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Halloween Memories

My Halloween: Classic Movie Monsters

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Bgimage1 Five questions asked over a glowing Jack o’Lantern, under an Autumn moon obscured by passing clouds…in between mouthfuls of candy corn…Robert at Classic Movie Monsters digs up his best for Halloween, and piles it on into a nice neat mound of everlasting Universal Horror.

 

Why is Halloween important to you?

Halloween is important to me because it is the only time of year where I can literally be surrounded by the things I love. I am a huge fan of horror movies, especially those of the 1930s and 1940s. During Halloween time, every store has an image of Frankenstein or Dracula in its window and every television station is playing a Halloween themed program.  The world just seems to have monsters in the air.

Simply put: It makes me happy.

Describe your ideal Halloween.

Well my ideal Halloween isn’t about partying or drinking, but just having a nice relaxing time.  I try to watch at least one Universal Monster movie on Halloween, then I answer the door for the trick-or-treaters.  But what I really love to do is visit Haunted House attractions.  I’m not crazy about the big ones like Knott’s Scary Farm or Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights though.  I prefer going to neighborhood haunted house walk throughs where everything is handmade and done for the pure love of it.  There is really something special about that, but as I get older, less of them seem to be around.

What Halloween collectibles do you cherish, or hate, or both?

There is nothing that I can possibly hate that has something to do with Halloween.  If we are talking about collectibles that have to do with strictly the Holiday, I don’t have many.  But I have an endless amount of books, figures, statues, models, posters from all of my favorite horror movies.  I can’t even tell you how many Frankenstein figures I have!  Looking to my right as I type this, I see a three foot tall statue of a hitchhiking ghost from Disneyland’s Haunted Mansion, a bust of Boris Karloff as he appeared in “Bride of Frankenstein”, and a model that I built and painted of Claude Rains as “The Invisible Man”.  These are the types of things that I love and surround myself with.

When was your very first Halloween, the one where you really knew it was Halloween, and how was it?

Well I guess the first Halloween that I remember was when I was three years old back in 1987.  I dressed up as Frankenstein that year.  It was one of those plastic masks with the string in the back.  I don’t remember what we did that Halloween though.  I just remember the costume.

All Halloweens were the same growing up.  All the neighborhood kids would dress up and go trick-or-treating.  The local elementary school also had a Halloween fair that we would spend time at as well.  The thing that really made each Halloween different were the costumes I would be wearing.  I dressed up as many movie monsters including Frankenstein, Dracula, The Wolf Man, The Mummy, and the Hunchback.  I remember the mummy was a great one where I was literally wrapped from head to toe with toilet paper and gauze.  I wish I had a picture of that costume.

What’s the one Halloween question you want to be asked and what’s your answer?

One thing that I’m always interested in is if someone has ever decorated their house for Halloween and if so, what theme was it?  We did it a couple of times.  Our best one was in the year 2000 when we made our house look like a scene from “The Blair Witch Project”.  We set up a tent, put red handprints on the wall, had a human figure facing the wall, and we made many of those iconic stick figures.  It was very creepy and it really worked out well.

My Halloween: From Beyond Depraved

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Halloween Five questions asked over a glowing Jack o’Lantern, under an Autumn moon obscured by passing clouds…in between mouthfuls of candy corn…Joe Monster of From Beyond Depraved is “just a simple guy who enjoys the simple things in life. Vampires, werewolves, zombies, blood, horror, Halloween. Oh, and gorilla henchmen.”

 

Why is Halloween important to you?

Halloween to me, more than any other holiday, allows people to channel that inner child in them. It lets people of every age shed those social norms that they always try to uphold and let’s them go crazy for a little while. The irony is that we take off the social masks we wear in public in exchange for a literal disguise, living out all those demonic fantasies we have in the likeness of something else. And there’s just a sense of magic about the holiday that no other occasion seems to touch. Everyone becomes enchanted with the mystery aspect of it, of the things lurking in the dark. The freedom, the fear, and the frivolity that Halloween inspires in people all gel to create a completely warm and bonding experience for everyone involved. Plus the fact that Halloween is important because that’s when all the monster movie marathons are on TV.

Describe your ideal Halloween.

