Located in Jacksonville, Florida, the Sally Corporation is the premier dark ride and animatronic company. With about 40 employees, the factory is able to handle a number of contracts at a time for both dark rides and standalone animatronic setups. We took a tour of their factory to see the tools of the trade and learn about the history of the company. Jan Sherman, Assistant Vice President of Creative Services kindly offered to come in on a Saturday and show us around. She works on a little bit of everything, from public relations to script writing and sound production.

The Sally factory gives tours on Tuesdays and Thursdays for school children, so the factory is set up with tours in mind. Models of the dark rides, located throughout the building, show layouts and details giving a good idea of the rides for those who haven’t experienced them. Animatronics throughout the building also showcase some of the incredibly lifelike figures Sally has produced. Right inside the entrance area, the Director talks about the company and introduces the tour. This figure was built for a South American client that didn’t pan out, so it’s now used at trade shows and as this introductory piece.

The first room is set up specifically for the tours with rows of seating and a little target shooting range. The targets are split into three themed sections showcasing some of the production models Sally offers. The Great Pistolero Roundup was the company’s first interactive dark ride set. Another popular theme is the Den of Lost Thieves, which has installations at several parks including Indiana Beach. The last of the three sets is the North Pole Adventure, which has seen incredible popularity in (of all places) China. Although they don’t celebrate Christmas, the theme is incredibly popular and has been installed in three of the Happy Valley parks. This whole setup includes two guns for guests to face off against each other. This author will not comment on his embarrassing score…
Also displayed in this room is Sally the Pianist, a 5th generation animatronic figure. She sings in several different languages and appears to play the piano. Often, she’s set up in different locales where patrons will try and hold conversations with her… or even give her tips!

In the design area, ideas get turned into drawings and plans. But it’s not just computer work. Renderings of animatronic figures and scenes from the ride are drawn by hand. Architectural and mechanical drawing sets are produced, which lead to the fabrication of the ride. As you can see in the pictures, the area has advertisements and renderings from many of Sally’s rides.. including a few items for a future attractions they’re not able to discuss! We’ve got some ideas, but I guess we’ll just have to wait!

Faces and body parts for animatronics are cast in the sculpting room. Molds are made and a high-pressure latex mix is injected into the mold to form a pliable mask then can be stretched, fitted, and detailed. Larger model work is done in the warehouse room next door, where big props are constructed and stored. It’s very surreal seing lots of very realistic looking body parts lying around and half covered animatronic figures standing in the corners. The expansive factory floor houses parts and pieces from numerous rides that are being refurbished or waiting to go into the field. Stacks of track lie in between machines and finished pieces. A big T-Rex in a box looms in the center and comes to life with the push of a button. Pieces from a Legoland ride sit nearby. Lifelike crocodiles sit on steel bracing ready to be submerged into water. Another shooting range sits on the factory floor waiting for people to test their skills. It begs the question if the workers ever take some shots while on break! The author did marginally better here… although we’ll keep on moving.

Black lights are growing in popularity once again and Sally is using them to their full advantage. In the back room of the warehouse is a black light area where paints can be applied and tested with the full black light conditions. New experiments with paints that only appear when the black lights are on means revolutionary new possibilities for theming. This type of black light technology was used in the now sadly closed Nights in White Satin at Hard Rock Park.

In the detail room, molded pieces first receive a primer before getting final detail work that brings the creatures to life—literally. Animatronics are tested through their range of movements before they’re ready to head into the field. The amount of detail on many of the figures is staggering, but the final product is a very high quality animatronic figure. Also in this room is a prop to advertise the new Goosebumps themed dark rides. This is Sally’s newest production model and could prove to be a very popular attraction due the much-loved theme. The prop features the ventriloquist mannequin Slappy talking about the ride and the popularity of the series. It’s certainly creepy, to say the least.

Pneumatics and hardware are built in a separate room with lots of little parts and pieces. Each of the animatronic pieces are incredibly complicated and vary depending on the amount of movement they need. There’s quite a bit to be considered. With human figures, there needs to be mechanics for facial expressions and any movements in the hands, face, or body. It all adds up to some very complicated figures.

Once skin meets pneumatics and hardware, the figure or group of figures can be ready for a sound test. In a room similar to a recording studio, the audio track is played while the figures are synched to match the sounds. Audio tracks are created in a professional recording studio before being brought back to the factory. Ms. Sherman explained that the tracks were originally recorded on cassette tapes before the transition to digital media. Those with a musical ear may be able to distinguish the difference, although there aren’t many of the original recordings still out there!

While they can’t tell us anything about some of the new rides on the way, the technology is sure to keep on improving. With the new interactive black light features and more lifelike and advanced animatronics, Sally’s rides have become even more of an immersive sensory experience. With the immediate draw that an iconic roller coaster can give a park, it’s sometimes hard to see how a dark ride can win out. Sally’s product line, however, makes it hopeful that more parks will consider dark rides as an option as their next major attraction.

Thanks to Jan Sherman for being kind enough to gives a tour and especially for volunteering to do it on a Saturday when Sally is closed. We appreciate the great behind the scenes look at what the company has to offer. Thanks also to Vice President Donna Gentry for helping to organize this tour.