The Los Angeles-based Cecil Hotel, dubbed ‘America’s Hotel Death,’ as per Esquire, has been a breeding ground for murders and suicides. In fact, the establishment has temporarily housed prolific serial killer Richard Ramirez, aka The Night Stalker. Synonymous with death and violence, the building was also the location of Elisa Lam’s tragic death in 2013.
Los Angeles Times reported that the hotel, which was renamed Stay On Main, is reportedly no longer open to guests. Its 600 rooms were reopened in December 2021 as a housing project for thousands of unhoused individuals with a government-funded voucher. However, two-thirds of the historic establishment remained unoccupied until December 2022.
Cecil Hotel’s eerie and sinister history, explored
Located in Downtown Los Angeles, the Cecil Hotel, now renamed Stay On Main, was built nearly a century years ago in 1924. Insider reported that a couple of years later, on January 22, 1927, Percy Ormond Cook committed suicide in one of the rooms. Cook reportedly shot himself in the head after failing to reconcile with his estranged wife and son. This was followed by a string of other strange occurrences and mysterious deaths.
The outlet reported that between 1931 and 1938, the hotel reported three other deaths. W.K. Norton ingested poisonous pills in 1931. Then, in 1934, Army Sergeant Louis D. Borden slit his own throat with a razor. Lastly, in 1938, Roy Thompson of the Marine Corps jumped from the building.
Several other guests have fallen to their deaths over the years. These mysterious deaths were recorded as “fell from building” and were not ruled as suicides, believing that they could have been accidental.
Moreover, the infamous unsolved Black Dahlia murder victim Elizabeth Short is rumored to have visited the Cecil Hotel before her death. However, no sources have been able to officially confirm this news. Short, a 20-year-old aspiring actress, disappeared on January 9, 1947. Her mutilated body was found six days later in the Leimert Park area. The location of the discovery was at least five miles from the establishment.
This was followed by Pauline Otton’s suicide in 1962. The 27-year-old reportedly jumped from the ninth floor. During the fall, she accidentally struck George Giannini, 65, who was on the sidewalk in front of the hotel. Both individuals instantly died on the spot.
Cecil Hotel’s connection to serial killers and Elisa Lam’s murder
Insider’s report confirmed that Richard Ramirez, dubbed The Night Stalker, stayed in one of the rooms at the Cecil Hotel during his killing spree in the mid-80s. Ramirez reigned terror in Los Angeles between 1984 and 1985. His crimes included sexually assaulting and murdering people, among other things. In late August 1985, people in the neighborhood chased him down and caught him.
In 1989, the notorious serial killer was held responsible for 13 murders, five attempted murders, and several rapes and burglaries. He died of liver failure in 2013 after serving decades on death row.
Reportedly, the Cecil Hotel also housed Austrian serial killer Jack Unterweger, whose arrest came in 1976. The State handed him a life sentence but released him on parole in 1990, believing he was a reformed man.
Despite its sinister and spooky past, the establishment continued serving customers until recently. Then came the mysterious disappearance of 21-year-old student Elisa Lam in 2013, as per Fox News. Lam, a British Columbia native, had been missing for about two weeks after checking into the Los Angeles property on January 26, 2013. The officials there found her decomposing, naked body in a water cistern on the roof.
Moreover, several others have reported seeing strange occurrences inside the building that has become a cultural phenomenon and a popular tourist location. Filmmakers have received permission to shoot within the premises as the hotel itself has turned into a crucial part of popular culture.
