HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Oh, this blog's theme is Every day is like Halloween.

So it will still be Halloween tomorrow.

And the next day...

And the....

Mickey is Ready for Halloween: Disneyland 2011

I enjoyed this, but count how many times he says "Pretty Cool!"

Will someone please buy this nice young man a thesaurus?

Just kidding.

I appreciate his posting this.

Isn't "World of Color" awesome?

It's amazing that just using jets of water you can get something so hypnotic. I think that (using colorful lights on jets of water) first became popular in France, in the first half of the twentieth century. But of course theirs wasn't as advanced as this.

His Buzz Lightyear hoodie is cute. I'm afraid to ask what that cost. Forty? More?

God, doesn't the whole world love Johnny Depp to death?

Do you hear the way the crowd responds every time he appears?

And he's the only one they respond to like that.

Well, the other "people" are cartoon characters.

Tru dat.

I betcha Tim Burton got to check out that ride which is a tribute to him all by himself, either before the park opened or after it closed.

What's Halloween Without a Theremin?

Timo Maas featuring Kelis. This one supposedly took that sample from The Day the Earth Stood Still.



Love 'em.

"Trick or Treat"...Have a...SLUTTY? Halloween!!

Any holiday can be turned into a slutty rap song.

And aren't you happy about that?

So terrible it's actually good.

Getting Close to the Day

So why not enjoy the new King?

American Horror Story (FX)

Just when you get pissed off at Netflix and cancel, it turns out not to matter anyway.

Because right now television is brimming with good shows.

Which last happened....oh, I can't even remember.

I just enjoyed the teaser of an opener for Once Upon a Time (only one hour--really?).

This new synthesis of beloved fairy tales (and some Disney characters--WTF?) was enjoyable but it looked like television.

And Robert Carlyle went more than a little bit over the top with his role. I kind of wanted Begbie back.

But what did not look like television was FX's new series American Horror Story.

This is an amazingly good (and frightening!) addition to the haunted house of horrors genre.

It really looks like film and it's impeccably designed.

I've never seen so many nods to the Vienna Secessionists by the show's designers. Right down to the font of the credits.

Everything Brian Falchuk (one of the most important designing minds behind Glee) touches turns to gold.

And this is no exception.

What Glee did for the musical sitcom (an erstwhile joke: think Bochco's botched job with Cop Rock) An American Horror Story does for the Gothic serial--you have to think way back to something like Dark Shadows to find something which generated the sort of ravenous fanbase this show is sure to attract.

Jessica Lange is perhaps following in the Hollywood tradition of "too young to be beautiful, perfect for the evil crazy crone!" But she's clearly relishing it every bit as much as Bette Davis did when it was her time to be put out to the horror film pasture and take up crazy as the new vocation.

When you have guest appearances of the calibre of Frances Conroy, you know you got a show that's smokin.

Dylan McDermott is still very hot. Well his body is. His face looks remarkably free of plastic surgery (hence unnatural in Hollywood terms). His Siberian blue eyes will probably never lose their appeal. But I'm thinking an agent has had to have prodded him by now with scary words like "facial lipodystrophy." Because the pecs and body tone seem at war with the actor's facial sunkenness. I act as though this offends me, which is ridiculous. We are just seeing the real aging of a natural body--which is of course Verboten according to the telegenic mandate. He must be very strong-willed. That he's not gone that direction. And he's got a great job here, so kudos.

He's a great actor. His performance in Almereyda's Twister is still my favorite by far.

I won't try to describe the show.

Just check it out. If you liked The Shining, and if you're a fan of the haunted house of horrors genre, you'll love it.

But bring a strong stomach.

There's a strong component of interpersonal violence (not just committed by the ax murderers but often the good guys) and the psychological complexity of the situations crafted is nearly at that Hitchcock level. The show is interested in exploring the concept of moral queasiness, which is almost a completely alien concept to the medium in which it's taking place.

It's much nastier than anything that will appear on the major networks. In fact, it really rivals the best stuff premium cable can offer, series-wise.

This thing is so gonna have a cult following after it's done.

Skull Ice Cream Mold (E. & Co., NY, 1910)

"OLD PEWTER E&CO 1010 HALLOWEEN SKULL ICE CREAM MOLD.

A RARE OLD MOLD BUT THE BACK BOTTOM PART OF MOLD IS BROKEN AND MISSING.

IT STANDS APPROX. 3"TALL AND 2 1/4" WIDE NOT COUNTING THE HINGE PART."

"Dear Ola..."

Mabel sent this cute Halloween postcard to Ola sometime in the early 20th century.

The postmark date was too smudged for my eye to glean (thinking maybe it's 1904 or 1914?).

What a different age we hear in that last line, "Why don't you write sometime?"

If she had been born a century later, she could have hunted Ola down on FACEBOOK and forced her attention.

But living in the time she did, Mabel could have been writing to someone who had been dead for six months without having a clue.

Salem Witch Plate by Daniel Low & Co. (Salem, MA., circa 1903-1914)

"Antique Salem Witch plate designed by Daniel Low & Co. of Salem, Mass. and made by Frank Beardmore & Co. of Fenton, England. This information is printed on the back of the plate. The Beardmore Company was in business in Fenton, England from 1903 to 1914, so the plate was made in that time period. The plate is in excellent condition with only general crazing and one tiny underglaze chip. Since the chip is under the glaze it happened in the making of the plate. The plate measures 7 3/4" across. The border is cat heads and crossed brooms."

Recognizing a "Real Witch"

This appears to be from the movie adapted from Dahl's book The Witches.

But I did notice a few slight changes in things the Norwegian Grandmother said in the book.

Poem from Roald Dahl's The Witches (1983)

This is the poem intoned by the Grand High Witch at the annual convocation of the English (pronounced "Inklish" by the probably German Grand High Witch) witches in Roald Dahl's 1983 masterpiece.

This one is a delightful read (whether you're a child or an adult) and a very, very funny book.

It very deservedly won the Whitbread Award.

It's one of the most consistently "challenged" books in America--books challenged by those with small minds and even smaller imaginations (I believe it ranked somewhere around 22 on that list).

Roald Dahl was a marvelous writer. I'm not quite sure he was always a wonderful human being. But I guess we're talking two different grocery carts.

I think Dahl had "issues." I guess I'm basing that largely on the anti-Semitic quotes attributed to him. But he did have Jewish friends, and they ended up being apologists for him, so who knows?

The is the poem in which the Grand High Witch reveals her fiendish plot to turn all the children of "Inkland" into mice.

Down with children! Do them in!
Boil their bones and fry their skin!
Bish them, sqvish them, bash them, mash them!
Brrreak them, shake them, slash them, smash them!
Offer chocs with magic powder!
Say "Eat up" then say it louder.
Crrram them full of sticky eats,
Send them home still guzzling sveets.
And in the morning little fools,
Go marching off to separate schools.
A girl feels sick and goes all pale.
She yells:"Hey look! I've grown a tail!"
A boy who's standing next to her
Screams, "Help I think I'm grrrowing fur!"
Another shouts, "Ve look like frrreaks!
There's viskers growing on our cheeks!"
A boy who vos extremely tall
Cries out: "Vot's wrong? I'm grrrowing small!"
Four tiny legs begin to sprrrout
From everybody rrround about.
And all at once, all in a trice,
There are no children! Only MICE!

In every school is mice galore
All rrrunning rrround the school-rrroom floor!
And all the poor demented teachers
Is yelling, "Hey, who are these crrreatures?"
They stand upon desks and shout,
"Get out, you filthy mice! Get out!
Will someone fetch the mouse-trrraps, please!
And don't forrrget to bring the cheese!"
Now mouse trrraps come and every trrrap
goes snippy-snip and snappy-snap.
The mouse-trrraps have a powerful spring,
The springs go crack and snap and ping!

Is a lovely noise for us to hear!
Is music to a witch's ear!
Dead mice is every place arrround,
Piled two feet deep upon the grrround,
Vith teachers searching left and rrright,
But not a single child in sight!
The teachers cry, "Vot's going on?
Oh vhere have all the children gone?
Is half-past nine and as a rrrule,
They're never late as this for school!"
Poor teachers don't know vot to do.
Some sit and rrread and just a few,
Amuse themselves throughout the day
By sveeping all the mice avay.
AND ALL US WITCHES SHOUT HOORAY!

La Llorona at Universal Studios, Hollywood

The haunting figure from Mexican folklore has crossed over to Universal Studios.

I don't think she's really made it big in American movies, has she?

I knew her mostly from Spanish language poems and stories.

She's sort of an archetypal figure...the woman who lost her baby or babies and now has come to steal yours.

Scary, because this sometimes matches up with true crime kidnappings.

But this Mater Dolorosa is mostly apparition...or worse.

I think she can be connected as well to the witch or fairy type figures who steal children...the whole changeling motif.

Even Stephen King tackled that one in his one novel.

I was so surprised when I realized that all the horror taking place in his one book was about a fey's almost innocent desire for a human changeling.

Halloween Drinky-Poos

Wee Witch Ewer (Occupied Japan)

"Marked "Made In Occupied Japan," this beauty has fine craftmanship and detail. The figure is a witch on the handle of a small ewer, pitcher done in a spooky green with white interior. Beautiful condition! The only issue is crazing, if you want to call that an issue. I call it aging gracefully. There are no chips or cracks. 4" across by 4" tall."

Atomic Space Age Halloween-Orange Table Lamp (Eames-Era)

"Atomic Space Age Halloween Orange Table Lamp Retro Vintage Eames Era 10" Tall 6" across works with a standard light bulb--the 1st picture is of it lighted up."

Okay, this item only suggests Halloween but it was so chic I had to add it.

Plus, it would work great in a Halloween-themed table decoration.

It seems to nostagliacally recall fifties/sixties obsessions...like fondue and space travel---Sputnik?!

Witch "Roller Lamp" (Circa 1950)

"A NICE MID-CENTURY WALL PAPER ROLLER IN VERY NICE VINTAGE CONDITION. THE LAMP STANDS 35 INCHES FROM THE BASE TO THE TOP. THE WITCH MEASURES 13 INCHES TALL AND ABOUT 7 INCHES WIDE AND IS THE CENTER POINT OF THE LAMP. ALL THE BRASS SEEMS TO BE THERE NOTHING MISSING IT IS READY FOR YOUR OWN SHADE."

I wonder if the model for these things is the birch lamp?

The birch lamp is of course asymmetrical, but the colors and general shape and the faux-carving here make me think of the birch lamp.

If so, would that design influence come ouf of Appalachia...or from Appalachia via Europe?

Pumpkin Head Witch Candy Container (Papier-Mache, Germany)

"ITEM DESCRIPTION: VERY NICE Antique German Halloween Pumpkin Head Witch Candy Container, Papier Mache. This is a fantastic Original Antique German Halloween Candy Container. We pulled this out of the attic of an estate (same estate as pumpkin we sold last week), it is guaranteed to be old and original. The head lifts off and would hold candy. The bottom is marked Germany."

Vintage American Diecuts

"EACH MEASURES APPROXIMATELY 8 1/4 X 9 1/4 INCHES."

Marked "U.S.A."

Seem to be from the same maker, part of a set...

"The Bettie Page of the Dark World"

Hey, that's a good moniker for Ms. Elivira!

Love her.

Dude caught up with her at Wonder Con 2011.

Favorite Elvira response (to question how she became the "Queen of Halloween.") "Well, I schlepped my pumpkins around..."

Homemade Paper Skulls

Very chic. Very Mexican. Very Frida Kahlo!

If you can bear to part with these, put these on EBAY or ETSY and you will make a small fortune!

Hey! Did I see an undead Nacho Libre dude or two in there? LOL.

Oingo Boingo

I think this song has joined the "Halloween Canon" by now.

I mean the songs you can expect to hear on the radiowaves every year around Halloween time.

Radio plays this tune other times of the year as well, but I'm guessing it spikes in October.

Cats Being Oh-So-Patient with their Hoomins

Scary how perfectly that kitteh adopts to that Debbil kostyum!!

Love the change of music with each piece.

Love the kitteh hatred/vow of vengeance masquerading as tolerance.

Howdini Halloween Cookie Ideas/Recipes

Martha and Mizrahi

Martha and I.M. chillax and watch cute Halloween pets.

Not sure what year this was.

Enjoy it before whatever mogul movie empire finds it on YouTube and yanks it or deactivates the sound.

Some Unusual Jack-O'-Lanterns...

There's some serious overlap in these videos (same celebrated JOL's) but since they all seem to have at least a few the others do not, figured it was okay.

If you really wanna get overloaded just start all the videos at once.

That's what I usually do lol.

Grab your aspirin if so.

Some Edward Gorey Animations/Readings

I'm a huge Goreyphile.

Here are some wonderful clips where gifted animators or readers brought their hands and voices to bear upon various books of his.

About the occasional name changes--Gorey had many pseudonyms, many of them anagrams of his own name.















And "The Doubtful Guest" inspires a song...

