Make your own costumes this Halloween.
Halloween has gone through many changes over the years. It began as a Celtic end-of-summer festival called "Samuin," a time when it was believed that the fabric which separates the world of the living from that of the dead became especially thin. The night before Samuin became a frightening time, when the angry dead would visit harm upon those who had hurt them in life. The only solution was to disguise oneself and stay close to a roaring bonfire so as not to get snatched up in the darkness. How we got from there to store-bought Power Ranger costumes is anyone's guess, but you can still put together a Halloween costume sure to make an impression. Does this Spark an idea?
The Wheel of Random
A good Halloween costume tells a story, and the more interesting that story is, the more inherently interesting your costume will be. If you can't come up with a good story off the top of your head, then try a little device that writers call "The Wheel of Random." Pick 10 random adjectives (for example, fat, pretty, anal-retentive, stricken with Tourette's syndrome), 10 people or animals (for example, a monkey, the president, a lawyer, a moose), 10 terrifying events (for example, plague, zombification, becoming a vampire, turning into werewolf, experiencing a tax audit, getting a divorce) and 10 locations (for example, Baton Rouge, Atlanta, Phoenix, Bangkok, the moon), write them on sticky pads and tack them to a dartboard. Keep throwing pointy things at them until you wind up going to your next party as an anorexic, Taiwanese fish-monster gynecologist with a lazy eye and a Corvette.
Movie/TV Characters
You tread a fine line when you start choosing costume ideas from pop culture. On the one hand, you need to avoid cliches such as musclebound cyborgs, recent movie superheroes, Paris/Lohan/Spears and any vampire from any movie released in the last five years. You know who you are. On the other hand, your character needs to be instantly recognizable. Go way back if you're reaching into pop culture; look at the TV shows, movies, music and news stories of decades gone by and choose someone that even your half-blind recluse of an uncle would recognize. Look at TV shows such as CHiPs, and Fantasy Island, movies such as Shaft and Scarface (or Dog Day Afternoon if you're feeling obscure) and anything Cheech and Chong.
Monsters
Monsters are always a popular choice for Halloween, but don't go as just any generic monster. Be someone specific. Don't be a vampire --- be Lestat de Lioncourt or Louis from Interview with the Vampire, Dracula from Bram Stoker's Dracula, D from Vampire Hunter D or Kiefer Sutherland from The Lost Boys. Don't just be any old werewolf --- be Lucious from Underworld, David Kessler from American Werewolf in London or even Ben Talbot from The Wolfman. Don't forget about some of the more obscure monsters, such as the fallen angel Gabriel (Christopher Walken) from The Prophecy, the creepy Tall Man from Phantasm and, of course, Pumpkinhead. Some of these may require a serious investment in makeup and wardrobe, but you have another 364 days to pay off the credit card.
Political Figures and Pundits
Love them or hate them, political figures and pundits are easy fodder for Halloween fun. These costumes at the very least require the particular figure's signature piece of wardrobe. A tie, a blazer, an ascot, a short skirt and glasses, a $400 hair cut or an Air Force flight suit --- use your imagination. The only caveat here is that you need to look at least a little bit like the person to prosecute a plausible impression of them after some hair dye and makeup. Don't try to pull off Anderson Cooper if you're built like Rush Limbaugh, or Ann Coulter if you've got John Stewart's cheekbones. Don't forget the eye drops for that "I sincerely care" look, or the tooth whitener for your "I'm just a regular guy" grin.
Tags: Dracula from, story more, time when, Wheel Random
