The legend of The Phantom Helmsman has it that the ghost of a Helms Bakery delivery driver has been haunting these Los Angeles streets since 1940 when he was killed after the brakes of his truck failed coming down the infamously steep grade of Baxter Street in Echo Park.
Some insist the tragedy resulted from a mechanical malfunction. Others surmise foul play at the hands of a jealous husband who cut the brake lines when he came home to find the distinctive ivory and blue vehicle parked in front of his home well after dark.
Whether the demise accidental or intentional, since then on certain nights approaching a new moon there are those who’ve sworn seeing the specter of a flaming Divco Twin Coach motoring through the streets only to vanish leaving the intoxicating smell of freshly baked bread in its wake.
Does the Phantom Helmsman course through the city straddling dimensions seeking revenge, or simply one last customer whose window displays the signal for service in the form of an ivory and blue placard with the large “H.”