Marching Along We're Adventurers ... FINAL UPDATE - Jan 20 Posts #108, 109, 110
- Thread starter Cdn Friends of Pooh
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WDW Poly Princess
Needs a Disney Fix
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You had me at the title! 
thunderbird1
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Woo-hoo! Almost there! My dd has been bugging me daily about the HHN photos ("are they there yet?"). 
But I loved the St. Augustine pics. We may just have to do a day trip there sometime. LOL about the Key West "haunted house" tour. Those kinds of things are so iffy--they can either be really, really good or really, really bad--sounds like you had the latter. Thanks again for the TR!
But I loved the St. Augustine pics. We may just have to do a day trip there sometime. LOL about the Key West "haunted house" tour. Those kinds of things are so iffy--they can either be really, really good or really, really bad--sounds like you had the latter. Thanks again for the TR!
Cdn Friends of Pooh
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We did a bit of shopping then made our way to Universal, arriving about half an hour before our Secrets of the Sideshow Tour was to start.
We got checked in and had a chat with one of the VIP Tour Team Leaders about another plan were discussing renewing our vows at HHN for our 10th anniversary. After getting some good advice and info about how we can do it, it was time for our tour to start.
The first stop was the HHN Museum they had set up. This year it was set up in the hat-shaped building along Hollywood Boulevard. We really enjoyed the museum last year as it had bits and pieces from previous years to give the fans a retrospective look at the event. This year it was set up to contain events from this years event only. The centrepiece was the tarot card reading table and chair from the TV commercial. The museum also displayed the Freddy, Jason, and Leatherface costumes from the commercial.
We could go on about what else they had but were sure youd just as soon look at the pics and see for yourself (if anyones even still reading the text )
We were shown a brief video presentation which we weren't allowed to film. What we will say is it included a lot of clips from the Art of the Scare DVD they released in 2003 (with footage from the 2002 event).
After the video presentation we were off to our first house...
(to be continued...)
We got checked in and had a chat with one of the VIP Tour Team Leaders about another plan were discussing renewing our vows at HHN for our 10th anniversary. After getting some good advice and info about how we can do it, it was time for our tour to start.
The first stop was the HHN Museum they had set up. This year it was set up in the hat-shaped building along Hollywood Boulevard. We really enjoyed the museum last year as it had bits and pieces from previous years to give the fans a retrospective look at the event. This year it was set up to contain events from this years event only. The centrepiece was the tarot card reading table and chair from the TV commercial. The museum also displayed the Freddy, Jason, and Leatherface costumes from the commercial.
We could go on about what else they had but were sure youd just as soon look at the pics and see for yourself (if anyones even still reading the text
)
We were shown a brief video presentation which we weren't allowed to film. What we will say is it included a lot of clips from the Art of the Scare DVD they released in 2003 (with footage from the 2002 event).
After the video presentation we were off to our first house...
(to be continued...)
CriminyCrafft
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Cdn Friends of Pooh
DIS Veteran
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We were off to the first house which was Nightmare on Elm Street: Dreamwalkers. By the time we got to this tour we had been through this house a few times. While we liked it, we knew we were missing a lot of it because of the lighting effects. Only now were we about to realize just how much we were missing.
The story behind this house is that youre attending a demo for a sleep aid named Sleep Well. The entrance is where the product is on display and at night is fogged:
Following the storyline, the next room is where you are drifting off to sleep. In reality this is where you are having strobe lights being flashed at your eyes:
After having fallen asleep (gone blind
) you enter Freddys world and are greeted with the façade of the NOES house. At night you really dont get the appreciation for how well done this is:
Once you enter, you find yourself in the entrance hallway of the house just as it appeared in the movie. Even the staircase is in the right place:
After passing through the entrance hallway, you enter the replica of Johnny Depps room from the first NOES film. The room is a typical 80s teens bedroom except for one thing its built on its side so the floor of the room is a wall and you exit through the hole in the bed:
After leaving youre in a hospital facility where patients have overdosed on the dream suppressant Hypnocil (from Freddy vs Jason). Yes in one room youve jumped 7 movies. At night the sheets are backlit and a scareactor dressed as Freddy runs around behind them, casting a shadow along the sheets. There is another Freddy scareactor who pops out to scare the guests. The same scareactor also controls a foot pedal by one of the beds that, when pressed, makes the dummies all sit up. A little tidbit is the name on each patients vital stat screen is the same M. Aiello. This is a tribute to Mike Aiello, one of the designers of the house.
Leaving the hospital you find yourself in the mirror maze. Keep left!!
