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Table of Contents Halloween’s Horrifying History...............3 Scaring Up a Low-Cost Costume...........4 Make-Up Madness (Interview).............5 The Trick to Great Treats...................8 Pumpkin-Carving Techniques………11 Frightening Food and Drink..................11 Haunted Housekeeping (Interview).........18 Freaky Halloween Gear…………….21 Putting the “Wee” in Halloween.............23 Witchcraft in the Workplace..................24 Cemetery Tours………………….26 Unusual Halloween Costumes…………26 Frights on Film..................................28

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Halloween’s Horrifying History Boo! If any holiday ever called for melodrama, it‘s Halloween. While Halloween‘s

history might not be horrifying in the true sense of the word, it does have its origins in a

belief that the dead can come back to life and walk the earth. Zombies—wreaking havoc,

causing sickness, damaging crops and scaring the wits out of everyone.

Have you ever heard of Samhainophobia? This long, strange word means an abnormal

and persistent fear of Halloween. So why isn‘t it called Halloweenophobia? And what‘s

the connection between these first two

paragraphs? Well…

Halloween began as an ancient (2,000 years ago!)

Celtic celebration called Samhain (pronounced sah-

win) that took place at the end of the Gaelic

harvest season on October 31. Samhain was the

time used by the ancient pagans to inventory their

supplies and prepare for winter. The ancient Gaels

believed that on October 31, the boundaries

between the worlds of the living and the dead

coincided and the dead would come back to life to

create mayhem like sickness and damaged crops.

The Celts would light bonfires and wear costumes that mimicked evil spirits to fend off

the roaming ghosts. The Celts also tried to appease the evil spirits (ghosts, goblins, and

demons) by leaving out food on their doorsteps in hope of pleasing the spirit world. If

they didn‘t leave anything, it was believed the spirits would play evil "tricks" on the living

in that house. We know it now as Trick or Treat!

In truth, the Celtic holiday of Samhain, the Catholic Hallowmas period of All Saints' Day

and All Souls' Day and the Roman festival of Feralia (when Romans celebrated the spirits

of the dead by bringing offerings to their tombs) all influenced the modern holiday of

Halloween—a day (and night!) now filled with fright, superstition (black cats, witches,

burning candles for good luck) and fun!

The traditional activities of trick-or-treating, bonfires, costume parties, visiting ―haunted

houses‖ and carving jack-o-lanterns were brought to North America by Irish and Scottish

immigrants (the descendants of the Celts and Gaels) in the nineteenth century. Over the

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decades, many countries—Ireland, Canada, Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom, Australia

and New Zealand—joined the celebration. Global media is now spreading the holiday

festivities to Europe and Saudi Arabia. Today, the fun of Halloween transcends all ages

and many cultures around the world. ‗Tis a boooo-tiful thing! Scaring Up a Low-Cost Costume

Throw a white sheet over your head, cut two eye holes and, poof, you‘re a ghost. It

doesn‘t get much cheaper and easier than that. The good news is you can move up a

level or two in the creativity department without spending a lot more money.

You‘ll find some super ideas for inexpensive costumes made from items you typically

have around the house online at the Costume Idea Zone.

Here are a few of their clever suggestions:

Homer Simpson—Use make-up to give yourself a

yellow face and yellow skin. Take two ping pong balls,

cut them in half and poke a hole in each one (big

enough to see through). Then insert the balls into an

old pair of glasses that have the lenses popped out. To

make Homer's hair, attach two black pipe cleaners to a

yellow bathing cap. Wear a white t-shirt or polo shirt,

and blue jeans. Stuff a pillow under the shirt. Donut

optional!

Aircraft Carrier—Find a small toy airplane and carry it

with you. When people asked what you are, hold it

out in the palm of your hand.

Frosty the Snowman—Wear a white sweatshirt and white sweatpants, white

shoes, and black top hat. Attach four black buttons (or black paper circles) to your

chest. Cover your face with white make-up, and put black make-up around your

eyes and lips. Finally, spray your hair with white hair spray.

Quarter Pounder—Carry a quarter and a hammer. If someone asks you what your

costume is, put the quarter down and pound it with the hammer.

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Ugly Betty—Wear long brown hair, a long-sleeved shirt, vest and long skirt.

Create heavy, dark eyebrows using an eyeliner pencil. Wear red glasses and a

necklace with a B on it.

Another cost-saving option comes to us from Elissa Gross with Goodwill Industries of

Monocacy Valley in Maryland:

Goodwill® Industries of Monocacy Valley,

serving Frederick and Carroll Counties in

Maryland, reports that their retail stores are

great destinations for Halloween (or any other

time of year) costuming needs. From

traditional cartoon hero and heroine

characters for children to pirates, vamps,

uniformed professionals, etc., Goodwill retail

stores offer an affordable source of clothing

for these occasions.

