Ahhh, yes...Dead Acres -the first extreme haunt my wife and
I ever attended - the Black Sheep of the Haunt Industry...doing their best to
make you sick...jeez, great tagline, eh?....and all of it quite true, I might add!
This place
is POPULAR! The teen set and the adrenaline junkies just love this one, and the
lines can be staggering! In 2010, we attended relatively early in the season,
and by the time we got to our turn in line - we purchased Fast Passes - the
wait at the end of the trail was over six
hours long and they kept on coming!!-
and every last person went through!
Talk about
dedication to your craft and all that....
What make this one so special? That's easy. This crew does it's own thing - no trends, no frills, no steampunk - just in your face, and in it LOUD!
As nuts as this all is, it all started off over fifty years ago as a haunted hayride done by a family to entertain friends...this place has long and fascinating history, and the following links document it very well:
http://www.hauntworld.com/featured_article/haunted_house_in_columbus_ohio_haunted_hoochie_dead_acres
What can you expect?
While attending the Midwest Haunters Convention, I ran into several of their actors, including one Gina Heartless, who was kind enough to fill me in that a lot of new themes and ideas are being devised while a lot of old favorites are going bye-bye...
Incidentally, these guys ***REALLY*** like their pyro, so take heed!
When our godkids Bonnie and Shaun came into town for a visit from Rockford, Illinois, during the 2010 season, they said they wanted to see something *really* over the top and and intense and we took them here.
Needless to say, they did NOT go home disappointed!
Part of the reason I wanted to show them this place is that Bonnie is a VERY talented graphic artist - she's done several commissions for me already - and this place has to have the Graphic Artist from Hell in their employ, because the stuff running up and down the exterior walls is just E X T R E M E to the "nth" degree - I've included several photos of it here...Bonnie really got an eyeful that night, and I think it made her up her game a notch or two.
Their secondary attraction is called Bad Trip 3D, and while this is not my bag - the 3D thing is pretty prevalent nowadays, but it always leaves me cold - this one actually works as the displays are stark, and the designs do work extremely well...
Keep little kids away from this one - it's gory in the extreme, and the actors aren't afraid to rough house with ya'!
Despite of - or maybe in spite of - all the splatter, it's has that vibe of being designed
with the tongue planted firmly in the cheek....don't take it too seriously or you'll end up hurting yourself.
Think of it as a gory, psychotic funhouse, with some traditional haunt touches, a nod back to the
days of Coney Island, filled with the unpredictable with the distinct feel of 1970's haunts, and the throbbing beat of White Zombie and you've got this place sewn up.
There are plenty of of videos of Dead Acres our in YouTube land - have a look and see what you're in for...
In closing, this place isn't for everyone - in fact, as they say, "Not Recommended for ANYONE!" - but I digress - ...if you really want to see something just totally,
out of the box, wild-eyed crazy, very few can match this...
...as they say over there - "Live to Die!"
Some links well worth mentioning:
My Goddaughter, Bonnie's DeviantArt page:
Gina Heartless (actress at Dead Acres, also professional
model:
You can also find her on Facebook as "Lucy Fur"
Next time around, we're off to the Windy City of Chicago to check in on a local legend known as Dream Reapers.....
Until then, STAY SCARY!
Next time around, we're off to the Windy City of Chicago to check in on a local legend known as Dream Reapers.....
Until then, STAY SCARY!
Our dear fiend....errrr...friend, Gina Heartless....
My stepson Mike, Lisa and I braving the place in 2009...
Big outing in 2010 - me, our Goddaughter Bonnie, her boyfriend, Shawn, my wife, Lisa and our son, Mike...
