Haunted House Stories Archives

Scariest Haunted Houses in Film & Television

Looking to experience the scariest haunted houses this Halloween? There’s no shortage of scary movies and TV shows to choose from when Halloween rolls around. Slasher flicks. Tales about demonic possession. And don’t forget about zombies, vampires, and werewolves! But what’s Halloween without some haunted houses thrown into the mix? Film and television has long depicted stories about haunted places. But which fictional places hosted the scariest hauntings of all time? Here’s a countdown to the scariest haunted houses in film and television!

The Amityville Horror

If there’s one haunted house story that first comes to mind, The Amityville Horror takes the win. The arguably true story of the Amityville haunting inspired a long line of films in the last 40 years. And out of all the sequels, the original 1979 film goes down as the scariest. Based on true events depicted in Jay Anson’s book, The Amityville Horror tells the story of the Lutzes. The Lutz family moves into 112 Ocean Avenue only a year after the brutal murder of the previous family. Almost immediately, they begin to experience paranormal activities. The story itself makes people question the origins of haunted houses. It always seems like paranormal energy arises in places where trauma – and evil – occurred. You could read Anson’s book, watch the 1979 film, the 2005 adaptation… or even research the real-life accounts from the Lutz family. But one thing is certain: You’ll question whether or not you’re a believer in the paranormal afterwards.

Poltergeist

Poltergeist came out only a couple years after The Amityville Horror. And though it wasn’t based off real events, the film depicted one of the scariest haunted houses nonetheless. The Freeling family lives happily in their development home somewhere in suburban California. Unbeknownst to them, their entire neighborhood rests on an old cemetery. The spirits inhabiting the Freeling home are not at rest… and they take young Carol Anne into their dimension. In the film, the Freeling family and a team of parapsychologists attempt to rescue Carol Anne. Their communications with the little girl across dimensions were not only haunting. It made audiences question how spirits feed off negative energy… even after their death.

American Horror Story: Murder House

FX’s American Horror Story has touched on lots of freaky concepts over the years. Freak shows. Cults. Insane asylums. Cults. But the iconic horror TV show made its debut with the Murder House season. And it became one of TV’s most loved and scariest haunted houses ever. Murder House tells the story of the troubled Harmon family’s downfall after moving to LA. They begin to occupy a home with an extensive – and violent – history. And being present in the home seems to seal their already doomed fate as a family. The spirits of those who die at the house can never leave. Some of the ghosts are kind and watch out for the Harmon’s. But the others intentionally try to cause harm – and succeed at doing so. Towards the end of the season, it’s revealed that this haunted house will bear true evil. And it got so complicated that the story reappears in the show’s eighth season. So, if you’re thinking of starting American Horror Story, be sure to start from the very beginning.

It

Stephen King is quite literally the king of horror. He’s written dozens of horror novels, with many spawning film and television adaptations. Perhaps the scariest adaptation came in the form of It, a 1990 supernatural miniseries based off the novel of the same name (there’s also the 2017 film adaptation). It tells the story of a shape shifting entity that terrorizes a group of Maine kids in the 1960’s. The story also follows the characters in the 1990’s when they’re adults. It can take on any form it chooses… it’s capable of playing on its victims’ worst fears. It’s most notable form comes as Pennywise, a bestial, murdering clown. In the miniseries, the children encounter It at an abandoned house on 29 Neibolt Street. They learn quickly that they can summon It by entering the premises. Yet, this doesn’t stop them from entering it again and again in attempt to put an end to It’s madness. It deviates away from traditional stories of haunted places – in both the 1990 and 2017 adaptations. After all, it’s not necessarily occupied by ghosts. Rather, it’s occupied by something that people can’t pinpoint or explain… and that’s terrifying in itself. If you shudder at the thought of clowns – beware!

Paranormal Activity

What’s scarier than stories of haunted houses? How about actual film footage of real-life haunted places? Paranormal activity shows have certainly raised questions regarding their authenticity. But what we do know is this: Hauntings – rather fictionalized or real – are terrifying when told as documentaries. And no film did a better job with this than 2007’s Paranormal Activity. Told through a series of VHS tapes, Paranormal Activity is about a couple haunted in their home. Unlike Poltergeist and The Amityville Horror, there are no frills. The acting is so authentic that the characters remind you of yourself. And the film is one of the finest examples of jump scares you’ll ever find in cinema.

Experience the Scariest Haunted Houses This Halloween

There are real-life haunted houses where paranormal activity occurs. Maybe visiting these haunted places isn’t on your Halloween to-do list. But that’s okay! You can still experience the thrills with these films and TV shows. And if you’re looking forward to binging on horror films this Halloween, don’t forget to add haunted attractions to the list. Thrillvania is open for the Halloween season! With three horror attractions to experience, you won’t want to miss out. Buy your tickets today!

