15 Days till Halloween

16 Days till Halloween

With Halloween quickly approaching, I wanted to share a passage from one of my favorite novels: Halloween II by Jack Martin.  It is a novelization of the 1981 film by the same name; however, it goes further than just rehashing everything we see on film.  It gives us some deeper looks into what is going on around Haddonfield.  It gives us more character development.  Also, the descriptive writing really put you in the world and makes it feel like Halloween no mater the time you read it.  The novel begins with a prologue that isn't really connected to the film per se.  It is used to set the scene of Haddonfield, Illinois (or really any midwestern town), in late October.  I love it because, having grown up in Indiana, I can really relate and it feels like Halloween to me.  So without further ado:

Halloween II
By Jack Martin


Prologue


It was that time of year when the days are short and the shadows are long.  When the earth tilts further on its axis and the seasons hang suspended between autumn and winter; when they very light seems to change and colors deepen mysteriously...

You know what it is like.

The morning sun arcs away across the sky, the afternoon rushes impatiently toward dusk, the cutting edge of darkness like the blade of a sundial pointed and turning under eaves and porches.  A time of dampness and slow, flaking rust, of barking dogs that are never seen, of telephone lines that crackle as if underwater.  Of distant traffic and the laughter of children fading behind you and in front of you all at once; of the broken moon drifting like a gauze-covered face.  Of the dripping condensation in chattering drainpipes, of the clutching of wings in the roof of mouldering garages.  Of frost on glass; of moist, endless coughs.  Of mildewed gloves and too-think socks, of soft newspapers and food that is never hot, of litter dropped in the gutters melting into paste, of laundry wilting before it can be folded away, of labels buckling from jars in the musty cupboard and of your own white breathing, alone at midnight, glazing the window and then slipping out through the screen to meet the cold steam settling in the flowerbeds below...

It was the thirty-fist of October in Haddonfield, Illinois.

It was late.  Very late.

Once again, it was Halloween.

17 Days till Halloween

Oops!  A little late, but hey it happen!  Now, cut me some slack, I'm tracking down my tombstones that blew away in the windstorm!

18 Days till Halloween

Can't get your fill of Halloween?  Check out the Halloween Forums to chat with fellow aficionados!

19 Days till Halloween

Tell me this doesn't look awesome!





PSSST - If you're in the Muncie, Indiana, area, you can see it live at Ball State University in late October/Early November.

20 Days till Halloween

Yay for vintage Halloween advertisements!

21 Days till Halloween

*Le sigh* Midterms are not conducive to blogging.  Anywho, I present to you one of my favorite 1960's horror films...if it were a little more raunchy:

22 Days till Halloween

Another busy day brings another less in-depth post, but hey, it's funny!

23 Days till Halloween

It's been a busy day.  So just sit back and enjoy this rap based on John Carpenter's Halloween theme.

24 Days till Halloween

Folklore has always played a big part in Halloween.  In many cases, these folk tales have inspired other aspects of the Halloween tradition.  Have you ever wondered how the Jack-O-Lantern came to be?  Well, it's story time!  Come along as we recount the tale of Stingy Jack.

25 Days till Halloween

For your viewing pleasure, I present a collection of vintage Halloween postcards after the jump!

26 Days till Halloween

Sisters, I believe this calls for a countdown!

I thought we were overdue for another Top 10!  So here you have it.  We all have those movies that it is just not Halloween without.  Many of them were annual favorites instilled in our childhood.  Come with me on a trip down memory lane as we countdown the Top 10 Kids' Halloween Movies!  This will be a special treat for my fellow 90's kids.

27 Days till Halloween

Unpacking the Halloween decorations is always like a special trip down memory lane for me.  As I began decorating this weekend I felt as though I was being reunited with some old friends.  This is especially true when it comes to my collection of Telco Motion-ettes.  These little animatronic figures have so much character and charm.  They are yet another relic from the Halloweens of yesteryear.  It really is a shame that Telco went out of business as they produced some of the best holiday decorations.

In my house, we have affectionately dubbed these, "Derp Machines."  If you know the meaning of the word "derp" you'll get it.  They have awkward, jerky motions, and let out a bizarre sound when turned on, but that's just part of their charm.  Although remembered from childhood, we didn't really own any.  We did, however, have Gemmy's animated Rocking Chair Witch.  My Aunt Terry had the original Dracula Motion-ette and she would display him in her front window on Halloween.  This was great entertainment for a kid with ADHD, I could just sit and stare for hours.

28 Days till Halloween

So, we've given some focus to decorating on the inside.  Now let's take a look at some of those familiar faces we've seen while trick-or-treating or driving around the neighborhood at night.  I'm talking about illuminated blow molds.  These decorations first started gaining ground in the 1960's but they really hit their apex in the mid-1980s through early 1990's.  For years, Empire Plastic was the master of blow molds - Halloween and otherwise.  Unfortunately, they are now longer in business.  However, their major competitor General Foam Plastics is still going strong and actually acquired most of Empire's molds.  Blow molds are available in a variety of sizes from 12 inch table top sizes to 4-5 feet tall.  Make the jump to see photos of some of my favorite blow molds.

29 Days till Halloween

Die Cuts

This Witch (1980s) is a personal favorite of mine.
She and this reproduction 1930's cat will greet guests at my
front door this Halloween.

I would like to follow up my previous post about decorating by discussing some of my favorite decorations.  When I think about Halloween decorations, one of the first things to come to mind are die cuts, or cardboard cutouts.  These are those paper decorations that were hung up on walls and bulletin boards in elementary schools or in the windows of local business or home.  Over the past century there have been literally hundreds of Halloween die cuts produced from pumpkins to witches, friendly to scary, large to small, colorful to drab.  Since the 1920s, Beistle has been king of this decorating niche.  However, Luhrs, Dennison, and AMSCAN have also produced several memorable paper vignettes of our beloved holiday.  Unfortunately, die cuts are quickly becoming a forgotten art.  In honor of those grinning Jack-O-Lanterns, spooky witches, and ghastly ghosts who have peered at us throughout the decades, I present a die cut retrospective after the jump!

30 Days till Halloween

Well, here it is the First of October.  Better get to decorating!  This one of my favorite aspects of Halloween.  I decorate indoors and outdoors...and, Hell, I even customize my cellphone and computer backgrounds for the month.  Check out some Halloween decorating ideas and tips after the jump!