SWEET SCREAMS KNOTT'S AND OTHER SOUTHLAND THEME PARKS SCARE UP CROWDS FOR HALLOWEEN.Byline: Jerry Rice Jerry Lee Rice (born October 13, 1962 in Crawford, Mississippi) is a former football wide receiver in the NFL. Rice is widely regarded as one of the greatest players in NFL history, consistently showing exceptional performance and strong work ethic on and off of the field. Staff Writer SAY WHAT YOU LIKE about today's youth, but they still like to scare and be scared. Those are the unscientific unscientific Unproven, see there findings of Craig Harreld, who supervises many of the 900 ghouls and goblins roaming the streets at Knott's Berry Farm Knott's Berry Farm is a brand name of two separate entities: a theme park in Buena Park, California, and a manufacturer of food specialty products (primarily jams and preserves) based in Placentia, California. . ``People are just as vulnerable now as they were back in the '80s and '90s,'' says Harreld, who is working his 19th Halloween Haunt at the Orange County theme park. ``The girls still scream loud when you get a group of them together. And if you get a bunch of guys A Bunch of Guys (BOGs), or Group of Guys (GOGs) are terms used by counter-terrorism officials to refer to small, self-organizing terrorist cells.[1] BOGs typically have little to no contact with global terrorist groups like al Qaeda, so they independently plan and , you can still scare them.'' Ghouls just wanna wan·na Informal 1. Contraction of want to: You wanna go now? 2. Contraction of want a: You wanna slice of pie? have fun throughout the Southland this month as theme parks and attractions get into the Halloween spirits. Six Flags Magic Mountain Six Flags Magic Mountain is an amusement park located just west of the Valencia neighborhood of Santa Clarita, north of Los Angeles. It opened on Memorial Day weekend on May 29, 1971 as Magic Mountain, by the Newhall Land and Farming Company,[1] resurrects its Fright Fest Fright Fest is an event that takes place at Six Flags parks during the Halloween season. During Fright Fest, the parks are redecorated and some attractions are re-named or re-themed for the event. Also, Halloween-themed shows replace the shows that go on during the normal season. . The Queen Mary Queen Mary, Queen Marie, or Queen Maria may refer to: Queens Britain England
adj 1. outside the realm of normal experience or scientific explanation. n 2. collective term for anomalous phenomena. happenings during Shipwreck shipwreck, complete or partial destruction of a vessel as a result of collision, fire, grounding, storm, explosion, or other mishap. In the ancient world sea travel was hazardous, but in modern times the number of shipwrecks due to nonhostile causes has steadily 2002. Other Halloween-themed happenings are going on at Disneyland and Universal CityWalk Universal CityWalk is a part of Universal Studios Hollywood, Universal Orlando Resort and Universal Studios Japan originating from Universal's first park, Universal Studios Hollywood. . Knott's, however, boasts the longest-running scare season event, with its Halloween Haunt celebrating its 30th year. In all, more than 4.6 million people have been scared silly - and a number of other ways. ``I've had 'em faint, I've had 'em throw up, I've had them pee their pants. They've just about done it all,'' Harreld says. And they keep coming back for more. ``It never ceases to amaze me that there's such a market and demand for this,'' says Charles Bradshaw, Knott's Berry Farm's director of entertainment, who is taking part in his lucky 13th haunt. What keeps guests - mostly in their late teens and early 20s - coming back is an assortment of mazes and shows that offer a mix of gore and humor. Two of last year's most popular mazes - the Carnival of Carnivorous car·niv·o·rous adj. 1. Of or relating to carnivores. 2. Flesh-eating or predatory: a carnivorous bird. 3. Clowns and Malice in Wonderland - are back for another run. So is the Hanging in Calico Square, which has ``sacrificed'' more than 1,500 celebrities and satirical characters. Joining the list this year is actor Robert Blake Robert Blake may be:
``We're not afraid We're not Afraid! is a website which was created just hours after the 7 July 2005 London bombings as a place for Internet users from around the world to state that they were not being intimidated by the actions of the terrorists. of twisting and lampooning just about anything,'' Bradshaw says. While there are plenty of hits, there have been some misses. One of Bradshaw's personal favorites - a dinosaur attraction that was transformed into the Kingdom of the Lounge Lizards - didn't click with the crowds. ``We turned one T. rex T. rex, T. Rex or T-Rex may refer to:
``If there's a 50 percent approval, it's just not a good enough maze,'' he adds. Halloween Haunt had a rather modest start on Oct. 31, 1973. The first night featured a few dozen employees dressed as monsters lurking throughout the park. This year, Knott's hosted a series of job fairs to hire 900 monsters (they range in age from 18 to their mid-60s) and hundreds more to fill supporting roles for the haunt's 21 nights. Along with the growth of the staff, other aspects of the event have evolved as well. ``The costuming has become much more elaborate,'' Harreld says. ``It's not just putting on a robe and running around scaring people. It's very detailed. ``Makeup has evolved, too,'' he adds. ``There's more imagination, more unique characters.'' But one thing hasn't changed over the years: ``Our audience is mainly here for the scare and the gore, so our streets and mazes are really slanted toward that,'' Bradshaw says. This year's Haunt looks to build on last year's successes. Attendance held up despite its opening just a few weeks after terrorist attacks shook the country. ``After 9-11 we went through all of the mazes and show scripts and thought, 'What could specifically relate to New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of ?' and we changed it,'' Bradshaw says. ``But we still maintained a heavy gore, heavy scare event. For the most part, we