The Legend of the GoldField Hotel

At the beginning of the 20th century, Goldfield, Nevada had become the largest city in the state.  Ore (specifically) gold was discovered there in 1902 and thousands flocked to the area to stake their claim.  At one point, the city boasted three newspapers, five banks, and a population of nearly 35,000 people (quite a high population for those times and considering the location). 

But just eight years after Goldfield had been founded, the ore began to dry up and as a result, so did Goldfield.  Residents started leaving by the hundreds, moving onto the next up and coming town that promised wealth and prosperity.  In 1923, a devastating fire wiped out nearly 27 blocks of Goldfield, destroying several homes and businesses.

Today, less than 500 people live in Goldfield and much of the town from its more prosperous times remains, including the famed Goldfield Hotel, rumored to be one of the most haunted places in Nevada.

The Goldfield Hotel was built in 1908, during the city’s prime.  It housed 154 rooms and was built atop an old, abandoned gold mine.  Legend has it that the original owner of the hotel, George Winfield, got a prostitute named Elizabeth pregnant.  To hide the horrible secret, Winfield locked Elizabeth in one of the rooms and chained her to the radiator when she started to show the pregnancy.  When she eventually gave birth, George threw the baby down an old mine shaft and left Elizabeth in the room to die.

While the hotel is now abandoned, legend has it the ghosts of all three – Winfield, Elizabeth, and the baby – haunt the old hotel along with a handful of other spirits.  There have been several reports of apparitions appearing in photographs taken at the hotel.  Even there is no power in the hotel, there have also been reports of people seeing several lighted rooms.  On the bottom floor, in Winfield’s old room, visitors have claimed to smell inexplicable cigar smoke and feel a strange presence, as though someone were watching them in the room.

Perhaps one of the most bizarre (and quite disturbing) things about the hotel is several ghost hunters, paranormal experts, and psychics have visited the Goldfield Hotel and concurred that it is one of the seven portals that still exist that supposedly connect our world with the spirit world.

Fright Dome at Circus Circus Partners With Lionsgate and Twisted Pictures to Introduce Two New Haunted Houses Themed After the Legendary "SAW" Horror Franchise

Fright Dome's newest houses bring together plots from various installments of the legendary horror movie franchise, "SAW." Handcrafted replicas of the "games" set by Jigsaw in the popular saga will be among the many things guests have to look forward to. Lionsgate is expected to release the sixth installment of the bone chilling series in theaters nationwide on Friday, Oct. 23.

"We've always had the best haunted attraction in Vegas and partnering with Lionsgate and Twisted Pictures takes it to a whole new level," said Jason Egan, owner and creator of Fright Dome. "The 'SAW' films cut to the core of human fear and we're using that to its fullest potential."

"We are looking forward to collaborating with the creative minds behind Fright Dome. Visitors from around the world will be able to experience the terror of Jigsaw first hand," said Producers Mark Burg and Oren Koules of Twisted Pictures.

Darkness and fog-filled, Fright Dome sets a chilling atmosphere with roaming characters, high-powered strobes, multi-colored lasers and five acres of fright made up of extreme scare zones, rides, eight different freak shows nightly, attractions and five haunted houses. No place left unhaunted, demons will descend from the ceiling as guests walk underneath.

Fright Dome is open from 7 p.m. to midnight Oct. 2 - 31. General admission tickets are $34.95 and fast pass tickets are available for an additional $15 which allow express line entry for all five haunted houses.

About Fright Dome

Created from the mind of Jason Egan, Fright Dome at Circus Circus has been horrifying the masses since 2002. Each year more than 60,000 people visit the popular attraction. Spread throughout five acres, this haunted theme park features dark, fog-filled attractions complete with ghoulish and gore-clad professional actors. Not appropriate for children under 12, Fright Dome includes roaming scare actors, high-powered strobes, multi-colored lasers and eerie sound effects. For more information, visit www.frightdome.com or call (702) 794-3939.

About Twisted Pictures

Twisted Pictures is helmed by Mark Burg and Oren Koules, and is the horror/thriller division of their company Evolution Entertainment. "SAW," one of the most profitable films of 2004, was the first picture released under the Twisted banner. In 2005, Twisted Pictures produced "SAW II," which opened at #1 on Halloween weekend and became the year's highest-grossing horror film. Halloween 2006 saw the release of "SAW III," which opened at #1 in North America, the U.K. and Australia. The company also produced "DEAD SILENCE" by "SAW" creators James Wan and Leigh Whannell for Universal Pictures. Other Twisted Pictures releases include the horror/thriller "CATACOMBS," which premiered in October 2007, and "SAW IV" which opened # 1 at the box-office on October 26, 2007 with a total of $31,750,000. The latest chapter in the "SAW" series, "SAW V," opened with $30 million dollars the weekend of October 24, 2008, pushing SAW to the top of the list as the #1 horror franchise of all time. In addition, "REPO! THE GENETIC OPERA" premiered in November 2008 with fans immediately branding it "an instant cult classic."

About Lionsgate

Lionsgate is the leading next generation studio with a strong and diversified presence in the production and distribution of motion pictures, television programming, home entertainment, family entertainment, video-on-demand and digitally delivered content. The Company is leveraging its content leadership and marketing expertise to create a multiplatform global industry leader in entertainment through the recent acquisition of TV Guide Network, one of the 25 most widely distributed cable networks, the recent acquisition of TV Guide.com, a premier content and navigation portal, partnerships that include the FEARnet branded VOD and Internet horror channel with Sony and Comcast, the expected fall 2009 launch of EPIX, a new premium entertainment channel with partners Viacom and MGM, investment in the leading young men's digital distribution platform Break.com, ownership of the premier independent television syndication company Debmar-Mercury and an alliance with independent filmed entertainment production and distribution company Roadside Attractions.

The Company is a market share leader at the North American theatrical box office for calendar 2009 due to recent theatrical box office successes such as "TYLER PERRY'S MADEA GOES TO JAIL," the second highest-grossing film in Lionsgate history, "MY BLOODY VALENTINE 3D" and "THE HAUNTING IN CONNECTICUT." Other recent successes include "SAW V," "RELIGULOUS," "FORBIDDEN KINGDOM," "RAMBO" and "THE BANK JOB." Lionsgate has forged a strong position in television with the production of such critically-acclaimed series as "Mad Men," "Weeds" and "Crash," the distribution of Tyler Perry's "House of Payne," "Family Feud" and "South Park," and upcoming shows including Tyler Perry's "Meet The Browns" and "The Wendy Williams Show." In addition, the Company's home entertainment business, propelled by such recent DVD successes as "TRANSPORTER 3," "SAW V" and "TYLER PERRY'S THE FAMILY THAT PREYS," is the industry leader in box office-to-DVD conversion rate and has market share of nearly 8%. Lionsgate handles a prestigious and prolific library of approximately 12,000 motion picture and television titles that is an important source of recurring revenue and serves as the foundation for the growth of the Company's core businesses. The Lionsgate brand remains synonymous with original, daring, quality entertainment in markets around the world. For more information, please visit: www.lionsgate.com.