Nick Cannon Gets Electrified at Fright Fest

© Six Flags Great Adventure

Six Flags Great Adventure was recently host to Nick Cannon, who took the opportunity to check out some of the electricity buzzing around the park's Fright Fest events!  Like like a sizzling good time!

Hope you all had a wonderfully scary Halloween!

Scott And Carol Present - A Hauntingly Ghoulish Visit To Six Flags Great America's Six Saints Cemetery!

It was a dark and scary night... okay so it was a sunny October afternoon when we happened upon the Six Saint's Cemetery!

But, there were no saints on the ground on this day, or under the grounds for that matter.

While we didn't remember all the attractions that were laid to rest, there were some that we have fond memories of from days long since past.

Technically the Turn of the Century is still in the park, at least in spirit. Closing at the end of the 1979 season, the ride morphed into the Demon in 1980.

Opening with the park, the Sky Whirl was the World's first triple Ferris wheel, it was custom built by Intamin for Marriott.

It's replacement was the third Six Flag installation of a Vekoma giant inverted boomerang.

The Cajun Cliffhanger was a Chance rotor, that was moved from the Old Riverview park to Great America in 1975. It was replaced by Jester's Wild Ride, a Zamperla Rockin' Tug.

The Hay Baler was a Chance Flying Bob, a spin and spew inside a barn looking building. It was located near the Sky Whirl and definitely not my kind of ride.

A creation of Anton Schwarzkopf, Tidal Wave was the first roller coaster added to Great America after the opening season. A launch coaster powered by a unique weight-drop system, the ride was removed after the 1991 season to make room for the first B&M inverted coaster. Tidal Wave was moved to Six Flags over Georgia, where it operated as Viper until 2001. It sat in their parking lot until it was moved to Kentucky Kingdom in 2002.

This Intamin Bobsled coaster was moved from Six Flags Great Adventure in 1988, It was built between the Demon and the Whizzer. Rolling Thunder was removed to make way for a new section of the park, Southwest Territory.

Space Shuttle America was a motion simulator ride which featured a full size replica of the Space Shuttle. It closed in 2007 and was removed in 2009 to make room for Hurricane Harbor water park.

Z-Force was the only Intamin space diver roller coaster ever built. The roller coaster featured six vertical diving corkscrew drops and 720 degree gravity defying upward spiral. It was located on the site most recently occupied by Iron Wolf.


The Hay Baler was a Zamperla Joker that fit well in the Southwest Territory with it's chuck wagon theming. The area where it was located is used as a queue for one of the park's haunted houses.

This Arrow multi-looper opened as the world's tallest and fastest looping roller coaster with an impressive seven inversions: three vertical loops, a butterfly corkscrew and two corkscrews. It was built in the parking and was replaced with Superman: Ultimate Flight.

The third installation of Vekcoma's Giant Invert Boomerang and the most problematic, Deja Vu sat on the former Sky Whirl site and was replaced with the Buccaneer Battle, a Mack splash battle ride.

Splashwater Falls was an O.D. Hopkins Shoot The Chute was located in County Fair. The ride closed in August 2007 due to decline in popularity and old age. Most of it was removed, all but a huge footer, which is now being removed for X-Flight.

Another Marriott's Great America original ride bites the dust, originally named the Barney Odefield Speedway, the Great American Speedway closed in 2010.

The station and queue of the Arrow Development Antique Cars are all that remains of the ride.


And, last but not least B&M's first coaster, Iron Wolf is in the process of being removed. The coaster is headed east to Six Flags America, it's unknown what the site will be used for next.

Well, that ends our tour of the graveyard, Happy Halloween to all!

Frightening Fun: The Haunts of 2011 - 5

Universal Studios Hollywood's Halloween Horror Nights (HHN) is another scarefest that's bigger and better than ever for 2011.  Using its strong ties to the movie industry to its advantage, HHN at Universal Hollywood is able to feature attractions based on films like The Thing, Wolfman, Hostel, and the Scream franchise.

Actually, all those movies have an attraction at the event this year, whether it be a maze or the park's famous Tram Tour, which is especially devious this time of year.  The maze themed to La Llorona has received especially great reviews this season.

A visit to HHN isn't complete without catching a viewing of Bill and Ted's Excellent Halloween Adventure as they skewer the Hollywood elite we all love to hate.

Time for screams to fill the night at Six Flags Over Texas' annual Fright Fest.  If you're heading to the park looking for a scary-fun time, then you've made an excellent choice.

