BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — While Halloween decorations will be taken down and traded with winter holiday decor, one Halloween-themed activity can be enjoyed at any time of the year.
The famous horror movie franchise, “Halloween” was the creation of a Bowling Green-raised filmmaker, John Carpenter. Though none of his films were shot in Bowling Green, he makes many references to local sites. Fans can experience a taste of Carpenters’ inspirations during a self-guided driving tour of sites referenced in his films.
“It’s always super cool when you can tie Bowling Green to a story that is known nationally,” Nora Bryant, the communications director for VisitBGKY.com says. “Everybody knows John Carpenter as the master of horror and to say that you’re from Bowling Green and that your town has inspired some of his movies is just really neat.”
The cult favorites director, writer and composer attract more than just those in the area. The Capitol Arts Center and the Kentucky Museum are some of the more popular stops of the 17 locations. Carpenter used local street and community names like the fictitious Warren County Smiths Grove Sanitarium from where Michael Myers escapes in Halloween.
Fans of the director can also check out the log cabin where Carpenter lived as a boy and the Capitol Arts Center where Carpenter says he watched movies when he was younger.
“Bowling Green, Warren County has received a lot of national attention around our driving tour, starting at the end of September all the way through October. And so we get a ton of national media,” Bryant said.