Terrifying Haunted House Has A 40 Page Waiver
Tennessee has a terrifying haunted house has a 40 page waiver and heavy duty waiting list. McKamey Manor is a rabbit hole… I will warn you now. How this place is allowed to operate is beyond me. That people (a LOT of people) want to go and take this terror/torture tour is mind-blowing.
Varying sources on the internet mention waitlists at over 20,000 to have the opportunity to experience McKamey Manor. Originally, there was no stopping of a tour without staff approval, but in recent years, safe words have become a practice.
The following content is an op-ed… my opinions. I’m telling you right now that I am not cool with this. More than one national publication has listed this “haunted house” as a torture chamber where people pay to get in. For years now, reports of people being waterboarded, having their fingernails pulled, or being force fed foods have also surrounded the “attraction.”
Who Does This?
Russ McKamey is the founder. He started his kidnapping and torture experience in San Diego back in 2015. The San Diego Union-Tribune states that the price for his services in 2015 was a food donation to a local dog shelter. After losing his job, he moved the operation to Tennessee and has been operating from outside Nashville ever since.
A side note: In July of 2024, Russ McKamey was charged with attempted murder and rape in a dispute with his girlfriend, but charges were dropped the following month.
A Haunted House Has a 40 Page Waiver – Why?
I kid you not. The McKamey Manor Requirements page includes not only the waiver, but a cleared physical for health and mental, FB interview, background check, and a drug test the day of the tour. That’s most but not all of the requirements.
Several years ago, a video hit of footage from the manor. NSFW! Here is a link to the video, but before you even think of clicking on it, I will tell you that I have not watched the entire video because I find it disturbing.
The waiver is posted on waiversociety.org. It includes things like “If selected to visit the barber” you may leave with a bald head and no eyebrows. Other waiver points include the possibility of contact with poisonous animals, being buried alive, or walking a plank 25 feet in the air.
My Personal Opinion
I watched a video on what goes on there and I had to stop after less than a minute because I thought I would barf. Again… I kid you not. I am all for Halloween fun… this does not look fun to me. This looks like people being hired and paid to do messed up stuff to other human beings. This is torture that’s being billed as an “Extreme Haunt.” This haunted house has a 40 page waiver… clearly something is off here.
I don’t get the allure of people signing up for it and I certainly do not care for the idea of having this sort of experience. Various sources have said those who take the tour could be water-boarded, have their fingernails pulled off, be force-fed… the list goes on. The waiver alone is terrifying. A haunted house has a 40 page waiver… think about that.
The McKamey Manor was the focus of Hulu‘s documentary, “Monster Inside: America’s Most Extreme Haunted House.” It asks (among others) the question, “Why are people are willing to put themselves in harm’s way?” and “Why do people go for extreme experiences.”
Here are some spots in our area that are rumored to be haunted, but no waivers are required.