Happy Halloween weekend! We were live at Sambalatte coffeehouse in Boca Park for a Halloween edition of State of Nevada After Dark. Our show was all about Halloween in movies, in business and in the afterlife.
Beyond the veil
And we'll start with the afterlife — or at least those who investigate paranormal activity, which some believe stems from those who have died and gone beyond the veil, perhaps into another dimension; perhaps living alongside us now as apparitions that most of us can’t see.
Las Vegas resident Joshua P. Warren has been a professional paranormal investigator for decades. He’s been to various haunted locations in Nevada and around the world; he’s written several books, including “How to Hunt Ghosts: A Practical Guide.” It’s considered a bible for those in the field of the paranormal.
He joined State of Nevada host Joe Schoenmann for more.
Warren grew up in North Carolina, with family roots going back to the 1700s. That meant he grew up with legends and ghost stories. When he was a teen, he said he went to investigate those stories, and published them in a local newspaper.
That turned into world travel: investigating the Bermuda Triangle, Mayan pyramids, Winchester mansion and more.
"I discovered that these are more than just stories," he said. "If you actually spend time at some of these places, and you do have to put in a lot of time, that's why I live for five years in the Bermuda Triangle. You will start to experience and document some of these things that people have talked about for centuries."
After that, our connection with Warren cut out.
"It is not uncommon for technical difficulties to kick in when you start talking about these paranormal phenomena," he said.
And as far as ghosts are concerned in Nevada:
"Here in Nevada, we call this the Silver State and that's because we, yes, we have a lot of silver. But guess what? We have a lot more gold here. And the amount of silver and gold and other conductive minerals create these incredible amounts of electromagnetic energy, and electrostatic charges are truly interactive," Warren explained.
"And therefore, I believe that when you have these sort of paranormal imprints from this dramatic history, it's related with these power supplies that come from the earth here, the natural geography, it supercharges it, it allows it to manifest, and we're able to catch glimpses of these things, just like some kind of a movie recorded in ... the past."
On the silver screen
It’s Halloween season, of course, an ideal time to do things at night. Like hearing people talk about things like the dead, paranormal happenings, and horror movies.
It just so happens that the Las Vegas film industry churns out a lot of the latter.
Local filmmakers cranked out dozens of independent horror films through the pandemic. A handful of them are just now emerging via streaming and video-on-demand services.
And next week, Art Houz Theaters will be hosting the Sin City Horror Fest, which will feature five days of scary flicks from both here and beyond.
Local film writer Josh Bell wrote about all of these things in this week’s Fifth Street, that’s the newsletter put out by Desert Companion and Nevada Public Radio.
He's has been keeping tabs on the local film scene for years.
Las Vegas has a built-in horror fanbase, he said. We're not L.A. or New York, but if you're a filmmaker with limited resources, there are people in Nevada who want to see what you create. There's also a community factor.
"These are movies about gruesome, horrible things ... but there's a lot of support and love among the people who watch them," Bell said.
Tom Devlin is one of those filmmakers in Southern Nevada. His company 1313FX does special and practical effects. He own the Monster Museum in Boulder City, and his film, "Teddy Told Me To," is being featured at Sin City Horror Fest.
He's been in Las Vegas fewer than 10 years, but he's made his experience known in town.
His film, "a generic slasher film," as he described, is "one of those movies you would watch at a sleepover party as a teenager on Halloween night."
After Halloween: Día de los Muertos
Halloween isn’t the only prominent holiday in early fall.
On Nov. 1 and 2, Mexicans and Latinos around the world take part in Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead.
The holiday is often confused or associated with All Souls’ Day and All Hallows Eve, otherwise known as Halloween. But Día de los Muertos is very distinct, rich with its own traditions, cultural icons, spirituality and even cuisine.
And even though the holiday is for honoring the dead, it usually takes on a festive tone -- a balance of remembrance and celebration.
Irma Varela knows this holiday well. For 19 years, she’s been putting on the county’s Day of the Dead event. It’s officially called Life in Death, and it takes place Nov. 1 and 2 at the Winchester Dondero Cultural Center, where she serves as cultural programming manager.
She also joined us Thursday night, along with Jonathan Meza from the City of Las Vegas.
Day of the Dead is "to remember our loved ones," she said. For her, it's a time to learn from other people, because the celebration is done differently in different parts of Mexico and Latin America.
For their event, they have exhibits, workshops, ofrendas, performances, crafts and traditional Mexican food.
"The festival started 21 years ago ... and I felt like it was missing the life," she said, which led to this event which moved to Winchester in 2003 as it grew.
Meza said the city puts on their own festival, Los Muertos at Sammy Davis Jr. Festival Plaza. This event is more family-focused, he said.
"We celebrate our families, whether it's by blood or by choice. This is a community festival that sees hundreds of families enjoying partake in activities and entertainment for the whole household."
Have a happy and safe Halloween! ( And Nevada Day!)
Joshua P. Warren, paranormal investigator; Josh Bell, film writer; Tom Devlin, filmmaker, special effects artist and owner, Tom Devlin's Monster Museum; Irma Valera, cultural programming manager, Winchester Dondero Center; Jonathan Meza, cultural affairs manager, City of Las Vegas
