Tag: Universal Studios

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HHN: 8 Years of Terror

IMG_1529Universal Studios Hollywood is pleased to welcome back its yearly Halloween Horror Nights as visitors walk through the haunted streets of the theme park.  The event opened to a sold out crowd of guests on Friday September 19 and Saturday September 20,2014 and will continue for 22 nights from 7 p.m to 2 a.m.

At the opening night, their annual Eyegore Awards, an event honoring the creators and designers of the featured mazes, saw roughly 500 fans of the genre who came out to recognizeIMG_1534IMG_1530 this year’s recipients, filmmakers Robert Rodriguez and John Landis, make up effects artist, Greg Nicotero and rock Guitarist Slash.

This years mazes include the return of the Walking Dead in terror tram as well as The Walking Dead: End of the Line, as well as 5 new mazes including Face Off based on the Sci Fi show, An American Werewolf in London, Dracula Untold: Reign of Blood,Alien Vs. PredatorIMG_1570, From Dusk Til Dawn and Clowns 3D inspired by the music of Slash.

In addition, all rides including Revenge of the Mummy, Simpsons, Transformers, Jurassic Park In The Dark and the newest attraction Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem are also open during the night time hours.

Halloween Horror nights runs through November 2 and tickets can be purchased for as low as 52 dollars online or 139 dollars for the front of the line pass.  Due to the event selling out, guests are advised to purchase their tickets as soon as possible.

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Universal’s House of Horrors Closes on Labor Day 2014

On September 1st, 2014, the cast of Universal Studios’ House of Horror, a live action walk thru of haunted movie sets has finally closed it’s doors for the last time.  The seven year maze has seen many changes in being transformed for Halloween Horror Nights as well as the previous Van Helsing- Fortress Dracula, Mummy Maze and the Chicken Run Maze.

See the maze below from the guests perspective.

It was an emotional closing for performers and cast members alike as a rare last walk thru brought more than just scares.  Watch below as employees made their final walk thru the maze that paid homage to some of Universal’s Classic Monsters.

Universal’s House of Horrors will be used one last time for this year’s Halloween Horror Nights and then will be transformed into another unique dining, retail and entertainment experience.

 

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23 Years of Bringing Holiday Cheer to Low Income Families

On the last Saturday in May, low income families are invited to celebrate Christmas in Spring at the largest food bank on the West Coast, Mend.  The event was hosted by Universal Studios Hollywood and the Discover a Star Foundation.

For 23 years, volunteers at Universal Studios Hollywood, in connection with the Discover A Star Foundation has brought Christmas to Low income Families at MEND.
For 23 years, volunteers at Universal Studios Hollywood, in connection with the Discover A Star Foundation has brought Christmas to Low income Families at MEND.
Families pose for photos with Santa Claus as part of the Christmas In Spring celebration.
Families pose for photos with Santa Claus as part of the Christmas In Spring celebration.
New Universal Characters like the popular Minions from Despicable Me entertain kids as they dance and have their pictures taken with the characters.
New Universal Characters like the popular Minions from Despicable Me entertain kids as they dance and have their pictures taken with the characters.
600 pounds of Chicken, Veggies, and Salad was served to roughly a thousand less fortunate families.
600 pounds of Chicken, Veggies, and Salad was served to roughly a thousand less fortunate families.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Carnival Games
Kids had the opportunity to try their hands at Carnival games similar to the ones at Universal Studios Hollywood.
Kids stood in line waiting to get either part or all of their face painted for the occasion.
Kids stood in line waiting to get either part or all of their face painted for the occasion.
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1st Annual Stroll and Roll at Universal Studios

On April 27, 2013, Ability First hosted their first annual Stroll and Roll Event on the backlot of Universal Studios to benefit children and adults with developmental disabilities.   There were participants from all across Southern California, including Anaheim, Pasadena, Los Angeles and Claremont.  The last 5K walk was at the Santa Anita Derby.    The main purpose of the event is to raise money for Ability First and it was really easy to do so by texting “ability” to 41444.

For more information, Visit Ability First’s webpage.

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HHN— Another long night to go

Hey all you, out there in the blogosphere.  It’s been a while, but I’m back, ready to write wrongs and feed information to my faithful viewers of this blog.  As you can see the title of this blog is HHN.  For those that don’t know what HHN is, that is the ever popular Halloween Horror nights and we are nearly half way done with the 21 frightful nights.  As far as I can tell, Halloween Horror nights 2011 is nothing short of a success and we can thank that to our wonderful patrons that come every year for the best in the business.

