|
|
 |
Ripley's Presents:
The Haunted Adventure
Terry Evanswood
Believe it or not...Ripley has done it again! The Ripley
name has long been a cornerstone in the world of dark entertainment. An
international sensation in major cities and tourist destinations around the
world, the Ripley’s
Believe It Or Not Museums have invited visitors to
explore the world of the Odd, Unusual and the Unbelievable. The latest venture
for this prominent entertainment company is into the competitive realm of
Haunted Attractions!
Nestled in the beautiful foothills of East Tennessee are the
cities of Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg. Each year, an estimated 11 million
tourists visit the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, making it the highest
attended national park in the country. The city of Gatlinburg, considered the
"Gateway to the Smokies," has consequently become a major family
vacation destination. The Ripley Company has had a prominent presence in the
city of Gatlinburg since 1970, with a Believe It Or Not Museum, a soon to open
Aquarium of the Smokies, Moving Theater and now Ripley's invites you to
"Explore Your Nightmare" in their latest creepy creation, Ripley’s
Haunted Adventure!
Just past traffic light #8, a foreboding presence now towers
over the parkway. On July 2, 1999, Ripley Entertainment, Inc. officially
opened the creaking doors of Haunted Adventure. Both the curious and courageous
are offered tours of the remains of the Grimsby and Streaper Casket Company.
Not only has Ripley's developed this entire new attraction literally from the
ground up, but they have also created an elaborate ‘legend’ to add to the
realism.
The Legend
As the story goes, in 1891 the Grimsby and Streaper
Casket Company was originally constructed over an ancient cave deep beneath
the quaint city of Gatlinburg. The frequent disappearances of local townspeople
were often blamed on this mysterious factory and its elusive owners. In 1926,
both Grimsby and Streaper were added to the long list of permanently vanished
persons and production at the Casket Company came to a screeching halt!
The original building was boarded up, and over the years the
parkway property has hosted a variety of businesses. The Casket Company was all
but forgotten until Ripley's recently acquired the property. With plans to
develop the valuable land, they demolished the storefront that had occupied the
space, and unearthed this fabled factory of frights.
Richard Weinberger, the general manager of Ripley's
Gatlinburg properties, explained that "the original seed of the idea was
kicked around for years by our corporate president, Bob Masterson.” Then
in 1997 a design team of 15 people, with some input from our corporate creative
executives, began the research and development to turn the idea into a reality.
Gatlinburg being a "familiar and prosperous market" was selected as
the first of the probable chain of Haunted Adventure locations. Actual
construction began in August of 1998 and with a budget in excess of 2 million
dollars, no expense was...scared. 10,000 square feet of first, second
and third story parkway property was transformed into a macabre maze of
suspense and surprises! A team of ticket personnel and security staff are
employed as well as 18 live actors, who interact with dozens of automated
scenes. Orlando Special Effects, Inc. was brought in to design an
elaborate air compression system to withstand the demands of a haunted house
which operates from 9:00 a.m. to as late as 1:00 a.m., 7 days a week, 365 days
a year.
Bob Fleming of Idle Time Network created the
original concept for the facade. The exterior of the Haunted Adventure is
themed as a weather beaten factory over 3 stories tall. The resulting façade is
a movie quality set, with the attention to detail that visitors have come to
expect from Ripley's attractions. Steam rises from rusted pipes as belt driven
gears complete with sound effects crank continuously. It is clear that the
ominous structure demands attention. Watching tourists walk by, the attraction
does exactly that...it attracts. Day and night, crowds gather in morbid
curiosity. A condemned casket company in the center of town simply cannot be
ignored.
At the base of the facade, adjacent to the ticket booth, is
what any old-time sideshow 'pitchman' would immediately recognize as the 'bally
stage.' Inside an open-ended crate on a raised pedestal, a living half person
invites passersby to tour the Haunted Adventure. This illusion, produced by Morris
Costume Company of Charlotte, North Carolina, literally stops traffic on
the parkway just a few feet away. Philip Morris consulted on the whole Haunted
Adventure project and supplied Ripley's with many of the props and set pieces.
