Theme parks are known for their fairy tales, but Knott’s Scary Farm’s newest haunted house takes the genre far beyond Grimm and into the depths of nightmares. In Eight Fingers Nine, we delve into a twisted tale, exploring its eerie characters and marveling at the haunting beauty of this maze like no other.
We’ll begin by letting the fable unfold…
Take heed of the tale of old Eight Fingers Nine; Watch well while you sleep or on your fingers he’ll dine.
Once tied to a tree in the woods and left for dead, his tormentors mocked and jeered. “No one will come for him,” they said. “No one will care.” The boy who would become Eight Fingers Nine was left to die alone, bound to that tree—forgotten by the world.
If alarm him you do when he comes for a bite, he’ll spare you your digits and quickly take flight.
Slowly starving for eight days and nine nights, he clung to life fueled by the hatred and memory of those fingers pointed in his face. When finally liberated from his bonds by the kindly Green Spirit of the Wood, the hatred and hunger for revenge connected with the evil energies of the woods, twisting the boy into Eight Fingers Nine: The Boogeyman.
But if you allow him the smallest of taste, you’ll enter a slumber and he’ll lay you to waste.
Preying upon those that terrorized him, Eight Fingers Nine’s hunger only grew. The boogeyman influenced their minds, imparting horrifying nightmarish visions of what awaited them. As the nightmares persisted, his victims drew more and more intense illustrations of their coming demise. Soon after, dark root-like patterns grew from the walls as Eight Fingers Nine emerged from the mystical woods to feed.
One finger, two fingers, three fingers, four; Don’t even bother with locking the door.
The indigenous people avoided the woods from which the boogeyman draws his power long before the Europeans settled nearby. The roots grow deep with dark magic.
Five fingers gone, and next will come six; Your flesh he devours, your end won’t be quick.
Norse travelers who left their homes long ago in search of places of power now inhabit the woods, devoted servants of Eight Fingers Nine. Viewed as a blessing from the forest, they revel in his attacks on the malevolent townsfolk that intrude into their home.
Seven fingers now, then eight fingers nine; The feasts in full swing, the blood flows like wine.
This is the storybook tale of Eight Fingers Nine, the boogeyman of the 17th century colonial town of Aliston. Eight Fingers Nine: The Boogeyman is one of two incredible new mazes for this season’s Knott’s Scary Farm. If you missed our initial coverage of Scary Farm this year, please visit our guide:
I also created a short teaser video for Eight Fingers Nine, which you can watch here:
To tell the deeper story of Eight Fingers Nine, I enlisted the help of creative designer Gus Krueger. A Scary Farm veteran, Gus has created many of our favorite Knott’s Scary Farm experiences in recent years, including last year’s thrilling The Chilling Chambers.
This year, Gus has created a maze that emulates the classic Grimm’s Fairy Tale storybook style. In fact, Knott’s scenic artist Jeff Lee has created an illustrated Eight Fingers Nine storybook for the Knott’s Scary Farm Into the Fog art show. Maybe there will be an official illustrated storybook to read to your kids in the future. Although, this is a much darker and disturbing tale than Snow White or Hansel and Gretel. Like many of the Grimm tales, there is no happy ending.
In keeping with this style of storytelling, Gus chose the 17th century American colonies— a very similar time and setting to the Brothers Grimm stories. He further reinforced this by laying out the maze like a classic dark ride. This commitment perhaps is what gives Eight Fingers Nine such a twisted charm; the maze feels like walking through a morbid early-to-mid 20th century dark ride but with modern art design.
Eight Fingers Nine: The Boogeyman came from a desire to create a maze with a strong central character in the vein of Pumpkin Eater, The Tooth Fairy, or Pinocchio. Although, those mazes were based on established stories; Gus wanted to start from scratch with an original boogeyman.
Growing up, he wasn’t afraid of the boogeyman or the monster in the closet. Gus’ love of fantasy, then, inspired the character of Eight Fingers Nine rather than any deep rooted childhood fear. He even went as far as avoiding other boogeyman tales as to not be influenced by the traditional stories, instead organically creating his own.
Yet, Gus has created plenty of recognizable boogeyman elements in a uniquely horrifying package. The boogeyman is a classic myth with global prevalence— nearly every culture has a kind of monster that punishes naughty children. The children of Miss Penelope’s Home for Delinquents certainly are quite naughty— more so than the traditional children who won’t go to sleep, enter places they shouldn’t, or steal from orchards. Indeed, their monstrous behavior dooms the entire town to the unending appetite of Eight Fingers Nine and the entrapment of their souls in the dark forest for eternity. How’s that for a cautionary tale?
The name “Eight Fingers Nine” is derived from the nursery rhyme the kids of the town began singing as the boogeyman preyed on the townsfolk. The boy’s real name is forgotten to time. Gus chose the name due to its lyrical nature, reminiscent of the kinds of nonsensical names in classic fairy tales. The name informed the poem (included earlier in the article), which in turn informed the maze. The rhyming lyrical style is spread throughout from the posters in the middle of town to the recorded dialogue echoing in each scene:
You better be careful when you slip into sleep
From out of the darkness an evil will creep
Revenge seeking those who had left him alone
The fingers that pointed chewed down to the bone
Eight Fingers Nine has a penchant for snacking on fingers. His unrelenting hatred for the townsfolk who wronged him serves his incessant hunger for the fingers that pointed in his face as he was bound in the woods. As a sick form of revenge, the boogeyman always begins with the fingers so that they may never point in the face of anyone else again.
The maze itself is full of detail that I couldn’t possibly manage to capture. It’s also home to many easter eggs like the humorous Haunted Mansion-style tombstones for the different members of the crew and “Miller’s Shop,” filled with nods to fellow maze designer Daniel Miller. The latter is also home to an enormous Eight Fingers Nine figure devouring the flesh of a poor victim, so I hope you understand why I didn’t include a picture. If you’re not so squeamish, Gus has a photo with the lights on posted on his Instagram, but I’ve included a photo of a familiar face in the window just outside the workshop:
When I wrote this year’s Knott’s Scary Farm guide, I remarked that Eight Fingers Nine could easily inspire a film. As a fun last question for Gus, I asked what a film adaptation would be about and who his dream director would be:
Oh gosh, I refuse to choose one. I’m choosing three based on three totally different takes on what it could be. First, a Tim Burton style romp (I love Sleepy Hollow) would be really fun if we want some mainstream appeal. If we got to tap into the surreal/ethereal nature of the story then I would get David Lynch to do it. For the horror, I would go with Robert Eggers. Ultimately they would all be about the same thing: be good to each other and the world you live in or die horrifically as a monster slowly devours you.
A cautionary tale, indeed.
Knott’s Scary Farm’s 51st season continues select days through November 2nd! Be sure to head down to the farm and visit old Eight Fingers Nine before the fog recedes until next year.
Let’s hear from you! Have you visited Knott’s Scary Farm this year? Would you buy an Eight Fingers Nine storybook if Knott’s offered one? Anyone want to see this produced as a film adaptation? Let us know in the comments down below.
