Visiting An Inflatable House of Horrors

by Michele Cheplic | More from this Blogger

22 Oct 2006 11:00 AM

You've heard of homes built of wood and brick. You may have even heard of structures made of clay and aluminum. But, how about a house made of a highly malleable but far less durable material: balloons.

Leave it to New York's Larry Moss to find a way to out do his wacky air-filled masterpieces. Moss' website is filled with pictures of his balloon creations from humans to monsters, animals to food items. But even he admits his latest creation is one for the record books: a 10-room, 10,000-square-foot, walk-through haunted house made out of 130,000 latex balloons covering everything but the floors and ceilings.

The best part-you can take a tour of Moss' Balloon Manor and view its inhabitants - somewhat creepy Halloween creatures - at the Medley Centre mall in Rochester, New York. The "boo-loon" is open now and runs through next weekend. Moss says that's about as long as the artwork can last - with periodic infusions of air.

The entrance of the inflatable haunted house is a dragon's mouth, complete with a giant uvula that tickles visitors' heads. Inside there's a motorized carousel of galloping insects, dragons and vultures, all ridden by undersized skeletons. In the Balloon Manor's "beastro," two vampires hang upside down over a table with a ghostly chicken, which plays the role of "poultry-geist." Meanwhile, the crystal ballroom features both flying and disco-dancing skeletons.

The haunted balloon house also features two vehicles, a Model T Ford that looks like it has two ghostly white arms and what's left of Charles Lindbergh's Spirit of St. Louis. Moss constructed the plane so it looks as though it has crashed through one of the walls -he interlocked gray and black balloons, which make his brightly colored characters, stand out even more.

The massive Haunted Balloon Manor required Moss to ask for assistance from more than 50 balloon artists from across the country and as far away as Japan and Israel. The tour is expected to attract more than 15,000 people and it's all for a great cause. Proceeds from the Haunted Balloon Manor will go to aid a local hospital's cancer center and the Teens Living with Cancer support group. Both are near and dear to Moss' heart since his wife was left physically disabled by treatments for Hodgkin's disease after their daughter was born three years ago.

For more information on the Haunted Balloon Manor click here.

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Learn more about Michele Cheplic

Michele Cheplic was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii, but now lives in Wisconsin. Michele graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Journalism.

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