(PHILADELPHIA, PA) -- Philadelphia's scariest new haunted attraction is reopening its doors for a one-night only pop-up event on Saturday, May 4th. Lincoln Mill Haunted House presents May the 4th Corrupt You, a brand new Star Wars inspired haunted house. A long time ago, in a town not so far away, there was a textile mill where many workers were tortured. Among them, was a dark force that corrupted the minds of the living. Recently, this evil force has returned.
To unveil unnatural activity, the basement below the mill has been lit up in ultraviolet light and it was discovered that this evil force has been spreading. It craves life and is seeking new hosts. Will the fourth be with you or will it corrupt you? Star Wars fans are invited from across the Galaxy to 4100 Main Street in Manayunk for this all new experience at Lincoln Mill. Warning: Proceed with caution as this experience is meant to be scary. Over 30 scare-actors will bring the experience to life. Tours leave between 7:00pm and 9:30pm, with tickets only $32 per person or $55 for VIP. Tickets are available for purchase online.
"We originally planned on doing our Halfway to Halloween event in early May and the first Saturday happened to be the 4th of May, also known as Star Wars day," said Lincoln Mill Haunted House Co-Founder Jared Bilsak. "We originally planned on doing our Halfway to Halloween event in early May and the first Saturday happened to be the 4th of May, also known as Star Wars day. As a Star Wars Fan, it seemed too good of an opportunity to put a twist on the Lincoln Mill story and to offer a Star Wars inspired horror experience. This will be the first ever Star Wars inspired haunted house!"
He added, "The Star Wars story and characters are so strong and has inspired me when writing the Lincoln Mill story. I always saw our main villain, Viktor Kane, as having many similarities to Darth Vader, one of the greatest villains of all time."
"In Star Wars, there is a constant clash between good and evil and the evil force is constantly striving to spread its influence. At the Lincoln Mill, Viktor Kane and his allies were corrupted by an evil force in the 1930s which led them to the dark side. The basement below the mill is haunted by their dark spirits that seek to spread their influence just like in Star Wars. We thought it would be interesting to take interactivity to the next level for this event and to gamify the experience. Guests will find themselves trapped in the basement of the mill and will need to escape without being touched by the corruption, the evil force that is tethered to the mill. If they make it out of the mill, they will be able to determine if they were 'corrupted' or if an imprint has been left on them."
During the exclusive outing, guests will venture through the hidden chamber that has been changed to ultraviolet light, giving the attraction a cosmic feel. The soundtrack has also been changed featuring cinematic Star Wars music but with a dark, horror twist. The character make-up and costuming will also be unique for this event featuring sith-inspired make-up and black sith robes. There will also be several other nods to Star Wars throughout.
The Lincoln Mill story is continuing to evolve and we use our off-season events to tell different parts of this story. Our “May the 4th Corrupt You” event will be an entirely new experience when compared to our past events.
For fans of both Star Wars and Horror, this event is for you!
May the 4th Corrupt You is the sixth pop-up and off-season event for Lincoln Mill in Manayunk - which was always part of the plan when the building was repurposed after Hurricane Ida. After a wildly festive and successful Christmas-themed holiday haunt in December and Viktor's Valentine in February, plus the new A St. Paddy's Nightmare, Lincoln Mill returns for a second year with an all new experience.
Lincoln Mill is located on Main Street Manayunk and is within a short walking distance of many great restaurants and bars. For those looking for the full Saint Patrick's day experience, come on out to the haunted house before or after going to a bar or restaurant. Lincoln Mill also offers food and beverages on site and has entertainment on its midway. New Ridge Brewing Company will also be on site selling alcoholic beverages.
Fore more information regarding the story and for promotional offerings, Visit lincolnmillhaunt.com and follow us theminstagram, facebook, Youtube and Tik Tok!
TRANSPORTATION
By Car – If you are traveling by car, there are multiple parking lots and side street parking in Manayunk. You can prepay parking for nights of events by purchasing a parking ticket on our ticket website. There is a limited amount of parking in the lots per night. The parking will be valid until 6am the following morning.
