Halloween is that peculiar time when "this is me" is me trying to be someone or something else. At least that used to be me...
When I was a kid I loved Halloween. It was my third favorite holiday after Christmas and Thanksgiving. Candy was the big draw, but dressing up was fun--often creative fun. When I started working on the touring shows I was dressing up all the time as part of my job. Dressing up and performing before audiences was like trick or treat come to real life.
Some of you might recall that my blog Tossing It Out started in September of 2009 as a Halloween blog. Since my job of 18 years managing a wholesale costume warehouse in the Los Angeles area had ended and no new job was appearing before me, I decided to take up blogging with the intent of writing about what I knew--the Halloween industry. That direction soon changed as I became more interested in writing and chasing down eclecticism.
When the recent blackface controversies arose I started thinking back to see if I could recall whether I had ever seen anyone I knew made up in blackface. I couldn't recall ever seeing anyone other than on TV or movies in blackface. I was positive that I had never done it. Then I came across a photo from around 1993 which I have reproduced below. Yes, this is me with my two youngest daughters all dressed up for Halloween.
I don't see any problem with my black and white themed costume and I certainly didn't have any racial intent in dressing this way. Actually I had a pair of white pants that I never wore so I decided to use them for Halloween. At my workplace we sold the black shirts, white suspenders and ties, and the make-up so I combined them all for my study in black and white.
But, yes, this is me...
Pictured alongside me are my daughters (left to right) Emilee and Angelina. Emilee is now a star real estate agent in NJ and Ange, also in NJ, is a mother of two children as well as an amazing pastry chef who turns out some spectacular cakes and other goodies that I love to eat even though I probably shouldn't.
Do you see any problem with my costume as pictured? Aren't my daughters adorable? Did you like Halloween as a child and do you like it now? If you had children did you ever dress up in costume to take them trick-or-treating?
