Knott's Scary Farm or Knott's Halloween Haunt is a seasonal Halloween event at

Knott's Berry Farm Knott's Berry Farm is a theme park located in Buena Park, California, owned and operated by Cedar Fair. In 2015, it was the twelfth-most-visited theme park in North America and averages approximately 4 million visitors per year. It features 40 ...

Buena Park, California Buena Park (''Buena'', Spanish for "Good") is a city in Orange County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census its population was 84,034. It is the location of several tourist attractions, namely Knott's Berry Farm. It is about 12 mi ...

. It is an event in which the theme park is transformed into "160 acres of horror", via a series of roaming monsters, terrifying mazes and 'scare zones'. As of 2010, it was said to be the first, largest and longest-running Halloween event to be held at a theme park.

Haunted attractions

*Wax Works *Origins: The Curse Of Calico *Dark Entities *The Depths *Mesmer: Sideshow Of The Mind *Bloodline 1842 *The Grimoire

Attraction history

History

Originally a three-night affair, running October 26-28, 1973, the annual six-week-long event will celebrate their frightning 50th year in 2023. It has become the largest event of any theme park. The concept was introduced to the park's operations committee in a meeting in September 1973 by George Condos and Martha Boyd of the marketing department, and Bill Hollingshead and Gary Salisbury of the entertainment office.

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, who built and operated (as a concessionaire) the Mine Ride, Log Ride and other rides, decided that having static props wasn't enough, so he put on a gorilla suit and scared guests as they rode on the Mine Ride. Halloween Haunt was an instant hit, and by the next year, the event sold out nightly. Knott's Berry Farm was originally modeled after Calico, California, a

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that was a result of the California silver rush. Already having a dedicated ''Ghost Town'' section in the theme park, this area would become the designed area for the original Halloween Haunt, eventually expanding to the entire park. The 1980s would continue to be a success for the theme park, and

popular culture Popular culture (also called mass culture or pop culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of practices, beliefs, artistic output (also known as, popular art or mass art) and objects that are dominant or prevalent in a ...

icons were employed to represent the event. In 1981, actor and parodist "Weird Al" Yankovic joined the cast, as did Cassandra "

Elvira Elvira is a female given name. First recorded in medieval Spain, it is likely of Germanic (Gothic) origin. Elvira may refer to: People Nobility * Elvira Menéndez (died 921), daughter of Hermenegildo Gutiérrez and wife of Ordoño II of Leó ...

" Peterson in the following year. Elvira was prominently featured in many Halloween Haunt events until 2001. According to postings on her Myspace page, Cassandra was released from her contract by the park's new owners due to their wanting a more family friendly appeal. The 1990s would show a different approach to Halloween. Humor was added to many facets in the theme park and Knott's turned from the explicit horror to

black comedy Black comedy, also known as dark comedy, morbid humor, or gallows humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo, particularly subjects that are normally considered serious or painful to discu ...

. This continuing balance of horror and humor has been a key to the continuing success of Knott's Halloween Haunt. On August 4th, 2020, Knott's announced that the 48th Scary Farm season would be cancelled in response to the ongoing

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

which caused the closure of theme parks in California in March at the request of

California Governor The governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The governor is the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Guard. Established in the Constitution of California, the g ...

Gavin Newsom Gavin Christopher Newsom (born October 10, 1967) is an American politician and businessman who has been the 40th governor of California since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 49th lieutenant governor of California f ...

and was deferred to 2021. The theme park was not open at the time of the announcement.

Park transformation

While Knott's Berry Farm is a year-round

theme park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central ...

, the entire acreage is modified to fit the Halloween motif. Rides and other attractions are converted into

macabre In works of art, the adjective macabre ( or ; ) means "having the quality of having a grim or ghastly atmosphere". The macabre works to emphasize the details and symbols of death. The term also refers to works particularly gruesome in natu ...

themes. Seasonal workers are cast as a variety of monsters, roaming the park in terrifying scare zones, amidst haze produced by giant fog machines. Some characters have developed a special appeal, such as the legendary, iconic, and infamous villainess herself Sarah Rebecca Anne "The Green Witch Of Calico" Morgan-Marshall. Back in 1973 Diana Kelly-Kirchen was chosen to don the role of the first Green Witch under the name of Spooky Sarah when Haunt began. After Diana left the Haunt she passed her role to Charlene Parker in 1982. Then in September of 2021 Sarah was replaced by The Conductor as the new face of Knott's Scary Farm. The controversial "Hanging" live show was a staple of the Haunt that lampoons celebrities and persons in the news through a series of staged

hanging Hanging is the suspension of a person by a noose or ligature around the neck.Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed. Hanging as method of execution is unknown, as method of suicide from 1325. The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' states that hanging ...

s. The Hanging had been an annual event since the 1979 Halloween Haunt but celebrated its final year in 2019. As of 2022, the park has 9 mazes, 5 scare zones, 4 experiences, and 3 live shows.

Commercials, media and awards

Knott's Scary Farm has won

Amusement Today ''Amusement Today'' is a monthly periodical that features articles, news, pictures and reviews about all things relating to the amusement park industry, including parks, rides, and ride manufacturers. The trade newspaper, which is based in Arli ...

Golden Ticket Award ''Amusement Today'' is a monthly periodical that features articles, news, pictures and reviews about all things relating to the amusement park industry, including parks, rides, and ride manufacturers. The trade newspaper, which is based in Arl ...

for Best Halloween Event twice, in 2005 and 2007.

References

Knott's Scary Farm 2011: Here's A Cheer For 38 Years Of Fears, Leo Buck Buck-ing Trends November 30, 2011

External links

*
Comprehensive tribute site

Halloween Haunt reviews, photos, and video
{{Halloween events Knott's Berry Farm Halloween events in the United States Haunted attractions (simulated) Recurring events established in 1973 1973 establishments in California