 00:42:08,580 --> 00:42:11,780 Speaker 1: ladder and then above it is sky. But after reading 793 00:42:11,860 --> 00:42:16,660 Speaker 1: about it, your imagination just thinks of like the 15 794 00:42:16,660 --> 00:42:20,319 Speaker 1: stories behind you. Like as you're, you know, as you're 795 00:42:20,360 --> 00:42:22,920 Speaker 1: looking up this ladder, it's one of the most unsettling 796 00:42:22,960 --> 00:42:26,200 Speaker 1: pictures I've ever seen. If you read the text, you know, 797 00:42:26,360 --> 00:42:30,700 Speaker 1: that surround it. But he said by his judgment, an 798 00:42:31,070 --> 00:42:33,990 Speaker 1: average person could easily make it up that ladder, especially 799 00:42:34,030 --> 00:42:36,910 Speaker 1: if you don't look down. He said, if you're carrying 800 00:42:36,969 --> 00:42:39,520 Speaker 1: a body or another person, you could not do it. 801 00:42:39,770 --> 00:42:41,410 Speaker 1: He said, it just would be too difficult. 802 00:42:41,900 --> 00:42:43,860 Speaker 2: And, you know, it's one of those straight up vertical 803 00:42:43,900 --> 00:42:45,100 Speaker 2: ladders on the side of the building. 804 00:42:45,120 --> 00:42:47,299 Speaker 1: Yeah. But if you were in a manic state, as 805 00:42:47,560 --> 00:42:51,600 Speaker 1: a lot of people believe Elisa Lam was, you could 806 00:42:51,640 --> 00:42:54,140 Speaker 1: probably make it up that ladder pretty quickly. You wouldn't 807 00:42:54,200 --> 00:42:56,819 Speaker 1: even necessarily consider looking down and all of a sudden 808 00:42:56,860 --> 00:42:58,520 Speaker 1: you'd be on the roof. And after you were on 809 00:42:58,560 --> 00:43:01,219 Speaker 1: the roof, it would be a fairly easy proposition to 810 00:43:01,260 --> 00:43:04,259 Speaker 1: get into one of those tanks, especially I think she 811 00:43:04,280 --> 00:43:06,540 Speaker 1: weighed about one hundred and fifteen pounds and was about 812 00:43:06,820 --> 00:43:10,339 Speaker 1: five feet, four inches. So it was possible for her 813 00:43:10,400 --> 00:43:13,580 Speaker 1: to get into one of those tanks through that hatch. 814 00:43:14,180 --> 00:43:19,200 Speaker 1: But either she was too scared to come out conceivably, 815 00:43:19,219 --> 00:43:22,239 Speaker 1: or she couldn't get out when she wanted to get 816 00:43:22,380 --> 00:43:25,259 Speaker 1: out and tired of treading water because the water would 817 00:43:25,280 --> 00:43:28,779 Speaker 1: have been about eight feet deep and drowned after a while. 818 00:43:30,370 --> 00:43:33,310 Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, they did. I think the police dogs 819 00:43:33,370 --> 00:43:36,230 Speaker 2: did pick up her scent near that window. So that 820 00:43:36,310 --> 00:43:39,469 Speaker 2: seems to be what happened. And you know, this is 821 00:43:39,510 --> 00:43:41,569 Speaker 2: one of those cases where the more I read, like 822 00:43:41,650 --> 00:43:46,370 Speaker 2: all I could feel was despair about this poor woman 823 00:43:46,390 --> 00:43:50,890 Speaker 2: having what looked to be some sort of medication related 824 00:43:51,250 --> 00:43:55,969 Speaker 2: manic episode, maybe scared, maybe thinking someone was following her 825 00:43:56,030 --> 00:43:59,390 Speaker 2: and trying to get away and, and going at great lengths, 826 00:43:59,870 --> 00:44:02,790 Speaker 2: going to great lengths to maybe hide somewhere like inside 827 00:44:02,810 --> 00:44:07,170 Speaker 2: of a water tank. I don't know, like, why her 828 00:44:07,210 --> 00:44:09,210 Speaker 2: clothes were off or why her clothes ended up in 829 00:44:09,250 --> 00:44:11,759 Speaker 2: the tank. I'm not saying any of this makes sense, 830 00:44:11,989 --> 00:44:14,739 Speaker 2: but it is something that could happen. And all I 831 00:44:14,780 --> 00:44:18,420 Speaker 2: can think about is what an awful place that she 832 00:44:18,480 --> 00:44:20,900 Speaker 2: must've been for something like this to have happened. 