Archive 81 (2022) s01e04 Episode Script
Spirit Receivers
1
Eleanor Wall was
one of the most important female artists
in postwar Europe.
Born in London in 1928, Eleanor was part of a movement called Spirit Receivers, a radical group of abstract artists who explored roles as mediums for supernatural messages from the spirit realm and beyond.
In 1974, Eleanor and her sister Cassandra moved to New York City and established the Wall Galleries, where they exhibited the work of Spirit Receivers living in America.
Now, Christie's is offering one of the most mesmerizing collections to come on the market in recent years.
All of the items in the Wall collection were carefully curated by the artist, who felt a close spiritual or personal connection to each object that served as an inspiration to her work.
Object 6758-A: Spirit photograph by William Mumler.
"The Medium Fanny Conant and her Lost Brother, 1868.
" Object 6788-B: Tuning forks, Bavarian provenance, 14th century.
Object 5767-A: Ladies' comet pin.
Platinum, diamonds, and Kharonite.
Object 7658-B: Bowl, inlaid with human teeth and tiles.
Portrait of Cassandra Wall, by Eleanor Wall, acrylic on canvas, 1974.
Stay out.
This is Mark Higgins with Mystery Signals.
Please leave a message and I'll return your call as soon as possible.
Hey, uh, it's me.
Um So, I I can't get in the basement.
None of your Reddit tips work, so I'm just punching random numbers in.
Um, I'm gonna text you a picture of the keypad.
Can you find an actual live person who knows how to hack this model? All right.
Um I'll call you back later.
Dan? It's Dan, right? How'd you How'd you get here? I don't know.
You tell me.
Dan.
Everything all right? What time is it? A little after 8:00.
You were just standing there.
Hello? You ever have a paper route, Dan? Best thing about a paper route is the routine.
Every morning at 4:30, I had to be at the distro center to pick up my copies of the Gazette.
By 5:00, I was on the bike.
By 6:15, everyone had their papers, every delivery complete by the time my neighbors left for the day.
My job was done.
You didn't upload anything today.
Uh, I lost track of time.
Feeling all right? Should I send a doc tor out? - B-12 shot always gives me energy.
- No shots.
I'll get back to it.
Hot tea? Juice? Chicken soup with those pork balls from that Chinese place? Flintstone vitamins, but only the Barneys? I'm fine.
Maybe I should make you a healing mixtape.
With bird sounds and Enya and Koyaanisqatsi.
I think I'm just gonna stick to the exercises.
Exercises? Like, when I start to feel anxious, I count backwards in Japanese.
The doctor says it's like giving a dog a chew toy.
Yeah, I've got one of those exercises too.
It really helps me.
Secret of NIMH? I have homework.
Extra credit for science class.
Cometology, Volume Six: A Catalog of Comets.
Aren't comets supposed to bring about end-times or something? Do you think that's science? Maybe.
I'm writing about Comet Kharon.
It used to be, like, really famous.
There were songs about it and everything, but Sometimes comets start breaking into smaller and smaller pieces and they just disappear.
Sounds lonely.
They're space rocks, not people.
Anyway, it's supposed to be visible in a couple weeks.
Oh, Samuel got me that new telescope, see? An Orion SkyQuest.
We're gonna watch for it together.
Whoa.
Mel, we had that interview.
Hi, kid.
Hi.
Are you gonna be okay alone? I'll be fine.
Holy shit.
Are those teeth? That was a barter.
For Eleanor's Spirit Raven Number Seven.
Exquisite piece.
Much more valuable than the bowl.
But Eleanor insisted.
Wasn't she beautiful? When did you and your sister move into the Visser? 1974.
Eleanor found the apartment.
She thought it was very spiritual.
This place? Spiritual? She always saw beyond, my dear.
- And of course the rent was right.
- This stuff must have cost a fortune.
Oh, those? Yes, mid-century.
Irreplaceable.
What's this? Fire sale? After she died, I put everything up for auction.
But I couldn't bring myself to follow through.
Eleanor loved her things.
And now I just sell a few pieces when the need arises.
This stuff is just amazing.
One of a kind.
Estonian, I believe.
What's inside? A sculpture.
It's quite a piece, but I'm afraid I've misplaced the key.
Miss Wall, is there anything about the Visser that you find spiritual? Cassandra, please.
Um Or maybe some of the other residents find it spiritual too? Like the group that meets in the community room? You're asking about the cult.
Hey, Cass? Is this you? Oh, that was painted in this very apartment.
Eleanor had such a way of seeing me.
She belonged to a group of artists who called themselves Spirit Receivers.
They believed mysterious beings were speaking through them to manifest art.
And beauty.
And truth.
Some people called them a cult.
Is that what you were asking about? No.
No, I wasn't.
You know, it really was something to watch her create.
No idea what her brush stroke would reveal.
No certainty of who or what she was communicating with.
We can't begin to imagine the worlds which lie undiscovered.
I only hope my Eleanor is waiting in one of them.
Is that the same pendant? Yes.
It's Kharonite.
It's very rare.
They say it came from a comet.
The blacks are incredible.
Miss Eleanor mixed all her own paint.
Oh, wait a moment.
Yes, here.
Take this.
Better it get some use than waste away.
Seriously? Eleanor would want you to have it.
Thank you.
- Oh, maybe Cass knew your mom.
- Anabelle.
Look, if you want something, you ask for it, right? She's looking for her deadbeat mom, Julia Bennett.
Does that ring a bell? Oh, you know, my memory's not what it was.
I'm having a dinner party here tomorrow night, a thank-you for a buyer.
Why don't you come? A lot of old-time residents will be here.
Surely someone will know your Julia.
