Knott's Scary Farm or Knott's Halloween Haunt is a seasonal Halloween event at Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, California. It is an event in which the theme park is transformed into "160 acres of horror", via a series of roaming monsters, terrifying haunted houses 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

Attraction history

History

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. Bud Hurlbut, who built and operated (as a concessionaire) the Calico Mine Ride, the Timber Mountain 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. Originally a three-night affair, running October 26–28, 1973, 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 ghost town 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 icons were employed to represent the event. In 1981, actor and singer "Weird Al" Yankovic joined the cast, as did Cassandra "Elvira" 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. This continuing balance of horror and humor has been a key to the continuing success of Knott's Halloween Haunt. On August 4, 2020, Knott's announced that the 48th Scary Farm season would be cancelled in response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic which caused the closure of theme parks in California in March at the request of California Governor Gavin Newsom and was deferred to 2021. The theme park was not open at the time of the announcement. By the time the annual, six-week-long event celebrated its 50th year in 2023, it had become the largest event of any theme park. On November 2, 2023, Cedar Fair announced plans to merge with Six Flags, forming a new company and retaining the Six Flags name. Described as a "merger of equals", former Cedar Fair management will remain in control of the new company, which will be headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. On July 1, 2024, the merger was successfully completed.

Park transformation

While Knott's Berry Farm is a year-round theme park, the entire acreage is modified to fit the Halloween motif. Rides and other attractions are converted into macabre themes. Seasonal workers are cast as a variety of monsters, roaming the 160 acre park in terrifying scare zones, amidst haze produced by giant fog machines. The controversial "Hanging" live show was a staple of the Haunt that lampoons celebrities and people in the news through a series of staged hangings. The Hanging had been an annual event since the 1979 Halloween Haunt, but went on a brief hiatus after the 2019 season until it returned in 2023 relocated from the Calico Mine Stage where it took place from 2016 to 2019 (previously performed in Calico Square next to the saloon until the Calico Mine Stage was built) to the Wagon Camp Theater located across from the park gates. As of 2023, the park has 10 mazes, 5 scare zones, and 4 live shows.

The Green Witch

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 Kirchen-Kelly 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 in 1976, the Green Witch role was passed to Barb Best Becka, then to Karen Aikman, and then to Charlene Parker in 1982. The Green Witch character became the most famous of the 1,000 "monsters" at Knott's Scary Farm, and Charlene Parker served in that role for over three decades (1983-2017). Tall and thin, she had a reputation for "gliding" rather than walking, and was continually able to catch guests by surprise. Some would fall over backwards onto the ground, and leave a wet spot on the pavement where they fell... This ability gave her "serious street cred" among her fellow "monsters." Sweepers at Knott's would just sit and wait near her, knowing that it would not be long before she would scare a group of guests so much that they would toss their food up into the air. In the age before cell phones, Knott's Guest Relations referred to her as "the Number 1 cause of separated parties." People would come to the Guest Relations office because their group had scattered after being "scared by a green witch." Parker was the subject of two feature articles about her in the Orange County Register, as well as the travel blog of the Los Angeles Times, and other publications, as well as appearing in Knott's commercials. In September 2021, Sarah was replaced by The Conductor as the new face of Knott's Scary Farm.

Awards

Knott's Scary Farm has won Amusement Today's Golden Ticket Award for Best Halloween Event twice, in 2005 and 2007.