833 00:44:21,219 --> 00:44:24,420 Speaker 1: Yeah. And I mean, to kind of back up the, um, the, 834 00:44:24,900 --> 00:44:30,420 Speaker 1: the mental break, um, theory, which is what I buy. That's, 835 00:44:30,719 --> 00:44:34,719 Speaker 1: that's where I put my stock. Um, She remember I 836 00:44:34,780 --> 00:44:37,180 Speaker 1: said she was originally put in a room with a 837 00:44:37,239 --> 00:44:40,660 Speaker 1: couple other girls she didn't know at the stay on Maine. 838 00:44:41,080 --> 00:44:44,759 Speaker 1: They complained about her behaving strangely. So she was moved 839 00:44:44,820 --> 00:44:48,070 Speaker 1: to her own private room. Apparently, she went to a 840 00:44:48,110 --> 00:44:52,330 Speaker 1: taping of the Conan O'Brien show and was escorted out 841 00:44:52,730 --> 00:44:57,270 Speaker 1: because she was behaving strangely. And then detectives also found 842 00:44:57,390 --> 00:45:01,670 Speaker 1: she was on four different medications for bipolar one disorder 843 00:45:02,170 --> 00:45:10,150 Speaker 1: and depression. And the LAPD, based on the prescription dates 844 00:45:10,230 --> 00:45:12,250 Speaker 1: on the bottles and then the number of pills that 845 00:45:12,270 --> 00:45:16,509 Speaker 1: were left and the instructions on the bottles, the LAPD 846 00:45:16,650 --> 00:45:21,149 Speaker 1: were able to determine that she hadn't been following the 847 00:45:21,530 --> 00:45:25,410 Speaker 1: dosage recommendations or taking her pills or medication. So if 848 00:45:25,430 --> 00:45:28,500 Speaker 1: you put all of that together and then also that– 849 00:45:29,070 --> 00:45:31,760 Speaker 1: people taking their clothes off as part of a psychotic 850 00:45:31,840 --> 00:45:37,319 Speaker 1: episode happens. It's been documented. You like, there's no, there's 851 00:45:37,360 --> 00:45:39,819 Speaker 1: no pieces missing on the table. Like she could have 852 00:45:39,840 --> 00:45:41,800 Speaker 1: gone out on that fire escape, gone up the ladder. 853 00:45:42,160 --> 00:45:45,219 Speaker 1: Like there's nothing that is, well, yeah, but then there's 854 00:45:45,260 --> 00:45:48,430 Speaker 1: this really big thing that remains unexplained. Like it explains 855 00:45:48,620 --> 00:45:51,549 Speaker 1: absolutely everything. And then suddenly it kind of makes all 856 00:45:51,590 --> 00:45:55,810 Speaker 1: the other stuff like government mind control or ghosts or 857 00:45:55,850 --> 00:45:57,930 Speaker 1: whatever seem just kind of gross, you know? 858 00:45:59,390 --> 00:46:02,910 Speaker 2: Totally agree. I believe her parents brought a lawsuit against 859 00:46:02,950 --> 00:46:06,969 Speaker 2: the hotel that was eventually dismissed, if I'm not mistaken. 860 00:46:07,270 --> 00:46:11,190 Speaker 2: And it just remains a very, very sad situation and 861 00:46:11,230 --> 00:46:14,020 Speaker 2: a sad case. And it is very annoying when you 862 00:46:14,219 --> 00:46:17,739 Speaker 2: get online and everyone thinks that their spirit's being conjured 863 00:46:17,820 --> 00:46:21,859 Speaker 2: and all this wacky stuff. It's just not the case. 864 00:46:22,860 --> 00:46:24,620 Speaker 1: Not the case indeed. You got anything else? 865 00:46:25,420 --> 00:46:26,040 Speaker 2: I got nothing else. 866 00:46:26,330 --> 00:46:28,850 Speaker 1: Well, that's it for the Cecil hotel and the Lisa 867 00:46:28,910 --> 00:46:33,379 Speaker 1: lamb RIP. Uh, and since I said RIP, that means 868 00:46:33,440 --> 00:46:34,520 Speaker 1: it's time for a listener mail. 869 00:46:37,460 --> 00:46:39,840 Speaker 2: Uh, I'm going to call this follow up to Y2K. 870 00:46:40,140 --> 00:46:40,560 Speaker 1: Oh yes. 871 00:46:41,280 --> 00:46:43,360 Speaker 2: Uh, and this is something that we actually had in 872 00:46:43,500 --> 00:46:47,029 Speaker 2: our notes that we, I guess just kind of failed 873 00:46:47,050 --> 00:46:47,610 Speaker 2: to bring up. 874 00:46:49,030 --> 00:46:50,790 Speaker 1: Yeah. Right. Yeah. I