Need realistic bones for your home haunt? Does the idea of robbing graves trouble you? There is an alternative to risking arrest and desecrating the graves of loved ones.

For years the Anatomical Chart Company of the United States has made it's life-like skeletons and medical props available to haunters over the web, but there was nothing comparable in Canada, and the cost to bring them across the border can be high. That problem was solved when www.boneyardbargains.ca went online!

Kim and Paul of Scarborough, Ontario have always loved halloween and wanted a great home haunt, but found little to nothing available in Canada. Paul discovered the Anatomical Chart Company and ordered a skeleton and other items, but with taxes, shipping, and the exchange rate it was fairly expensive. Then it occured to him, "Maybe we can be a distributor."

A quick call to the ACC found the replica skeleton company more than happy to join forces. According to Paul, " People [from Canada] were calling them and complaining about the costs". This, then, was a perfect solution. The couple set up an office in their Scarborough home and put up a web site with pictures of products and ordering information.

Visitors to the site will currently find a halloween themed layout, but Paul says that's only for the season. The rest of the year it has a less "horrifying" look, but still has a Halloween section. Customers can browse the catalogue and note the item numbers of the things they want, then go to the Contact section to fill out an online form.

Presently they do not offer secure online ordering, but it isn't a problem because customers don't need to provide any personal information. In the future they will be updating the site with a secure online store, but Paul says he has found that "People enjoy calling up and talking to someone. They're more comfortable giving their information over the phone."

Though they only started last year, business has been good and is picking up. They're still working on getting the word out to Canadians that they have a choice other than searching abroad. Paul has had to buy from as far away as England to get the things he has really wanted, and has also gone to the Transworld halloween show in Chicago. "You'll see things you'll never see here", he said, characterizing most Canadian halloween retailers as not having "quality products".

In order to become more visible, the couple struck up a deal with Grandpa of Magic Hill Haunted Adventure. On most weekends during the month of October, Paul heads out to the Stouffville farm in his 1956 Hearse to sell bones out of a small booth. "Grandpa said to come on up!" said Paul, noting that what he sells goes perfectly with the theme of the Haunted Adventure. They've had some bad weather though, and plan to set up a tent in the future.

Paul and Kim don't just deal bones, however, they display them too... in a big way! "We do a big, big haunt", said Paul referring to their new house. "We have gravestones, pillars, skeletons, animatronics, air props... it's gonna' be big this year!" He has also wired two of his skeletons to talk to each other and perform a twist on the old Abbot and Costello "Who's on First" routine. "They will be doing 'Who's in first grave'."

For future halloweens he wants to turn the backyard into a haunted house complete with walls, and perhaps collect money for charity. They also plan to turn the basement into a showroom so people can come by to see the products first hand.