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Scare Acting at the Mystery Manor with Rich Christensen

Scare ActingIn this episode of HaunTopic Radio, we kidnap our new HaunTopic Crew Member Rich Christensen for an hour and try to steal all of his Haunting secrets. We talk Home Haunting on a budget, Scare Acting Advice, and Growing Up Halloween.

Rich has been a Halloween Enthusiast since he was younger and today he prides himself with finding cheap or free materials to build his new Halloween experiments. He uses his talent in each of our Haunter’s Toolbox segments with cheap and easy audio prop tutorials. He started Omaha Metro Haunters to find like minded Haunters in his local area and to help spark ideas for the Halloween season. Rich is also a scare actor for the Mystery Manor Haunted Theatre in Omaha, Nebraska which has been in operation for 30 years!

Also, make sure to listen to the middle of the podcast where Brian does a Haunter’s Toolbox segment on The 5 Types of Scare Actors. Some useful tips and tricks for scare acting for your next Halloween season!

The Back Story of The Mystery Manor

Built in 1887, this once magnificent dwelling was the home of William and Greta Hall. The meeting place of the elite of Omaha, it was dubbed Hall Manor by those who frequented its confines. The happy times ended on October 23, 1929 when the stock market crashed. By the end of the day William Hall, his vast fortune gone, was a broken man… and quite insane!

Late that night, in a blinding rage of madness, he took his ax from its place in the shed and attacked his dear Greta, chopping her body into pieces until his frenzy had abated. The next morning, realizing with horror what he had done, he carefully placed his wife’s remains in a shallow grave in the front yard of her beloved Manor.

A week later, Greta’s brother John Martin avenged his sister’s brutal murder by hacking up his former brother-in-law with the same ax. He reunited the couple in that shallow grave. The next night, Halloween, John Martin’s body was found at the grave sight with the ax imbedded in his skull.

Some believe the ghost of William Hall killed John Martin. To this day, the murder of John Martin remains a mystery – hence the name “Mystery Manor”. It has been widely rumored that the ghost of William Hall still wanders these halls every October waiting for strangers to come so that he might resume his terrible vengeance upon any soul who enters his home.

Find Out More About the Mystery Manor & Rich Christensen:

 

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A hand crafted Clown latex mask from Face Factory FX

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A 2014 Haunted Halloween Calendar (with Haunt Photos from all over the world!)

Haunted Halloween Calendar

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How to Make a Prop Controller and Use Automation Software with Lee Alder

how to make a prop controllerHave you ever tried to make a prop controller for your Halloween props? Looking for free computer software to integrate with your existing prop controllers? Have you ever thought about tapping into the Christmas Community for advice on programming your mini lights or animatronics? Lee Alder meets us in the dungeon to walk us through some basic prop controller techniques, how to make your own animatronic triggers, and using computer software to operate all of your animated props…much from the Christmas community. Lee likes Christmas but is also a strong supporter of Halloween decorating and scaring the trick-or-treaters at his home each October.

Beware!! This podcast episode gets a bit technical and refers to Christmas many times but is stuffed full of helpful advice for those searching for a great starting place for building your own animatronic operating system. Us Halloweenies can learn much about lighting and automation from these Christmas guys. If you find yourself getting lost in the audio check out the links below for some visual aids and video to help you build your own.

Lee recommends using Vixen 2 as a free software program for automating your lights/props and lists various types of controllers to try. He even goes into detail on how to make a prop controller for just a few dollars. Vixen is software for do-it-yourself lighting automation displays. Most popular at Christmas, computer-controlled displays are becoming increasingly popular for other holidays (such as Halloween) as well. With a PC and some hardware, anyone can have a professional-looking lighting display synchronized to music.

So if you want to get into building your own prop controllers, playing with automation software, or want to start animating your lights and props then listen to this episode and check out the links below. This will help you get started…

Haunt Topics in this episode:

 

This video is just an example of what is possible with automation software. You can design a elaborate light display like this or use it to control props, lights, foggers, music, etc.

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Halloween Memories with Darryl and Brian (and a few extra guests)

Vintage HalloweenDo you remember when the Halloween Bug bit you? Do you have unforgettable memories of Halloween when you were growing up? What do you do now to celebrate the month of October?

