Thursday, May 23, 2013

Haunt Dreaming 2013

I've been thinking about what I should do for my haunt this year. I really enjoyed last year's haunt, I didn't do a lot of planning or have a prior intention for the haunt, I just used what I already had to its best effect.

This year I've been thinking a lot about doing more of a show than a walk-through display. Oregon tends to be rainy and cold by the end of October, and it shore would be nice to offer my cozy little carport as a shelter for the trick or treaters bold enough to brave the elements. You know, hot cider, doughnut holes, and spook stuff.

What I've been thinking is, adapting those projector based singing jack'o'lantern effects, but instead of just a pumpkin, it would be some kind of a pumpkin monster.

Of course, old Jack 'o' the Lantern leaps immediately to mind, but I haven't been able to come up with an interesting enough twist on him. Then I discovered El Cuco, the latin American pumpkinheaded boogeyman. It offers an interesting twist for sure. Perhaps, El Gordo, the gourd headed ghoul? I dunno.

I thought I would throw the conundrum out to you folks.  Whaddayou think? In your minds eye, how do you imagine Stingy Jack or El Cuco would look?

Did you ever have a monster under the bed, or lurking in the closet? What did it look like? What was the more frightening monster that ever haunted your nightmares?

4 comments:

  1. El Cuco is totally new to me. I just read the Wiki page about him. I couldn't tell what El Cuco looks like from reading that. It sounds like there are a few interpretations. I like your idea of a pumpkinheaded boogeyman. The Goya pic on that page looked like the ghost made out of a sheet idea. A pumpkinheaded ghost has me thinking of this old image: http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_oAQKoE_Dd18/SwsDxdHbW8I/AAAAAAAAATQ/Ws2pjqXLDts/s1600/Invitation+front.jpg

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yeah, the Cuco has a number of different features. Alternately described as a scaly dragon thing, under-bed monster that eats naughty children, a shrouded figure with three holes in its face for the eyes and mouth, or as a gourd headed figure in a shroud.

    So much potential!

    ReplyDelete
  3. When I was a child, my bed was lopsided by the bulk of the inhabitants that lurked under it: El Cucu, El Bacá and La Llorona were among them.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Oh geez, I wouldn't want a Llorona under my bed.

    ReplyDelete