Special (and Spooky) Warner Bros. Evening Tour

Step onto the historic Burbank lot at twilight and see where scenes from "The Exorcist" and "House of Wax" were filmed.

Saunter around a movie studio at noon and you'll find a bustling workplace full of creative types running to and fro as they carry scripts and props and all of the necessities that go into making a film or television series.

Step onto that same studio in the evening and the feel immediately changes. The gargantuan sound stages cast huge shadows, the backlot seems like a town that's been mysteriously and suddenly emptied, and there are hoots and rustles from the nearby trees.

Warner Bros. Studio, beyond being one of moviedom's powerhouse dream factories, has gained a reputation for making some truly macabre masterpieces, from "The Exorcist" to "House of Wax." And while those iconic films, and others, often receive mention on the popular daytime Studio Tours, they'll be the focus, along with other frightful treats, during the studio's special "Horror Made Here: A Halloween Screening and Twilight Tour" event.

It's a sure-to-be sold-out happening, as it is only scheduled over two nights: Friday, Oct. 28 and Saturday, Oct. 29. The pre-Halloween tour also includes a screening of "The Conjuring" on Friday night and "The Conjuring 2" on Saturday, setting it apart from the traditional tour (which includes clips from many movies, but not full films).

What will go d-d-down over the dastardly studio look-around? You'll get some background on the venerable company's horror offerings, from "The Exorcist" to "House of Wax" to "The Lost Boys" to "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?" (And, yes, scenes from "True Blood" were shot there, as the Burbank lot doubled as the Deep South.)

A ticket to all of this terrifyingly entertaining ghoulishness? It's $75, and ten bucks to park (and you'll need to choose which night you'll want to go, as entry is good for one night). 

A visit to "Stage 48: Script to Screen" will also give visitors a glance at some of the ghosty props and costumes that are part of the studio's horror-making past. A bonus? "(M)ovie-themed treats" are part of the event, the better to keep you fortified as you face all of that fearful film fun.

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Tickets go on sale on Saturday, Sept. 17, and it is bound to be popular, given the not-to-be sated modern appeal of the ghouls-and-monsters genre. Might "Horror Made Here" even expand beyond two nights in 2017? Or even become a year-round happening in years to come?

Horror is a hot commodity, and that's due in large part to Warner Bros., a studio that has been leading that charge for decades. So don your late-October scarf, gin up some bravery and pluck, and get to Burbank, if you dare...

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