Midnight in the Garden of Evil

Dracula's Christmas

2011-12-20T23:10:00.000-08:00

Image: Gahan Wilson for Playboy

Steampunk Exhibit and Wicked

2011-12-19T17:26:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we attended the Steampunk exhibit at Muzeo, a small museum in a re-purposed old (1908 through 1987) library in Anaheim, CA.

You know a place is cool when there is a labyrinth outside it. This one has an monument honoring soldiers at the center. Low waterfalls near the benches were not operating, but it is easy to imagine how serene it must be.

Inside, there was a room that was dedicated to the influences of Steampunk, including Jules Verne, Edgar Allen Poe, Nickola Tesla, and Mary Shelly. Each had their likeness displayed in a frame with a bit about their work. Here is Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and the code he used in his popular Sherlock Holmes story "The Case of the Dancing Men", though mainly it is his Professor Challenger tales that were Steampunk influences.

There were few costumes in the exhibit, and some headgear.

A very large hand-painted canvas poster took up almost one wall.

Disney movies were mentioned several times. 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea, and Time After Time were two that I can recall.

The re-imagined weaponrs were beautiful with their filigree bits.

There was a collection of canes made by various artists. We chatted with Pete Ramirez, the creator of the Gun Lighter Cane. He said creating art like this with found objects was just an extension of his jewelry designing, which he had been doing for 15 years.

Other canes included the Doc Holliday Nut Cracker cane, the Tesla Plasma cane, Samurai Grip Handle cane, Faucet cane, Cylinder cane, and the (Citizen) Cane Time Extractor.

There was also an exhibit of Victorian art in the adjacent building, all of it on loan from a couple who must be extremely wealthy. I didn't want to aim my camera at any of the many old and delicate oil paintings, but they were beautiful, as were their frames, and several were life-size.

The same couple also collected Victorian personal effects, such as these imaginative match cases in all manner of shapes: heads, moons, animals... They were often humorous, and at the time, were considered a conversation-starter.

The same couple also loaned their collection of 75 Victorian walking canes, like this double-skull one (they were displayed sideways.)

The cane in this case with the bulky part on the left is made of a real human femur bone.

We also went to see Wicked, the musical, playing at the gorgeous Pantages Theater in Hollywood.

The Pantages is my favorite theater. If you ever come out to visit Hollywood, I highly recommend including this theater as part of your experience. Look at that ceiling, will you? It takes my breath away every time.

photo: Don Solosan

This is my second time seeing Wicked. I swear they must tell the actresses playing Glinda to channel Kristen Chenowith, who did play this role once. They all sound exactly like her. But then, the actor playing the Wizard of OZ this time seemed to be channeling Jimmy Stewart, and the actress playing Elphelba, the lead character who happens to be green, had the voice of Sarah Jessica Parker- which wouldn't be poor casting, either.

The set for Wicked is rather Steampunk, by the way, with lots of clock gears almost always in view as a major part of the scenery. Here's Glinda and some clockwork.

And guess what else is nearby?

Ignore the cleavage!

We also recently saw Martin Scorsese's movie "Hugo", which also was full of old clockwork.

LOVED that movie. Right now, I am betting (and hoping) it sweeps the Academy Awards. Go, Hugo!

Halloween Hair

2011-12-07T02:46:00.000-08:00

Saw this at Knott's Scary Farm a few months ago, and loved it.

Dog Chasing Skeleton

2011-11-08T14:45:00.000-08:00

Well, Halloween 2011 is over and it's time to start thinking about that next major holiday: Halloween 2012.

My mom's friend sent her the above photo of an amusing display at a house along her commute. Aquick search revealed the pattern for the dog chasing a skeleton at the Winfield Collection (the link is here.)

They have several good choices for easy designs from plywood. Here are two more:

photo:winfieldcollection.com

New Skeletons

2011-10-27T20:08:00.000-07:00

photo: Better Homes and Gardens

We were rather entranced by this standing skeleton in the 2011 Better Homes and Gardens special Halloween Tricks and Treats edition of their magazine, and were further intruiged when we saw how light and poseable it was. We also liked that this is a realistic-looking skeleton, and that it is of a thick, durable plastic.

photo: Better Homes and Gardens

The magazine did not have a source for the skeletons but our friend Doktor Calamari was also searching for them and told us it was at a seasonal store, Halloween City, a division of the year-round Party City. we visited thier website to find locations and found a 20% off coupon, which we printed out. This brought the price of each skeleton down to $56 plus tax.

This is the first year we have seen these skeletons, and since they were hard to find and sold out quickly, this post is dedicated to them, in the hope that it helps other people who have seen the skeletons in the magazine and are also trying to track them down.

These 63-inch tall skeletons with eyes also have a small button on the head that activates flashing blue and green colored lights and some sound effects, which we were ambivalent about. I doubt that I'd ever need to push that button again, and really, I'd be fine if the skeleton came without the eyeballs. But because the eyes light up red, removing the eyeballs would reveal a hole where the electronics go (and also leave some giant eye sockets) so I guess my skeletons will have eyes for the time being.

Another good feature is that the entire skeleton glows in the dark.

One tiny negative: there is random brown paint on the glow-in-the-dark bones. One of my skeletons got a big dose of the brown paint on one leg and not so much on the other.

The skeleton's stand is very small and unobtrusive. Just some black metal plates, but they do attach to pipes that go up his legs and across his hips. The plates are not easily removed or adjustable. It is surprising how stable he feels on such a small stand.

The only assemply is to attach each thigh bone to it's respective shin bone. The right and left sides are even labeled 'A' and 'B' so it really is simple.

Here's the box:

We're not sure, but we think they are made by Halloween International, because there is a logo on the box that says that:

We also see on the box that they are distributed by Christmas International

To make it a little more complicated, the side of the box says Halloween USA

Something else I really liked about him was that his joints ratchet into place, so he will hold a pose with having to use glue or other means.

The skeleton from Halloween International

2011 was a bumper year for new skeletons on the market. For comparison, here is the above skeleton standing between two other new skeletal offerings:

The $30 Walgreens skeleton is hanging on the left. It has an aged appearnce and is super lightweight, but the plastic is thin and brittle. I returned it to the store, and saw another in the store had his neck torn. Hanging from the right is the $40 Target skeleton, which glows in the dark, is of durable plastic and has ratcheting joints. I like his face and am pretty happy with him, but I do wish that he could stand on his own (the stand is a big feature in my book and worth the $17 price difference). I don't have a photo of it here, but I hung the Target skellie next to an expensive Bucky skeleton from Anatomical Chart Supply, and they look quite alike. I won't be buying any more Bucky skeletons, since there are these inexpensive and realistic options now.

So there you have it, a quick round-up of the new skeletons of 2011.

Halloween Magic at Boney Island

2011-10-24T07:52:00.000-07:00

You may recall my post about the return of Boney Island, one of the most beloved home haunts of all time. Friday night saw the debut of Boney Island's new theme of skeleton magicians performing tricks. The show was a great success with a large turnout, including the press. You would never guess that the plan to put on a new show was hatched only this summer, and that many of the items to build this show were obtained in only the past month or two.

Here's creator Rick Polizzi:

He made posters to highlight each magic act being performed. This poster is for the main event, a water show:
The 10 magic cauldrons shot green glowing water 12 feet into the air, eliciting applause:

The popular fortune teller answered questions and amused the crowd:

Neighbor David, on the right, is the secret voice of the fortune teller

The crowd usually gets deep for the fortune teller

A magician passed a hoop around a levitating skeleton:

Another skeleton levitated a bit too much and other skeletons climbed into a tree to chase him down:

One skeleton held a flashlight while another talented skeleton made shadow puppets with his boney hands, including a bird, a witch, a castle- even the Boney Island skull logo!:

A team of blind-folded knife-throwers aimed at a target:

Of course, to make things more difficult for the knife-throwers, the target had a skeleton in front of it:

Another favorite effect that returned was the spinning web gobo:

Like Houdini, The Man In The Can was a skeleton bound in a strait jacket, and wiggled to escape it while under water in this creepy confine:

Another skeleton magician sawed other skeletons in half...but he made a few errors:

In a window, one skeleton lures a skeleton rabbit out of a top hat by waving his magic wand, and another skeleton assists by bribing with carrots:

The collection of super-sized jack o' lanterns is stunning in itself, but these pumpkins sing to the music by flashing the lights inside them:

Oh yes, the pumpkins are in that crazy 3-story tall treehouse.

That's some - but certainly not all- of Boney Island. The crew did a fantastic job with the new display, and though the carnival theme is gone, I'm glad to report the old Boney Island magic is back.

Skele-Gro

2011-10-10T05:18:00.000-07:00

Whether you are a Harry potter fan or just think this bottle would make a good Halloween prop mixed in with lab equipment, test tubes and potions, there are a few hours left to obtain a Skele-Gro bottle just like mine.

back view

side view


A magnet helps secure the bottle top in place

In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry breaks his arm while playing quidditch. One of his professors, an incompetent named Gilderoy Lockhart, tries to help Harry but ends up removing half of Harry's arm. Harry spends the night in the hospital and is given a dose of Skele-Gro potion from a bottle shaped like this one. Skele-Gro is a medicinal potion that can regrow missing/removed bones, though it tastes terrible and the process is very slow and extremely painful.

This Skele-Gro bottle replica is available from Hotshot, a member of the Replica Prop Forum. He has hand-made a limited number of about 60 of these bottles from foam and clay, and is selling them for $80 each including shipping. This item is for display only; it is solid- not a real bottle- and therefore unable to hold liquids, but it does look great, from all sides! A separate base shaped like skeleton legs (not shown) keeps the top-heavy piece stable and the clay skull bottle-stopper attaches to the bottle magnetically.

A life-size Skele-Gro bottle is not available anywhere else that I have found, so this is indeed a rare opportunity to own one!

The bottle stands about 12.5" tall and is 4" wide.

You must be a member of Replica Prop Forum to purchase one, but registering for the forum is free. The link for this Skele-Gro bottle is here.

Pictures of scared people at a haunted house

2011-10-07T03:45:00.001-07:00

What kind of victim are you? Do you grab the nearest shirt (as I do), do you cry, crouch, jump into someone's arms, or just hide your head?

all photos by Nightmares Fear Factory on Flickr.

Click here to see a set of photos of the hilariously frightened victims at the Nightmares Fear Factory Halloween haunted house in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada.

The Mourners

2011-09-23T21:02:00.000-07:00

This French Pleurant (Weeper) resin statue at Design Toscano reminds me of another exhibit we saw at the Los Angeles Museum of Modern Art. It was called The Mourners: Tomb Sculptures from the Court of Burgundy.

Forty small mourner sculptures from the tomb of John the Fearless, second duke of Burgundy, were on display, in different poses conveying mourning or consoling other mourners, but all dressed similarly. These pieces have been on display in the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Dijon, France for almost 200 years, but are now on tour because that museum is being rennovated.