This year, Universal Studios is pleased to bring the crowd 6 scary mazes based on the best at the business guaranteed to bring the crowd exactly what they want, a scare worth scaring for.  We’ve got Alice Cooper’s Welcome to my nightmare and Hostel’s Hunting season, in addition to a mazed based on the movies like The Thing and the infamous Wolfman with his curse of Talbot Hall.  La Llorona has her own maze this year inspired by Diego Luna’s vision and of course, Rob Zombie is back with his house of a thousand corpses.  Scream has gone to the backlot this year with a different Scream image around every corner as guests navigate through the streets of Whoville, past the psycho house and through the crash site of War of the Worlds.

If you want to know more, you just got to check out Halloween Horror nights and hurry before you miss you chance and Halloween Horror nights disappears for another year.

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Halloween- Who does it right?

When looking at all the different halloween theme park attractions, there is  only one that does Halloween justice, Universal’s Halloween Horror Night.  This year is especially just right with five brand new mazes and the return of the Bill and Ted’s Excellent Halloween adventure as well as Rob Zombie’s House of 1000 Corpses in 3D Zombievision.

The terror tram has it’s own “Scream” element and the scare zones are to dye for.

Of course, it’s no wonder Universal is king of Horror, after all they invented the genre with the ultimate monster movies like Frankenstein, The Bride, and Dracula to name a few.

So if you want a good scare, don’t forget to visit, USH’s Halloween Horror Nights, 23 days of terror that is the most fearful it could ever be.  You won’t be sorry, trust me.

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Sundays: What a day!

Personally, I’ve got to say “I LOVE Sundays”.

My favorite day of the week.

Of course, Sunday is also my most busiest day of the week.  You see, I’m involved with church, my expertise is getting the slides down for service using a program called propresenter.  For those that are not familiar with this software, I urge you to google it.  Take it from me, it’s the best software out there for anyone who does a lot of presentations of any kind.

Propresenter is a program that allows you to easily control music, background, foregrounds as well as slide lyrics.  It is all centered around layering these elements to truly pull off an excellent program.

So anyway, back to my day, and why Sunday is my favorite because it is the most busiest day.  So after church, it is time for work, usually 1 or 2:30 and that’s when the fun begins, I jump into my car and drive out to Universal Studios, get changed into my uniform and get ready to begin my day.  If I’m a lead, it’s even more stressful and fun, I’ve got to let my other leads know I’m there and that’s when the jumping through hurdles begin.

Don’t get me wrong, I love being lead, but I definitely get my exercise with each and every new task they give me.  I’m like a trained seal, jumping for the fish which is my paycheck, while the fans which are my supervisors watch my every move.

What a DAY!

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Tips to a Successful day

Work at Universal Studios can seem so bland at times.  Come to work, get dressed, clock in, but it is important that you make the most of every single day.  Remember it is the guests that you are working for and if they aren’t happy, neither will you or your employer be.

So here is a list, let’s say the top things you must do to make your day successful, vibrant and all and out good day.

1.  Remember leave you problems at Walter’s gate.  As soon as you are on property, have a smile on your face and don’t forget to say hi, how can I help you?

2.  Gratitudes the attitude and don’t forget it.  If you are having a bad day, don’t show it.  Keep it inside until you leave the property and who knows, that bad day you woke up to could completely vanish if you give it the chance.

3.  Don’t forget… Click the pic.  Guests love photos and they especially love to be in the photo.  If you see a camera, ask.  They can always say no.

4.  Remember that yellow map that so often times gets swept up or thrown away.  That’s probably because people don’t know how to use it.  Take maps as a cue to attack and point the guest in the direction that they need to go.  Show them that it is a helpful tool that should not be discarded like a sack of beans.

5.  Show your knowledge of the park.  Now for most of you, this might be a challenge.  You might not be familiar with what is in the park, but I challenge every single person to get out there and learn the park and then show the guest that you know it.

Walk them to their location.

6.  End every encounter with a “Thanks” and “Have a wonderful day at the friendliest amusement park in Southern California.”

I guarantee you, once you do these tips, it is assured you will forget all your problems and have a wonderful day.