Halloween Memories

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?

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.