Most are faceless, and rather eerie. I can imagine full-sized versions of these in a yard on Halloween.

John the Fearless's tomb, including these mourner figures, was completed following his death under the supervision of his son, Philip the Good.
If I were born in that time, I know my name would end with "the Weird."

The walls of the room holding the exhibit told the story.

One wall explained that funerals of that time "were lavish events that included black drapes and canopies, a golden drapery over the coffin, presentation of the insignia of the deceased duke’s power (his banners, weapons, and horses), and candles and music in abundance. Hooded black cloaks were distributed to all the participating laypersons, from the members of the duke’s family on down to pages and grooms, while the members of the secular and regular clergy wore the garments of their station. The carriages and horses were also draped in black....

...Class distinctions, normally expressed through dress, became temporarily suspended, the black of mourning reminding all present that death was an experience shared by everyone. "

These carved figures are obviously all in white, but that's probably because black marble was hard to obtain.

When the property where the tomb was located was sold off as national property in 1792, "the tombs were kept for the nation because of their historical value. The mourners had always been perceived as the tomb’s key attraction, and they were felt to possess a 'correctness' of style and modeling rare for the Gothic period." So forget the dead body- the mourners are the key attraction. That's a bit sad.

For more information on The Mourners, click here.

In another building of the museum, we found sculptures that were FAR less intriguing, other than causing us to wonder how they could have possibly have been deemed credible enough to warrant being placed inside a museum. For example, there was the giant litter box full of clean kitty litter:

Now that is some crappy art. It reminds me of this cartoon:

Then there was this ingenious painting, shown on the wall with its title card:

This 24x18 inch wonder is by Robert Therrien.
No Title (Blue Oval), 1994
Screenprint on spiral-bound acid-free paper and mixed mediums.

I researched it. The artists says: “Blue oval; all is a mirror, a female apogee, my mother. Because of the edges, which recede toward the wall and create a shadow, from a distance it seems to float, and because of the paint, it seems solid or hollow. This shows one aspect of the figure-ground play I’m looking for.”

Really? It just reminds me of a blue dot. And an episode of the 1980's TV show "Bosom Buddies" where Tom Hanks's character, Kip Wilson, sees a painting of a red dot that is highly regarded by art critics, and disgustedly exclaims "It's the flag of Japan!"

Someone is even selling a t-shirt with those immortal words:

The shirt designer and I are probably the only two people on earth that remember that episode :)

This thin glass case looked like there should be a poster in it. There's even a pushpin laying in the case. It looks like the cases in the halls of my old high school. But guess what? It's art. The museum's docent told me it was a work of "deconstructionism."

At least there was this cool, interactive, large piece of art outside:

during the day the noodles gain energy, and they glow in the dark at night.

And as everybody knows, if it glows in the dark, it's good art!

Skull Waterfall

2011-09-15T04:48:00.000-07:00

We saw this skull waterfall on display at the Los Angeles County Fair, and it was instant love! The vendor is The Waterfall Company, based in La Puente, California.

An man standing nearby lends perspective as to the size of the skull

The skull's eye sockets had recessed multicolor LEDs lighting up the water.

LED lights inside an eye socket

There was also a mist-maker to create a fog effect and more multicolor LEDs inside the big basin.

The signs on it indicate that the cost for Skull Falls is $2,999 installed and $500 down would lock in that price.

Just think, you could have something like Skull Rock and the waterfalls in Disneyland's Fantasyland back until the rock's removal in 1982 during a major remodel of the area:

At night, it was lit from within with green lights, and green lights highlighted the foliage in the area.

A similar one now resides in Disneyland Paris with a less dramatic fall of water:

This is Skull Mountain, which has a massive skull waterfall at Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey:

photo by Gary Burke

Try using a skull as part of a grotto near your pool:

photo: Arizonafallslv.com

photo: arizonafallslv.com

Click here to see a bit of how that last skull was made.

I imagine a skull water feature would look just as good near a koi pond, too.

Tim Burton Art Exhibit

2011-09-06T17:24:00.000-07:00

A Sketch of Stain Boy, from Burton’s 1998 children’s poetry book “The Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy and Other Stories.”

A retrospective of Tim Burton's work is currently on exhibit at the Los Angeles County Museum of Modern Art. We went to have a look at the 700 pieces that were on display.

LACMA also has an installation of 202 street lamps out front

A topiary stag from "Edward Scissorhands" greeted us outside the venue, and even if everything about it was plastic- the mulch-mound it stood on, the hedges around it, and the brightly-colored flowers strewn about- it was still exciting as "Edward Scissorhands" is my personal favorite Tim Burton movie.

Yes, please, I'll take that for my private collection. It'd take up half my front yard, but that would be fine.

Honestly though, my bet is that came from Johnny Depp's private collection. He used to have this giant fiberglass rooster in his yard when he lived in L.A. (read it here) and he did loan some items for Burton's exhibit.

photo: Lance Staedler

Also lurking about on the museum grounds near the cafeteria and gift shop was this giant inflatable Balloon Boy, created by Burton just for this exhibit. The press release described it as "a 21-foot-tall, 8-foot-diameter many-eyed creature, an amalgamation of the tragic characters that Burton first introduced in his 1997 book The Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy and Other Stories."

Burton also designed the entrance to this special exhibit. Patrons enter through this giant mouth, which has a red carpet for a tongue and a red-and-black spiral wall inside, which I imagine to represent noise and a vibrating uvula.
My theory could be hooey. I later discovered the entrance to the exhibit while it was in New York looked like this:

Because it was a "special exhibit", separate tickets were required. Even though we had timed-tickets, the line was quite long.
No photography is allowed inside the exhibit, but I didn't hear that until I had snapped a few photos. On the other side of the spiral wall were these dangerous-looking sculptures created for the show based on drawings from Tim's "Creature" series.

The line was slowly shuffling through the first 2 rooms before it opened up into a broader space. Sometimes the line didn't even move, as this first room had a sculpture of Burton's 2009 drawing "Robot Boy" in the corner and many people were fascinated by it.

The next room seemed to take us to the beginning of Burton's tale. The room was called "Surviving Burbank", and there was a chronology on the wall, starting in 1971 at age 13 with an untitled stop-motion short involving cavemen and a live-action short called "Houdini". Below that was a display case with so much paper ephemera from his junior high and high school days in Burbank, California, you had to wonder if someone in the family was a hoarder- who else saves a teenager's hand-written list of 20 or so horror movies on blue-line notebook paper?
Some early samples from that wall:

These pages from "The Giant Zlig", a proposed children's book written and illustrated in 1976 by a 17-year old Tim Burton, were on the walls in that room :

He sent the book to Disney and got a sweetly encouraging rejection letter. He also used some of his Giant Zlig art as an automobile mural for a van-painting contest.

Moving into the large third room called "Beautifying Burbank", we see several free-standing walls with many framed pieces of concept art for unrealized projects, and you can see a progression in technique and persistent themes. Subject matter includes animals and clowns. After graduating from high school, Burton attended the California Institute for the Arts. He continued to make short films and by 1979, Burton became a puppeteer for The Muppet Movie. In 1971 he became an apprentice animator for Walt Disney Pictures "The Fox and the Hound." In 1982, at age 23, he wrote a manuscript for another children's book called "Numbers", and Walt Disney Pictures gave him the green light on his animated short "Vincent", about a boy who idolized Vincent Price. This image from the movie appears on the tickets to the exhibit:

Here's an image of a young Tim Burton with models for "Vincent":

Vincent Price even voiced his animated character. "Vincent" was being screened on a monitor at the museum. It was quite enjoyable, and I'm not surprised to learn it earned several awards.

The large canvas in the center of this wall is an oil painting called "Blue Girl with Wine", from 1997:

A closer look:

Notice that Blue Girl has facial scars similar to Sally from "Nightmare Before Christmas".

I loved the layering in this drawing with an "Unknown" title that has a pet cemetery:

I can admire this artwork of a pet cemetery, but I won't be able to watch his Frankenweenie movie, a remake of his 1984 film about a dog brought back to life, Frankenstein-style, after it is hit by a car. That just hits too close to home for me. Frankenweenie is due out October 2012.

Besides paintings, there were also small sculptural models based on his artwork.

That sure looks like Tim Burton on the left in this small sculpture!

You could clearly see Tim Burton had several different styles of drawing, but the same types of characters and subject matter was recurrent. This room also had two of Burton's very early films playing: the aforementioned "Vincent", and "Hansel and Gretel", a live-action short from 1983 that aired once on the Disney Channel. It is shown playing on the right in this photo:

Tim Trivia: Did you know Tim Burton had cameo acting roles? Here he is in 1992's "Singles":

"Singles" starred Bridget Fonda, who grew up to marry Danny Elfman, Burton's favorite composer for his movies and it was Elfman who provided the music you hear while viewing this exhibit.
(By the way, I have a co-worker named Tim Burton, and he is the exact opposite of this Tim Burton.)

Moving on at the museum, we then passed through a small black-lit transition room that featured a rotating carousel based on one of his drawings:

We enter the final room, called "Beyond Burbank". This covers approximately 1988 to the present, and includes several costume pieces from his films, such as masks and a Catwoman suit from "Batman" and a mannequin dressed in the Edward Scissorhands costume.

The scissor hands were housed in their own showcase:

Burton's hand-written concept for Edward Scissorhands:

Here is the scarecrow from "Sleepy Hollow":

When the exhibit was in Melbourne, they promoted it with a headless horseman in a carriage on the streets!

photo by Dhani

The next room held only these air-blown figures that whipped around:

And just like at Disneyland, the ride dumped you out in a store filled with Tim Burton merchandise, such as Alice in Wonderland items and various books.

The Tim Burton exhibit runs until Halloween 2011, and related events include a costume party, matinee showings of Burton's movies, and a Price-a-thon film series. More pictures at the museum's website.

Cauldron Punchbowl

2011-09-01T00:30:00.000-07:00

I really like it when my holiday decorations are also practical objects, like this tabletop cauldron from Victorian Trading Company.

It's 11" and made of ceramic. They refer to it as a punchbowl with ladle, but I think I'll use mine to serve mashed potatoes or chili. I might even add a wire handle to mine using some #9 wire from the hardware store. The total cost for this cauldron with ladle and lid, including shipping, was $46.90. To get yours, click here. To see thumbnail-sized photos of all 349 Victorian Trading Company Halloween offerings, click here.

Boney Island Returns!

