Sept. 5, 2024

NEWS: HHN Orlando Opens to Mixed Reviews

Show Notes
Transcript

Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Orlando Resort opened to mixed reviews this past weekend; Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios Hollywood announces "Late Night with Chucky" live talk show; Go behind-the-scenes of HHN's "A Quiet Place" and "Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire" with Theme Park Insider and Attractions Magazine; Six Flags Magic Mountain will implement a chaperone policy for Fright Fest Extreme; The Broadway Halloween parade needs a hero sponsor by September 6th or its 2024 event may be cancelled; Coffin Creek cancels their 2024 event; Dinosaur World hosts its first-ever Halloween after-hours event; The Ghost Train is returning to Tweetsie Railroad this Fall; Alton Towers announces two new Scarefest attractions - "Compound" and "Amigos in the Afterlife"; Freeform announces its "31 Nights of Halloween" lineup; American consumers are planning to spend more on Halloween candy, food, and costumes than 2023. Read the news here.

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Coming up your weekly roundup of news from around the

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haunt industry. Welcome to the show. I'm Philip on the

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HN Show. We bring you the hant news, information and

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education you need to prepare for Halloween. On Tuesdays, we

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bring you a roundup of news from haunts worldwide. Read

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more about these stories and so much more in our

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free weekly newsletter. Subscribe at the link in the show notes,

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and as always for the news roundup, I'm passing it

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off to Darryl.

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The Haunted Attraction Networks. Hauntathon has begun. Our Hantathon is

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the annual sixty one day celebration of haunted attractions from

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September first through October thirty first. Tune in for the

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largest celebration of haunted houses anywhere, featuring videos, podcasts, and more.

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Presenting daily content through Halloween, the Haunted Attraction Network and

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our programming partners will give you unparalleled peaks into haunted

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attractions worldwide. To listen, you can subscribe on Spotify, iTunes

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using RSS, or by searching Haunted Attraction Network in any

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podcast player. You can watch shorts on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.

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For full length content, follow the YouTube channel and subscribe

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to our newsletter for a full list of content links

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each week. Just follow the links in our show notes

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below and you will be able to find everything that

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we're offering for twenty twenty four. Twenty twenty four's programming

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partners include Attractions Magazine, Kevin Haymback, The Haunted Attraction Association,

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and The Scare Factor. While we are closed for submissions

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for our twenty twenty four Haunted On programming content, all

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Haunts are still welcome to send us their press releases

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and news to feature in our weekly newsletters and podcasts.

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Email Philip at the Haunted Attraction Network with your news.

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Theme parks around the country are opening their Halloween attractions

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earlier than ever before to boost attendance. Although in general

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consumers are pulling back on spending and regular season theme

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park attendants has dropped from the steep post pandemic demand,

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the Halloween season has still held strong. We actually see

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a growth every year in terms of Halloween events, not

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only in North America but across the world, said International

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Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions CEO Jacob Wall last

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week's twenty twenty three Global Attractions Attendance Report. From the

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tea slash ae com specifically called out Halloween and its

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importance to theme parks. Learn more about the report's findings

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in last week's Green Tagged podcast. Halloween Horror Knights at

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Universal Orlando Resort opened this past weekend. The events featured

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ten haunted houses, five scare zones, enter the Blumhouse, Duality

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of Fear, demon Queens, Swamp of the Undead, and Torture Fair,

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live entertainment, themed food, and more. Dive deeper into the

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opening weekend with Philip and Scott on this weekend's Green

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Tagged podcast. Halloween Horror Nights Orlando runs through November three.

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Tickets are on sale now. Halloween Horror Nights at Universal

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Studios Hollywood in Universal City, California announced Late Night with Chucky,

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an all original live talk show located in the DreamWorks Theater.

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Chucky is your host, and he's ready to roast with

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his signature self deprecating humor. The interactive attraction will invite

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guests to submit questions for Chucky to answer via a

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QR code available in the lobby of the theater. But

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if this temperamental host doesn't appreciate the question, guests may

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end up like his production team, who have been eliminated

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from their position permanently. Halloween Horror Nights run select nights

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September fifth through November three. Tickets are on sale now.

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Both Halloween Horror Nights Hollywood and Orlando feature mazes based

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on the popular ips A Quiet Place and Ghostbusters Frozen Empires.