I think the ideal Halloween for anyone, especially for horror fans, would contain so many activities that the holiday would probably have to be extended into a week-long celebration. But if we’re talking ideal Halloween dreams here, I’ll play the game. My Halloween would probably begin with a Tolkien-like journey through a sleepy New England hamlet, passing the local candy maker’s shop and neighboring houses to load up on sweets (and maybe the local ABC liquor store for the adults). Our quest would then bring us to some historic spots of interests, such as a haunted cemetery or maybe the site of a witch burning. A haunted hayride would ensue, taking us through shivery farmland and moon-streaked forests. We would then proceed back to the house for a raucous party that included traditional games, dancing to “The Monster Mash” and “The Martian Hop,” and eating pizza to a series of classic horror films on the telly. With everyone just about spent, we’d all settle in the den as I opened up a tome of dusty ghost stories to read aloud before a crackling fireplace. The stories would lull us all to sleep and leave us with delicious nightmares imprinted on our brains. I don’t ask for too much do I?

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What Halloween collectibles do you cherish, or hate, or both?

I only have two Halloween pieces of note, both that I immensely treasure. One of them is a small bust of a grinning skeleton dressed in period clothing with a sumptuous ring placed on its bony finger. He looks like he was quite the dignified person in life. I won him at a party where my get-up as Cesare from The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (along with my girlfriend’s undead doll ensemble) won the Scariest Costume Award. The other one is a small bat-fashioned convertible that has a host of the usual suspects riding inside. Dracula and Wolfie excitedly point and howl in the back seat as Frankie drives and his wife primps her hair while holding a compact mirror. Oh, and the Black Lagoon Creature is sipping a soda in the back and there’s a corpse leg hanging out of the trunk. I smile just thinking about it.

When was your very first Halloween, the one where you really knew it was Halloween, and how was it?

Even though I can very vaguely remember some Halloweens from my past, in all honesty the first time I can recall getting the full holiday experience was while I was in third grade. That was around the same time that I just started getting into the horror genre, so it took on a whole new significance that year. I dressed up as Frankenstein’s monster, complete with a shaggy forehead cap and fabric boots that you wore around your sneakers. I had a blast trick-or-treating that night, except for those “attachable” electrodes that came with the costume. Those suckers left giants welts on my neck!

What’s the one Halloween question you want to be asked and what’s your answer?

Q: Why the hell doesn’t your town celebrate Halloween more passionately?

A: I’m not entirely sure. I think it has to do with the large population of elderly people. Maybe the holiday is just a grim reminder of what’s to come for them and they’d rather not think about it. Either way, I find myself wishing I could be somewhere else every year. Perhaps for one Halloween the Great Pumpkin will finally answer all my emails and grant my wish to be in a misty graveyard with a ghastly gang of other horror-loving fiends where we’ll be able to burn the midnight oil by talking of dark and arcane things. In the meantime, a mushroom-and-onion pizza and AMC’s Monsterfest will just have to do.

My Halloween: TheoFantasque

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IMG_0157Five questions asked over a glowing Jack o'Lantern, under an Autumn moon obscured by passing clouds…in between mouthfuls of candy corn…J.W. Morehead of TheoFantastique examines the Theater of the Fantastic through his academic eyes. He's also a nut for Lemax's Spooky Town collection. So if you're ever in a Michaels arts and crafts store around the beginning of August and you get knocked over by someone rushing to the Halloween section, odds are it's him. That's when Michaels puts out the latest Spooky Town additions. (Then again, it could be me, too. )

 

Why is Halloween important to you?

Halloween is filled with great nostalgia for me. I have fond memories of the holiday from my childhood, and since I've adopted Ray Bradbury and Ray Harryhausen's personal pact to grow old but not to grow up, Halloween allows me to give my inner ten year old a chance to experience the fear and festivity of my childhood. As an adult I've continued to look at the holiday as a scholar, and it includes a number of other facets as a cultural celebration that add to its intrigue for me.

Describe your ideal Halloween.