Okay.
Maybe I can conjure something with this paint.
Like Eleanor and her ghost strokes.
She's obviously not over her sister's death.
Melody.
They were lovers, not sisters.
What? Yeah, Cassandra took her last name so they could pass.
Eleanor drowned herself.
You know, in the Hudson.
Took a week for the body to wash up.
Oh, hi.
Ah.
There you are.
Have you Have you been up to see Jess? Yeah, I, uh took her a care package.
Candies and magazines and stuff.
Thanks.
For what you did.
For stopping it and for getting her to a real doctor.
I should've done it sooner.
I was, uh I was just wondering if you still had that key, or Oh, shit.
Yeah, I'll get it.
It's Anabelle, right? Oh, no.
Are you Are you a filmmaker too? Here's what I'm curious about.
What's with the, uh, after-hours Satanic choir practice? I'm sorry? The community room a couple nights ago? You and a bunch of friends singing all the songs that got cut from Jesus Christ Superstar? Melody couldn't sleep and she went on a walkabout Yeah, Tamara was She was feeling Well, she didn't she didn't think that her performance went very well, and so she just wanted to try out some new material, so New material, right.
Is that what the kids are calling it these days? Um She's my ex, and, um we had too much of that terrible red wine that she drinks and It's fine.
It doesn't matter.
It does matter.
It does.
I'm sorry.
And, uh Let it go, Anabelle.
Let it go.
Hello? Get in and close the door.
Wanna hear a ghost story? Ghosts aren't real.
Dad says they are.
He does? He told you that? He says they're everywhere.
Have you ever seen one? All the time.
Haven't you? Don't be afraid.
They're just lost.
And don't know where to go.
Did you write in all these notebooks? No.
Who did? I don't know.
"Monday, April 23rd.
" "At the courthouse, Lavinia introduces Colin to the new attorney representing Delia.
" "Creighton, from an unnamed South American country, specializes in defending demon-possessed individuals charged with assault and battery.
" Someone is a big soap opera fan.
Um What are you doing here? I don't know.
Where did you get that? It was here on the bed.
No, no, that's impossible.
I I've never been in here.
This isn't my room.
What is it? Nothing.
It's, uh It's a tape my dad made for me.
He used to collect 16-millimeter films.
Picked them up at flea markets, you know, like, uh, Flash Gordon.
Jason and the Argonauts.
The 7th Voyage of Sinbad.
Um Did you ever see The Skeleton Dance? The one where the skeletons come out of the graves? Anyway Um he made a tape out of my favorite parts and gave it to me for my birthday.
What happened to it? I smashed it with a baseball bat.
Oh After he died, I I found out he wasn't who I thought he was.
But this was the only Yeah, this was the only thing I had from him, so I kept the pieces.
My mother left me in a church when I was a baby.
With this ring around my neck.
I threw it away so many times, but I kept going back for it.
I guess I thought that if I held onto it, then maybe I'd be able to forgive her someday.
Did you? Not yet, I guess.
What about you? Um Actually, you know him.
Your father? Steven Turner.
Doctor Turner? No.
No, I don't think No, that can't be right because his son is only Anyway, you just said your father's dead, so Dr.
Turner is definitely Dan? Dan? Melody? Melody? Who the fuck are you, T.
Bellows? Holy shit.
Dude, Paranormal Perception In Non-Schizophrenic Adults? Your dad was writing for fucking parapsychology journals.
Did you know he was into supernatural shit? No.
Well, maybe that's what got him in trouble with the department.
Which would be bullshit, if you ask me.
What's the crime in keeping an open mind? Yeah, maybe.
All right.
Well, I'll see if I can turn up anything else he wrote.
What else did you find? A bunch of stuff from the Visser Apartments.
Bagged and tagged clothes, pictures, books.
Water-damaged, fire-damaged.
Maybe it's evidence in some kind of lawsuit.
Did you find any of Melody's stuff? Yeah, I found her ring.
And I found her journal.
Hey, how'd you crack that code? Remember that notebook I found in the rec room? The one with all the soap opera plots? I found more of them in one of the other bedrooms.
A lot more.
Must've been written by someone else who was working up here.
So what was this guy doing up there? Just fucking watching soap operas? I don't know.
But the code is in one of the books.
He must've been snooping down in the basement as well.
"T.
Bellows.
" Hey, can you track him down? - See what he knows? - Yeah, I'll see what I can find.
Um, are you, uh Is everything good? You doing okay? I know you're hoping Melody made it out alive, so - If you want to talk - I'm fine, thanks.
Good luck with the show tonight.
Hello? Dude, fuck you.
I'm just trying to be sensitive.
Great space.
You here for Mystery Signals? Show's not till 8:00.
You can get your tickets at the door.
You can feel a real sense of history here.
Lots of possibilities.
Thanks.
Uh, my dad owns the building, if that's what you're asking about.
It's not for sale.
Everything's for sale, Mark.
Virgil Davenport.
Pleasure to finally meet Dan's best friend.
Okay.
If you don't mind me saying, you and Dan sure make a strange pair.
I think it's terrific Dan has someone like you to draw him out of his shell, but I can't quite see what you get out of the relationship, big personality like yourself.
Who says I need to get anything out of it? Human nature, I suppose.
I have tech rehearsal in ten minutes.
You found your way in, you can find your way out.
Let me come clean, Mark.
I'm here because I'm worried about Dan.
I was hoping we might be able to talk about how he's handling his isolation.
How the fuck would I know? Apologies, I should've said right up front I know you're in touch with him.
Thought you might be able to provide a perspective on his mental health.
No idea what you're talking about.
