American Horror Hotel Stories: Haunted spots for scary stays in every state

BY AARON SAGERS

Although we're about to check out of the Halloween season, it doesn't mean the time is over to check into some scary action. In fact, all across the country there are haunted houses (and hotels, and B&Bs) worth a visit for year-round paranormal tourism.

As a lover of ghost stories, and professional paranormal pop culture nerd, I am often on the hunt for haunts, with my tastes leaning more towards comfortable hotels with a ghosty rep and less creaky old drafty mansions. This used to be a more daunting task, when establishments were reluctant to embrace their spectral folklore for fear they might attract the wrong crowd, appear less reputable, or basically scare away guests.

Thankfully, things have changed in the past decade or so, with the popularity of paranormal reality TV, and successful movies like The Conjuring. Now ghost stories are a selling point for many locations, and with Netflix's The Haunting of Hill House, I would not anticipate a good haunted hot spot to have much difficulty filling its vacancy.

I currently have a running tally of more than 100 supposedly haunted hotels, and I've stayed at a large number of them. And many have become well known in the mainstream, and dubbed some of the "most haunted" destinations in America.

The Stanley Hotel, aka The Shining hotel, is a part of pop culture in its own right - and for good reason. Shown above, the Estes Park, Colo., location is luxurious and set in the scenic Rocky Mountains. Meanwhile, the RMS Queen Mary, moored at Long Beach, Calif., is an ocean liner that carried civilian passengers and then troops during World War II. Now it is a tourist attraction, party venue, and the focus of many ghost hunts.

But what of the less-famous locations, and how do you hunt down your haunts? To that end, I have a beginner's guide of 50 haunts for all 50 states (plus Washington D.C.). This is by no means a comprehensive list, but is just to kickstart a spooky stay. In my search, I relied on active listings using Booking.com's database, and tried to lean towards the lesser-known. Don't just take my suggestions, or only use these listings. Instead, begin your own ghost hotel hunt.

'Walking Dead' Mazzara To Develop 'Omen' Series

From zombies to the antichrist, former "The Walking Dead" showrunner Glen Mazzara is heading to Lifetime to develop a show about Damien, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Instead of re-imagining the beginnings of the demonic tyke featured in 1976's "The Omen," a la "Hannibal" and "Bates Motel," the show focuses on the adult version of Damien Thorn who "is faced with a series of macabre events and must finally face his true destiny: he is the Antichrist."

The original flick, which grossed more than $60 million domestically and was followed by two sequels, was written by David Seltzer, directed by Richard Donner and starred Gregory Peck and Lee Remick as adoptive parents to the hellion. As THR notes, there was also two "Omen" TV movies, a 2005 miniseries "Revelations" starring Bill Pullman, and the 2006 Liev Schreiber remake.

Mazzara will write and executive produce the show with his 44 Strong Productions production company. He is also writing "The Shining" movie prequel "Overlook Hotel." As for Lifetime, "Damien" follows "Witches of East End" and the apocalyptic "The Lottery" in a move to genre programming.

-Aaron Sagers

Ugly Christmas Sweater Inspired by 'The Shining' is Perfect for Gift Giving!

Ugly Christmas sweaters are not a thing of the past. They're actually quite trendy and people have Ugly Sweater parties! No, seriously. Now we're not calling this awesome find, "ugly" but well...let's just send our gratitude to FEARnet for the heads up on this garment that's inspired by "The Shining."

Over at TheYetee.com there's a Sweaterfest going on and they're offering this Steven Anderson-designed Torrance Winter sweater for $25 (the t-shirt is $11). Perfect for holiday gift giving and for not freezing while being chased by an ax-weilding maniac, the item not only features a stitched pic of the Overlook Hotel but also part of that iconic saying, "All work and no play..." It even includes that forbidden room number, 237.

They also offer other film-inspired designs such as "Harry Potter," so head over to check out these cool finds.

