“ | I collected famous ghosts from all over the world and turned them into paintings, but those darn Boos went and turned them all back into ghosts again! You've got to catch those ghosts so I can turn them back into paintings. | „ |
~ Professor Elvin Gadd in the Instruction booklet description. |
The Portrait Ghosts are ghosts of people who used to be portraits and the secondary antagonists of the video game Luigi's Mansion.
They are recurring enemies and bosses that are encountered by Luigi in different rooms of the mansion, with each area having a considerable number of portrait ghosts as the game progresses.
The portrait ghosts later returned in the 3DS remake of the game with a new platinum frame added. The group consists of about 22 portrait ghosts.
Appearance[]
Most of the portrait ghosts retrain an appearance similar to when they were alive. Some of the ghosts have tealish skin, pale blue skin and even pinkish and purple skins. Some of the ghosts also have glowing light green eyes or yellow eyes, although all of them are lacking pupils. They all wear their normal clothes while they were alive, except for a few ghosts like Jarvis, Bogmire, and Boolossus.
Biography[]
Professor E. Gadd says that the ghosts used to be portraits until King Boo and his Boos brought them back to life as ghosts. Now, they are doing their common hobbies when they were alive, aware of knowing that they are already undead. Luigi must vacuum up all of them and bring them to the Professor to activate the Ghost Portrificationizer, which turn the Portrait Ghosts into common Portraits.
Some of the ghosts seem to be relative to each other such as Neville and Lydia being a married couple and their children being Chauncey, Henry and Orville.
Area 1[]
Neville is the first portrait ghost that Luigi encounters in Area 1. He resides in the study room and is also the easiest ghost to capture. Luigi later goes on his way capturing Lydia, Neville’s wife who resides in the master bedroom. Luigi opens the curtains while Lydia was primping her hair, exposing her heart and allowing Luigi to capture her. The boss of Area 1 is Chauncey, the baby of Neville and Lydia. Luigi captures Chauncey after throwing enough balls at him, exposing his heart and giving Luigi the chance to vacuum him. Once the boss battle ends, Luigi will receive the key to Area 2.
Area 2[]
Luigi starts Area 2 by capturing the Floating Whirlindas. While dancing, Luigi lights at the ghosts exposing their hearts and vacuuming both of them at once. Later on, Luigi accidentally releases King Boo and the Boos which makes Luigi retreat to talk with Professor Elvin Gadd. Luigi returns to the mansion and eventually meets Madame Clairvoya, the fortune-teller ghost who presents herself as the "seer of dropped items". She says she can help Luigi giving him more information regarding Mario and the future events to happen if she is given more items that have been dropped by him around the mansion.
After obtaining the fire element medal, Luigi is able to light Shivers' candelabra which causes him to panic and goes to his room where he sits down and becomes vulnerable for Luigi to vacuum him, dropping him the key to the conservatory room. Luigi encounters with Melody Pianissima, who is impressed by the music that performed with different instruments in the room. She makes Luigi guess the name of the music she plays in her piano, which are themes from classic Mario games. However, after guessing the correct answer, Melody figures out that she did not need to hold back on him and suggests Luigi to battle with her music sheets. After vacuuming the music sheets, Melody starts to panic and becomes vulnerable, allowing Luigi to vacuum her.
Aftewards, Luigi will encounter Mr. Luggs who proceeds to attack Luigi after vacuuming his dish of food and the ghost waiters. Luigi easily vacuums Mr. Luggs after the latter becomes tries to take a brief break. Once Luigi goes to the Boneyard, he will meet Spooky, the dog ghost of the family. Luigi manages to capture the dog after distracting him with a bone dropped by a ghost skeleton, making him vulnerable to be vacuumed. The boss of Area 2 is Bogmire, Luigi has to suck his shadows that morph into a ball and throw them at the real Bogmire, making him vulnerable to be sucked and finally completing Area 2 overall.
Area 3[]
Biff Atlas is the first portrait ghost encountered in Area 3. While optional, defeating him will guarantee a higher Rank at the end of the game. Luigi must smack a punching bag to Biff three times, making him vulnerable for Luigi to vacuum him. Later on, when Luigi enters Nana’s room, it is also revealed in Nana's diary that she pranked Miss Petunia putting ice on her bathtub while she was gone, this serves as a strategy to defeat Petunia. In order to defeat Nana, Luigi must vacuum the yarn balls and shoot them at her three times making her heart vulnerable while Nana will attack in response with her needle eye beams. After capturing Nana, Luigi faces Miss Petunia in the Bathroom and using the Ice Element, he freezes the bathtub causing her to sneeze and become vulnerable to be captured. Luigi receives the key to the Billiards Room.