We talk about our upbringings as children and young adults as the Halloween infection spread through our tingling unscathed virgin bodies. Halloween has a way of grabbing a hold of some people and not letting go. If you are still reading this post then you have probably been bitten by the Halloween Bug and can relate to this twisted obsession. You are not alone.

We also add a few audio clips from a few of our guests as they share their experiences along their journey as a Halloween Junkie. You will hear stories from Leonard Pickel (HAuNTcon), The Bloodshed Brothers (Field of Screams), Eric Lowther (Haunted Overload), Matthew Flagler (The Canadian Haunted Attraction Conference), & Chris Ainsworth (ScareFest).

Whether it’s the crowded neighborhoods on Halloween night, filling up pillow cases full of Snickers and Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, or scaring the little children that stroll innocently through the dark streets…we all have favorite memories from our Halloween past. The important thing is that we continue to reflect back into what excited us about this wonderful holiday and carry those thoughts into our future.

So…what are your favorite memories from Halloween? How did you know that you were infested with Halloween?

 

Haunt Topics for this Episode:

  • A NEW Contest for Haunters. ‘Hack a Christmas Prop Contest’ by Haunt Nation Mag (Deadline Jan.3)
  • The Home Haunt Contest (Contest Expired but check out these awesome Home Haunts!)
  • Thanks to Matthew Freyer for his awesome Haunt Graphic Skills! Find him here for your Haunted House Graphics.

 

Do You Have Halloween or Haunted House Products You Would Like to Promote on Our Show? We are Looking for Prizes to Give Away to Our Listeners.

Contact Us Today.

 

Haunted Attraction Reviews & How To Make Your Haunt Better with Onezumiverse

oniandharknellHaunted Attraction Reviews are often hard to believe or difficult to trust. After you listen to our interview with Oni Hartstein and James Harknell from Onezumiverse.com, you might just change your mind. James and Oni have been reviewing Haunted Attractions since 2008 and try to keep their opinion unbiased and more focused on the creativity of the event.

They definitely look for the scary ones but there is more to Haunted Attractions than just scary. With each Haunt they go through they reset their haunt radar and pay attention to different aspects of each one. Innovation, Back Stories, Set Design, Scare Acting, Queue Line Entertainment, and the Complete Experience are just a few things they focus on as they enter a Haunted House.

If you live on the East Coast and are looking for an honest review of your Haunted Attraction, then Oni and James want to hear from you!

Topics We Discuss in This Episode:

  • The different types of Haunted Attractions and how to experience each one.
  • How to make your Haunted House the best attraction that it can be.
  • Haunted Attractions that you need to visit that you may not know about.
  • How to scare a Haunted Attraction reviewer…and everyone else.

More about OneZumiVerse:

 The Winners of the October Giveaway from The Haunter’s Toolbox are:

  1. Dan Caulfield
  2. Vince Parsons
  3. Charlie McAllister

Shooting Zombies at Haunted Hollywood Sports with Mario Garit

Zombie AirsoftWith 23 Acres of Terror and the Official Home of the Original Zombie Kill House…..Haunted Hollywood Sports is a Halloween event in Southern California based at Hollywood Sports Park in the city of Bellflower. With 2 scare-zones, 3 walk-through mazes, and 3 interactive Kill Houses, an 18 and over Club, Shooting Range, and Group E-Photo Booth; HHS brings in a new level of terror for Halloween 2013.

If you are looking for a complete interactive adrenaline packed experience and a chance to shoot zombies, you won’t want to miss the scares at Haunted Hollywood Sports!

In this episode of HaunTopic Radio, we chat with our West Coast connection Mario Garit about his experience at the Haunted Hollywood Sports Complex and just how awesome the staff & crew treated him on his zombie mission. With elaborate Hollywood sets (most from the 1999 film The Haunting), a well-trained zombie horde, and a creepy atmosphere….this is one event that you must check out! For an extensive article and review, read this from our friends at Theme Park Adventure: Haunted Hollywood Sports Rises From the Grave

 

 

More About Haunted Hollywood Sports:

 

More About Mario Garit:

 

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