By Train – One of the best ways to arrive at the Haunted House is by train utilizing SEPTA. There are two train stops within walking distance, Wissahickon Station and Manayunk Station, both on the SEPTA Regional Rail.
By Bus – Please refer to the Philadelphia SEPTA bus schedule
Uber and Lyft – They recommend you enter the address 4050 Main Street for your Uber and Lyft rides for the destination so you can arrive not at a busy intersection. You can then walk 100 feet to the entry at 4100 Main Street.
THE CO-FOUNDERS AND BACKSTORY
Lincoln Mill Haunted House is a partnership between owners Brian Corcodilos, who owns the building, and Jared Bilsak who is the creative mastermind behind the design and storyline.
Corcodilos oversees 25 employees at Designblendz, recognized as one of the fastest growing companies in America in 2020 on the INC 5000 list at #579. Brian has a passion for teaching and loves to help drive others to success. Whether he is speaking in front of thousands of people, mentoring 1-on-1, or business coaching a small group, he captivates his audience with his energetic truth-telling stories. He runs a podcast on Apple Itunes called the New How Podcast, interviewing business owners around building businesses through the use of new technology.
Bilsak is a licensed architect at Breslin Architects in Allentown, Pennsylvania specializing in K-12 School Architecture. Jared is also LEED Accredited Professional, WELL Accredited Professional, Construction Document Technologist and an FAA Certified Drone Pilot.
The two met in 2009, at Philadelphia University (now Jefferson University). Corcodilos was a sophomore at the time while Bilsak was a Freshman. They met through Alpha Chi Rho Fraternity (AXP) where Corcodilos was Bilsak’s “Big Brother”. In 2012, the Fraternity was seeking new ideas for charitable events on campus. Bilsak had a background in creating Haunted Houses at his childhood home each October season. He floated the idea out to Corcodilos about doing a haunted house on campus in the historic Ravenhill Mansion. The likeliness of the school ever letting two fraternity guys turn their most historic and valuable building on campus seemed very unlikely at the time… Corcodilos decided to pitch the idea to the school’s leadership and somehow they let them move forward with the idea!
They successfully ran the haunted house entitled “Ravenkill Mansion” during the last weekend in October for the remainder of their time in college. Each brother in the fraternity was an actor inside of the haunted house. They divided up the mansion into smaller rooms and introduced many special effects and characters throughout. The haunted house attracted hundreds of college students and members of the community and all proceeds were raised towards the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). After they both graduated, they returned each October season and led the Fraternity to continue carrying out the event until about 2018.
During these college years of running “Ravenkill Mansion”, they thought it would be fun to one day open up their own professional haunted house. They will realize this dream with the opening of Lincoln Mill Haunted House.
When asked how the idea came together, they said to flash forward ten years when Corcodilos purchased the old Mad River in Manayunk, Philadelphia during the COVID-19 pandemic and was seeking a tenant for the first floor. It wasn’t long after when Hurricane Ida struck Philadelphia and flooded the Lincoln Mill to historic water levels. The building suffered significant water damage and he was concerned about finding the right tenant for the space.
Somewhere along the line, he had a flashback to their old college days of operating Ravenkill Mansion and saw a new business opportunity. He reached out to Bilsak about the idea.. Bilsak had been running a haunted house at his residential home in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania at the time and had been content with his home haunt operation. After seeing the photos from the flood on facebook specifically of the Lincoln Mill under water, Bilsak saw high risk in the venture and was not interested.
They met several months later and after a few drinks, discussed the idea again. They analyzed the flood maps over the course of 200 hundred years and discovered that the latest flood was one of the worst in history and after weighing the odds, they decided to give it a go!
They decided to use their biggest fear, the potential of another flood, to their advantage. The flood became the premise to the backstory for the debut of Lincoln Mill Haunted House in October of 2022. The new attraction garnered critical raves from local, regional and national press, as well as guests.
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