The ghost in the Billiards Room is Slim Bankshot. Just like Biff, Slim is also optional. He is defeated in a similar way to Nana, as Luigi must vacuum the Billiard Balls and shoot them at Slim three times until his heart is exposed and captured afterwards. Luigi later returns to the first area and face the twin brothers, Henry and Orville. They play a game of "Hide and Seek" with Luigi. However, they accuse Luigi of cheating even if he doesn't use the Poltergust 3000 and proceed to attack him. Luigi vacuums their toys and makes them vulnerable to be captured.
After gathering enough items of Mario around the mansion, Luigi returns to Madame Clairvoya and gives her each of the items one at a time. She talks with the "spirits" and tells Luigi that Mario is alive, but trapped inside a painting by King Boo, and on top of that Bowser is somewhere in the mansion. After using her remaining power on the last item, Madame Clairvoya states that she can finally go back to her portrait and rest in peace knowing she has fulfilled her purpose. While Clairvoya puts some effort when being vacuumed, she returns to her seat with her exposed heart for Luigi to vacuum it.
Boolossus is the boss of Area 3. He is the combination of many boos and face Luigi in the Balcony. In order to defeat him, Luigi sucks Boolossus by the tail and moves to the sharp horn of an ice unicorn statue while bringing Boolossus closer to it. Boolossus explodes into many Boos with the touch of the horn and Luigi uses the ice element to freeze and suck them all until Boolossus is no more, completing Area 3.
Area 4[]
After returning to the Balcony, a lightning strikes the mansion causing a power outage. Luigi is contacted by Professor Elvin Gadd, who reveals that a portrait ghost called Uncle Grimmly has locked the Breaker Room where the energy can be restored and he is hiding in a room with "mirrors and clothes". Uncle Grimmly is found in the Wardrobe Room and tries to scare Luigi, but at doing so, he exposes his heart and is vacuumed by Luigi, who grabs the key and restores the energy in the mansion shortly afterwards.
The Clockwork Soldiers appear standing still in the Clockwork Room and are activated when Luigi starts the three clocks in the room. They will proceed to attack him with their popping cork guns, and Luigi will have to vacuum their wind-up keys in order to make them vulnerable and vacuum them one at a time. Sue Pea is an optional ghost, but is required to get the highest rank at the end of the game. When Luigi enters her room, she will demand Luigi to go away and attacks him with dolls. She is soon defeated when Luigi shoots water with the Poltergust 3000 all over here, exposing her heart and getting vacuumed.
Jarvis is also another optional ghost. He resides in the Ceramic Studio and will make Luigi play a Whac-A-Mole style game that consists of hitting him seven times. If Luigi wins, however, Jarvis expresses his frustration for losing the game and threatens Luigi with stuffing him into one of the jars. Jarvis is defeated when Luigi vacuums him the moment he pops his head out from one of the jars. Afterwards, Luigi encounters Sir Weston residing in the Cold Storage located in the basement of the mansion. Sir Weston attacks Luigi after he lights the logs on fire and launches waves of ice at Luigi. Luigi uses the fire element to unfreeze Weston making him vulnerable and getting captured in the process.
Vincent Van Gore is the last portrait ghost in the mansion. He resides in The Artist's Studio on the third floor of the mansion. He is also revealed to be the one behind the creation of the common ghosts that Luigi has faced. He will attack Luigi releasing several variants of ghosts that Luigi has to vacuum. After the last ghost is gone, Van Gore becomes angered because of this which gives Luigi enough time to vacuum and end with the artist's tantrum.
Members[]
- Neville, the Bookish Father
- Lydia, the Mirror Gazing Mother
- Chauncey, the Spoiled Baby
- Floating Whirlindas, the Dancing Couple
- Melody Pianissima, the Beautiful Pianist
- Mr. Luggs, the Glutton
- Bogmire, the Cemetery Shadow
- Biff Atlas, the Bodybuilder
- Nana, the Scarf-Knitting Granny
- Slim Bankshot, the Lonely Poolshark
- Henry and Orville, the Twin Brothers
- Madame Clairvoya, the Freaky Fortune-Teller
- Boolossus, the Jumbo Ghost
- Uncle Grimmly, the Hermit of the Darkness
- Clockwork Soldiers, the Toy Platoon
- Jarvis, the Jar Collector
- Sir Weston, the Chilly Climber
- Vincent Van Gore, The Starving Artist
Other Members[]
Shivers[]