In addition to shoppers‘ knowing that the revenues from their purchases go toward

supporting the missions of these nonprofit service providers (in the case of the MD

group, it‘s to ―Create, Hope, Jobs and Futures in Our Community‖ through job training,

resources and placement assistance; youth mentoring and computer training; MD food

stamp enrollment and Acquired Brain Injury (ABI) life skills development; ESL (English-as-

a-second-language) instruction and retail employment for anyone facing challenges to

employment and disadvantaging conditions), this network of nonprofits meets a growing

need in local communities.

Go to Goodwill® for more information about the Monocacy organization and to

Goodwill® for information about the Goodwill® organization in your area.

Thanks, Elissa! It sounds like a worthwhile way to get great costumes!

Make-Up Madness We went to an expert for Halloween make-up tips. Erica

Maniscalco is the Beauty Editor/Art Director for The Fashion

Journal, the premier fashion, lifestyle, and beauty magazine

for aspiring and up-and-coming designers. In addition to

being the Beauty Editor and Art Director for TFJ, Erica has

become one of the most sought-after young talents in the

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realm of beauty. After only a short time as a makeup artist she has worked on magazine

shoots, fashion shows, music videos, film and TV. Erica's work has appeared on WPIX,

WNBC, Better TV, 10! SHOW and The Today Show, to name a few. Oh, and she

absolutely LOVES Halloween!

Why do you think Halloween is such a popular holiday—as much for adults as it

is for kids?

For kids, it‘s all about the trick or treating, candy and having the most popular

character as your costume! For the adults, it‘s about dressing up and feeling like a

kid again. It‘s weird because I am more into Halloween now then I was as a kid.

Now it has become one of my favorite holidays, and after it is over I start thinking

about my next costume. As kids you always get to play dress-up, but when do

you dress up as an adult? And if you love [dressing up] as much as I do, you really

get into it. Your creative side comes out, and there are a lot of talented people

out there. Unless you are an actor, you do not do this on a daily basis, but for

one day out of the year you can be anyone or anything you want.

Would you please give us some easy make-up tips for some of the more popular

costume choices (witch, zombie, skeleton, ghost, anything else you think readers

would be interested in)?

For me, everything is about the make-up.

Always find a picture that inspires your

costume, and then make it your own. For a

ghost and zombie, it is all about making

yourself pale and red around the eyes. Ben

Nye makes a great make-up wheel with perfect

colors for this, a white, brown and rust color.

Think outside the box. I was a cat one year and

made my costume. I took the cat to the next

level. Look into fabric stores and craft stores for

cheap and simple ideas. I bought faux fur and

glued it to cheap clothes to make my outfit.

Also, don't be so quick to glue things to your

face, because you would be surprised what you

can do with make-up. For my beak as a

peacock I used make-up to give the illusion of a

beak. Think of your face as a canvas and shape

it into the look you want.

What‘s the most important thing to remember when applying Halloween make-

up?

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Have fun, be creative, but smart and safe. Do your research. When I work on

my costume, there is so much planning that goes into to it. I may do this for a

living, but I always ask the people at [the make-up] store for their advice and

knowledge as well. You will learn something from everyone. The more you

know about the products you are working with, the better. Do a test! Try your

costume [and make-up] out a week or two before Halloween just in case you

need to make changes.

How do you keep a spirit-glued, putty nose from falling off during the evening?

Everything depends on the product. For example, you need to make sure the

prosthetic you are using fits your face properly. The better it fits, the better it will

stay. If something is not shaped to your face it will be harder to glue. Make sure

the part of your skin you are gluing it to is completely clean. There cannot be any

make-up or product on the skin to interfere with the glue. Make sure you read

the instructions. If you want it to stay, you need to take your time and apply it

properly. The other thing is to be realistic—if the prosthetic is too heavy you will

definitely have a problem. Spirit glue is good, but it isn't superglue. There are

stronger brands out there, but I do not recommend them to someone who is not

familiar with special make-up effects.

Are there any precautions to take or anything we need to know about wearing

heavy make-up for an extended period of time?

Yes! If you have sensitive skin, I do not recommend using heavy make-up. Take

it off as soon as you can and always do a test on your skin before you apply. You

may think you are not allergic, but you would

be surprised how many people are. Allow at

least 20 minutes to see if your skin gets

irritated. Read all the ingredients, and if you

are using any special effects, make sure to ask

the sales associate about the product and how

to apply it. And if you can, avoid using

make-up after that for 2-3 days to let your

skin breathe.

Tell us about your most memorable

Halloween costume—either yours or a

customers.