2011-08-27T13:22:00.000-07:00

This is Rick:

This is Rick's Emmy award:

Rick got the Emmy for being a producer on The Simpsons:

But for 10 years, at Halloween, Rick was also the creator of Boney Island, an amusement park filled with over 100(!) plastic skeletons doing silly things in his front yard, like batting at bats in a batting cage:

Or getting their caricatures drawn by another skeleton (of course, every skull looks exactly like the next one):

Or getting duped into being shot out of a cannon, and being called The Once-Human Cannonball:

Or even playing Whack-a-Mole, only here there were witches and vampires popping up, so it was called Whack-a-Ghoul:

Did I mention that is is all animated and each scene had it's own amusing soundtrack to support it? You may have seen some of this on HGTV's "Extreme Halloween" special a few years ago. Or maybe you've seen it on HGTV's "What's Up With That Haunted House?" The 7-piece skeleton band is pretty memorable:

And the hot-air balloon that traversed across the roof:

There was even a Ferris Wheel, and a spinning ride, appropriately called Whirl and Hurl, that had skeletons riding in cauldrons around a witch. And in the background, a tree house, two stories tall:

The two-story tall treehouse is there year-round.

There was so much more, too. You didn't just view this amusement park from the sidewalk, either. You would wander among the attractions and and hear all of the amusing soundtracks. Some of it was interactive: you could play Simon Says with a talking skeleton, get your fortune told by another skeleton, and jump into a large, spinning, spider web that was projected on the ground. The yard would fill up with hundreds of people to the point where it would appear that there was an actual carnival taking place. One year, over the 2 weeks prior to Halloween, over 13,000 people came to see Boney Island. It was good, clean, old-fashioned, family-friendly Halloween FUN.

Did you notice I was using the past-tense?
That's because after 10 years, Boney Island was shut down in 2007 to satisfy some neighbors across the street. Everything in Boney Island was auctioned on eBay. Boney Island vanished.

But now, four years later, those neighbors have moved. Rick had an idea for a new Boney Island, one that would use magic as the theme. And so now with less than 2 months to plan and execute, Rick is working hard to bring Boney Island back, starting from scratch. If all goes well, there will be 3 flying carpets circling up on the roof, one of which will be a toilet bowl rug- because everything is done with humor worthy of The Simpsons. There will be magician skeletons sawing other skeletons in half, and a magician skeleton pulling something out of a hat- perhaps a rabbit skeleton? There will be a skeleton casting amazing hand-shadows on the wall, and there will be tall jets of glowing green water bursting from cauldrons. But first, the cauldrons have to be procured, and the right size has not been located yet.

Rick is a member of our haunt club. After making arrangements, I paid a visit to Rick's house to donate some skeletons, and I saw the FCG rigs used to animate the scenes were laid out to be spray-painted:

Rick graciously gave me a tour of his beautiful home, where shadows cause a heart to form on the bathroom wall:

And I loved the recently renovated yard, with 3 water features including the pool with water falling all along the edge of the retaining wall:

and this diamond-patterned trellis of star jasmine:

But my favorite room was the game room, with seemingly every toy and game from my childhood displayed on custom shelving:

I asked if he had one of my favorite toys, the Mattel Thingmaker Fright Factory, which had little metal molds of skeletons in which you poured liquid Goop. After heating and setting, you had your own rubbery skeleton. I used to hang mine from straws and make them dance, marionette-style.
He did indeed have a bunch of Thingmakers, including the Fright Factory:

Rick's game room is no museum- the toys and games get get use. I was so happy when Rick gave me a skeleton they had made with the Fright Factory a while ago, I hadn't seen one in eons!

By the way, Rick recently chased and tackled a car thief! He also told of one the home's original occupants stopping by. The man said the house used to be the only one on the block, but there was no block of tract homes then- it was surrounded by orange groves. The man, who had no knowledge of Boney Island, knocked Rick's socks off when out of no where he told how they use to love to decorate the house extensively for Halloween! It seems the house was destined to always be a Halloween house.

These days, just standing and talking with Rick's family and a neighbor on the front lawn causes more than one car to stop and the occupants to lean out and ask "Is Boney Island coming back?"
This year, happily, the answer is Yes, Boney Island is returning!

To see what the fuss is about, watch a video:

Evil Red-Eyed Gnomes

2011-08-11T13:48:00.000-07:00

Want to bring a happy little garden gnome over to the dark side? An attitude adjustment can be had just by the addition of eerily glowing red eyes. Instructions here at Hack-a-day.

Gnombies -The Zombie Gnomes

2011-08-09T18:41:00.000-07:00

The Gnombies are coming! The Gnombies are coming! Coming October 7, 2011, that is.
Pre-order your very own zombie gnome today at thegnombies.com.

Regular-size Gnombies are 20" tall by 14" wide, and a mini size gnome zombie is 6" tall. Gift certificates, stickers and t-shirts are available as well.

You may also enjoy my previous posts about skeleton gnomes (click here and here to view them)

Skull Chairs, Skeleton Chairs

2011-08-08T12:19:00.000-07:00

Plastic “Souviens toi que tu vas mourir (Remember that you will die)” skull chair from the “Nouvelle Vague (New Wave)" collection by the French company Pool:

2) From the Vanitas collection by Vladi Rapaport:

3: Sensory Deprivation Skull chair by Dutch Atelier van Lieshout:

4) Noah Scalin of the wonderful skull-a-day blog created this Very Skairy Skull Chair, by cutting into an ordinary chair with a scroll saw:
5) Scott Campbell's tattooed leather chair at Bergdorf Goodman:

6) Skullduggery by Georgina Brett Chinnery for Bombarock:

7) Nestdallas.com harp chair:
8) Michael Aram aluminum and stainless steel:
9) Hardwood Skeleton Chairs at Olde Goode Things in Manhatten:
10) Resin Skeleton Chair by Medieval Collectibles:

Wicked Plants and Wicked Bugs

2011-08-03T01:32:00.000-07:00

Have you heard about the man who wanted to commit suicide by Black Widow spider? He mail-ordered a Black Widow that was guarenteed to provide a fatal injury. It didn't quite work and he had to resort to other poisons.
I heard this tale last night as I had the pleasure of meeting author Amy Stewart and hearing her talk about her new book "Wicked Bugs."
She had come to a Pasadena, CA, bookstore and was only a 15 minute walk from my work, so I had to go. Actually, there was no need to twist my arm, since I had enjoyed her previous book "Wicked Plants" quit a lot.

Of these wicked living things, plants and bugs, Ms. Stewart has concluded that we are not afraid enough of plants, and we are overly afraid of bugs.

Regarding plant materials, she says many people will eat anything if told it’s “all natural” -but hey, cyanide is all natural, strychnine is all natural, and they are poisonous.

She was kind enough to hand out bugs encased in acrylic so we could all get a close look. The bugs were obtained through The God of Insects. Yes, that is actually what he is called.

Hairy legs like this do give me the creeps:

There were 2 collections like this passed around, but I didn't get a look at the other one:

It was interesting to see how big a bed bug is (its that speck to the left of the cockroach. So they are visible to the naked eye).

Amy spoke for about 75 minutes, telling stories of the bugs she had passed around. Stories about the only Med Fly ever found in Miami. There was a bit of a panic and it was specially flown to Washington to be investigated to see if it was pregnant. (It wasn't). And about the chigoe flea that burrow into people's toenails and lay eggs. Some men have actually cut their toes off because of the chigoe flea.

She told us about the Puss Caterpillar (Megalopyge opercularis), describing it as "like a little persian cat". I guess it does resemble one, a little. Very furry. But it stiiiings like a you-know-what.

Puss caterpillar. (Weird, ain't it?)

We learned that Japanese Beetles (found on the east coast) have an adverse reaction to Pelargoniums (geraniums), so pesticides are being developed using that. We learned that brass beds helped reduce bed bug populations since the beds don't provide as many hiding places as a wooden bed does- and that the bed bugs are attracted to you by your carbon dioxide. And we learned to be on the alert for the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug, which is developing into a big problem- but hasn't appeared here on the west coast. Yet.

Later, Amy Stewart signed the books we bought.

These are all her other books

Now I have a secret to tell you. I must whisper it, so come close. Ok, ready?

Pssst! Look for information on a wicked book giveaway, coming soon to a blog near you!

Gothic Garden: The Witch's House

2011-08-02T19:32:00.000-07:00

My last post was about the Witch's House in Beverly Hills, but today the focus on the property's south-facing front garden. Much of this garden receives full sun, with very few areas receiving partial shade. (The photo above was taken around 6:30pm, so those are late-afternoon shadows you see.)

First of all, I would call the landscaping at the Witch's House more of a gothic "Halloween Garden" rather than a "Witch's Garden", because it does not rely heavily on the medicinal plants and herbs that are traditionally used in a witch's garden. Instead, we see a lot of fall colors, especially blacks and oranges. (Note: black plants are almost never truly black, but the term used for very dark-colored plants.)

Here, dark-leafed, orange-flowered "Dahlia Mystic Desire" mingled with green-leaved varieties of dahlias:

A dark backdrop was achieved with this ground cover of "Dragon's Blood" sedum (Sedum spurium), shown here near the pond's edge:

Here is a planting of pygmy crimson barberry (barberis):

A variety of dark-leaved coral bells (heuchera) were used along the sidewalk, along with orange-blossoming California poppy (Eschscholzia californica, not in bloom at this time):

Even the pads of these water lilies (Nymphaea) were streaked with a very dark purple:

We also saw much attention paid to plant form and texture. Spine-covered Euphorbia "Lomi" Thai Giant Hybrid discourages trespassers as much as the "No trespassing" sign held in the craggy branches of manzanita (Arctostaphylos).

I'm told these tall plants resembling cornstalks are called Black Sorghum and were planted by seed:

Here is a closer look at a seedhead:

This type of sorghum can be used in dried flower arrangements, and has healthful antioxidant properties if eaten. The sorghums are supported by uniquely loopy wire cages as seen below:

I've no clue as to the name of this distinctive plant with its alien-looking seedheads:

Curly corkscrew rush (Juncus grass curly wurly) grows like a witch's untamed hair by the pond:

I'm not sure about this weeping shrub or young tree, but I'm guessing it's some type of Weeping Katsura (Cercidiphyllum japonicum). The branches look like they also have a crazy twisted form:

It certainly stands out against the gothic setting of the black plants:

As I mentioned earlier, the flowers tended to be in Fall colors of orange and yellow. These are milkweed/butterfly weed (Asclepias curassavica or Asclepias tuberosa) :

Blanket flowers (Gaillardia) provided more orange and yellow blooms:

Another dahlia from the Mystic series, coreopsis, and gaillardia:

Black mondo grass (Ophiopogon planiscapus 'Nigrescens') line the pathway in the west side garden:
The dark plantings and grassy plants with an intentionally overgrown look blend the parkway strip into the overall scheme:

The hardscaping tied the home's Storybook archetechture to the surroundings by the use of various-sized stone in walls and and in walkways:

Landscape lighting was provided by rock-shaped fixtures. This one was postioned by the only rosebush I saw in the garden, a rose with dark red blooms:

Trellises are custom made twists of wire and resemble thorny vines:

The wooden fences had uneven pickets:

The pond is used as a moat; one must cross the bridge to get to the front door of the Witch's house:

The bridge used faux tree trunks, formed from concrete, as pillars:

This etched rock by the front gate, (partially covered by sweet peas Lathyrus odoratus that are past their prime), credits landscape designer Jane Marshall. She can be reached at her website, janemarshalllandscape.com.

Hope you enjoyed this garden tour. If I've misidentified a plant, please leave a comment to let me know.

The Witch's House

2011-07-25T21:00:00.000-07:00

The Witch's House. Photo by Kafziel

Last night I visited the magical Witch's House in Beverly Hills, arguably the foremost icon of Storybook architecture in the United States.

Also known as the Spadena House, it is located in a quiet residential neighborhood at 516 Walden Dr., Beverly Hills, at the corner of Walden and Carmelita, walking distance from The Beverly Hilton hotel and several nice parks.

The quirky house is not normally open to the public, but last night the owner held a political fund-raising event on the property so I was afforded the rare treat of going beyond the front yard fence. Even better, a 5-year renovation to the house and property had just recently been completed so everything looked pristine. Well, as pristine as a house intentionally designed to look a little dilapadated can look!

Built in 1921 by silent film art director Harry Oliver, the structure was originally built to house offices and dressing rooms for Willat Studios in Culver City, a city to the west. When financial losses due to the advent of "talkies" struck the silent film studio, the building was abandoned and became a source of curiosity for many passing by. The Spadena family bought it in 1934 and moved it to its present, more private, location in Beverly Hills. There has only been one other owner, a woman who lived there a long time, decorated the interior in 1960's fashion, and who eventually could not keep the house and grounds from falling into disrepair. But this woman had the spirit of the house within her, and she would greet trick-or-treaters on Halloween dressed as a witch. Some began calling the place "The Witch's House" and the name stuck.

The house now belongs to 47-year old real estate agent Michael Libow, who originally merely showed the house to potential buyers back in 1998. But time after time the interested parties indicated a complete tear-down would be in order to meet their needs. No one was inclined to preserve the house. So a determined Libow bought the house himself for 1.3 million dollars, and began planning renovations to provide more living space that would blend with the existing Storybook styling he was intent on preserving.

The curved wall to the sideyard contains a door with a spider web design. Note the Storybook element of the stones that are embedded in the wall.

Close-up of the wooden door and iron spider web

Quaint lighting fixtures fit the Storybook theme

This bit of vine-like ironwork serves the same purpose as barbed wire

Mature trees shade the corner lot

A patriotic witch adorns the curbside address marker

Several rustic signs held by gnarly manzanita branches warned against trespassing

Two stone turtles graced one end of the pond

The Storybook styling extends to the chimney

View along the sidewalk of the side of the property

The front entrance gate

Storybook-style pillars look quite organic with branches applied

The mailbox

The bridge over the pond, which is actually a moat

Backyard. The rear windows all resemble the one seen here (click photo to enlarge)

Near the back gate, a portable toilet remains from the home's recent construction

The garage and room additions as seen from the back alley

See more pictures of the house here, and read about Libow's and several other Storyboook homeowner's experiences here.

My next post will be about the gardens at the Witch's House

Butterbeer Recipe

2011-07-15T20:45:00.000-07:00

Would you like to sample some of Harry Potter's Butterbeer?

This is from Amy Small who says she's tried many Butterbeer recipes, and this is her favorite.

1 can of Cream Soda (A&W, Mug, Jones etc.)
1 teaspoon of Rum Extract (imitation rum extract is in your grocery store for $4, or try ordering pure online)
1 teaspoon of Butterscotch Extract (probably need to order online)
1 tablespoon of Brown Sugar
1 cup of Vanilla Ice Cream

It's delicious and very frothy and it looks just like beer.

Note that both of the extracts can be ordered from Amazon. I bought 4 ounces of both from OliveNation via Amazon,, and with combined shipping it came to $21.66

Signs of Harry Potter

2011-07-14T17:02:00.000-07:00

We recently visited the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios Islands of Adventure theme park in Orlando, and we were completely blown away by detail work that tops anything Disney has done. As a huge Disney fan, I certainly don't say that lightly. For example, the rocks pictured here on the castle cliff don't just have a paint job; there is three-dimensional lichen all over them. Trash cans resemble iron barrels. Store clerks hand you a quill pen to sign your credit card reciept. Even the smallest of details were attended to in this section of the park.

While the other areas of Islands of Adventure looked tempting upon arrival, we made a beeline for the back of the right-hand side. This is where the area called the Wizarding World of Harry Potter lies, just over a bridge. The entrance arch to the area has a sign that said "Please respect the spell limits". When you walk in, the village of Hogsmeade greets you with a riot of snow-capped rooflines, and the soundtrack to the movie plays from hidden speakers.

The space may be ridiculously crowded with visitors, but you forget about the crowd when you see the Hogwarts Express train puffing smoke as it comes through Platform 9 3/4 immediately to your right.

Visitors dressed in their house robes, like this Gryffindor boy, add to the illusion of being in Harry's world. (Adult robes are $99 at the park or pay $12 shipping and get the same robes-and other merchandise- at Universal's online store here. Select Filtch's Emporium.)

The quaint village shops have windows with interesting and often, animated, items. More often than not, the storefronts are false; there is no store and the windows are just for the entertainment of passers-by and to supply the correct ambiance. For example, below is Wiseacres wizarding supplies store, with a hanging iron telescope for a shop sign. The window is filled with astronomical devices, and you can see a room filled with other assorted wizard paraphenalia. Above this, there is a music store with music paper flying madly around as though in a whirlwind, and the cacophonus toots and blasts of beginners playing instruments can be heard. Instrument cases are left on the stairs that could be seen through the door. You cannot enter either of these places, but they are entertaining none the less.

Several books had tiny moving video scenes embedded in the covers. Gilderoy Lockhart waves and preens on this book cover.

I bought one of these Hedwig owls. They are puppets with a stick inside so you can swivel their heads.

Ollivander's wand shop has a short show, wherein the wizard selects a participant (usually a youngster) and then decides which wand is a good fit for that person. Flicking the wrong wand causes lightening and other displays of commotion. When the correct wand is chosen, something else happens (I don't want to say too much). There is always a line to see that small show, as only a handful of people can fit in the room.

The number of wand boxes in Ollivander's is simply astounding. The shelves full of them go up...

...and up and up! And it is like this all around the room and partway into the next room as well.

Ollivanders connects to the Owlry post office, which sells stationary, post cards, stamps, wax seals, and pens. You can send outbound mail there, with a Hogsmead postmark. The other stores in Hogsmead you can actually enter are Zonko's joke shop, Honeydukes candy store, Dervish and Banges for clothing and all kinds of souvenirs. In this area there is also the Three Broomsticks restaurant and Hog's Head Pub, as well as the entrance to Dragon Challenge roller coaster (and Hagrids hut and other things we missed because we didn't know there was more than a roller coaster there. Next time, I am going to join the queue so I can see everything and then bail out before getting on the coaster.) The ATM says Gringott's Bank, and the restrooms are alive with the sound of Moaning Myrtle.

Honeydukes candy store window, from the inside. Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Bean is featured in this display.

Butterbeer barrel cart and Honeyduke's candy store

Butterbeer from the tap or frozen like a slushee, your choice!

I got a frozen one, without the more expensive plastic souvenir mug. It does have a frothy top and a delicious vanilla-y flavor.

The frog chorus entertains with "singing" puppet frogs

Set decoration in Dervish and Banges' inaccessable 2nd story includes Spectra Specs and an Advanced Potion Making text book, as well as a broom that "flys" slowly up and down a bit.

There are many items not for sale, but just for ambiance in the stores.

You can get your outbound mail stamped in the left corner with a Hogsmead postmark

The Owl Post is stuffed with parcels to be mailed (all are set decorations)

The Owlry is an open-sided bench-filled pavilion with many animated owls roosting on the high beams.

The owls very subtly swivel their heads and flap their wings and blink

The Monster Book of Monsters was sleeping and snoringin a big cage with a warning sign.

There were some things that caught the eye of this Halloween-lover:

skeleton in Zonko's Joke Shop

Mini Halloween candy buckets (on the drum) at Zonko's joke shop

This cart looks like an old funeral coach to me. (The Hipppogriff rollercoaster is behind it.)

The pumpkin lids on the rather vile-tasting Pumpkin Juice. At first it tasted good, especially when you are parched in the heat, but then it turned flavor on my tongue. I poured mine down a drain and kept the bottle.

And finally, the signs of Harry Potter, or really, the signs of Hogsmeade, each one so unique:

golden snitch at Spintwitches sporting goods (fake storefront)

Another shot of the Golden Snitch with quidditch balls. Spintwitches has quidditch supplies in the window.

Hanging witch and wizard signs for the ladies and men's restrooms. Above hangs a mortar and pestle for the 2nd story Potions shop (fake store)

Potages Cauldrons (fake storefront) gets 2 hanging signs. A room with more cauldrons and an oven with a self-stirring cauldron are viewed through the window.

Zonko's joke shop's hanging sign is a man with a big mouth

Ollivander's wand shop's elegant hanging sign

Dervish and Banges for clothing and souveniers

Tomes and Scrolls (fake storefront). The animation in the window is a quill pen scribbling unassisted in a book.

Excuse me, I need to go finish my Butterbeer now!

Dick Van Dyke's Halloween

2011-06-17T04:06:00.000-07:00

Actor Dick Van Dyke activates a prop at his haunt

.

If you love Dick Van Dyke as much as I do, you'll love him even more when you realize he is a Halloween addict who hosts a yard haunt. At his home in Malibu. The clicky link to see the pictures, video and read more about it is here at disneytravelbabble.com

And apparently, Dick instilled that love of Halloween decorating into his son Barry Van Dyke, as he had a yard haunt in Agoura Hills, CA. for many years.

The Van Dykes: Barry, Dick, Carey, Shane

In turn, Barry passed the addiction on to his son, Carey Van Dyke, who has a haunt at on Evanwood Ave., Oak Park, CA. Changing themes each year, this actor and screenwriter who specializes in horror films has done a zombie apocalypse haunt and a demented clown haunt, and borrows pieces from the movie studios. His latest venture is The Watching Hour, a screenplay which he co-wrote with his brother Shane about a home invasion with aliens. Carey has four children, so his love of Halloween may create a 4th generation of home haunters; we just have to give them time. Creating This Life is a blog by Carey's wife Anne revealing how hard they work to put on the haunt;.

a scene from Carey Van Dyke's home haunt

another scene at Carey Van Dyke's

Incidentally, Shane directed A Haunting in Salem, due out on DVD in August.

It was filmed up the street from my work, at the beautiful Mansion Adena at 341 Adena S, Pasadena:

which was built in 1886. It's very private now, with a tall hedge all around the wall you see in this old picture of it:

Dick Van Dyke recently became a first-time author at age 85 with his memoir, 'My Lucky Life In and Out of Show Business.’

I haven't read it yet, but in it he may discuss his 30-year relationship with Michelle Triola Marvin. You may remember her as being involved in the first palimony lawssuit, against actor Lee Marvin. Sadly, she died of lung cancer in Dick's home the day before Halloween in 2009.

Labyrinth of Jareth

2011-06-13T01:31:00.000-07:00

The Labyrinth of Jareth is an annual elaborate masquerade ball held in Los Angeles where just any costume won't do. It should be fantasy-based, as the idea of the ball derived from the goblin-mocking masquerade ball in the 1986 David Bowie/Jennifer Conolly movie "Labyrinth".

"Labyrinth" with David Bowie as Jareth and Jennifer Conolly as Sarah

Now in its 14th year, the ball is held in an architectural wonder called the Park Plaza. It was built in 1925 as an Elks temple, then it became a luxury hotel, and now it is no longer a hotel but a venue for weddings and the like.

There, participants roam the impressively-sized staircase and the grand halls to discover chambers filled with over 150 performers, live musicians, dancers, acrobats. Guards open up one area at a time, increasing the excitement.

the guards and the grand staircase

Some of the entertainments spills out into the outdoor courtyard, where large sculptures have been set up to compliment the theme.

An elvish dancer entertains in front of a sculpture

A dancer in one of several ballrooms

Last year there were tents to wander through outside, where members of the League of Steam displayed their Steampunk inventions.

Part of the courtyard as seen from an upper window

Steampunk inventions on display

inventor Crackitus Potts (Nick Baumann)

And then, of course, there are the most stunning costumes.

These detailed costumes, masks and props are entirely home-made

Behold the vinyl unicorn!

A beautiful butterfly wing dress

There were some minimalist costumes

I bet you're looking at their wings, right?

And several people who painted themselves

And then there were those who came on stilts

This is a place where elf ears, horns, and wings are the norm. Colored wigs are also popular

Wait, is that a strawberry on her ass?

This golden girl's costume was pretty elaborate, with a wide wingspan and lights:

A camera is a necessity at an event such as this. You never know what you'll see.

"Labyrinth"-style goblin

Beauty and a beast

Here's a video I took walking through the crowd:

This year's Labyrinth of Jareth is July 1st and 2nd. Tickets are still available.

"Halloween" Film Locations

2011-06-09T14:31:00.000-07:00

The house that was used as Michael Myer's house for John Carpenter's 1978 classic horror film "Halloween", starring Jamie Lee Curtis as babysitter Laurie Strode, is 10 minutes from where I work. I went for a visit this week, but first let me tell you about the house that was used for the Strode's house, because it is the most fun to visit.

The house at 1115 Oxley Street, South Pasadena, CA, sits on a corner and has a garage/apartment addition added to the back:

Here is the view from the corner. The house is kind of obsured by a big tree that hangs over the sidewalk. But take note of those low columns by the sidewalk, they come into play later.

As you walk along one side, under that tree, you see an open porch. With pumpkins. And a sign.

So you sneak up to take a closer look at the sign:

And the sign says: "YES this is the scene with Jamie Lee Curtis from the 1978 Halloween. You may borrow the pumpkin. Have a good time." There is also a photo of Jamie Lee holding a pumpkin while sitting one of the low columns near the sidewalk. It's an more panoramic version of this photo:

So I did what any sensible person would do, and took a pumpkin to the column to have my picture taken.

Hats off to the homeowner for accomodating fans in this manner! 33 years of horror fans stalking the house, and he still cares enough to set out pumpkins. (I don't really know how long the current owner has lived there, but I do know that he is an author of books for young adults.)

Now on to Michael Myers' house. Here's how the circa 1888 house looked in the movie:

Here's how it looks today:

It is now called The Century House, and is protected as a cultural landmark.

It now serves as an office building, mainly for several financial firms. I didn't feel like I'd be welcomed to open the door to take interior pictures, so I didn't.

The house was about to be torn down to make way for a new development, when someone bought it for a dollar and had it moved a block or so to 1000 Mission St, South Pasadena, CA. The full story can be read on this site.The new location is at an intersection and just a few yards behind the Metrolink railroad tracks. It doesn't have the best view, but with the train station just diagonally across the street, the occupants can come to work by train. That train station (Called "Mission") also makes it a quick and easy stop for sightsee-ers who come by train from Los Angeles.

Also at this same intersection is the brick building that was a hardware store in the movie. It's now a restaurant.

The fictional Haddonfield High School from the movie is actually South Pasadena High School:

Rob Zombie re-made "Halloween" in 2007 and used a different house for the Myer house. This house is on a street just behind the train station. It's got signs in the windows saying that it is state property and no trespassing allowed, but I took a look in the window anyway.

As you can see, it looks nice, with modern paint schemes. This house was also used for "My So-Called Life".
Perhaps this house was not spooky enough, or perhaps the John Carpenter version of the film resonnated more, but it's the first Myers house that continues to receive the most attention. Someone even made a cake of the first Michael Myers house. Here it is, complete with Michael hiding:

and another angle (I can confirm they got the windows on the side right):

And fan Kenny Caperton built an exact replica of the house in Hillsborough, North Carolina:

Ghostbusters

2011-06-08T09:34:00.000-07:00

One day in April, our haunt club meeting was suddenly interrupted by a siren which seemed very nearby, and we went to the street to investigate. Turns out we had a surprise visit by the Inland Empire Ghostbusters.

Their car was tricked out and even had a license plate that said "Ecto".

And they wore lots of Ghostbuster gear

The posed for pictures with members of our club

. Here's the front and back of their business card.

Their club makes appearances for charities.They explained that there are Ghostbusters clubs just like theirs all over the U.S. and even a Ghostbusters podcast. To find the organization nearest you, check out http://ghostbustersnews.com/ or http://www.ghostbustersmania.com/

Spooky Places -a Google Map

2011-06-06T19:20:00.000-07:00

A handy-dandy map of spooky places in the world can be found here. The map only includes places that are NOT seasonal, and by no means is it complete. If anyone wants to collaborate, let me know and editing capabilities will be yours. Random suggestions welcomed as well.

Skeleton Weather Vane - For Sale

2011-06-03T00:55:00.000-07:00

Every one wants one.

It's a replica of the skeleton weather vane that author and illustrator Edward Gorey (1925-2000) commissioned for the barn of his new home. It was installed on the barn before Edward moved in, but it was soon stolen. He had a replacement constructed, but decided not to install it.

Since his death in 2000, the skeleton weather vane replacement was put on display in Gorey's home, which is now the Edward Gorey House, a museum dedicated to the author in Yarmouth Port, MA.

In 2006, steel sculptor Steven Swain from Centerville, MA., offered to replicate the skeleton weather vane for an auction benefitting the Edward Gorey Charitable Trust, a fund dedicated to the welfare of animals, and the Edward Gorey House.

I contacted Mr. Swain, and here is what I found out: he can make a skeleton weather vane for you, too! They are made to order by Mr. Swain, but you must purchase it through the Edward Gorey House.

According to Edward Gorey House director/curator Rick Jones, "the cost is $650.00, which includes the weathervane, base and an embossed print of the original illustration by Gorey. These prints are Roman Numerals, and aren't available without purchasing the weathervane, adding to their value (lettered and numbered editions are separate). Shipping and insurance runs about $75.00.
Please give us a call or send an email. We'd be happy to answer any questions you might have."

The print is 11" by 14"

Here is the contact information:

Rick Jones
Edward Gorey House director/curator

Telephone (508) 362-3909

Edward Gorey House

8 Strawberry Lane

Yarmouth Port, MA 02675

email: edwardgoreyhouse@verizon.net

Angel of Death

2011-05-31T18:40:00.000-07:00

photo by mbpfx.com

Sometimes I feel like such a schmuck. Such was the case this afternoon, when I was happily surfing the web looking at statues like this one at mbpfx.com. It was pricey so I moved on, coming to a complete stop when I discovered this moody photo of an Angel of Death statue.


Photo by Xartez

My pupils enlarged to take in all that beauty. What a perfect specimen, I thought. What a marvel of engineering, to keep those heavy wings extended so far upright. Wish I had one of these in my yard, I thought.

Well, I am the World's Biggest Ass.

Further research on this statue revealed I had fallen in love with a sculpture that had become an international symbol of Russian deceit.

I will make this history lesson very short. One paragraph, in fact.

Turns out this statue is part of a monument to the 22,000 Polish police officers, border patrol agents, intellectuals, soldiers, and priests who were murdered execution-style in the woods near the small Russian village of Katyn, Russia by the one of Stalin's secret police forces in 1940. All of these men had been at a concentration camps with other people and had been duped into registering their occupation upon arrival. Because of their occupations, these victims were pulled from camp early, executed, and all thrown into the same pit that had been dug in the privacy of the woods. There they lay, secretly buried there in foreign soil, and forgotten. An elderly villager eventually told a visitor of what he suspected was in the woods, causing the International Red Cross to investigate. No one expected to find more than a few dozen bodies; certainly not 22,000. The site was excavated, revealing mummified bodies, many clearly in uniforms. For over 50 years, the Russians denied their involvement, and pointed fingers at the Germans. Great tension between Poland and Russia ensued, and Katyn became a metaphor for Russian deceit. In 1991, Mikhail Gorbachev finally admitted Russia's guilt and a year later released documents showing Stalin had authorized the killings.

This is what the statue is facing:

photo by Aga

This haunting set of monuments was created by Tadeusz Tchórzewski, a sculptor from Warsaw, and was unveiled in October, 2000. The statue is located in Wroclaw, Poland.

On the highest pedestal there is a figure of the Angel of Death. In front of it, between symbolic graves, there is a figure of Katyń Pieta (the Matron of Poland) despairing over a body of a murdered prisoner of war. On the granite walls of the graves, the names of the prisoner-of-war camps are inscribed.

Another Katyn Massacre memorial had been erected in the U.S., at Saint Adalbert Catholic Cemetery in Illinois, by Polish immigrant and sculptor Wojciech Seweryn, whose father had died in the Massacre.
One year ago, this sculptor was traveling with Polish President Lech Kaczynskihis to a memorial service in Russia for the 70th anniversary of the Katyn Massacre. The plane crashed in heavy fog, and all 96 on board perished.

photo by RaKLeZ


photo by Ferran Cornella

Here's more of the statue's facial details, if you look really hard:

photo: dayslikethis on flickr

I really love angel statues, and this one has the most marvelously detailed spread wings. But I am really sorry about the history behind this one.

The Garden of Evil Logo

2011-05-30T00:12:00.000-07:00

Here is the logo for my Garden of Evil Halloween haunt. I had it put on a t-shirt already, and lemme tell ya, wearing said shirt happily deluded me into feeling like I was in the Big Leagues of Home Haunters. I imagine those big-league home haunters say things like "Oh yeah, we're cookin' with gas now, Baby!" because that's what I was thinking as I wore my spiffy new shirt.

