AP PHOTOS: Haunted houses horrify on Halloween

Vegas Haunted Houses Photo Essay In this Oct. 27, 2014, photo, people react to a mock execution in the Gates of Hell haunted house in Las Vegas. The haunted house is billed as an "R-rated haunted attraction" and according to JT Mollner, a managing partner of Freakling Bros that runs the attraction, about one in five groups are so terrified they exit the house early. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Vegas Haunted Houses Photo Essay In this Oct. 27, 2014, photo, people react to a mock execution in the Gates of Hell haunted house in Las Vegas. The haunted house is billed as an "R-rated haunted attraction" and according to JT Mollner, a managing partner of Freakling Bros that runs the attraction, about one in five groups are so terrified they exit the house early. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Vegas Haunted Houses Photo Essay In this Oct. 25, 2014, photo, actors scare people as they walk through The Asylum haunted house in Las Vegas. Actors at the The Asylum are volunteers who work just for the enjoyment of scaring patrons. "When you can make a grown man cry and curl up in a little ball it's the best feeling ever," said Bri Setzer. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Vegas Haunted Houses Photo Essay In this Oct. 23, 2014, photo, people react as they walk through The Asylum haunted house in Las Vegas. Actors at the The Asylum are volunteers who work just for the enjoyment of scaring patrons. "When you can make a grown man cry and curl up in a little ball it's the best feeling ever," says Bri Setzer. (AP Photo/John Locher)
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JOHN LOCHER
Associated Press

LAS VEGAS (AP) — JT Mollner likes to compare haunted house visitors to bungee jumpers and skydivers — they want to be safe, but they also want an adrenaline rush.

Mollner is a managing partner at Freakling Bros in Las Vegas. His dad started scaring people in their front yard in 1976, and the family developed the freestanding haunted house in the 1990s.

When the family realized that horror movies were getting scarier but haunted houses remained at the same thrill level, they decided to up the ante and create an R-rated attraction called Gates of Hell.

Some scream or cry, and some of the cockiest visitors leave sobered.

That’s if they make it out. Mollner says visitors in about one-fifth of groups are so terrified that they have to leave the house early.

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Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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