Dan spent eight weeks in a residential treatment center in Vermont last year on your dime.
Your father's, technically.
It was some kind of a breakdown, isn't that right? Over a relationship? It wasn't about the breakup, okay? The whole thing with Jill just triggered a bunch of old family shit.
Abandonment issues.
He wasn't eating, sleeping.
When I found him, he was in a bad way and he agreed to check himself in and then get help.
I'm concerned, Mark.
I like Dan.
If you have any indication he's headed for another crack-up, I'd really appreciate the opportunity to help him out.
I'd be happy to compensate you for your assistance, of course.
You want a spy.
We're on the same side here.
Go fuck yourself.
Well, thanks for hearing me out.
I'll leave you to your rehearsal.
What the fuck's so important about Melody Pendras and her tapes? A hundred thousand dollars to restore some school project? What the fuck are you expecting to find? That information's confidential.
Call anytime.
Oh, my God.
Isn't this just fucking amazing? I feel like I'm time-traveling.
This paint is like a portal into Eleanor's soul.
Is that what you're wearing? Who's that who's starring in your power nap sex-dreams these days? Is it Sting, or, like, one of those beardy grad students from the anthro department? Your good Dr.
Steven Turner? They're not sex dreams.
They're just I don't know what they are.
They're just conversations.
- Are you getting ready or not? - I will meet you up there.
Twenty minutes late, like a fucking normal person.
What are you doing here? Cassandra wanted some young energy at the party.
Whatever that means.
- She's paying me ten dollars an hour.
- Awesome.
Oh, that looks nice on you.
Oh.
Cassandra let me borrow it.
You brought your camera.
I hope you don't mind.
Oh, don't be silly.
We're all performers, whether we admit it or not.
And where's your Anabelle? She'll be here.
Well, shall we put on some music? Helen.
- Love - Hi.
Into each life some rain This is Patricia.
She said she wouldn't mind being interviewed.
You can just look right at me.
Patricia Marston.
I'm in 3B.
And how long have you lived at the Visser? Long, long time.
Since '62.
Was my first real apartment after secretarial school.
I'm retired now.
I stay home and record things.
Record? Stories, mostly.
- Soaps, honey, but other things too.
- Oh.
I record as much as I can.
Started out with a real nice Betamax, and now I have two VHS machines, top of the line.
I feel like they have a message for me.
Who has a message? I shouldn't say.
Uh Can I ask you about a resident? Do you remember a Julia Bennett? Port Charles? She had a twin, Penelope? Helen Jung, 5A.
I'm a sculptor.
I design masks, mostly.
I've been working with Tamara.
You know Tamara? You made those masks for her ritual piece.
Her opera.
Yes.
And you're part of the historical society too? The one that meets in the community room? I'm gonna go mingle.
Did Patricia tell you about her tapes? How many hours must that be? I mean, ten years of her story? She's got a storage unit in Queens.
Sometimes she sends me in a taxi to drop off boxes.
- I found your guest outside.
- Sorry, I forgot the code.
Evie.
Oh! Everyone? This is Evie Crest.
Evie is an actress, currently starring - off-Broadway in Three Daughters.
- Evie Crest? The hell are you doing there? She recently bought two paintings of my darling Eleanor's, and I don't think they could find a better home.
Thank you.
Such a pleasure to be here and meet you all.
Shall we dine? I'm using the escape pod.
Have fun with theolds.
I've always been fascinated by Eleanor's work.
The idea that there are spirits all around us, speaking to us, speaking through us.
I feel the very same way when I'm on the stage.
I'm a very spiritual person.
Cassandra usually doesn't let men stay, so I couldn't say no.
Sorry that you have to sit next to me all night.
It's fine.
You know, I don't know how many of you know this about Evie, but her father was the late William Crest.
I loved him in Phantasmagoria.
Channel 7 used to run it as the afternoon movie every Friday in October.
Oh, I love that one too.
Is it true he made a TV show that never aired? The Circle, yes.
I'm afraid all the footage was lost after the accident.
We hired investigators to search for it, but no luck.
I heard The Circle was inspired by a snuff film.
True or false? - True.
- Ah! Apparently, Daddy went to a bachelor party.
Some old occult lodge in the Hollywood Hills.
Very exclusive.
There were all sorts of skull-and-bones types in that town.
Los Angeles was once the occult capital of the world, you know.
After dinner, they were blindfolded and led through the canyon to an underground bunker, sworn to secrecy, and then they watched the film.
What was it about? Mommy's quite sure it was a hoax, but apparently it was some kind of ritual sacrifice.
Very gruesome.
Either way, it inspired Daddy to create The Circle.
All we have are the scripts, of course, but I'm sure it was brilliant.
He was brilliant.
Everything he did.
And do you know who the bachelor party was for? Mm Goodness, I can't recall.
- Perhaps any of the guests that attended? - No.
No, I'm afraid not.
You're sure there's no copy of this film? I mean, perhaps William tracked one down? Had a copy in his things? Not that I know of.
Although, so many of his things went missing after the accident.
- We were always hoping - It was suicide.
Wasn't it? Not an accident? Tamara.
Jesus.
Sorry.
I shouldn't drink champagne.
No, it's true.
That's what they say.
Suicide.
I just He would never abandon us like that, he just wouldn't.
He loved us.
Oh, no, no, no, of course not.
Aw.
No.
There may be a way for you to speak with him again from beyond.
- What do you mean? - Well Beatriz here is a very talented medium.
She's helped me speak with my Eleanor many times.
It is such a comfort.
Maybe, if you'd like to try, and if Beatriz is willing? It would be my pleasure to try, and, um, make a connection.
A séance? Yes.
- Yes.