I would have to say my peacock from last

year. I put so much into the costume and

make-up. It took me 2 weeks to make and 3

hours to get ready. I dressed up twice and

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tweaked it the second time because I was not happy with it the first time. Every

year it gets harder because I try to make it better and better.

What‘s the best way to get Halloween make-up off your face at the end of the

night?

Wow! This is a good one. Last year, when I was a peacock, it took me 2-3

showers to get everything off. The best product to remove body make-up is 99%

alcohol, which you can get at any professional make-up store. For your face, you

can use alcohol, but just be careful, because it is strong and can irritate your skin.

Do not use it around the nose, eyes and mouth. For the face I recommend a cold-

cream cleanser and really massage it into the skin to get everything off. After the

cleanser, use a toner to make sure you have removed all the make-up. Stores also

sell special make-up removers that do a good job.

Deborah Hernan of Ottilie & Lulu™ says, ―I get into Halloween because it fosters a great

sense of 'neighborhood' and because it is my daughter's favorite holiday."

She also has this Halloween tip to remove all of that

Halloween makeup from your daughter's soft, sensitive

skin. She recommends using Ottilie & Lulu Clean Skin Face

Wipes. Their skin and hair care products are exclusively

formulated for tween girls (ages 7-14), and these wipes

do not contain parabens, SLS, phthalates, mineral oil,

petrolatum OR salicylic acid, which dries out skin and is

an ingredient in other make-up remover wipes.

The Trick to Great Treats According to research by the DailyPress.com, here are the top 10 favorite Halloween

treats:

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1. Snickers –A candy bar with substance. These peanut-filled

chocolate bars are filling enough that kids may only be able to eat

a few of them. Then again, you shouldn't underestimate the

appetite of Halloween-crazed kids.

2. Nerds --Basically, they are pure sugar coated with sugar. Nerds can be both fun and

annoying due to the obnoxious rattling sound made by shaking the box. The best are the

standard strawberry flavor.

3. Tootsie Rolls –Tootsie Rolls have been around for over 120

years and come in various flavors, shapes and sizes. Giving out

the smaller sizes makes a candy bowl last longer, but the Tootsie

Pops are the tastiest, especially the chocolate flavor.

4. Life Savers –A good way to keep kids occupied. It takes a while to go through a whole

pack of Life Savers. Also, a good trick is to give out the mint varieties. The mint flavors

do not necessarily clean teeth, but they have less sugar and will keep the kids hygiene-

conscious.

5. M&Ms—It wouldn't be Halloween without M&Ms. They are

ingrained in our cultural psyche. If sugar and chocolate were

medicine, they would come in the form of M&M's. Also, it can be

funny to see how picky kids are about the color of the candy

coating.

6. Reese's –Reese‘s come in standard-size and miniature peanut butter cups, as well as

Reese's Pieces. With all of that peanut butter, enough Reese's cups could make a meal.

Just don't tell that to your kids.

7. Twizzlers –Probably the sweetest store-bought version of licorice. Twizzlers have a fun

shape, and they don't get your hands messy.

8. Butterfinger –Sinfully sweet. The flaky "peanut buttery" filling is so

sugary that it sticks to teeth and fills the gaps between them.

Butterfinger is most likely not the healthiest choice for dental

hygiene. But what candy is?

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9. Skittles –Skittles are always very popular. Just watch out for the kids that try to see

how many they can eat at one time. That can be scary.

10. Candy corn –Somehow candy corn always seems to make the

list. Young or old, not many people admit to liking this stuff. Still,

you can be sure to see plenty of it this Halloween.

Now might be the best time to mention Halloween safety. Read through this Halloween

Safety Guide for lots of important information, like instructing your children not to eat

any treats until they bring them home to be examined by you. This way you can check

for any problem candy and get the pick of the best stuff!

Just one more exceptional Trick or Treat idea before we move on to Halloween party

drinks and delights! Rick Grossman with Learning Express Toys in Hillsborough, NJ, does

something wonderful for his community at Halloween:

Sometimes new traditions get started or old ones get changed. Halloween is the holiday

during which parents spend the second greatest amount on children. The amount is spent

almost entirely on products that are consumable or disappear in a few days: Costumes

and Candy.

We have had Candy Buy Back programs in our store. Since our

mascot is a 15-year-old Yorkie named Fergie, we give out "Fergie

Dollars" after the holidays. The candy is not destroyed, but passed

out to children in neighborhoods that are not safe enough for trick

or treating.

We also have suggested that instead of candy, small "party favor"

items are given. These don't destroy teeth, add calories, or contribute

to diabetes. In addition, they last and provide play value! We carry a selection of these

party favors before the holiday. (We call it our "Halloween Boootique.")

