CBS invited audiences into the realm of the quirky and supernatural with the US version of Ghosts. Ghosts is about a young couple who inherit a Victorian household, the Woodstone Mansion, which also happens to be riddled with ghosts. After falling down the stairs, the main character, Sam, gains the ability to talk to and interact with the ghosts of her new home.
The ghosts Sam interacts with are all lovable and eccentric, but underneath it all are a few tragic backstories. The ghosts are ghosts for a reason, so learning about their transition from life to the afterlife is, oftentimes, a little sad. From the accidental deaths to the intentional murders, some of Sam’s ghostly friends have a sadder backstory than others.
Alberta got Sam to create a podcast about her so they could figure out who murdered her and why.
Alberta’s life was full of all the fanfare the roaring ’20s had to offer. She was a singer, making waves in New York when she was mysteriously murdered at the Woodstone Mansion. While Alberta wasn’t a very big name, she was still known more than her ghostly friend, Isaac.
Alberta had to learn how to stand up for herself due to both the backstabbing world of fame and bootlegging, as well as existing as a black woman during the 1920s. Her confident demeanor and her charismatic nature makes her one of the most interesting ghosts in the series, but she still carries a little bit of sadness. Alberta has spent most of her afterlife not knowing who would want to do her harm, until now. The series finally revealed that her murderer was Sam’s ancestor and Hetty’s descendant, Thomas Woodstone.
A ghost who has been treated unfairly in both life and death would be Pete. Pete is often not taken seriously by the other ghosts due to his softer side. Pete is a nerdier man with a can-do attitude that the other ghosts often find annoying. In life, Pete was essentially the same, eventually leading to his wife deciding to cheat on Pete with his best friend.
Pete died in an archery incident before he could find out that his wife was stepping out on him. Only in the afterlife, an odd 30 years later, did he find out how both his wife and best friend betrayed him. The cherry on top of his turmoil is that his wife later joins him in the afterlife in Season 3. Pete’s life was tragic, and he didn’t even know it until after his death.
Unlike a lot of the other ghosts, Trevor’s life wasn’t so bad. Trevor was a finance guy who enjoyed beer, the company of women, and roughhousing with fraternity brothers. He was on track to becoming a hotshot in his field, but he unfortunately died before anything big happened to him. The saddest part of his life was that he was a good man who tried to pretend he was as mean as those around him.
Trevor was a guy who wanted to look good above all else. In playing this part, he wasn’t able to be himself. Even in his final moments, he wasn’t able to let himself be the good guy he always was. After taking a bunch of illegal drugs, he and his buddies decide to haze one of the newer guys in the group, Pinkus. A part of the haze was to make Pinkus run into the city completely naked. Trevor gave his pants and underwear to Pinkus, saving Pinkus from ridicule from both the city folk and his friends. After this heroic act, Trevor experienced a heart attack and died in the Woodstone Mansion.
Isaac Higgintoot was an American soldier during the revolution. He is now known by all in the mansion as a passionate yet noble man, but prior to his death, no one really knew him. Isaac often talks about how he wished he was well-known, but unfortunately, his death took him away from his legacy too soon.
Continuously, Isaac has an issue with his death overall. His death was the result of dysentery, which makes Isaac even more dissatisfied with his ghostly life. While Isaac was erased from US history and also made a laughingstock for the way he passed, he is still able to see the bright side of almost everything. Fortunately, Isaac and Sam have teamed up to write a biography on his life to reverse some of his tragic backstory as well.