-Larissa Mrykalo

Own a Replica of Your Favorite Horror Film Home with 'Horror Houses'

"The Amityville Horror' House

When you think of horror movies, some of the locations are just as memorable as the villains themselves. It's near impossible to talk about "The Amityville Horror" without picturing those eerie, eye-like attic windows or "The Overlook Hotel" when discussing "The Shining." If you're a fan of horror homes, artist John Stewart may have something you're interested in.

Available on his website, Stewart has recreated some of the most iconic locations in horror with handmade scale models. Each model is completely sculpted, carved, textured and painted by the artist, who uses no pre-made materials. To keep the models structurally sound, each piece is framed with metal and wood. They even light up!

Stewart's pieces are all exact replicas and include locations from "The Amityville Horror," "The Shining," "The Evil Dead," "Poltergeist," "A Nightmare on Elm Street" and more. The replicas are available to purchase on his website and vary in price depending on the haunt you desire.

-Nowal Massari

Check out these examples:

The Overlook Hotel

"The Evil Dead' cabin

Spooky Halloween Blinds Are a Cool Find

We love our readers and we especially love when they send us tips on cool paranormal-themed products. Many thanks to Alan Saul for sending us to a UK-based web site that custom makes spooky halloween blinds.

MadetoMeasureblinds-UK is definitely in the Halloween spirit and you have to check out their movie-themed designs that range from paying homage to Hitchcock’s “Psycho” to Kubrick's “The Shining” and even Barker’s “Hellraiser.” “Nosferatu” even gets a shout-out!

They also have classic and fun Halloween-themes like a jack-o-lantern and the fun guillotine. Sadly it looks like they only ship in the UK but we wanted to share this cool idea. Thanks, Alan!

-Larissa Mrykalo

About that 'Shining' prequel 'The Overlook Hotel'...

EW's King portrait, by Tyler Jacobson

Yesterday we reported a Deadline article that former Walking Dead showrunner Glen Mazzara might be writing a movie prequel to 1980 film The Shining for Warner Bros., to be titled The Overlook Hotel.

Well Entertainment Weekly called up their former pop culture columnist Stephen King (and, of course, author of The Shining novel) to see if this was even possible. See, EW correctly asks if WB, which released Kubrick's film, retains rights for additional movie adaptations -- and, specifically, rights to a section of the book that detailed the Overlook's history, but which was eventually cut from the final version.

Said King:

"There's a real question about whether or not they have the rights to 'Before the Play,' which was the prologue cut from the book — because the epilogue to the book was called 'After the Play.' So they were bookends, and there was really scary stuff in that prologue that wouldn't make a bad movie. Am I eager to see that happen? No I am not. And there's some real question about what rights Warner Bros. does still have. The Shining is such an old book now that the copyright comes back to me. Arguably, the film rights lapse — so we’ll see. We’re looking into that."

But King did add that he's not necessarily going to stop a film project from happening because "I'm sort of a nice guy."

And maybe that's why he's the King.

-Aaron Sagers

Former 'Walking Dead' showrunner Mazzara writing 'Shining' prequel - and it might be cool

Former Walking Dead showrunner Glen Mazzara is checking into The Overlook Hotel, reports Deadline. Mazzara, who was dismissed from TWD in December, is writing a prequel to the 1980 Stanley Kubrick film The Shining for Warner Bros.

Although my fanboy eyebrow (my fanbrow?) arches skeptically anytime I hear about a remake, reboot, re-imagining or long dormany prequel, this kind of makes sense. Long before the Torrance family moved into the Overlook for a really bad winter, the hotel had a notorious history. In Stephen King's 1977 novel alone, the hotel was the site of illnesses, tragic deaths, the murder-suicide of a family, gangland-style murders, ghost children, snakelike fire hoses, zombie wasps, evil topiaries and, oh yeah, is kind of an extension of Hell.

Mazzara could use a prequel to play with a lot of this material that never made it into Kubrick's film (which also had a funky masquerade swinger party and Indian burial ground)...

