The Haunted Mansion for Halloween, Pt. 2

Part Two of my Halloween Haunted Mansion series begins with this cute (?) little brass bat detail used for the stanchions when you exit the elevator. While this light fixture below screams Home Depot, the custom wall detail of the scary face with gnashing teeth makes up for it!



The elevator door is still open, and the guests have all exited to proceed down the changing portrait hallway.



Me…I often linger to get my photos. Much to the chagrin of the ghost host.



One of my favorite changing portraits: Medusa!



I wonder how many guests racing towards the Doombuggies miss the effect of these busts?



Here’s a genuine FauxD© approximation for those of you who don’t stop to “smell the roses”:



As you turn the corner, the view as you look back towards the revolving busts:



Another chandelier overhead for Lou & Sue:



The anticipation increases as you get closer to your Doombuggy:



This cast member was either caught blinking or is mid-trance. For the purposes of this post, I’ll go with the latter.



See more Disneyland Haunted Mansion photos at my main website.

Freaky Fridays @ The Haunted Mansion: The Exit

The mirrors that everyone looks forward to riding by; which Hitchhiking Ghost will be in my Doombuggy this time? Looks like Ezra:



Here’s a little “behind-the-scenes” peak into how the effect is achieved:





I also really dig the Jean Cocteau inspired sconces on the wall here; too bad the hands don’t move like the ones from “Beauty & The Beast” (1946) that they were modeled after:







Here are two shots of the pattern that was recently stamped on the loading/unloading runners; a nice touch of carrying the theme out of this Victorian Mansion that makes this "modern" technology look slightly less modern.





See more Disneyland Haunted Mansion photos at my website.

Freaky Fridays @ The Haunted Mansion: Your Doombuggy Awaits

As you leave the Changing Portrait Hallway, a sharp turn to the right takes you to the loading area where Doombuggies appear at a brisk pace, ready to take you into the depths of the Mansion. Along the way you’ll see plenty of eerily lit cobwebs and antique light fixtures, as well as a few creepy cast members who are ready to assist you into your Doombuggy.









Here’s an interesting story from former castmember Ron F:

One night, when I was working the graveyard shift (pardon the pun) for a Grad Night at the park, I was working the Front Load position on Haunted Mansion. This would've been around 3-4 a.m. In situations like that, they drop the crew down to one person working Front Load (when you first step into your DoomBuggy) and one person working both the Stretching Portrait Gallery and Back Load (bottom of the stairs to make sure the lap bar is down). When the crew is scheduled that way, the Front Load person can spend considerable stretches of time by him-or-herself alone in the Loading Area waiting for the next group to come down from the Stretching Portrait Gallery (because the room operates on a hydraulic arm, a minimum of guests is waited for to ensure enough weight to let the arm drop). I'd been down in the Loading Area alone for at least 20 minutes. The ride time is approximately 7 minutes, so it had been at least 10-15 minutes since the last guest group had left the attraction.





I'd heard the soundtrack for the attraction so many times at that point that I knew it by heart (I'm slightly autistic as well, so I commit these kinds of things to indelible memory). On that particular night at that particular time, I heard what sounded like children giggling softly. I assumed that a new group was coming down the hallway from the Stretching Room to the Loading Area. After a couple of minutes, I left the Loading Area and walked to the hallway. There was no one there. The Stretching Portrait Gallery was still upstairs and had not yet come down. And again, it had been at LEAST 10-15 minutes since the last group to go through the attraction would have already left.

From that day on, I listened intently to hear if that sound of softly giggling children was actually part of the soundtrack…and after months of continuing to work on the attraction, I never heard that sound again.

I cannot explain it…but it still gives me goosebumps to tell of it.

Well readers, another decade begins—I wish all of you a Happy New Year and look forward to sharing another year of posts and comments! See more Disneyland Haunted Mansion photos at my website.