The Abbott & Costello Meet Halloween Haunted House Theme

Tired of the same old Halloween haunted house ideas? Looking for something a little unique to set your Halloween haunted house apart from the cool Buffy the Vampire Slayer one or the tired Freddie, Jason and Pinhead chasing people around one? How about something a little retro that requires some imagination? This year why not throw an Abbott & Costello Meet Halloween Haunted House?

What exactly is an Abbott & Costello Meet Halloween Haunted House? First, some people are going to have to be educated on who Abbott & Costello are. A&C were the number one box office attraction in the early 40s; a comedy team featuring a not-as-dumb-as-acts fat guy and a not-as-smart-as-he-thinks tall, thin straight man. Their best movies featured them coming into contact with various Universal Studio monsters such as Dracula, Frankenstein, the Wolf Man and the Mummy. (There was an Abbott & Costello meet the Invisible Man, but that was less a spoof of horror movies than of boxing movies.) The team also made one of the best funny ghost stories ever, The Time of Their Lives.

But back to the Halloween party. Here’s why an Abbott & Costello Meet Halloween Party requires some imagination. Since most of their movies—and all of the good ones—were shot in black & white, the first rule is that the entire party must be done monochromatically. In other words, all the costumes must be made of clothing that is black, white or grey. Same with the make-up. Same with the decorations.