# Rosemary's Baby-like Mystery **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 21, 2014, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061 "2014-08-21T02:42:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061/41 "2014-08-21T17:50:45Z")
> [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > Open it! No you fool! It will let the ancient old ones enter our dimension! ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061/42 "2014-08-21T17:53:30Z")
> [@PorchePine](#): > > Except there is no knob. That’s part of the mystery–it seems intentionally sealed. Nope, my story still works. Inept Painter: Huh, door stuck. 😕 _pulls knob_ nothing happens. :dubious: _grabs knob, braces foot against doorframe, pulls. Nothing happens._ :mad: _grabs knob, braces both feet against either side of door, pulls with all his might. Doorknob comes off in his hand, IP propels himself across the room and embeds head in opposite wall._ :smack: Next painter just fills in the doorknob’s hole with putty and paints over it. 🙂 Note: Add to possible contents: 1 doorknob. Note #2: Search wall opposite door for head-shaped patch, approx. waist height. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061/43 "2014-08-21T18:00:57Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > The space is probably the result of secondary renovation. Probably at one point, it just separated two apartments that were originally connected rooms, then someone renovated one of the rooms again to put in a sink, or something, and maybe wanted to push the wall out, but couldn’t, because it was a supporting wall, so he was stuck with dead space. Except that the OP said all four walls are within his flat/apartment. So it can’t be space used by an adjoining apartment. And surely not all four walls are load-bearing. (Plus even if a wall is load-bearing, you can still cut a door in it.) There’s probably a boring explanation for why the room is walled off, but still worth pursuing. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061/44 "2014-08-21T18:04:12Z")
I’d open it. Or at least drill a hole big enough to get a look-see through. Whatta ya think? Open it? We gots to know… ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061/45 "2014-08-21T18:04:33Z")
No handle or knob on this side? Might mean that it’s only an exit, which means that, whatever comes through it, they want it to stay on _yout_ side of the door. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061/46 "2014-08-21T18:16:44Z")
It probably just a small, oddly shaped closet. My house is old and has several of them. One of them was even painted shut when I bought the place. It proved to be an empty, dirty little cubby that abuts one of the (now disused) chimneys. In my upstairs hallway, there is a sealed door that, if you could open it, would take you into a bedroom closet. All of this kind of stuff is a result of a former owner doing some remodeling, himself, back in the 1970’s. Although the quality of his work wasn’t bad, he did make some very odd choices. ---
**Author:** ![PorchePine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/94ad74/32.png) [@PorchePine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PorchePine)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061/47 "2014-08-21T18:21:43Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > It probably just a small, oddly shaped closet. My house is old and has several of them. One of them was even painted shut when I bought the place. It proved to be an empty, dirty little cubby that abuts one of the (now disused) chimneys. In my upstairs hallway, there is a sealed door that, if you could open it, would take you into a bedroom closet. All of this kind of stuff is a result of a former owner doing some remodeling, himself, back in the 1970’s. Although the quality of his work wasn’t bad, he did make some very odd choices. There’s a door like that in the bedroom. If it opened, it would go directly into the living area. That one isn’t as mysterious as the unused space. ---
**Author:** ![Poysyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Poysyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poysyn)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061/48 "2014-08-21T18:39:39Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > I’d open it. Or at least drill a hole big enough to get a look-see through. Whatta ya think? Open it? > > We gots to know… Don’t drill a hole and look through, that is just a horror story waiting to happen. Ugh, gives me the chills I don’t like eye poking stuff, just don’t ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061/49 "2014-08-21T18:47:37Z")
I have no idea what may be in there but the optimists among us will assure you that when that door closed, somewhere another opened. That means somewhere in this world there is someone looking at a door, the universal opposite of yours, thinking “Why in the heck will this door not close?”. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061/50 "2014-08-21T18:50:32Z")
> [@Poysyn](#): > > Don’t drill a hole and look through, that is just a horror story waiting to happen. Ugh, gives me the chills I don’t like eye poking stuff, just don’t You must have seen the opening few minutes of “Horrors of The Black Museum.” See it with a friend. ---
