Halloween at Kona spooky basement tour! (managed to take 2 pix!) - California Events

B bigbrotiki Tiki Socialite Tiki Island, above the Silverlake Joined: Mar 25, 2002 Posts: 11621	B bigbrotiki Posted posted on Sat, Nov 1, 2008 5:41 PM I had not seen the Kona version of Sam's, nor had I been downstairs, so I took that opportunity yesterday and went on the basement tour. There was a person in our group that had psychic abilities and was able to put forward a whole lot of new information that made sense, information unknown to Chuck the owner, who knew about what was posted here, and that Sam's had burned down TWICE since its inception, once in the 30s. Here is the skinny of what our guide saw: "The place of unresolved energy was the red room. It was an illegal gambling den. They also served illegal liquor that was stored in a room next door. There probably were dames, but no brothel. This operation was NOT managed by the owner, who tolerated it and turned a blind eye to it. The owner managed the road side Inn during the day only, and the downstairs den only operated at night. The den's operator was probably a family acquaintance (during the depression families helped each other out anyway they could). He was a big, angry and imposing man. The night in question he came to get his take, and something went wrong. He was killed, by accident. NOT murdered, but he died. To erase all proof of the incident and the illegal activities, the responsible party used the liquor next door to douse and torch the place. That was the cause for the first fire." Pretty interesting. This person took this tour unprepared, and new nothing about Seal Beach's or Sam's early history. Here is what I found out on the internet, on this site: http://www.kastner.us/seal_beach_history.html Seal Beach was a popular beach resort by the 1920s, and sported one of LA's first amusement parks, the "Fun Zone": Then: >>... in the 30s Seal Beach went through its dark period where it was known as "Sin City." It was called "an open town," because of the lack of police enforcement. Stories still abound from old timers who remember Seal Beach's hey day as a drop off point for rum runners during prohibition, a place where prostitution was found in the upstairs of more than one Main Street establishment.

I had not seen the Kona version of Sam's, nor had I been downstairs, so I took that opportunity yesterday and went on the basement tour. There was a person in our group that had psychic abilities and was able to put forward a whole lot of new information that made sense, information unknown to Chuck the owner, who knew about what was posted here, and that Sam's had burned down TWICE since its inception, once in the 30s.

Here is the skinny of what our guide saw: "The place of unresolved energy was the red room. It was an illegal gambling den. They also served illegal liquor that was stored in a room next door. There probably were dames, but no brothel. This operation was NOT managed by the owner, who tolerated it and turned a blind eye to it. The owner managed the road side Inn during the day only, and the downstairs den only operated at night. The den's operator was probably a family acquaintance (during the depression families helped each other out anyway they could). He was a big, angry and imposing man. The night in question he came to get his take, and something went wrong. He was killed, by accident. NOT murdered, but he died. To erase all proof of the incident and the illegal activities, the responsible party used the liquor next door to douse and torch the place. That was the cause for the first fire."

Pretty interesting. This person took this tour unprepared, and new nothing about Seal Beach's or Sam's early history. Here is what I found out on the internet, on this site:

http://www.kastner.us/seal_beach_history.html

Seal Beach was a popular beach resort by the 1920s, and sported one of LA's first amusement parks, the "Fun Zone":

Then: >>... in the 30s Seal Beach went through its dark period where it was known as "Sin City." It was called "an open town," because of the lack of police enforcement. Stories still abound from old timers who remember Seal Beach's hey day as a drop off point for rum runners during prohibition, a place where prostitution was found in the upstairs of more than one Main Street establishment.

Post #416755 by bigbrotiki on Sat, Nov 1, 2008 5:41 PM