“ | Ahhhhh! Fire! Fire! Fire! Run away! Run awaaaay! | „ |
~ Shivers |
Shivers, also known as The Wandering Butler, is a portrait ghost that appears in Area 2 located in the first floor, and is the second one encountered by Luigi. Shivers is the butler of the mansion. He is always seen in the hallway between the Conservatory Room and the Billiards Room where Melody and Slim are located respectively. Shivers has shown to have affections for the young pianist despite the latter never showing any response for said affections. Shivers is usually seen holding an unlit candelabra, being the only thing visible when Luigi encounters him. While not directly fighting Luigi, Shivers is holds the key to the Conservatory Room and will only react when Luigi uses the fire element to light the candelabra, causing Shivers to panic and hide in his room where he is eventually captured by Luigi and drops the key to the Conservatory.
If Luigi fails to capture him, Shivers will again enter the room and become vulnerable again, but if Luigi doesn't flash him in time, Shivers returns to the hallway.
Spooky[]

“ | Woof woof woof! | „ |
~ Spooky |
Spooky, also known as The Hungry Guard Dog, is the dog of the mansion that resides in the Boneyard and is the last portrait ghost encountered in Area 2 before the battle with Bogmire. Spooky is supposed to be very protective of its area as it will wake up the moment Luigi is close. When Luigi encounters Spooky, it will try to chomp him. After barfing four times, an skeleton will rise from the ground to attack Luigi for the constant noise from Spooky. Luigi defeats the skeleton and it drops a bone that distracts Spooky enough time for Luigi to vacuum it. Spooky was also the first ghost in the whole franchise to be a pet, he would later be followed by Polterpup and Polterkitty.
Miss Petunia[]

“ | Ahh...a piping hot shower! | „ |
~ Miss Petunia |
Miss Petunia, also known as The Bathing Beauty, is a portrait ghost that resides in the Bathroom located on the second floor during Area 3. Miss Petunia is a pink obese woman that used to be the "Miss Ghost" runner-up from six years. She has not done much modeling work since and because of it, Petunia has gained a lot of weight. It's unknown if the overweight may have to do with the pig features that Petunia has such as a pig snout, hooves for hands, and a pink hue. When first encountered, Miss Petunia will be seen in the curtains as a silhouette of a beautiful lady until these are moved with the Poltergust and reveals the real Petunia, who splashes water over Luigi in surprise. In order to defeat Petunia, Luigi uses the ice element and freezes Petunia, causing her to sneeze and also making her vulnerable for Luigi to vacuum her.
According to Nana's diary, the grandmother ghost who once played a practical joke on Miss Petunia by filling her bathtub with ice while the former "Miss Ghost" runner-up was away, leaving Miss Petunia in for quite a shock when she returned to her bath. This diary entry acts as a clue on how to capture Petunia.
Sue Pea[]

“ | ...Do not try to wake me... ...GOOOO AAWAAAAYYY!!! | „ |
~ Sue Pea |
Sue Pea, also known as The Dozing Girl, is a portrait ghost that resides in the Guest Room located in the second floor of the mansion. Sue Pea is a young girl who died in her sleep, according to her biography. When Luigi enters her room, she finds it all turned upside down with Sue Pea resting on her bed located now in the ceiling. Just like Biff Atlas, Slim Bankshot, Jarvis and Mr. Luggs, Sue Pea is an optional boss, meaning that she isn't necessary to progress in the game, but to get the highest rank at the end of the game. Luigi has to use the water element to wake her up and vacuum her. While being sucked in, Sue Pea will make the dolls in her room fly at Luigi and damage him.
If Luigi fails to capture Sue Pea, she will return to her bed and the process must be done again. When defeated, a treasure chest appears on the ceiling, leaving Luigi with no other choice but to leave it. However, upon leaving the room, a quake is heard and when returning, the guest room has turned right side-up, with the Treasure Chest now accessible. The chest contains a Gold Bar and a Blue Diamond, along with other minor treasures.
Gallery[]
Images[]
Videos[]
Trivia[]
- Of all the portrait ghosts, Madame Clairvoya was the only ghost that never wanted to harm Luigi and served more as an ally to him. She was also willing to help him find Mario throughout the game and finally let herself be vacuumed once she ran out of magic (although puts weak effort while being captured).
- The silver and gold frames of Chauncey, Madame Clairvoya, and Mr. Luggs can be seen in the Luigi's Mansion battle course in Mario Kart: Double Dash!!.
- While most of the portrait ghosts are required to be captured to progress in the game, other portrait ghosts can be skipped like Mr. Luggs, Biff Atlas, Slim Bankshot, Sue Pea, and Jarvis. However, doing so will prevent the player from getting the highest rank at the end of the game.

The Kitchen Portrait Ghost.
- While King Boo and Boolossus are clearly more boos than portrait ghosts, they still became portraits at the end of the game along with Bowser.

- During the E3 2001 presentation of Luigi's Mansion, it was revealed that a chef portrait ghost was going to appear in the game, and would be found in the Kitchen as the image in the right shows. However, he was scrapped in the finished version for unknown reasons. It's most likely that the chef ghost was later reused and became Chef Soulfflé in Luigi's Mansion 3.
- Similarly to the above, there was also speculation that a hunter portrait ghost was going to appear in the Safari Room, this theory gained popularity from a text in the magazine Nintendo Power as seen in the right image. However, unlike the chef portrait ghost, the Safari portrait ghost turned out to be fake as the game was released in Japan prior to the magazines publication and there wasn't any visual representation of said ghost as proof of their existence, and was merely a joke by Nintendo Power.
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