07-04-2006
From what I have been hearing, every luxury or entertainment business even down to larger prosperous flea markets and trades days have not done the business they did prior 911. The Public radio and other media have done many articles recently on the well to do, building homes wth more rooms so every family member has their own space and their own batrhroom and their own entertainment center. The dangers of the world need not be experienced any longer. As simple as going to a sporting event is no longer considered safe as a family activity. Hooligans at best, a terrorist action on a mass of people has been played up as being a potential reality to fear.
Families of the past were content with several children to a room and a single bathroom and TV room. Entertainment was sought outside the home. Thirty years ago it seems a few dollars could buy enough gas to drive around continuously for days.
As the story goes this how to raise money with a haunted house event book by the Jaycees instantly sprang up into 500 haunted house dotted across the country and spin offs from those Jaycees haunts took maybe another 5 years to take hold. In Texas combined boyscout troup events that still exist today are 25 years old and still growing. Many volunteer fire stations took on the idea as a fund raiser. Most larger attractions, many now gone or flatlined in patronage are roughly 20 years old.
A second wind into intrest about having a haunted event occured 10 years ago because of Transworld events and the internet acting like the Jaycees book 30 years ago. Ultimately it lead to Hauntworld and the past few years have seen the addition of quite a few new attraction owners across the country despite fear of terrorism or people not coming out of their homes. What is faced now is wether an event seems worthy enough to cause patrons to leave their homes?
Prior to the walk thru haunted houses there were dark rides the patrns would get into a two seated car and experience a short bump through the doors into a weird world in the dar on tracks. The old timers say it lost popularity in the late 50s as anyone could afford a car and riding in some kind of little car became something more on the lines of a kiddy ride. Typically a dark ride tour was no longer than 3 minutes. This didn't stop Walt Disney from making really elaborate dark rides of all themes and nature lasting 15 to 20 minutes in the late 60s. Hence the 70s began everyone creating a walk trough version of their own Disney land on the scary side.
Ironically, now most families have experienced surround sound and many are getting home theaters and what becomes an experience not gotten anywhere else is being locked in a dark wine cellar in the middle of nowhere. Venturing into a dark maze and live unpredictable sound rather than recordings return to what registers best with customers on one hand or an event must have above and beyond production values to compete with what is or could be at home.
Another fabulous post from the U.S.Department of Wild Imaginings, now in spectaclar stereo, sponsored by the Adhesives and Sealants Council, suggesting ways to stick things together since the 1800s. Not fabulous in a gay way. Your results may vary. Illinois residents add 8% sales tax. These posts have been made by professional post makers, do not try this type of posting on your own without extensive training, lovely assistants and a trusty clown horn.
Originally Posted by Greg Chrise
Love it!