I don't know that I've had an ideal Halloween yet, but I've come close. I've got a friend who lives in Salem, and he gave me an opportunity to come out and stay with him during Halloween week. The place is amazing during this time of year, and I had an opportunity to visit the memorial for the executed accused Salem "witches," to visit the Pagan shops in the area, and to rub shoulders with other tourists, as well as real Pagan Witches and those who assume a vampire identity as well. The place has so much atmosphere, and it was a great experience. I hope to go back one year in the near future. If I could top this one year it would be setting up my own Halloween party for adults, as well as my own haunted attraction in my front yard and garage that would be the talk of the neighborhood.

IMG_0153 What Halloween collectibles do you cherish, or hate, or both?

I try to add to this each year, and my hunting begins in late July/early August. Each year I have a few stores I hit to find new additions. This includes Dollar Tree with their Disney Haunted Mansion-esque mini monster busts, Spirit Halloween for new home haunt decorations (this year I hope to add new tombstones, a rubber vulture and bat), and of course, new Lemax Spooky Town items. If I had more space I'd secure a few animated Halloween items for my home haunt, and would pick up several masks to start a collection.

When was your very first Halloween, the one where you really knew it was Halloween, and how was it?

IMG_0156 I don't know how old I was, but I remember growing up in the mid- to late-1960s and 1970s and the great sense of anticipation with new costumes from classic monsters. Perhaps my earliest memory is in early elementary school with my Universal Frankenstein's monster plastic mask which transformed me in my mind into the creature that I saw glowing on my television screen. When this experience is coupled with my fond memories of going to the pumpkin patch, selecting the perfect pumpkin, taking it home and carving it for the neighborhood to see, these are some of my earliest and fondest Halloween memories.

Oops. Our fifth question ran off to Michaels. I'll see if I can get it back…

My Halloween: Cinema Suicide

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Bryan-vs-robot Five questions asked over a glowing Jack o’Lantern, under an Autumn moon obscured by passing clouds…in between mouthfuls of candy corn…

Bryan White of Cinema Suicide says it best: “At the bottom line, Cinema Suicide aims to reach beyond the shallow interactions of your typical blog and create a community that can come together around a concept that we all have in common: A love of really crappy movies.” (Bryan’s the one on the left.) You can also see him fight humans and monsters in the How to Survive the Strange series of self-help videos.

 

Why is Halloween important to you?

Aside from the obviously spooky parallels between Halloween and horror movies, I’m not entirely sure what it is that makes me so gonzo for the holiday. When I was a little kid, I would go freakin’ nuts for Halloween before I’d ever laid eyes on a horror movie. I was going crazy at the prospect of a giant bag of candy but over time, the creativity of putting together a costume was a huge draw. I’d think of it for months and assemble the parts over time. These days I don’t have all that much time to make a kick ass costume but I try. I’m already thinking of what I want for this year and I’m going to be experimenting with latex and makeup to see if I can make it look like my head was cut off and then crudely sewn back on. So you see the appeal. I plan on going out in public like this. A lot of people make like Halloween lets you put on a mask and anonymously run wild for a night but I think it’s the opposite. By coming up with a gruesome costume, I get to put on a mask and be the person that I really am in public. As a kid, this doesn’t mean squat but as you get older, you build up walls around the parts of yourself that aren’t necessarily acceptable in public adult life and Halloween lets me break those walls down for a little while. It’s incredibly juvenile and a weird sort of art therapy but I’ll take it.

Describe your ideal Halloween.

My ideal Halloween has a couple of layers and it all sort of came together last Halloween. My daughter was old enough to really understand what was going on so this year, Halloween kicked ass. We all dressed up in similar costumes (devils), which I admit is pretty hokey but I don’t care. We had a lot of fun. My daughter was cute as hell, even though she thought she was some kind of red Tinkerbell (we couldn’t find a Tinkerbell costume in her size), my wife looked hotter than hell and I looked smooth in horns and a suit. We did the trick or treating thing on two nights since we go trick or treating the night before in our town and then the night of in the town my in-laws live in. Two nights of Halloween, y’all! Then we went over to some friends and hung out with the kids in costume while sneaking drinks in the kitchen. It was pretty cool, lots of fun and a whole hell of a lot more relaxed than Christmas which is really just a giant pain in the ass now that I’m older.

What Halloween collectibles do you cherish, or hate, or both?