Old Time Spirit/Seance Photography

Aren't these photos great?

Love a bunch of these!

Much better than the contemporary ones.

More Spooks

Favorite line: "Notice you can see the feet on the ghost."

LOL.

"Best Ghost Videos (2011)"

One of those YouTube complilation videos of ghosts.

I'm embarrassed to admit I didn't even see the Monk Ghost. Not even in the slower version.

This seems to be a new genre on YouTube...sort of Where's Waldo for ghosts.

The videos are always played at normal speed, where you will usually (but not always) miss the "ghost."

Then the slow-down reveals the spectre.

I guess the idea of this visual meme is that ghosts are all around us, but that we miss them because of the speed at which we live life.

Sort of poetic.

In a weird way.

Some Casey Love Masks (Many Allegorical)

These are expensive!

Sort of movie special f/x quality though, huh?

Well, the one is a prop mask from Dawn of the Dead.

My favorite comment on this video was "Dude, how do you sleep at night?"

LOL.

Aqua's "Halloween"

They manage to get many of the horror movie cliches in the song.

This is the funny Euro-group that gave us "Barbie Girl."

This song is more than a few seasons old, but I'm sure it gets revived every October.



Another version.



And another interpretation.

Novelist Anne Rice Has an Amazing (Spooky) Doll Collection

This is from her website.

She shares some dolls from her amazing collection with you.

Many of these are clearly museum-pieces.

"Wonderful Witches" -- Christopher Yamsek

I liked this.

I love that he shows the Salem Witch Museum.

Been there, done that.

Love that part of Massachusetts--not just Salem.

Marblehead's beach.

Hawthorniana.

It's a beautiful part of the country.

Well, I haven't been there in winter lol.

Maybe I'd change my opinion with that weather.

Halloween's History

Decorating with Antiques, Halloween Style

Photo of Costumed Child from Burr McIntosh Monthly (1909)

"1909 MAGAZINE OF ART IT CAME OUT WITH STRING BINDING SO YOU COULD FRAME ALL THE ART INSIDE--THIS HAS SOME WONDERFUL PICTURES--ITS IN GOOD SHAPE FOR AGE INSIDE VERY GOOD, GREAT PICTURE OF LITTLE GIRL DRESSED FOR HALLOWEEN--EACH PAGE IS 7 BY 11 INCHES."

This is indeed a magical photo.

Some of the photos show other things in the same issue of this magazine, a journal dedicated to "Art Studies."

Love the woman in snow also.

This looks like a really great magazine to collect.

Uh Oh, Looks Like That Pumpkin is Gonna Asplode!! 1909 Postcard (Postmarked Oct. 28, 1909, Iowa City)

"This is a great Halloween postcard featuring a bat with his wings spread open and a pumpkin with lit candles coming out his ears. The card also has a saying on the front. The card has been postmarked and signed on the back. The condition is good with some edge wear, see picture. The card is 5 1/2 " by 3 1/2."

Oh those are just candles?

I thought maybe they were explosives.

Great trompe l'oeil dimensionality to fool the eye here! Love it!

Halloween Cat Lamp (Germany, circa 1925)

"8 inch tall ceramic orange cat on black base which I think is a witch's hat.

The base is 4 inches across at the bottom. I believe it is hand-painted. (just look at the eyes)

Inside the base is printed "Germany"

There is a number on the back of the base that appears to be 5642

There is a loosely attached bulb inside, which looks like it has been spliced onto a newer cord(although not new) at some point the cord was replaced. However, the lamp does work.

There is a small chip in the left ear(see picture) but that is the only damage I can see. Otherwise it appears to be in perfect condition.

Recently bought at a barn sale where the older lady told me her mother received this cat as a wedding present in 1925.

Antique Halloween Witchcraft "Favor Set" (circa 1925)

Halloween Favor Set - witchcraft. This was in my dad's stuff, so I am assuming it is from the early 1920's. It is in the original box. The box and its graphics are in good condition, but both ends are missing.

This set includes a a tripod with a kettle that hangs from it. A devil, owl and kettle are also included. Missing is a cat. The tripod is wood and the other items are metal. The kettle is 1/2" tall. The owl is 7/8 inches and the devil is a little over an inch.

Need a favor done bad?

Just ask the Devil.

Well, the cat has gone off on his own, so you might be S.O.L. when you go to cast your spells.

Probably he's working as some witch's familiar.

This looks like the sort of thing that jumpstarts a Stephen King novel.