Halloween Holiday History
This Halloween activity involves trying to catch apples floating in a basin of water without using your hands (only your teeth).
What is apple bobbing?
"You'll float too!"
Who is Pennywise the Dancing Clown (IT)?
This religious young woman was portrayed by Sissy Spacek in de Palma's 1976 film and develops telekinetic powers after being bullied.
Who is Carrie White?
Say her name three times in a mirror to encounter this long-dead lady.
Who is Bloody Mary?
These banana-flavored marshmallows are considered the least popular Halloween candy in the United States.
What are Circus Peanuts?
In England, Scotland, and Ireland, these vegetables were originally carved with faces instead of pumpkins.
What are turnips?
"Movies don’t create psychos. Movies make psychos more creative."
Who is Billy Loomis (Scream)?
Played by Sigourney Weaver, the warrant officer of the ship Nostromo encounters a hostile superorganism - a xenomorph - after investigating a transmission from a broken-down spaceship.
Who is Ripley?
First sighted in Puerto Rico, this beast gets its name from its habit of hunting down and feeding on livestock, particularly goats.
What is the Chupacabra?
The cousin of the Mallowcreme Pumpkin, these candies are also known as "chicken feed".
What is candy corn?
This post-equinox, pre-solstice Gaelic holiday originates what we today call Halloween, with offerings to appease pagan deities and door-to-door "mumming" in costume.
What is Samhain?
"Wouldst thou like the taste of butter? A pretty dress? Wouldst thou like to live deliciously?"
Who is Black Phillip (The VVitch)?
This practitioner of hoodoo, played by Wunmi Mosaku, is tasked with protecting her community when a group of hostile vampires attacks.
Who is Annie?
This waterlogged ghost is said to wander rivers in perpetual mourning for her own children (who she drowned).
Who is La Llorona?
In the 1950s, pushy marketing from these three candies changed the dominant Halloween treat from homemade sweets to chocolate bars.
What are Reeses, Snickers, or Kit Kats?
This Irish cake was historically made on Halloween with charms placed inside to tell one's fortune (a ring for marriage, a coin for wealth).
What is barmbrack (báirín breac)?
"No tears, please. It's a waste of good suffering."
Who is Pinhead (Hellraiser)?
Portrayed by Lupita Nyong'o, this mother of two encounters her doppelganger in a house of mirrors as a child, not expecting her to return thirty years later to take revenge on her and her family.
Who is Adelaide Thomas (or Adelaide Wilson)?
Rumored to roam the British Isles, this shaggy black dog is either a companionable spirit, the devil in disguise, or an omen of death (depending on who you ask).
Who is Black Shuck (or Old Shuck)?
What are Jelly Belly Jelly Beans?
In France, the dead rise on Halloween to participate in this eerie dance, a reminder to all who participate not to forget the end of all things (which is also featured in Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book).
What is the danse macabre?
"How far are you willing to go, Michael?"
Who is David (Lost Boys)?
After being invited to a fancy prix fixe dinner on a private island, this final girl (played by Anya Taylor-Joy) has to survive after the chef reveals his grand plan to murder all of the customers and staff by the end of the night.
Who is Margot OR who is Erin?
Who said ghosts have to be human? This mysterious arcade cabinet was said to hypnotize young gamers in the 1980s, resulting in seizures, hallucinations, and amnesia.
What is Polybius?
Let's give some love to second place - these teeth-sticking gummies were the second most popular Halloween candy of 2025, and Washington state's favorite!
What are Tropical Gushers?