By Hulkamania is running wild, Brother! I never realized it until I saw this photo by R Lopez but what this world needs is more Hulk Hogans. Not the current soft-spoken Hulk Hogan doing his reality tv thing but the 1980s Hulk Hogan, leader of the Hulkamaniacs, overly tanned, overly blond, overly oiled, and with a voice so strained that you’re waiting for the moment when all the muscles in his neck pop. Though most likely dressed up for a Halloween party I’m going to hold out hope that we’ll see more of these guys around town on a regular basis. Maybe some Macho Man Randy Savages too. OOOOH YEEEEAH!
Tag Archives: halloween
By Trick or Treat: Halloween 2012 Roundup
It’s the time of year for zombies, ghoulish pranks, copious amounts of candy corn and wondering how you can be the one sporting the best costume this year. So to keep building on that spirit, we’ve rounded up some of the places and events you should be checking out to get your trick or treat on. Click through for the full list after the jump.
By Max
Fright Night at the National Zoo
Krusty the Clown (and all other photos) by Max Cook
Usually the scariest things at the National Zoo are the lions, tigers, and screaming little kids, but as the animals slept in their cages Friday night, a different type of terror infiltrated the wooded hillside. Clowns, zombies, skeletons, and other nightmarish creatures mingled together at the annual “Night of the Living Zoo”, a spectacle I felt compelled to document. With live bands, freak shows, and loads of beer, it was a great way for hundreds of lunatics to let loose and kick off DC’s epic Halloween weekend. As with most costume events that I’ve attended, people were more than willing to pose for my camera, the results which I share with you in hopes that you have a good laugh or better yet, a good nightmare.
By Max
Zoo Animals Love Halloween Too
Asian small-clawed otter by Smithsonian’s National Zoo
They may not be able to go trick-or-treating due to, well, being locked in confined quarters, but that’s not preventing these cute zoo animals and their keepers from getting into the holiday spirit. I can’t wait for Christmas when they build snowmen with the gorillas and hang ornaments from the giraffes’ horns. Feast your eyes on the whole set here.
By Jenn Larsen
“Tiki. Tacos. Terror.”
‘Zombies!’
courtesy of ‘spiggycat’
Trust my favorite bar The Passenger to come up with a terrifyingly terrific way to spend the night before All Hallow’s Eve. Saturday, October 30 from 7pm to close, the bar will toy with the occult by serving up the infamous El Zombie cocktail, a concoction so potent it’s rumoured to turn the living into the undead!
Regular Zombie cocktails are deadly enough – with their origins in the 1930’s Tiki craze, the deceptive fruit content of these rum-based drinks mask the alcohol, resulting in the inbiber’s doooooooooom. From a haunted laboratory within the bar, test your fortitude against the El Zombie’s “evil combination of Mezcal, overproof rum, and infierno” resurrected from a secret recipe. Shudder. Continue reading
By Max
Featured Photo
DSC_0013 by mediaslave
Despite our best efforts, it’s hard to pick a favorite time of year. Some say it’s the spring when the weather starts warming up and the cherry blossoms burst onto the scene. Not long after we’re given an 80 degree day and are drinking margaritas on a patio which could easily contend for my favorite time of the year. Yet somewhere deep down in my twisted psyche, the month of October will always hold a special place.
Perhaps it’s my memory of wearing vampire teeth with fake blood on them and running door to door with my friends to fill our pillowcases full of candy. After a few years of practice, we knew which houses gave out caramel apples, which gave out toothbrushes, and which geriatric neighbors had the ability to scare the crap out of us regardless of what they were giving out. As Seinfeld once said, the main objective of a kid is to, “Get candy, get candy, get candy,” and get candy we did. Unfortunately, most houses gave out miniature versions of the real thing, from boxes of Nerds, to Dots, to Snickers. It brought us great joy when our rich neighbors down the street plopped full size candy bars into our bags. The weight of them as they hit the bottoms of our bags caused our tiny little arms to strain, but brought big smiles to our faces. We then scurried off through the crisp October air, or snow as Denver would often have, to the next lit doorway in our sweaty little costumes. We were on an important mission, a mission to get candy.
