Esotouric™

Joan is a writer and a social historian. She has a passion for vintage cosmetics ephemera, and crime. She believes that a dame should strive to look her best, even while committing a felony. As a tour guide for Esotouric she has created a personality profile of Elizabeth Short (aka The Black Dahlia) based upon her choice of makeup. Joan is currently developing a tour that will delve into graft and corruption in Los Angeles during the 1930s. Her blog Vintage Powder Room explores history, women, art, and provides her with a transparent excuse to add to her collection of over 500 items, which she has lectured on at the Queen Mary Art Deco Festival.

Our plucky assistant who you'll first meet at the check in table, she also pops up at the most opportune times to keep the Esotouric ship on course.

Chinta's nickname is Kid Grandma, for the uncanny cross-generational communication skills that have made The OGs blog "a small phenomenon" (according to the Jewish Journal).

Chinta is a student of Philosophy, an autoharpist and avid gardener.

John Buntin is a staff writer for Governing magazine and the author of "L.A. Noir: The Struggle for the Soul of America’s Most Seductive City," which tells the story of the rivalry between mobster Mickey Cohen and Chief William Parker, creator of the Dragnet-era LAPD. This book debuts as an Esotouric bus adventure in September 2009. A long-time crime writer, Buntin first visited Los Angeles in 1999 to write a case study for the Justice Department about the public safety response to a series of (fake) anthrax attacks. He was so intrigued by L.A. that he decided to move to Santa Monica the following year. He soon found his way to the city archives atop Piper Tech downtown. There, in the minutes of the Police Commission and the files of the Chief of Police (C.O.P.), he discovered L.A.’s underworld.

Maja’s interest in Magic, Alchemy, Astrology and the Esoteric Sciences spans her entire lifetime. After completing her Bachelor’s degreee in Biochemistry, Maja studied oriental medicine and acupuncture and later earned her Masters degree in Transformational Psychology with a focus on Shamanism, the I Ching and Ancestors in her thesis work. Maja has studied Astrology for 15 years and her readings are based on a combination of influences from Jungian depth psychological approaches to ancient Greek and Hermetic styles of interpretation. Currently, Maja is the Librarian of Manly P. Hall’s Philosophical Research Society in Los Feliz, where she also lectures and teaches periodically.

Maja's official website

David Smay is a San Francisco-based pop critic and editor whose acclaimed books include Bubblegum Music is the Naked Truth, Lost in the Grooves and the 33 1/3 series volume on Tom Waits' Swordfishtrombones, which he's adapted into the occasional Esotouric bus adventure Crawling Down Cahuenga: Tom Waits' L.A. Popmatters says: "Smay acts as a side-mouth talking tour guide leading us through the darkness, giving us flashlights so we can illuminate the parts to love the whole we never quite see."

Erik Davis is a San Francisco-based writer, culture critic, and independent scholar. He is the author of "TechGnosis: Myth, Magic, and Mysticism in the Age of Information, as well as a short critical volume on "Led Zeppelin IV." In addition to his regular column in Arthur Magazine, Davis contributes to scores of other magazines and his essays have been included in over a dozen books. He won a Maggie award for his "San Francisco Magazine" profile of the Internet entrepreneur and UFO contactee Joe Firmage, while "The New Yorker" has recognized his expertise in the works of the science fiction writer Philip K. Dick. He lectures frequently on topics ranging from electronic music to the evolution of consciousness. Erik hosts the occasional Visionary Hollywood tour.

Crime novelist and memoirist James Ellroy hosts occasional James Ellroy Digs L.A. tours, a highly personal journey into the psycho-geography of the region that made him, and that informs such best selling books as "L.A. Confidential," "The Black Dahlia" and "My Dark Places." These tours are enormously popular and sell out upon listing. If you want to be on the next one, we suggest you subscribe to our email list.

"Crimebo the Clown is like the adoptive love-child of James Ellroy and Emmett Kelly... Though some may believe that Crimebo's schtick is strictly for grown-ups, we would book this clown for a kid's party in a heartbeat. Nothing will put mollycoddled children in line quicker than seeing photos of Bukowski's nose and learning the grim fate of the Black Dahlia from a wiseguy in greasepaint." - L.A. Bizarro

Crimebo is Esotouric's crime clown, a master of the inappropriate remark, a maker of headless balloon animals, a wearer of mismatched plaid patterns and caretaker of "Crimebo's Big Book of Horrible Crimes," from which he shares the most hideous occurrences of this or any year. Crimebo can be found on occasional Crime Bus tours like Halloween Horrors and Pasadena Confidential, and is available for private bookings for birthdays, bar mitzvahs, anniversaries and wakes (he even does telephone greetings). New offerings include blind date chaperone service, bachelorette party mascot and anti-Santa Claus holiday visits. Under the greasepaint and manic grin is Michael Perrick, a voice and theatrical actor, event promoter and graphic artist.

Let Crimebo make your special day a little more upsetting with one of his PERSONALIZED PRESENTATIONS. Want to know what terrible things happened on your birthday or anniversary? The clown knows all, and can't wait to share.

Or how about one of Crimebo's new community services, described in the evil Clown's own words.

CRIMEBO'S BACHELORETTE PARTY TAG-A-LONG
Crimebo says: "Hey Ladies, looking for that special touch to make your last night as a single gal truly unique? This very affectionate clown will show you a wild night of pony rides,  crime skits (where the bride-to-be can be the torso), and adult balloon blowing. I'll also follow you around as you visit strip clubs and get sloshed, fend off mashers, and keep you and your girlfriends out of trouble. And maybe in a few months, you can call me again and I'll be doing baby showers!"

CRIMEBO'S INTERNET DATING CHAPERONE SERVICE
Crimebo says: "Did you just make a date with a stranger from the internet and don't know how to break the ice? Let me do it! My crime clown chaperone service will make that sorta scary first meeting a memorable experience in gut-wrenching laughter. Let me rate your date with Clown Fear Factor: Are they scared of balloons? Are they bothered by non-utensil dining? Are they fit enough to run away? This creepy clown with a heart of gold will be standing to look after your sad drunk butt if the date goes bust, or to take photos to commemorate the night if things go well. And remember: I am very, very discrete."

CRIMEBO'S CHRISTMAS PARTY MAGIC
Crimebo says: "Are you tired of the same old 'ho ho ho' from guys in stuffed red suits? This Christmas, forget about Santa and invite me to come down your chimney (or in your sliding glass patio door when nobody's looking). I guarantee that I'll steal your holiday hearts with my soulful caroling and rude Yule tidings. All the little boys and girls can take turns sitting on my lap begging for holiday gifts, and then I'll give them a lesson in recession economics when I explain why they're not getting any of it. And the fun continues as I drink up all the eggnog. For an unforgettable holiday celebration, and the strangest photo ops your living room has ever seen, you want my Christmas Crime Clown service, exclusively available during the holiday season."

For your very own life-changing Crimebo the Clown experience, just call him up with a date, time and information about your event, and he'll do something to make your special day unforgettable. That can be a good thing or a bad thing, but we promise, it won't be like any other party entertainer you've ever seen before.

Contact Crimebo directly through his website crimebo.com,  via email bookings @ crimebo.com or by calling (323) 638-4097.