Archive for April, 2012

Pittsburgh’s ScareHouse Reveals New 2012 Maze Theme

Monday, April 30th, 2012

Are those “slay” bells we’re hearing? The ScareHouse, located in Pittsburgh, PA, has revealed the theme of their all-new attraction for 2012: “Creepo’s Christmas in 3D.”

The attraction will replace the popular “Delirium in 3D,” which was retired this year. It will also be joined by “The Forsaken” and “Pittsburgh Zombies.” Check out the trailer for Creepo’s Christmas:

 

This announcement reminds us that with summer just around the corner, more and more haunt news will start coming in! Check back often for 2012 haunt updates.

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Posted in Pennsylvania | No Comments »

Scare Zone Review: Monsterpalooza 4

Friday, April 20th, 2012

This past weekend Scare Zone was back in Burbank, CA, to attend Monsterpalooza 4. This event is geared toward the horror film industry and fans. The convention focuses on “the art of monsters,” such as horror makeup, sculpture, and artwork. It’s a must-attend for anyone interested in horror makeup, art, and special effects. And of course, the presentations from horror makeup artists can be very useful for haunt actors and haunt makeup artists.

Like the previous years, this year’s convention’s was at full capacity. We attended on Saturday and had to wait nearly 2 hours just to get inside. even with the few “scareactors” roaming around the line offering some minor entertainment; the wait was still tedious.  We’re not sure what their arrangement is with the Marriott but the convention has obviously outgrown this location and would be more enjoyable at a larger location. In addition, their ticket purchasing system at the door was slow with an inefficient set up that seemed to be the main cause of the unnecessarily long and slow moving line.

Jason survey's the crowd for potential victims (c) Scare Zone

Besides the wait to get in, Monsterpalooza 4 offered another year, for lack of a better phrase, monster fun.  There were many familiar vendors along with some interesting new monster designers and artists. Our favorite exhibit, the Monster Museum, was back with a new collection of infamous Hollywood movie monsters and characters.

Monsterpalooza 4 also offered a some compelling and fun panel sessions including the Fright Night panel which reunited the original 1985 cast, writer and director, and FX artists. This session was a nostalgic look back the classic horror movie where they deconstructed the movie’s key scenes and reminisced about what it took to make them come to life.

We also attended an interesting panel on Jack Pierce, “The Man Behind the Monsters” hosted by John Murdy, creative director of Halloween Horror Nights Hollywood. The panel provided a look back at how the classic Universal monsters such as Frankenstein, the Mummy, and the Wolfman were brought to life from the 1930s and 40s.

We enjoy going to Monsterpalooza each year and feel that it’s a great way to start our countdown to haunt season. For those of you who weren’t able to attend, this year you’ll have a second chance with Son of Monsterpalooza coming this Halloween weekend. In the meanwhile, here’s a short video of Monsterpalooza 4.

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Posted in Conventions, Haunt Reviews, Haunt Videos, Southern California | No Comments »

“Run For Your Lives”: A Zombie 5K Race

Friday, April 20th, 2012


Are you tired of the standard 5K race through boring old city streets? Has the novelty of the trendy “mud run” worn off for you? If so, maybe it’s time to try a race that actually motivates you to run–from the hordes of zombies chasing after you!

Part haunt, part 5K run, this ”zombie-infested 5K obstacle course race” puts a terrifying twist on the standard race. Runners will wear “health flags” on a belt around their waists, and as they navigate through the obstacle course, the zombies will try to grab the flags. If you make it back to the “safe zone” with at least one flag, you will be eligible for a time-based award. Lose your flags, and you’re considered “dead.”

But if running’s not your thing, and maybe you’d prefer to stagger around and grab at people, then consider signing up to be a zombie. For a $25 Zombie fee, zombies receive a full makeup transformation, a t-shirt, and a beer. As a zombie you have two choices: chase or stumble. There’s an activity level for everyone.

And if you can’t decide on being a zombie or a victim, you can do both! Zombies can take a turn running through the race for free, but they are not eligible for awards.

The Zombie 5K is coming to the following locations in 2012:

  • Massachusetts, May 5-6
  • Minnesota, June 2
  • Indiana, June 23
  • Colorado, July 14
  • Washington, August 4
  • Missouri, August 18
  • Pennsylvania, September 1
  • Toronto (Canada), September 22
  • Southern California, October 20
  • Maryland, October 27
  • Florida, November 17
  • Texas, December 15
Be sure to check out the website for all the details.

 

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Posted in Screaming Soon | 3 Comments »

2012 West Coast Haunters Convention

Wednesday, April 11th, 2012

From the desk of Ed Roberts, founder of the West Coast Haunters Convention.

The 2012 West Coast Haunters Convention will be held June 1-3 in Portland Oregon at the Doubletree Hotel at Lloyd Center.

This years’ convention is being held in Portland Oregon, at the Doubletree Hotel and exhibition center.

The WCHC is thrilled to announce two keynote speakers; Mike Krausert from Cutting Edge Scenic Design and New England’s Spooky World and more recently The Fear at Fenway park and Ed and Marsha Edmunds owners of Distortions Unlimited and the stars of the Travel Channel show Making Monsters.

Convention highlights will include: A haunt tour and dinner Friday night, a costume ball on Saturday night; Sponsored by Dark Light precision Lighting Systems, a hearse car rally featuring cars from around the northwest and other events throughout the weekend.

Education at the West Coast Haunters Convention is paramount and this year will be no exception. Classes and workshops will take place daily, with over 50 hours of topics related to all areas of haunting and haunted houses!

This years tradeshow floor will feature some of the top vendors in the industry and the new home haunter’s headquarters. The move to the Doubletree allows the tradeshow to more than double the available space for vendors. All this and the opportunity to network with hundreds of haunted house owners and enthusiasts can be found at the 2012 WCHC.

The show was started by Ed Roberts, of The Nightmare Factory, a charity haunt for the Oregon School for the Deaf. They were featured on Extreme Makeover Home Edition.

The West Coast Haunters Convention was started because other conventions were too far away or too costly for Ed to bring his students from the school for the Deaf, So Ed decided if he could not take his students to a convention he would bring the convention to his students with the intention of creating a haunters convention on the west coast for all haunters and Halloween fans.

One of the unique things about this convention is that it is run as a nonprofit that contributes to a foundation that provides grants for special education. There will always be workshops and seminars about charity haunting, be because the convention got its start at the Oregon School for the Deaf. Seminars will be interpreted for any deaf or hard of hearing participants.

All proceeds from the convention will go to the West Coast Haunters Convention Foundation, established to help teachers of both deaf and autistic children.

For more details please visit the WCHC web site at www.westcoasthauntersconvention.com

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Posted in Conventions, Oregon, Terror Tips, Travel Terrors | No Comments »