Stanley Hotel film fest promises 'Shining' lineup

The Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colo., is not only a historic and haunted destination (and, course the inspiration for Stephen King's The Shining) but now it will be home to a film festival presented by NBC Universal’s Chiller.

Running May 2-5, the inaugural Stanley Film Festival (SFF) looks to be a very strong launch and will boast not only popular horror films, but some really cool special events. A big part of any film festival are the short films debuting new and established talent. The SFF will feature 22 short films from eight countries. According to Programming Director Landon Zakheim, "The 22 short films selected represent some of the most adventurous work happening in genre film today."

To kick off the fest during the "Shining Gala" party, they’ve selected to screen Universal Picture’s new Ethan Hawke (Sinister), Lena Headey (Game of Thrones) crime thriller, The Purge. Some of the other films being screened are Eli Roth’s Cabin Fever, the Singapore/Indonesian horror film Macabre and No One Lives.

'The Shining' doc 'Room 237' gets release date

Back in October, we reported on Room 237, a new documentary shining light on the Stanley Kubrick's 1980 cult horror classic film based on Stephen King’s novel The Shining.

Well the film not only now has a release date, but also a new poster thanks to an exclusive from Entertainment Weekly.

Directed by first-timer Rodney Ascher, the article sums up Room 237 as showcasing "the theories of five obsessive Shining fans as to what Kubrick really intended with his Stephen King adaptation and features footage from both that snowy chiller and many others."

It opens March 29 in theaters, but you can also catch it on Video OnDemand (VOD), and SundanceNOW.

The name of the movie stems from the most haunted room of the hotel in the film, but of course, paranormal fans also know that the Overlook Hotel -- the haunted and alive hotel where the Torrance family is tormented -- was based on The Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colo., and has a landmark for ghost hunts.

Check out the latest trailer:



-Larissa Mrykalo

Stephen King reveals details about 'The Shining' sequel 'Doctor Sleep'

Courtesy EW

Have you ever wondered what happened to little Danny Torrance after his traumatic stay at The Overlook Hotel? Did he grow up to be a happy and well-adjusted young man? Did he inherit his father’s drinking problem? In a recent interview over at Entertainment Weekly, horror master Stephen King talks about the anticipated sequel to The Shining.

Although King has chatted about the project before, and even read a short excerpt of the book last year, this is the most he's opened up about the sequel, titled Doctor Sleep. The book takes us into the solitary world of a middle-aged "Dan Torrance." He uses his shining ability to comfort the dying in the hospice in which he is employed, but some of the demons from his past are still haunting him.

King expressed that he has often wondered what happened to Danny and even joked that he married Charlie McGee from Firestarter. In the interview, he talks about when and why he finally decided to write this sequel (due out Sept. 24) and some of his own fears. Most revealing is that he's trying to make his work quite scary, and is doing it with a kid character and it even sounds like we'll see Danny returning to the site of the Overlook.

Here are some excerpts from the interview:

'Room 237' doc puts 'The Shining' in the spotlight

The Shining is undoubtedly one of the creepiest and most controversial horror movies ever made. It is well-documented that Shining author Stephen King actually said that Stanley Kubrick's film adaptation was not a good one and that it's the only adaptation of one of his novels that he could "remember hating."

Now enter Room 237, a new documentary that examines the cult of The Shining and depicts just how crazy it has drives critics, even 32 years later. But Rodney Ascher's Room 237 also utilizes Kubrick's film as a basis to examine film critique, and the tendency of critics to add meaning, decipher subtext and interpret clues where there may be none.

This flick has been picking up a lot of buzz, and it should be especially fun since Kubrick (1928-1999) was notorious for his long shoots and perfectionism, and has been the focus of much critical ink. The embedded trailer doesn't clue us in much on what the film includes other than its rave reviews, but we're liking what we are seeing - the poster (rocking the Overlook Hotel's carpet pattern) is pretty cool too.

