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"Master Gracey laid to rest
No mourning please at his request
Farewell"
―Gracey's tombstone

Master Gracey is a character associated with the Haunted Mansion with many different incarnations, thanks in part to an enduring popular theory initially created by fans that has evolved into a strange pseudo-canon over the years. Originally, the name's only two canon appearances in the ride are on a tombstone and on a bell in the servants' quarters.

Appearances[]

In the family plot of the Haunted Mansion in Liberty Square is a tombstone for Master Gracey. The tombstone is a tribute to Imagineer Yale Gracey. His tombstone was also one of the original eight in the family plot outside of Disneyland's Mansion, but it was removed sometime in the 1970s although a replica was installed in October 2016 along with replicas of the original eight and four new tombstones. In Walt Disney World's Haunted Mansion, a butler or maid picks a fresh rose every morning and places it on Gracey's grave. Originally Disney World's Master Gracey tombstone was located in the Family Plot but as of the queue refurbishment of 2011, the tombstone was given its own private plot of land for photo-ops.

In the Servants Quarters, there is a bell for Master Gracey's Bedchamber.

According to Imagineer X. Atencio (who penned the epitaph), the title of "master" on the tombstone was meant to imply a male too young to be called "mister," and not the master of the house.

Incarnations of the Master[]

Graceypin

Pin labeling the Aging Man as Gracey

Senpaiiiiiiiiiiiii

The Aging Man who Master Gracey's character has become synonymous with

A common assumption by fans is that Gracey is the Aging Man depicted in the foyer portrait, a handsome young man who ages and decays à la Dorian Gray and has been believed by many fans to be the Master of the House, due to the prominent position occupied by the portrait in the Walt Disney World version of the ride. Merchandising has since adopted this popular notion, labeling the character as Master Gracey (or Edward Gracey) on various items. Gracey has also often been identified by fans (and in licensed media adaptations) as the Ghost Host. In a break from merchandising tradition, a 2022 Sketchbook ornament of the Hatchet Man would be sold under the Master Gracey name.

Although the name Gracey Manor (or Gracey Mansion) has often been used in various media adaptations, it was never the canonical name of any of the Disney Park Mansions, until 2012 for the Walt Disney World version. In Frontierland in the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World, for many years there was actually a sign pointing toward the attraction with the name Gastley Mansion (the word "Gastley" is crossed out and replaced with "Haunted").

Media adaptations have often followed the fan-based theory of Master Gracey being the master of the house.

Ghost Gallery[]

In the cast-member produced backstory that originated the "Master Gracey is the Aging Man and Ghost Host" theory, the character is named George Gracey Jr., who became obsessed with the afterlife and the occult out of a desire to know his late father George Gracey Sr., and spent much of the family fortune on supernatural relics and the services of Madame Leota to try and connect with his spirit. His relationship with Leota, which is implied to have produced Little Leota as an illegitimate daughter, ended up straining relations with his first wife Lilian O'Malley, who ended up being killed by Leota after being placed in a hypnotic trance and recreating her circus act. With the fortune diminished, Gracey would marry a young distant cousin, Emily Cavanaugh, who, while playing hide and seek with her new husband, ended up being locked in a trunk in the Attic by Leota and suffocating to death. Afterwards, when Leota revealed her intent to turn the Mansion into a full-on portal to the other side and reveal her role in killing his wives, Gracey tried to flee, only for her to seal all the exits and begin casting a spell to trap him in her crystal ball. Gracey hung himself to avoid this fate and the spell backfired on Leota, resulting in her being the one that became trapped.

Edwardgracey

Nathaniel Parker as Edward Gracey in the 2003 film

2003 film[]

Master Gracey appears in the 2003 film as the main deuteragonist and was played by English actor Nathaniel Parker. In this adaptation, he is named as Edward Gracey and is depicted as a heartbroken man who hanged himself after his lover Elizabeth Henshaw apparently killed herself. Edward lived in Gracey Manor, built by his grandfather, Captain Ambrose Gracey. The adoption shows that he was manipulated by his butler Ramsley throughout his life and only discovers the truth of Elizabeth's death from Jim Evers later on. He later gives the Evers family the deed to the house before he and Elizabeth depart from the afterlife.

This incarnation is a composite of Master Gracey, The Aging Man, and the Ghost Host.

Comicsgracey2

William Gracey, master of Gracey Manor (comics)


SLG Comics[]

In the SLG comics, William Gracey was secretly a former pirate known as Captain Blood, who hanged himself from the rafters of Gracey Manor after his bride-to-be, Emily, died. This was inspired by Ken Anderson's early concepts for the Disneyland attraction involving a pirate character named Captain Gore.

Haunted Mansion (2023 film)[]

Master Gracey, again under the name William Gracey, appears as a minor supporting character in the film. After losing his beloved wife Eleanor Gracey, William hired Madame Leota to perform regular seances at the Mansion to try and contact her spirit to no avail, bringing hundreds of ghosts into the Mansion. However, a mishap opens a door to regions beyond, which ended up inviting a dark spirit named Alistair Crump (known as Hatbox Ghost) into the house. Feeding on his grief, Crump was able to manipulate Gracey into poisoning himself to reunite with Eleanor and Madame Leota was trapped in her own crystal ball. Though Crump took control of the house and forced many of the ghosts into doing his bidding, William, still searching the halls for Eleanor, was very active in assisting the mortals in undoing the Crump curse.

GraceyClan

Gracey Family Crest

Laid to Rest

Master Gracey's tombstone in Walt Disney World. Note it's proximity by the crypts of the Librarian and Mariner

Trivia[]

  • A Master Gracey tombstone is nowhere to be found at Tokyo Disneyland's Mansion. Instead, there is a tombstone for Mr. West, which has the same epitaph and design as the Gracey tombstone. West's tombstone was also once located at the Disneyland Mansion, after the Gracey tombstone was removed.
  • Disney Park merchandise related to the Haunted Mansion sometimes has a Gracey Family Crest on it. The crest has the large letters G M, standing for Gracey Manor or Master Gracey and the crest features the Raven, and the Devil-head from the ride's plaque.
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