Volunteers Wanted! (Dead or Alive)

For the 6th Annual Haunted Atlas Coal Mine

Volunteer Meeting: Oct 13th, 7 pm - Civic Centre AV Room (above the Library)

Big Boo Oct 23rd & 30th
Commitment: 6 - 10 pm

Little Boo Oct 24th & 30th
Commitment: 1:30 - 4:30 pm

Everybody Welcome! & Bring a friend!

For more information please call Kelly at 403.822.2220 or 403.822.2220


Atlas Coal Mine National Historic Site
Box 521
East Coulee, AB T0J 1B0
Phone: (403)822-2220 (403)822-2220
Fax: (403)822-2225
E-Mail: info@atlascoalmine.ab.ca
Web: www.atlascoalmine.ab.ca

16 TONS OF FUN!

Our Top 10 Halloween Movies to Watch this Season

Here are my Top 10 Movies I'll be enjoying this Halloween Season. If you have not seen one on my list, pop some popcorn and prepare to be spooked!

1. Night of the Living Dead 1968
2. The Shining
3. Dawn of the Dead 1978
4. Dawn of the Dead Remake
5. REC
6. Ju-on
7. Invasion of the Body Snatchers
9. 28 Days Later
10. 'Janghwa, Hongryeon

And if you are in Calgary, Alberta do check out the Rocky Mountain Horror Film Festival to see a host World Premieres and Canadian Premieres of Canadian Indie Horror.

Vist The Rocky Mountain Horror Film Festival to see what's playing!

The Queen Mary Halloween Haunted Harbour

As patrons walk into Dark Harbor, they are tormented and ridiculed by a demon-like clown. Walking further, they are brought into a 220-foot maze of cargo containers filled with strobe lights and fog. Suddenly, a figure appears, causing them to scream and run. When they escape, they find themselves next to a haunted ship and in a village full of monsters that hunt them down.

The Queen Mary presents Dark Harbor, an 18-night event that stands out among Southern California's haunted attractions. Complete with five mazes - "The Cage," "Village of the Damned," "Containment," "Hellfire" and "Submerged" - and great acting by the monsters, the event is sure to haunt anyone who enters.

"The Cage," one of two onshore mazes and located in the dome, is filled with monsters who lurk every corner. The monsters are trapped in cages but that doesn't stop them from haunting everyone who enters. Unlike other mazes that have one clear route, "The Cage" is easy to get lost in because there are several paths to choose from.

"Village of the Damned" isn't quite as frightening as "The Cage," but it is still worth visiting. Upon entering the maze, lunatics caution visitors to "beware of the pot." More demented monsters wait inside the maze, leading attendees to the scariest part of the maze - a thin inflatable tunnel that is sure to cause a claustrophobic feeling.

Though the onshore mazes are scary, they are no competition to the ones aboard the Queen Mary itself. Whereas typical Halloween attractions bring patrons through artificial settings, Dark Harbor brings people into some of the ship's actual haunted areas where people have died, including the swimming pool and engine room. Visiting these spirit-filled rooms will surely cause even the toughest people to get spooked.

"Containment" has quarantined sailors and passengers that urge visitors to turn the other way. The actors in this maze possess believable talents and creative makeup that make one sympathize with their infected conditions.

In "Hellfire," the ship is ablaze and burnt victims chase visitors for help. Impressive lighting effects and more acting talent make this maze one to visit.

"Submerged" gives the effect of boarding a sinking ship. Water pours in as one enters the maze and drowning victims try to claw their way out. What makes this attraction one of the scariest mazes is that it brings visitors by the ship's swimming pool, which is supposedly haunted by spirits and normally closed to the public.

Queen Mary's Dark Harbor is open every weekend until Halloween night from 7 p.m. to midnight. General admission is $35 and front-of-the-line Fright Passes are $55. Special student prices of $25 will be available from Oct. 8-10 and Oct. 15-17. The Queen Mary is located at 1126 Queen's Highway.

For more information, visit queenmary.com/Dark-Harbor.aspx.

The 13 best haunted house attractions for Halloween 2010

By Jayne Clark • USA TODAY • September 24, 2010

Halloween is big business and among its growth industries are seasonal haunted houses that operate from mid September through October. If you're considering venturing into one, here's some advice from a guy who knows from haunted houses: If you see a grim reaper in a hockey mask, get out of the house as fast as you can.

Ideally, before you've forked over the admission. Because it's bound to be one sorry spook-fest.

The whole Jason thing is soooo '80s slasher film.

These days, the best haunted houses are pushing the envelope with intricate story lines, eye-popping special effects and live talent.

Larry Kirchner, editor of Hauntworld Magazine, believes this because he not only builds haunted houses, but he spends a lot of time hanging out in them and comparing notes with other aficionados on his website, Hauntworld.com. The site has just issued its annual 13 best list of haunted houses.

The "haunt industry" as Kirchner calls it, has gotten increasingly sophisticated, thanks in part, to an influx of former Hollywood special effects and makeup people who lost their entertainment-industry jobs to computer animation.

Kirchner estimates there are about 3,000 haunted houses nationwide poised to open this month and next, but the vast majority are home-grown affairs usually staged for charitable causes. And then there are what Kirchner calls "home haunters who just love Halloween." This time of year Hauntworld.com's message boards are abuzz with people swapping fake-blood recipes.

The full-time denizens of the industry, however, are into more elaborate effects that might involve flame machines, fog machines and other pricey accoutrement. A Kirchner favorite seen at a recent Halloween trade show is a hearse with a 20-foot-tall animation of a grim reaper that shoots out of the roof with victims in its clutches.

For a time, some haunted house operators were favoring animated effects over live actors -- a mistake, if you ask Kirchner. "What makes a haunted house successful is the spontaneity the actors can provide," he says.

Other attributes Kirchner believes are necessary to deliver a truly heart-pounding scare:

When you step inside, its realism should make you believe you are where they say you are. "You're in the middle of the plot," he says. "You are Jamie Lee Curtis, and your life's in danger."

The experience should be immersive, with 360-degree effects, not just action taking place in front of you.

A lot of haunted houses crib from horror movies, but that's not Kirchner's style. "Anybody can do bloody bathrooms and circular-saw chases," he says. "If you want to see Freddie Kruger, go rent the DVD."