Travel Channel Airs 3rd Annual Halloween-Themed WEEKENDS TO DIE FOR Tonight

Weekends just got a whole lot scarier! Travel Channel kicks off its third annual Weekends to Die For programming event tonight, September 27 at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT with "Ghost Adventures: Up Close & Personal" - a one-hour special that celebrates the most Unforgettable moments throughout the "Ghost Adventures" series. The Weekends to Die For lineup continues with a variety of returning series, specials and special episodes to put you in the Halloween spirit: an all-new third season of "Making Monsters" featuring leading animatronics maker Distortions Unlimited; the "Ghost Adventures" milestone 100th episode at St. Louis' infamous Exorcist House; a "Toy Hunter" Halloween special featuring Metallica's Kirk Hammett; one-hour specials "Halloween Night Frights" and "Halloween Craziest"; and rounded out by an all-new fifth season of "The Dead Files." Additionally, TravelChannel.com will host its first-ever "Ghost Adventures Fan Lair" social media hangout, as well as the new original web series "Ghost Fit."

NEW SEASONS

"MAKING MONSTERS" - Season Three

Premieres Sunday, September 29 at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT with back-to-back episodes; moves to regular 9:00 p.m. timeslot beginning Sunday, October 20

Go behind-the-scenes and on the road with Distortions Unlimited, the Colorado-based "haunt industry" animatronic and prop-making company run by Ed & Marsha Edmunds. Each hour-long episode follows the Edmunds and their staff - including renowned Hollywood creature and mask maker Jordu Schell - as they build some of the scariest frightronics and props in the world. Season three highlights include a new set of KISS animatronic band members for Las Vegas' KISS Monster Mini Golf; a giant zombie head & arms podium for Adobe Senior Creative Director Russell Brown in Denver, CO; a mutilating buzz-saw blade attraction for Atlanta's NetherWorld; a terrifying pregnant zombie in St. Louis; and more. Produced by Warm Springs Productions with Brian Leonard as Executive Producer.

"THE DEAD FILES" - Season Five

Premieres Friday, November 1 at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT

In each hour-long episode of the paranormal investigative series, retired NYPD Homicide Detective Steve DiSchiavi and physical medium Amy Allan explore all-new frightening cases of unexplained paranormal activity. The duo investigates each case separately, coming together only at the end to reveal their results. Season five opens with an investigation of Iowa's Villisca Axe Murder House - site of a gruesome century-old mass murder whose case still remains unsolved. Other highlights include a Chicago home where a woman has returned to confront childhood nightmares; violent forces terrorizing a family home in St. Clair Shores, MI, that leaves the team questioning the safety of the house; a special "Dead Files Revisited" episode in which a violent exorcism was recorded in a Flint, MI home after the duo uncovered malicious entities; and more. Produced by Painless Entertainment, Inc. with Travel Channel's David E. Gerber as Executive Producer.

SPECIALS and SPECIAL EPISODES

"GHOST ADVENTURES: UP CLOSE & PERSONAL" - One-Hour Special

Premieres Friday, September 27 at 9:00 p.m., ET/PT

In anticipation of "Ghost Adventures" upcoming 100th episode, paranormal investigators Zak Bagans, Nick Groff and Aaron Goodwin look back on some of the most Unforgettable moments from the show's past seven seasons. Divided across ten different categories, the top picks are selected by the guys, along with fans who voted on TravelChannel.com. Produced by My Tupelo Entertainment with Travel Channel's Daniel A. Schwartz as Executive Producer.

"HALLOWEEN NIGHT FRIGHTS" - One-Hour Special

Premieres Sunday, September 29 at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT

It's a heart-stopping spin through North America's scariest Halloween-themed coaster parks. America's beloved amusement parks by day transform into fright zones after dark, delivering the highest-octane Halloween thrills for adrenaline junkies. Whether it's high-speed launches and stomach-lurching cobra rolls, or haunted graveyards and zombie assaults, each attraction featured in this one-hour special promises you the ride of your life! Produced by High Noon Entertainment with Travel Channel's Sean McKnight as Executive Producer.

