A haunting you will go
A pair of new haunted houses have raised the bar on scaring patrons this year in the Northwest suburbs. From animatronics to 3-D animation, fright has gone high tech.
Foremost among the new is the Eleventh Hour Haunted House, which actually has been hosting haunted houses in the Western suburbs but this year moved to Berthold Nursery and Garden Center in Elk Grove Village.
Mounted by a professional production company, the outdoor venue covers 20,000 square feet, and backs up to 10 semi-trailers that form a building, and an 8,000-square-foot tent.
Included in the mix are a pitch-black labyrinth, a chain-link maze, a motion base experience, and a 3-D gallery.
The haunted house opened Oct. 5, and according to Jim Upchurch, Eleventh Hour Production Co. president, the fastest anyone has gone through it has been in 35 minutes. Typically, he says, it takes up to 50 minutes to experience the whole thing.
"It's the longest attraction in Chicago," Upchurch says.
Notice the word "attraction." By his own admission, haunted houses are not so much about gory villains jumping out and scaring people as they are theatrical and technically advanced.
"People can see an open autopsy on prime-time television any night of the week," Upchurch says. "It's become harder and harder to scare people, so instead we're concentrating on entertainment value. People want to walk way entertained."
Over in Palatine, the Palatine Jaycees have resurrected their Hometown Haunt, from the dead, so to speak. It's been 15 years since they've sponsored one in Palatine, and they finally found a venue to mount it.
Looks for theirs in a vacant storefront, at 563 N. Hicks Road in Palatine, near Hicks Road and Northwest Highway.
Jaycees faced the same dilemma as the professional production company in devising sophisticated scares.
Brad Haun of Palatine fell back on his technological background to design some attractions that operate with animatronics, including those controlled by motion sensors, hydraulics and pressure mats.
Sure, patrons will encounter fog, strobe lights, misting and black lights, as well as more than 15 actors involved in the different rooms. But it's the devices that trigger a reaction that likely will scare people the most, Haun says.
"We have 15 rooms, but it will feel like a lot more, with up to 30 attractions," Haun says. "It's really a bargain for the ticket price."
Speaking of bargains, the Streamwood Park District's "Trail of Terror," with its multi-room, two-level attraction could be called one.
Organizers have been able to keep the price tag down -- $5 for kids and $8 for adults -- because its effects are mostly actor-driven, and achieved through cleverly built props, rather than through any technical advancements.
"Reactions vary," says John Wilhelm, community center athletic supervisor, "but most of the people who came through last weekend have been pretty scared."
Of course, for a good old-fashioned haunted house down on the farm, check out the one at Goebbert's Pumpkin & Farm Market in South Barrington.
Its eight-room Haunted House is designed for school-aged children, and is situated among the many fall harvest attractions on the 40-acre farm, from its corn stalk maze and wagon rides, to its pumpkin sales and petting zoo.
"It's dark and creepy, with some animation and other scary scenes," says Sue Murdoch, "but there's no blood and very little gore."
If you go
Eleventh Hour Haunted House
When: 7-11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 7-10 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays, 7-11 p.m. Oct. 31 and 7-10 p.m. on Nov. 2.
Where: Outside Berthold Nursery and Garden Center, 434 E. Devon Ave. in Elk Grove Village
Cost: $17, with a $2 coupon available online
Web: www.eleventhhour.info
Palatine Jaycees Hometown Haunt
When: 6-11 p.m. Fridays, 4-11 p.m. Saturdays, and 4-9 p.m. Sundays through Oct. 28; 6-9 p.m. Oct. 29-30, and 6-10 p.m. Oct. 31. "Light fight" for younger kids 3-4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays.
Where: 563 N. Hicks Road in Palatine, in a vacant store in the northeast corner of strip mall
Cost: $10 for adults, $5 for children 3-10, free for children 2 and under; with a $3 discount for nonperishable food donations
Web: www.palatinejaycees.org/hometownhaunt
Streamwood Park District's "Trail of Terror"
When: 6-10 p.m. Friday and Saturday through Oct. 28; lights on 2-5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 27
Where: Community Center, 777 Bartlett Road in Streamwood
Cost: $8 and $5 for children 11 years and younger; $4 for "lights on" version
Call: (630) 372-7275 or visit www.streamwoodparkdistrict.org
Goebbert's Pumpkin & Farm Market haunted house
When: 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays through Oct. 31
Where: Goebbert's Pumpkin & Farm Market, 40 W. Higgins Road in South Barrington
Cost: $4
Call: (847) 428-6727 or visit www.pumpkinfarms.com
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