This year's Fright Fest celebration features mazes such as Cirkus Berzerkus, where murderous clowns are running rampant, and Skullduggery, filled with undead pirates that are less than pleased to have you as their guests.

Patrons can also check out the latest Sega games at the Game Zone, including the latest in the horror genre.  Plenty of shows are also presented, not the least of which is Dr. Fright's Final Freakout, featuring zombie performers, hit music, and "red-hot" choreography.

Busch Gardens Tampa's Howl-O-Scream 2011 takes place in a very crowded theme park market, meaning the park has to step up more than ever before to compete.  That's great news for Haunt fans!

New this year is Nevermore, a house dedicated to the demented stories of Edgar Allen Poe, complete with beating heart and calling crows.  The Vampire Casino also sounds interesting, with the vamps ready to take a table at the all-they-can-eat buffet.  Can you guess what they're serving?

Howl-O-Scream features a dance club, named Club Virus, where you can get your groove on with the dead.  Also back this year is Alone, the ultra-scary haunted house that guests must sign up for, only to be forced to travel through completely alone.  Awesome!

If you're looking to head to an event that offers the most mazes and haunted attractions for your dollar, then Kings Dominion just may be exactly what you're looking for.

This year's Haunt offers an amazing total of 16 different attractions, spread between haunted houses and scare zones, along with one re-themed ride.  With that many, there's always something new at the park.  CornStalkers, a popular maze at other parks, along with Outbreak: The Evolution are new this year.

A new scare zone, named IronWorx, features elaborate mechanical props and costumes from an industrial style nightmare.

Las Vegas might not be that scary (unless you lose all your cash!) except for this time of year, when Circus Circus presents the Fright Dome. 

Advertised as being one of the top 5 scary attractions in the country, Fright Dome features not one but two haunted houses devoted to Michael Myers and the Halloween movies.  Also new for this year is a maze called Fright High - Knock Em' Dead Class of 2011.  As if high school isn't scary enough on its own!

In all, the event has five different houses, along with several haunted midways and plenty of the park's rides included with admission. 

A Scare Beyond Compare: The Haunt at Dorney Park 2011

Welcome to The Haunt!

Even though the event is only in its 4th season, the Haunt at Dorney Park has 'grown up' considerably in those four years.  The event was brought to Dorney later than many of the chain's other parks, but since then the Haunt has ramped up in such a way that it is now one of the larger ones in the company  (though its 11 haunts can't compare to Kings Dominion's and Knott's whopping 16 haunts each).

Above is the view of the scene the park has created just inside the main gates, which changes each year.  The skeletons, which pop up out of the coffin every so often, make for a great photo opportunity.

Clowns don't bother me, but I seem to be in the minority there.

The 2011 season is seeing the return of 8 attractions: The Asylum, Backwoods, Club Blood, CornStalkers, Death Trap, Mansion House Hotel, Psycho Circus, and finally Terror Square.  Some of these have aged well with time, even seeing new improvements this season, while others have become a bit stagnant and would make great options for being replaced next year - Club Blood and Psycho Circus come to mind on that front.

Grave Walkers - a great approach to a Haunt.

The park mixed up the locations of some of its Haunts this year, taking advantage of some open space that isn't used for parking this time of year in order to bring Grave Walkers to life.  The park took the traditional concept of an outdoor maze and thought outside the box with this one, with some nice results.

The attraction is behind the Revolution flat ride and next to Steel Force's station, as I said in a summertime overflow parking lot.  Unless the park is totally jammed guests are not regulated as they enter - instead they freely flow into the massive (no really it is huge) graveyard that awaits them.

Most of the Haunt is well hidden, hard to get photos!

Quickly they realize that there is no set path in there, although many sheepish guests seem to move down the middle to try to escape the zombies (in plentiful amounts) lurking around.  The park has had several Haunts over the years that needed gravestones created, and now they've all been combined into one massive graveyard that guests are free to explore.  There's an open grave here or there - watch out for what comes out of them!

After wandering around for a while, guests enter a large mausoleum and and suddenly the walls are tight and monsters are everywhere.  The corridors are lined with coffins, and this is more of a traditional maze section.  The combination of the two sections is great, and makes the experience as long, or short, as guests want.

This ain't no trip to Medieval Times!

Replacing The Gauntlet, which served the park for a few seasons, Age of Darkness is also new this Fall.  While the general theme is the same, that's where the comparisons end between the two.  Age of Darkness uses very elaborate costumes, special effects, and plenty of props along the path.  The ghouls stay in character at all times - I especially enjoyed the Queen that had a monster on a leash.