The delusion worked until I had to put the shirt into the laundry basket. Just something about seeing it mixed with dirty, mascara-tinged face-cloths brought me back to reality very quickly. "You're cookin' with coal, is more like it."

Actually, my original idea was to create a design that resembled the sign I use in my haunt, and I still may go back to that idea. (The sign uses the spooky Ung Drill picture frame from Ikea. Get yours here.)

Ultimately, I'd like the logo to be on the masculine side. It is still a work in progress.

To The Bat Room!

2011-05-23T17:58:00.000-07:00

Isn't it time you took steps to increase the value of your home? Isn't it time to leave that indelible mark on your property that showcases your scintillating personality? Isn't it time to transform your dull, pedestrian bathroom into the Bat Room of your dreams?!

Powder-coated steel makes these unique bat silhouette light switches nice and durable. If you don't think they'd work in your batroom, how about using them in your mudroom or for the lights in your garage? You need one with three switches? They have that too. At $14 for the single, $18 for the double, and $30 for the triple, you'll have the coolest, Goth-iest light switches of anyone I know. The same people make matching towel racks and a robe hook, too, so now we have those covered as well.

photo: rejuvenation.com

Bats fly overhead in these 1892-replica light fixtures with the mysterious names of "Drake" and "Sunset". They are pricey though; the Drake fixture is $1749 and the shade is $399, bringing the price of a single lamp to $2148! Disneyland has one. So should you. (I know all the haunters out there are thinking "$2148! But if I took a 3/4" PVC pipe and a rubber bat and a rubber snake...!" Yes, well, when you make it, please send me your pics.)

photo: giftsin24.com

A clean stack of paper guest towels on the countertop makes visitors feel special and sanitary. Bats are stamped in black foil, along with 2 lines of your personalized wording. Towels are 4.5" x 8.5", and are currently priced at $28.95 for 100. (Also available in dining napkins, or in spider design.)

photo: speedcult.com
To hold your batroom tissue, you'll need this toilet paper holder made from thick-guage steel. 13" wide x 6" high, it's $30. Screws to mount it in drywall are provided. (Sorry, I could not find bat-printed toilet paper. And you're welcome for that big-time money-making idea that you have now hastily set off to produce with your buddy that's in the printing business.)

photo: insideout.com

Hang your batrobe on an iron bat hook on the back of the door while you shower. If you didn't care for the style that matches the light-switch plates above, I suggest this alternative. At $10.99, this double hook measures approximately 9" by 5" and has a brownish mossy color. (But of course, you can spray-paint all of these things black for a matchy-matchy look.)

Shower curtains of all kinds can be found (would you believe there's a Justin Beiber shower curtain selling for over $70? WTF??), but we'll have to settle for the Batman Begins logo on our shower curtain until we find something better. It really is an attractive design; just a little too recognizable as the movie logo. Black design on white, 70x70 inches, $49.95

photo: Library Images

Finally, since you've got a captive audience, show them how refined and cultured you are by displaying some fine art on the wall. 27"x39" bat poster is $22.50.

How to Fit a Tombstone into a Suitcase

2011-05-20T02:19:00.000-07:00

Me "helping" Chris Davis (aka the Frog Queen)

The second annual West Coast Haunters Convention was held last weekend in Salem, Oregon.
It's always fun when you meet up with people who share the same passions.

seen in the convention's parking lot

When I heard there was to be a seminar where I could learn to make a lovely tombstone in the style of those in the Davis Graveyard, I made sure to bring along an extra piece of luggage just to bring my tombstone home in.

There were 15 students in the seminar, and everyone worked at their own pace. As usual, I took too many pictures and fell behind a bit. This became a slight problem when we ran out of black paint. I felt badly, because a new can of black paint was obtained pretty much just for me:(

Here I am using an Exacto knife to cut out the epithat "Barry M. Deep".
These were much bigger tombstones than I'm used to making. These were chest high, and pretty wide. My final product is on the left in this picture (I regret making the scratch marks. I guess my technique with the rasp needs refining.)

In order to fit this in my suitcase -which was the maximum allowable size for checked luggage without having to pay "oversized luggage" fees- it would have to be broken into 3 pieces. My epithat and decorative element are placed a little high to allow for the breaks. The Davis Graveyard crew had already routed and glued 2 lengths of PVC pipes into the backs of the stones in order to fit over rebar to stablize them. The first break would be just past the PVC piping.

And this is how you break a tombstone! Chris Davis does it with ease and you can hear Jeff Davis giving some encouragement in the background. Now it fits in my suitcase just fine.

We had bought teeshirts from three vendors at the convention's tradeshow, so I used those and other clothes to pad them and make sure they didn't shift and get damaged.

skewers through the back keep the pieces connected

Once home, I reassembled them with a little spritz with water and a few dabs of Gorilla Glue. Chris said to secure the connection by jamming skewers partway in at an angle, and breaking off the excess skewer once the glue has dried.

Afterwards, only minimal touch-up painting need be done.

Another tombstone tip I learned at the convention came from Terry Marsh of the Mize Cemetery and Haunt. He makes great tombstone embellishments by making a mold from a twin-pack of Hostess cupcakes. The tutorial is here.

tombstone embellishment made from a pack of cupcakes!

Did I mention that the convention was held at the site of the 141-year old Oregon School for the Deaf?

You may recall they were featured on Extreme Home Makeover- Halloween Edition in 2010. The EHM team and many volunteers worked to create a new dorm for the boys, as shown here. You may not be aware that this new dorm only has 2 bedrooms, and they need 40 (2 boys per room). Soooo, no one lives here yet! Their current slogan for fundraising is called Continue the Dream- Help Finish the Build. You can donate by clicking here.

The EHM team also remade the schools haunt, The Nightmare Factory. Having seen it at last years' convention, I agree: the haunt did get a very extreme makeover. Which is not only fun, but helpful- the school uses the annual haunt as a fundraiser. So many people wanted to see the EMH changes, they ran the haunt an extra 2 weeks past Halloween.

One of the additions was in the queue for the haunt. It was this photo op where you put your head through the hole for the bride or groom:

One amusing incident happened on the way home. My love Dennis had bought 3 skulls at the tradeshow from The Skull Shoppe (shown here.)

On the way back home, the security agents at the Portland Airport pulled him aside after his belongings went through the x-ray machine. They wanted to hand search his carry-on. But before they even zipped it open, they asked, "are the skulls inside of here real?"

Bat's Day and the Black Market

2011-05-10T03:10:00.000-07:00

Just got back from Bat's Day, and had a blast as usual. What is Bat's Day? It's basically Goth Day at Disneyland, and is officially called "Bat's Day in the Fun Park." The event was started 13 years ago and has grown to become Disneyland's second largest non-official event (Gay Day, in June, is the largest. They wear red t-shirts.) While Bat's Day is an unofficial event, Disneyland does cooperate to make it a success by securing venues and providing photographers for large group photos- we're talking 1,500 Goths at once in the annual photo in front of the castle at noon, among other photo ops.

All types of Goths attend, including classic, cyber, lolita, neo-victorian, and steampunk.

Hearse owners and pirate-loving people are also attracted to the event. Phantom Coaches is a local hearse club that had some members attend in their hearses, old ambulances, and flower cars.

I see some people there regularly, like sisters Green Orchid and Mistress Xian. The event is sort of a reunion for them, as they live in different states. Mistress designs and sews dresses with a new theme each year. This year the dresses were fitted with electroluminescent wires, so the skirts actually lit up and became fields of green or purple stars. You could spot the girls from quite a distance at night.

2009 with Haunted Mansion wallpaper design in the skirt (not well seen here, sorry.)

2010 had a Little Miss Muffet theme with embroidered spiders on the skirts

2011 electroluminescent starfield

Lyn is another regular that I seek out to photograph due to her magnificent wardrobe. I didn't happen to see her this year, which was disappointing.

Lyn 2010

Lyn 2009 with Hilary and ?

Mary Poppins and me, Scary Mary Poppins

This year, I dressed as a gothic Mary Poppins. By mid-day, my hair and makeup were a hot mess, but people enjoyed my dead parrot umbrella and my hat of black daisies and rotted cherries.

Queenie and Tightrope Girl Roxie Rot

But the best outfit I saw was "Tightrope Girl" from one of the stretching portraits in the Haunted Mansion. I neglected to get her name, but here she is with artist Queenie and her rendition of the scene. (EDIT: Thanks to a comment here, I found out her name is Roxie Rot.) There was also another Tightrope Girl, but I found the first girl had the perfect face for this character.

I met John Fair, the creator of Killhouettes there. He came in from Arizona and he kindly gifted me with these postcards he is holding. I'm a big fan of Killhouettes, as you may recall from this post.

John of Killhouettes gives a sly wink

The photo above was taken at The Black Market, an event held at a nearby hotel the day before Bat's Day, where vendors sell Gothic wares such as clothing, jewelery, books, art, dolls, hair accessories and hats. Bat's Day is actually a 3-day event, and encompasses a meet-and-greet dinner, a concert and dance, the Black Market, a costume ball, and the big day at Disneyland.

This devilish guy is ready for the Swinging Wake masquerade ball held after the Black Market.

Here's the event creator and founder, Noah K. dressed as the graveyard caretaker in the Haunted Mansion. I first met Noah several years ago when I visited his home haunt, Grimmstone Cemetery, which ran for 20 years, and have also run into him while visiting other people's haunts.

Founder Noah K, flanked by his girlfriend Melissa and his mother

Since Bat's Day happened to fall on Mother's Day this year, Noah brought his mom along. You can barely see it, but Noah is wearing the Bat's Day hat, which is formed from a Mickey Mouse hat that has special plastic bat wings snapped onto it, and a patch that changes each year. Clever idea, yes?

For more information on Bat's Day, click here.

The Amazing Race for Osama Bin Laden's cake

2011-05-02T06:32:00.000-07:00

I'm in a Vyxsin and Kent sandwich

I've been on vacation the past few weeks, on a cruise with stops in Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama, and Columbia. We had an interior cabin, which meant no windows, but the cost savings allowed us to also spend a few days in Florida, visiting the Kennedy Space Center just days before the original scheduled Endeavor launch, and another day sampling a Butterbeer at The Wizarding World Of Harry Potter at Universal Studios. A great vacation and worth every sacrifice to make it happen.

But apparently, while I was gone, news-worthy events occured.

Starting with the least important: The TV show "The Amazing Race". I love that show. Watching other people overcome travel difficulties is just as educational as watching the scenery and the game's tasks. This season, the show has been overly commercial with it's Snapple product placement, but the most disappointing thing was watching the fun couple of Kent (formerly Kynt) and Vyxsin become not-so-fun, and bickering quite a lot. A lot.

I met them once. They were both sweet and friendly. Kent's a smart guy, and Vyxsin has a killer figure and perfect manners. The write a column for Gothic Beauty magazine, and I wish them well.

