Spirit Halloween is well-known for taking over empty stores in malls and shopping complexes and stuffing them to the gills with all manner of spooky merch. However, for Friday the 13th, they’re taking over a building that’s not only a functional business but is also an iconic piece of horror history.
Spirit Halloween recently announced that they will occupy the Blairstown Diner on Friday the 13th. Why this diner in particular? Because it was an iconic location in the first Friday the 13th film.
Friday the 13th (1980) was filmed in many locations across New Jersey, the most famous of which is Camp NoBeBoSco in Hardwick Township, a.k.a. the real-life Camp Crystal Lake. However, Camp NoBeBoSco is an active Boy Scout camp and while there are paid tours of the filming locations from the movie, the camp is not open to the public.
One location open to the public year-round is the Blairstown Diner, where Camp Crystal Lake owner Steve Christy (Peter Brouwer) has his final meal before unknowingly heading into a massacre. The diner is still an active business, one that’s proud of its association with Friday the 13th, and is now partnering with Spirit Halloween for this special event.
The event will reportedly have “Axe throwing: noon-7pm; Free horror caricatures: 1-5pm; Free horror face painting: 1-5pm; [and a] Bloody Pie Eating Contest 5 pm (open to the first 30 people to sign up)”, as well as “Exclusive giveaways, including a limited-edition Spirit Halloween x Blairstown Diner t-shirt for the first 500 fans; Hourly Friday, October 13th trivia with prizing; Exclusive themed menu items; Free tea and swag from Spirit Halloween’s partner, Kung Fu Tea, starting at 12 p.m. ET; [and] Themed photo ops.”
This event sounds like a must-attend event for Friday the 13th fans in the New Jersey area. It also has me excited to see Spirit Halloween branching out into special pop-ups. If this event goes well, I’m hopeful that Spirit Halloween may start doing more events at other filming locations for iconic horror films.
(featured image: New Line Cinema)
