OK, enough Procrastination!

Yes, I'm finally going to review the Terror Syndicate Productions haunt, DARK WORKS!

The last Saturday before Halloween, my brother Hayden, Stepdad Ben, and myself, all piled into the car, popped a CD of Midnight Syndicate in the stereo, and hit the road for Pittsburgh, PA! After finding owner Steve Hickman's house, and the home of Dark Works, we hoped out of the car to wait in line. We waited in line for about an hour, finding out that only three people per group are allowed to enter the haunt (this helps amp up the creep factor). Finally, after waiting under a true werewolf moon, we entered the mouth of Hell!

I won't give away too much about the Haunt (gotta keep it surprising for next year), but I can tell you that it is ONE OF THE BEST HAUNTS I'VE BEEN IN!!! Heck, it outshone the 7 Floors of Hell by far! There were very few actors, but every animatronic and animation was perfect, better than most haunts, including some pro ones! The place simply oozed Halloween atmosphere, especially in the disgusting bathroom! It was both indoor and out door, and scenically amazing! The real showstopper was the "TV room", which I won't describe (I can't, words don't do that room justice), but it was very theatrical, and is something I've never scene in any haunt before!

Afterwords, when the haunt closed, I got to meet Steve, and talk shop with him. He's a great guy, very hospitable and generous. Turns out He rarely buys masks and props -- he makes them! Also, everyone knows Steve to be the man who invented the term "Monster Mud", but did you know that he also coined "dorp" alias Erosion Cloth? The guy was nice enough to show me how things worked, and he even gave me a "Dark Soundscapes" CD that he made! Overall, I highly recamend the show and the Website, and I give both Steve and his haunt Five Stars. Great Job.

There. I'm done now. :)

Terror Syndicate website

Success!

Wow! It has been a LONG time since I sat down to blog a bit about Halloween. Well, here it goes:

MY BEST SEASON YET! Yes, despite the bad weather in PA, I would say that this was my biggest, most elborate, and most successful year of haunting since I started back in 2006.

Visual, this year was killer. We had cornstalks on every porch pillar, a witch's alter, two scarecrows (one themed as the one from Sleepy Hollow, the other we've dubbed "Fleshface" due to his gruesome visage), a beautiful cemetery, and TONS of spooked little ToTs. We lit the graveyard entierly with candles from my mom's wedding this summer. People were amazed by our display, which is pretty small compared to say, haunts like Davis Graveyard, but people came long into the night. I think we had about 200-some visitors on Halloween. While wearing my mask, I was able to scare some people just by looking at them. Already I've got some cool ideas for next year (the picture from pro haunt Haunted Overload is hint at one prop I hope to make). As soon as my brother e-mails me the pics, I'll post 'em! Hope every one had a great Halloween!

PS: Check House Bloodthorn's blog when you can. He has done some amazing work the infamous "Haunt of Miss Rose" formerly owned by Rob at Skull and Bone!

Happy Hallowe'en

Good Luck to you all, and a Happy Halloween to Haunters of All Ages!

Journey into Madness

Well, tonight is my trip to the haunt of Steve Hickman's DARK WORKS. I gotta say, I'm really excited about seeing this legendary haunt in person. This was one of those "haunts on the forefront", with its elaborate maze layout, high-tech pneumatics, and clever use of monster mud. I'm also excited about meeting Steve, it should be cool to get to talk shop with another haunter. Overall, it should be a fun night. Since I'll be getting back really late, I'll post about it tommorow. Now, get back to your prop building you sickos!

PS: Thanks to CB and House Bloodthorn for joining my blog. You both have some very cool blogs yourselves!

Hot Damn (again!)

Well, isn't this my lucky Halloween?

Some friends of mine invited me to go on a trip with them to HalloWeekends at Cedar Point, in Sandusky, OH. I've seen some photos of the park's Halloween event online, and the detail looks very good and it supposed to be a lot of fun. The haunted houses include a haunted mansion, a vampire's nightclub, a twisted toy factory, and a school for undertakers. I'm really looking forward to the scarezone "CornStalkers" a cornfield filled with hillbillies and possessed scarecrows. The whole thing looks awesome! Well, back to prop building!

PS: Big shout-out to Johnny Thunder of Hauntcast for joining my blog. Its just too cool!

Hot Damn!

OMG!!!!!!! I can't believe it!!!! I'm going to see the one and only Terror Syndicate haunt, DARK WORKS, in person this year!

I've always been a huge fan of Terror Syndicate, and the haunt. The props and sets have such a ghoulish and rotten look to them that I just love. Well, I thought, "Hey, wouldn't it be cool to see it in person?" I saw on the site that you have to be invited to attend the haunt in Pittsburg, PA. So I sent a nice, polite e-mail to the owner/operater, Steve Hickman, asking if I could come. I was honestly expecting a "no", but boy, did I get a shock when, just minutes after I sent the e-mail, Steve invites me and my parents to come over to see the haunt a week before Halloween. Not only that, but I get to see all the behind the scene stuff, so it should be awesome! I can't wait! Look out, Dark Works, here comes the HalloweeNut!!!!!!