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Theme Park Insider and Attractions magazines were able to go

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behind the scenes of these mazes in Hollywood, California, with

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creative director John Murdy to learn just how designers brought

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these filmic worlds to life. In a Quiet Place, special

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attention was paid to the audio design. Instead of using

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large speakers up high, smaller speakers were hidden close to guests,

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ears being integrated into the scenic props and dressing. The

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maze also marks the first time American sign language will

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be integrated into the HHN maze, from a fully asl

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pre show video to characters in their maze signing simple

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phrases to guests. Lastly, the six puppeted monster effects and

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four fully animated creatures in this maze will be some

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of the most advanced characters Universal has ever created for

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an HHN event. Ghostbusters Frozen Empire will embody the comically

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horrific fun of the film with easter eggs and callbacks

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from the entire Ghostbusters franchise. Be sure to be on

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the lookout for dozens of many staypuffed marshmallow men attacking

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each other in scenes throughout the maze. Six Flags Magic

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Mountain of Valencia, California, will implement a chaperone policy beginning

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September seventh for the upcoming fright Fest Extreme. Under the

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new policy, all guests fifteen years older younger must be

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accompanied by a chaperone who is at least twenty one

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years old to be admitted or to remain in the

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park during FrightFest Extreme. One chaperon may a company up

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to ten guests. Six Flags said it is implementing this

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policy after an increase of incidence of unruly and inappropriate

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behavior in the theme park industry and other entertainment venues.

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A similar policy was enacted by notts Berry Farm in

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Buena Park, California, in twenty twenty two as a response

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to similar concerns. The Broadway Helloween Parade in Denver, Colorado

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is looking for a hero sponsor by September sixth. The

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parade is currently scheduled for October nineteenth, but an expected

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twenty six thousand dollars bill for pedestrian barricades is putting

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this year's event in jeopardy. We need someone to come

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along and give a big twenty to twenty five thousand

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dollars sponsorship to really even think about doing this, says

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Luke Johnson, president of the Broadway Merchants Association, who puts

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on the annual parade with over thirty thousand attendees in

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twenty twenty three. The BMA has worked with a Denver

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police department to create a safety plan for this year's event.

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The barricades were their best solution to keep routs safe.

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We've run it on a shoe string budget every year,

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Johnson says. We've tried to keep this absolutely as cheap

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as possible. Unfortunately, I don't think that can continue because

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we just don't have the money to cover the basics

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to keep it going. Fundraising is the only way the

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BMA will be able to continue this year. Learn more

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about the event and sponsorship opportunities at their official website.

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Coffin Creek in Corona, California has canceled their twenty twenty

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four Halloween event. Due to City and Parks Department restrictions,

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the Haunt will be unable to operate for this upcoming season.

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They have made arrangements with the nearby Fear Farm in Chino,

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California to honor any purchased Coffin Creek tickets during their

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operating nights. Fear Farm is able to scan any Coffin

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Creek ticket as is, there is no need for ticket

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holders to exchange tickets. Coffin Creek looks forward to returning

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in twenty twenty five. Dinosaur World in Plant City, Florida,

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will present its first ever Halloween after hours of event

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Jurassic Haunt The Curse on Earth select nights October eleventh

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through twenty sixth, with a special preview night October fifth.

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Legends tell of a group of explorers who ventured far

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from here and unearthed something they shouldn't have. Now, a

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mysterious curse is spreading, and it's up to you to

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help break it. Embark on a family friendly journey through

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themed scare zones, haunted train rides, and festive food and spirits.

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Costumes in Halloween attire are encouraged, but those aged thirteen

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plus may not wear masks, face paint or costumes that

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completely cover their faces, and toy weapons are prohibited regardless

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of age. Tickets are on sale now for fifteen dollars

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per person. The Ghost Train is returning to tweet See

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Railroad in Blowing Rock, North Carolina, September twentieth through October

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twenty six. By day, tweets See Railroad is wild West,

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but as the sun sets it changes to a haunted park.

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The Titular Train ride is a twenty minute excursion where

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surprises weight around every bend. The event also features a

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haunt House, Freaky Forest walk through indoor Woodland, Spooky Experience,

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Creepy Carnival, and more. Enjoy trick or treat with costume

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cloud characters throughout the park, a Spirited street dance party,

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and Tweetzy Palace spectacular show that combines the magic of

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puppetry with spooky tunes. Tickets are on sale now, starting

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at sixty dollars for adult forty dollars for child ages

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three to twelve. In International haunt and Event News, Alton

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Towers and Alten UK has unveiled two new Scarefest attractions

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for the twenty twenty four Halloween season. Compound and Amigos

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in the Afterlife in a scare Maze compound. Bravely step

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forward and find yourself as subject of the Phalanx, guarded

