I was just talking with a few friends today about starting to look up the local haunts in our area. Over the past few years, it seems so difficult to nail down locations... It took some serious Internet searching. I only visited two haunts last year and distinctly remember Hospital patient scenes at one of them. Any idea if a certain theme is going to be more prevalent this year?
Haunt Trends: Past and Present
Ever notice how every year there seems to be something a ton of haunts seem to be doing at the same time? Sometimes it was a type of prop, sometimes it was a scene, and sometimes it was an entire theme! I thought it could be fun to devote a thread to such crazes in the haunting community and perhaps even try to pin down a date (or dates) for each one. I'll include some examples to get things started and I hope more people join in.
Props:
Flying Crank Ghost
Vortex Tunnel
Shaker Cans
Scenes:
Chromadepth
Dot Room
Blair Witch Project (1999)
Evil Santa
Themes:
Clowns
********
Pirates (2003)
Zombies
Props:
Flying Crank Ghost
Vortex Tunnel
Shaker Cans
Scenes:
Chromadepth
Dot Room
Blair Witch Project (1999)
Evil Santa
Themes:
Clowns
********
Pirates (2003)
Zombies
1 - 7 of 7 Posts
HarleyQuinn07,
Now that you mention it, I vaguely remember hospitals being a big thing in haunts awhile back (although not as big as asylums were several years ago). Judging
from other posts here, the clown theme might make a comeback thanks to the newest version of "American Horror Story." I also think that next year's "Jurassic World" could spark a dinosaur craze in haunts if it doesn't bomb at the box office.
Now that you mention it, I vaguely remember hospitals being a big thing in haunts awhile back (although not as big as asylums were several years ago). Judging
from other posts here, the clown theme might make a comeback thanks to the newest version of "American Horror Story." I also think that next year's "Jurassic World" could spark a dinosaur craze in haunts if it doesn't bomb at the box office.
I think today the scenes in haunts are a lot more detailed and organized. I remember growing up going through haunts where the walls were black and there were no specific themes. Sometimes you could see Dracula and an alien in the same room!
I think that clown scenes are here to stay because every haunt (including mine) that I've been through lately has had at least one room devoted to clowns.
I think that clown scenes are here to stay because every haunt (including mine) that I've been through lately has had at least one room devoted to clowns.I try real hard to NOT copy other people's themes (since everyone is already copying Hollywood,TV or some other haunt)
How do I not-copy?
My house is an old 1870 Inn with a huge wine cellar below the basement level. I know such a unique property is not easy to come by and I know that from what I went through to get this!
Besides the house and grounds itself, my show here is maybe more like a twisted comedy club than any one else's idea or practice of a "Haunt"?
I guess that I have always had my own ideas.
I have always also felt that life is too short to waste time copying other peoples ideas, since I seem to have plenty of my own that I will probably never get done, unless I happened to live to be a happy, active 130 year old! (I'm already 1/2 way there at 65.)
Odd things I have built here: a 1979 T-Bird with a motorcycle wreck in the big dent on the passenger door, complete with a skeletal rider on it which was also built by me /
I presently have a 1989 Olds station wagon art cart with large arms on the hood which go up and down for parades (Advertising!), it also has a suitcase on the roof luggage rack, open with clothes strewn out as a skeleton reaches out from inside the suitcase holding a long, boney arm up holding an old license plate formerly on a car of mine that says "Raven G" on it. I have a set of solar-powered lights inside the car for illuminating the figure in the passenger seat. Almost every day .night I drive this spooky car 2 blocks to park it on the County Court house square to have it noticed from Rt. 78.
In my basement is my "Coffin Tank" it is an upright steel coffin I made with tank tracks (Steel bars) and a V-12 flat head motor tight behind it.
Like many other things I have designed and built, it is very heavy, but will disassemble. It is in my basement,after all! IT had better disassemble!
Tonight a good-sized group of adults and kids came here . Afterwards a man who has been here numerous times said I am always putting on different "shows" here and saying new and different things. (Try to do this)
I speak of some of the funny things people have done while taking this house tour, I have a story about almost every part of the house and the same goes for almost every object in the house too! (And after 27 years of being in this house, there is a lot of stuff here!)
We can and do scare people here, but not phobia-iaze or psychologically imprint drastic memories involving fear upon them.
I have scared many people with common, cheap, throw away, tiny items,(NOT Plague Germs) because I have done the work to set them up for their expectations and apprehension to explode.
Sometimes I am in a state of contemplation and study of how someone is reacting to what I say or do so I may possibly improve upon my delivery, timing, speech pattern, or voice I use to better affect them, the way I want to affect them.