-Larissa Mrykalo

Stephen King's 'The Shining' sequel gets release date

Courtesy
Stephenking.com

Just shy of one year since he read an excerpt at George Mason University in Washington, D.C., Stephen King has confirmed on his website that his sequel to The Shining would be released Sept. 24, 2013.

Titled Doctor Sleep, the book follows an adult Danny Torrance, who works in hospice care, and his run-ins with a traveling group of psychic vampires called "The Tribe."

-Aaron Sagers

'Psych' gets ghosty with 'Shining' spoof

Fans of Psych know the show always does a killer episode (punny!) every year spoofing the horror genre. Well, this time around they're heading to Kubrick town for a Shining-inspired episode where Detective Lassiter buys a new condo possibly plagued by ghosts, which drive him a little cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs.

Check out the "Heeeeeere's Lassie" episode tomorrow, March 7, on USA at 10 p.m.

Stephen King reads excerpt of 'The Shining' sequel 'Dr. Sleep'

After paying a visit to George Mason University in D.C. last weekend, where he read an excerpt of the in-progress book, Stephen King officially announced he's working on Dr. Sleep, the sequel to The Shining. According to his site, the book's plot revolves around an adult Danny Torrance and "a traveling group of vampires called The Tribe."

Entertainment Weekly posted video of King reading from the sequel at Mason, which we've embedded below. Also if you want more of King this week, and are curious to hear him share further thoughts about Stanley Kubrick's version of The Shining, be certain to tune in to TCM for The Horrors of Stephen King Oct. 3 at 8 p.m.

Paranormal Pop Culture Film Fest: Stanley Hotel, Colo., May 6

Ghosts are heading to the famous Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colo., this week - and they're bringing a few zombies, demons and other supernatural beings with them - to entertain amateur investigators and your favorite paranormal celebrities from Ghost Hunters, Fact or Faked: Paranormal Files and Psychic Kids.

In a first for "The Shining" hotel and a paranormal convention of this size, and sponsored by ParanormalPopCulture.com, Beyond Reality Events and TAPS ParaMagazine, three highly-anticipated paranormal films will be shown as part of a "Paranormal Pop Culture Film Fest" at The Stanley Hotel beginning Friday, May 6, 2011, and continuing through Sunday, May 8.

The festival films - Grave Encounters, Ghost From The Machine and The Night Shift - will be shown in conjunction with a weekend event that includes presentations and investigations of The Stanley with TAPS members and Ghost Hunters Britt Griffith, Amy Bruni and Adam Berry; Ben Hansen and Bill Murphy from Fact or Faked; psychic/medium Chip Coffey from Psychic Kids and Paranormal State; and Paranormal Pop Culture historian Aaron Sagers.

"I'm really excited to add another great element to our events," says Griffith, one of the event organizers. "For a long time our guests and investigators have been able to have fun learning about the paranormal - and actually investigating with us - but now they'll be able to check out cool new paranormal movies too."

Each film included in the festival, shown previously in limited releases, has picked up good buzz. 

Having only made its world premiere April 22 at the Tribeca Film Festival, the found footage film Grave Encounters, is a buzzed-about movie directed by "The Vicious Brothers." When the crew of a ghost hunting show, led by arrogant investigator Lance Preston (Sean Rogerson) is locked down with its small team in the abandoned Collingwood psychiatric hospital (which is actually a real facility in British Columbia), they're filming one another as they seek proof of hauntings from the institution's dark past. But when the team begins to encounter activity, they learn too late that the building itself is alive and isn't ready to let the investigators go. Often compared to the smash hit Paranormal Activity, Cinema Blend calls the horror a "scary and enjoyable experience," while The L Magazine says Grave Encounters is a "f---ed up mindfreak."

