mothers complain about scary billboards for theme park

the_ultimate_evil

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OrlandoSentinel.com
Moms to Universal Orlando: 'Bloody Mary' billboards too horrible
Scott Powers

Sentinel Staff Writer

September 4, 2008

Universal Orlando hoped its "Bloody Mary" campaign would turn a few heads on Interstate 4 -- but some people are turning away from the resort's billboards.

For this year's Halloween Horror Nights festivities, Universal Orlando promised an "in-your-face" advertising campaign, with billboards the company vowed would seek new levels of provocativeness.

No thanks, some drivers are saying.

One group, called Metro Orlando Mommies, says Universal has gone too far. The Mommies are pushing to get the company to tone down the ads, particularly the violent, sometimes bloody images.

Last week, Universal put up 80 billboards advertising its 18th annual Halloween Horror Nights, which start Sept. 26. This year's after-hours, special-ticket horror-fest highlights scary urban legends and uses a character known as "Bloody Mary" as its iconic image. In urban legends, Bloody Mary is a ghost who can be summoned through mirrors. The billboards, along with other Halloween Horror Nights advertising, feature a broken mirror and a ghoulish Mary figure, sometimes dripping blood.

Metro Orlando Mommy Erin Heston, 33, who lives in downtown Orlando and has two children, Brock, almost 3, and Molly, 9 months, wrote Universal this week urging the company to take down the more graphic billboards and to limit its TV advertising to late-night programs.

"Each year, I grow more frustrated and disappointed by the choices Universal makes in advertising this event, which glamorizes violence and human cruelty," she wrote. "This year, I find the billboards truly unacceptable to our community."

Universal insists it is staying within the range of what is acceptable to the community. In recent years, Universal's campaign has featured such ghoulish characters as "Jack the Evil Clown," "The Storyteller," "The Director" and "The Caretaker."

"We want them to be fun and entertaining -- and communicate what the event is about," spokesman Michael Lewellen said. "Our approach is consistent with what we've done throughout the 18-year history of Halloween Horror Nights. But we also know there may be other opinions about our billboards -- and we respect those opinions."

Mommy Katy Leach, 29, of Winter Park said the first time her son Gavin, nearly 3, saw the billboard near Fairbanks Avenue she had a hard time explaining it to him. That was OK, she thought. But a couple of days later, out of the blue, he asked about it again. That was creepy -- that the image had stayed with him, she said. And the billboard is there, every time they get on I-4.

"I can't choose not to see it. . . . It's there, in my face," she said.

Lewellen said the company was monitoring reaction, but so far complaints were few. Bottom line: People are talking, he said.

Advertisers like that.


Scott Powers can be reached at [email protected] or 407-420-5441.

Copyright © 2008, Orlando Sentinel

this billboard thats causing the problems

18billboard.jpg


has a video with the news coverage
http://horrornights.be/media/hhn18/hhn18_v.php


now i've been to a few of these events and there great fun, but i don't see the problem with this billboard, i mean for god's sake in the past the icons have been a demented clown and a murdering granny and have got no complaints
 
No worse than god a million other things they see else where.
 
This can't be any worse than the suggestive picture on the wall of where I work of a Colonial guy straddling a cannon. I'm amazed nobody has complained about it to us.
 
I think the billboard is actually rather creative.
 
It's for halloween. People who complain about this stuff need to have a sense of fun surgically grafted onto them since god or science obviously didn't provide them with one.
 
seen worst in bible school :hehe:
 
after doing a bit of digging, so have said it close to some on going case in florida where a girl who happened to work at USF in the past, killed her kid. and of course this mother happens to have a passing resemblance to the mary in the ads
 
Just wait till more Haloween stuff starts coming out, ads for local haunted houses and stuff, these moms kids will be scared for life.
 
Kids are *****es these days. Either that or their parents think they're *****es.
 
Those damn soccer moms -- ruining everything cool for everyone else, as usual. :cmad:
 
I'm tired of seeing moms complain about everything. Get over it.
 
I'm tired of seeing moms complain about everything. Get over it.
Wait a minute...this may be perfectly valid.

What if this started out with the kids complaining? We're talking about a billboard here...a huge structure that's practically in your face while you're driving somewhere. There are kids out there that are probably horrified at this billboard. That's probably what prompted the mothers out there to complain in the first place.

If they're complaining on behalf of their children (who don't really have a voice), then more power to them. :up:

I like the billboard, but I'm not 3 - 5 years old.
 
man... that looks sweet as hell. I wish i lived by a universal studios
 
I'm tired of seeing moms complain about everything. Get over it.
Being a mother is a 24/7 job. I'm sure they're just speaking for the kids in the backseat, who are having nightmares after seeing that billboard.

I think the ad is creative and cool, but I understand how the image is not suitable for small children.
 
