Full Horror Nights lineup finalized
The complete lineup for the 2017 edition of Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights has been revealed with the announcement of four original haunted houses created by the Universal Orlando team.
Here are the final four — and some key notes about them provided by Universal’s official parks blog:
Dead Waters incorporates a voodoo queen, a sunken riverboat and skeletal remains. Universal says this maze is inspired by the 2014 scare zone called Bayou of Blood.
The Fallen features flying, jumping, crawling creatures. The house is “a mix between beauty and decay.”
The Hive appears to feature vampires and a 1980s horror movie vibe.
Scarecrow: The Reaping, set in Nebraska, includes an abandoned farmhouse and “blood-soaked soil.”
The five previously announced haunted houses for HHN27 include mazes based on “The Shining,” “American Horror Story,” “Saw” and “Ash vs. Evil Dead.” Its Horrors of Blumhouse attraction works with the franchises of “Insidious,” “Sinister” and “The Purge.”
The after-hours, extraticket event also includes five scare zones and two live shows, “Academy of Villains: Afterlife” and what Universal says will be the final edition of “Bill & Ted’s Excellent Halloween Adventure.”
Halloween Horror Nights runs on select nights between Sept. 15 and Nov. 4. with a coalition of unions representing workers, Disney is calling in an independent mediator because of the “significant” gap between what the two sides want.
Disney told the unions of its plans in a letter sent to Ed Chambers, president of the Service Trades Council Union — which represents 38,000 Disney employees who include attraction workers, custodians and hotel housekeeping.
"I'm not completely surprised. We have a long way to go to reach a settlement in a short period of time,” Chambers said about the letter.
Disney is seeking up to a 2.5 percent salary increase for workers, the company said Monday after the first round of wage-bargaining ended.
Chambers said the union’s proposal includes raising $10-an-hour workers to $15, if they have worked with the company for at least three years. The union is also asking employees who get paid tips to also receive a base salary equal to the minimum wage of $8.10 an hour, he said, adding they are currently paid about $5 an hour.
“Given the union’s limited availability and the significant delta between our wage proposals … we are enlisting the services of an independent federal mediator,” said the letter from Robbin Almand, labor relations vice president at Walt Disney World Parks and Resorts. “We believe the use of a mediator will be beneficial for all involved to assist the parties in reaching an agreement.”
While mediators have become involved in previous negotiations between Disney and its unions, it was usually when the two sides reached an impasse — not after the first bargaining session, Chambers said.
It could mean the two sides might not talk in the same room for their next meetings, scheduled for Sept. 19 and 21, Chambers said, although that has not been determined.
The union coalition, which includes six locals, only is discussing wages with Disney as part of its existing contract. The deadline for them to reach an agreement is Oct. 24.
Chambers called the first round "very cordial and both sides appeared to respect each other's position.”
In an earlier statement, Disney said they planned to “negotiate in good faith with the union to reach a fair and reasonable agreement.”
Two SeaWorld executives will receive stock options worth $175,000 and $55,000 as an incentive to stay at the company, according to a recently submitted SEC filing.
SeaWorld named Eric Swanson chief financial officer and treasurer effective Aug. 1 while Elizabeth Gulacsy became the company’s chief accounting officer.
In Tuesday’s SEC filing, SeaWorld said a company committee approved their retention awards in light of their new titles and responsibilities. The one-time bonuses were meant to “encourage the executives to remain with the company on a long-term basis.”
Swanson will receive restricted stock worth $175,000 that will be fully vested in two years. Gulacsy's restricted stock was valued at $55,000 and would be 100 percent vested in October 2018.