Family Fright Fest

[Coaster Alex0805]

Under Shapiro's leadership, the newly dubbed Family Fright Fest, the parks' annual Halloween event, will take on a softer, gentler tone.

"We own teenagers for Fright Fest," Shapiro said. "But we scared people away, we scared families away. Parents are looking for a safe place for trick or treat. They want candy and pictures in their own section."

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[Trailblazer Tony]

I just got a few questions for you. Is this from an article? Is this all happening for next year? I guess I want to know this is real before I get my hopes up.

[Coaster Alex0805]

This is from an Article but yes it is all true but I dont think the Picturium 4-D will happen this year....But but characters all the new shows parades, fireworks, Holiday in the park, family ff, parking trams

[sfgam05]

Sounds ok, i like the parking trams idea,and the family fright fest doesnt matter cause FF wasnt themed very well this year compared to the previous season.

[Binks Drake]

My Dreams are Coming True. Lets Consider the main points (at least in My Opinoin) of this article...

We'll bring in the Cubs, the Sox, Gospel fests, Christian fests, Hilary Duff (and) Carrie Underwood — if she still has time left in her 15 minutes of fame.

Well...Cubs...Sox... Not exactly family-like, that's more teens and men. Label me confused. But there's Gospel and Christian, and Hilary and Carrie, which i think it's great that we're having a concert series.

wants to integrate more music, more film — including 3-D and 4-D (non-visual sensation) IMAX theaters — and more costumed cartoon characters into park operations

Okay, We've talked about hte Imax thing. Exciting and probably won't happen 'til 07. But we may get a 3-D show or something. Like Haunted Castle, only the regular season. And The Costumed character thing has also been discussed to death. I think it would be good if they got involved with Comics. Like newspaper Comics. Andrews and McMeel owns several of today's most popular comic Strips which definatly falls under the category of family. Also i talked about my superhero-character-Ideas in the other thread.

mid-size rides and coasters that parents can enjoy with their children, twice-daily parades and a daily fireworks show, and trams that run to and from the parking lot.

"My Dreams are Coming True" Says the Deranged entertainment department groupie on opening day as he's shuttled from his parking space in the overflow lot just because he can.

All Six Flags will also add Holiday-in-the-Park events.

All I can say to that is...It's about time...

the newly dubbed Family Fright Fest, the parks' annual Halloween event, will take on a softer, gentler tone

This makes me curious because JPM has announced developing FF and they will be adding several characters. I don't know if they're contracted yet by they are acting like they are....This will be something to Follow over the next few months whether you're a Fright Fest Fan or not.

The company has no immediate plans for increases in either admission or parking fees at the Gurnee park

Predictable, but I can't say I wasn't nervous about it.

open the Washington Street exit," said Mayor Kristina Kovarik. "We want it open for entrances, too."

Thank the Lord.

Overall....

I LOVE YOU SHAPIRO!

[batman1150]

Hmmm this guy has some VERY good ideas and some VERY bad ideas,lol.

I like the sports things and the run more cars/trains idea.

The family thing wasnt too bad at first but now hes saying like a softer tone for Fright Fest?!?! WTH

When i go to SF i expect a scare (FF) and a thrill.

But i dont have anything against the families with young children because i remember back in the day when i was scared to ride Spacely's!


1 more thing... if its such a park for people from ALL AGES then why is he just focusing on kids?

[LaTiNoObSeSeDSFGAm]

I like the idea of family attractions BUT not for Fright Fest! I bet you anything Fright Fest brings in alot of moeny for our park...taking it away is just a huge mistake!!! Any ways I see kids that dont get scared by the characters because the characters dont do nothing to them.

As for taking away the beef house I really liked that place because I thought it brought in a lot of the theme in "Yukon Territory" ( it is there right? ) If he puts in another restaraunt, then I hope that the "new" restaraunt will go along with the theme and have its layout theme nicely done. Just a quick question did he have any records to show that that place didnt make any business???

