Ghostbusters (1984)
In the early 1980s, Egon, Ray, and Peter ran the Department of Psychology's Paranormal Studies Laboratory from Weaver Hall on the upper west side of campus. The three conducted parapsychology research, including Venkman's now-legendary ESP card-zapping experiments on student volunteers, funded by a university grant. The Board of Regents eventually moved to terminate the grant and remove them from the university entirely.
Dean Yeager was sent to handle the dismissal in person, waiting in the lab while removal men cleared out the trio's equipment. He told Venkman that Columbia believed science existed to serve mankind, not as "some kind of dodge or hustle," and called Peter a poor scientist with sloppy methods and highly questionable conclusions. Venkman was unmoved, calling the layoff preposterous and insisting the students loved them.
Shortly before the dismissal, the team had investigated the ghost sighting at the New York Public Library and returned through campus near the Low Library. Walking alongside the Low Library, Ray discussed the encounter while Egon performed calculations on his PC-4 Calculator. Egon shared that new readings verified they had an excellent chance of catching a ghost and holding it indefinitely. Venkman, recognizing the commercial potential, produced a Crunch bar and presented it to Egon.
After the official termination, Ray and Peter sat on the exterior steps of the Low Library. Ray lamented that they would never work at MIT or Stanford, while Venkman offered a more philosophical view, ultimately persuading Ray that they were destined to go into business for themselves.
Ghostbusters II (1989)
Five years later, Egon returned to the Columbia campus, working at the Institute for Advanced Theoretical Research and conducting experiments involving human emotions. In late November 1989, Dana Barrett visited the Institute to consult Egon after the strange psychokinetic incident on First Avenue involving her son Oscar. The Institute for Advanced Theoretical Research building used for filming is Avery Hall, home to Columbia's School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation. This mirrors how Weaver Hall stood in for the Department of Psychology building in the first film, with Avery Hall serving double duty in the franchise.
Ghostbusters: Answer the Call (2016)
Columbia University opens the 2016 film as the professional home of Erin Gilbert, an associate professor in the Physics Department. Erin had spent years building her academic reputation, studying subatomic neutrino particles and developing her own Grand Unified Theory while awaiting a tenure decision. She was assigned to lecture in the prestigious Max Planck Auditorium, named after the real-world quantum physicist Max Planck.
Erin's academic career unraveled after paranormal researcher Ed Mulgrave Jr. sought her out regarding Gertrude Aldridge at the Aldridge Mansion, which led her to reconnect with her former collaborator Abby Yates. After a video of Erin enthusiastically declaring that ghosts are real surfaced publicly, Dean Harold Filmore fired her, stating that Columbia was committed to "real science" and did not want to be associated with her claims. Phil Hudson, Erin's boyfriend and faculty colleague, avoided her during the walk out.
IDW Comics
In the IDW comic continuity, Peter, Egon, and Ray all attended Columbia University in the 1970s. Peter met Egon in a Women's Studies course Egon had been mistakenly assigned to; Peter persuaded him to stay to become more comfortable with people. Peter also met Ray there, and introduced the two to each other. All three enrolled in Columbia's Parapsychology pilot doctorate program. Egon graduated on October 29, 1969, with a degree in Psychology in the faculty of Psychobiology. Peter earned his Ph.D. in Psychology on June 14, 1980.
After Gozer was defeated, journalist Rebecca Morales visited Columbia to research her book about the Ghostbusters. She interviewed former test subjects Jennifer Adams and Bob Douglas in a campus cafeteria. Bob called the Venkman zapping experiment the worst experience of his life, though he acknowledged pledging Delta Tau Chi (a nod to the fraternity in Animal House). Rebecca also met with Dean Yeager inside the Low Memorial Library, where Yeager confirmed the firing but acknowledged that the Ghostbusters' popularity had increased alumni donations to the program.
Other Appearances
In the Ghostbusters video game (Sanctum of Slime and the 2009 game), Columbia University is referenced in connection with the Ghostbusters' professional origins.
In Ghostbusters: Rise of the Ghost Lord, Gustav Hookfaber received a degree from Columbia in 1980 and conducted research there in 1984 under Egon, Ray, and Peter. They dismissed his theories as dangerous.
The Real Columbia University
Columbia University was founded in 1754 as King's College by royal charter of King George II of England, making it the fifth oldest university in the United States. It was originally located near Trinity Church on Lower Broadway and established the first American medical school that granted a medical degree in 1767. The college closed during the American Revolution in 1776 and reopened in 1784 as Columbia College, reflecting the new national identity. A Law School followed in 1858 and the nation's first mining school in 1864.
When Seth Low became president in 1890, he led a major expansion and moved the campus to its current location in Morningside Heights. The renowned firm of McKim, Mead and White designed the campus as an urban academic village, with buildings patterned after the Italian Renaissance. The school grew into a major Ivy League research university, officially renamed Columbia University in 1896.
Columbia has a notable connection to the Ghostbusters' production company: Howard Dietz, who designed the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer logo when Metro Pictures merged with the Goldwyn and Mayer companies in 1924, was a Columbia alumnus and incorporated the university's lion mascot into the MGM logo. Columbia Pictures, the Ghostbusters distributor and producer, takes its name from the university as well.
Filming Notes
Columbia University granted permission for both the 1984 and 1989 films to shoot on campus, but with an explicit condition: the university was not to be identified by name in Ghostbusters (1984). As a result, the film never names the institution, and the fictional "Weaver Hall" is used instead. All filming from both movies is essentially centered around the Low Library at the heart of the main campus.
There is no Weaver Hall at Columbia. The building that stands in for it is Havemeyer Hall, a classroom building primarily dedicated to science and math. Columbia's actual Psychology Department is located in Schermerhorn Hall. The Paranormal Studies Laboratory scenes were also shot inside Columbia's buildings, an arrangement made to accommodate potential rain delays during the expensive production schedule. The 10/7/83 final shooting script places the Paranormal Studies Laboratory in the basement of Weaver Hall.
Ferris Booth Hall, visible in the background of the Ghostbusters title shot, was demolished in 1996 to make way for Alfred Lerner Hall, the current student center.
During filming at Columbia, Bill Murray wandered away with a student, leaving a production assistant to search the campus for him. Bill Murray's behavior caused disruption on set.
The Nobel Prize Aspirations deleted scene, which was filmed as an alternate to the ESP card experiment sequence, was shot on the first day of principal photography and required 17 takes. It was ultimately cut from the final film.
In earlier drafts of the script (the July 6 and August 5, 1983 versions), Peter, Egon, and Ray were employed at New York University rather than Columbia. The switch to Columbia appears in the September 30, 1983 draft and was retained through production.
For the 2016 film, only two shots were filmed at the actual Columbia campus: an aerial establishing shot and the shot of the Alma Mater Sculpture in front of the Low Library. The outdoor scenes of Erin walking through campus were shot at Emmanuel College in Boston on June 30 and July 1, 2015. Interior university scenes, including Erin's office, Dean Filmore's office, and the alumni hall, were filmed at the Stonehurst estate in Waltham, Massachusetts, beginning September 15, 2015. Erin's office set was modeled on the real office of physics professor and film consultant Janet Conrad. Near the set of Erin's office, a bust of Harold Ramis was placed as a tribute.
The Storybook novelization of the 1984 film refers to the university as "Weaver Hall University," apparently elevating the building name to an institution name. The film's novelization uses the correct "Columbia University."
