Funhouses are attractions at amusement parks and carnivals that distort reality and sometimes scare visitors. There are two types: building-style and compact carnival versions. Building-style funhouses are older and feature wooden slides and spinning disc rides. They also have mechanical devices to prevent movement. Compact versions are more commercially successful and contain many of the same attractions, but are more compact and follow a clear path. Funhouses can be difficult to maneuver and may present problems for young children or those with movement disabilities.
A funhouse is an amusement park and carnival staple, filled with attractions intended to distort reality and occasionally scare the visitor. Unlike rides that provide rail cars or other vehicles as a means of traversing the attraction, an amusement house visitor travels under their own power. Today there are two main varieties of funhouses, versions with buildings that allow patrons to run and stay as long as they like, and compact carnival versions that follow a specific route.
The building-style amusement houses are considerably older than the compact versions, although their exact history is unknown. Steeplechase Park in Coney Island is one of the earliest well-documented funhouses and is believed to be based on a European model. It is possible that the indoor environment originally allowed for an all-weather attraction that did not depend on warm weather to draw guests to the amusement park.
Originally, the amusement house featured several common attractions, including huge wooden slides, usually two or three stories high. Riders sat on bags or mats to avoid friction burns from the high-speed slide. Another popular attraction was the record player or spinning disc ride. This ride, considered highly dangerous by modern standards, would take place in a padded room. The riders sat on a large disc operated by an assistant, who spun it faster and faster until the riders were hurled against the padded walls.
The traditional fun house also often featured a variety of mechanical devices to prevent movement. Floors tilt side to side or fall suddenly. The stairways featured moving steps that required mastering their rhythms to successfully ascend. Many broken arms have been attributed to the spinning barrel, a spinning cylinder that spun rapidly as you passed through it.
The problems with building-style amusement houses were their need for constant supervision and the need for many attendants to operate the various attractions. As theme parks grew in popularity, park managers wanted to streamline the procedure and eliminate jobs in the process. The development of compact amusement houses for traveling carnivals was commercially successful, as the rides were easy to set up and required only one or two attendants.
Truck-based amusement houses contain many of the original attractions of the old amusement houses, but are more compact and follow a clear path. Most begin with a confusing maze of mirrors to distort the senses. Mechanical floor-moving devices, spinning barrels, distorted mirrors, and suspension bridges are all popular features. Some have a ball pit for customers to play in, although this can be expensive, as customers have been known to steal balls. Carnival amusement houses usually end up with a twisting slide that is considerably more compact than their giant predecessors, although oversized slides can often be found as a separate attraction.
Funhouses are of varying difficulty to maneuver and can present problems for young children or those with movement disabilities. Often, parks will feature children’s versions of an amusement house, but adults may want to accompany the children as well. The funhouse remains a classic and exciting attraction, made more enjoyable by the active participation of the visitor.
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