A Swampy Phosphorescence

Mystery shrouds Wildwood's new scare attraction.

Posted May 7, 2010 by Jen A. Miller

Morey's Piers in Wildwood.

Photo by Colin Archer/Agency New Jersey.

There’s no business like show business—and no business knows how to put on a show like Morey’s Piers. The Wildwood boardwalk amusement operators have cloaked their newest attraction in mystery, igniting rumors and creating an air of anticipation among press and public.

The new attraction, at press time known as Ignis Fatuus, is located on the Mariner’s Landing Pier and is due to be unveiled at 12:01 am on May 29.

This writer was given an exclusive tour of Ignis Fatuus during its first days of construction. Like everyone exposed to the project, I had to sign a confidentiality agreement, but I can reveal limited details. Ignis Fatuus is not a sit-in-a-cart ride. Instead, you walk through. Morey’s has hired about a dozen actors for the attraction and plans to double that amount. In Latin, the term Ignis Fatuus means, “phosphorescent light that hovers over swampy ground,” and artwork and photos of the construction site show a rusted ship’s hull with a radioactive symbol on the side.

Terry O’Brien, who is in charge of the ride’s staff, wrote in his column for Exit Zero, a weekly Cape May magazine, that he attended a haunted-attractions trade show in March because of his role with Ignis Fatuus.
Rusty ship plus creepy light plus “radioactivity” plus actors trained in scare tactics—all signs point to a haunted-ship attraction.

Exactly what is it? Head to the unveiling ceremony at Mariner’s Landing on May 29 to find out.

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