mean, you had it in your 875 00:46:50,830 --> 00:46:52,969 Speaker 1: notes as well. Yeah. Yeah. 876 00:46:52,989 --> 00:46:55,900 Speaker 2: The, the 2038 problem. Um, We got a lot of 877 00:46:55,940 --> 00:46:59,420 Speaker 2: emails about this, and we're not going to fully probably 878 00:46:59,480 --> 00:47:04,320 Speaker 2: explain to everyone's satisfaction how it works. But, hey, guys, 879 00:47:04,600 --> 00:47:07,320 Speaker 2: just got done listening to the Y2K podcast, which brought 880 00:47:07,940 --> 00:47:10,200 Speaker 2: back an interesting range of memories of living through that time. 881 00:47:10,640 --> 00:47:12,720 Speaker 2: In case you weren't aware, there's something called the Unix 882 00:47:13,000 --> 00:47:16,739 Speaker 2: Y2K problem that still exists but is slowly being fixed 883 00:47:16,780 --> 00:47:18,740 Speaker 2: by smart people behind the scenes. 884 00:47:18,940 --> 00:47:19,400 Speaker 1: Thank goodness. 885 00:47:19,420 --> 00:47:23,560 Speaker 2: The majority of computers in the world run Unix-based operating systems. 886 00:47:24,330 --> 00:47:27,310 Speaker 2: not Windows or Mac OS. And unless these systems are 887 00:47:27,350 --> 00:47:33,850 Speaker 2: patched at 3.14 on January 19th, 2038, their clocks will 888 00:47:33,890 --> 00:47:38,010 Speaker 2: roll over to think it's midnight, January 1st, 1970. 889 00:47:38,010 --> 00:47:38,350 Speaker 1: Yes. 890 00:47:39,250 --> 00:47:41,410 Speaker 2: The cause is basically the same in the early versions 891 00:47:41,450 --> 00:47:44,069 Speaker 2: of the OS. Only had so much memory allocated to 892 00:47:44,090 --> 00:47:47,690 Speaker 2: time representations, but more modern versions now have this fixed 893 00:47:47,750 --> 00:47:51,280 Speaker 2: and hence computers aren't susceptible once they're updated or upgraded. 894 00:47:51,780 --> 00:47:56,589 Speaker 2: Although not all systems can be easily Updated. And that 895 00:47:56,850 --> 00:48:00,870 Speaker 2: is from a bunch of people, but specifically from PhD 896 00:48:00,890 --> 00:48:01,890 Speaker 2: Alan Chalker. 897 00:48:02,170 --> 00:48:04,630 Speaker 1: That's great. Thanks, Alan, to everybody who wrote in. I 898 00:48:04,650 --> 00:48:07,830 Speaker 1: was like, oh, man, I meant to include that. But 899 00:48:08,010 --> 00:48:12,410 Speaker 1: apparently Unix represents time as the number of seconds from 900 00:48:12,450 --> 00:48:15,940 Speaker 1: the epoch date, which is some date in 1970. And 901 00:48:16,739 --> 00:48:19,040 Speaker 1: then eventually it's going to have more seconds than it 902 00:48:19,080 --> 00:48:21,799 Speaker 1: can represent in the number of digits. So it'll just 903 00:48:21,880 --> 00:48:24,120 Speaker 1: roll back over like he was saying. Which is pretty neat. 904 00:48:24,140 --> 00:48:24,510 Speaker 2: Come on, Unix. 905 00:48:25,300 --> 00:48:28,370 Speaker 1: Pretty cool. But also I'm glad to hear that there 906 00:48:28,390 --> 00:48:32,029 Speaker 1: are smart people working on that because we got 17 years. Man, 907 00:48:32,050 --> 00:48:35,230 Speaker 1: you guys take it easy. Take a weekend, you know? Sure. 908 00:48:36,010 --> 00:48:40,330 Speaker 1: Go sit in your house and social distance from everybody. 909 00:48:40,350 --> 00:48:42,910 Speaker 2: That's right. We also got a lot of emails just 910 00:48:42,930 --> 00:48:47,320 Speaker 2: from people that, some people whose parents helped rewrite code 911 00:48:47,360 --> 00:48:49,870 Speaker 2: or were heading up projects rewriting code and It was 912 00:48:50,110 --> 00:48:52,009 Speaker 2: pretty cool. We got a lot of emails about that 913 00:48:52,030 --> 00:48:52,750 Speaker 2: when you struck a chord. 914 00:48:52,850 --> 00:48:55,839 Speaker 1: Yeah, it was a good idea, Chuck. Well, if you 915 00:48:55,880 --> 00:48:57,819 Speaker 1: want to get in touch with us like Alan and 916 00:48:57,880 --> 00:49:00,430 Speaker 1: everybody else did, you can send us an email.