By Samer Farha
Featured Photo
‘(285/365)’
courtesy of ‘kimberlyfaye’
It’s still summer out there. Yesterday, we came within two degrees of breaking the record high temperature. Today, it’ll be in the low 80s. But fall is coming. It has to, you see:
The candy corn is in the stores. People are pumpkin picking. Sexy Big Bird costumes are in the stores. Even I am doing drinks and dinner outside.
And the Halloween decorations are out. Kim Baker‘s even got her house decorated (as do half my neighbors, it seems). There’s something just this side of menacing from that spider silhouette. But, as cool (or creepy) as that photo is, the best part of it is the sure knowledge that fall is coming.
By Max
Featured Photos
‘Laaaaaaaa!’ by spoffy
While Halloween has come and gone, I thought it would be fun to do a roundup of some the spookiest photos in our pool (which by the way is full of some amazing photos, fellow Flickrites – keep it up!). I personally don’t get too excited about putting a costume together for the holiday but I love seeing what other people come up with. Between trick-or-treating, the Dupont High Heel Race, spiderwebs spun across front yards, and skeletons hanging from doorways, it’s a scary time of the year. Not quite as scary as the arrival of the summer interns, but nonetheless, scary. More photos after the jump!
Continue reading
By shannon
DC Mythbusting: Haunted DC
‘Thomas Trueman Gaff Monument’
courtesy of ‘kimberlyfaye’
Hi, and welcome to a Halloween edition of Mythbusting! This week, I’ll see if my mythbusting skills can translate to ghostbusting. I’m going to tackle three different spooky DC myths and see if I can find any validity in the legends. Sound good? Let’s get started.
The Demon Cat in the Capitol: First off, let’s tackle one of the most widespread haunted myths of our city: the Demon Cat. There are so many ghost stories involving a black cat who appears in the Capitol as an omen before national tragedies like presidential assassinations. Legend has it that the cat has appeared before the assassinations of Lincoln and Kennedy, before the stock market crash of 1929, and even on September 10, 2001. Apparently, there are even permanent paw prints in the Capitol that show the presence of the Demon Cat! So is there really a Demon Cat?
By Karl Johnson
Halloween Costume Ideas, DC Style
‘Jack-O-Lantern wall’
courtesy of ‘E V Peters’
There’s one thing on everyone’s mind in DC this week. Health care, taxi cab fraud, economic recession…they’re all taking a back seat for now. I mean, they’re important and stuff. But the one and only thing you should be worried about right now is what you’re going to be for Halloween! You have exactly 8 days to come up with something extremely clever and amazing, figure out what you need to make it happen and then find a way to actually pull it off. We in DC hold each other to a higher standard when it comes to dressing up for this love-it or hate-it holiday. Dracula, a sheet over-your-head ghost or a cape and mask batman just won’t cut it around here. You need to be smart and unique with your costume.
Do not fear, my fellow “I was going to be a goblin until I read this post and realized that’s just not cool and I need to try much, much harder” friends. We Love DC is here to save the day yet again. Today I present to you: DC appropriate costume ideas. Some of them would only fly here in DC while some could make it elsewhere. But if there is one place in the country where these outfits would be considered a good choice on the night of October 31st (definitely don’t wear them during the day)…it’s right here in the glorious and splendid Nation’s Capitol. Now, let’s take a look at your options.
By Cathy
Trick or Treat? Local Halloween Thrills
‘Count Gore De Vol and band’
courtesy of ‘Photos by Chip Py’
Oh, Halloween. Silly Halloween. Childish Halloween. With your costumes, and your theme parties, and your candy. You’re for kids! …Aren’t you? Not in DC.
Amongst the usual suspects are some slightly sophisticated ways to spend Halloween. You can be indoors or out. Get things going early or stay out late. But you can be sure that this Halloween there’ll be tricks and treats — and naked butt cheeks (gah!).
Outdoor scares
DC’s temperate weather up until just about Halloween allows for some great outdoor scare-fests (and some costumes that seemed like a good idea). Drive for up to an hour to reach some real thrills, or stay nearby for some seriously freaky fun.
Every year since I discovered it, I’ve gone to Markoff’s Haunted Forest to scream my way through one of the two dark and spooky outdoor trails. The first year was the best, and by the second, I had remembered most of their scare tactics, but it didn’t mean it still wasn’t ridiculously fun. But what really keeps me going back is taking someone with me who has never been. It’s just an experience you need to have. An hour away, the cost is a steep $25 on a weekend.
But Markoff’s Haunted Forest also has a number of “while-you-wait” activities, such as watching a 7 year old boy climb to the top of the wobbling telephone pole “Death Jump” only to be too scared to jump off or climb down. Terrifying… Continue reading
By Katie
Halloween Traffic Looks SCARY
Typical Beltway traffic
Originally uploaded by brianmka
WTOP came out with a list of street closures (mostly in Georgetown) for tonight. Be sure to check your normal commute and halloween plans against them, and stay safe out there tonight!
Here they are: Continue reading
By Wayan
Petworth Dog Walk Halloween Photos
Last night’s Petworth Dog Walk Halloween was such great fun!
Around twenty costumed canines, and a few costumed owners, came out to Domku Restaurant to compete for prizes in three categories:
- Best Costume
- Best Trick
- Best Twin
Here we have the Petworth MPD – Metro Police Dog, winner of Best Costume and over on Flickr we have more Dog Walk photos.
Proof that this really is a Petworthian neighborhood.
A special thanks to the Dog Walk sponsors and PetworthDogs for making this happen
By Tom Bridge
Tourism: Halloween in DC
It’s the week before Halloween, and from the looks of the weather forecast, we might see a few creepy thunderstorms before the big day. So, get ready for some Haunted House action here in town as we come close to the big Trick or Treat day. Here are a few ideas for the next week or so to get your Halloweeen on.
Boo at the Zoo
October 23-26 at the National Zoo
Take your kids and trick or treat at the zoo! They’ll have special stations setup for pictures with the various exhibits, and 40 treat stations. Tickets are $15 for FONZ members and $25 otherwise. Saturday’s sold out, so get on tickets for tonight or Sunday or Monday before too much longer, or you might find yourself stuck outside.
Ghost Tour of Lafayette Park
October 27-31 in Lafayette Park
Who’d have thought that the middle of DC was haunted, especially just a block from the White House! There’s a great tour of Lafayette Park’s ghost stories being lead on weeknights through square. Who knew that Lafayette Park was such a neat place? Tickets are $10. Tonight’s tour is sold out, but there’s space left on each of the weekdays next week, including Halloween.
By Wayan
Petworth Dog Walk Halloween
Yoda Dog Costume, courtesy of matthamm
Those of us on the Petworth Dogs listserv would like to invite all our neighbours to the:
Petworth Dog Walk Halloween (flier)
a costume celebration of dogs and owners
Wednesday, October 29, 7pm @ Domku
Contestants – meet at the Clark School @ 6:30pm (7th and Alison) to wear out your favorite pooch, before suiting them up in a great costume. From there, we’ll walk our bedazzled best friends down to Upshur Street where they’ll be judged on:
- Best Doggie Costume – the classic, dress ’em up!
- Best Twins – celebrating how dogs and owners can look alike
- Best Trick – Costume or not, show your dog’s skills
The Domku patio will be the reviewing stand and the post-parade party spot.
Feel free to print out copies of our flier and take them with you when you’re out walking through the city. When you see a dog + owner, hand them a flier and encourage them to come out as a participant or observer.
A special thanks to our sponsors: Domku, Brighter Days, Little Rascals, and Yoga House Studio, and the Petworth Dogs listserv for making this happen.
By Katie
Ghost Tours @ National Building Museum
Courtesy National Building Museum
One of the creepiest places to be this fall will be the National Building Museum. And who doesn’t love creepy around Halloween time? The museum is hosting a lantern-lit ghost tour through through the NBM’s dark hallways, spooky basement, and up to the fourth floor balcony.
The hour-long Historic Hauntings Ghost Tours is led by the ghost of Mary Surratt, co-conspirator in the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. Along the way, Surratt reveals stories of the other ghosts who call the Museum home, including an irritable horseback rider and mysterious faces in the Corinthian columns. Think history meets creepy fun!
Courtesy National Building Museum
The Tours will be offered from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. on October 17, 19, 24, 28, and November 3, 16, and 23. The tours are $12 for Museum members and $14 for non- members; prepaid registration is required. Register by visiting www.nbm.org or calling 202.272.2448
BOO!