Halloween on TV in the 90s

One of the shows I regularly watched in the 1990s was Family Matters. I remember watching the first Halloween themed episode aired in during the 1990-91 season and have rewatched it many time since. The main plot involves Laura and Urkel being held hostage during a bank robbery. 

I'm now trying to remember if I dressed up then, because for a while I was out of the loop on Halloween in the 1990s. Hard to believe, given how much I get into it now. I also wonder where they could have gotten the costumes. I'm guessing at Kmart, Target or Walmart. I only remember one Spirit Halloween store open in the 1990s and it's said to have begun in the 1980s. Did Spirit once sell costumes in garment bags? I know I got at least one costume that decade at Kmart, and it did not come in a garment bag. And the Hunchback and Leatherface costumes for women? And Bette Davis in Whatever Happened to Baby Jane as a costume--that was a thing then? At least it wasn't this one:

Janet Jackson and a Ninja Turtle--definitely the early 1990s. 

I cannot help wondering how this scenario would play out today. Only Rapunzel from Tangled seems to be available today. And there would mostly be "sexy-this-or-that" options. How would Rachel and Harriet have reacted to that, or even the Grandma? Eddie and Rodney might still be trying to terrorize the neighborhood with eggs, TP and soap. And they would likely buying costumes on Amazon or Spirit online. 

Amazon and the Internet of course did not exist then. Which brings me to an episode of the little-remembered 90s sitcom Just the Ten of Us, a spinoff from the popular Growing Pains. This wasn't actually a Halloween episode, but one focused on a medieval-themed school dance. It aired during the previous TV season (1989-90), but also during the 1990 calendar year, supposedly taking place in February when the episode aired. If that was in fact the case, where could they possibly have been ordering costumes from in the off-season? See the episode below, with commentary:

Again, I'm trying to imagine the scenario would play out today. Today they would  be ordering the outfits from Amazon, particularly in the off-season. And sending them in the wrong sizes doesn't seem too far off to be happening today. Makes me wonder why no current sitcom (as far as I know) has had an episode with a plot like this, what with many people ordering things online. Has an order mix-up like this ever happened to any of you in real-life?

Did Anyone Ever Want to Be That?

In the last week or so, posts have been coming up in my Facebook feed on old-school costumes. Many of you will remember those that came with a plastic mask and a vinyl slip-on outfit (that looked like a hospital gown) with a picture of the character and their name. I remember these, but can't recall ever wanting any. My mom must have been great at making my costumes. 

It seemed there were costumes made for both popular and obscure TV and celebrity face. Shows like Happy Days, The Love Boat, Laverne and Shirley and Welcome Back, Kotter were among those depicted in the boxed costumes through which you could see only the mask. 

I wrote on this back in 2009, how many random characters or celebrities were depicted this way. But the recent posts coming up in my Facebook feed have been showing really obscure celebrities depicted, ones I had to look up. A few too many to mention, but here are few. If you don't know, look them up! (And one year I found this in a local thrift store).

And some not-so-obscure references, but questionable as to whether anyone wanted to be them (again, only a few, as there are too many to mention). And would any parent have allowed their child to be Sport from Taxi Driver or Ratso Rizzo (Midnight Cowboy)?

All these seem to fall into the scenario of someone getting stuck with one of them if their parents waited till a day or two before Halloween get them a costume. All  Casper or Spider Man costumes were sold out and these weird ones were what all that were left. How humiliated would have a child have been to have this happen? Others would likely question them "Who are you supposed to be?" and no one would get it. And the poor child would have to explain that it was one of the only ones left at the store.

I saw on some of the boxes that there are perfect not just for Halloween, but also for school plays and costume parties. Where were people getting these in the off-season, since Amazon and the Internet did not exist then?

Also, many of you will remember Ben Cooper and Collegeville were the top producers of tases flimsy costumes, but Halco was another. But some of those pictured above were said to come from Starlite Costumes (and Starlight Costumes--were these the same company?) Also from Continental Costumes and Empire Costumes. I looked up each of those, but could not find anything.  I guess these were not as well known, or didn't last as long as Ben Cooper or Collegeville.

As I said, I do not remember wearing any of these kinds of costumes. Pictures of these for characters like Strawberry Shortcake, Holly Hobbie and Laura from Little House on the Prairie have turned up online, but I have no recollection of seeing them back in the day.  And I loved these characters. I never chose to be any of them even if I could have had a homemade costume. And certainly no one of any age would want to be any of these today. Too much explaining would be needed.

2027 Reading Challenge @ Beyond the Bookends

It's getting to be that time! One of the ones I look forward to each year. The first one I've signed up for 2027. 

Jan:

Feb:

March:

April:

May:

June:

July:

Aug:

Sept: 

Oct:

Nov: 

Dec:

Thursday 13

Colleen at The Thursday 13 holds a weekly blogging prompt where bloggers make a list of 13 things on Thursdays. The topic is for you to choose.  

More Halloween fun this week.

Pumpkin Junction

A week ago today, our work group took our annual pumpkin patch trip. The year, the pumpkins we saw were at Casa de Fruta, a popular roadside attraction in Hollister, California (where I live). If you ever get to this area of California, I urge you to visit this place. It's a lot of fun.

The trip allowed us to see all areas of the place, but the pictures I am sharing are of the Pumpkin Junction. I took a lot (also took pictures form the other areas of the place), it was hard to choose what to include here.

Upon returning to work, some of us painted our pumpkins. Mine is in the last three photos.

Book Discussion: Accidentally Re-Reading

 

Yes, I've had this happen when I look at books in a store, mainly if they are used. But another thing that happens often is checking out a book form the library, unaware if I've already read it. This has happened many times, and I usually see right way on Goodreads if I have already read the book. But that was not the case this past week, when I entered a book I had borrowed and din't see until I was finished that I had read it several years earlier. Though it was one that must not have been memorable if I did not remember the name. I also fear that I might try (unknowingly) to re-read books I already have at home that I'm not really interested in reading again. I really need to go through and decide which ones to get rid of, that I don't feel interested in re-reading.

Has this happened to you? 

Thursday 13

Colleen at The Thursday 13 holds a weekly blogging prompt where bloggers make a list of 13 things on Thursdays. The topic is for you to choose.  

Some new cartoons for Halloween.