One tradition that seems to be specific to certain neighborhoods is the tradition of

Halloween "Booing." A special gift basket is left on a doorstep anonymously prior to

Halloween along with a note stating "You've been Booed." The whole neighborhood

plays. For those who want to start or continue the tradition, we provide free instructions

as well as the "You've Been Booed" note with poem.

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Nice idea, right? Everyone benefits! If you have a toy store or a candy store, this might

be a terrific way for you to connect to your community!

Pumpkin-Carving Techniques

If you want to expand your pumpkin-carving skills, Walt‘s Pumpkin Carving Secrets will

take you to the pumpkin-slashing stratosphere.

Frightening Food and Drink

Candy is just one small bite of the holiday handouts we hope for on Halloween. Parties

abound, and hosts are always looking for spine-chilling drinks and disguised delights to

serve guests.

We‘ll start with a few drink recipes we think are spooktacular. The Renaissance

Hollywood Hotel & Spa, home to the Academy Awards® ceremonies, gets into

Halloween as only a heavyweight Hollywood hang-out can, concocting a couple of

spirited drinks—first, the dreaded Vampire‘s Kiss followed by the always life-altering (not

to mention mind-altering) Lobotomy:

Vampire's Kiss

1 ½ oz Crystal Head Vodka

½ oz of Pama Liquor

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Fill cocktail shaker with ice and add Crystal Head Vodka and Parma. Shake well and

strain into a martini glass.

By the way, here‘s what a bottle of Crystal Head Vodka looks like. It‘s a drink—and a

decoration for the day:

Lobotomy

1 ½ oz Crystal Head Vodka

¼ oz Sour Mix

¼ oz Triple Sec

¼ oz Cranberry Juice

Pinch of sugar

8 Muddled Raspberries

Squeeze of Lemon Juice

Muddle Raspberry with lemon juice, add all the other ingredients, shake with ice and

pour in martini glass or on the rocks.

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For margarita fans, we bring you this ghoulishly good, Halloween thirst-quencher from

Lime Tree Cove, creators of the world‘s first handheld drink rimmer, as well as a line of

specialty cocktail spices:

Spooky Hallow-rita

6 oz Margarita Mix

1 ½ oz Tequila

½ oz Triple Sec

Lime Slice

Orange Food Coloring

Hawaiian Black Lava Salt

Mix margarita mix with Tequila and Triple Sec. Add Orange food coloring to tint the

drink orange. Add Ice. Wet rim of glass with lime slice. Apply Black Hawaiian Lava

Salt to the rim. Enjoy.

Lime Tree Cove also offers the

Mischief Maker Halloween

Cocktail Rimmer Seasonal

Sampler for their handheld

drink rimmer! You’ll be the

Halloween Host of the Year

with this handy gear! What a

scream!

WebTender.com has several haunting recipes for Halloween, too. We carved out two

we think sound supernaturally delicious…

Witches‘ Brew

2 oz Yellow Chartreuse

1 1/2 oz Blue Curacao

1/2 oz Brandy, spiced

1/4 tsp Ground Cloves

1 dash Nutmeg

1 dash Allspice

Shake all the ingredients together and serve in a chilled

glass.

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Zombie #2 (They feature several variations of the Zombie!)

1 1/4 oz Lemon Juice

2 dashes Grenadine

3/4 oz Blood Orange Juice

3/4 oz Cherry Heering

3/4 oz White Rum

2 oz Dark Rum

3/4 oz dark 151-Proof Rum

Shake over ice in a shaker, and strain into a large highball glass

over crushed ice.

Eyeball these sites to find a casketful of hair-raising Halloween

potables:

WhatToDrink.com

FoodNetwork.com

Celebrations.com

CocktaiTimes.com

GlobalGourmet.com

ThatsTheSpirit.com

The cool thing about Halloween food is that the delightfully disgusting dishes and treats

conjured up by wickedly wonderful chefs work the same magic on children and

Halloween-happy adults alike. Here are recipes for a few of our favorites for goblin‘ at

parties, followed by links to lots more blood-curdling cuisine:

Cannibal Cajun Brain (From DivineDinnerParty.com)

3 lbs. shrimp, peeled, cooked, deveined

2 small roasted red peppers, julienned

1 green onion, sliced into 2" pieces, then

julienned

Gelatin Mixture:

2 1/2 C. chicken broth

1 1/2 tbsp. (1 1/2 envelopes) unflavored

gelatin

1 tsp. lemon zest

1/4 C. fresh lemon juice

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1/2 C. tomato paste

3 cloves minced garlic

1 tbsp. honey

1-2 tsp. Cajun seasoning

Pinch salt

Directions

1. Into a purchased Jello brain mold, layer the shrimp in, tails facing the middle of the

brain. It's best if you layer them into the brain mold with the tails facing the middle,

according to each "hemisphere" of the brain. This will give you the most realistic look.