According to the official synopsis, Ghost From The Machine "explores the grey area between life and death and how science may be the bridge between the two." When his parents die, Cody must raise his younger brother James. To cope with his loss, Cody explores the "science" of the supernatural. While ignoring his duties to his brother, he invents a machine to be a conduit to the afterlife. After befriending engineer Tom, who is dealing with his own grief, Cody's machine becomes more successful than intended - and has opened a door to something that threatens the safety of the living. Written and directed by Matt Osterman, and starring Sasha Andreev, Variety calls the slow-build intellectual suspense film an "impressive feature debut" and and "reminiscent of The Sixth Sense in its subtle creepiness."

Holding its world premiere at the "Paranormal Pop Culture Film Fest," the adventure-comedy The Night Shift asks the question, "What if you could live forever?" Sounds cool, but things get tricky when you have to spend an eternity stuck guarding a cemetery with only a limbless corpse as a friend. Based on the Fighting Owl Films original short film, the feature revolves around night watchman Rue Morgan who spends the nights fighting zombies (and other supernatural scourges) and his days pining for graveyard dayshifter Claire. Fangoria called the short film a "very entertaining effort" with "light hearted good humor." The star of The Night Shift, Erin Lilley, is also a contributor to ParanormalPopCulture.com.

"These are all great movies on their own," says Britt Griffith. "They are going to be hits with regular movie audiences, so the fact that we get to show them together as part of our event - to a crowd of paranormal lovers, ghost hunters and fans of all these TV shows - that makes this all the cooler."

The "Paranormal Pop Culture Film Fest" marks the first time paranormal investigative films have been shown as part of a paranormal investigative event, and the first time each movie has been shown together. An inspiration for Stephen King's The Shining, the festival is also a first of its kind for the historic Stanley Hotel.

Tickets are still available for the weekend event and film festival at BeyondEvent.net/stanley.

'Grave Encounters' review

Ever since Ghost Hunters ushered in the era of reality-TV paranormal investigative shows in 2004, the genre has been booming. Every network seems to have aired its own ghost hunting show, and a formula of nightvision shots, gadgets and jargon has emerged. It is no surprise, then, that the popularity (and formula) of these shows is being pushed into a new direction - away from reality TV and into scripted fare, specifically horror.

Premiering Friday, April 22, at the Tribeca Film Festival, Grave Encounters, directed by "The Vicious Brothers" is such a film. When the crew of a ghost hunting show, led by Lance Preston (Sean Rogerson) is locked down with its small team in the abandoned Collingwood psychiatric hospital, they're filming one another as they seek proof of hauntings from the institution's dark past. But when the team begins to encounter activity, they learn too late that the building itself is alive and isn't ready to let the investigators go.

Grave Encounters is not the first film to use ghost hunting shows as a basis for scares (Ghosts Don't Exist is another). However, the "found footage" indie movie is the first to accurately capture the aesthetic and feel of investigative shows, which is what makes the film so intriguing. The opening sequence of the reality show, along with the "walk through tour" and eyewitnesses, is so spot-on it looks like the newest program on a cable network. The characters use much of the same equipment and expressions as televised investigators, and the behind-the-scenes segments speak to the "reality" many suspect behind reality-TV. And Rogerson, whose character is a composite of Zak Bagans and Ryan Buell, does such a masterful job as an obsessively inquisitive, fearless lead investigator that he could have a future on a ghost show if acting doesn't work out.

Top movies about possession

The Last Exorcism premieres today and the reviews for it are pretty favorable, especially considering it's a docu-style horror produced by Eli Roth. The Rotten Tomatoes tally is a decent - and hilarious - 69 percent, so this might just be a demon flick with lasting power.

To tap into the movie's release, the Associated Press has put together a list of the top movies about possession. The list is fun, and includes classics The Shining, The Exorcist, Ghost Busters, All of Me and Heaven Can Wait.

However, this isn't groundbreaking and omits more recent entries like Evil Dead 2, The Exorcism of Emily Rose and Paranormal Activity.

Here's what they have to say, and then let us know what else they missed: