Halloween back in the day.

**Dfd** · October-06-17, 10:48 AM

Hi everyone. I thought I would bring this post back up.

**Dfd** · October-14-18, 06:38 PM

I enjoy reading these every year!

**Maof** · October-15-18, 10:24 AM

I was 8 or 9 years old and lived near Mack and Alter. Got it trouble, big time, for crossing Mack Ave. because we heard the pizza joint was passing out slices. Pretty sure it was Carmens.

**GPCharles** · October-15-18, 11:03 AM

In Grosse Pointe in the 1960s we just stood on our porch in our costumes and the neighbors' servants would bring the candy to us.

**Maof** · October-15-18, 11:22 AM

Originally Posted by GPCharles

In Grosse Pointe in the 1960s we just stood on our porch in our costumes and the neighbors' servants would bring the candy to us.

......LOL

**Maof** · October-15-18, 11:24 AM

Originally Posted by GPCharles

In Grosse Pointe in the 1960s we just stood on our porch in our costumes and the neighbors' servants would bring the candy to us.

Oh wait, are you serious?

**ct_alum** · October-16-18, 11:08 AM

Originally Posted by Maof

I was 8 or 9 years old and lived near Mack and Alter. Got it trouble, big time, for crossing Mack Ave. because we heard the pizza joint was passing out slices. Pretty sure it was Carmens.

Sure it wasn't Bel Cassino? Used to stop there once a week on my way home from Jackson Jr. High, a buddy and me would split a small pizza.

**Hermod** · October-16-18, 07:17 PM

We used to use shopping bags in the late 40s and early fifties. We would go out, fill up two shopping bags and go out and fill up one more [[all in covering four blocks). Unfortunately, my father would pick through the best goodies from our first foray while we were gone on the second.

My mother had a "class" system for handing out goodies. Kids of people she knew got lovely pre-assembled goodie bags of stuff while the hoi poloi would get a couple of peanut butter "kisses" [[one black and one orange).

**Maof** · October-16-18, 07:43 PM

Originally Posted by ct_alum

Sure it wasn't Bel Cassino? Used to stop there once a week on my way home from Jackson Jr. High, a buddy and me would split a small pizza.

Maybe. I'm sure it was between Manistique and Philip on Mack

**pjbear05** · October-18-18, 02:15 PM

Originally Posted by Bobl

Cork lining from a bottle cap, singed on the gas stove provided the beard. Patches basted onto jeans and one of Dad's old hats completed the "hobo" costume. A pillow case to hold the loot. Nobody in our neighborhood said "trick or treat". It was "help the poor". We were actually damned near poor, but didn't know it. The bars on Gratiot were bountiful. Some patrons would give quarters, a couple of times a dollar.

" help the poor, my pants are tore, gimme some money I'll buy some more ", did the hobo dress up a number of years. Later in life wired a small PA speaker which was hidden in a pumpkin on the porch. I would be inside, the room darkened and make snarky comments about the kids in costume. Best party costume was as Gene Simmons, make up and all. I still would like to be in full costume and make up as Pinhead from the Hellraiser series-Doug Bradley was da man!

**Former_Detroiter** · October-19-18, 01:37 PM

Halloween in 50's Detroit was magical. It was the only night the kids in the neighborhood didn't have to be home before the street lights came on. All the costumes back then were homemade. My dad would pick up a pumpkin at Eastern Market on Halloween Eve when they were giving them away. No such thing as Devil's night. We didn't have to take our goodies to the police station to be inspected. After we covered both sides of our block [[Conner south of Jefferson) and dropped off our candy at home we hit Jefferson between Conner and Alter Rd. Every business was open including the banks which was always a favorite because all the kids had one chance to reach in a huge bowl and bring out as many pennies as we could grab. Back then there were no boarded up businesses or empty storefronts. Parents didn't have to worry because the streets were packed with neighborhood kids who all knew each other because we all walked together everyday to Keating Elementary. There were no yellow buses and no charter schools. I wouldn't trade those days for a million bucks. Happy Haunting!!!

**Colombian Dan** · October-20-18, 12:27 PM

Here in Bogota Colombia people say "Tricky Tricky."

**gnome** · October-23-18, 03:22 PM

In the olden days, you were considered a bad ass if you soaped windows.

For those not in the know, soaping windows consisted of a bar of soap and a window. Usually a neighbor’s window, sometimes your own to throw off the coppers, and that was about it.

Oh, and some charmin - or some other brand of tp - for the bushes.

Height of Badassery.

No one checked your candy for razor blades because no one put razor blades into candy.

Few wore store-bought costumes. We went as hobos with burned-cork beards most years, but army men, Cowboys, baseball/football heroes always rotated through.

I’m not clear, but I think girls went as Cinderella a lot, or your average princess.

That’s not intended to be sexist; I wasn’t into what girls were doing so I don’t recall.

**jcole** · October-24-18, 08:23 AM

The REAL badasses used wax on windows, not soap. Soap just washed off; wax had staying power.
I don't know about other girls, but my mom made all my costumes and I had some cool, but odd, costumes.
I was a pilgrim, St Catherine of Siena, Cleopatra several times, a queen, a flapper [[my favorite) several times.
We would walk from our house at 7 and Kelly all the way up to the other side of Heilmann to State Fair and Rex, then home to empty out, then over to Harper Woods and all the way up Kelly to Chathams, then home, empty, and do the south of 7 mile area. We had candy til Easter if we could keep it away from Dad.

**gnome** · October-24-18, 09:00 AM

WAX!!

Goodness, we were country bumpkins to you eastsiders.

I can imagine you, jcole, wielding a RatTail comb, stealing my pillowcase and pushing my little boy face into a smashed pumpkin 🎃.

You Kay Everett wannabes going all east side in your Cleopatra gang uniforms...

Just you wait till I tell Sister Mary Joseph on you.

**jcole** · October-25-18, 05:42 PM

Originally Posted by gnome

WAX!!

Goodness, we were country bumpkins to you eastsiders.

I can imagine you, jcole, wielding a RatTail comb, stealing my pillowcase and pushing my little boy face into a smashed pumpkin .

You Kay Everett wannabes going all east side in your Cleopatra gang uniforms...

Just you wait till I tell Sister Mary Joseph on you.

I was too young for the rat tail comb thing; we wielded transistor radios.

**Dfd** · October-07-19, 08:01 AM

Hi, I thought would bring these great stories back to the top. Please add your story!

**pjbear05** · October-07-19, 05:35 PM

Rowe between Manning and State Fair, most of the houses had kids who went trick or treating. As a hobo or a clown usually, made up by my parents. Had to take a pillowcase cauae a shopping bag would fill up an tear, losing most of your swag. Good times back then.

**Hermod** · October-07-19, 07:24 PM

Originally Posted by pjbear05

Rowe between Manning and State Fair, most of the houses had kids who went trick or treating. As a hobo or a clown usually, made up by my parents. Had to take a pillowcase cauae a shopping bag would fill up an tear, losing most of your swag. Good times back then.

No, you used the JL Hudson shopping bags with the wooden handles. Those were really sturdy.

**jcole** · October-07-19, 07:55 PM

Originally Posted by Hermod

No, you used the JL Hudson shopping bags with the wooden handles. Those were really sturdy.

No, a pillowcase was better; they held a ton and you could hang it over your shoulder if your arm got tired. They kind of stretched around all the candy too. Form fitted.

**Maof** · October-07-19, 08:24 PM

Originally Posted by jcole

No, a pillowcase was better; they held a ton and you could hang it over your shoulder if your arm got tired. They kind of stretched around all the candy too. Form fitted.

hahahahahaha. best description!

**rickbak** · October-17-19, 11:32 AM

When I was growing up in Detroit in the 1950s, our family never gave out candy. Life was hard and we walked to school in our bare feet because Mom needed to boil our shoes for soup. Anyway, instead of handing out nickel candy bars, Mom found Halloween the perfect opportunity to clean out the fridge. The first few trick-or-treaters were the luckiest---they got last Tuesday's leftover cheese pierogis or month-old slices of Como's Pizza. Occasionally Mom would reheat some week-old mashed potatoes and give each kid a scoop. Anyone who complained didn't get the accompanying spoonful of gravy poured into their bag or pillowcase.

Curiously, there was a big fall-off in trick-or-treaters after those first couple years.

True story!

Well, pretty much, except for all the stuff I made up....

**Maof** · October-17-19, 12:58 PM

Originally Posted by rickbak

When I was growing up in Detroit in the 1950s, our family never gave out candy. Life was hard and we walked to school in our bare feet because Mom needed to boil our shoes for soup. Anyway, instead of handing out nickel candy bars, Mom found Halloween the perfect opportunity to clean out the fridge. The first few trick-or-treaters were the luckiest---they got last Tuesday's leftover cheese pierogis or month-old slices of Como's Pizza. Occasionally Mom would reheat some week-old mashed potatoes and give each kid a scoop. Anyone who complained didn't get the accompanying spoonful of gravy poured into their bag or pillowcase.

Curiously, there was a big fall-off in trick-or-treaters after those first couple years.

True story!

Well, pretty much, except for all the stuff I made up....

LOL.....but had it been true about the pierogis, i would've taken them for sure