New Page: The Graveyard of Lost Halloween Haunts

A little pre-Halloween housekeeping: I have just added a new page to the Halloween Haunts section of Hollywood Gothique. Entitled, “Graveyard of Lost Halloween Haunts,” this page collects all of the various Halloween events in Los Angeles that have passed into the dust of history: Halloween Haunted Houses & Hayrides, Halloween Yard Haunts, Community Halloween Haunts, and Halloween Horror Shows & Excursions.  Think of the page as a moldy vault of arcane knowledge, an ancient archive of esoteric lore, a museum dedicated to the memory of mazes and monsters that have shuffled off this mortal coil.

The Graveyard of Lost Halloween Haunts is a bit overdue, really. For years, I have maintained listings for defunct Halloween events, for two reasons:

1. There is always a chance that a Halloween attraction could return from the grave. The Fright Gallery went on hiatus for a couple seasons before returning for one last hurrah. In 2007, Boney Island yard haunt closed up shop, supposedly for good, then unveiled a grand new show in 2011. On a professional level, FrightFair ScreamPark missed a year or two in Los Angeles while working out of state, then resumed with an even larger event.
2. I think it is important to keep information available to Halloween fanatics. If you are looking for information on your favorite haunt from last year, and all you find is a broken url, you never know for sure whether the haunt has dissipated or simply moved to a new web host. By keeping the listings intact and up-to-date, we could tell confused consumers that there were indeed no new dates scheduled for the attraction they had enjoyed so much the previous October.

Why, then, have I finally opted to bury these ancient artifacts in the Graveyard of Lost Halloween Haunts? Quite simply: on too many pages, the dearly departed were outnumbering the living – a situation that makes for exciting suspense in a zombie movie but creates unnecessary confusion when searching for information about active Halloween events in Los Angeles. Rather than deleting such beloved haunts as the Hallowed Haunting Grounds, Grimmstone Cemetery, Spooky House, Turbidite Manor, and the Haunted Vineyard, I have chosen to preserve it for future reference.

I have tried to err on the side of caution. Halloween haunts that have gone on hiatus, with a promise to return, will remain listed under appropriate categories (such as Halloween Haunts for Children or Theme Park Halloween Attractions). Also, erratic haunts (some amateur Halloween events seem to come and go almost at random) will remain in place, until we hear definite word of their demise. Bottom line: if we have not heard a peep out of the coffin for a few years, we bury the coffin.

Hopefully this will make it easier to navigate through the profusion of Halloween events listed on our pages, finding news about what is actually happening this Halloween. On the other hand, if you are seeking information on a haunt that seems to be missing in action, check out the graveyard.

The Graveyard of Lost Haunts can be found here.