Vyxsin on Bat's Day at Disneyland

Kent and Vyxsin pose with a fan at Disneyland

Of course, there has been other big news today...

I would love to personally say "Thank you!" to those soldiers who took part in the operation to eliminate Osama Bin Laden. I'm glad they did not bring him in alive. No need to waste time or tax money bringing that piece of filth to justice.

Here is Osama Bin Lantern, a jack o' lantern created by Tom Nardone. I think he can make the eyes X-shaped now.

And did I miss the royal wedding of Will and Kate? I saw some of it through the magic of TiVo. Fergie's daughter Beatrice wore that ridiculous hat. I thought it looked like an octopus. Comedian Joy Behar said it looked like an IUD. It doesn't look any better on Osama, either.

I think the most important part of any wedding is the cake. Here is the royal wedding cake.

You know what I think it was missing? A good cake topper. One like this:

Oh, don't be stodgy. It's just for laughs. Sheesh, everyone gets all protective about Wills and Kate. But this is a seriously good cake topper. It's meant for divorce cakes (a good idea in itself) but it looks good just as a desk ornament, so I bought one. Get yours here.

Speaking of getting new things, I won a prize last month, over on Gothic Gourd Girl's blog. It's an oversized postcard, with an image straight from a tombstone. Very nice and frameable. I liked the Canadian stamps on the envelope too. Anyhow, the company makes tee-shirts and other arcticles using art from tombstones. They call themselves Gravestone Artwear. And be sure to check out Gothic Gourd Girl's blog- Gothic Gourds and Florals. She's making things to pay for her medical bills. She let her old blog die after I won and has re-started it, so I'm sure that it will have some cool stuff soon.

Ok, I'm off to go design a logo for my Halloween haunt. Will post it when finished.

Skeleton Dresses

2011-03-28T01:51:00.000-07:00

Spinal Cord Dress by Dsquared2, Style #:DSQUR20104

Jean Paul Gautier (modeled by Dita Von Tease)

Shuan Leane for Alexander McQueen
Unknown, found on eBay
Rachel Wright, Scapular Art Dress from her Dreamy Anatomy collection

Gary Card, worn by Lady Gaga

Oscar Olima, pleather dress designed for Lady Gaga

more Gaga fashion...and the dress that started it all: The Skeleton Dress by Elsa Schiaparelli, back in 1938 in collaboration with Salvadore Dali.

Gothic Greenhouse Inspiration Photo...and a Skull Scarf

2011-03-24T20:18:00.000-07:00

Just another day lounging in my conservatory whilst wearing my bustleskirt, contemplating colouring my hair the shade of one of the blooms on the floor.
Seriously, NO, that is not me...I just wish it was. Then I'd be better able to see and identify that black-flowering plant that is creeping up the other side of the sofa. The lovely pendulous datura blooms add a nice touch to this gothic scene, too.

Here I am, with a lovely new addition to my wardrobe--the skull-and-flower scarf made by Kara over at the WickedCrochet blog.

Isn't it great? It's getting tons of compliments. I went out to lunch and practically the minute I hit the sidewalk a passerby said "I like your scarf!" Kara's blog has a link to her Etsy store, so you can check out her selection of wicked skull scarves and nasty doilies.

Becoming an Irish Citizen through Dual Citizenship- A guest blog

2011-03-20T20:38:00.000-07:00

This following is a guest blog by my love, Dennis. Official information can be found at http://www.dfa.ie/home/index.aspx?id=267

I was recently granted dual Irish/American citizenship, so this Saint Patrick's Day was somewhat special for me. There aren't any real benefits of this, especially since Ireland is in severe economic trouble. But I am a sentimental guy and that's why I applied for citizenship via descent from my grandfather, Dennis Kelly - he's as Irish as Patty's pig!
For those interested, Irish citizenship has easier regulations than some other countries and does not require that you renounce your current US citizenship - so you can get dual/multiple citizenship.
It does require an ancestor no further back than grandparent be an Irish citizen. Your grandfather's father is too far back, unless your grandfather was born in Ireland and came here as a child.

The process is simple, but tedious - you have to document every step in your lineage back to Ireland. In my case, that meant:
o grandfather's birth certificate
o grandfather's death certificate (or copy of driver's license if still alive)
o grandparents marriage certificate
o mother's birth certificate
o copy of mother's driver's license (or death certificate if deceased)
o parent's marriage license
o my birth certificate
o copy of my driver's license
Plus:
o utility bills in my name/address
o statement from a public official: policeman, bank president, judge, doctor, etc
o photos
o application
Government documents have to be originals or state-issued copies with raised seals.

It took a lot of time to obtain the necessary documents. Then, after 14 months of waiting, the envelope from the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs arrived. I opened the envelope with some trepidation. I was unable to finish the first sentence of the cover letter. My eyes were kinda wet.

To all those of Irish descent - whether or not you have official citizenship - May Ireland always be in your heart and may she always bring you blessings. To everybody else - on St. Patrick's Day consider yourselves Irish for the day - a brave, honorable, hard-working people - but also stubborn and willing to fight for their beliefs. It is a powerful combination.
---Dennis

The "Charmed" House- Halliwell Manor

2011-03-17T00:18:00.000-07:00

The house known as Halliwell Manor from the "Charmed" TV series

This is the house that was used for the exterior of Halliwell Manor in the television series "Charmed", which ran from 1998 through 2006. In the series, the three young Halliwell sisters used their witchcraft to battle evil.
It is a real house, not located in San Francisco where the TV show was set, but rather it is at 1329 Carroll Avenue in Los Angeles.

The roof sports a weathervane shaped like a whale. The roses and hollyhocks in the front garden were out of bloom on the day I visited (Valentine's Day 2011.) The house was built in 1887 and was the first of several Victorian houses in the neighborhood to be designated as a historical landmark. Locally, it is known as the Innes house, as it was built for shoe store magnate Daniel Innes, who was also a Los Angeles city councilman.

The "Charmed" TV series starred Alyssa Milano, Holly Marie Combs, and Shannon Dougherty. Here's a still shot from the series showing Shannon looking out the door:

The same front door on the real house:

The house was used on the cover of this "Charmed" book, which is more than I can say for Shannon; she was eventually replaced by a new character played by Rose McGowan:

The house is shown faintly in the background on this book cover

The house is only 2 doors down from the "Thriller" house:

The house in between the "Charmed" and the "Thriller" houses is this yellow one at 1337 Carroll Ave. It was used in Season 2 of "Charmed" as the home of next-door neighbor Dan Gordo, who became Piper's (Holly Marie Combs) love interest:

1337 Carroll Ave, known locally as the Foy house

Here's the spooky house to the right of "Charmed", at 1325 Carroll Ave- and it's for sale! The cost is about a half-million dollars:

1325 Carroll Ave

If they were filming "Thriller" these days, they'd probably pick that house. Only a small part of it seems to have been rehabbed. And it has two lovely poisonous white Angel's Trumpet (datura) plants in front.

The street has had a variety of hitching posts installed in front of the houses, including this swan-styled one in front of the "Charmed" house:

Only the exterior of the house was used for filming. The interior was shot on a sound stage and does not match the floor plan of the real house. The current owner has been quite accommodating, letting people see the interior on occasion. Once a month, the Los Angeles Conservancy conducts walking tours in the neighborhood (make reservations here) and sometimes the "Charmed" house has opened its doors as part of that 2 and a half hour tour.
Some other houses in the 'hood:

But not all of Carroll Avenue is so picturesque. Consider the flat-looking paint scheme on this poor house, and think of how you would re-invent it:

Carroll Avenue is in an area of Los Angeles called Angelino Heights. There is a small lake within walking distance called Echo Park Lake, or just Echo Lake, that has tall geyser-like fountains, paddleboats and a lot of geese, ducks, and palm trees. One of the geese (named Maria or Orange Bill, depending on who you talk to) has bonded with a few humans, including members of the band OK Go when they filmed this music video entirely at the lake. She can be seen following them around, especially in the video's last half. Echo Park Lake is to be drained for a $64-million makeover soon. Frequent lake visitor Dominic Ehrler has also bonded with the goose, and he says of her: "They're supposed to collect the birds and truck them to another lake. I plan to follow her there, because when you have a friend like this you don't want to lose her." Awww!

So that is our lucky "Charmed" house- hope you thought it was magically delicious.

In honor of St. Patrick's Day (and because my Dennis officially became an Irish citizen a few weeks ago -14 months after he applied), here are a few pics of Halloween Town's latest holiday window display:

Preschool "Thriller"

2011-03-05T13:04:00.000-08:00

rJust a slight delay until I make my next "real" post, but in the meantime, I got a kick out of this and maybe you will, too:

The "Thriller" House

2011-02-28T19:57:00.000-08:00

Remember this scene in Michael Jackson's "Thriller" music video? Where the girl runs into this house to flee Michael and the zombies? The video wasn't shot on a fabricated set. This is a real house on a street that's chock full of beautiful Victorian houses. And you can live there, too, as the house 3 doors down is for sale. Here are more shots of the Thriller house, taken on Valentine's Day this year:

The "Thriller" house in 2011

The porch cover of this 1887 home needs repair, but the owner has been making renovations. The 200-year old Moreton Bay fig tree (Ficus macrophylla) is a beautiful accent and provides much needed afternoon shade. Happily, the tree shares protected historical landmark status with many of the homes in the neighborhood. There is also a large sago palm, and the steps of this home are flanked by standard red roses, and a white rose hedge- unfortunately out of bloom during my visit- lines the driveway. There is a large carriage house in the back of the property. The Thriller house address is 1345 Carroll Ave. in Los Angeles. The best time to visit is just past noon on Thursdays, when the street will be free of cars due to the restrictions for morning street sweeping.

The lot is not very wide, but goes back pretty far

Moreton bay fig tree

Here is a view down the street to the east:

The house across the street exhibits hints of Halloween with 2 pumpkins on the steps and a crow on a bench. Their lightening rod even looks like a pumpkin.

1324 Carroll Avenue

And the house next to that one has a reaper peering from the tower window

A grim reaper surveys the street

The homeowner, passing by, told me Carroll Avenue is "the best for Halloween. We got a thousand people last year." That house also has a nice front garden with roses and the powerful heavenly scent of jasmine vine (Jasminum polyanthemum) filling the air. I find it ironic that such a garden-y house would have a grasshopper design for their weathervane (not shown).

1320 Carroll Avenue had one of the best gardens

Carroll Avenue has had all utilities placed underground, period street lamps added, more houses moved to lots here, and an interesting variety of hitching posts added along the street. More pictures of houses across the street:

1330 Carroll Avenue

1344 Carroll Avenue

This beauty, on the corner, had one man touching up the paint near the doors. When he finishes painting, he probably has to start all over again.