Lesson learned... headless monsters can still chase you.

Dorney actually built the entire castle facade seen above on the side of existing restrooms, though you wouldn't know it as you pass through.  Real flame torches line the area's paths, and thick fog makes it hard to see what's coming next.  The castle's gates, when open, feature a nice special effect - lets just say it involves a beheading and leave it at that.

Pirates of the Caribbean music, it comes in handy.

I'm especially impressed with some aspects of Cut Throat Island, the final new attraction for the 2011 Haunt.  With the debut of Planet Snoopy this past season it didn't make sense to keep a Pirate themed scare zone in the middle of a kids area, so it's been beefed up and moved to the plaza in front of Hydra.

The boat is full sized, to help you understand the scale used here.

I think the photo above nicely sums up the feeling of Cut Throat Island.  An eerie red glow hovers over the area, and thick fog nicely hides creatures moving in and out of the massive props the park built in the area.  The row of house facades seen above actually turn the corner and keep going, and feature doors and other items that the monsters are able to use.

The ship is huge - see the small person in the lower left corner?

The facades are neat, but pale in comparison to the massive, wrecked into three pieces, Pirate ship that is sitting in the area.  Guests are able to wander about, interacting with the demented Pirate characters in the area.  There's even a twisted mermaid sitting aside the ship, beckoning sailors to come forward.

This guy didn't get away.

Cut Throat Island is probably the most visually impressive Haunt attraction I've seen in a park since being to the 'biggies' like Universal Orlando's Horror Nights.  There's room for growth though in the scare department - while having no defined path worked to Grave Walker's advantage, here it hurts the attraction.  It would be tough due to space limitations, but adding a set walking path to this one could really make it shine.

Singing, dancing, undead.

The park is again featuring several live entertainment offerings during Haunt as well.  Harley Newman Professional Lunatic shows at Center Stage, Cast in Bronze is a spooky - and unique - Carillon bell performance.  Seen above, the Good Time Theatre is showing Eternal Jamnation this year.  The live entertainment at Haunt feels like it still hasn't found its niche after four seasons, hopefully that will be remedied some day.

Halloween colors!

Dorney Park's rides are open during Haunt as well.  Some rides do have to close early for the event, though that won't seem important when riding Steel Force, dropping into the fog!

Frightening Fun: The Haunts of 2011 - 4

Knott's Berry Farm is where the Haunt, the event that has spread over time to many other Cedar Fair parks, originated.  The Scary Farm is still regarded as one of, if not the, best Halloween events to be found in any theme park setting.

This year Knott's Haunt debuts three new attractions, including Delirium, a maze that takes place "in the deep recesses of the mind."  According to Knott's, this is what happens when your imagination can't even comprehend the horrors you see - a trip into your worse nightmare!

Invasion Beneath is a new takeover of the Calico Mine Ride, where a fissure in the earth's core is allowing unknown creatures to pour into society.  The last new Haunt is Endgames: Warriors of the Apocalypse, which includes slaves that are forced to battle to the death for entertainment!

Kennywood's Phantom Fright Nights annual Halloween events has become a huge hit with the locals, but has grown to a far bigger audience.

This year marks the event's 10th anniversary, and to celebrate there's a brand new haunt named Biofear, described as "a science experiment gone horribly wrong!"

Returning favorites such as the Villa of the Vampires, Kennywood Cemetery, and Gory Park will be scaring guests as well.  Plus, many of the park's ride's are open for a late season swing!

Six Flags America is celebrating this year's Fright Fest with more haunted attractions, hair-raising shows and horrifying creatures than ever before.

A classic during Fright Fest, the Bridge of Terror will return, putting guests face-to-face with some of the park's nastiest ghouls.  All new this year is Backwoods Bloodshed, Maryland's longest terror trail, and puts guests in the woods located behind the park.  Scary!

Plenty of creatures will be lurking around the park, in locations including Gotham City's Carn-Evil, the Ghost Town of Coyote Creek, and Skulls Revenge.  Lots of live entertainment rounds of the park's Fright Fest offerings, such as The Reckoning in the park's show arena.

Frightmares! at Lagoon Amusement Park is back for the 2011 season of screams.  The events offers five different haunted attractions, including a brand new one for this year named Nightwalk.  Led by demons and Vampires, guests head into the darkness of Nightwalk only to find their worst fears come true.

Another enticing attraction is a haunt called Deception: "in this house of illusion your eyes will deceive. You’ll question what’s real and what not to believe. Hold on tight to your loved ones as you navigate this haunted maze."