Tuck the shrimps close together.

2. Drop bits of roasted pepper and green onion in around the shrimp. These should look

like veins and nerves when you're finished.

3. Repeat, alternating between shrimp and

vegetables, until you fill your Jello brain mold.

4. Make the gelatin. In a small saucepan, bring the

chicken broth to a boil. Remove from heat and stir

in the unflavored gelatin.

5. Stir in the lemon zest, juice, tomato paste,

garlic, honey, Cajun seasoning, and a pinch of salt

(the amount will depend on how much salt is in

your Cajun seasoning.)

6. Pour this mixture over the shrimp in the brain

mold, filling to the top. Discard any extra. With a

rubber spatula, smooth the top of your shrimp and

gelatin to create a smooth surface.

7. Refrigerate until firm, at least several hours.

8. To unmold, set your Jello brain mold in a bowl of hot water for a few seconds. Place

a serving tray underneath, then flip the mold over. The brain should pop right out. This

is one of the easiest gross Halloween foods to make in advance!

Spider Web Seven-Layer Dip (From DivineDinnerParty.com)

1 (16 oz) can refried black beans

1 (1 1/4 ounce) envelope taco seasoning

1 (4 oz.) can diced green chilies, drained (or jalapeños if you like it hot)

1 C. salsa

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1 C. sour cream

1 C. guacamole

1 1/2 C. shredded cheese

2 green onions, sliced

2 C. shredded lettuce

1 C. chopped fresh tomato

A couple large bags of tortilla chips

Directions

1. In a small mixing bowl, stir together the

refried beans and taco seasoning.

2. On a large festive Halloween tray , spread the beans in an even circular shape. Leave

room around the edges for the garnish.

3. Sprinkle green chilies over. Smooth salsa over. Smooth

guacamole over.

4. Place your sour cream in the end of a ziploc bag. Cut

the corner off. Squeeze sour cream on top of guacamole

in several concentric circles (or octagon shapes for a

more authentic look). Using a knife or the handle of a

fork, run lines lightly through the sour cream to make the

web shape.

5. Sprinkle lettuce in a circle around bean dip. Sprinkle

tomatoes and green onions over the lettuce. Then sprinkle cheese over the tomatoes.

6. Garnish with a creepy spider and serve with lots of tortilla chips!

Boogers on a Stick (From FamilyCorner.com)

8 ounce Jar Cheez Whiz

3 or 4 drops Green food coloring

3 dozen pretzel sticks

Directions

Melt Cheeze Whiz in the microwave according

to jar directions. Allow the cheese to cool

slightly in the jar.

Carefully stir in food coloring using just enough to turn the cheese a pale snot green.

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To form boogers: Dip and twist the tip of each prtezel stick into the cheese, lift out, wait

twenty seconds, then dip again. When cheese lumps reach a boogerish size, set boogered

pretzels on wax paper to cool.

Our friends at California Pizza Kitchen are sharing their recipe for a petrifying Jack-O-

Lantern pizza you can make at home with the family. It‘s truly a pumpkin pie on a pizza

crust!

Jack-O-Lantern Pizza

Pizza dough

Confectioners‘ sugar

Pumpkin pie filling

Mini chocolate chips

Chocolate kisses

Whipped cream

Candy corn

Directions

1) Roll out the dough into a

round pizza shape.

2) Place the sugar in a fine-mesh

strainer and sift a thin, even

layer of sugar over the dough.

This will caramelize as the

pizza bakes.

3) Transfer the pizza to the oven

and bake for 5 minutes to set the dough. Once the crust has been partially

cooked, spread with a thin layer of pumpkin pie filling and return to the oven for

another 5 -10 minutes, or until the filling is set. Remove and allow the pizza to

cool.

4) Decorate the pizzas using mini chocolate chips to represent the vertical lines,

whipped cream for the eyes and mouth, chocolate kisses for the eyeballs, and the

candy corn for the teeth.

Sounds like the epitome of a freaky pumpkin pizza! Here are more terror-ific sites buried

up to their necks with teeth-chattering Halloween recipes:

Britta, Webmistress of the Dark (Wait until you see the photo for Bizarre Brain!)

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Family Fun.com

CooksRecipes.com

FoodNetwork.com

MarthaStewart.com

TasteOfHome.com

HalloweenRecipes.org

RazzleDazzleRecipes.com

365Halloween.com (Mmmmmm. Stuffed

Intestines. Sounds yummy!)

DivineDinnerParty.com (Slithering Snake Pizza,

anyone?)

