HauntBound archive · catalog record
Reported phenomena, as catalogued
The 1924 flatiron where 124 Munchkin actors lived during Wizard of Oz filming — and where Harry Culver's ghost reportedly still walks the second floor.
9400 Culver Blvd, Culver City, CA 90232
Research updated August 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$$
Overnight hotel rates vary by season; check website for current pricing.
Access
Wheelchair OK
Urban boutique hotel in a historic six-story building; elevator access available.
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1924 · National Register of Historic Places · Wizard of Oz Munchkin Actor Lodging · Hollywood Golden Age Hotel · Culver City Founding Landmark
Harry C. Culver staked out Culver City in 1917 and spent the next decade building it into a company town anchored by the film industry. The hotel he commissioned — designed by the firm Curlett and Beelman in the Art Deco Renaissance Revival style — opened on September 4, 1924, at the triangular intersection of Culver Boulevard. Its wedge-shaped footprint echoed the Flatiron Building in New York, and it quickly became the preferred lodging for studio talent working at nearby MGM and Goldwyn Pictures.
During the production of The Wizard of Oz in 1939, MGM housed all 124 actors who played the Munchkins at the Culver Hotel for the duration of filming. Their behavior during the production generated considerable gossip at the time, and the hotel's general manager has confirmed the arrangement. Cast members from Gone with the Wind also stayed during that concurrent production period. Clark Gable, Judy Garland, Frank Sinatra, and Ronald Reagan were among the notable guests over the decades.
Harry Culver himself maintained an office on the second floor, where his original vault remains. He died in 1946. The building fell into disrepair after the studio era peaked, changed hands several times, and was eventually restored and reopened as a boutique hotel. The restoration preserved the property's architectural character — Art Deco detailing, the lobby's proportions, and Culver's second-floor office space — while updating mechanical systems throughout.
Sources
The ghost at the Culver Hotel has a specific address: the second floor, Harry Culver's old office, where a safe still occupies its original position in the wall. According to staff accounts collected over decades, Culver's figure has been spotted in the hallways, and the windows in his office have been heard slamming shut when the room is unoccupied.
The story, as most versions tell it, holds that Culver returns looking for his money — the vault on the second floor being the focal point. Former employees have described catching glimpses of a figure in the hallway near that office and hearing the distinctive sound of windows in an empty room slamming closed.
The hotel's second life as a boutique property has kept the legend active. Staff working the building have perpetuated accounts of Culver's presence across ownership changes, renovation cycles, and decades of guests. The reports are employee tradition more than documented incident — no formal investigation has been published. But the consistency of the location (always the second floor, always near the office) gives the account more specificity than the average hotel ghost story.
Notable Entities
Book a room in the 46-room National Historic Landmark hotel where all 124 Munchkin actors from The Wizard of Oz stayed during the 1939 MGM production. Harry Culver's second-floor office — where employees have reported hearing windows bang shut and catching glimpses of his figure — is accessible to guests exploring the property.
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