I don’t really have any collectibles related to Halloween. Most of the stuff that comes out seasonally is cheap crap and isn’t worth keeping around. As a matter of fact, most of the things I see laying around as the day draws near drives me nuts. You still see a lot of those splattered witch props kicking around. You know, the ones that make it look like a witch flew her broom into a tree. ‘F’ that noise.

When was your very first Halloween, the one where you really knew it was Halloween, and how was it?

The earliest Halloween I seem to remember, I may have been four or five. My mom made me this Jack O’Lantern costume. I think my sister was a butterfly that my mom also made. This was in Binghamton, New York and we all rolled out to a Halloween parade. This was right around the time of The Empire Strikes Back so I remember all these Star Wars themed costumes roaming around. I saw a Darth Vader that I remember being really cool. This was way before you could just hit the internet and buy replica costuming, so a quality Darth Vader was a hard thing to pull off. We then strolled over to the Oakdale Mall and went store to store for candy. Binghamton, itself, was pretty urban but it’s surrounded by vast expanses of nothing and farmland. Trick or treating out where we lived would have been fruitless. At the mall, we made off like thieves!

What’s the one Halloween question you want to be asked and what’s your answer?

Q: What are your thoughts on candy corn?

A: Digusting. What are they even supposed to taste like? Corn? I’ll take a Clark Bar before I take a bag of candy corn. Man, that stuff is nasty!

My Halloween: Strange Kids Club

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Skc-pic Five questions asked over a glowing Jack o’Lantern, under an Autumn moon obscured by passing clouds…in between mouthfuls of candy corn…Rondal Scott, founder of Strange Kids Club, combines a wickedly fun visual sensibility with his sweet tooth for horror, cool toys, comics, and popping culture. Yum.

 

Why is Halloween important to you?

Halloween is that one time of the year where everyone equally relishes in the strange, offbeat (and ancient) customs that draw power from the mythology of monsters, madmen and mutants. It’s the one day of the whole year where no one makes judgments on what you look like or how you act. I think that Michael Dougherty perhaps captured the more sinister, adult-oriented side of the Autumn festivities in Trick ‘R Treat while Ernest Scared Stupid serves as the heart of childlike wonder that still resides in each of us during that time of year.

Describe your ideal Halloween.

My ideal Halloween consists of a full night of trick or treating door-to-door with the occasionally well done garage-fitted haunted house. Afterward it’s straight home for a marathon mix of Halloween fright flicks and classic scary cartoons while devouring the nights sugary treasures until exhaustion (followed by morning-after regret) sets in.

What Halloween collectibles do you cherish, or hate, or both?

I have two ceramic Halloween decorations that my grandmother hand painted and passed down to my mother, who has herself recently passed them along to me. One is a twisted Halloween tree with a black cat and a witch while the other is a giant luminescent jack o’ lantern with a black cat keeping watch.

When was your very first Halloween, the one where you really knew it was Halloween, and how was it?

The first Halloween that I can actually remember involved me dressing up as a bumble bee (yeah, the pudgy fuzzy kind). My father was still in the Marine Corps, so a group of family friends and I went with our mothers door to door collecting our bounty. It was an okay experience, definitely not the trend-setter for future experiences, but apparently it wasn’t enough to dissuade me either.

What’s the one Halloween question you want to be asked and what’s your answer?

Q: What’s the best Halloween movie you’ve ever scene?

A: This one is kinda tricky as there are so many ones to choose from, but I have to admit that I’ve got an unbroken streak with watching Hocus Pocus every year. It’s funny and charming with just enough scares (zombies, witches) to appeal to both the adult and strange kid in me. An honorable mention would have to be Night of the Demons, which a friend of mine and I have seen 4 years running now. Not the greatest film ever, but a fun one nonetheless.

Zoc Note: Watching Hocus Pocus every Halloween is a tradition in our household. Fun, great song, and wonderful story. And it has Sarah Jessica Parker. Yum.

My Halloween: Day of the Woman

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Bjc Five questions asked over a glowing Jack o’Lantern, under an Autumn moon obscured by passing clouds…in between mouthfuls of candy corn…for Day of the Woman’s Brittney-Jade Colangelo, Ms. Horror-Blogosphere 2009, “Horror isn’t just a passion or an obsession; it’s a lifestyle.  Horror lovers are this weird sub-species of humanity that can bond together over the love of something so strange to love.”

