When Halloween rolls around, our fancy lightly turns to thoughts
of murder,
mayhem,
and haunted houses.
One of the fun things about this season is distinguishing between the
"real"
haunted locations, and the "fake" ones. The fake ones are
actually easier to spot;
they're the ones with a lot of noise, monsters, and ghosts trying to scare the bejeezus
out of you (or into you,
in some cases). They're found all over the country
and are generally more playful than scary -- after all, there are only so many
variations on fake blood,
plastic fangs and eyeballs, or ways for someone to jump out at
you and yell "Boo!"
(It makes us wonder why, given people's fears, we don't see more clowns in these places...)
The real
haunted locations are much more sedate and quiet
than their not-so-evil twins.
When "ghoulies and ghosties and things that go bump in the night" make themselves
known, they don't announce themselves; they're likelier to sneak up and lay a
cold dead hand on your shoulder
than to erect a neon sign announcing "Scare Alarms."
Given the extensive list of places that are haunted, it's a wonder that we're not running over spectres every time we get in the car. On
the other hand, given the proclivity of ghosts to attend the theatre,
maybe they're all out seeing plays (every house has its own "ghost light,"
after all).
For every true believer
-- and there are plenty -- there's nearly an equal number of skeptics. One of the most notable of the latter was magician Harry Houdini, who
dedicated his life to exposing phony mediums who claimed to be able to speak to the dead -- and who may
have ordered a hit
on Houdini. He was never able to pull off the ultimate escape,
though, which leads to our belief that if Houdini couldn't become one,
there's no such thing as spooks.
Suggested Sites...
- Haunted House.com - find one near you.
- Haunted House Association - guarantor for the best in scaring the hell out of you.
- Hell House - official site for the documentary about a Christian haunted house in Texas.
- Variety: Hollywood Hell House - your favorite celebrities use the official "Hell House" script to give an ironic take on it.
- American Hauntings - who you gonna call?
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