This week and next week I'm doing a
two-part blog about haunted houses.
I remember when I was a child in West
Los Angeles. We had a very large garage and one year my mother and
father fixed it up like a haunted house for my Halloween party—a
winding, twisty route through all kinds of scary things. It was a
lot of fun and totally different from anything anyone else in the
neighborhood did for Halloween. Of course, back in those days, scary
things were not at all the same type of bloody gruesome attractions
that are the main features of today's professional Halloween
attractions.
Halloween attractions have moved far
beyond the neighborhood scare as a fun encounter for the
trick-or-treaters. Today they are big business—very big business.
Operators of the large attractions spend most of the year coming up
with new and better ideas for frightening attractions and then
implementing them. They take pleasure in dreaming up even more
diabolical ways of giving us the seasonal nightmares.
This week, let's talk about the history
of haunted houses and some Halloween facts. Just in the United
States, there are over 1200 professional haunted houses, 300 theme
parks that operate horror-themed events and over 3000 charity-run
spooky Halloween attractions. Haunted attractions have a long
history dating back to early civilizations.
Ancient Times:
The Egyptians knew that the best way to
keep body snatchers away from a pyramid was to really scare them
away. The commonly used mazes, moving walls, self-opening doors, and
traps as well as snakes and insects to protect treasure and the
bodies of royalty. True, they weren't charging admission and the
public wasn't lined up waiting to get inside, but it is an early
example of creating a setting to produce fear.
The Greeks and Romans have a folklore
complete with mazes and labyrinths filled with monsters. With
theater being a vital part of their culture, we can assume they
created numerous special effects devices to enhance the scare factor
that would evolve into today's haunted house elements.
The Dark Ages:
This period in history saw the
Christians continue the evolution toward today's haunted house
attraction. During the 1300s through the 1500s, Europe had been
converted from Celtic and pagan religions to the practice of
Christianity. Many of today's Halloween activities—carving
pumpkins, bobbing for apples, dressing up in costumes and even
trick-or-treating—were pagan practices that stayed with us.
The Renaissance:
Theater became increasingly popular and
catered to society's love of horror and resulted in the development
of more special effects. Ghosts, demons, the devil, and other
monsters appeared regularly in plays including those of William
Shakespeare.
The 1800s:
This was a time when the general
population became fascinated with ghosts and the possibility of other
realms. Self-proclaimed mediums, fortune tellers, clairvoyants, and
spiritualists engaged in conjuring sessions in an attempt to
communicate with the dead which became a form of entertainment for
the elite. The theme of hauntings continued in the theater and the
century provided the first wax museum, the forerunner of future
walk-through attractions that played on people's sense of reality.
The 1900s:
The start of the 20th century saw the
increased popularity of the traveling carnival and the rise of the
what was referred to as a freak show. Dark rides also became popular
amusements. The patrons sat in a boat or on a train and were
automatically moved through numerous scenes. Amusement parks came
into popularity during this time. Those that could not afford a big
roller coaster offered cheap fun houses and haunted house attractions
to pull in customers.
Also during this time, many of the
residential houses built during the early 1800s had become
dilapidated and worn down. Adults would tell their children that
ghosts filled the neglected homes in an attempt to keep them from
exploring those structures. This further fueled the mystique of
haunted houses.
The 1960s:
1969 was the opening of Disneyland's
(Anaheim, California) Haunted Mansion attraction. Rather than
putting a genuine decrepit-looking structure in the middle of
Disneyland, he created a lavish mansion with a pristine exterior
based on the appearance of the San Jose, California, Winchester
House. It was originally a walk-through attraction but was soon
changed over to a ride.
The 1970s:
Non-profit organizations began to use
abandoned buildings and fields to put up haunted houses to raise
money for charity.
The 1980s:
This was the decade when horror movies
grew in popularity and so did haunted houses. Most amusement parks
had a scary attraction of some sort.
The 1990s to present:
Haunts are everywhere—haunted
hayrides, mazes and scavenger hunts. They've become so popular that
haunts are here to stay with the industry constantly evolving with
new and more terrifying attractions.
Halloween Frightening and Fun Facts:
Halloween is the second largest
commercial holiday in the U.S.
Approximately 100 countries celebrate
Halloween.
Over 7 billion dollars are spent
annually on candy, costumes and activities in just the U.S.
Approximately 90% of all households
with children will participate in some sort of Halloween activity.
Over 80% of all haunted attractions in
the U.S. are operated by a charity or help to benefit a charity of
some sort.