 

Why is Halloween important to you?

Halloween is by far my favorite holiday of the year because it brings me back to a comfort zone of my childhood. My mother is a diehard horror nut and my father gets sick pleasure out of terrifying other people. My fondest memories with my parents were setting up haunted houses in the front yard or running the haunted hayride in the community.  There was nothing better than leaving Trick Or Treating an hour early just to be home in time to watch Halloween on AMC with my mom as we decided which houses gave crap candy.  I can only hope that someday I have the opportunity to spread the love of Halloween to my children.

Describe your ideal Halloween.

The ideal Halloween for me would include copious amounts of liquid courage and a party set to the soundtrack of the very best in horror movie songs/scores.  There would be only candy given during trick or treating hours and no children would be covering their costumes with oversize winter coats.  Screams and laughter would fill the air and everyone would pass out long after the witching hour to the sight of a horror classic.

What Halloween collectibles do you cherish, or hate, or both?

I absolutely hate overly punned Halloween decor from chain stores. If I never have to see one more decoration with something to do with a “Ghouls Night Out” cheap manicure set, it’ll be too soon. I don’t know why people like this crap.  I’d rather have a subtle ghost in the tree or blood stained sidewalk instead of putting a sign in my yard with the word “spooktacular” on it.

When was your very first Halloween, the one where you really knew it was Halloween, and how was it?

My very first Halloween that I was excited for was when I was 6 years old. My parents used to run the haunted hayride around the Halloween season for the community. Every night, dozens of people would hop onto the back of a trailer pulled by a madman on a tractor. As ghosts, zombies, vampires, and werewolves came out of every corner and horrific scenes were put on display to frighten the audience, a tall hockey masked man wielding a chainsaw would hop aboard and horrify everyone in sight. I hid underneath a blanket and screamed as Jason Voorhees held a chainsaw to my face, when suddenly, I burst out into tears uncontrollably.  The Jason Voorhees knelt down to me and lifted his mask up and said “Brittney, It’s Daddy. It’s just Daddy”.  I glued on to him and he carried me off the trailer.  Seeing the mask removed really showed me what Halloween was really about, and I wanted to be a part of it.

What’s the one Halloween question you want to be asked and what’s your answer?

Q: What would I be if I could be anything for Halloween?

A: I’d want to be the 50 Foot Woman.  I’d make a little city to hang from my shoulders and stand by my feet so I’d look gigantic.  I’ve always wanted to figure out a way to make it without my city getting destroyed.

My Halloween: Author Paul Bibeau

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Paulbibeau Five questions asked over a glowing Jack o'Lantern, under an Autumn moon obscured by passing clouds…in between mouthfuls of candy corn…Paul Bibeau is an author whose intimacy with Dracula and the Halloween Spirit (Sundays With Vlad: From Pennsylvania to Transylvania, One Man's Quest to Live in the World of the Undead) combines with his mastery of the narrative form to conjure emotion as well as imagery.


Why is Halloween important to you?

I am a bitter lapsed Catholic who is about to turn 40. Christmas, Easter, and my birthday have turned into cruel jokes. Halloween is the only holiday left which hasn't broken my heart.

Describe your ideal Halloween.

Trick or treating ends early enough for me to turn out the lights, pop open an Octoberfest-style beer, steal fistfuls of candy from my kids, and watch Laurie Strode swat at Michael with a coat hanger.

What Halloween collectibles do you cherish, or hate, or both?

Collectibles don't do it for me.

When was your very first Halloween, the one where you really knew it was Halloween, and how was it?

My earliest vivid Halloween memory is from around fourth grade. I remember going trick or treating on Governor's Island, just off the tip of Manhattan. It was a Coast Guard base, and there was housing in the center of the island that was built out of an ancient fort. Even now that seems like a bizarre, trippy experience.

What's the one Halloween question you want to be asked and what's your answer?

Q: What was my best Halloween season ever?

A: In 2006, I spent two weeks just before Halloween traveling through Banat and Transylvania. I drove through Bela Lugosi's hometown and visited the Borgo Pass, where Bram Stoker set Dracula's Castle. I almost died on the roads that snaked through the Carpathian Mountains. I don't know if I'll ever top that one.