Please.
- Well, let's make room.
I have lots of candles.
Here.
So, you make this a habit? No, I just Cassandra said she was gonna open it for me, so I Hmm.
It's a self-portrait.
It's wonderful.
Grab those tuning forks.
Move among us, spirits.
All are welcome.
Let the dead be with us.
All seeking passage.
William Crest.
We call you now.
Evie is waiting.
William Crest.
We call you now.
Evie is waiting.
Evie is waiting.
Mm.
Ask him something.
Go ahead.
Daddy? Daddy? Are you there? You have to ask something only he would know.
Do you remember my sixth birthday? It was snowing, and no one came to my party.
You gave me a book.
"I am nobody.
" "Who are you?" "Are you nobody too?" "Then there's a pair of us.
" Shh.
Shh "Don't tell.
" "They'd advertise, you know.
" Emily Dickinson.
Yes.
Oh, my God.
Ask him about the film.
What? The film.
The snuff film.
Daddy.
Do you remember the film? That terrible film? From the party? Do you remember whose party it was? Crawford.
Uncle Peter? Peter Crawford.
My godfather.
Uh I never would've guessed.
Ask him if he ever found a copy.
Ask him.
Did you ever find a copy of it? The film? Mm.
Stay away.
Stay away.
Stay away! Stay away.
Stay away.
Stay away.
Stay away from I'm sorry.
I've lost him.
Maybe try again.
No.
It's okay.
 It's okay.
Everything's all right.
What about you, Melody? What? Is there someone you'd like to contact? No.
Your mother? No.
She's not dead.
You don't know that for sure.
Julia Bennett.
This ring was hers.
Julia Bennett.
We call for you now.
Melody is waiting.
Julia Bennett? We call you now.
Melody is waiting.
Your daughter is waiting.
I'm sorry.
I'm afraid I don't sense her presence in the realm of the dead.
Wait.
Someone else Who is that? What are you watching? Nothing.
It's just some footage I'm working on.
Are you a filmmaker? No.
No, I'm I'm I'm restoring it.
That's what I do.
Films, tapes, photographs.
Things that have been damaged, lost, or forgotten.
I bring them back.
I know her.
Or I knew her.
I I just can't remember her name.
Do you remember my name? Dan.
Your name is Dan.
- You live at the Visser.
- No, I don't.
I've never been to the Visser.
We met in the community room.
That's impossible.
I live here.
Then where did we meet? I'm not sure.
I'm supposed to ask you something.
What? I'm supposed to ask you for help.
Okay, what what kind of help? I don't know.
Everything's all jumbled up in my head.
It's okay.
It's okay.
Everything's okay.
I want to help.
Just tell me how.
What is that? You took my notebook? What did you do to it? Nothing.
I found it like that.
You stole my ring? Why? I I don't understand.
How do you have my things? Where did you get them? What the fuck is going on here? Don't be afraid.
They're just lost.
And don't know where to go.
You're dead, Melody.
What? You died in a fire at the Visser.
Twenty-five years ago.
I'm sorry.
Are you crazy? That footage I'm working on is your footage.
Tapes that you made while you were living there.
I'm just trying to understand what happened to you.
No, no, no, no, no, no.
No, no.
How you knew my father.
What caused the fire.
If you ever found your mother.
What the fuck is wrong with you? I'm trying to help.
Like you asked.
You're lost.
You don't know where to go.
I'm not fucking dead! Someone else "I can get out of your way.
" "Me too.
" "I'm new.
" "I know you're a good person and that you care about people.
" "You try to make them feel safe.
" "It's a feature, not a bug.
" "I really needed to hear that.
So, thank you.
" "You're welcome.
" "I don't understand what's happening here.
" "This conversation, is it really happening?" What are you doing? "Why wouldn't it be happening?" What are you doing? Where did you hear that? How do you know that? "I'm supposed to ask you for help.
" "What kind of help?" "I don't know.
" "Everything is jumbled up in my head.
" - "You took my notebook.
" - What the fuck? "What the fuck is going on here?" "You're dead.
" You can't know that.
You can't know what's in my dreams, you can't know what's in my head.
It's real.
It is real.
"You died in a fire.
" "At the Visser.
Twenty-five years ago.
" "I'm sorry.
" "Are you crazy?" Okay, I can save her.
I can save her.
There's still time.
- She doesn't have to die.
- Okay, slow down.
The conversations were real, Mark.
I wasn't dreaming.
They're real.
- What the fuck are you talking about? - Melody.
I've been seeing her here.
At first I thought I was dreaming.
I thought I was going crazy, thought she was haunting me.
But they were real, the conversations were real.
- We were talking.
- Dan.
I can warn her.
I can warn her to stay away from the building, stay away from the fire.
There's still time.
There's still time.
 I can save her.
She doesn't have to die.
"It's your footage.
I'm trying to understand what happened to you.
" Stop it.
Stop, please.
"How you knew my father.
" "What caused the fire.
" - "If you ever found your mother.
" - What the fuck is wrong with you? All right, Beatriz, I think that's enough for one evening.
"I'm trying to help.
Like you asked.
" "You're lost.
" "You don't know where to to go.
" Go.
Go.
No! No! Holy shit.
Stop! No! No! Somebody call a fucking ambulance! No! Call a fucking ambulance! Beatriz! What did you see? What did you hear? How did you know what was in my dreams? How is that possible? - How's that possible? Please! - Ma'am, please step back.
Tell me! Hey! - Ma'am.
- Please! Beatriz! - I need to talk to her! Let me - Stay back, lady.
Fuck.
No.
Wait.
Anabelle.
