Star Hauntings

Recent media reports concerning Michael Jackson suggest he may be haunting his beloved Neverland Ranch.

If the stories are true, Michael Jackson will join a long list of celebrities that still frequent their favorite earthly locations.

Michael Jackson died after suffering a cardiac arrest at his rented home in Holmby Hills, Los Angeles, California on June 25, 2009.

In a bizarre twist to this sad story, British tabloid The Mirror reported that Jackson will be buried without his brain.

His family made the grim decision after being informed it would take up to three weeks to conclude tests on the organ to better understand the exact cause of death.

The examination cannot take place until the brain sufficiently hardens after death, and rather than postpone Jackson's service, his family decided to bury him without it, the newspaper stated.

♦ The ghost of Elvis has been seen at the Las Vegas Hilton where he often performed in the early 1970s.

His spirit has also been sighted in the building which housed the recording studios of RCA in the 1950’s.

And of course, he has been frequently observed at Graceland – his earthly home in Memphis.

Elvis died on August 16, 1977 – of a suspected heart-attack while in the bathroom.

♦ Paul McCartney believes he has felt the ghost of John Lennon.

Apparently he sensed the spirit of Lennon while recording the song, "Free As A Bird" in 1995.

"There were a lot of strange goings-on in the studio - noises that shouldn't have been there and equipment doing all manner of weird things. There was just an overall feeling that John was around."

On the night of December 8, 1980, Mark David Chapman shot Lennon in the back four times at the entrance of the Dakota building where Lennon resided. Earlier, Lennon had autographed a copy of his Double Fantasy album for Chapman.

♦ Kylie Minogue is convinced the ghost of Michael Hutchence watches over her.

‘Michael is still around, I’m certain of that,’ she insists. ‘People might think I'm mad, but I feel his presence. It's very personal. He checks in with me and I feel him just when I need him most.’

On the morning of November 22, 1997 - Hutchence was found dead in his room at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Double Bay, Sydney (now the Stamford Plaza). A belt found at the scene suggested he had died by hanging.

♦ Marilyn Monroe's ghost haunts the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel on Hollywood Boulevard.

At the height of Marilyn Monroe's fame, she often stayed at the hotel where her ghostly image is seen in a full-length mirror that once hung in her poolside suite.

The mirror now hangs in the lobby where many people still claim to see her image. The ghost of Marilyn has also been seen hovering near her tomb at Westwood Memorial Cemetery in Los Angeles, California.

Monroe was found dead in the bedroom of her Brentwood, California home by her housekeeper on August 5, 1962. She died of acute barbiturate poisoning – and listed as probable suicide.

♦ The spirit of Mae West has often appeared in her old apartment.

Several residents have reported seeing her dressed in white.

During the last years of her life, she always dressed in white. Her entire apartment was also white.

After suffering two strokes, Mae West died at her home on November 22, 1980.

♦ When Englerbert Humperdinck bought Jayne Mansfield’s Hollywood residence shortly after her death he stated, ‘I'm sure she lived with me in spirit for a time- I'd smell her rose petal perfume. Once I saw a figure in a long, black dress in front of me. It was Jayne, but it wasn't frightening.’

Mansfield died in an automobile accident on June 29, 1967.

♦ The ghost of the famous pianist Liberace is claimed to haunt a restaurant he owned in Vegas called Carluccio's Tivoli Gardens.

Over the years there have been frequent sightings of Liberace's spirit and reports of paranormal activity. One of the strangest occurrences happens in the ladies toilets where the doors lock and unlock themselves.

Liberace died on February 4, 1987. He was first reported as dying of a cardiac arrest – but a second autopsy revealed he had died of AIDS.

♦ Pop megastar Michael Jackson claimed that he often communicated with the flamboyant pianist Liberace who died in 1987.

"I have my own secret room, with a moving wall and mirrors," Jackson said. ‘That's where I talk to Liberace. I hear his voice in there. I feel his presence so very close to me. He is like my guardian angel. He even gave me permission to record his title ‘I’ll Be Seeing You.’

Jackson died at age 50 – deeply in debt. But a court filing has estimated his estate to still be worth more than $US500 million.

During an interview with Michael's brother Jermaine Jackson for CNN's 'Inside Neverland' television special, a shadow mysteriously appeared and crossed the corridor.

The ghostly apparition was missed by Jermaine, interviewer Larry King and the film crew during the recording of the show.

Fans believe the shadow is the singer's ghost, returned to his former home from beyond the grave.

According to parapsychologists, hauntings - be they celebrity or otherwise - are carried out by those who don’t want to leave the earth plane because they’ve died a violent or unexpected death, or feel they have unfinished business