Inspired to create something after acquiring a jet plane formerly owned by the rock band KISS, Brian Marshal, president of Louisville-based online trade show World Expositions, recently opened The Haunted Chop Shop in Jeffersonville, Ind.

Located at the corner of Spring and Market streets in a building that years ago was a car dealership and body shop, the concept of The Haunted Chop Shop ties directly into the history of the building.

“I had some empty space in the back body shop area and it seemed like a cool thing to do,” Marshal said.

Marshal said he sat down with a close friend, his “wingman” Paul Eve, and together they came up with the concept.

“We literally came up with the idea in five minutes,” Eve said. “We thought of the chop shop idea and then everything else fell into place.”

The story behind The Haunted Chop Shop is based on fictional serial killer Joey Carman, who opened a car dealership and body shop in 1973. At some point after opening the business, Carman went insane. Whether it was because of his upbringing or other tragedies in his life no one knows for sure, but once Carman lost his mind he began his killing spree.

Carman would “chop up” his victims and incorporate their body parts into cars. Carman claimed 38 lives until he was prosecuted and sentenced to death. Unjustly electrocuted three times, he was released back into society. Carman died in a plane crash shortly after his release and his spirit returned to the chop shop to finish what he started.

Carol Wright, who works for Marshal at World Expositions during the day, plays the role of a devil who guides patrons through the chop shop at night. Wright tells the story of Carman as she leads people through a twisted maze of rooms with names like the Nazi room, the electrifying room and the body parts department.

Ten-year-old Austin Black, along with his mom, Alysia Robey, and stepdad, Bill Robey, went through the chop shop on Thursday, Oct. 23.

“I was a little scared. I liked the guy with the clown mask the best,” Black said.

Bill Robey said overall the adventure was pretty cool and one guy that jumped out of a wall really got his stepson.

He also said he was even scared a couple of times.

“Even though you know someone is coming up behind you, it still scares you,” Alysia Robey said.

Adam Persons, a student at Silver Creek High School, works as one of the demented chainsaw operators who lurk throughout the chop shop looking for victims.

“I love working here. It is a lot of fun, especially when people get really scared,” Persons said.

Persons said he scared one woman so badly she began hyperventilating.

John Stafford, the gatekeeper, said he likes working at the chop shop because of the reaction he gets from people.

“Some people pay and they won’t even go through the door. They run out into the street scared to death,” Stafford said.

Wright, Persons and Stafford said this job is not for everyone.

“You have to be a little ‘off’ to do this type of work,” Wright said.

Marshal said both he and his crew have put a lot of hours into working out what scares people, but the chop shop is not unlike other projects he has produced.

“We all go out to breakfast together at the end of the evening and talk about what went right, what went wrong and what we can do better,” Marshal said.

Patty Locks, Marshal’s fiancé, said his mind really comes out in this project.

“Almost everything used in the chop shop is stuff out of our house,” Locks said. “The coffin in the video room was sitting in our dining room. Collecting this stuff from yard sales and such is really Brian’s hobby.”

Construction began on the project at the beginning of September and was completed in just one month.

“Brian was told he could not complete the project in one month and he took it as a personal challenge to finish in that month,” Locks said.

Marshal said he could not have finished the chop shop in that short period of time without a lot of help from Locks, Eve and a host of other friends who have no financial stake or gain associated with the project.

Although Marshal said he could not have completed this project without help from friends, he said he attributes a lot of his success in life to IU Southeast.

“I have been involved in hundreds of projects that center on promotions. This project is no different than if we were going to do the musical ‘Annie’ next week. You need actors, a script and a set,” Marshal said. “It is really more about business and less about Halloween.”

A portion of the proceeds from tickets to the Haunted Chop Shop go to the Make a Wish Foundation. For more information and discount coupons log on to Hauntedchopshop.com.

By AMY STALLINGS
Staff Writer
akstalli@ius.edu