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Illinois
Haunter's Gathering
Hosted by Dream Reapers Haunted
House
January 15th, 2005
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On January 15th, 2005, Dream Reapers Haunted House hosted a social gathering for local Haunted Attractions. More than 40 haunters were in attendance from six different Haunted Houses:
Dream Reapers Haunted
House, Rockford ScreamFest,
Eleventh Hour Haunted
House, Statesville Haunted
Prison, Nightmares: Basement of the Dead and the
Brookfield Jaycees Haunted
House. Throughout the afternoon, attendees were invited to walk through Dream Reapers, so they could get a behind the scenes view of the event. There was also some entertainment provided. Movies were being shown on a big screen TV; when I arrived, “13 Ghosts” was the movie of choice. Haunted House owners & actors were able to mingle and socialize with people from other Haunted Attractions, which is something
they rarely get to do throughout the year.
Misc.
Picture Gallery
(click on the
pictures below to enlarge) |
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In an impromptu discussion with the whole group, Ken Spriggs (Dream Reapers), Randy Daniels (Rockford ScreamFest) and others expressed the importance of cooperation and cross-promotion among local Haunted Attractions. There was even talk of Chicagoland Haunted House groups banding together to create an association of local Haunted Attractions. On a related topic, Steve Verdino announced the launch of his new website
HauntedConnection.com. This site features an automated database, which allows actors to post bios & pictures of themselves, and up to three of their characters online. It also has a search feature, allowing visitors to search for actors by geographical location.
Later in the afternoon, Dream Reapers held a free make-up seminar. In this demonstration, attendees were shown the step-by-step process of simulating third degree burns (see pictures below).
Make-up
Seminar: Simulating Third Degree Burns
(click on the
pictures below to enlarge) |
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A good time was had by all. By the end of the afternoon, there was talk of Haunted House owners hosting gatherings like this on a regular basis. Some of the groups in attendance even offered to host actor training and
make-up classes, at subsequent gatherings. Kudos to Dream Reapers Haunted House and all of the other groups who
were involved. It is gatherings like these that help to foster a feeling of
camaraderie and cooperation throughout the Haunted Attraction Industry.
Happy Haunting,
Webmaster of HauntedIllinois.com
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