The next scenes involve a montage of some of Freddys most memorable kills. The sad thing is these are all so well done but you barely see them. After being through this house several times in the dark, we had no idea a few of these scenes were even there. Theres the girl with the tv set from part 3 (welcome to prime time), the prisoner in the cell hanging from part 1, the guy whose tendons are ripped out and used like marionette strings from part 3, and the final scene was intended to be Jason in reference to the FvJ movie but the contract with New Line prevented it. To replace it the dropped in another Freddy scareactor so YOU are Freddys next kill. We thought it was a good substitution:
The final scene is Freddys boiler room which at night is lit with red lights just like in the movies. The scene would look great if it was lit just a bit more but as it is you miss so much (unfortunately a common problem in this house).
That was the end of NOES...after we left this one we were off to Psychoscareapy: Home for the Holidays...
The story behind this house is that youre attending a demo for a sleep aid named Sleep Well. The entrance is where the product is on display and at night is fogged:
Following the storyline, the next room is where you are drifting off to sleep. In reality this is where you are having strobe lights being flashed at your eyes:
After having fallen asleep (gone blind
) you enter Freddys world and are greeted with the façade of the NOES house. At night you really dont get the appreciation for how well done this is:
Once you enter, you find yourself in the entrance hallway of the house just as it appeared in the movie. Even the staircase is in the right place:
After passing through the entrance hallway, you enter the replica of Johnny Depps room from the first NOES film. The room is a typical 80s teens bedroom except for one thing its built on its side so the floor of the room is a wall and you exit through the hole in the bed:
After leaving youre in a hospital facility where patients have overdosed on the dream suppressant Hypnocil (from Freddy vs Jason). Yes in one room youve jumped 7 movies. At night the sheets are backlit and a scareactor dressed as Freddy runs around behind them, casting a shadow along the sheets. There is another Freddy scareactor who pops out to scare the guests. The same scareactor also controls a foot pedal by one of the beds that, when pressed, makes the dummies all sit up. A little tidbit is the name on each patients vital stat screen is the same M. Aiello. This is a tribute to Mike Aiello, one of the designers of the house.
Leaving the hospital you find yourself in the mirror maze. Keep left!!
The next scenes involve a montage of some of Freddys most memorable kills. The sad thing is these are all so well done but you barely see them. After being through this house several times in the dark, we had no idea a few of these scenes were even there. Theres the girl with the tv set from part 3 (welcome to prime time), the prisoner in the cell hanging from part 1, the guy whose tendons are ripped out and used like marionette strings from part 3, and the final scene was intended to be Jason in reference to the FvJ movie but the contract with New Line prevented it. To replace it the dropped in another Freddy scareactor so YOU are Freddys next kill. We thought it was a good substitution:
The final scene is Freddys boiler room which at night is lit with red lights just like in the movies. The scene would look great if it was lit just a bit more but as it is you miss so much (unfortunately a common problem in this house).
That was the end of NOES...after we left this one we were off to Psychoscareapy: Home for the Holidays...
CriminyCrafft
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Amazing! Best HHN pics I've seen! Drooling on keyboard for more!
Cdn Friends of Pooh
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Just in case anyones still reading this, our next house was Psychoscareapy: Home for the Holidays. We had enjoyed the previous two Psychoscareapy houses in 2003 and 2006 and had our hopes up for this one. Having gone through it a few times we were not disappointed and would rank it amongst the best houses of the event.
The storyline behind this one was that the inmates of Shadybrook asylum had been out carolling on Christmas Eve when their van crashed into a home. Following the crash the inmates escaped and took over the neighbourhood.
As you look through the pics, notice all the clocks. They were all taken from the Back to the Future queue when the ride closed.
The house started with the crash scene:
The next scene is the living room of the home. There would be a scareactor on the couch fondling the van driver's head. Note the leg lamp their tribute to A Christmas Story which absolutely cracked us up:
The next scene was the kitchen. One thing we really like about HHN is how they try to affect all your senses, including smell. In the kitchen scene they had the scent of burning cookies. In the last pic with the limbs in the garbage disposal, youll see a piece of black screen covering a part of the sink. This is where water squirts at the guests.
After the kitchen you head into the dining room. We got a chuckle out of the animatronic Christmas Turkey sitting at the head of the table. You can see the cables in this pic but at night you cant see them.
After walking through the dining room you head outside and along the side of the house. Theres a scareactor waiting behind the Wilson fence:
When you get to the back of the house you get squirted again from this wood chipper a scareactor is feeding a body into.
This snowman was one of our favourites this pic is going on our Christmas cards this year:
You next make your way into the garage. There is a scareactor with a horn on a platform above the door that got Lee every time we went through.
After going through the garage you head into the second house:
After briefly passing through this house you head into the yard where a barbecue awaits you.
The next building you enter is the garage/workshop of the third house.
The final scene is a living room in the third house. One of these pics was a runner-up for our Christmas card. We may do some of each.
We lagged to the back of the tour group to get these pics with no-one else around. We were taking these pics when we heard the door close and realized we had been left behind. We quickly left and caught the group just as they were heading into the next house.