Frightmares! has scare-free fun for the kids during the day, so the entire family can enjoy a visit.  But after dark be warned, the haunts are everywhere!

This season, Kings Island's Haunt has found some brilliant sounding new ways to bring the park's guests' fears to life.  If you think that the Holidays with your in-laws is scary, just wait to see what the park has in store!

Holiday Horror - where even the simplest and fun holidays take on an evil twist like no other is new for 2011.  So is Mysteria, a maze that purposely messes with your sense so that disorientation is the norm.

Nightmare Alley is a new scare zone where the park's darkened midways are home to some of the most demonic creatures around.  If you choose to pass, perhaps on your way for a ride on Diamondback, be warned!

The Half Pint Brawlers are also back for another year at the Haunt.  Known as "psycho midget wrestlers," the show regularly has a packed house, so be sure to get your seat early!

Frightening Fun: The Haunts of 2011 - 3

California's Great America really likes to get into the Halloween season, when The Haunt takes over the park.  This year watch out for Slaughterhouse: Annihilation and also Dead Man's Cove: The Forsaken, both brand new attractions.

Slaughterhouse features the gruesome and gory place where humans are being turned into everyone's favorite snack.  The walking undead from the captain's ship are angry, so make sure to try to avoid them in Dead Man's Cove.

The park also features Zombies Gone Viral, a live music show and Blood Drums, which greets guests as they enter the park with a pounding beat.

Lake Compounce amusement park is once again featuring the diabolical Haunted Graveyard attraction this Fall.

Located just next to the park, you can get a ticket for both, or just the haunted maze.  Each year part of the proceeds from the event go to juvenile diabetes research, so this is a scare with a good cause!

The actual maze is enormous, and can take up to a half hour to complete.  It has rooms themed to about every creature you can think of, but also things like the Bat Room, Hell Holler, and The Vortex.  Needless to say some folks actually need a rest as they travel through just to shake off the scares!

Back again and bigger than ever before, Cedar Point's HalloWeekends features several new attractions for 2011.  This year there are 10 different mazes and scare zones, the most in the event's history.

Blood on the Bayou, which takes place on the island underneath Iron Dragon, takes a twisted look at a rather demented area where the dead still walk.  Another newly transformed area is Maniacal Mechanical Screamworks, a science fiction themed area that takes a look at a warped Victorian era that never was.

Cedar Point's Red Garter Saloon will be showing the Edge of Madness, while family friendly fun can still be found in the Magical House on Boo Hill and the Monster Midway Invasion parade.

Darien Lake has changed from advertising their Halloween event as just Fright Fest to a more timid Family Fright Fest.  The park still has plenty of scares, but seems to be focusing on the family aspect this year.

New for the kids is Old McDonald's Haymazing Adventure, a labyrinth of hay that kids can work to get out of.  There is also trick or treating, pumpkin painting, and even a magic show to entertain.

When night falls, the park offers a few haunts, such as Nightmare Acres - a haunted farmhouse.  There's also the Fright Night Field Trip, complete with a terrifying bus trip down "the highway to yell!"

You can check out all of the offerings that Family Fright Fest at Darien Lake offers direct from the park.

The Great Escape does not officially carry the Six Flags name, but that doesn't mean it has been left out of Fright Fest!  This year the event returns to the park, filled with scary attractions and shows, bigger and better than ever.

Two mazes are located at Fright Fest, Malice in Wonderland and Skull Manor.  A fitting theme for a park originally based on famous fairy tales, Malice in Wonderland shows what happens when Alice falls down the hole and things don't end well.

Skull Manor used to be a nice place, until a grizzly murder forced the place to be condemned.  The mansion is back open again, and tours are being given - but is that such a good idea?

The park also hosts the Awakening and Dead Man's Party, both elaborate stage shows that feature Dr. Fright as the host, along with plenty of dancing zombies.

Busch Gardens Williamsburg is playing on their beautiful landscape for Halloween this year, naming their event the Dark Side of the Gardens.

And dark it is.  The normally beautiful park become something quite nasty during the event, with terrifying attractions taking over the normally peaceful setting.

There are outdoor scare zones with names such as Widow Makers, Unleashed, Scavengers, and Stitchin' Time.  Indoor haunted houses are also plentiful, such as 13: Your Number's Up which takes a look at 13 of people's worst phobia's and forces guests to face them head on.

If the weather is nice, just make sure to get to the park early - this one regularly closes the gates due to capacity limitations... it is just that popular.