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The 13th Door - Portland Haunts 2005

For the newest interview with Raymond of the 13th Door, click here.

As I am certain you are all tired of reading by now, the month of October contains your friendly neighborhood Geek’s favorite holiday. Although, Halloween is not my favorite holiday for all the reasons you would expect. Yes, it is true that I have the mad love for the horror genre and scaring the crap out of people. However, loving Halloween also has a lot to do with the month of October itself. I love all the sights and smells as the seasons change. The lingering fog and mist that stays out just a little bit longer in the City of Roses. When you boil it all down though, I just love scaring the crap out of people. I take the art of fright very seriously. In recent years, I have discovered that I'm not the only one. Many like-minded men and women have taken their love of scaring the common folk and turned it into a full time job.

Like the fine (and slightly demented) folks at The 13th Door...

Now in the middle of their 4th year, Raymond and Ellen Latocki have made scaring people a few weeks every year into a full time job, a job that I am both jealous of and glad that someone else is doing. The 13th Door makes its home within the long closed Washington Square Theater. As I pulled into the parking lot of The 13th Door, it made me grin to think that such an attraction dedicated to frightening people was smack dab within the rather stuffy confines of the Washington Square Mall. As one who has worked there at one time, I know the image they try to project... A well designed and ran spook house is exactly what that placed needed.

It has one now.

Long gone are the simple painted sheets for walls and peeled grapes for zombie eyes. Raymond and the crew at the 13th Door firmly believe that to truly scare an audience, you must allow them to become immersed within a believable environment. Trying hard to avoid horror clichés, the 13th Door pulls its visitors into a bizarre and unsettling world of science run amok. Although I was a fan of the 2004 "Haunted Ocean liner" theme, the 13th Door crew has listened to their fans and, according to co-owner Raymond Latocki will, "give them what they asked for". Judging from what surprises I was allowed to see, it would appear that the public asked for extreme realism rarely seen outside of large budget horror films.

Comparing the 13th Door to a horror film wouldn't be that far off base.

Raymond and Ellen have decided upon a self-imposed rule of no masks and no simple "boo" scares. This helps in creating a whole world of terror and fright within the 15,000 square feet walls of the 13th Door. The living (and dead) you run across within the demented walls of the 13th Door have been created with the latest in latex and prosthetic make-up effects. This attention to detail is only augmented by the fact that Raymond himself spent many years as a medical photographer with many of his more gruesome photos hung throughout the crew walls, allowing the make-up effects team to draw inspiration and realism. Like many small businesses, the 13th Door is a family affair with the Latocki’s professionally trained daughter leading the make-up crew. Even your friendly neighborhood Geek, a man who has spent many a night filming horror scenes, found himself shuddering ever so slightly amidst the various parts and innards... I can only imagine how all you non-horror junkies will react. The level of production design and detail that has gone into the attraction itself will leave you breathless. While standing in line (of which you will do, as the 13th Door continues to grow in popularity), you may find yourself thinking that the building a tad on the plain side. Do not let the theater exterior fool you; rules set by Washington Square have prevented the 13th Door crew from going all out on exteriors. However, once inside you will see just how much care and attention to detail has been put into the attraction. While I will not give too much away, you will find yourself covered from head to toe in a completely surreal and terrifying environment. It helps that much of the 13th Door is furnished by the now closed Dammasch State Hospital... A place many readers of this site know to be high on the creepy-o-meter.

As if the hard work and attention to detail were not enough, the actual location of the 13th Door has been well documented as a haunted location itself. When the building was still an operational theater, many employees would report strange sounds, lights turning on and off for no reason, and even doors which would open of their own accord, and if the reports are to be believed, right before the very eyes of some of the guests. Although finished for the current year, the Pacific Paranormal Research Society had been conducting actual ghost tours of the location and were able to capture some interesting sounds and visuals. See and judge for yourself here. Although Raymond himself is not a firm believer in the supernatural, he does admit that strange things happen while walking the halls and testing the equipment within the 13th Door. He is not alone as you can read testimonials from various attendees and volunteers claiming to have seen or heard bizarre events occurring within. Although I didn't encounter any myself (this time), it was unsettling to observe the Latocki family dog refuse to enter any section of the theater save the small box office. When asked, Ellen simply told me, "He has never liked it here and cries until we take him out. Then, he’s fine".

In addition to providing genuine scares to their customers, the crew at the 13th Door will be starting a new service that I wish had been around during my more formative years. Starting this year, the 13th Door make-up department will open their services to those who wish for a truly wonderful and realistic make-up work but lack the skills to do so on their own, like me. Organizing themselves like a traditional salon, the crew at the 13th Door will be setting appointments for those who wish to become transformed into whatever their ghoulish hearts may desire. Contact the 13th Door for more details. Finally, for the car fanatic that leans a little toward the more morbid side of life, the 13th Door will be hosting the 4th annual Hearse Rally on October 15, 2005.

As if you can't tell, I was greatly impressed by all the folks involved with the 13th Door. Their passion for the industry and flat out horror fun is evidenced on every creaky step and oozing wall within the 13th Door. All the actors, designers, and make-up artists have worked tirelessly over the last year with one simple goal: Scare the pants off you! Trust me when I say, they have succeeded.

You have many choices this Halloween season; try to make certain that one of them is The 13th Door...