‘Tis the season for Halloween and those good ole’ ghost stories.

And whether you believe in ghosts or just enjoy hearing the ridiculous stories, Iowa State has plenty to offer.

Drama students who perform in Fisher Theater know spooky tales.

Greg Henry, ISU’s director of theater, said Fisher has a ghost.

Henry said “Fredricka Shattuck” started theater as an organized program at ISU. The first theater at the university was the Shattuck Theater, but it was demolished. Henry said Fisher uses her old wheelchair as a prop, which is known to move by itself.

In 1987, Henry said, he was in Fisher at a rehearsal for Amadeus, starring Dennis Ryan, when the two heard someone shout.

“They were shouting his name — Dennis,” Henry said, but the rest of the people at the rehearsal did not hear it and nobody claimed to be the culprit.

Other “weird” things have happened at the theater, he said.

“I’ve heard the seats behind me move when I was sitting in the back of the theater,” Henry said. “When I turn around, there’s no one there.”

Henry also said there is a story about a student who was working in the lighting booth and left crying because she was upset about a breakup with her boyfriend. When she returned to the booth, someone, or thing, had provided a tissue.

“If it is Fredricka Shattuck,” Henry said, “she’s very benevolent.”

There is also a fable about the clown on display in the Fisher lobby. The clown, which was in the original Shattuck Theater, is supposed to be possessed.

The tale says the the clown is not to be moved during a show.

“It’s a little freaky looking. Under the wrong light it scares you,” Henry said.

Henry, who said he likes having Shattuck haunt the theater, said, “It’s kind of a cold and sterile building. It’s nice to know there’s someone to keep it warm for us.”

But not all Ames ghosts are so benevolent. Some invoke fear.

The ghost at the Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity has startled many members.

Bryce Carlson, a senior in advertising and a Sigma Phi Epsilon member, said the legend is a little “fuzzy.” In the 1940s, there was a fire on the third floor of the fraternity, which may have resulted in a death.

“This is where the legend gets fuzzy,” Carlson said.

The ghost, which haunts the third floor, has been named “Monkey Boy” by fraternity members. “I don’t know where he got that name, but that’s the legend,” Carlson said.

“Monkey Boy,” who may live in a cubby hole, usually appears from Thanksgiving break until finals week. The ghost is known to encounter only one person. Carlson said “Monkey Boy” likes to turn on stereos, throw CDs and slam doors.

Eight or nine years ago, Carlson said, two people were living in the house over winter break. One stayed on the third floor; the other stayed in the old annex at the rear of the house.

The two were up on third floor talking one night, and the guy from the annex decided to go to bed. After he left, the student on the third floor heard footsteps up the stairs and down the hallway, then a knock on his door. When nobody opened the door, he thought the other resident was playing a joke.

Then he heard footsteps walking up and down the hall again. He looked out the window to see that his friend had just entered the annex. The two searched the house, but found nobody.

The Sigma Phi Epsilon house has “fireside” tradition where members turn off the lights and talk in the living room around a fire. Carlson said in the fall of 1994, members gathered for a function.

As they began, they heard the door to the third floor open, but nobody was there. Then the second floor door opened.

Again, “there were no bodies seen,” Carlson said.

“It seems like everyone has some weird experience if they’re up on third floor,” Carlson said.

Ghosts are also known to haunt residence halls. Both Freeman and Linden Halls in old RCA have frightening stories.

Lee Bloome, a junior in civil engineering and a Welch Hall resident, said he has heard stories about Freeman Hall.

Bloome said about two years ago, a residence assistant was making rounds for Thanksgiving break to make sure everyone was out of the dorm. As she walked from Oak-Elm to Freeman, she saw someone staring out a window in Freeman. The person then stepped to the side of the window.

The RA inspected the hallway and the room but found nothing. When she looked at the window, the RA discovered it was impossible for someone to step to the side because it has walls on both sides.

“I’ve heard stories from people in Freeman. They’ve heard noises,” Bloome said.

Bloome and Heidi Fry, the RCA president and a sophomore in chemical engineering, said they have heard a ghost in the basement where Fry lives. Fry has heard footsteps on the tile floor outside the room.

“You’ll hear someone walk across in old granny shoes,” they said. “It’s at the same pace every time.” But when the door is opened, nobody is there.