Fantôme Friday #4 - The Bootleggers

This Fantôme Friday episode tells the mysterious story of The Bootleggers, in which our narrator encounters the presence of a famous Minneapolis bad boy while hosting an open house.

Music: Nightbridge and The Velvets by Cannelle (www.cannellemusic.com)

Find The Skylark Bell online: www.theyskylarkbell.com

Instagram: @theskylarkbell

Twitter: @melissaoliveri

Patreon: www.patreon.com/melissaoliveri

TRANSCRIPT:

Things with Wings Productions, with the support of Whimsical Productions and Collected Sounds presents: The Skylark Bell, Fantome Friday.  I am your host Melissa Oliveri.  

On the last Friday of each month, we will pause our reading of Meadow Lane and the Skylark Bell, and instead cover a real-life supernatural, or at the very least, unusal and unexplained, experience.

In today’s episode we will recount the story of The Bootleggers. Be sure to stay tuned at the end of the episode for an original song by Cannelle inspired by this story.

So get settled in, grab a blanket, a warm drink, and let’s get started…

There’s something about a huge victorian house with original wallpaper and ornate woodwork that creates a feeling of connection to a time gone by.

My husband and I were hosting at open house at one of his listings. An amazing 3+ story Victorian in the heart of Uptown Minneapolis. The home had once been a boarding house and still held onto many of its original details like stained glass, large stairways with gorgeous wood details, printed wallpaper with delicate floral patters, and a second stairway at the back of the house that lead to what must have been maid’s quarters. In the back was a large garage with a loft above that had once been a carriage house.

We had dressed up for the occasion, my husband wearing a suit and I wearing bright red pants and a cute pair of heels. We stationed ourselves at one end of the large living room, beautiful sun filtering into the room through multiple windows. Across the nearly 20 foot long room was a beautiful fireplace, to the left of it a wide opening into the dining room which featured wooden wall panelling and a built-in buffet. To our left was an opening into a small sitting room which also lead into the dining room.

We greeted multiple visitors, then had a little down time during which we quietly sat on the red velvet chairs. I was quietly savouring the moment when I began to sense, or visualize, a man standing in the doorway to the dining room staring at the fireplace. He was wearing a 3 piece suit, a hat, and held some kind of cane in his hand. I got the feeling he was from the 1920s or so. I could hear music from a player piano, the tinkling of drinkware, conversation, and loud women’s laughter. 

I didn’t get the sense that this was a party, but more that it was a business of some sort. I started thinking about the man and wondering “what’s your name…?”. Suddenly, in my mind came the name Jim Cam. And I went “Jim Cam?” and heard back “CAM! CAM!” in a tone that relayed that I wasn’t understanding. I thought about it for a moment, then laughed at myself saying I was making things up, thinking of James Cameron the film maker or something. At about that time another group of people arrived to look at the house, a welcome distraction from the strange experience that had just occurred.

After the last group had come by, we started making our way around the house to turn off the lights. My husband went up to the 2nd and 3rd floors while I took care of the main floor.  As I entered the dining room, I got a sudden urge to bend down and inspect the wood paneling on the bottom half of the walls, pressing on different parts of it as if I expected to find a hidden compartment. From behind my right shoulder I felt the man softly whisper “We’re bootleggers…” with a hint of pride and mischief in his voice, as if he were saying “you’ll never find it, we’re good at what we do” and smiling at how naïve I was.

As we were driving home I hopped on my phone and did an online search for Minneapolis Bootleggers. After some digging I found something that stopped me in my tracks. 7 little letters that spelled out the name Kid Cann. Cann with 2 N’s – which when written out can look very much like Cam. One of the most reknown mobsters in town who operated in this area of the city in the 1920s and 1930s. He did his business with the likes of Al Capone and lived to a relatively old age considering his livelihood, and his funeral was held at the Jewish Temple just half a block from the house where I envisioned him.

Could the house have been a sort of speakeasy during prohibition? If so, judging by its location, and his notoriety, Kid Cann would likely have had a part in it. How fascinating to have experienced that brief moment back in time, even if it was just through a vague, echoing vision. 

I wonder if the people in the room that night ever spoke of the ghost girl in the bright red pants and heels who vanished suddenly after Kid Cann whispered in her ear…

Thank you so much for listening.  Join me next week as we resume our adventures in Meadow Lane and the Skylark Bell.  In last week’s episode, we got an exclusive look into Magpie’s secret notebook where she records and sketches details about her unexplained visions. Next week we read chapter 15 – blackbirds and blackberries – where Magpie learns about the tragic event in Lucas’ past that shaped the course of his life. Don’t forget to subscribe, you don’t want miss a thing! And now, an original song by Cannelle inspired by today’s story – here is “The Velvets”

Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/theskylarkbell/exclusive-content

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy