Coming up with funny Halloween
costume ideas can be tricky. Butcostume ideas abound if you think about culture. Your own culture, pop culture, or the cosmopolitan spot you happen to be living in at the moment, offer great costume ideas.
While Halloween comes mostly from Celtic origin, people in North America have taken the celebration - in particular the costume party - to new heights. Over 60 percent of Americans decorate their homes in October, too.
Americans love to dress up as television or movie characters. For example, you will likely see renditions of Johnny Depp's Jack Sparrow for a few years to come, given the popularity of the Pirates of the Caribbean movie series. A coupe of years back, my nephew dressed up as the Joker from the Dark Knight movie. His outfit had an eery combination of humor and evil. Quite creepy it was, and perfect for the October occasion.
When I lived in Japan, culture popped out at me on Halloween.I saw strange masks and costumes I couldn't figure out.That first year, I learned a lot about Japanese mythology just from partying in Tokyo. I discovered, too, that culture can play a strong role in how different people relate to funny Halloween costume ideas.
One of my earliest memories has to do with the story Pinocchio. My mother read me the original version of the tale--which is a lot scarier than the Disney version. In one scene, Pinocchio gets tired of the cricket's constant lectures. So he takes a big wooden mallet and smashes the cricket against the wall. Later, Pinocchio falls asleep with his feet on the wood-burning stove and burns both his feet off!
Thanks to Pinocchio, I always liked the idea of a wooden puppet coming to life. And so I eventually invented Slappy and wrote three Night of the Living Dummy books for the Goosebumps series.
Manufacturers and retailers predict that this year's top costumes will be inspired by the same Hollywood characters that dominated the big and small screens.
The National Retail Federation picks princesses and pirates, often of the Disney variety, and Spider-Man to be the top children's costumes of the year, while Yahoo! Shopping adds "Star Wars," "Hannah Montana" and "High School Musical" as favorites with trick-or-treaters.
"Sometimes I feel I'm either on Wall Street or a movie mogul, I pay such attention to the box office," says Mary Ellen Turner, Party City's divisional vice president of seasonal departments -- aka the company's "queen of Halloween."
At Party City, "Transformers" and "Hannah Montana" costumes are on top, while Amazon.com's Halloween store suggests "Harry Potter," "Shrek" and "High School Musical."
And it's not just movies -- the big names in toys are another source of costume inspiration. Barbie-themed costumes are consistent performers, and Transformers were in toy chests before they stormed the movie industry, notes Mark Randall, vice president of toys and baby for Amazon.com. Randall will be looking at the fall '08 toys next week for inspiration for next year's costumes.
"A licensed character is a powerful engine, whether it starts with a DVD, a Saturday morning cartoon, a network or a book like 'Narnia' or 'Harry Potter,"' agrees Turner. "They're such powerful influencers for children and, quite frankly, adults, too."
As you might expect, Halloween was my favorite holiday when I was a kid. I always wanted to be something really scary. A ghost. A mummy. A--duck? One year, my mother bought me a duck suit. Other kids thought it was pretty funny, but I didn't think it was funny at all. When I wrote The Haunted Mask for Goosebumps, I remembered that duck costume and how embarrassing it was. And so I gave Carly Beth, the girl in the book, a duck costume, too.
The idea for the Goosebumps book Stay Out of the Basement all started with a crazy picture that flashed into my mind. I imagined a father taking off his baseball cap. Leaves were growing on his head instead of hair. How did the leaves get there? Who is the father? Is he turning into a plant? Is he ALREADY a plant?
The Avengers – Although "Avenger" themed costumes will be sported mostly on an individual level, it would make for an excellent group costume theme. This would a perfect time for the costumes, as "The Avengers" film is due out next May. Those who choose these costumes would be ahead of the game in previewing a major attraction for next summer. "The Avengers" combination is also great because no one has to fight much over who gets to be whom since every character is equally awesome. Thor and Captain America will be especially popular alone after their hit films from this summer, coupled with Iron Man, the Hulk, Black Widow, Nick Fury and Hawkeye. The villain Loki could also be incorporated, as well as other "Avengers" that did not make it into the film for legal reasons. If the group is too big for these names given, Spiderman and a couple X-Men could be seamlessly included for a superhero filled night.
The Dark Knight Rises – This group costume theme would again be a preview of a major film release coming out next summer. It would be great to base costumes off the upcoming film this Halloween to beat the crowd that will inevitably be around next Halloween after the film is released. Batman is obviously the titular character from the movie and is always a favorite, but newcomers Catwoman and Bane would be fun costumes to incorporate. For those who want to avoid looking at spoilerish pictures online, Warner Brothers have released official photos of Anne Hathaway's Catwoman and Tom Hardy's Bane. Just like "The Avengers," several other Batman characters could be added to the group that will not be appearing in this film. The Joker and Two-Face from "The Dark Knight" would still serve as great costumes, as well as the Scarecrow from "Batman Begins."
The Walking Dead – AMC's television series begs to be used as a group-themed costume. The zombies are obviously a major attraction, as many members of the group could all share this role. Group members could have a ton of fun creating differing and horrifying zombie makeup and clothing. Additionally, Rick's sheriff costume would stand out and juxtapose well with the zombies. The characters of Shane, Dale, Glenn and Daryl could be included, even though they are slightly less exciting than Rick's outfit. They would still be fun and something different.
Eastbound and Down – Kenny Powers has been a popular costume since "Eastbound and Down" premiered in 2009. With the mullet being the key contribution to the outfit, any other combination of Kenny's various attires could be used. His multiple baseball uniforms and all black attire would be the best options. Additionally, the characters Stevie Janowski and Ashley Schaeffer would be fun costumes to create, though Stevie would be a little challenging, with his hard to imitate hairstyle being the only main feature. The costume would be more in the performance, as his voice is easy to imitate and his dialogue is hilarious. Ashley Schaeffer – played by Will Ferrell – sports flowing white hair and cheap, outrageous suits. This themed group would be perfect for a group of three guys.
