Peg Entwistle's ghost is still believed to haunt Hollywood sign, almost a century after her tragic suicide
Ran Murphy's revisit of the golden era of 'Hollywood' sees a young group of budding aspirants in the industry make a film surrounding the tragedy of Peg Entwistle. The name might not be familiar to most, but that's not their fault. Peg became more famous in her death than she was during her short-lived career in the industry. At the young age of 24, the 'Blond-Brit' actress jumped from the famous Hollywood sign. Her body was found underneath the giant H, thus making her the Holywood sign girl. And even though her tragedy highlights several elements of that industry that are simply wrong and problematic, it is legends surrounding her ghost haunting the world-famous site that has gained momentum since she passed.
On the night of September 18, 1932, Peg was believed to have climbed Mount Lee in Los Angeles to the site of the famous sign which was then spelled out Hollywoodland. She took the time to take off her coat, fold it neatly and even put down her purse before climbing the maintenance ladder along the 50-foot 'H'. She is believed to have paused high up above, albeit shortly, and probably soaked in the glimmering night lights of the 'City of Stars', as 'La La Land' puts it. Then she jumped to her death.
The next day a hiker found Peg's body. She was believed to have died instantly, from several fractures on her pelvis which occurred from the fall. The purse she had left behind had a suicide note inside that read: "I am afraid, I am a coward. I am sorry for everything. If I had done this a long time ago, it would have saved a lot of pain. PE."
Two days later, a funeral was held for the promising actress whose talent had won her roles with the Boston Repertory company and on Broadway in the renowned Theater Guild productions. In the years to come, Bette Davis claimed it was Peg whose work had inspired her to become an actress. But sadly, despite working in stage productions alongside stars like Dorothy Gish and Laurette Taylor, Peg is believed to have been battling depression for quite a while.
Her marriage to Robert Keith at the age of 19 also fell apart after she learned he was already married and had a son. The majority of her part not surviving the final cut in the film 'Thirteen Women' was a low blow, and RKO dropping her contract was the last straw. So, on that fateful night, Peg lied to her uncle about going to meet a bunch of friends at a local drugstore and ended up at the Hollywood sign — a site she is still believed to frequent often, almost a century after her tragic suicide.
According to an outlet called liveaboutdotcom, over the years, several park rangers have reported a pretty blonde dressed in 1930s outfits, roaming around the Griffith Park, just west of the Los Angeles suburb of Glendale. The location is the site of Mount Lee, atop which the famous sign stands. The rangers have described her looking sad, and every time she is approached, she vanishes. The rangers aren't the only ones with reports of sightings.
A couple walking their dog along the Beachwood Canyon trail of the park found the pet whimpering and cowering all of a sudden. Soon, a woman appeared in the trail ahead of them. She was clad in the same outdated clothes and reportedly looked confused, before vanishing.
One of the rangers, John Arbogast, has seen Pegs' ghost several times, he says. The sightings happen usually late at night when it's foggy, and are often accompanied by a strong scent of gardenias, which were believed to be the late actress's favorite fragrance. Even Beachwood Canyon resident Devin Morgan verifies the gardenia connection, shares the outlet.
One afternoon, during her usual exercise hikes along the trail, she spotted what she believes is Peg's spirit. "She looked very strange to me," Morgan said. "She had a very etheric quality. Instead of walking, she seemed to almost glide. She wasn't floating... she didn't look like she was a ghost, but there was something very, very strange about her, and very soft looking." Morgan attempted to catch up with this woman, but she had vanished, and the only thing in her place was the intense scent of gardenias.
As of 2018, the outlet also mentions an episode of Syfy's 'Paranormal Witness', where four friends decided to take a detour and trespass the site to touch the famous sign. After jumping fences, on their way back down, one of them slipped and fell on a little stretch down the hill. While trying to make his way back to the others, he too saw someone walking towards him. "It was a woman, wearing a dress similar to the style of the 1930s," according to the Syfy story. "She wore heels and a veil over her face. She walked effortlessly up the hill. Her footsteps made no sound." It was only after this incident that the friends learned of Peg's tragic story.
Insane as these reportings might sound, incidents following Peg's death were even more bizarre. Shortly after her suicide, a letter arrived to her house from the Hollywood Playhouse which offered her a part in a play. The part was that of a woman who commits suicide. Also, Peg's short-term husband Keith's son — Brian Keith — also committed suicide in 1997, just 10 weeks after his own daughter's suicide.
But the tragedy of Peg wasn't just with the fate she eventually met. Her entire arrival at Hollywood was marked by one loss after the other — starting with her mother dying unexpectedly when she was just a child. And soon after when she and her father moved to New York City, he died from a hit and run a few years later. In 1932 she moved to Los Angeles with big dreams and hopes of becoming a star, but sadly, this Hollywood became the end of it all for her.
'Hollywood' premiered on May 1 and is available for streaming only on Netflix.