Hollywood Gothique

Halloween 2010

Haunt OdysseyYard Haunts

2010 Halloween Haunt Odyssey: Burbank Museums & Mazes

Hollywood Gothique’s 2010’s Halloween Haunt Odyssey – an annual tour of amateur yard haunts – begins in Burbank, which seems to have become the bleeding, beating heart of Halloween in the San Fernando valley. Within an easily drivable distance are no less than four worthwhile haunts, with several other decorated yards also in the area: Spider-Lights, the Backwoods Maze, Nightmare Junction, and Rotten Apple 907’s Nightmare at the Museum. Click through for details.

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The Vault

2010: Another Halloween Come and Gone

Sigh. Where did the time go? It seems as if only last week Disneyland, Knotts Scary Farm, and Universal Studios Hollywood were launching their annual Halloween events, as if only yesterday the Queen Mary and Six Flags Magic Mountain were getting in on the act, as if only this morning the amateur yard haunts were powering up (well, that last part is almost true, at least in some cases). Now, it’s past midnight of October 31, 2010; November 1 has arrived, and another Halloween has come and gone.

No more will the night ring with shrieks of delightful fright; no more will monsters haunt not only our dreams but also our waking hours; no more will friends, family, neighbors, and other acquaintances openly share the macabre obsessions – the love for the dark and the mysterious – that drive us year-round, that provide the dark lining to the silver clouds of our lives.

Perhaps we may escape into the occasional movie house to enjoy the communal fear engendered by something like PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 2, or visit the occasional horror-themed convention, but for the most part it’s back to the vaults for us fun-loving ghouls and ghosts. We must retreat to our graves and close the tombstones before the sun shines down upon us tomorrow. Into the dark we go, sated and yet sad, having supped deeply of Halloween horrors yet still yearning for the feast to go on. For now we must rest beneath the earth, in our coffins, sustaining ourselves upon the memories of these past weeks. We must sleep the vampire’s sleep.

Until next Halloween…

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The Vault

2010 Must-See Halloween Haunts

It’s the final weekend; time is running out! You have paused and prevaricated, allowing the October days to slip through your fingers, and now you are in a last-minute flurry, trying to see as much as you can before midnight of November 1 arrives, bringing Halloween to a conclusion. In this limited two-day window of Saturday and Sunday, what are the absolutely essentail Halloween haunts that you must see in 2010? Read on to find out…

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The Vault

Halloween Horror 2010: Final Weekend – What’s Left?

Planning your Halloween Weekend? Wondering What to do with these final days of October? Looking for something new and different? With the opening of the Theatre 68 Haunted House this past Friday, all of Los Angeles’s professional Halloween haunts are in full swing, leaving the Halloween yard haunts to dominate the concluding weekend of October, along with various horror movie screenings. Here is a rundown of Halloween events and attractions opening around Los Angeles this weekend.

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Funhouses, Mazes & Walkthroughs

Nightmare: A Haunted Attraction at Fairplex: 2010 Review

Dates: October 14-16, 21-23, 28-31
Location: Fairplex, 1101 W. McKinley Avenue, Pomona, CA 91765
. For 2010, Nightmare at Scareview Farms expands to five mazes and adds some other entertainment as well. If the results seem stretched a little thin, the haunt still offers solid Halloween entertainment for those who enjoy a good scare in a setting that is more fun than frightening.

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Funhouses, Mazes & Walkthroughs

Reign of Terror Review: Asylum

Dates: October 15-16, 22-24, 28-31
Location: Janss Marketplace, 215 North Moorpark Road in Thousand Oaks
In the past, we ranked Reign of Terror among our “Must-See Halloween Haunts for 2009,” but we never quite pinpointed exactly where it ranked in that exalted upper echelon of delightfully horrible Halloween entertainment. Well, the fence-sitting finally ends here. For 2010, we feel confident in declaring that Reign of Terror is the best walk-through attraction we have encountered this Halloween.

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Drive-Thrus & RidesOutdoor Trails & Displays

Heritage Haunt 2010: Review

Dates: October 15-16, 22-23, 29-30, from 6:00 to 9:30pm
Location: Heritage Junction, 24151 Newhall Ave, Newhall, CA 91322
For Halloween 2010, Heritage Haunt continues to expand its number of attractions. As sometimes happens, the increased activities leads to a dilution of the original appeal – in this case, the severe truncation of the event’s signature haunted house. Fortunately, there are compensations, most notably in the form of a lengthy Hayride of Nightmares, which offers more than enough Halloween horror to satisfy thrill-seeking trick-or-treaters.

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