**Author:** ![CheshireKat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheshirekat/32/1207_2.png) [@CheshireKat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CheshireKat)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061/51 "2014-08-21T18:53:17Z")
If I were in this situation, my subject line would’ve read “Just pried open a secret door…” 😃 Seriously, get a putty knife and a rubber mallet and start cutting through the paint, tapping the knife with the mallet if needed. After that, get a pry bar and see if you can pry it open. Like Dung Beetle said, Open it open it open it AND THEN COME BACK AND TELL US! ---
**Author:** ![TheFaerie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c57346/32.png) [@TheFaerie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheFaerie)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061/52 "2014-08-21T19:01:20Z")
> [@Doctor\_Jackson](#): > > I have no idea what may be in there but the optimists among us will assure you that when that door closed, somewhere another opened. That means somewhere in this world there is someone looking at a door, the universal opposite of yours, thinking “Why in the heck will this door not close?”. This made me giggle. Open it! ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061/53 "2014-08-21T19:02:07Z")
No, no, don’t listen to her: the Cheshire Cat will simply vanish into the alternate universe, leaving us to suffer the wrath of He Who Shall Remain Un-named. Seriously, a pry-bar? In a rental dwelling? ---
**Author:** ![CheshireKat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheshirekat/32/1207_2.png) [@CheshireKat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CheshireKat)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061/54 "2014-08-21T19:08:17Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > No, no, don’t listen to her: the Cheshire Cat will simply vanish into the alternate universe, leaving us to suffer the wrath of He Who Shall Remain Un-named. > > Seriously, a pry-bar? In a rental dwelling? I opened the painted-shut old windows in my rental dwelling without damaging them. I used a hammer to pry them open, but a small crowbar would work. If you’re careful, there shouldn’t be any damage that couldn’t be repainted. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061/55 "2014-08-21T19:20:33Z")
How about if he gets a small camera probe and drills a hole big enough to fit that and a light through so he can get a look at it without any potential eye-poking terrors? If it turns out there is something evil in there he can quickly seal over a small hole and then quickly move out. ---
**Author:** ![That\_Don\_Guy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/that_don_guy/32/538_2.png) [@That\_Don\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/That_Don_Guy)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061/56 "2014-08-21T19:29:14Z")
It’s the world where everybody has buttons in place of eyes. (Seriously, am I the only one here familiar with _Coraline_?) > [@PorchePine](#): > > With my tape measure, and measuring walls and spaces around this door, I’ve been able to ascertain that the space behind the door is about 3 feet by 6 feet. I am assuming that 3 x 6 is the surface area of whatever is behind the door, in which case, what are the dimensions of the door? ---
**Author:** ![TheFaerie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c57346/32.png) [@TheFaerie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheFaerie)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061/57 "2014-08-21T19:32:01Z")
My guess is a connecting passageway that was walled off in a remodel. But without a sketch of the floorplan, it would be hard to tell, really. I like the stairway concept. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061/58 "2014-08-21T19:48:14Z")
Upright piano storage! Bonus: Free piano! ---
**Author:** ![PorchePine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/94ad74/32.png) [@PorchePine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PorchePine)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061/59 "2014-08-21T19:52:26Z")
> [@That\_Don\_Guy](#): > > It’s the world where everybody has buttons in place of eyes. (Seriously, am I the only one here familiar with _Coraline_?) > I am assuming that 3 x 6 is the surface area of whatever is behind the door, in which case, what are the dimensions of the door? Just a standard door, as if it opened into another room. ---
**Author:** ![PorchePine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/94ad74/32.png) [@PorchePine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PorchePine)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061/60 "2014-08-21T19:53:30Z")
> [@TheFaerie](#): > > My guess is a connecting passageway that was walled off in a remodel. But without a sketch of the floorplan, it would be hard to tell, really. I like the stairway concept. It would passage straight into the storage area for the laundry room. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosemarys-baby-like-mystery/696061.md?page=4)