Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Dressed to impress: Halloween costumes adjust with the times

Slipping into a medieval "vampiress" dress at the Halloween Experience costume store, 11-year-old Katie Ohene smoothed out the wrinkles and examined the velvet costume.

"We're trying to find something scary," she explained, while her younger brother, Freddie, waited nearby.

At the counter of the store on West Lake Mead Boulevard, customers lined up to purchase bloody rubber limbs, skeleton heads and severed ears. With ample glee children spoke of their grim reaper robes and witch hats.

Despite a national trend to spend less on Halloween fright this year in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, many local celebrants plan to remain true to Halloween's scary traditions.

"In tough times, people still want to party and have fun to help them get past it," Ann Siegel, owner of the Halloween Experience, said.

Customers both adults and children are buying monster masks, ghoulish disguises and the popular "Scream" costumes (the flowing robe and horror-faced costume worn by the killer in the movie franchise), Siegel said.

But those who don't want gory or frightful looks this year have a wide selection of humorous and traditional costumes to choose from, including "Austin Powers" movie characters, disco divas, sumo wrestlers and even food condiments.

Characters from the 1939 movie "The Wizard of Oz" are popular among masqueraders. Dorothy, the red-shoed, wide-eyed-girl from Kansas who ventured to Oz, is still a favorite costume among women and girls, Siegel said.

And so are more standard costumes, such as witches and angels.

"Angel wings, by far, are the biggest seller," Siegel said. "(And) we sell a lot of chicken and gorilla suits still.

"All the comicals things that make people laugh are popular ... And anything that returns people to the good times, the '50s and '60s ... Clowns are a staple every year. Renaissance has been huge the last few years."

Because of the terrorist attacks, Siegel said, she put in a late order for children's and adult Statue of Liberty and Uncle Sam costumes, which she normally doesn't carry in her stores (including those, open only during the Halloween season, at Galleria at Sunset mall and the 7481 W. Lake Mead Blvd. outlet; a third store is open year-round at 5800 S. Valley View Blvd.).

But the patriotic costumes are not selling as fast as Siegel thought they would, she said. On the company's website, halloweenmart.com, Siegel said she is seeing more requests this year for children's firemen, doctor and policemen costumes.

At her stores, however, "I don't find that yet. They're still wanting funny costumes and super-hero costumes ... Super-hero (costumes) for kids are always big."

At the Target store on Stephanie Street in Henderson, Manager Beverley Dileva said she has seen less interest this year in the "Scream" costume, as well as other darker-themed costumes. Parents are purchasing more traditional, wholesome costumes for their children.

"Right after Sept. 11 people were coming in asking for policeman and fireman costumes," Dileva said. "We sold a lot of them.

"Our scary, ugly masks don't seem to be selling."

The No. 1-seller for children this year, according to Disguise Inc., an international costume design and manufacturing company in San Diego, is the blue Power Ranger costume, followed by princess costumes, said Brenda Sullivan, a spokeswoman for Disguise.

In general, children are opting for more traditional costumes this Halloween, Sullivan said.

A survey conducted late this summer by Disguise concluded that the top costume plans for children ages 9 and younger were princesses, pumpkins and Power Rangers. Barbie and Winnie the Pooh characters also topped the list.

Following the terrorist attacks, stores across the country reordered firefighter, pilot and super-hero costumes from Disguise.

"We were inundated with requests," Sullivan said. "Within one week we were sold out on (hero) costumes that we normally wouldn't sell out on."

According to national media reports, people plan to wear less gore-related costumes this year.

At Disguise, Sullivan said, "In terms of reordering, we're not seeing gory (costume) reordering (from the East). In the western part of the country, it's the same as last year."

Requests for political masks this year, however, have been huge.

"After the attacks retailers added characters of (Secretary of State) Colin Powell and (Vice President Dick) Cheney," Sullivan said, "whereas normally they would have only carried the president."

Retailers outside of the New York area that sell Halloween costumes have been asking for masks of New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, which is a first for Disguise, she said. (Normally, only stores in the city want mayor masks, she said).

Sullivan said that retailers have not requested Osama bin Laden masks, nor is the company making them.

No gags from gagsters

In an unusual change of pace, Spencer Gifts, known for its outrageous political, pop-culture and racy gags, toys and greeting cards, is not selling rubber masks of President Bush because the company said it was not suitable.

"The company wants us to be behind the president, not make jokes about him," said Pat Marcinko, assistant manager at Spencer Gifts at the Boulevard mall.

But at the Halloween Experience, where Bush masks are sold, one customer turned the president into a super hero.

"We sold a Superman costume with a George Bush mask," Siegel said.

The lack of Bush masks hanging on the wall of the Halloween section at Spencer Gifts isn't the only sign that the chain has toned down this season. Store employees were also given explicit instructions: No bloody limbs are to hang in the store's front window.

"They don't want anything to look in bad taste," Marcinko said.

And salespeople, who are required to wear costumes during the Halloween season, have been told by the company to tone down on the gore in the wake of the attacks.

"They asked us not to wear anything bloody," Marcinko said.

Dileva said Target employees also have been asked by management to tone down the wearing of gory costumes this year.

"We're trying to keep it appropriate, more of a fun kind of thing," Deliva said.

Henderson resident Deena Jannoud said she typically refrains from dressing herself and her young children in gory costumes on Halloween.

"They're too young for that," she said while strolling a costume aisle at Jo-Ann, etc, craft and sewing store in Henderson.

"They want to be knights this year," she said pointing to her 5-year-old son, Tyler, and 2-year-old son, Ryan.

"One is going to be a gladiator knight. One is going to be a medieval knight."

Clay Miller, manager at Star Costumes, a costume rental and retail store on East Sahara Avenue, said he hasn't had many requests this year for gore-related costumes.

"That's changed over the years, though," Miller said. "I don't think it has to do with anything that's happened."

The terrorist attacks have, however, had a direct impact on the store's patriotic costumes, most of which have already been rented, he said.

"Sixties and '70s, 'pimp' and 'ho' sexy vinyl wear is still popular," Miller said. "But we do have more requests than usual for Statue of Liberty and Uncle Sam costumes."

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