Where the fuck were you all night? What are you doing? Anabelle, what the hell is this? There's someone in there, Mel.
There is someone in there.
Born in London in 1928, Eleanor was part of a movement called Spirit Receivers, a radical group of abstract artists who explored roles as mediums for supernatural messages from the spirit realm and beyond.
In 1974, Eleanor and her sister Cassandra moved to New York City and established the Wall Galleries, where they exhibited the work of Spirit Receivers living in America.
Now, Christie's is offering one of the most mesmerizing collections to come on the market in recent years.
All of the items in the Wall collection were carefully curated by the artist, who felt a close spiritual or personal connection to each object that served as an inspiration to her work.
Object 6758-A: Spirit photograph by William Mumler.
"The Medium Fanny Conant and her Lost Brother, 1868.
" Object 6788-B: Tuning forks, Bavarian provenance, 14th century.
Object 5767-A: Ladies' comet pin.
Platinum, diamonds, and Kharonite.
Object 7658-B: Bowl, inlaid with human teeth and tiles.
Portrait of Cassandra Wall, by Eleanor Wall, acrylic on canvas, 1974.
Stay out.
This is Mark Higgins with Mystery Signals.
Please leave a message and I'll return your call as soon as possible.
Hey, uh, it's me.
Um So, I I can't get in the basement.
None of your Reddit tips work, so I'm just punching random numbers in.
Um, I'm gonna text you a picture of the keypad.
Can you find an actual live person who knows how to hack this model? All right.
Um I'll call you back later.
Dan? It's Dan, right? How'd you How'd you get here? I don't know.
You tell me.
Dan.
Everything all right? What time is it? A little after 8:00.
You were just standing there.
Hello? You ever have a paper route, Dan? Best thing about a paper route is the routine.
Every morning at 4:30, I had to be at the distro center to pick up my copies of the Gazette.
By 5:00, I was on the bike.
By 6:15, everyone had their papers, every delivery complete by the time my neighbors left for the day.
My job was done.
You didn't upload anything today.
Uh, I lost track of time.
Feeling all right? Should I send a doc tor out? - B-12 shot always gives me energy.
- No shots.
I'll get back to it.
Hot tea? Juice? Chicken soup with those pork balls from that Chinese place? Flintstone vitamins, but only the Barneys? I'm fine.
Maybe I should make you a healing mixtape.
With bird sounds and Enya and Koyaanisqatsi.
I think I'm just gonna stick to the exercises.
Exercises? Like, when I start to feel anxious, I count backwards in Japanese.
The doctor says it's like giving a dog a chew toy.
Yeah, I've got one of those exercises too.
It really helps me.
Secret of NIMH? I have homework.
Extra credit for science class.
Cometology, Volume Six: A Catalog of Comets.
Aren't comets supposed to bring about end-times or something? Do you think that's science? Maybe.
I'm writing about Comet Kharon.
It used to be, like, really famous.
There were songs about it and everything, but Sometimes comets start breaking into smaller and smaller pieces and they just disappear.
Sounds lonely.
They're space rocks, not people.
Anyway, it's supposed to be visible in a couple weeks.
Oh, Samuel got me that new telescope, see? An Orion SkyQuest.
We're gonna watch for it together.
Whoa.
Mel, we had that interview.
Hi, kid.
Hi.
Are you gonna be okay alone? I'll be fine.
Holy shit.
Are those teeth? That was a barter.
For Eleanor's Spirit Raven Number Seven.
Exquisite piece.
Much more valuable than the bowl.
But Eleanor insisted.
Wasn't she beautiful? When did you and your sister move into the Visser? 1974.
Eleanor found the apartment.
She thought it was very spiritual.
This place? Spiritual? She always saw beyond, my dear.
- And of course the rent was right.
- This stuff must have cost a fortune.
Oh, those? Yes, mid-century.
Irreplaceable.
What's this? Fire sale? After she died, I put everything up for auction.
But I couldn't bring myself to follow through.
Eleanor loved her things.
And now I just sell a few pieces when the need arises.
This stuff is just amazing.
One of a kind.
Estonian, I believe.
What's inside? A sculpture.
It's quite a piece, but I'm afraid I've misplaced the key.
Miss Wall, is there anything about the Visser that you find spiritual? Cassandra, please.
Um Or maybe some of the other residents find it spiritual too? Like the group that meets in the community room? You're asking about the cult.
Hey, Cass? Is this you? Oh, that was painted in this very apartment.
Eleanor had such a way of seeing me.
She belonged to a group of artists who called themselves Spirit Receivers.
They believed mysterious beings were speaking through them to manifest art.
And beauty.
And truth.
Some people called them a cult.
Is that what you were asking about? No.
No, I wasn't.
You know, it really was something to watch her create.
No idea what her brush stroke would reveal.
No certainty of who or what she was communicating with.
We can't begin to imagine the worlds which lie undiscovered.
I only hope my Eleanor is waiting in one of them.
Is that the same pendant? Yes.
It's Kharonite.
It's very rare.
They say it came from a comet.
The blacks are incredible.
Miss Eleanor mixed all her own paint.
Oh, wait a moment.
Yes, here.
Take this.
Better it get some use than waste away.
Seriously? Eleanor would want you to have it.
Thank you.
- Oh, maybe Cass knew your mom.
- Anabelle.
Look, if you want something, you ask for it, right? She's looking for her deadbeat mom, Julia Bennett.
Does that ring a bell? Oh, you know, my memory's not what it was.
I'm having a dinner party here tomorrow night, a thank-you for a buyer.
Why don't you come? A lot of old-time residents will be here.
Surely someone will know your Julia.
Okay.
Maybe I can conjure something with this paint.