The True (and Gruesome) Story of Little Red Riding Hood

Posted by Thrillvania in Haunted House Stories on September 27th, 2018

Like most of our modern fairy tales, Little Red Riding Hood has been recreated to be an appropriate bedtime story for our youth. But the original story is far more grim than you would have imagined, which is no surprise when you look at the other original stories in Charles Perrault’s Mother Goose Tales. Some sources say that Perrault was not the author, but rather the first to write the oral legend down. Others say the story could be a result of the “werewolf trials” taking place at the time of its origin. Of course, the story has been altered a number of times to fit the manuscript of the ages. Each culture has its own tale of the Little Red Riding Hood, and the most optimistic versions involve a young naive girl who can’t tell the difference in her own grandmother and a wolf in a night bonnet. In these versions, the little girl always escapes in the end, but this isn’t quite how the story goes.

In the original, much more gruesome versions of the story, the wolf is quite horrid. He arrives early at the scene, slaughters grandma, and prepares her body to wait for the little girl in the red hood. He dices her flesh and sets it upon a silver platter. He drains her blood into a wine bottle, placing both the “wine” and the meat into the cupboard. Once the young girl arrives, he orders her to strip, throw her clothes (apron, stockings, petticoat and all) into the fire, and climb into bed with him. At this point, she notices something isn’t quite right with Grandma, but she is apparently none the wiser because she carries on conversation with the wolf while he enjoys Grandma’s bread and milk.

Eventually Little Red Riding Hood is hungry, to which the wolf commands that she feed herself the meat and wine from the cupboard. Little does she know that she is dining on the own flesh and blood of her unfortunate grandmother. The girl doesn’t complain, though, and in some versions even remarks that it is a marvelous feast.

In most versions of the story, Little Red Riding Hood never discovers the wolf’s true identity, and eventually is gobbled up alongside her grandmothers remains. However, one version does end in the little girl outsmarting the wolf. She tells the wolf she must go poop, and needs to relieve herself in the woods. The wolf ties a string to her so she cannot escape, but she slips it over a branch and carries on her way.

As you can see, there are many reasons that the story has been changed so many times. What a fright it must have been for 17th century kids to hear the tales cannibalism and an imposter wolf that gobbles up children!

The new age story may be designed for the fainthearted, but if you are looking for a real thrill this Halloween, grab your haunted house tickets for one of the scariest haunted houses in Dallas area. We might not have a wolf in grandma’s clothing, but at Thrillvania Haunted House Park, we have a few sights that will scare your stockings off, too!

DIY Halloween Decorations for Your House & Yard

Posted by Thrillvania in Haunted House Stories on September 22nd, 2018
Tags: DIY Halloween, DIY Halloween decorations, DIY Halloween props, Halloween 2018

Every neighborhood has it. The one house on the block that’s quaint and conventional 11 months out of the year. But then, when October rolls around, their DIY Halloween decorations look like something out of a nightmare.

The month of October is the only time of year a person’s house can defy and terrify the Joneses. And many people go all out when it comes to making their houses look straight out of a horror movie.

But let’s face it: Many store-bought decorations are expensive. And because they look manufactured, a lot of them lose their horrifying appeal.

DIY Halloween decorations are the way to go when it comes to transforming your digs into a house of horror. But with no shortage of concepts, how do you narrow down your focus?

Some Halloween home decor ideas are scarier than others. In this article, we’ll break down Halloween decorations guaranteed to raise hair. Neighbors, deliverymen, and trick-or-treaters will tremble when they go to ring your doorbell!

Translucent Ghosts

What’s a haunted house without some ghosts lurking around? People have long created ghosts out of white sheets and cheesecloth. But what really makes a ghost seem real is when it glows or appears translucent.

To create this creepy effect, you’ll need lots of packing tape. If you have a mannequin or a dress form, use it as your model. Don’t have either of these? You can use a real person to moldhttps://diyprojects.ideas2live4.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2015/10/Packing-Tape-Ghost-01.jpg the figure – just don’t wrap their head!

Wrap your model with the sticky side of the packing tape out first. Once you finish wrapping the first layer, go over it with more packing tape with the sticky side facing down. If you have to use someone as your model and need to create the face, try using a Styrofoam head or an actual wig head.

Cut the tape to remove the figure from the model. Then, retape it back together. You can use plastic bags or cheesecloth to give it a floating and draping appearance.

You can make your ghost glow by inserting LED rope lights inside your tape figure. If you have another type of LED light, you can shine it above or behind the figure. Either way, the packing tape will absorb the light and create a glowing effect.

