Hollywood Halloween. How about that…. two perfectly matched words side by side like that, and in context. Well… last night’s West Hollywood Halloween Carnaval confirmed my faith in Los Angeles (in the broader sense) as a city where people can indeed come together in vast numbers in if there’s enough will to do so. And boy do I mean vast. I’ve never seen this many people in good spirits in such close proximity in this city, and not this many anywhere since those days I’d go to big rock concerts (yeah, I know, hard to believe) …and never this many adults out for fun while at the same time there being no sources of alcohol in evidence. Impressive (Above and below, click images for larger view.)
As a Halloween festival, with people wandering around in costume looking at each other appreciatively (more so than even the usual high level of this in West Hollywood), it was of a very high standard. People made the effort (well, except, I’m embarrassed to say, me and my friends, who were in ordinary clothes feeling quite under-dressed) and showed up in quite marvellous costumes of all sorts. Really good representatives of the undead were everywhere, any number of angels, demons, priests, bishops, Spartans, nuns, cops, twisted versions of all of these, construction workers, slutty types of several genders and orientations, the usual smattering of superheroes and stormtroopers and the like, really excellent Heath Ledger Jokers (the nurse version being the most popular), and several shockingly excellent Sarah Palins.
Actually, I think I’ve only hit on the merest top surface of all the wonderful stuff that 
was there. (Like the swing dancing team – in action – with names of certain US states written on them. This team turned out to be… the swing states. Of course.) And it went on for ages… block after block chock full of costumed people, a few stages set up with performers (bands and DJs), food stands, cafes open really late (yay!), people willingly on foot enjoying walking in their city for miles around, this all going on until well after midnight, and of course… who knows how many genuine members of the undead taking the opportunity to mingle with the warm willing flesh on offer.
Excellent.
-cvj
Pingback: Halloween Decisions at Asymptotia
Did anyone see the girl riding the giant ostrich at the carnaval?
I have to ask: did you ever make it to Glastonbury before it became part of the corporate entertainment circus? I did, and my memories of what it was like seem pretty much like what you describe in your post.
RE: Sexy nurses. I am also happy to report that I behaved honorably with all the naked Michal Phelps. Although I have a sneaky suspicion that they were playing for the other team, which is not Canada, obviously. 🙂
Clifford, you need a T-shirt saying “String Theory is Sexy,” since per WeHo store, hope also apparently is.
Hi Supernova,
There were indeed a number of sexy nurses. Perhaps I saw your sister… I’m happy to report that I behaved honourably with all the sexy nurses. 🙂
-cvj
Hi Yvette,
As I said in the post I did not go in anything but ordinary clothes (albeit all black) since I did not have time to seek costume items this year. I tried to get some good fangs in one random halloween store, (always good to flash a scary smile), but good fangs are hard to find in the cheapo stores, and I could not get to the good store I know on Hollywood Blvd in time. So as Jude said I guess I went as a theoretical physicist… that is, totally visually unremarkable.
-cvj
My sister was there. See any sexy nurses?
To elaborate on what Jude said, what were you dressed as? I’m curious about your creative costuming abilities. 😉
You mean you went as a physics professor? Sounds ilke a simple costume for you to pull off. I resented the few people who said I should have dressed as Sarah Palin. Just because I’m pale, short, wear glasses, and have dark hair doesn’t make me a whacko from Wasilla.
My friends and I met a Sarah Palin waitress at the first pub we attended last night. This was particularly apt, as my friend Rebecca was dressed as an Arctic wolf being hunted from an airplane.
I was amused to read in the newspaper that there have been vast sales of Sarah Palin masks in the run up to Halloween!