Halloween (Holiday)

"This is Halloween, this is Halloween. Pumpkins scream in the dead of night."

- Pumpkin Chorus

History
Halloween is a secular holiday celebrated every year on the evening of October 31st. Its origins date back several centuries to the Celtic Feast of Samhain. It was believed that on the night of the festival, the doorway between the lands of the living and the dead were thin, enabling spirits from the afterworld entrance into the real world. While the spirits of beloved family members were welcome, evil spirits were feared and unwelcome. Patrons of the festival warded off evil spirits by wearing frightful masks, which eventually evolved into the custom of wearing decorative costumes on Halloween night. In modern years, the tradition of Halloween is celebrated primarily by children who dress up in costumes and walk from house to house intoning the words "Trick or Treat". As per the custom, the owner of the household was obliged to reward the child with a prize, usually in the form of candy. Halloween is celebrated by adults as well, who regularly attend costume parties on the week of Halloween either at personal residences or at bars, night clubs or theme parks. Universal Studios hosts a Halloween celebration throughout the entire month of October called Halloween Horror Nights. Many horror-themed fan conventions also take place during this time, in which attendees are encouraged to arrive in costume where they have the opportunity to meet and get autographs from famous horror film cast members.

In film
Halloween is a central plot device used in many horror films, in particular, the eponymous Halloween series. The following is a list of films that revolve around or take place on Halloween.


 * Halloween (1978)
 * Halloween II (1981)
 * Halloween III: Season of the Witch
 * Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers
 * Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers
 * Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers
 * Halloween H20: Twenty Years Later
 * Halloween: Resurrection
 * Halloween (2007)
 * Halloween II (2009)
 * The Crow
 * The Nightmare Before Christmas
 * Trick or Treat
 * Trick 'r Treat

Notes & Trivia

 * In the Tim Burton film, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Jack Skelington, the Pumpkin King, is the de facto leader of a bizarre and magical world called Halloweentown.


 * The defunct professional wrestling brand WCW used to hold an annual pay-per-view event called "Halloween Havoc". Child's Play icon Chucky made a special guest appearance at the 1998 Halloween Havoc to promote his new film Bride of Chucky.