The Haunted Greystone Mansion

Posted: 08.10.2025 | Updated: 10.11.2025

Even if you’re not familiar with the name Greystone Mansion, there’s a good chance you’ve seen the estate as the backdrop of a movie or TV show. The now-favorite filming location, however, has a past filled with murder, suicide, and a possible government cover-up. 

Have the souls who died within Greystone moved on? Or do they continue to haunt the great halls, hoping someone will finally solve their cold case?

Great mysteries and tragedies have taken place behind the doors of Beverly Hills’ mansions. More than one is known to be haunted by stars of the past, and sometimes, the spirits of those celebrities like to wander far beyond the confines of their homes. If you want to see the locations where the ghosts of Hollywood’s past still hang out, book a ghost tour with LA Ghosts. 

Is Greystone Mansion haunted?

Yes, many people believe Greystone is haunted by the two people who unexpectedly lost their lives on a fateful night in 1929: E.L. “Ned” Doheny Jr. and Theodore “Hugh” Plunkett.

What Movies and TV Shows Have Been Filmed at Greystone Mansion?

The mansion has been featured in the following films and shows:

• Star Trek: Into Darkness
• X-Men
• The Social Network
• The Muppets
• National Treasure: Book of Secrets
• Indecent Proposal
• The Godfather
• Spider-Man
• Town and Country
• What Women Want
• The Bodyguard
• The Phantom
• The Witches of Eastwick
• The Big Lebowski
• All of Me
• Ghostbusters II
• Death Becomes Her 
• Jumpin’ Jack Flash
• The Beautician And The Beast
• Guilty By Suspicion
• Air Force One 
• Nixon
• Batman & Robin 
• Heat
• Gilmore Girls
• Richie Rich
• General Hospital

Who Built Greystone Mansion?

The 46,000-square-foot home was built by oil tycoon Edward Laurence “E.L.” Doheny. E.L. was a self-made millionaire, and his personal life was not without its struggles. His first wife, Carrie, struggled with her mental health. The death of their young daughter only worsened this. 

After the birth of their son, Ned, E.L. was often on the road for work. He was gone so much that the marriage disintegrated, with the couple divorcing in 1899. Not long after, Carrie killed herself by ingesting battery acid. Ned then went to live with E.L. and his new wife, Estelle. 

As E.L.’s only child, Ned was the apple of his father’s eye. He adored his son, who became a major socialite as he got older. Ned also played an important role in his father’s (sometimes nefarious) business dealings. For all these reasons, E.L. decided to build the Greystone Mansion for Ned to live in with his wife, Lucy, and their five children. 

In 1928, E.L. spared no expense building the mansion with 55 rooms. It cost $4 million to build at the time, which would be a staggering $45 million today. 

However, Ned only lived in the house for one year before tragedy struck. 

A Brotherly Love

To fully understand what happened on the night of February 16, 1929, we need to meet Ned’s best friend, Theodore “Hugh” Plunkett. Hugh and Ned became friends in 1913, when Ned was courting his soon-to-be wife, Lucy. 

They were from two entirely different worlds. Hugh worked at Lucy’s family’s gas station, while Ned was already worth millions. Ned soon employed Hugh in an assistant-type role, with Hugh taking care of more and more Doheny family business over time. The two were incredibly close and were described as brothers. 

However, this also meant that Hugh was roped into some questionable business. In particular, Hugh and Ned delivered $100,000 to a government official, only for E.L.’s business to win a huge government contract shortly after. This embroiled the whole lot in what would come to be known as the Teapot Dome scandal. 

While Ned quickly secured immunity in the case, Hugh didn’t have the connections to do the same. This led to a decline in Hugh’s mental health over the next several years. Some say this was also attributed to an addiction to sleeping pills, teeth problems, and the stress of overseeing the construction of the Greystone Mansion (as Ned and E.L. were often in DC testifying about the scandal). 

The Murder-Suicide

By February 1929, the Doheny family claimed that Hugh was suffering from a full breakdown. They claimed they begged him to go to a sanitarium to seek help, but Hugh refused. (This also happened to line up with when he would be questioned in the trial about the scandal.)

After several discussions, one where Ned made some “impulsive” comments, Hugh showed up at Greystone on the evening of February 16. Ned took him to a spare bedroom, where the two drank, smoked, and talked. 

Approximately an hour later, Lucy called the family doctor, who had been counseling Hugh throughout this period. The doctor claimed that once he showed up, Hugh closed the bedroom door, and a shot rang out. The doctor then went into the bedroom to find both Hugh and Ned dead from gunshot wounds to the head. 

The news rocked the country, and E.L. was said to be inconsolable. 

Was There More to the Story than Meets the Eye?

Many, including one of the investigators, believed the story of a murder-suicide didn’t match up for several reasons:

• Ned seemed to be shot at short range, while Hugh was not. How could Hugh have killed himself from a distance?
• Hugh was found with a still-smoldering cigarette in his hand. Would he have lit up before killing his best friend and himself?
• The gun that was found under Hugh’s body was hot to the touch — like it had been put in an oven.
• The doctor’s story changed several times.

Despite involving one of the most famous socialites at the time, the crime only appeared in the newspaper for three days, and the investigation was very brief. Many believe the two men were lovers, and it may not have been Hugh who pulled the trigger. Some hypothesize it was Lucy or even someone from the case trying to shut up the two. 

Who Haunts Greystone?

While Lucy remained in the home until her death in the ‘50s, Greystone was eventually given to the city of Beverly Hills. Visitors can now roam the grounds on most days. However, many of them have had experiences they can’t quite explain. 

People have heard the voice of a female spirit, who many believe to be Lucy. A park ranger witnessed faucets turning on by themselves, and people have smelled rotting flesh in the bedroom where the men’s bodies were found.

Perhaps this is the spirit of Hugh or Ned, desperately trying to get justice after all this time?

Haunted Los Angeles

Ned Doheny and Hugh Plunkett join a long list of questionable or unsolved deaths in The City of Angels. Many of these souls never seemed to move on after their untimely departures. 

Learn about the most haunted places along Hollywood Boulevard, from the hotel where Marilyn Monroe’s ghost is still spotted to the secrets and spirits said to reside within the Magic Castle, on a ghost tour with LA Ghosts. Have your camera ready, as you never know what phantom you may spy. 

To discover more stories about questionable murders or suicides, follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. To learn about other eerie LA ghost stories, check out our blog. 

Sources:

• https://www.pbssocal.org/history-society/we-shall-never-know-murder-money-and-the-enduring-mystery-of-greystone-mansion
• https://laghosttour.com/
• https://www.seeing-stars.com/Live/Greystone.shtml
• https://www.in2013dollars.com/us/inflation/1928?amount=4000000
• https://beverlypress.com/2023/09/the-ghosts-of-greystone/