1300 Carroll Avenue

Here is the view of Los Angeles from that same corner. It's something like the view they'd see from their rear upper windows:

View of Los Angeles sky scrapers

Since it was Valentine's Day and we were a bit thirsty, Dennis and I partook of some purple-colored Love Potion No. 69. I'm not sure we would try it again, but we both finished our bottles.

Next on the agenda was a visit Halloween Town (2921 W. Magnolia, Burbank) to shop for a hat and some jewelry. The store windows are always interesting. I didn't attempt any photos inside. (This post explains why.) I noticed that behind the cash register area, the monitors from their security cameras did include scans of the sidewalk outside and they had probably seen me snapping away, so next time I'll take pictures on the way out, not as I go in.

Stayed tuned for the next post, about another famous house.

Killhouettes for your Valentine

2011-02-04T12:03:00.000-08:00

Need a meaningful Valentine for that very special person in your life? Show them how much you care by sending one of these 5"x7" Killouettes by artist John Fair. With 27 macabre Victorian silhouettes to choose from, you will find at least one to be dead on target for your needs. With designs ranging from death by beheading, death by poison, death by hanging, death by: choking, blunt force trauma, dragging, gunshot, burning at the stake, etc., etc. it'll seem there's a million ways to leave your lover. Each item in the collection is beautifully rendered, and costs only $5 with $2 shipping.

View the collection here:

http://www.killhouettes.com/page2.html

Tell them Midnight in The Garden of Evil sent you. And remember: you always hurt the one you love.

Stephen King's Gate

2011-01-14T20:24:00.000-08:00

Now here are some gates that speak volumes (pun intended) about the property owner. Horror author Stephen King's gates at his home in Bangor, Maine are a delight, with spiders and webs and creepy toppers of flying bat-gargoyle-dragon beings.

King and the appropriately-named Terry Steel of Steel Forge collaborated on the design, and back in 1982, Steel produced the iron gates and 270-foot long fence that surrounds the property. As artfully foreboding as the gates may seem, they aren't just decorative, as Stephen King has had his share of stalkers and intruders- why, I'm thisclose to being one myself. And of course, especially on Halloween, people want to visit. Stephen King and his wife Tabitha (that name Bewitches me, too) usually take out an ad in the local paper to let the town know they won't be available to trick-or-treaters that night (okay everyone, let's pout collectively.)

photo: SirFin

One morning late last September, a 25-year old woman with a normal name drove her Dodge Neon into them, mangling a spider and ripping its legs off. She claimed she was trying to avoid (dodge?) another car that was in her lane (story here). Although that other car took off, I believe her- I'd be distracted by the gates too, and be likely to cross the lane divider. But far, far more likely, I'd park and take a gazillion photos from every angle and possibly even take measurements that would ultimately serve me no good. The story of the repair work, done by a fan of the author, is found here. Estimated cost of repair? $100,000. But that includes the faux-painting to make to make the new parts look as old and weathered as the rest. Wait, I have experience aging things! I'm sure he just didn't have my number.

Stephen King lives at 47 West Broadway, Bangor, Maine. It's a nice red Italianate house, originally built in 1856. It boasts 23 rooms and an indoor swimming pool. It's on the bus tour of Stephen King-related sights, but the bus does not stop there, it just drives past.
Here is a blog about a fan's visit to the area, with a few more pictures, including this shot of the new "office space" Mr. King is adding right next door:

photo: Jamie Cole

Can't wait to see the gates for that one.

The Christmas Witch- La Befana

2011-01-05T00:30:00.000-08:00

Would you substitute a witch for Santa? On the night of January 5th, Italian children, or at least the ones who have been good, are given gifts by a raggedy witch called La Befana. Like a spooky(spookier?) Santa Claus, La Befana flies down chimneys or through keyholes to leave presents after deciding who has been naughty and who has been nice. Children leave out stockings hoping to wake up to discover candy and small toys. The photo shows my version of La Befana, though the broom should be the traditional rustic kind witches are usually depicted riding and she shouldn’t be green. Though she’s left some presents, she’s deciding to leave coal for the bad child with the red stocking.

According to Italian legend, La Befana was a witch living at the time of the birth of Jesus. The three wise men were on their way to Bethlehem, when they invited La Befana to come along. She was busy with her housework and declined. Later, once she had finished her cleaning, she set off on her broomstick with toys for the Baby Jesus. However, she could not find the Three Kings and soon lost her way. Italian children believe that La Befana is still looking for Baby Jesus, and on the eve of the Epiphany (January 6th), she flies down the chimney of each house, and leaves gifts in the children’s stockings by the fireplace and looking for the Baby Jesus. But those Italians live the good life: instead of cookies and milk, families leave wine and fruit for La Befana.

There are festivals featuring La Befana, with with main one in the small medieval town of Urbania in central Italy. About 40,000 people flock to Urbania in the 2 weeks after Christmas to have their kids sit on the lap of a woman dressed up as an ugly old witch, while over 100 other women dressed as witches gather in the main square, handing out candy, juggling, stilt-walking, and otherwise dancing in the streets.

photo: spiegel.de

photo: viverebo.it

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If this wasn't enough to encourage you to make the trip, note that Urbania also is home to Chiesa dei Morti, the Church of the Dead, where 18 mummies are on display.

photo: museionline.it

Flight of a Million Bats

2010-12-31T18:59:00.000-08:00

Brown Bat photo: oregonlive.com

It's official! 2011 has been declared The Year of The Bat by the United Nations Environment Programme. The idea of the campaign is to promote conservation, research and education on the world's only flying mammals. There are 1100 bat species in the world- around half of which are currently at risk. "Compared to animals like tigers and elephants, bats receive little positive attention," says Andreas Streit, Executive Secretary of EUROBATS, a European bat conservation group. "But they are fascinating mammals and play an indispensable role in maintaining our environment." Bats provide many ecological benefits, such as pest control and seed dispersal.

So in light of the New Year, may I present to you the one and a half million bats that live under the Congress Bridge in Austin, Texas. Video from a "Bat Tour" boat that goes under the bridge answers all your batty questions, and shows the flight of over a million bats at twilight (and no, they are not the sparkly vampires from 'Twilight' the movie.)

Have a Happy New Year (of the Bat)!

Devil Caganer

2010-12-25T17:40:00.000-08:00

It's Christmas and I am working an 8-hour day here at the major public utility known as the Deathstar. What's wrong with this picture? Nothing. Nothing at all. 'Cuz I brought in some Hauntcast podcasts to catch up on. Hauntcast rocks. Halloween prop-talk at Christmas- life is good.

photo: cloudmonkey.com

I am also pondering an odd Christmas custom native to Catalonia. Catalonians set up Nativity scenes like many people do. But they also have a tradition of including a guest visiting the manger, and this guest behaves more like Borat than anything pure and innocent. Sorry if this is so gross you lose your Christmas dinner, but this guest is always a figure shown defecating at the manger to represent the desire for more fertile fields. Defecating? Yep, and the figure can be of anyone fictional or living, they just have to have laid a variety of log that is NOT the Yule log, if you get my drift. So there are figures of sports stars and political figures in this pose. There's Hilary Clinton and the Queen of England and the Pope and Sponge Bob Squarepants. All defecating. And there's the devil. Look closely behind him- he's doing his thing. I love Catlalonia, but that is one strange custom.

photo: gurldogg

photo: chinapost.com.tw

Haunted Fire Bowls

2010-12-21T16:08:00.000-08:00

photo: speedcult.com

Of course you want to keep warm during those chilly nights out on the patio. Or perhaps you greet trick-or- treaters and other visitors out on your front driveway, and want to do it in comfort and style.

photo: speedcult.com

Consider cozying up to this 37" diameter devil girl fire bowl. Hell yes, you'll be mesmerized by more than just the dancing flames when you gaze at this hot beauty. Standing 31" high it is made of rusted steel and has holes for drainage of rainwater. $700 on the price tag, but I'll bet no one else in town has one.

Other options:

The magic of the Moon and Star fire pit by Landmann USA, brings out the sorcery in a body. Only $109.

A little short on space? Perhaps a classic urn shape suits you best.

photo: PatioGlow

Tabletop urn is almost 15" high, it uses a one pound disposable propane tank, not included. Resin urn with included bag of lavarock, $44.99.

When Holidays Collide: Halloween Town

2010-12-20T02:44:00.000-08:00

Love this one! Good for next year's Christmas card, perhaps?

Halloween Town in Burbank, CA, is one of my favorite places. But then, how can you NOT love a Halloween store that is open year-round? Lots of costumes and wigs, of course, but also some really great jewelry and a large selection of Halloween-related non-fiction books. I always enjoy their window displays, and the photos above show how it looks around Christmas. The photos below show some window mannequins as seen the rest of the year. (I don't know what the style of that man's cloak is called, but I like it. If you know, please let me know.)

I wish I could show you pictures from inside, but the employees watch you like a hawk. It's also insanely dark inside, all the time, necessitating a flash. You can't even try to sneak a shot using a cell-phone camera, or they'll take you out back, kill you and feed you to their mange-infested rats.

Well rules, schmools. On this day I was in a risk-taking mood. I daringly took one for the bloggers and managed a few photos that didn't even turn out blurry before an employee came to...uh... personally escort me.

Look! Decent quality Halloween housewares available all year! Be still your undead hearts!

I do sooo love to shop at Halloween Town. But next time I must bring someone who can cause some sort of major distraction, so I can take more interior pictures for you.

Jack-o-Lanterns on the Hill

2010-12-18T02:26:00.000-08:00

Jack-o-lantern Wishes

2010-12-03T20:51:00.000-08:00

photo: hawkins.com

And the Great Pumpkin rose from the pumpkin patch and flew through the air!

Those who believe can send a jack-o-lantern soaring with these sky lanterns. Made from flame-retardant materials, they'll glow eerily as they float silently, slowly upwards, lasting 12 to 20 minutes in the air before they extinguish themselves. All you do is light the attached fuel cell and hold the lantern until the heat fully inflates it, and then you can release it and it will drift upwards. Available in packs of 5,10 or 25, they are currently on sale. My order for a 10-pack today totaled $33.35 including the shipping charges.

photo: hawkins.com

These are considered type 1.4g consumer fireworks in the United States, so check the fireworks regulations in your area. Adults would be wise to avoid releasing these in windy conditions, near trees, power lines, or airports. Children should not be near the lanterns unless fully supervised by responsible adults. I will be taking my lanterns out to the desert for a pyrotechnic event that occurs near Valentine's Day. How romantic it will be to engage in the Asian custom of making a wish or saying a prayer before releasing a lantern and gazing at it as it rides a gentle current. The lanterns are made of biodegradable paper with no wires, just thin bamboo sticks, so they are more earth-friendly than you might guess.

Sky lanterns really make an impact when released in quantity.

Here's a 48-second video showing the effect of wish lanterns set adrift en masse at a celebration of the full moon in the capital of Thailand. It's spectacular.