GHOSTBUSTERS HEADQUARTERS
(OLD TRIBECA FIREHOUSE)
Location: Located in the Lower Historical quarter of Manhattan, New York Paranormal (aka The Ghostbusters) is based in the old Tribeca Firehouse at 14 North Moore Street, located off West Broadway between Church and Broadway on Manhattan.
Description of Place: The old Tribeca fire house is a thin three-story brick structure with a garage and headquarters on the first floor, second floor library and equipment room and third floor living quarters. Along with a full basement, it still has its original fire station features like the fire pole, bell (disconnected) and equipment lockers.
Ghostly Manifestations: Long before TAPS became known as a top-rated Sci-Fi Channel TV-Series, New York Paranormal was opening public consciousness out to realize that ghosts were not superstition and the stuff of hyper-active imagination by the illiterate and uneducated. To the general public, they are merely the Ghostbusters because in the beginning of their agency, people had the impression they specialized in removing ghosts and spirit extermination. To tell the truth, they disprove, rule out and reveal paranormal cases and only eight percent of the time do they actually find legitimate cases that just might be factual. Most cases are the public's erroneous assessment of natural occurrences or events caused by unique circumstances. Ironically, the headquarters of New York Paranormal seems to have a pet ghost.
"He's actually more of a mascot." Dr. Ray Stantz replies. "Like author Kathryn Tucker Windham's Jeffrey..." Dr. Egon Spengler adds. "But he's basically a harmless sometimes annoying poltergeist... non-threatening, active, elusive... more the conventional type of ghost. "
Just what he is, the resident poltergeist affectionately known as Slimer seemingly followed them after latching on to Dr. Peter Venkman during an examination at the Sedgewick Hotel on Manhattan. One of their first forays into the field of psychic phenomenon, the investigation into the hotel involved a so-called ghost on the thirteenth floor of the hotel. Guests had experienced a presence that had pulled bed linens off, opened and closed doors and finished up the remains of unfinished meals, consuming even bones and finishing off bottles of wine. Some guests there heard the smacking of lips as something completed their meals for them. The ghost was also known for leaving behind excess recess of vacuous and transparent amounts of slime or ectoplasm.
"You see, in the spirit world," Stantz explains for the paranormal-deficient. "Ectoplasm is the energy force which ghosts thrive on. It consists of the ingredients of warmth, psychic residue and energies from living things, particularly human beings. Human beings tend to imprint their psychic signatures on the environment, sometimes causing place memories to occur or on a higher level, allowing surviving consciousness to anchor into and exist in this plane of existence. Because this ghost also seems to or maybe subsist on foodstuffs, we think he's producing ectoplasm in a more physical state. Charged ectoplasm sometimes even has an electromagnetic signature."
Janine Melnitz, the manager for the office work of New York Paranormal, has dealt with "Slimer" on several occasions. Like a lot of poltergeists, he likes to play jokes. He strings paper clips, rings the phone, drops objects, opens and closes doors, turns the lights on and off, turns on computers and leaves his particular slime residue around the building on the floor and on walls. On every occasion, Spengler collects, dates and identifies the slime sample to try and speculate if their mascot has a routine, pattern or if he's more active during certain months. Janine's lunch often vanishes often; she eats out a lot. The sandwich shop two doors down has inexplicably lost whole sides of beef, racks of bread and has opened to found someone has raided the cooler after closing.
"Unlike the majority of poltergeists, Slimer does appear to take form at times." Stantz continues. "Typically, that of a free-floating ball of green smoke, barely cognizant of any form."
Winston Zedmore was a late hire to the agency. A resident mechanic and electrician, he was working on the "Ghostbusters van" (an outfitted white hearse on the property is only used for promotional purposes) when he thought he heard someone come up behind him. Stuck on a rolling board under the van, he asked for a wrench and got it, but when he looked out to say thanks, no one was there, except for a puff of green smoke vanishing up the staircase. Louis Tully, who handles the accounting and public relations, once got knocked off the top landing by something he couldn't see. When the guys lifted him up, he had several spots of slime all over his face and chest.
"Slimer!!!!"
History: The location has a local history as the TriBeCa because it is on the Triangle Beneath Canal street. It was possibly built as early as 1798, but that is not definite as a correct date. Formerly Fire Station #8, it was purchased by parapsychologist and physicist Ray Stantz to restore it as an investment, but certain events in his life made it much more than that. While working at Columbia University, Stantz was called upon to look into purported paranormal activity at the New York Metropolitan Library, an on-going investigation in which he called in colleagues Dr. Peter Venkman and Dr. Egon Spangler. Their notoriety became so renown in New York City that they were asked to end their tenures at Columbia rather than sully the reputation with the then "negative" publicity of ghost-hunting. The publicity, however, turned out to be much more positive, bringing parapsychology and paranormal research into the mainstream consciousness, making ghost-hunting much more believable and acceptable and paving the way for the success of other groups, such as TAPS, Ghost Lab, the Ghost Adventures team, and the Collinsport Ghost Society, and even a successful movie and TV series.
"Please don't confuse us with that Bill Murray movie." Dr. Venkman implores. "Everywhere we go, someone asks us about the proton packs, lasers and explosions..."
"What are we? The Mythbusters?" Stantz yells out.
"We had very little control on the direction of the movie which got so many things wrong on so many levels. The truth of the matter..." Venkman continues. "Our work is not nearly as exciting. We use light sensors, electromagnetic gear, infra-red film, every camera and visual-auditory equipment known to man and a lot of good old historical research. At any given time, we have somewhere between fifteen to twenty volunteers either doing research for us or assisting on investigations. We are not a spirit removal service (like seen in the movie), we are a paranormal research facility at the hub of the supernatural community listing and categorizing haunted locations around the world, practices and types of research and creating a united network for all the known ghost-hunting agencies around the world."
While centered in New York City, the non-profit agency has explored and examined ghost activity in the Manhattan area and around the world including the New York Metropolitan library, the Manhattan Museum of Art, the Old Pneumatic Transit System under NYC, Central Park, Liberty Island, Whipstaff, The Dolphin Hotel and even a sighting of Titanic survivors at the NYC docks. They're very community-minded, having barbecues and Halloween rituals for charity.
Identity of Ghosts: "We don't know who he is..." Stantz comments on Slimer. "My personal opinion is he's a free-floating energy cloud of particulates of moderate consciousness like those so-called elementals from England. Beyond that, he's just Slimer."
Source/Comments: Ghostbusters (1984/1989) Phenomenon based on Engine Company #18 in Syracuse, New York and Fire Station #2 in Manhattan, New York.