If he wants this to be a family place then he should also focus on the THEME! I havnt read any where that hes going to fix the theme and scenery for any parks. Yes our theme is good but there are some problems that we do need to fix that such as the plants. My teacher told me once that Marriotts Great America looked like Disneyland with flowers and excellent scenery. When ever they would see a dead plant they would take it off and plant another one. I seriously think that will make a huge benefit for family a expiereince. There are some places that need to be repainted. No new colors for buildings, because the buildilngs are real nice, they just need to re-paint it in the same color scheme. If they do that the park will look 10x nicer than it already does, not that the park is ugly.

[SFGAm Shock Wave]

Shapiro has officially won me over.

"All Six Flags will also add Holiday-in-the-Park events."

[Binks Drake]

SFGAm05 are you joking?? That was the BEST Fright Fest I've Ever seen Bar-None. Area 51 and Seven Sins Cemetary were Acievements in the World of Fright Fest. Necro was outstanding this year. Even County Fair had more theming then usual. It was An Amazing FF.

[diggerg56]

I'm a bit surpirsed about the mayors comment concerning the washington Street exit. I was under the impression that the city liked it closed after 9/11 to keep extra traffic off that street.

The biggest problem with exiting the park onto Washington is that one set of signage runs you around and dumps you right back onto Grand. That ultimately doesn't help the traffic. For those of us that know are way around it's no big deal but for others it can be.

[zjohn1988]

Under Shapiro's leadership, the newly dubbed Family Fright Fest, the parks' annual Halloween event, will take on a softer, gentler tone.

Bad Idea....FF draws the most guests than the rest of the season does..If FF sucks, attendance will go down during October.

[diggerg56]

SFGAm05 are you joking?? That was the BEST Fright Fest I've Ever seen Bar-None. Area 51 and Seven Sins Cemetary were Acievements in the World of Fright Fest. Necro was outstanding this year. Even County Fair had more theming then usual. It was An Amazing FF.

I'd agree with Binks here. The theming was great in '05!

I do disagree with Shapiro's remarks about FF scaring families away. I don't see that myself.

[twixmix0303]

I'd rather see a Hurricane Harbor expansion than the access road staying. There's a few things that could be improved, inside the park and out, before they have to open the Washington Street exit.

Approaching from the city, I exit onto Grand Avenue east, and have to make a lane change to the left because the right lane becomes a right turn only lane into the ever-popular obesity-causing McDonald's. Why not add a separate right-turn lane so that as you exit with the other thousand cars, you don't have to change lanes? This whole intersection seems pretty accident-prone, especially on the west and south sides. You've got the exit ramp on the west and one-way road past McDonald's immediately to the south.

Entering the park, there is a stoplight on Six Flags Avenue right before the "offical" entrance. When was the last time you actually saw a car turning onto Cedar Avenue (I think that's the road) from the Six Flags road? Never! There's an entrance on Dilleys that should be quite sufficient. All this light does is cause backups.

Then, you've the the main parking lot road cutting right through the middle of the lot. I'm suprised no one's gotten killed trying to cross this from overflow. Why not reroute the road and put the tollbooths along the property line to the far north, so everything is in one giant lot? You could certainly fit more spaces in this way, I just can't believe this wasn't taken into consideration when the entire parking lot was repaved for this year.

The drop-off situation at night is horrific, the drop-off area should be closed after 5:00 pm, and cars should be re-routed somewhere into the main lot, since there's no parking toll after 5:00 pm.

If you slice the would-be main lot into two with a tram route, you've got yourself two lots. Make the west one exit the park onto Grand Ave. west only using the left lane, make the east one exit the park either onto Grand Ave. west using the center lane or east using the right lane (which is rarely backed up). You won't have cars trying to get from the left lane towards Rte. 41 or cars in the right lane towards I-94.

Set the light on Grand Ave. to have green for an extra minute or so from one hour before park closing to one hour after park closing every day the park is open.

If this doesn't work, then I'd consider opening the Washington Street exit.

******

I'd also like to see pull through parking like Disney World's and parking lot attendants in the morning directing traffic, but that probably won't happen.

