305 Macintyre, Lockport, IL
Year: 2014
One of our all time favorite yard displays has to be Thanatophobialand in Lockport, IL. This display has a great mix of the eclectic and the historical, the creepy and the educational, with some just plain old odd things thrown in for good measure. There's definitely something for everyone here, and there is a lot to see, so plan on spending some time if you visit.
Perhaps one of the most obvious things at the display is a collection of hearses. There are several around, parked in front and around the side of the house, and they mark this display as something unusual from the start. The front yard is also an excellent setup. This features a large crypt with glowing stained glass windows, with some spectral apparitions moving around by the front door. Across the yard are various tombstones which, unlike many haunts, feature the names of real people, from horror icons like Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff to actors from Halloween-related series such as Elizabeth Montgomery (Bewitched) and Jackie Coogan (The Addams Family). And if that wasn't all, you can learn all about each actor or actress by reading the details about their careers along the side of the front fence. This in and of itself would be enough to make Thanatophobialand a cool stop, but there is much more to see. One visitors pass by another hearse and a a mannequin dressed in a "Spookers" t-shirt (a takeoff on Hooters Restaurants), they come to the backyard, where there are two more elaborate setups. The yard portion features a number of smaller scenes, ranging from a smoking victim in an electric chair to a creepy doctor performing a dissection, to a new addition for 2014 - a life size wind up Victorian doll that moves and plays music. All of the portions of the setup feature lots of background detail, from the animated bugs on the wall to old photos of scientists on the wall behind the life size doll (hello Nicola Tesla!), to a police call box behind a window along the wall and a figure dressed suspiciously like Doctor #4 (Doctor Who fans take note). There are even real anatomic specimens (from animals) in the background of some areas. It is these little details that set the display apart and place it in a new category of excellent, which brings us to the last part of the haunt, and one that has been redesigned for 2014, the funeral setup. |
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The garage portion of Thanatophobialand has traditionally featured a funeral parlor setting, although in recent years it has been a modern one. This year the setup was completely different, and featured an in-house Victorian wake,which made it even creepier than normal. As would be the cake for a real Victorian wake, the display was primarily set up like a real living room with couches and tables and period photos on the walls. The showstopper, of course, was the authentic Victorian casket along one wall, complete with an occupant that looked like she had been waked for a bit too long! The entire display was very effectively creepy in its authenticity.
And the authenticity didn't stop with the big details. It was present in the little details as well. From the period clocks, greeting cards and even matchbooks, there were little touches of authenticity all over the place. It was like being in a historical display as well as a creepy haunted display! There was even a Halliwell-Shelton Violet Ray, an authentic piece of turn of the century medical quackery that you definitely don't see in most haunted setups. A few oddball touches rounded out the garage display. Inside the period sugar bowl were sugar cubes shaped like skulls, there was a mini Cousin IT of Addams Family fame on the floor and a giant figure of Woody from Toy Story sitting on the couch. Why is there a figure of Woody sitting on a couch in a funeral display? Who cares? This is Thanatophobialand!
All in all, the 2014 setup was the best we've seen in all of our years of visiting. It reminded us of why we love coming here year after year, and why we eagerly anticipate seeing what's new each time we do visit. If you're looking for something out of the ordinary, or something that's quirky without being too creepy or weird, or even if you like your haunts sprinkled with a dose of oddball humor, check out Thanatophobialand. It's one our or top haunts of 2014!
And the authenticity didn't stop with the big details. It was present in the little details as well. From the period clocks, greeting cards and even matchbooks, there were little touches of authenticity all over the place. It was like being in a historical display as well as a creepy haunted display! There was even a Halliwell-Shelton Violet Ray, an authentic piece of turn of the century medical quackery that you definitely don't see in most haunted setups. A few oddball touches rounded out the garage display. Inside the period sugar bowl were sugar cubes shaped like skulls, there was a mini Cousin IT of Addams Family fame on the floor and a giant figure of Woody from Toy Story sitting on the couch. Why is there a figure of Woody sitting on a couch in a funeral display? Who cares? This is Thanatophobialand!
All in all, the 2014 setup was the best we've seen in all of our years of visiting. It reminded us of why we love coming here year after year, and why we eagerly anticipate seeing what's new each time we do visit. If you're looking for something out of the ordinary, or something that's quirky without being too creepy or weird, or even if you like your haunts sprinkled with a dose of oddball humor, check out Thanatophobialand. It's one our or top haunts of 2014!
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