Ghost Silhouettes & Other Haunted House Ideas

Looking for ghosts to lurk around your yard in the backdrop? You can mold a full-bodied side profile of a ghost with chicken wire. Up close, the chicken wire will be more noticeable. But from a distance, it’ll look like there are multiple ghosts haunting your grounds… And they make for some pretty easy DIY Halloween decorations.

If you want to create the quintessential haunted house, there are a few DIY Halloween props you can use.

You could dig up a small part of your lawn (or create a messy pile of dirt). You can then place a skeletal arm or a full skeleton model in the dirt pile. After all, the ghosts in your yard were once living. You don’t necessarily need a skeletal model, either. If it looks like someone (or something) has crawled out of the earth, you can create that effect with a pile of dirt alone.

Have some leftover packing tape? Tape it from the top and bottom of your windowsills. At night, dim the regular lights in your house and cast LED lights out the window. The packing tape will create a translucent glow from inside.

If you already have a fog machine, you can place it somewhere in your yard so the fog can drift around the yard. It will look like traces that your ghosts leave behind. Be sure to cast some light from the ground so people passing by can see the fog.

Don’t have a fog machine? You can never go wrong with dry ice. To make dry ice fog seem like smoke, you can add it to an insulated container of hot water.

Coven of Witches

A coven refers to a gathering of witches, and the oldest ones were once believed to take place in forested areas. If you live near the woods or have lots of willowy trees in your yard, your house could be the perfect setting for a coven.

Of course, you’ll need some witches if you want to host a coven on the premises. But we’re not talking about cackling witches on broomsticks. We’re talking about the hooded witches you may remember from the opening theme of American Horror Story: Coven. And it’s very easy to recreate these grim reaper-like DIY Halloween decorations with a witchy twist.

First, you’ll need a piece of sheathing plywood as the base, as well as two lumber studs about 4 feet in length. Then, attach the lumber studs to the plywood sheath with corner braces.

You’ll also want to attach another lumber stud that connects the two longer studs. This stud will serve as the shoulders, so it should rest longer than the diameter of the other studs. Then, you’ll attach a Styrofoam head on this stud.

For the arms, you’ll want to attach PVC pipes using elbow pipes. This will create the effect of the witches raising or putting their arms out. Then, you’ll want to take a couple of pool noodles and create slits down the length of them. That way, you can slide the PVC pipe inside the foam. Then, wrap the “arms” with duct tape.

Next, you’ll want to take chicken wire and cast it over the entire base. The chicken wire should also cover the upper portion of the arms. Then, stick the base of an old broom (or anything that’s long, thin, and pointed) through the Styrofoam head.

For the final touches, drape a long ratted heavy cloth over the entire figure. Then, take a shorter cloth and drape it over it again with more slack in the front.

DIY Halloween Decorations for Your Porch & Garage

If your house gets lots of trick-or-treaters, making use of your porch is key to causing a fright this year. And there are lots of scary and small DIY Halloween decorations that can go a long way.

You can create the illusion of bleeding candles by dripping red wax onto white or black candles. Dripping the red wax can get messy, so make sure to use newspaper.

Decapitation is some people’s worst fear. You can play on this fear by making it seem like you’ve placed people’s faces in jars.

First, take photos of the front and side profiles of your face and your family’s. Then, you can merge all these images into one on Photoshop. After printing them out, laminate them.

Next, fill some jars with water and add a few drops of food coloring. Green, yellow, orange, and red create some of the creepiest effects. Then, place each laminated photograph into a jar. These creepy DIY Halloween props go great on windowsills, benches, or porch shelves. Or, you can place them in your refrigerator as a prank!

The garage often gets overlooked when it comes to Halloween home decor ideas. But if trick-or-treaters need to walk past your garage, make it look like you have zombies stuck inside.

Using black construction paper, cut out the shape of your hands. Create a variety of hand grips and shapes to make for a chaotic scene. When you’re done, tape them to the windows of your garage.

The final touch of a terrifying trick-or-treat experience is your costume. Be sure to wear a scary and creative costume on Halloween. The neighborhood won’t forget!

Create DIY Halloween Decorations This Year

Halloween is still over a month away. But if you’re serious about having the scariest house in the neighborhood this year, now is the time to plan!

With these terrifying DIY Halloween decorations, you’ll not only cause a scare. You’ll impress the entire neighborhood with your handy and crafty skills.

Decorating your home is a no-brainer when Halloween is your favorite holiday. But how else will you enjoy the scariest (and best) time of year?

If you live around Dallas, Texas, there’s no better haunted experience than Thrillvania. With three different attractions, you, your friends, and family are in for a thrill of a lifetime. Get your tickets for the 2018 season today!