Like Eleanor and her ghost strokes.
She's obviously not over her sister's death.
Melody.
They were lovers, not sisters.
What? Yeah, Cassandra took her last name so they could pass.
Eleanor drowned herself.
You know, in the Hudson.
Took a week for the body to wash up.
Oh, hi.
Ah.
There you are.
Have you Have you been up to see Jess? Yeah, I, uh took her a care package.
Candies and magazines and stuff.
Thanks.
For what you did.
For stopping it and for getting her to a real doctor.
I should've done it sooner.
I was, uh I was just wondering if you still had that key, or Oh, shit.
Yeah, I'll get it.
It's Anabelle, right? Oh, no.
Are you Are you a filmmaker too? Here's what I'm curious about.
What's with the, uh, after-hours Satanic choir practice? I'm sorry? The community room a couple nights ago? You and a bunch of friends singing all the songs that got cut from Jesus Christ Superstar? Melody couldn't sleep and she went on a walkabout Yeah, Tamara was She was feeling Well, she didn't she didn't think that her performance went very well, and so she just wanted to try out some new material, so New material, right.
Is that what the kids are calling it these days? Um She's my ex, and, um we had too much of that terrible red wine that she drinks and It's fine.
It doesn't matter.
It does matter.
It does.
I'm sorry.
And, uh Let it go, Anabelle.
Let it go.
Hello? Get in and close the door.
Wanna hear a ghost story? Ghosts aren't real.
Dad says they are.
He does? He told you that? He says they're everywhere.
Have you ever seen one? All the time.
Haven't you? Don't be afraid.
They're just lost.
And don't know where to go.
Did you write in all these notebooks? No.
Who did? I don't know.
"Monday, April 23rd.
" "At the courthouse, Lavinia introduces Colin to the new attorney representing Delia.
" "Creighton, from an unnamed South American country, specializes in defending demon-possessed individuals charged with assault and battery.
" Someone is a big soap opera fan.
Um What are you doing here? I don't know.
Where did you get that? It was here on the bed.
No, no, that's impossible.
I I've never been in here.
This isn't my room.
What is it? Nothing.
It's, uh It's a tape my dad made for me.
He used to collect 16-millimeter films.
Picked them up at flea markets, you know, like, uh, Flash Gordon.
Jason and the Argonauts.
The 7th Voyage of Sinbad.
Um Did you ever see The Skeleton Dance? The one where the skeletons come out of the graves? Anyway Um he made a tape out of my favorite parts and gave it to me for my birthday.
What happened to it? I smashed it with a baseball bat.
Oh After he died, I I found out he wasn't who I thought he was.
But this was the only Yeah, this was the only thing I had from him, so I kept the pieces.
My mother left me in a church when I was a baby.
With this ring around my neck.
I threw it away so many times, but I kept going back for it.
I guess I thought that if I held onto it, then maybe I'd be able to forgive her someday.
Did you? Not yet, I guess.
What about you? Um Actually, you know him.
Your father? Steven Turner.
Doctor Turner? No.
No, I don't think No, that can't be right because his son is only Anyway, you just said your father's dead, so Dr.
Turner is definitely Dan? Dan? Melody? Melody? Who the fuck are you, T.
Bellows? Holy shit.
Dude, Paranormal Perception In Non-Schizophrenic Adults? Your dad was writing for fucking parapsychology journals.
Did you know he was into supernatural shit? No.
Well, maybe that's what got him in trouble with the department.
Which would be bullshit, if you ask me.
What's the crime in keeping an open mind? Yeah, maybe.
All right.
Well, I'll see if I can turn up anything else he wrote.
What else did you find? A bunch of stuff from the Visser Apartments.
Bagged and tagged clothes, pictures, books.
Water-damaged, fire-damaged.
Maybe it's evidence in some kind of lawsuit.
Did you find any of Melody's stuff? Yeah, I found her ring.
And I found her journal.
Hey, how'd you crack that code? Remember that notebook I found in the rec room? The one with all the soap opera plots? I found more of them in one of the other bedrooms.
A lot more.
Must've been written by someone else who was working up here.
So what was this guy doing up there? Just fucking watching soap operas? I don't know.
But the code is in one of the books.
He must've been snooping down in the basement as well.
"T.
Bellows.
" Hey, can you track him down? - See what he knows? - Yeah, I'll see what I can find.
Um, are you, uh Is everything good? You doing okay? I know you're hoping Melody made it out alive, so - If you want to talk - I'm fine, thanks.
Good luck with the show tonight.
Hello? Dude, fuck you.
I'm just trying to be sensitive.
Great space.
You here for Mystery Signals? Show's not till 8:00.
You can get your tickets at the door.
You can feel a real sense of history here.
Lots of possibilities.
Thanks.
Uh, my dad owns the building, if that's what you're asking about.
It's not for sale.
Everything's for sale, Mark.
Virgil Davenport.
Pleasure to finally meet Dan's best friend.
Okay.
If you don't mind me saying, you and Dan sure make a strange pair.
I think it's terrific Dan has someone like you to draw him out of his shell, but I can't quite see what you get out of the relationship, big personality like yourself.
Who says I need to get anything out of it? Human nature, I suppose.
I have tech rehearsal in ten minutes.
You found your way in, you can find your way out.
Let me come clean, Mark.
I'm here because I'm worried about Dan.
I was hoping we might be able to talk about how he's handling his isolation.
How the fuck would I know? Apologies, I should've said right up front I know you're in touch with him.
Thought you might be able to provide a perspective on his mental health.
No idea what you're talking about.
Dan spent eight weeks in a residential treatment center in Vermont last year on your dime.
Your father's, technically.