Kids are supposed to be scared at halloween. It's not psychologically devestating. It makes you confront your fears and deal with things. You can't be afraid of the dark forever, eventually you have to lose the night light. Halloween is supposed to be scary and fun, you're supposed to get nightmares from ghost stories and such. That's the point. People have been getting scared at halloween for a long time and they turn out fine. At some point protecting your kids turns into inhibiting their growth as people. I do not want to meet a 30 year old man that can't handle a billboard without freaking out, it's pathetic, and that's what those kids are going to turn into. I've seen billboards for budweiser that are both more offensive and more damaging in their effects on children (since it's encouraging a drug that's illegal for them) and they stay up without half the fuss.
 
Wait a minute...this may be perfectly valid.

What if this started out with the kids complaining? We're talking about a billboard here...a huge structure that's practically in your face while you're driving somewhere. There are kids out there that are probably horrified at this billboard. That's probably what prompted the mothers out there to complain in the first place.

If they're complaining on behalf of their children (who don't really have a voice), then more power to them. :up:

I like the billboard, but I'm not 3 - 5 years old.


all good points but this event has been going on for near 16 years, and as i have said has had a lot worse in advertising so why start moaning about it now
 
Kids are supposed to be scared at halloween. It's not psychologically devestating. It makes you confront your fears and deal with things. You can't be afraid of the dark forever, eventually you have to lose the night light. Halloween is supposed to be scary and fun, you're supposed to get nightmares from ghost stories and such. That's the point. People have been getting scared at halloween for a long time and they turn out fine. At some point protecting your kids turns into inhibiting their growth as people. I do not want to meet a 30 year old man that can't handle a billboard without freaking out, it's pathetic, and that's what those kids are going to turn into. I've seen billboards for budweiser that are both more offensive and more damaging in their effects on children (since it's encouraging a drug that's illegal for them) and they stay up without half the fuss.
So being forced to look at something terrifying to you, basically makes you stronger? Should we all be oggling video footage of men being blown up in Iraq, "for education purposes"?

And about Budweiser ads viewed by kids, the emotions aroused by seeing a Budweiser ad everyday has nothing on a harrowing Bloody Mary ad seen every day. They aren't comparable.
 
all good points but this event has been going on for near 16 years, and as i have said has had a lot worse in advertising so why start moaning about it now
Wait, what? So the fact that it hasn't been complained about in the past means that they're not entitled to complain now?

I don't follow the logic.
 
So being forced to look at something terrifying to you, basically makes you stronger? Should we all be oggling video footage of men being blown up in Iraq, "for education purposes"?

And about Budweiser ads viewed by kids, the emotions aroused by seeing a Budweiser ad everyday has nothing on a harrowing Bloody Mary ad seen every day. They aren't comparable.

Hey you scare people during halloween, it's fun. It's fun to scare and it's fun to be scared. It's actually life affirming to have the **** scared out of you when there's no actual threat. It helps you control your fears in the future and shows those scary things can be fun and not just the stuff of nightmares.

I'm not saying all images are good. And I'm not stupid enough to say that which doesn't kill you always makes you stronger. But this is halloween. Haunted houses and carving pumpkins and telling ghost stories, these help us cope with that which we find frightening. If not for this release we'd always walk around with the same phobias and no way to vent. That can't be healthy, can it?

You're right, seeing a bunch of mostly naked chicks flocking to some dude drinking a beer is a completely different message. One it objectifies women (hurting both the girls self image and the way boys view women). Two it shows alcohol and alcoholism is cool and will make you popular. And Three they show irresponsible behavior, putting alcohol in the minds of people while their driving. Now that's not even mentioning that "emotion" your talking about raising, but I'll say explaining sex to a five year old is a much harder and tricky conversation than vampires or werewolves. Now let's look at the scary image. Some ghost chick with the words mary in blood next to them. Does it hurt anyones self image or image of others? Nope. Does it promote a dangerous addicition? Nope. Does it promote irresponsible behavior in any way? Nope. It's just a little freaky. Kids get scared and you get to use that as a time to either mess with them a little and scare them some more (which is fun) or you get to explain how most things in this world aren't as frightening as people make them out to be. That halloween is a time to face your fears safely, and learn some self control while having fun.
 
I am going to be working the Horror Nights at the California Universal Studios again. Last year I spent the whole time getting my face ripped off by Leatherface over and over.
 
Wait, what? So the fact that it hasn't been complained about in the past means that they're not entitled to complain now?

I don't follow the logic.

no you're twisting my words, what i mean is out of all the past icons and ad campaigns, this is the one mothers complain about.:huh: i posted one example of past "hosts" with jack the killer clown, i mean come on that is basically a kid friendly thing twisted to scare people, yet it get no complaints.

compared to past ones this billboard is extremely tame, i would understand if it was really gory or a showed her full scared face but it doesn't. as other have said it's that time of year everywhere is going to be full of Halloween based imagery, these parents need to take the time and explain to there kids that it's all make-up and pretend, but sadly most today would rather moan and complain for others to do there job than do it themselves
 

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