RecipeZaar.com

BetterRecipes.com (The Hand-Burger Dripping

with Blood=Total Gross-Out!)

BlissTree.com

CDKitchen.com

FabulousFoods.com

Haunted Housekeeping

Renee O‘Brien of Screamers Costumes in Detroit, MI also helps operate the famous

Urban Legends Haunted House there. She gave us some great tips for creating the perfect

atmosphere for your own haunted house:

Why do people love to be scared?

People love to be scared for an adrenaline rush; same

concept with roller coasters and thrill rides. It‘s all

about the fear of the unknown and the excitement it

brings. Someone—Stephen King, I think—once likened

horror to being kissed by a stranger in the dark. Scary

stuff!

What are the secrets to creating a super-scary haunted

house?

It‘s all about the anticipation. It‘s about putting people

on edge before they ever even walk through the door.

If somebody‘s already feeling uneasy, it makes our job

a whole lot easier, but then we have to meet and exceed their expectations. If I told you

how we do that, it wouldn't be much of a secret (wink wink!)

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Tell us about some of the

techniques you use to design an

ultra-scary haunted house?

By far, the best technique we use is

having an ultra-creative

imagination. It‘s easy to copy

what we see in horror movies, but

if people recognize a bit-by-bit re-

creation of something they‘ve

watched before, it takes the fun

out of it for them. However, if we

incorporate something organically into the mix that we know has scared an audience

when they least expect it or add our own twist, it makes for a pretty satisfying thrill!

Give us a glimpse of how you‘re going to use 3-D this year!

The 3-D will be awesome! We‘re starting out in the lobby where customers can put on

their 3-D glasses and look at spooky artwork while waiting in line to get inside the

haunted house. Once inside, we have images that‘ll be popping off the walls in terrifying

3-D that are coming right at you!

Would you share some tips for our readers who want to create a haunted house in their

home this year, especially tips that cause a good scare for a small amount of money?

Home haunts really hearken back to the days when communities would get involved and

put together a fun time for each other. You can always buy some fairly decent quality,

yet inexpensive, props at your local Halloween shops—even dollar stores nowadays—

along with costumes and masks. Fake blood is always a must! It can be a little messy,

though, so you‘ll want to be careful working with it.

What‘s the one sure-fire element guaranteed to scare the wits out of everyone in a

haunted house?

Well, it won't scare everyone, but many, many people have

this crazy irrational fear of clowns. Stephen King‘s ―IT‖ really

helped instill that into the current generation, too. But sure-

fire can also be anything that jumps out or has a loud noise

that people aren't expecting. It tends to get them every time!

Tell us about your sound effects? How do you create them?

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Sound effects really depend on the room; the size of the room, the shape and the overall

acoustics. You want to create a mood, but you also want to make it an appropriate

mood for the theme of the room. For instance, you don't want the Michael Myers

―Halloween‖ theme playing in a clown room or vice versa. Most sound effects are also

recorded and played on a loop, which means we don‘t have to have people running

around turning tapes over and pressing ‗play‘ every time a disc stops.

Do you have any funny or scary stories about people who went through your haunted

house in Halloweens past?

Hmm… Oh, this is a good one! We had a

guy who was coming out of the haunted

house—exiting the last room—and the

actor scared him so bad that he took off

running and just kept going. We‘re not

sure when he came back to get his car or if

he just abandoned the people he came

with. I assume he just ran home.

Why do you think Halloween is such a

popular holiday with children and adults

alike?

Halloween is popular because it just equals fun. Kids get to dress up, but they‘re really

after all the candy they can stuff in their mouths. Teenagers get to scare their girlfriends

and go to scary movies. And the adults? They get to dress up, go to parties and let

loose for an evening. What‘s not to love about it?

If you don‘t want to turn your happy home into a house of horrors for your party,

here‘s another freaky fun idea for your guests! Masters of the Hunt create customizable,

printable scavenger and treasure hunts, and they have three

different styles of hunts for Halloween. Here‘s how it works

for the Haunted Hunt:

Participants are given a ―hunt book‖ with a series of clues.

Some clues can be solved with the treasure hunt book alone,

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but many require the guests to explore the party area to discover additional clues in

order to figure out the solutions. At midnight, or another designated time set by the host,

guests meet to receive a final clue and the winner of the Halloween treasure hunt will be

revealed. Here‘s an example of a clue:

Solution: Fangs

Spiders have eight legs. If you count every eighth letter, it spells out ―Fangs‖ which is

listed in the Accessories section of The Halloween Shoppe. Each solution in this hunt is an

item listed for sale in ―The Halloween Shoppe‖ flyer included in the clue book.