ran the event as we intended.'' One of the alterations was made to the advertising slogan Advertising slogans are short, often memorable phrases used in advertising campaigns. They are claimed to be the most effective means of drawing attention to one or more aspects of a product. : ``Tickets to die for'' was switched to ``Our scariest ever.'' After ticket sales were tallied, the event posted its biggest turnout ever (although part of that was attributed to Knott's extending the run by two nights). ``We went into it a little bit scared,'' Bradshaw says. ``Given what the country was going through, was it enough to keep the audience away?'' There are no such worries for this outing. ``We never take anything for granted, and we're grateful for everything we get,'' Bradshaw said. ``But we're hoping this will be a great year.'' Theme parks turn spooky for Halloween Southland theme parks and attractions are getting into the Halloween spirits: Disneyland What: Haunted Mansion Holiday Haunted Mansion Holiday is a seasonal attraction at the Disneyland park in California and Japan. Called Haunted Mansion Holiday Nightmare in Japan, it is a blend of The Haunted Mansion and Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas. - featuring the 35-year-old Haunted Mansion redecorated along the theme of Tim Burton's ``The Nightmare Before Christmas'' - returns for its second season. New this year is a soundtrack from composer Danny Elfman and a display of 13 packages, with a different one opened each week to reveal one of Jack Skellington's creepy friends. What's cool: Guests can sing along to 13 Christmas ``scarols'' with skewed skewed curve of a usually unimodal distribution with one tail drawn out more than the other and the median will lie above or below the mean. skewed Epidemiology adjective Referring to an asymmetrical distribution of a population or of data lyrics before they enter the attraction. Appropriate for: All ages, however parents should use caution if their children frighten easily. When: Daily through Jan. 5. Cost: $45 for adults; $35 for ages 3-9. Information: (714) 781-4565; www.disneyland.com Knott's Berry Farm What: Halloween Haunt turns 30 with 11 mazes, six stage shows and 900 ghosts, goblins and ghouls. What's cool: Besides the sliders sliders a species of tortoise kept as pets. They have a black shell and a red stripe behind the eye. Called also Chrysemys scripta elegans, red-eared sliders. among the free-range monsters (some of them skid 30 to 40 feet on their knees across the cement), the Lewis Carroll-inspired maze Malice in Wonderland is a 3-D delight. Appropriate for: 13 and older. Camp Spooky, a non-scare, kid-friendly event, takes place during the day. When: Today and Sunday, Oct. 17-20, Oct. 24-27, 29-31 and Nov. 1-2. Cost: For nighttime Halloween Haunt, $38 in advance and $42 at the door. For Knott's Berry Farm during the day, including Camp Spooky, $42 for adults; $32 for ages 3-11. Information: (877) 858-7234; www.knotts.com. Queen Mary: What: Eighth annual Shipwreck Halloween Terror Fest featuring seven mazes, including the Haunted Hull of Horrors, Decks of the Dead and Londontowne Terror. What's cool: Dance away your fright with live DJs and guest radio personalities each night at the Shipwreck Dance Party. Show off more of your best moves at the Boiler Room boiler room n. a telephone bank operation in which fast-talking telemarketers or campaigners attempt to sell stock, services, goods, or candidates and act as if they are calling from an established company or brokerage. Club, which has been transformed into a high-energy rock/alternative night club. Appropriate for: Ages 13 and older. When: Tonight, Oct. 18-20, Oct. 25-27, 31 and Nov. 1-2. Cost: $25. Information: (562) 435-3511; www.queenmaryshipwreck.com. Six Flags Magic Mountain What: Fright Fest featuring hundreds of costumed ghosts and ghouls, live shows, mazes and street entertainers. What's cool: Terror at Carnage E. Hall, a 2,200-square-foot maze that's dressed up as a 1940s-era theater haunted by the ghosts of seven ``murdered'' actors, is waiting to welcome its first guests. It is one of five new attractions. Appropriate for: Teens and older. Bugs Bunny World, aimed at youngsters and their parents, has arts & crafts, street entertainers, a bird show and trick-or-treat bags for kids 10 and younger. When: Today and Sunday, Oct. 18-20, 25-27 and 31. Cost: $44.99 for adults; $29.99 for those under 48 inches. $15 discount coupon is available at Carl's Jr. Information: (661) 255-4111; www.sixflags.com. Universal CityWalk What: Halloween Carnival and Costume Celebration, with free pumpkin and cookie decorating Cookie decorating dates back to at least the 14th century when in Switzerland, springerle cookie molds were carved from wood and used to impress Biblical designs into cookies. , face painting and live entertainment. What's cool: Besides the admission price - it's free - Halloween night trick-or-treating at 65 restaurants and shops and a costume contest (no masked costumes). Appropriate for: All ages. When: Carnival, noon-4 p.m. Oct. 26-27; trick-or-treating, 4-7 p.m. Oct. 31. Cost: Free admission. Information: (818) 622-4455; www.citywalkhollywood.com. CAPTION(S): 5 photos, box Photo: (1 -- cover -- color) MONSTERS' FALL This season, Southland theme parks promise FREAKS and SHRIEKS (2 -- 3 -- color) Knott's Berry Farm, above and on the cover, has been turning its theme park into a scary place to spend autumn evenings for 30 years. At right, creepy creatures get their acts ship-shape for the Shipwreck Halloween Terror Fest aboard the Queen Mary. (4 -- 5 -- color) The Ghoul Patrol, above, has a screaming good time on Deja Vu at Six Flags Magic Mountain, where the annual Fright Fest has scared up hundreds of costumed ghosts and ghouls. At left, a ghostly greeter stands at the entrance of the Haunted Mansion Holiday at Disneyland. That's Jack Skellington atop the jack-o'-lantern as ``Sandy Claws.'' Box: Theme parks turn spooky for Halloween (see text) |
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