Best and worst of Halloween movies By Thomas LeClair Film Critic tjll9l @psu.edu With Halloween rapidly approaching I at the enter tainment corner am provid ing a list of some of the best and worst (and trust me, there’s plenty of that) Hollywood has to offer to pay homage to the scariest day of the year. I am contractually obligat ed to present my e-mail address with each seg ment I do, please DO NOT HARRASS ME if you get scared from one of the ten worst films (OR IF YOU GET INSULTED BY THE FACT GIGLI IS NOT ON THE LIST). See you in your dreams MWAH HA HA HA. To trick or treat, that is the PSH students celebrate Halloween By Jim Dougherty Jr., Staff Reporter The sound of rustling leaves surrounds you as you walk to class. The smell of hot chocolate intrigues you while you feel the crisp autumn air. The taste of caramel apples and pumpkin pie fills your mouth, feeding that craving for something sweet. The sight of Friday night football excites you as you relax after a busy week of school. It’s that time of year again. The time when you can start to tell where everyone on campus orig inates. True Pennsylvanians can be seen still wearing t-shirts, even when the temperature drops into the 40s or 50s. Californians and those from southern states are noticeable by their heavy sweats and heavy coats. Fall has finally arrived and you know what that means. The Red Sox are finally going to the World Series again, and better yet, Halloween is near. The idea of Halloween originat ed in the United States after Irish immigrants brought the custom with them in the 1840 s, during Fall Fest brightens the day at PSH PSH student Coleen Broderick decorates a pumpkin during this year’s Fallfest. Pumpkin decorating was one of many activites free to students. By Kelly Nagurny Assistant Editor kxnl63@psu.edu Rain, cold and dreary clouds did not keep this year’s Fallfest from being a success. Students enjoyed festive activ ities, food and entertainment inside the Olmsted lobby and Gallery Lounge as rain fell on Fallfest’s originally planned location in the Vartan Plaza. “It’s a shame that it rained on our parade,” said SGA President Rodney Horton. “But it’s our party and we’ll cry if we want to.” Clearly, they did not want to. Instead of letting the rain get them down, students participat ed in festivities such as pumpkin decorating and guessing the weight of a large pumpkin. A highlight of this year’s Fallfest was the pumpkin-judging con test. Various campus organiza tions submitted decorated pumpkins for students to judge. Many of the pumpkins reflected the individual tastes and charac teristics of the student organiza tions that made them. The International Student Services’ pumpkin was decorated like the Earth, while the Capital Times pumpkin read the latest issue of the newspaper. Featuring a con dom as a nose, the Student Health Services’ pumpkin was made out of various kinds of contraceptives. Finally, Recreation/Athletics contributed a pumpkin complete with a PSU swim cap and goggles. Students were also treated to complimentary food in the Entertainment the midst of the Irish Potato Famine. Favorite pranks of the time included the tipping of out houses and unhinging fence gates. Today, common pranks include toilet papering, egging, and smashing pumpkins (the prank, not the band). One of the most common prac tices of Halloween is trick-or treating. Trick-or-treating comes from a 9th century custom called “souling”. On November 2, All Souls' Day, Christians would walk from town to town while begging for “soul cakes”, or as I like to think of it, “ancient soul food.” The amount of soul cakes a person received determined the amount of prayers they would say for the dead relatives of those who gave them soul cakes. Today, most trick-or treaters receive candy, unless you lived in the dentist-filled neighborhood I lived in. Then you would receive a lecture on why candy is bad for you and receive a toothbrush for the time you spent listening to the den tists instead of getting more candy. Each year, Halloween cos tumes become more creative. Just take freshman Aurora Gangloff, a Health and Human Gallery Lounge. The buffet fea tured hot dogs, pumpkin cook ies, caramel apples, apple streudel bars and hot chocolate. As students enjoyed Fallfest activities, No Show Ponies, a Harrisburg band, treated the crowd to upbeat rock tunes in the lobby. While students guessed how many candy corns were in a jar, members of SGA passed out free candy. A large crowd gathered as rep resentatives of campus organi zations and clubs sat down in preparation for the pie-eating contest. The contestants sport ed “I Love Pie” t-shirts, and stu dents cheered as the contest ants dove into their chocolate creme and pumpkin pies. As some contestants began to drop out unable to finish their pies, Chi Gamma lota’s Andrew Dale and the Capital Times’ Tom LeClair were nearly tied. However, Dale managed to fin ish his pie first, winning the con test. Fallfest was sponsored and organized by the Student Government and Association and the Entertainment Council. It was also made possible by the student activity fee. Fallfest gives students a chance to relax a little during the busy mid-semester said Horton. “It acknowledges the change in season and lets us have fun.” For more information on how to get involved with campus activi ties such as Fallfest, contact the SGA in Olmsted E-136 or call (717) 948-6137 Development major, for exam ple. Gagloff plans to dress up as Malibu Barbie for her 18th time trick-or-treating. “I’ve been trick or treating since I was born,” said Gangloff, whose favorite Halloween movies are the Leprechaun movies. She hopes to receive many Snickers bars in her bag, so that she can freeze them to make her favorite snack. Although many college students are reluctant to go trick-or-treat ing for fear of being “too old”, many recall their most creative Halloween costumes. Sherri Espenshade, a freshman DUS major and avid Reese's Peanut Butter Cup lover, recalled when she dressed as chewed bubble gum. “I wore pink pants, a pink shirt, and duct taped a shoe to my head. I went around, put my finger on people and told them ‘l’m stuck on you.’” Dan Berger, a senior Accounting major and Krackel bar aficionado, recalled when he dressed as Robin Hood. “I had a bow and some arrows, but by the end of my trick-or-treating, I was out of arrows. It’s an unsolved mystery,” he said. Berger pro vided some earth-shattering advice in saying “toilet paper is good-for many reasons,” and Harrisburg band No Show Ponies provided entertain ment for students as they enjoyed Fall Fest activities. Andrew Dale, winner of the pie-eating contest, nears the finish line. Dale competed in the contest as a repre sentative of Chia Gamma lota. “Protection Pete” was a pumpkin submitted to the pumpking-judging contest by Student Health Services Pete was made of different kinds of contraceptives. The Capital Times question continued on to highly recom mending Stir of Echoes, for a scary movie. Others who do not participate in trick-or-treating find better use of their time, but still join in the Halloween festivities. “I like dressing up and scaring people. I have a fifty-fifty success rate. Hopefully, I can improve on that this year,” said Michelle Ripka, a junior Criminal Justice major. This year, Ripka will be handing out candy instead of trick-or treating. George Young, Residence Life Coordinator, claimed that he is not a trick-or-treater. On being asked why he liked Halloween, Young said, “I like seeing the lit tle kids dressed up and having fun. Seeing the tradition passed down through generations is a beautiful thing.” Whether you trick-or-treat or not, Halloween is a time for fun and enjoyment for all ages. Whether you go to hay rides or haunted houses, be sure to cele brate Halloween the right way this year. A number of parties are being held on campus. Be sure to be safe and not eat too much candy. You have to save room for the next big holiday, Thanksgiving. Until then, have a great time and share your cand. Photos by Kelly Nagurny
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers