Halloween bigger deal back in the day?

Discussion of general Halloween topics
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JACKRYAN592
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Post by JACKRYAN592 » Sun Aug 19, 2007 11:20 pm

I am 50 years old, and I have to admit, Halloween is bigger, because it has become much more commercialized, just like Christmas.
But to us old time Halloweener's, it just isn't the same. We cherished Halloween in our hearts, long before all the commercializtion began.
Local municipalities have wrecked treat or treating with all the curfews.
We loved going out with our dime store costumes and home made throw togethers. We filled our pillow cases with goodies until the bottoms literally broke open. But not because of greed, we just wanted to participate in the ritual as long as we could.

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Post by Halloween Freek » Mon Aug 20, 2007 1:18 pm

Bigger hands down.

Last year was perfect, 75 Degrees, which in NY is unbelievable for this time of year. The town even had fireworks! Purple fireworks and other nice explosions in the sky so to say. So come 11 o clock at nite, the fireworks began, and ended at 11:30. Trully wonderfull

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mandy0221
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Post by mandy0221 » Mon Aug 20, 2007 7:10 pm

Ok well perhaps I am going to be the odd one out but I think the Holiday itself has changed and not really for the better. Let me try to explain...

I agree the decorations, costumes, haunted houses, cornfields etc have all grown to much better then years past. But the celebration of October 31st, the actual day of Halloween where children dress up and trick-or-treat around the neighborhood is not what it used to be (at least not here in KY). There used to be halloween parties in school and then hundreds of kids would go to houses collecting candy. Now there are fall festivals and a lot of parents opt for the safer TOT at the zoo, museum or mall. I remember when I was a kid there would be between 100 to 200 kids come to the door. Now, last year we topped out at maybe 10 to 20 kids.

I am hoping for a revival of trick or treating!!!!
"Drink up me 'earties Yo Ho. Yo Ho Yo Ho a pirates life for me!"

One Eye'd Jack

Post by One Eye'd Jack » Mon Aug 20, 2007 11:19 pm

I agree with mandy. :(

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Post by tomanderson » Tue Aug 21, 2007 10:01 am

I do, too, in many ways. I love all the stuff you can buy...there is a lot of it and a lot of it is really neat. But I don't get a sense that the holiday is "anticipated" the same way. Way back when, I thought of it as an all-day, all-acceptable day, at home and at school it was all monsters, vampires and witches. The week or two previous was fun too, you might go shopping for a pumpkin at the local pumpkin patch or splurge on a cardboard decoration or two, or if decorations were not in budget you could grab some paper and crayons and make your own. If you saw the 12" rubber skeleton I bought in 1975 you would squeak with delight, they don't make natural rubber skeletons like this anymore.

From my vantage point, I saw Halloween all through the 70's, and it was fun all day and into the evening. Those memories of dressing up and going all around the DARK neighborhood, to all these dark houses with lit jack o'lanterns to get the wits scared out of ya (in a friendly way) are precious indeed.

One Eye'd Jack

Post by One Eye'd Jack » Wed Aug 22, 2007 2:07 am

Hehehe.... That's gunna be my new thing... whenever I see something 'old school' and/or unappreciated, I'm gunna say, "Boy! They don't make rubber skeletons like THAT, anymore!"

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mandy0221
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Post by mandy0221 » Wed Aug 22, 2007 7:48 pm

OEJ - HOW FUNNY!!! That will be sure to turn a few heads - or ears (hmmm) :lol:
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Post by Cadaverino » Wed Aug 22, 2007 8:31 pm

tomanderson wrote:But I don't get a sense that the holiday is "anticipated" the same way. Way back when, I thought of it as an all-day, all-acceptable day, at home and at school it was all monsters, vampires and witches.
:?:
I'm not getting what you mean by "an all-day, all-acceptable day", nor how the holiday was anticipated then vs. how it is anticipated now.

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Post by tomanderson » Wed Aug 22, 2007 9:30 pm

Well, you might say that I feel the day is less "believed in" today, and is more considered a "designated day for certain frivolities." I recall that there was an almost tangible reality to the mysterious atmosphere of Halloween, and that participation in the frivolities was a sort of a ritual that allowed people to immerse themselves in the "belief."

In the film "Halloween" (1978) there is an exchange between Tommy Doyle's character and some small-fry bullies at the elementary school. They're trying to scare him with talk of ghosts and witches...

BULLIES. Don't you know what happens on Halloween??

TOMMY. Yeah, we get candy!

Although he's being defensive, Tommy's line, in a way, describes how I think the holiday is perceived by most people today--as a fun, commercialized routine, not really a celebration of spirituality or of the unleashed id.


As some people have noted, too, the generous observance of the holiday in elementary school no longer takes place...now, for me, when I was a kid, this was the kicker--not only could you go to school in some kind of crazy costume, but most of the school day went to Halloween festivities.

It almost (almost!) makes me want to be back in school again...

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