Frightville pays tribute to favorite scary films

Play a game with Jigsaw, visit Camp Crystal Lake and solve a puzzle box with Pinhead all in the depths of the Oak Harbor Roller Barn.

Starting Oct. 19, iconic horror movies will come to life as Frightville returns to the city for its 18th year of thrills and chills.

This year’s theme for the annual Oak Harbor Boys and Girls Club fundraiser is Horror Nights. Tickets are $13.

Each room contains images inspired by famous scary movies, from Saw’s bloody bathroom to the isolated well from The Ring.

“We have a way to scare almost everyone,” said Caleb Gremmel, one of the managers of the event.

Younger kids, or curious but easily scared adults, will be able to tour the cinematic maze during the “no-scare, lights-on matinee,” noon to 4 p.m., Oct. 27. At 7 p.m. that night until midnight, the lights go off and the “haunters” start lurking.

Gremmel said the actors, or “haunters” as they call themselves, are instructed to go easy on younger children, “but we for sure get the adults.”

It takes between 15 and 30 minutes to get through the house, depending on the length of the line and the willingness of the participants.

“One year I chased an adult man halfway through the house, and he was screaming at the top of his lungs,” Gremmel said.

The volunteer-run event has attracted people from all over the region, Gremmel said. The haunted house has raised thousands of dollars for the nonprofit in years past.

Most of the decorations are made from donated items, Gremmel said as he pointed to a bathtub that appeared to be covered in dirt and filled with organs.

“That was pristine when it was given to us,” he said. “… If you donate it, we’ll find some way to implement it into the house.”

• This year’s event goes from 7 p.m. to midnight on Oct. 19 and 20, Oct. 26, 27 and Halloween. All proceeds from Frightville go to the Boys and Girls Club of Oak Harbor.

Frightville - Horror Nights opens Oct. 19.

Frightville – Horror Nights opens Oct. 19.