"GHOST ADVENTURES" - 100th Episode

Premieres Friday, October 4 at 9:00 p.m., ET/PT

In the milestone 100th episode, part of the current season, Zak Bagans, Nick Groff and Aaron Goodwin travel to St. Louis for an unprecedented investigation - the Exorcist House, site of the actual petrifying events depicted in the popular novel and Hollywood film, The Exorcist. Timed to the 40th anniversary of the film's release, "Ghost Adventures" is the very first paranormal television show to ever investigate the home, which is the only building left in St. Louis in its original form that is tied to the Exorcist case. The team seeks answers to the mysteries behind what happened here in the past, and in the home's recent history. To further aid in the investigation, they interview the great niece of Father William Bowdern, who performed the exorcism in 1949.

"HALLOWEEN CRAZIEST" - One-Hour Special

Premieres Sunday, October 13 at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT

This one-hour special features the most terrifying, extreme and absolute best of what Halloween has to offer. From America's scariest, no-holds-barred haunted house in San Diego and a hair-raising coffin race in Colorado, to the ultimate custom bodying painting studio in Las Vegas and British Columbia's pumpkin drop celebration, each destination is more frightening and fun than the last! Produced by High Noon Entertainment with Travel Channel's Sean McKnight as Executive Producer.

"TOY HUNTER" HALLOWEEN SPECIAL - One-Hour Special

Premieres Sunday, October 20 at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT

In this one-hour Halloween special, Toy Hunter and collectibles expert Jordan Hembrough is on The Hunt for some of the scariest toys to sell at the Midwest's HorrorHound convention. Meanwhile, Hembrough's toy buddy Mark needs help with a special client - Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett, who's looking for extremely vintage, scary toys. In between scoring Ghostbusters memorabilia in Connecticut and a 1972 Parker Brothers Ouija board in Salem, MA, Hembrough scours for the perfect and rarest monster memorabilia for Hammett. When he locates just the right item, he not only makes Hammett a very happy customer, but gains a new rock star client for himself. Produced by Sharp Entertainment with Travel Channel's Daniel A. Schwartz as Executive Producer.

"GHOST ADVENTURES" - Two-Hour Special Halloween Episode

Premieres Thursday, October 31 at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT

In a special two-hour Halloween episode, Zak Bagans, Nick Groff and Aaron Goodwin take viewers to Transylvania, where the team explores the truth behind the legend of Vlad The Impaler, the inspiration for Bram Stoker's Dracula. Bagans and the group explore the most terrifying haunted castles and locations in this intriguing and historical Romanian province, including Targoviste, where Vlad ruled from and ordered the impaling of thousands of people; Hunedoara, where Vlad was imprisoned for seven years; and the mysterious Hoia-Baciu Forest - locally referred to as the "Bermuda Triangle of Romania."

TRAVELCHANNEL.COM LAUNCHES FIRST-EVER "GHOST ADVENTURES FAN LAIR" SOCIAL HANGOUT AND ORIGINAL WEB SERIES "GHOST FIT"

Beginning this August, TravelChannel.com premieres "Ghost Fit" - an all-new original web series featuring the "Ghost Adventures" crew. Each of the nine webisodes divulges personal tips and techniques from Zak Bagans, Nick Groff and Aaron Goodwin for staying in shape while on the road, pre-lockdown preparations, post-lockdown recovery, diet recommendations, secrets on how they stay alert during their all-night investigations and more. It's the fitness regime that will keep your spirit moving! Beginning September 26, TravelChannel.com will launch the "Ghost Adventures Fan Lair" - a social media hangout where fans can get the latest show buzz through Twitter and Facebook, all in one place. The "Fan Lair" will include exclusive fan interaction, an Instagram photo wall, a special "fan heat map" and more. The event culminates with TravelChannel.com's first ever Google Hangout on October 31 at 11:00 p.m. ET, where Bagans, Groff and Goodwin will answer fans' burning questions.

Travel Channel (http://www.travelchannel.com) is a multiplatform travel lifestyle brand with the core mission of providing inspiring and compelling programming that takes viewers beyond their everyday destinations, making the unfamiliar familiar, whether it's around the world or around the block. A dual feed network that is also available in HD, Travel Channel is the world's leading travel media brand, and is available in over 94 million U.S. cable homes. Owned and operated by Scripps Networks Interactive (NYSE: SNI), Travel Channel has offices in Chevy Chase, MD, and New York, NY. Scripps Networks Interactive (NYSE: SNI) also owns and operates HGTV, DIY Network, Food Network, Cooking Channel and Great American Country.

Photo Credit: TracelChannel.com

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