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by their relentless operatives, plunged into a sinister sci fi

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experiment where your DNA is the next weapon. Can you

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escape their clutches or will you become the next target

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for the experiments lurking within? Amigos in the Afterlife is

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a family scare attraction taking over the previous location of

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the Alton Towers Dungeon. Step foot into a vibrant word

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world where the gap between this life and the next

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is at its thinnest. Be captivated by the Dia delas

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Muertos celebrations, the bright colors and festive spirits. Guided by

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friendly spirits, you must find your way back to the

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world of the living by completing tasks to earn your

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return passage. These two new attractions will join returning favorites

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including dazz Games, Panic Reloaded, Altonville Mind Tours, Tiny's Revenge,

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The Attic Terror of the Towers, Tricko treat Town with

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harrowbo and the Burgial Ground Scare Zone. Scare Fast runs

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October eleventh through November three. Tickets are on sale now,

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starting at thirty seven pounds per person. Grab your popcorn

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and pumpkin spice lattes and get ready to settle in

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for a month of frightfully fun films with free Forms

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thirty one Nights of Halloween. From Halloween classics like Hocus Pocas,

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Halloween Town, and The Adventures of Ichabod and Mister Toad,

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to recent spooky favorites like twenty twenty three's Haunted Mansion,

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Ruela and Ghostbusters Afterlife, there is something for everyone in

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this year's lineup. Binge Session Season one of the Disney

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Plus hit series Goosebumps will air in its entirety on Friday,

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October twenty fifth. Thirty one Nights of Helloween starts on

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October first. Check out Freeform's entire scheduled lineup on their website.

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According to a new Advantage Outlook survey of Helloween shoppers,

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American consumers are planning on spending more on Halloween candy, food,

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and costumes and decorations this year, surpassing the twelve point

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two billion dollar record sales from twenty twenty three. Over

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the past four years, Helloween like many other holidays, has

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proven to be a resilient investment for both retailers and consumers,

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even amid economic uncertainly, says Kelly Ravenstein, Senior vice president

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of Commerce Intelligence at Advantage Unified Commerce. This trend reflects

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the broader consumer behavior where individuals are tightening their budgets

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on everyday expenses, yet remain unwilling to sacrifice their cherished

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holidays and small luxuries. Half of shoppers plan to spend

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more than fifty one dollars on candy, and fifty nine

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percent plan to spend that amount on food for Halloween,

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up from just twenty one and twenty nine percent, respectively

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in twenty twenty three. Similar increases are projected for costumes

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and decoration. Some upcoming events this September through November include

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creep It Real Nostalgic September fourteenth and fifteenth in Santa Anna, California,

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creep by e Con September twentieth through twenty second in Ontario, California,

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Son of Monster Palooza October eleventh through thirteenth in Burbank, California.

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Creep It Real Festive November twenty second through twenty third

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in Santa Ana California. Other So Cal Halloween advents include

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The Oogie Boogie Bash in Disney, California, Adventure Halloween Horror

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Nights and Universal Studios. The Body of Sierra Malloy in

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North Hollywood, Right Best Extreme Magic Mountain, Valencia, Monsters Exhibition

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of Horrors in Santa Monica, Not Scary Farm at knotts

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Berry Farm in Buena Park, The Vampire Circus in Hollywood,

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Castle Dark and Riverside de Luja, The Red Castle in

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Los Angeles, Los Angeles. Haunted Hayride in Los Angeles, Magic

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of the Jacko Lanterns in South El Monte, Queen Mary's

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Dark Harbor in Long Beach, Fearfarm Ie and Chino Hallo

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Scream in SeaWorld, San Diego, Reign of Terror in Thousand Domes,

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Urban Death Tour of Terror in North Hollywood, Boney Island

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in Los Angeles, The Haunted Car Wash in Anaheim and

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in Lakewood, Creep La Ghost in Los Angeles, The House

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of Spirits in Glendale, and sank To Susanna in Los Angeles.

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Remember to listen daily as Haunted on twenty twenty four

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continues through October thirty.

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First, and that's all for the news. This week.

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Today's episode was produced by me Philip Ernandez, with reporting

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by Daryl Plunky. Post production by David Swope.

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This haunt News Update is.

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A production of the Haunted Attraction Network and you can

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sign up to our weekly newsletter at Haunted Attraction Network

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dot com. Support for this episode comes from Ghantam Lighting

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and Controls. Until next time, Haunters, Stay Scary. This is

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a Haunted Attraction Network production.

NEWS: HHN Orlando Opens to Mixed Reviews

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