Occult Sciences

Last Sunday evening at the Silent Movie Theater, a clip from the 1938 astrological murder mystery "When Were You Born?" was shown as part of an "Occult L.A." program curated by the author Erik Davis. In the clip, legendary occult scholar Manly P. Hall, who had also written the movie's script, appeared on screen to introduce the concept of astrology.

Skulking in the dead of night in the remote and overgrown Las Pavas section of the Southern Municipal Cemetery, robbers armed with crowbars and sledgehammers first shattered the tomb's concrete vault and the granite marker that read, "To our dear wife and mother in heaven, Maria de la Cruz Aguero." Then they lifted the coffin lid and stole leg bones and the skull of the woman, who had died Sept. 9, 1993.

It's often said of academics, but for J. Gordon Melton it's true: He really does have an encyclopedic mind. After all, Melton is the author of the Encyclopedia of American Religions, the Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology and the Encyclopedia of Religious Phenomena. Then, for fun, there's "The Vampire Book: The Encyclopedia of the Undead." "It's my little niche," Melton said. Actually, it's a big niche.

In a small room, well away from the street so that no one hears the screams, Father Gabriele Amorth does battle with Satan. He is a busy man. As the Vatican's top exorcist, Amorth performs the mysterious, ancient ritual dozens of times a week. A confused world engulfed in tragedy and chaos is turning increasingly to black magic, the occult and fortune-telling, he said, proof that the devil and his handmaidens are having a field day.

Fortuneteller Sabrina Mitchell looks into her crystal ball and sees trouble ahead. Supervisors here passed a controversial new law last week to license a much-maligned industry that offers psychic solutions and cosmic guidance to customers, from lonely hearts to those obsessed with their futures. The ordinance applies to a broad range of practitioners, such as tarot card and palm readers and those who practice Chinese I-Ching and those who decipher Turkish coffee grounds.

Fortunetellers and other occult-related businesses will need permits to operate in Westminster, the City Council has decided. In 1997, police began investigating fortunetelling services advertised in Vietnamese-language newspapers. According to city reports, officers found that many were operating from homes without any business permits. In addition, officials said, several prospective operators of such businesses have asked about setting up shop in the city.

Do you believe in ghosts but have never been lucky enough to see one? Richard Senate might be able to help you. And if he doesn't get an actual ghost to materialize, at the very least he'll tell you about the numerous experiences he has had with eerie creatures from the other world. Senate, a renowned writer and ghost-hunter from Ventura, will offer a class at Glendale Community College to share his ghostly expertise. The class is a beginning workshop in ghost-hunting.

Any day J. Gordon Melton reports for work, California's off-kilter image is in capable hands. People who know the state well could argue that Melton, a writer and editor for Gale publishing company, isn't inventing anything. He's just keeping track of what goes on all around him. Given his interests, that includes new religions, old cults and a fascination with vampires.

They're armed with otherworldly warrior-type gadgets and gizmos--magnetometers, infrared lights, computerized cameras and mega temperature gauges. Larry Montz and his high-tech team don't travel light. But hey, who else you gonna call when you hear things that go bump in the night? Your mommy? For nearly all his adult life, Montz--a modern-day ghost buster with a team of paranormal researchers, including psychics, channelers and clairvoyants--has been getting the goods on ghosts.

It's 7 p.m. in West Hollywood, and in the back room of the Goddess Shop on Santa Monica Boulevard, the witches have gathered. Ruth is the personable, powerful instructor who co-founded Circle of Aradia, one of the largest and oldest witchcraft communities in Southern California. Ally is in film marketing and describes herself as a "baby witch" who embraced the religion, known as Wicca, two months ago after failing to find a comfortable home in Christianity, Buddhism or Transcendental Meditation.