Springer Ghost Book Second Edition On Sale Dec. 18

Paul Pierce Shares More Stories of the Supernatural in New Collector’s Edition

Paul Pierce laughs when asked how he became the designated expert on Springer Opera House ghosts. After all, he was the longtime cynic who disparaged any mention of theatre ghosts at the National Historic Landmark theatre.

“In my early years as the Springer’s director, I heard endless tales of otherworldly apparitions, untimely deaths and mischievous ghostly pranks,” Pierce said. “I dismissed them all. Until, that is, I had my own encounter with a young man who stalked the theatre, mocking me. That was the beginning of my transformation from Doubting Thomas to True Believer.” 

In 2003, Pierce published The Springer Ghost Book, a collection of paranormal events as told by the people who experienced them. With a limited run of 2000 copies, that book sold out quickly and has been out of print for over a decade. Pierce has now published the second edition of The Springer Ghost Book, a hardcover volume with a dust jacket featuring seven new stories and 31 color photographs. 

“I didn’t originally set out to write a book,” Pierce confessed. “The Springer is a theatre that meticulously archives its own history. Our archives are packed with artifacts, documents, photos, film, video and news stories that go back 154 years. When I had my own ghost experience, I realized that this was a very well-known aspect of our history that had never been documented. So I went back, talked to people who had told me ghost stories, and began writing them down. My only thought back then was to put the tales in a readable form, stick them in a file and deposit them into the Springer archives. But an old friend, newspaper editor Scooter MacMillan, read the stories I had written and said, ‘Dude, this is a book.’ ”

With MacMillan’s help, Pierce spent the next year editing the ghost tales and putting them into a form that would make a book entertaining and provide the reader with insight into the Springer’s behind-the-scenes life. The book came out in 2003, Pierce’s fifteenth year as Springer director.

“As soon as the book went on sale, people came out of the woodwork telling me about their own ghost experiences,” Pierce recalled. “They would come up to me in the grocery store and exclaim, ‘You should have put me in your book!’”

“Since then, I’ve become a magnet for new Springer ghost stories,” he explained.  “I’m now the Springer Ghost Guy.”

Two years ago, Pierce retired as the Springer’s producing artistic director after thirty-five years leading the State Theatre of Georgia. After his retirement, he interviewed more actors, volunteers and theatre patrons who had had supernatural encounters at the theatre and selected seven of the best stories to fold into this “Collector’s Edition” of The Springer Ghost Book. 

“I’ve been in the Springer ghost business for thirty-seven years now,” Pierce said. “And this is my last word on the subject. Whether you believe in ghosts or not, you’ll have to admit that something very unusual has been going on at this theatre for a long, long time.”

“People still talk about the first Springer Ghost Book,” says Springer Opera House CEO and Executive Producer Danielle Patterson-Varner. “It sold out because our community loves these stories and loves this building. That same fascination fuels our ghost tours, which have become one of the most popular ways to explore the Springer after dark. This new edition carries that spirit forward. I expect it will disappear from the shelves just as quickly as the first.”

The first batch of the collector’s edition of The Springer Ghost Book will be available exclusively at the Springer Opera House for $38.99 beginning December 18. An initial book signing with the author has been scheduled for the same date from 5 pm - 6 pm in the Grand Lobby of the Springer Opera House. Copies of the new Springer Ghost Book will also be available at the Springer’s Box Office during business hours, 11 am - 3 pm weekdays.