Freaky Halloween Gear Not all cool Halloween paraphernalia can be found in a Halloween store, a party store,

a grocery store or department store. Sometimes you just have to dig a little deeper to

find those unique item you might never find otherwise. We‘ve done a bit of digging, and

we‘ve unearthed some out-of-the-ordinary surprises for your guests.

Ghost Pines Wine—Serve your ghoulish guests the holiday‘s

most aptly named spirits! The gray pine is also called ―ghost

pine‖, because of its eerie shape and colorless look, and the

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grapes for Ghost Pines Wines are grown in regions of California peppered with ghost

pines. Vintner Michael Eddy and his team of progressive winemakers search for the best

grapes in Napa, Sonoma, Monterey and San Joaquin counties to make a remarkable

collection of multi-appellation blends. Their wines include Cabernet Sauvignon,

Chardonnay, Merlot and Zinfandel. Share a glass with a ghost or two this Halloween!

Ghost Pepper Hot Sauce—These guys are serious. Did you know there‘s

actually a ―ghost pepper‖? Yes! The Bhut Jolokia, or ghost pepper, is the

world's hottest pepper, and the Ghost Pepper Hot Sauce hot shots blend the

Bhut Jolokia with carrots, onions, papaya, passion fruit and other fine

ingredients to create the original Ghost Pepper Hot Sauce. They say ―the ultra-

hot sauce should be handled with extreme caution and consumed only by the

micro-droplet, and only if you're brave enough to try Ghost Pepper Hot

Sauce‖, which is just one of the many ghostly hot sauces they make. Sounds

hot enough to turn even the brave into the living dead!

Spooky Face Birdhouses—You‘ll scare off everyone but

the birds, who will feel safe and cozy in their nest. Even

squirrels will scurry the other way when they see one of

these paint-can birdhouses hanging from the tree.

Designed and made by the folks at Starlink Ink, these

horrifically handsome birdhouses are made from unused

gallon paint cans. They have a handle and lid, which is

removable for cleaning the paint-can interior, and edging

has been added to the opening so birds can slip inside

safely. Hang one on a tree near your house, and the day

after Halloween, you‘ll have a yard full of squirrels

cowering in abject terror. Give them some acorns and

send them on their way.

Scary Socks—Send your fiends friends Sock Grams to celebrate

Halloween! You‘ll find a big selection of simply shocking socks

for adults and kids. Just find your favorite frightful pattern, pick

your card and add your personal message, and the foot soldiers

at Sock Grams will add free foot balm (or stickers for the kids),

gift-wrap it and have it delivered right to their mailbox. They‘re a

sweet treat for feet, and they won‘t put on a pound anywhere

else! Fun and socks-y, don‘t you think?

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Ghost Poop Soap—The October 31st solution to

childhood obesity and questionable hygiene! This

is a super party favor idea for your Halloween

party, whether it‘s for adults or kids. Instead of

candy (yeah, that‘ll happen!), drop a glop of

Ghost Poop Soap from SweetSoaps.com. Inside a

bag that reads "You've been naughty so here's the

scoop, all you get for Halloween is a ghostly

poop!" is a clear chunk of glycerin soap with

iridescent glitter to give it a ghostly glow. But

don‘t worry—it smells like candy! Just be sure the

little ones don‘t smell it and eat it!

Putting the “Wee” in Halloween Remember when Halloween used to be all about the kids? We think it still is! Halloween

speaks to the inner child in all of us. Adults might have jumped into the game with

extraordinary enthusiasm, but this holiday is ―kids night out‖ all the way.

We have a couple of gruesome ideas for keeping kids safe and happy on Halloween

night. It‘s the least we could boooooooo…

Many neighborhoods and

home subdivisions now have a

Halloween parade through the

streets of the neighborhood,

winding up at the community

clubhouse or the home of one

of the residents, where they all

enjoy a Halloween party,

collecting candy and playing

games. To get it together, you

can put flyers in mailboxes,

send out the information in a

neighborhood newsletter, or

post signs in the neighborhood

with the date, time and

location of the parade‘s starting point.

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Kids and their families (including the dogs!) dress up, meet at the starting location, and at

the assigned time (usually 5:30 or 6PM) and parade through the streets (prepare a

quarter-mile to half-mile route ahead of time) to the final destination. Neighbors who

don‘t participate often watch the parade from chairs at the end of their driveway. Some

parade watchers hand out candy to the kids as they pass by.

Cities and organizations across the country

offer all kinds of Halloween events for

kids, like this one in Los Angeles. For over

a decade the folks at the Altadena Sheriff‘s

Department have been putting a fright in

people using more than just the threat of a

speeding ticket. A small (typically $2)

donation gains you and your kids or

friends entry into a 1948 jail where you

will encounter ghoulish prisoners in a

Halloween-decorated Sheriff‘s Station.