[LaTiNoObSeSeDSFGAm]

Shapiro has officially won me over.

"All Six Flags will also add Holiday-in-the-Park events."

WOAH! your not the only one...

[Drkstarboard]

I'm really starting to like this guy.

However, his Fright Fest ideas suck! I mean I understand what he's trying to do, but seriosly, I rarely see the characters scaring little kids during Fright Fest. As a mater of fact, I only see them scaring kids (10 or older), and girls. They never scare the little kids (9 and below), or guys.

I agree. This ws the best Fright Fest I've ever been to. The themeing was excellent and I especially like the Demon theming during Fright Fest (I wish the theming would stay like that all the time). The sign was amazing at night. For anyone who didnt see the sign at night, its lit on fire and all smokey. then there was a back light that made a reflection. It was awsome!

[andrewlaw5680]

If they get rid of fright fest then there going to lose alot of business because the time when every body and they mama comes out is when SF has FF and with this family friendily FF all the thrill seekers who want a good scare aren't going to come because its not going to be scary. Isn't it enough that SFGA is Family Oriented all summer????? WHY FF

[twixmix0303]

They can do whatever they want, so stop yer whining.

[ihauntu2]

SFSTL already does a 'family friendly" FF. They just don't advertise it as such, but what else do you call "sinister" clowns helping kids blow bubbles with hula hoops?

The attendance sucks as a result, which is great because the is no wait for Screamin Eagle, but that can't be good for profit. Didn't SFGAM have its busiest days during Firght Fest last year?

They need to rethink this one. Families don't drag their kids out in 50 degrees all day long for an amusement park. Teens, however, happily show up in droves just for the added scares.

Bottom line - I made a three day trip of the SFGAM FF last year staying in a hotel for two nights. I was repulsed by SFSTL's FF after only three hours.

[ZombieClown]

I don't know where you are all getting your information from. From what I just read on the Washington Post site, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/co ... 02367.html it seems that Shapiro kinda wants to keep Fright Fest the way it is. He's even talking about getting Wes Craven enlisted to help build year round haunted houses for th SF theme parks. I would like to be made privy to this link that the information on the family friendly fright fest is. I mean, to me it seems that all they really are going to be doing to Fright Fest is adding the word Family to the front of it.

[SFGAm Shock Wave]

http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/news ... xflags.htm

Here is the link to the original article.

[Mr. D.T.]

SFSTL already does a 'family friendly" FF..

I never knew that. No wonder I didn't get scared one bit. I just went for the rides and to see the park for the first time cause I never went there before. You thought the Screamin' Eagle was a walk-on? Too sad I waited 40 minutes to board 'The Boss' of wooden midwest coasters.

Didn't SFGAM have its busiest days during Firght Fest last year?.

They most certainly did, and the poorest service. 49,200 on not-so-Sweetest Day! I'm glad you weren't there then.

[SFaddiction84]

Does that mean they will get ride of the 2 big haunted houses? i mean they all have warnings on them so parents should know there not for there kids.

[LaTiNoObSeSeDSFGAm]

How is Disneyland for Halloween? Does anybody know that the park is all for kids only including the Haunted houses?

[Binks Drake]

As Far as FF goes, I'm fairly Certain that JPM has already been contracted for this season, at least their site Suggests it, as well as developements for the 2006 seasons. IT's true that shapiro wants to get more families at the park, By adding the Wizard University and the Festival de Los Muertos Parade. But they are also expanding very much, infact it looks like the only areas without characters will be Carousel Plaza, and some Not-So-Scary folks in Yukon.

I think you are all thinking too deeply into this. The Reason he wants to attract families is because they will bring money, but in a time of year when we already have great attendance...why change it? If he's trying to change our parks to be more Destination-like, look at other destination parks...Ever heard of HHN?

[twixmix0303]

No one said that just because JPM has been contracted, Fright Fest won't be family-friendly. JPM doesn't have free roam of the park, everything still has to be approved by management. If they don't like it, JPM won't be doing it.