Note to any VIP tour guides who may be reading this count your group in between houses!
The storyline behind this one was that the inmates of Shadybrook asylum had been out carolling on Christmas Eve when their van crashed into a home. Following the crash the inmates escaped and took over the neighbourhood.
As you look through the pics, notice all the clocks. They were all taken from the Back to the Future queue when the ride closed.
The house started with the crash scene:
The next scene is the living room of the home. There would be a scareactor on the couch fondling the van driver's head. Note the leg lamp their tribute to A Christmas Story which absolutely cracked us up:
The next scene was the kitchen. One thing we really like about HHN is how they try to affect all your senses, including smell. In the kitchen scene they had the scent of burning cookies. In the last pic with the limbs in the garbage disposal, youll see a piece of black screen covering a part of the sink. This is where water squirts at the guests.
After the kitchen you head into the dining room. We got a chuckle out of the animatronic Christmas Turkey sitting at the head of the table. You can see the cables in this pic but at night you cant see them.
After walking through the dining room you head outside and along the side of the house. Theres a scareactor waiting behind the Wilson fence:
When you get to the back of the house you get squirted again from this wood chipper a scareactor is feeding a body into.
This snowman was one of our favourites this pic is going on our Christmas cards this year:
You next make your way into the garage. There is a scareactor with a horn on a platform above the door that got Lee every time we went through.
After going through the garage you head into the second house:
After briefly passing through this house you head into the yard where a barbecue awaits you.
The next building you enter is the garage/workshop of the third house.
The final scene is a living room in the third house. One of these pics was a runner-up for our Christmas card. We may do some of each.
We lagged to the back of the tour group to get these pics with no-one else around. We were taking these pics when we heard the door close and realized we had been left behind. We quickly left and caught the group just as they were heading into the next house.
Note to any VIP tour guides who may be reading this count your group in between houses!
Cdn Friends of Pooh
DIS Veteran
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- Jun 8, 2006
- Messages
- 6,324
One thing we absolutely loved about Dead Silence: The Curse of Mary Shaw was the temperature in the house. All the locals complained about it being too cold but it was very nice for us. We had seen the movie earlier in the summer, after it had been announced as a house for HHN. We enjoyed the movie but found as we watched it we were watching for things we thought would be good additions to a HHN house. We were quite pleased that most of the things we had thought would be good at HHN were actually included in this house.
The house started in the Ravens Fair Cemetery. The statue in the second pic is often used at HHN, last seen outside Screamhouse: Resurrected in 2006.
The next scene was the Walker Funeral Home. Those who attended HHN last year might remember Cindy, the girl in the coffin that was standing up in the parlour of Screamhouse: Resurrected. The Mary Shaw in the spilled coffin is actually Cindy in a mask.
After leaving the funeral home, your next stop is the Guignol Theatre. This was where they had that excellent catwalk effect. With the lights on we were able to take a picture of the scene mounted on the ceiling.
The next scene was Marys apartment above the theatre. The scareactor who sat in the wheelchair was excellent. He was so good at remaining absolutely still that a lot of people were unsure if he was a scareactor or a prop. All the items in the apartment are antiques that Universal scrounged from all over the country. We included a close-up pic of the perfect ventriloquist dummy schematics that was mounted on the wall. These were impossible to see at night and we missed them even with the lights on, only noticing them when we blew up the pic after we got home.
After leaving the apartment, you go down a hallway lined with portraits. Most of these are morphing portraits except for two that HHN vets will recognize. The Storyteller from 2005 and Cindys portrait from the Screamhouse houses in 2002, 2003, and 2006.
The end of this house has one of our favourite effects: the false hallway with the mirror. Its a very short space with a mirror at the end, which creates the illusion of a long hallway. Theres a scareactor who appears to be at the end of that hallway when in reality he is right behind you.
After we wrapped up this house we headed back to the museum for a Q&A sessions with several members of the A&D team.
It was good for us to get some insight as to what goes into designing any particular house and they really seemed to enjoy the opportunity to get feedback from the guests. It was supposed to be a brief thing but it ended up lasting over 2 hours. Lee got along very well with a few of them as they had so much in common. At one point Bonny even commented Gawd they remind me of you!!
After we were done our Secrets of the Sideshow Tour, we decided that we couldnt wait any longer and we decided to head to MK to check out the refurbed Haunted Mansion.
The house started in the Ravens Fair Cemetery. The statue in the second pic is often used at HHN, last seen outside Screamhouse: Resurrected in 2006.
The next scene was the Walker Funeral Home. Those who attended HHN last year might remember Cindy, the girl in the coffin that was standing up in the parlour of Screamhouse: Resurrected. The Mary Shaw in the spilled coffin is actually Cindy in a mask.
After leaving the funeral home, your next stop is the Guignol Theatre. This was where they had that excellent catwalk effect. With the lights on we were able to take a picture of the scene mounted on the ceiling.
The next scene was Marys apartment above the theatre. The scareactor who sat in the wheelchair was excellent. He was so good at remaining absolutely still that a lot of people were unsure if he was a scareactor or a prop. All the items in the apartment are antiques that Universal scrounged from all over the country. We included a close-up pic of the perfect ventriloquist dummy schematics that was mounted on the wall. These were impossible to see at night and we missed them even with the lights on, only noticing them when we blew up the pic after we got home.
After leaving the apartment, you go down a hallway lined with portraits. Most of these are morphing portraits except for two that HHN vets will recognize. The Storyteller from 2005 and Cindys portrait from the Screamhouse houses in 2002, 2003, and 2006.
The end of this house has one of our favourite effects: the false hallway with the mirror. Its a very short space with a mirror at the end, which creates the illusion of a long hallway. Theres a scareactor who appears to be at the end of that hallway when in reality he is right behind you.
After we wrapped up this house we headed back to the museum for a Q&A sessions with several members of the A&D team.
It was good for us to get some insight as to what goes into designing any particular house and they really seemed to enjoy the opportunity to get feedback from the guests. It was supposed to be a brief thing but it ended up lasting over 2 hours. Lee got along very well with a few of them as they had so much in common. At one point Bonny even commented Gawd they remind me of you!!
After we were done our Secrets of the Sideshow Tour, we decided that we couldnt wait any longer and we decided to head to MK to check out the refurbed Haunted Mansion.
thunderbird1
DIS Veteran
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- Aug 18, 2005
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IF we're still reading--puh-lease. My dd has been asking me daily if the pictures were up yet. Excellent photos--you got a "gross!" out of her, along with one of these: 
. So, is it even possible to be impressed by the HM, even the new and improved version, after attending HHN? Thanks again for the detailed TR!
. So, is it even possible to be impressed by the HM, even the new and improved version, after attending HHN? Thanks again for the detailed TR!
Cdn Friends of Pooh
DIS Veteran
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- Jun 8, 2006
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- 6,324
Over the past few days we've been seriously thinking of cancelling the rest of the TR due to lack of interest and asking the mods to remove the thread. We only had one reply to several updates over the past week and figured no one was interested.
ATAfamily
"We can stay up late swapping manly stories, and i
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- Jan 23, 2005
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Over the past few days we've been seriously thinking of cancelling the rest of the TR due to lack of interest and asking the mods to remove the thread. We only had one reply to several updates over the past week and figured no one was interested.
OMG!
Are you kidding? Every updated installment 
leaves me begging for more
Sorry to make you feel unappreciated
Over the past few days we've been seriously thinking of cancelling the rest of the TR due to lack of interest and asking the mods to remove the thread. We only had one reply to several updates over the past week and figured no one was interested.
hey, what am i chopped liver?
you know i am reading them........and i love it all, lee and bonny.
are you seriously thinking of having your thread pulled......
well, if you do that i will just have to go to canada and hunt you down like a rapid dog (jk)....then stay with you for a week to get the end of the report..
begging that you will continue
me 5 ...........
hip hip hooray...........
and i am still hanging in there to read the rest of the trippie.
you both are great at them!
Star Tours Fan
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Apr 29, 2007
- Messages
- 17
Hey I lurk so I'm still reading. 
Ya know I am. When is the other installment up? Wanna read more.
Ya know I am. When is the other installment up? Wanna read more.
CriminyCrafft
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Sep 11, 2006
- Messages
- 331
I really hope you finish the TR. But I understand your frustration - I feel like no one has been reading my Halloween TR. I think I have like 1600 views, while some other TRs have 40,000! It's a lot of work to put in when you feel like no one's reading. BUT you do have some devoted followers, including me, so sincerely hope you continue on! I LOVE your TR!
TnkrBoo
Mouseketeer
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- Mar 28, 2007
- Messages
- 91
Hey guys! I just found your trip report today ( a little late I know). I loved your last trip report and think your pictures are just amazing. Those Spaceship Earth ones are unbelievable. Have you guys ever been to Knotts Berry Farms Halloween Haunt out in California? I go almost every year but after seeing US HHN I think I may start going to the US out here instead. The detail and storylines seem so cool, thats something you dont get at Knotts Halloween Haunt.
Those Spaceship Earth ones are unbelievable. Have you guys ever been to Knotts Berry Farms Halloween Haunt out in California? I go almost every year but after seeing US HHN I think I may start going to the US out here instead. The detail and storylines seem so cool, thats something you dont get at Knotts Halloween Haunt.
Cdn Friends of Pooh
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jun 8, 2006
- Messages
- 6,324
OK everyone ... a new installment will be up this weekend some time, so stay tuned
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