13 Ghosts

The La Brea tar pits became

traps for all kinds of animals.

They would either wonder out on the tar

or be driven into it by their enemies.

The tar would trap them and slowly kill them.

Now, some of you are going to ask:

How did birds get into the pit?

The Vultures and condors fed on whatever

had the misfortune to be trapped.

And sometimes the birds themselves

got caught in the tar...

... And were pulled down to thier death.

If any of you would like to see where

these birds and animals came from...

... the pits are in the Wilshire district of Los Angeles.

Go over there sometime and try to imagine...

... what it was like 40,000 years ago,

when monsters like these...

... wandered around, where now

expensive cars roam.

Why did huge beasts...

...so much more powerful than man...

... disappeared from the face

of Earth, while man...

... a relatively puny thing, survived?

Psst.

Excuse me. Just a moment.

- What's the trouble, Mr. Van Allen?

- You're wife's on the phone.

But I'm lecturing.

I told her that.

Will you take over for me, Ben?

Yes, of course.

Oh, Cy... where are you?

Explaining how man survived the Pleistocene Age.

How did he?

And why?

Hello honey. What's the trouble?

The moving men are here, and they're

taking the furniture away, again.

Won't they wait?

No, they won't wait.

Not even til tomorrow?

The payments are three months overdue now.

Three months? I distinctly remember...

Somehow you didn't make the payments, Cy...

...But if we can make them now,

plus a month in advance....

Let's do that.

How much money do we have in the bank?

About 2 dollars.

Hmm. I get paid soon.

You don't get paid for almost a month,

and we owe it all anyway.

Do you suppose Mr. Van Allen...?

- No.

Mr. Van Allen doesn't

make much more than I do...

... And he's got three children.

Oh! What's the matter?

Nothing.

Good thing we own the mattresses.

Did you get Buck a birthday present?

Ah, Yeah, yeah.

Don't forget to bring it. Bye.

Bye honey.

Why do they always take our furniture?

Because your father is a wonderful

man....just forgetful.

Like me?

Like you, Buck. Sometimes.

Well the rats and the prends are just useful anyway.

Socks and things.

You gave him that one?

Oh there's nothing wrong with ghost stories, daddy.

Unless that's all you read.

He's got every spooky book ever printed.

Ow! Hey!

Do you believe in ghosts, Buck?

Sure.

You want some cake?

Cake?

Oh, yeah, yeah.

No no no. You've got to make a wish first.

I already have.

Well, how will anybody know if

your wish comes true, if you don't wish out loud?

Suppose I don't want to anyone to know.

Then you wished for something bad.

I have not, Medea.

Well, If you can't wish out loud,

then there must be something wrong with it.

Don't you want us to know what you're wish is, darling?

I wished we had a house with furniture,

that nobody could take away from us.

Mr. Cyrus Zorba?

A telegram for you.

"With regards to matter of great importance to you...

... you are requested to present yourself

in the office of attorney Benjamin Rush...

... tomorrow morning at 10 oclock.

Signed, Benjamin Rush"

Who?

Benjamin Rush, attorney.

Well it's not anybody we owe.

At least I don't think so.

Could be the lawyer from a collection agency.

Oh. Could be.

What are you going to do?

Go. What else?

Suppose you just run away?

Why run away, before you find

out what's chasing you?

Well, I read about a man waited to find out...

... But he never did, because it ate him.

Benjamin Rush, attorney at law.

Ooh, he's in the Petro building.

You have'nt done anything you

could be arrested for, have you daddy?

No.

Not lately.

So, you inherit the house,

which is the bulk of the estate.

- Furnished?

- Ah, yes.

It's pretty old-fashioned, but is furniture.

Is Buck pshycic or something?

Ma'am?

Our ten year old son, Buck.

His birthday wish was for a house with furniture.

Yeah.

What sort of a house is it?

I affraid you're gonna be

disappointed, Mr Zorba.

It's one of those sprawling old

mansions they built 50 years ago.

Well, that's better than a third

mortgage and no furniture.

Well, don't decide to move in until you've seen it.

Here's the key and the address.

This is really strange.

I thought my uncle died

10, 12 years ago in India or someplace.

No. He died here last week.

Everything about your uncle was strange.

Including his will.

Is that the rich uncle you used to

talk about before we got married?

Uh huh. And he's been here,

in Los Angeles, all these years...

... And didn't let me know?

Well, he wanted the world

to think he was dead.

He left you this, too.

What is it?

I don't know.

Is this all? The house and the

package? No other...

Well there's no money, if that's what you mean, Ma'am.

Dr. Zorba must have been quite wealthy, at one time.

Apparently, he spent it all on his experiments.

I seem to remember he was fooling around with the occult.

Spirits from the other world.

Ghosts.

Dr. Zorba collected ghosts

from all over the world.

You inherit them, too.

Come on.

They go with the house.

I'll get a notary.

Cy, this is too much.

A mysterious uncle rising from the grave...

... The old mansion, complete with ghosts.

Is it a gag?

I did have an uncle named Plato Zorba.

And here's his last will and testament.

I want to see what's in the package?

Wouldn't it be lovely if it was just full of stocks or bonds.

Or just plain money.

Yeah.

Think we ought to open it?

Well, he said it was yours.

Suppose it has to do with those experiments.

You know. You open the box and

all that trouble comes out.

Pandora.

It's probably a hand painted Christmas tie.

Open it.

You open it.

Oh, hi.

Hello. Are you Buck?

Yeah.

I'm Ben Rush.

You're the lawyer.

Uh Hm. Are you all moved in?

Wasn't anything to move, except us.

It's a great house.

Furniture all over....books.

There's a lot of it I haven't even seen yet.

It's got ghosts.

So I hear.

Know about em'?

Well, I've heard a lot about em'.

You ever seen one?

No. Is your father home?

He will be soon. We got a witch too.

A live one?

Go ring the bell.

She'll come to the door.

Oh, shucks.

What did you have to open the door for?

Couoldn't you wait for the witch?

You better stop calling her that,

or she'll cut your tongue out.

Hi, i'm Medea Zorba.

Hi.

Won't you come in?

I told you. She's even got a broom.

I see what you mean.

You must be Ben Rush, the lawyer.

Um hmm.

Mmm. No skates. We own this house.

Or do we?

It's your house.

Who's boss around here?

In the "no skates" department, I am.

Yeah, that's what I thought.

Was the my father's uncle?

Um hm.

He was a fine looking man.

I never saw him like that.

By the time I met him, they'd almost

completely destroyed him.

They?

His ghosts.

Oh, Benjamin Rush, attorney at law.

Living in the twentieth century?

Plato Zorba, scientist, same century.

Collected ghosts.

You're not serious?

I didn't believe in them any more than you do,

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