The year was 1973 and a very young man finally had the means, motivation and opportunity to decorate his home for Halloween. Having a talent for theatrical effects, and having practically grown up at Disneyland, the decor definitely took on some of the character of the grand Disney attractions. That first year was decidedly modest, with just a few props and some simple sound effects, but every show became more spectacular as experience and resources grew. After many years things just got a bit out of hand.
Timeline of Changes
(This list notes major additions by show year. There are also deletions and other modifications every year, but they are more difficult to track and make this list much longer.)
- 1973
- First year of show
- Gravestones
- Haunted Statue with animated eyes
- Spooky Graveyard Sounds
- 1974
- "Happy" Haunting Grounds theme established
- Tea Party Scene (Homage to Haunted Mansion)
- Rising Ghosts
- Talking Statue (With Haunted Mansion's Madame Leota voice)
- Organ Music
- 1975
- Opera Singer
- Original "Organ Chamber"
- Funeral Chimes
- 1976
- Organist Appears
- First announcement flyers published
- 1977
- Original Blinking Eyes widely displayed
- [Final year with Madame Leota's voice]
- 1978
- Talking statue has Original Speech
- Seance theme established
- Heartbeat and Harp effects
- 1979
- Seance theme enhanced
- Tarot cards
- Skeletal body and breath sounds
- Famous floating lantern appears!
- 1980
- 488 "stones" are "laid" to form the Crypt
- 1981
- Final year for the "Happy" Haunting Grounds
- Pillars appear at the main entrance
- 1982
- Hooded figures appear
- The "Monk Chant" is first heard
- Gramophone plays for dancing shadows
- 1983
- Bats appear!
- Monument with lion statue appears
- Talking Statue has a new voice
- 1984
- Coffin appears
- Breathing earth on fresh grave appears
- Spirits in the "Well" are heard
- 1985
- Nursery is established
- Music Box melody is heard
- Organ moved to main room
- 1986
- Crypt is remodeled and gains new effects
- 1987
- Worst Halloween night rain storm
- Statue recites portions of The Waste Land
- First two-night show
- 1988
- Shrouded figures appear
- Crypt bricks begin to bulge and move
- 1989
- Profane vs. Sacred theme established
- Wandering Spirit materializes
- Large "Tree of Souls" appears
- 1990
- Fog!
- "Sacred Woods" speech first heard
- 1991
- Main room becomes black void space (Music Room) instead of cluttered seance room
- 1992
- Floating ghost with candelabra ("Casper")
- Statue in bay window invokes the "blessed dead"
- [Greg MacLaurin retires from show after 18 years of "dead"-icated service]
- 1993
- Skeletal harpist appears in music room ("Gayle")
- Ghosts rise from ground
- 1994
- Angel Statue at exit (with votives and eye effects - "Bette")
- Slab Grave
- Jack-o'lantern in nursery (one concession to "tradition")
- 1995
- First Spirit of the Well Sparkles
- Spirit of the Exit ("Fuzzball" with sound)
- Slab Grave moves
- 1996
- Haunted "Suicides" Treestumps (with lighting and sound effects)
- 1997 The Silver Invocation (25th Manifestation)
- Tablets mark Profane and Sacred sections
- Exit Ruins with speaking Monk and procession of shadows
- Well Sparkles drift upward
- 1998
- Chapel Ruin Wall with "Faces of Man"
- Music Room clutter is restored
- hauntinggrounds.org established
- 1999
- Skeletal Statue plays Femur Flute
- New "Monk Chant"
- New Organ and Harp Duet
- Rising Apparitions re-appear
- 2000
- Haunted "grove" replaces pine tree
- Seventh "Face of Man"
- New Harp String optical effect
- Gargoyle Sundial appears
- Grim Reaper "snuffs out" Nursery candle
- 2001
- New Obelisk Monument
- Digitally Remixed and Remastered Audio
- Computer-controlled CDs replace magnetic tape
- 2002
- 30th Manifestation Monument
- New "Floating Candle" effect in Nursery
- Picket fence turns brown
- Dead parkway trees
- 2003
- Vastly Improved Phantods
- Video Projections replace Super-8 film
- The Sprit Wanders Again!
- 2004
- Morphing Monument ("Face of Corruption")
- Dancing Shadows return to Music Room
- Music is from digital multi-channel audio source
- 2005 The Final Manifestation
- Souvenir Guide Maps distributed
- "Sounds of the Hallowed Haunting Grounds" CDs presented
- Animated Raven finally appears on Exit Ruins!
Some elements and style of the Hallowed Haunting Grounds were inspired by The Waste Land By T.S. Eliot.
We were continually inspired by the usually excellent and sometimes brilliant work of our friends at The Walt Disney Company. We are, of course, especially fond of the Haunted Mansion. Many of the effects in the Hallowed Haunting Grounds employ techniques similar to those used in The Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Carribean, and other classic attractions.
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