Why sit on the couch and watch a classic horror movie when you can walk in the footsteps of a scary movie psychopath? Here’s one fan’s guide to visiting five of the genre’s fabled filming locations.
South Pasadena, Calif.
‘Halloween’ (1978)
The director John Carpenter’s “Halloween,” starring Jamie Lee Curtis as a tour de force “final girl,” was a game-changing slasher about the maniac Michael Myers slaughtering his way through an Illinois suburb.
Most of its daytime scenes were filmed in South Pasadena, where you can see the house used in the harrowing opening, a point-of-view sequence in which little Michael commits his first grisly murder. (To preserve it, the privately owned property was moved in 1987 from another location nearby.)
Next door, the SugarMynt Gallery shows spooky art all year related to Halloween and “Halloween.” Through Nov. 29, it presents a two-for-one exhibit: “Pottsfield Meets Haddonfield,” a family-friendly showcase by over 40 artists whose works honor “Halloween” and “Over the Garden Wall,” an animated series about brothers lost in an enchanted forest.
The gallery is also hosting outdoor movie screenings, including another nerve-plucking Carpenter film, 1980’s “The Fog” (Oct. 9).
Hardwick, N.J.
‘Friday the 13th’ (1980)
The director Sean S. Cunningham filmed most of “Friday the 13th,” the first movie in the popular slasher franchise about the hockey-masked butcher Jason Voorhees, at Camp No-Be-Bo-Sco in Hardwick. In the movie it’s called Camp Crystal Lake, and from Oct. 9 through Nov. 14, Crystal Lake Tours allows fans to explore the nearly 100-year-old venue.
Those 13 and older can tour filming locations; one option includes a screening in the dining hall from its opening scenes.
The nearby Blairstown Diner, used in the film, offers a Jason’s Omelet and hosts events, including a scavenger hunt (Oct. 24), a trivia night (Nov. 3) and a party on, yep, Friday the 13th (of November).
Despite 12 films in the franchise, the thirst is nowhere near quenched: “Crystal Lake,” a prequel series starring the actress Linda Cardellini, starts streaming Oct. 15 on Peacock.
Monroeville, Pa.
‘Dawn of the Dead’ (1978)
The annual Living Dead weekend (Oct. 16 to 18) returns to the Monroeville Mall, outside Pittsburgh, where the maestro George Romero filmed much of his zombie shocker “Dawn of the Dead.” But it could be the end: The mall was sold and may soon be demolished.
Thousands are expected for the event, which includes mall tours led by a Romero historian, entrance to a museum of props and ephemera from Pittsburgh-made horror films, and “Dawn of the Dead” screenings.
The schedule includes panel discussions and meet-and-greets with horror royalty like the scream queen Linnea Quigley, the makeup and special effects master Tom Savini and the actor Russ Streiner, immortal for the line “They’re coming to get you, Barbara” in “Night of the Living Dead.”
Estes Park, Colo.
‘The Shining’ (1980)
In the director Stanley Kubrick’s profound psychological thriller, the actors Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall play a couple who go bloody nuts one winter while staying with their young son at a (mostly) empty mountain hotel, the Overlook. The movie is based on Stephen King’s eponymous 1977 novel, itself inspired by his visit to the real Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, with killer views of the Rocky Mountains.
The hotel leans into its haunted reputation with an annual “Shining” Ball (sold out this year) and live shows, such as a three-hour interactive group investigation into paranormal activity and an immersive recreation of a Victorian-age séance.
A roster of walking tours includes the maximum in macabre: “The Shining” tour, an hourlong guided walk exploring the film, the novel and ABC’s 1997 mini-series. That’s how you can get a selfie inside a re-creation of the film’s extra-creepy spring green bathroom. Or spend the night in a Spirited Suite, one of 13 rooms said to be spooked.
Kingsland, Texas
‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ (1974)
The director Tobe Hooper’s low-budget shocker about the chainsaw-wielding sociopath Leatherface terrified audiences and became horror canon.
The place to stay in central Texas, where it was filmed? The Antlers Inn in Kingsland, an hour’s drive from Austin, where guests can sleep in cozy converted railcars. The place to eat? Hooper’s, a nearby restaurant named for the director and offering a Chicken Slaughter sandwich. The restaurant is inside the actual farmhouse used as the set where Leatherface and his family tortured and killed their victims. (Dismantled in Round Rock, Texas, the house was rebuilt in Kingsland.)
The restaurant hosts its annual “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” weekend Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, with live music, a costume contest and actor appearances. Admission is free. The state’s film commission also offers a Thrills and Chills trail covering over 20 horror movie locations.
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