Terror Syndicate.com

It's coming.....

Halloween, that is. Less than two months 'til the big dance.

Today was a very rewarding day of prop building. I've started building the Hangman's Crow, my first scarecrow, which I'm very proud of. Speaking of props, I picked up some VERY cool stuff at Michael's today. The props I bought include a funkin for my Sleepy Hollow scarecrow, a sign for ToTs, and, best of all, a five-foot tall talking witch prop for $50. The Witch looks kinda cheesey costume wise, right now, but I'm gonna give it an "Extreme Makeover, Haunt Edition". I hope to create a great haunt this year, and I'm striving to achive that goal.

PS: I know I said I would cover the Headless Horseman Hayrides today, but I ran out of time. Sorry.

ScreamParks (Part 1)

Hello, again, haunters of all ages.

Well, I hope to be busy working on one of my scarecrows this Labor Day weekend, and I've been looking for topics when it came to me: I've covered home haunts, but not any pro haunts! So I've decided to cover some haunted ScreamParks* before Halloween!

* ScreamPark: noun; a Halloween theme park consisting of haunted attractions.

The first one I want to cover is an old favorite: Universal Studios Florida's HALLOWEEN HORROR NIGHTS! Its been around since 1991, and has just gotten better since. This year's theme is RIPPED From the Silver Screen! and it just looks awesome! There are three haunts themed to the movies SAW, Child's Play, and an upcoming remake of The Wolfman. Two of the haunts are themed as re-imaginings of Frankenstein and Dracula, while the other haunts are done in the style of cheesey B-rate horror flicks. There's also a haunt called "Silver Screams" and is themed as an old haunted theatre. The mascot or "Icon" this year is called "The Usher", and is very creepy looking. Other attractions include Scarezones and two Stage Shows. Check out their awesome site, you won't regret it!

Halloween Horror Nights

Tommorow's ScreamPark: Headless Horseman Hayrides & Haunted Houses.

OK, I'm panicking!!!!!

Oh, no. Less than 80 days until Halloween. And not one prop built yet! One thing is certain: I feel so doomed. :(

I was planning on building three scarecrows back in July, but with my mom's wedding, and getting ready for School, I've been busy. My stepdad, Ben, says not to worry, but I still feel doomed. But enough moaning and groaning. On to other news.

I am seriously awaiting the debut of two horror films: Midnight Syndicate's The Dead Matter, and Warner Bros.'s Trick 'r Treat!

I have always been a fan of Midnight Syndicate's music espically Gates of Delirium and The 13th Hour. The make the classiest Halloween music. So, I figure, if anyone can make a great scary movie, it would be them.

Midnight Syndicate

The Dead Matter

Trick 'r Treat justs looks like great bloody good Halloween fun. It looks like the film makers were trying to capture the spirit of the season with this film. Its coming out on DVD and Blu-Ray on October 6th. Can't wait!

Trick 'r Treat at IMDB

And finally, I've decided a theme for next year's haunt. I'm really excited about this theme, and I think I may keep this theme for several seasons! Maybe I'll make a teaser video. :) Well, talk to all you ghoulies later.

Pennsylvania, here I come!

Well, I've made a decision about the location of my 2009 haunt, Scarecrow Hill. Since most of my family has moved to Pennsylvania, save for my dad and I, I've been considering temporarily moving my haunt to my mom's new address in PA. Well, I've finally decided that I'll be haunting my mom's driveway this year. I'm sorry to those in Ohio who won't get to see it, but I've got a plan to make a video of Scarecrow Hill. Also, I'm thinking about getting a second fog machine to make sure the air is really full of fog.

There's something about PA that really puts me in the Halloween mood. Perhaps its all the acres of cornfields in PA. My stepdad, Ben, and I, were talking about how cool it would be if someone who owned one of those cornfields would build just a field of creepy old scarecrows. I would love to see something like that. Well, that's all for now.

PS: The scarecrow pictured above is Johnny Appleseed by Pumpkinrot, and is one of my favorite works by Pumpkinrot.

Scarecrow Hill

I don't quite remember where I got the idea for Scarecrow Hill 2009. I just remember looking at Scarecrow how-to's at Haunt Project. I found one that resembled a scarecrow from Sleepy Hollow. I then drew up a budget and a name. For my birthday, I had gotten a Scarecrow Mask from Death Studios, who make some of the coolest masks. I'm now building the Scarecrow, and I think it'll look cool!
P.S: Anyone think tiki torches is good for a pumpkin patch?

Why this Blog exists

Your probably wondering what this blog is all about, right? Well, it is dead-icated to my favorite holiday of all time, HALLOWEEN! It is also dedicated to my hobby of Extreme Halloween Decorating, or "Yard Haunting". I have currently haunted for three years, and I'm already building for my fourth. Past themes have included Phantom of the Opera, Frankenstein's Laboratory, and Granny's Parlor. This year's theme will be "Scarecrow Hill". I will update my blog as often as possible, with Philisophical Halloween Ramblings, updates on the haunt, fun and spooky pics, and much, much more! Please check back soon.