It was some kind of a breakdown, isn't that right? Over a relationship? It wasn't about the breakup, okay? The whole thing with Jill just triggered a bunch of old family shit.
Abandonment issues.
He wasn't eating, sleeping.
When I found him, he was in a bad way and he agreed to check himself in and then get help.
I'm concerned, Mark.
I like Dan.
If you have any indication he's headed for another crack-up, I'd really appreciate the opportunity to help him out.
I'd be happy to compensate you for your assistance, of course.
You want a spy.
We're on the same side here.
Go fuck yourself.
Well, thanks for hearing me out.
I'll leave you to your rehearsal.
What the fuck's so important about Melody Pendras and her tapes? A hundred thousand dollars to restore some school project? What the fuck are you expecting to find? That information's confidential.
Call anytime.
Oh, my God.
Isn't this just fucking amazing? I feel like I'm time-traveling.
This paint is like a portal into Eleanor's soul.
Is that what you're wearing? Who's that who's starring in your power nap sex-dreams these days? Is it Sting, or, like, one of those beardy grad students from the anthro department? Your good Dr.
Steven Turner? They're not sex dreams.
They're just I don't know what they are.
They're just conversations.
- Are you getting ready or not? - I will meet you up there.
Twenty minutes late, like a fucking normal person.
What are you doing here? Cassandra wanted some young energy at the party.
Whatever that means.
- She's paying me ten dollars an hour.
- Awesome.
Oh, that looks nice on you.
Oh.
Cassandra let me borrow it.
You brought your camera.
I hope you don't mind.
Oh, don't be silly.
We're all performers, whether we admit it or not.
And where's your Anabelle? She'll be here.
Well, shall we put on some music? Helen.
- Love - Hi.
Into each life some rain This is Patricia.
She said she wouldn't mind being interviewed.
You can just look right at me.
Patricia Marston.
I'm in 3B.
And how long have you lived at the Visser? Long, long time.
Since '62.
Was my first real apartment after secretarial school.
I'm retired now.
I stay home and record things.
Record? Stories, mostly.
- Soaps, honey, but other things too.
- Oh.
I record as much as I can.
Started out with a real nice Betamax, and now I have two VHS machines, top of the line.
I feel like they have a message for me.
Who has a message? I shouldn't say.
Uh Can I ask you about a resident? Do you remember a Julia Bennett? Port Charles? She had a twin, Penelope? Helen Jung, 5A.
I'm a sculptor.
I design masks, mostly.
I've been working with Tamara.
You know Tamara? You made those masks for her ritual piece.
Her opera.
Yes.
And you're part of the historical society too? The one that meets in the community room? I'm gonna go mingle.
Did Patricia tell you about her tapes? How many hours must that be? I mean, ten years of her story? She's got a storage unit in Queens.
Sometimes she sends me in a taxi to drop off boxes.
- I found your guest outside.
- Sorry, I forgot the code.
Evie.
Oh! Everyone? This is Evie Crest.
Evie is an actress, currently starring - off-Broadway in Three Daughters.
- Evie Crest? The hell are you doing there? She recently bought two paintings of my darling Eleanor's, and I don't think they could find a better home.
Thank you.
Such a pleasure to be here and meet you all.
Shall we dine? I'm using the escape pod.
Have fun with theolds.
I've always been fascinated by Eleanor's work.
The idea that there are spirits all around us, speaking to us, speaking through us.
I feel the very same way when I'm on the stage.
I'm a very spiritual person.
Cassandra usually doesn't let men stay, so I couldn't say no.
Sorry that you have to sit next to me all night.
It's fine.
You know, I don't know how many of you know this about Evie, but her father was the late William Crest.
I loved him in Phantasmagoria.
Channel 7 used to run it as the afternoon movie every Friday in October.
Oh, I love that one too.
Is it true he made a TV show that never aired? The Circle, yes.
I'm afraid all the footage was lost after the accident.
We hired investigators to search for it, but no luck.
I heard The Circle was inspired by a snuff film.
True or false? - True.
- Ah! Apparently, Daddy went to a bachelor party.
Some old occult lodge in the Hollywood Hills.
Very exclusive.
There were all sorts of skull-and-bones types in that town.
Los Angeles was once the occult capital of the world, you know.
After dinner, they were blindfolded and led through the canyon to an underground bunker, sworn to secrecy, and then they watched the film.
What was it about? Mommy's quite sure it was a hoax, but apparently it was some kind of ritual sacrifice.
Very gruesome.
Either way, it inspired Daddy to create The Circle.
All we have are the scripts, of course, but I'm sure it was brilliant.
He was brilliant.
Everything he did.
And do you know who the bachelor party was for? Mm Goodness, I can't recall.
- Perhaps any of the guests that attended? - No.
No, I'm afraid not.
You're sure there's no copy of this film? I mean, perhaps William tracked one down? Had a copy in his things? Not that I know of.
Although, so many of his things went missing after the accident.
- We were always hoping - It was suicide.
Wasn't it? Not an accident? Tamara.
Jesus.
Sorry.
I shouldn't drink champagne.
No, it's true.
That's what they say.
Suicide.
I just He would never abandon us like that, he just wouldn't.
He loved us.
Oh, no, no, no, of course not.
Aw.
No.
There may be a way for you to speak with him again from beyond.
- What do you mean? - Well Beatriz here is a very talented medium.
She's helped me speak with my Eleanor many times.
It is such a comfort.
Maybe, if you'd like to try, and if Beatriz is willing? It would be my pleasure to try, and, um, make a connection.
A séance? Yes.
- Yes.
Please.
- Well, let's make room.
I have lots of candles.
Here.
