Boo, it’s Halloween. Are you going as Beetlejuice, or do you have a cool Halloween costume? Do you have Gluten-free treats for the kids? Amazing snacks that look like eyeballs and intestines? Pumpkin carved with teeth that look like the Manhattan skyline? Well, two out of four is batting .500, which the SF Giants’ RF Hunter Pence got close to with .444. If you’re scoring at home, we’re happy for you!
Madeline Albright one-ups Conan:
Today, Halloween-themed music:
Here is the 1978 hit about everyday monsters in the city. “Werewolves of London”, by the late Warren Zevon has lyrics that make werewolves seem like an everyday phenomenon: “Little old lady got mutilated late last night, werewolves of London again.” Join the pack:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhSc8qVMjKM
Second, “Monster Mash” by the late Bobby Pickett. Here is a young Dick Clark on American Bandstand in 1962 introducing Bobby Pickett, who performs his throw-back Halloween classic, in which he succeeds in sounding like Boris Karloff:
Next, “Thriller” by the late Michael Jackson. This is a 13+ minute video about a nightmare with zombies, directed by Jon Landis. The song/dance routine that most of you have seen on TV starts at 9:41. If you start then, you will miss Vincent Price’s “rap” at 6:35 and the entire premise of the production. Michael says “I’m not like other guys,” at the start of the video. That was in 1982, and may have been the truest thing he ever said. This gets the Wrongologist’s vote as best Halloween video:
Finally, on the last day of October, “When October Goes” from Barry Manilow. I KNOW, who thinks Barry is relevant? Well, he is today:
The lyrics are from a poem by Johnny Mercer. Mercer’s wife found them following his death. She gave the poem to Barry, who later said it took him just 15 minutes to write the tune. It is from Barry’s great jazz album of the 1980s, 2:00AM – Paradise Cafe.