Philip likened the Ripley’s Haunted Adventure to a “walk-through Morris
catalog,” since much of his inventory can been seen there in person. Other
suppliers that provided haunt equipment and props for the Adventure include Scare
Factory of Columbus, Ohio and Artistic Adventures, who completed
much of the custom prop construction.
The ticket office is equipped with a state-of-the-art ticket
scanning system linked between all four of the Ripley properties in Gatlinburg,
enabling guests to purchase tickets to any or all of the Ripley attractions at
one time. Since the adventure is admittedly intense, visitors under the age of
8 are not permitted.
Once through the turnstile, the holding line begins. A full
sized horse drawn hearse is displayed and restroom facilities are available,
just in case. Ripley’s, like Disney, has traffic flow down to a science. The
themed surroundings help create the appropriate anticipation. Newspaper reports
of missing persons posted on the queue line walls take quests deeper into the
storyline and keep them entertained. The line moves quickly as groups of up to
8 people enter an open-air, ‘inclined cable car,’ which was custom designed for
the attraction by the Winsafe Corporation of Ontario, Canada. The ‘lift’
methodically drags guests from the ground level up a rocky ride to the third
story.
Once at the top, you are greeted by a somber-faced caretaker
complete with aged top hat and tails, who acts as your short-lived guide into
the inner sanctum. As your host ushers you through the creaking doors, you pass
menacing portraits of the long defunct company namesakes, Grimsby and
Streaper (names of course inspired by the name Grim Reaper, who you cannot
help but sense is close by). Brief instructions are provided for the best
survival possibilities; stay together, single file with a hand on the person in
front of you, only move forward and never turn back. This is not only practical
and useful information, but gives guests ample time for their eyes to adjust to
the flickering candlelight that dimly illuminates the haunted surroundings. An
unsettling presence overtakes you (or undertakes you as the case may be), when
you realize you are standing in the showroom of the defunct casket company.
Coffins of all shapes, sizes and prices surround you on all sides. Then the
caretaker gestures toward the showroom exit and sends you on your way alone.
This is the last time you will see your guide and the last you will see of the
original casket company theme. From this point on (much like the Ripley's
museums), patrons will encounter an eclectic collection of haunted themes,
minus the cliché slashers and movie monsters most haunted house audiences have
come to expect.
The first themed area is the Morgue, where the ‘good’
doctor (aniamatronic) waits to greet you with large needle in hand as you pass
the blood splattered props and walls. Body bags by the dozens hang throughout
the hall creating an unusual obstacle course, which clears just in time to
witness the first of the live actors busy at work in a messy experimental
autopsy. Once safely out of the morgue, a dark maze is accented with sound
effects and overhead animation. The dim moonlight ahead illuminates an
elaborate graveyard scene, which unfortunately for guests is infested with
vampires. Suddenly a pitch black wall comes to life. The surface becomes
rubbery and a creature reaches out from behind trying to break out of the wall.
This unexpected scare proves quite effective.
Each of the scenes in the Haunted Adventure is
professionally lit using theatrical lighting. The lighting design was done in
house by Jimmy Doyle. Behind the scenes, an elaborate control room
contains over forty separate sound tracks on loop carts, custom created by Akman
Sound of Orlando, Florida. The sound system, also the work of Akman Sound
is intricate and high tech. Several rooms utilize surround sound, which
provides both interesting effects and an appropriate atmosphere for the
attraction.
The layout of the patron walkway is effectively
disorienting, with both live and animated action occurring constantly from all
directions. Automated bats flutter overhead, asylum doors rock and knock as
cries for help are heard from within. Guests get a figurative jolt from an
electric screen as showers of sparks illuminate the live insane antagonist. The
Chamber of Horrors features the latest in torture devices along with the
classics. A full-scale automated guillotine, of Distortions in Greeley,
Colorado, gets this scene headed in the right direction, while a torture
wheel frantically spins its dizzy victim. Nearby, a poor victim of the Electric
Chair, also of Distortions, violently thrashes and smolders from the
high voltage. Just ahead, behind a set of bars, a live asylum patient
politely requests assistance from patrons to unlock the door and set her free.
Guests quickly discover, however, that her cell was not locked quite tight
enough!
The hall narrows and progressively darkens as the group find
themselves in a spacious black room. An intense downpool of red light in the
center of the space is their only guide. Once the group is in inside, visitors find
out why this area is referred to as "the Room of Total Darkness."
The doors close behind them, and the light dims and then goes completely out.
Inevitably at this point, you get to know your neighbor. The group
instinctively huddles together in the center of this vast emptiness, surrounded
only by pitch-blackness. A long complete silence is dramatically broken by the
sounds of wispy spirits taunting guests, mocking in observation. The surround
sound in this space is incredible, and you feel like you are surrounded by the
voices. A large air burst from below and screams from above provide the scare
in the room, and then the patrons are sneezed on by an unseen ghost, to provide
the final gross out blow! An automatic door opens and the soggy group once again
continues their tour. The patrons pass by a variety of crypts and open graves,
with corpses that lunge forward and one that corpselates ten-feet out and over
the viewers. A blue room transformation (Peppers Ghost) provides not only a
baffling illusion, but a perfect opportunity for more live interaction.
The sign on the mouth of the cave just ahead warns guests
that they are entering the lair of the Slime Beast! As the darkened
hallway twists and turns, visitors are forced to feel their way through the
slime-covered walls. The "Black Hole," by Effect Tech of
Denver, Colorado, serves as a perfect entrance to the Vat Room, where
patrons are greeted by none other than the Slime Beast himself. This
scene is elaborately detailed with pipes of all sizes lining the ceilings and
walls. An industrial-style catwalk bridges over a steamy bottomless pit. As
patrons cautiously cross the grated bridge, large vats of florescent fluids
tip, pouring out their contents into one to another. Skeletons fly unexpectedly
up out of the thick steam as alarms and flashing lights warn patrons of
impending doom. Once across the bridge, a darkened hallway robs the patron of
their sight and forces them to rely on other senses. You clearly hear someone
in your group react..."EEEEK, Rats!" and you too envision a floor
swamped with fleeing rats as you feel their tails whisk across your ankles.
The last ‘scene’ is a hodgepodge of disturbing props and
antiques. On the left, an old abandoned car lunges toward you as the wreck's
lights flash and horn honks. On the right, a chain link fence seems to provide
adequate protection from the animated monstrosities behind the fence, but fails
to provide protection from the live actors who converge on the group of patrons
who are forced into the next room. With the exit in sight at last, a collective
sigh of relief is felt. Patrons are remiss, however, if they let their guard
down here, because just when you think it is safe, a chainsaw wielding maniac
bursts into the room to chase you into the exit hallway.
This brightly-lit yellow corridor is a strong contrast to
the dark chaos left behind, and even feels out of place. Bright back lit
posters advertise the additional Gatlinburg Ripley attractions cement your
return into the “real world. The hallway leads the group to an elevator door,
for the ride down to street level from the third floor. A short wait and the
doors of the modern elevator open, one of those that has doors on both sides of
the cab, (for Handicap access no doubt). Elevator music plays in the background
as patrons quickly descend, every inch bringing them closer to the safety of
the outside world. The elevator comes to a gentle stop at ground level, the
door opens delivering you back to reality, or so it seems. Is the Haunted
Adventure over? Believe It Or Not...it
is NOT!
|
|
|
 |
Order this Special Issue:
Buyers Guide
Issue 26
|
|