So, you make this a habit? No, I just Cassandra said she was gonna open it for me, so I Hmm.
It's a self-portrait.
It's wonderful.
Grab those tuning forks.
Move among us, spirits.
All are welcome.
Let the dead be with us.
All seeking passage.
William Crest.
We call you now.
Evie is waiting.
William Crest.
We call you now.
Evie is waiting.
Evie is waiting.
Mm.
Ask him something.
Go ahead.
Daddy? Daddy? Are you there? You have to ask something only he would know.
Do you remember my sixth birthday? It was snowing, and no one came to my party.
You gave me a book.
"I am nobody.
" "Who are you?" "Are you nobody too?" "Then there's a pair of us.
" Shh.
Shh "Don't tell.
" "They'd advertise, you know.
" Emily Dickinson.
Yes.
Oh, my God.
Ask him about the film.
What? The film.
The snuff film.
Daddy.
Do you remember the film? That terrible film? From the party? Do you remember whose party it was? Crawford.
Uncle Peter? Peter Crawford.
My godfather.
Uh I never would've guessed.
Ask him if he ever found a copy.
Ask him.
Did you ever find a copy of it? The film? Mm.
Stay away.
Stay away.
Stay away! Stay away.
Stay away.
Stay away.
Stay away from I'm sorry.
I've lost him.
Maybe try again.
No.
It's okay.
 It's okay.
Everything's all right.
What about you, Melody? What? Is there someone you'd like to contact? No.
Your mother? No.
She's not dead.
You don't know that for sure.
Julia Bennett.
This ring was hers.
Julia Bennett.
We call for you now.
Melody is waiting.
Julia Bennett? We call you now.
Melody is waiting.
Your daughter is waiting.
I'm sorry.
I'm afraid I don't sense her presence in the realm of the dead.
Wait.
Someone else Who is that? What are you watching? Nothing.
It's just some footage I'm working on.
Are you a filmmaker? No.
No, I'm I'm I'm restoring it.
That's what I do.
Films, tapes, photographs.
Things that have been damaged, lost, or forgotten.
I bring them back.
I know her.
Or I knew her.
I I just can't remember her name.
Do you remember my name? Dan.
Your name is Dan.
- You live at the Visser.
- No, I don't.
I've never been to the Visser.
We met in the community room.
That's impossible.
I live here.
Then where did we meet? I'm not sure.
I'm supposed to ask you something.
What? I'm supposed to ask you for help.
Okay, what what kind of help? I don't know.
Everything's all jumbled up in my head.
It's okay.
It's okay.
Everything's okay.
I want to help.
Just tell me how.
What is that? You took my notebook? What did you do to it? Nothing.
I found it like that.
You stole my ring? Why? I I don't understand.
How do you have my things? Where did you get them? What the fuck is going on here? Don't be afraid.
They're just lost.
And don't know where to go.
You're dead, Melody.
What? You died in a fire at the Visser.
Twenty-five years ago.
I'm sorry.
Are you crazy? That footage I'm working on is your footage.
Tapes that you made while you were living there.
I'm just trying to understand what happened to you.
No, no, no, no, no, no.
No, no.
How you knew my father.
What caused the fire.
If you ever found your mother.
What the fuck is wrong with you? I'm trying to help.
Like you asked.
You're lost.
You don't know where to go.
I'm not fucking dead! Someone else "I can get out of your way.
" "Me too.
" "I'm new.
" "I know you're a good person and that you care about people.
" "You try to make them feel safe.
" "It's a feature, not a bug.
" "I really needed to hear that.
So, thank you.
" "You're welcome.
" "I don't understand what's happening here.
" "This conversation, is it really happening?" What are you doing? "Why wouldn't it be happening?" What are you doing? Where did you hear that? How do you know that? "I'm supposed to ask you for help.
" "What kind of help?" "I don't know.
" "Everything is jumbled up in my head.
" - "You took my notebook.
" - What the fuck? "What the fuck is going on here?" "You're dead.
" You can't know that.
You can't know what's in my dreams, you can't know what's in my head.
It's real.
It is real.
"You died in a fire.
" "At the Visser.
Twenty-five years ago.
" "I'm sorry.
" "Are you crazy?" Okay, I can save her.
I can save her.
There's still time.
- She doesn't have to die.
- Okay, slow down.
The conversations were real, Mark.
I wasn't dreaming.
They're real.
- What the fuck are you talking about? - Melody.
I've been seeing her here.
At first I thought I was dreaming.
I thought I was going crazy, thought she was haunting me.
But they were real, the conversations were real.
- We were talking.
- Dan.
I can warn her.
I can warn her to stay away from the building, stay away from the fire.
There's still time.
There's still time.
 I can save her.
She doesn't have to die.
"It's your footage.
I'm trying to understand what happened to you.
" Stop it.
Stop, please.
"How you knew my father.
" "What caused the fire.
" - "If you ever found your mother.
" - What the fuck is wrong with you? All right, Beatriz, I think that's enough for one evening.
"I'm trying to help.
Like you asked.
" "You're lost.
" "You don't know where to to go.
" Go.
Go.
No! No! Holy shit.
Stop! No! No! Somebody call a fucking ambulance! No! Call a fucking ambulance! Beatriz! What did you see? What did you hear? How did you know what was in my dreams? How is that possible? - How's that possible? Please! - Ma'am, please step back.
Tell me! Hey! - Ma'am.
- Please! Beatriz! - I need to talk to her! Let me - Stay back, lady.
Fuck.
No.
Wait.
Anabelle.
Where the fuck were you all night? What are you doing? Anabelle, what the hell is this? There's someone in there, Mel.
There is someone in there.