Right beside all of these more mental concerns I am still running through the house to beat them to the next turn, setting up my one-man commando ambush operations.
During the 90 minutes many tours here require, I am talking almost the entire time, sometimes talking very quickly.
After just one tour, I have from 10 minutes to 30 minutes to get everything put back, opened, or shut, turned off or on to reset everything. I do try to help myself as much as I can by resetting during the tour as I am running or walking passed a switch or something.
Then I am carrying the slide blankets and butt-pads and elbow pads back up to the beginning of the slide, which is a very long walk, it's just like work, but it is what I do .
How do I not-copy?
My house is an old 1870 Inn with a huge wine cellar below the basement level. I know such a unique property is not easy to come by and I know that from what I went through to get this!
Besides the house and grounds itself, my show here is maybe more like a twisted comedy club than any one else's idea or practice of a "Haunt"?
I guess that I have always had my own ideas.
I have always also felt that life is too short to waste time copying other peoples ideas, since I seem to have plenty of my own that I will probably never get done, unless I happened to live to be a happy, active 130 year old! (I'm already 1/2 way there at 65.)
Odd things I have built here: a 1979 T-Bird with a motorcycle wreck in the big dent on the passenger door, complete with a skeletal rider on it which was also built by me /
I presently have a 1989 Olds station wagon art cart with large arms on the hood which go up and down for parades (Advertising!), it also has a suitcase on the roof luggage rack, open with clothes strewn out as a skeleton reaches out from inside the suitcase holding a long, boney arm up holding an old license plate formerly on a car of mine that says "Raven G" on it. I have a set of solar-powered lights inside the car for illuminating the figure in the passenger seat. Almost every day .night I drive this spooky car 2 blocks to park it on the County Court house square to have it noticed from Rt. 78.
In my basement is my "Coffin Tank" it is an upright steel coffin I made with tank tracks (Steel bars) and a V-12 flat head motor tight behind it.
Like many other things I have designed and built, it is very heavy, but will disassemble. It is in my basement,after all! IT had better disassemble!
Tonight a good-sized group of adults and kids came here . Afterwards a man who has been here numerous times said I am always putting on different "shows" here and saying new and different things. (Try to do this)
I speak of some of the funny things people have done while taking this house tour, I have a story about almost every part of the house and the same goes for almost every object in the house too! (And after 27 years of being in this house, there is a lot of stuff here!)
We can and do scare people here, but not phobia-iaze or psychologically imprint drastic memories involving fear upon them.
I have scared many people with common, cheap, throw away, tiny items,(NOT Plague Germs) because I have done the work to set them up for their expectations and apprehension to explode.
Sometimes I am in a state of contemplation and study of how someone is reacting to what I say or do so I may possibly improve upon my delivery, timing, speech pattern, or voice I use to better affect them, the way I want to affect them.
Right beside all of these more mental concerns I am still running through the house to beat them to the next turn, setting up my one-man commando ambush operations.
During the 90 minutes many tours here require, I am talking almost the entire time, sometimes talking very quickly.
After just one tour, I have from 10 minutes to 30 minutes to get everything put back, opened, or shut, turned off or on to reset everything. I do try to help myself as much as I can by resetting during the tour as I am running or walking passed a switch or something.
Then I am carrying the slide blankets and butt-pads and elbow pads back up to the beginning of the slide, which is a very long walk, it's just like work, but it is what I do .
You are right a couple of years ago the Flying Crank Ghost was the bomb and lots of questions and information about it. Now less and less is mentioned.
One of the reasons where Halloween is so different than Christmas decorations.
While Christmas decorating is something to collect, Halloween decorating is something you theme.
Christmas is building traditions. Heirlooms that come out every year. That's my indoor display. My Halloween tree, Spooky Town display, and various knick knacks come out every year.
Outside is another story. Our beloved purchases and creations can be viewed as stale. We are always in the hunt for something the TOTers haven't seen.
Now most of my Halloween treasures stay packed and make a several year rotation. I have done projections for years, but I am taking a break this year because of the explosion of product. The mystery is gone.
While Christmas decorating is something to collect, Halloween decorating is something you theme.
Christmas is building traditions. Heirlooms that come out every year. That's my indoor display. My Halloween tree, Spooky Town display, and various knick knacks come out every year.
Outside is another story. Our beloved purchases and creations can be viewed as stale. We are always in the hunt for something the TOTers haven't seen.
Now most of my Halloween treasures stay packed and make a several year rotation. I have done projections for years, but I am taking a break this year because of the explosion of product. The mystery is gone.
1 - 7 of 7 Posts
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