The Oklahoma City Zoo hosts their annual Haunt the Zoo for Halloween! Families can

bring their little ones out to trick-or-treat in a safe and fun atmosphere with 21 themed

booths, festive props and more.

For families who live in rural areas, here‘s an idea we found on FamilyFun.Go.com. ―The

Mergener-Gingerichs live in Paw Paw, Michigan, where homes are far apart and trick-or-

treating can be an exhausting, if not impossible task. So for the past seven years, the

family has hosted a Halloween party that starts with games and crafts and culminates

with a much-anticipated combo hide-and-seek, treat-or-treat game. While Josie, Amelia,

Robin, and Madeline (ages 14, 12, 10, and 9) and their friends are indoors making their

loot bags, the parents, armed with treats to dole out, sneak into the large yard and hide.

Dawn Mergener has the kids count to 50 and then go in search of the parents. The kids

stick together during the hunt, yelling "trick or treat!" and collecting goodies each time

they find a parent!‖

With Halloween the second most-popular holiday in the US, you should have no

problem finding fantastic Halloween events in your area. Check online and in your local

newspapers to see what frightening fun is waiting out there for you and your kids.

Witchcraft in the Workplace

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It may be work, but you can still have fun! Though not every business or company can

allow an all-out Halloween celebration for a variety of reasons, many do. Favor Affair,

the favor site that brings you these e-guides, is—not surprisingly—part of a company that

loves to celebrate pretty much everything! Imagine that!

Since we have lots of experience in workplace celebrations, with Halloween one of the

highlights of the year, we thought it would be fun to let you in on our typical horror-

filled Halloween festivities.

Candy can be found in pumpkin-

shaped buckets throughout the

building, and a costume contest is a

must! Sometimes we work with a

theme, like the 80s or TV shows,

and sometimes we‘re free to dress

up however we choose. Of course,

there‘s a competition and prizes for

the scariest, the most creative, the

funniest, etc. A Halloween pot-luck

lunch is always a popular event,

with prizes given for the best

Halloween-themed presentations.

One of our favorite Halloween events was a department-decorating competition. We

were given two months advance notice,

and you wouldn‘t believe what our

Halloween-happy co-workers came up

with—a witches‘ coven in a forest

(complete with bubbling cauldron and

fog!) a creepy café of blood and gore, a

spooky cemetery, and an absolutely

eerie old-fashioned circus side show (it‘s

hard to compete with graphic designers

and marketing people!) Our employees

were allowed to bring in their small

children to tour all the departments, where a plethora of candy was waiting for them.

The secret to getting bosses to let you do something fun for Halloween is keeping the set-

up time and money requirements (theirs, not necessarily yours) to a minimum. (You can

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tell by these photos that we went a tad overboard time-wise with the department-

decorating competition, but it was a blast! It‘s a super team-building opportunity, too!)

Cemetery Tours Some people just love to be scared to

death, and a cemetery at night can do

it every time. If you like to get your

ghoul on in a graveyard, go to

Cemetery Tours and hang out with

every body anywhere in the world.

Seriously. This site has cemetery tours

available throughout the US and across

the planet. I‘m sure all the witches

burned at the stake would be up for

your visit during the Salem Haunted

Footsteps Walking Tour, where

―Watch your step!‖ takes on a whole

new meaning.

Creative Halloween Costumes Psychotherapist and author Jeffrey Sumber says, ―I get into Halloween because it is one

day when it is widely socially acceptable to be someone else, try something else

and ‘out’ yourself without others caring very much.

I think a fun Halloween costume is one where we choose our alter ego. If you’re

typically shy, choose to be a rock star or politician. If you’re always the one doing

the wackiest costumes, try digging deeper and pushing yourself to explore what

you typically don’t show. One of my favorite costumes was when I was living in

Santa Fe and chose to go as my astrological sign,

Sagittarius. I had long flowing robes, a staff, a mane of

hair and various zodiac signs on my clothes, etc. It was

rather popular...”

Here’s a gallery of photos showing adults, kids and even

pets in some of the strangest “alter egos” we could find—

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Frights on Film

Do you just want to scare yourself silly on Halloween night?

Click here for a list of the top 100 horror movies of all time,

according to Best-Horror-Movies.com. Go through the list,

pick out a few to rent or find them On Demand through

your local cable station, kick back with a bag of Halloween

candy and watch until you run screaming into the night. Isn‘t

that what Halloween is all about?

So have fun, be safe and go for the thrills!

Editor’s Note: All pictures have been gathered from various sources around the Internet, including Google

images. Some were submitted by their original photographers. If any of the images are copyrighted, and you

are the owner of the picture, please do not hesitate to contact us. They will be removed or credited, if you so

desire.