'Spooks' Figure in Divorce Suit

Detroit Free Press, August 27, 1931

"I have a complex against seances," Mrs. Ethlyn Mann, Detroit Conservatory of Music dancing and dramatic art director, explained when she was granted a divorce Wednesday by Circuit Judge Theodore J. Richter.

In a cross-petition filed and later withdrawn by her husband, Carl F. Mann, operatic director at the conservatory, he charged Mrs. Mann with constantly attending "spook" parties and showing too much interest in occult matters. Her more prosaic petition complained merely that he failed to provide her with a home.

Mrs. Mann is living with her mother at 70 Highland avenue. Mr. Mann is living with his mother at 1941 West Grand boulevard.

Ghost Must Be Quiet: Court Ruling Prohibits Noisy Spooks' in G. P.

Detroit Free Press, June 12, 1943

Phantoms are ruled out of order when they create a nuisance in restricted areas in an unprecendented ruling handed down Friday by Circuit Court Judge George B. Murphy granting neighbors a permanent injunction restraining Mrs. Henrietta A. Schnelker from holding seances, trances and readings in her home at 1357 Devonshire, Grosse Pointe.

Climaxing a two-week hearing Murphy upheld the petition of 20 residents of the exclusive neighborhood that the peace of their homes was disturbed by frequent seances.

"The proofs showed that music and weird noises emanated from the residence loud enough to be heard by the neighbors and create a disturbance in the community," according to Murphy.

"During the seances the lights were out and a large, metallic trumpet was in use, allegedly floating around in space, touching occupants and through which trumpet the spirits were alleged to have communicated with the audience, with Mrs. Schnelker acting as medium."

Murphy also held that traffic congestion developed in the neighborhood and that frequent disturbances resulted when children gathered in the neighborhood "in their desire to see 'the ghost.'"

The Spirit Paintings of Marion Gruzeski

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With this series of Detroit Free Press articles by writer Elden Small published in consecutive weeks in May of 1923 we learn of and are shown examples of the "spirit paintings" of young Detroit artist Marion Gruzeski but next to nothing about him or his life as a spiritual medium. He is briefly mentioned in the second article as Small described his paintings as grewsome [sic] and weird and states that Gruzeski was presumed to be under the trance of a dead artist.

The lack of information is hardly a setback as Small gives leads to various other Spiritualists in the movement which was rapidly gaining traction. A fact that was evidenced by the dozen or so churches in Detroit following the Spiritualist philosophy. Some of the names of interest included in the expose are Dr. Burrows of the Occult Temple, Rev. Thomas Grimshaw, Dr. J. H. Hyslop, King Benjamin and Mother Elinor (AKA Ann Odelia Diss Debar). All of whom I've never heard of, ignorant as I am in the field of spirituality.

Also featured are several photos of both Maude Roose and her spirit paintings. Roose, previously featured on this blog, was a novice artist who painted phenomenal replicas of famous paintings without any formal training and very little experience practicing her art. She, like Gruzeski, claimed to be inspired by the spirit of dead artists.

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