Some of Fernando Martino’s earliest memories involve helping his father set up Halloween displays at the family’s Italian restaurant, Mamma Martino’s, located in Etobicoke.
“My dad was always into the holidays, he loves Christmas, he loves Halloween. But I was the one who really, really loved Halloween,” says Martino.
“My dad would we putting up Halloween decorations he got from Costco, Sam’s Club, and Walmart. He had friends from a film company who would give him props and stuff. That’s where my passion for horror-set design grew,” he says.
Today, the horror buff and budding entrepreneur is the founder of Martino Manor, an amusement haunted house located on a leafy Etobicoke street behind the family restaurant.
Martino is covered in bits of plaster when I meet him at the family restaurant. He’s been fervently working on Martino Manor ahead of the haunted house’s September 29 opening.
“I wear my heart on my sleeve with this haunted house,” he says.
Years ago, Martino’s father purchased the house that is now Martino Manor. But it wasn’t until 2016 when Martino asked his father about turning the old home into a place where he could showcase his love of Halloween. Martino says his dad wasn’t feeling it at first, but he recognized his son’s passion and decided to invest in the idea. Martino’s father loaned him $100,000, and gave him a timeline of five years to pay back the loan from when the haunt opened.
In 2018, Martino Manor opened its doors to the city. “That was my first year, but it didn’t take off the way I wanted it to. It was a last minute opening. I didn’t want to advertise, I just promoted it on Facebook and Instagram,” Martino says. “Last year, I reached out to [radio stations] Z103.5, 102.1 the Edge. Narcity did a post on us, we blew up last year. And it’s been growing ever since,” he says.
Martino knows he needs to pay his father back, but he adds he isn’t in the business solely for a return on investment. “I am different from all the other haunts, I care for the scare. I’m not just thinking about the next money-making opportunity.”
Martino has finessed his set-design skills thanks to years of creating Halloween displays at the family restaurant and also at his home. The entrepreneur has an eye for detail. He shows me how he painstakingly scratched the wallpaper inside one of Martino Manor’s rooms. He wanted to give the space a feel where its victims enter and lose their minds. He also has animatronic ghouls and monsters not seen elsewhere. Even his team of actors are chosen based on their love of horror. “One of the job interview question I ask is ‘what is your favourite horror film?’” Martino says.
Martino Manor’s creep factor goes up a notch when you delve into the property’s history. The house, which is located on 7 McIntosh Ave., was once home to an elderly lady who died on the property, Martino says. “A grandmother lived in that house before my dad purchased it. She fell on the back steps, and cracked her head open.”
Martino estimates the property is more than a 100-years old.
When he first started renovating the house, he found it challenging being alone inside. “For the first year I kept looking around me. I’d constantly see things from the corner of my eye, I’d constantly be scared liked that. But I always have an attitude that God’s got my back,” he says.
He finds inspiration from demonic horror films, and especially from the late American couple, Ed and Lorraine Warren, who were paranormal investigators. The Conjuring horror film franchise is based on supernatural cases the Warrens tackled.
While the haunt doesn’t have a theme this year, patrons should expect scares inspired by demonic possession.
“Sometimes I worry I might be stirring some shit up. Supernatural stuff,” Martino says. He refers to a room in the haunted house that is covered in upside-down crosses, a symbol often associated with demonic influence. “But you need to have that, because it is terrifying,” he says.
The majority of those who visit Martino Manor would agree. The haunt has 4.8 stars out of 5 on Google Reviews. It helps that Martino focuses on quality over quantity. Rather than pushing hordes of people through the attraction, Martino says he creates physical distance between patrons walking through.
Martino Manor is set to open Oct 4. The experience lasts around 15 minutes and is open to those 14-years of age and over. For more on the haunt, ticket prices, and opening hours, click here.