October 24, 2016

"Last night’s episode of Saturday Night Live exposed the harsh truth of Halloween as an adult..."

"... and it was frankly a little too real."

ADDED: In case you don't have the patience to watch the clip: It shows 3 young women being cutesy about getting ready for Halloween, intercut with scenes from much later in the night where they are falling-down drunk.

I've observed the transition of Halloween into an adult holiday, including some really high-quality manifestations of the trend — most notably the parades in Greenwich Village in the 1970s. And I'm fine with the street parties like Madison's Freakfest. But the adult enthusiasm for Halloween strikes me as just dumb. Why isn't the popular culture more interesting?

As for drinking too much: Don't do that. Actually, I'm surprised that SNL is getting away with doing humor that is basically just showing women getting very drunk. That used to be a staple of TV comedy... Foster Brooks, Dean Martin...



... but I'd thought that had fallen out of favor — what with alcoholism being a disease.

47 comments:

Hagar said...

"Can we talk about that Rhode Island yoga pants protest for a moment?"

Ignorance is Bliss said...

Last night’s episode of Saturday Night Live exposed the harsh truth of Halloween as an adult...

For certain definitions of the word adult. ( Unfortunately, including the legal definition. )

rhhardin said...

I don't think SNL has ever been funny, from what I've seen of it.

Like DVDs of flicks that say they're a laff riot. They never are. They're bail-out-early flicks.

Achilles said...

Our culture is dominated by leftists who have been teaching women they can act like idiots without consequences for a long time.

Then the women get all mad, at men of course, when they find out there are consequences for acting like idiots.

wildswan said...

By dawn they have no idea what the night or they themselves had really been like. That's a harsh truth about drugs and drinking we all need to learn at some point.

Paddy O said...

My experience of halloween as an adult includes helping my kids with their costumes, teaching them how to carve a pumpkin, and maybe dressing up too as I walk with them from house to house in our neighborhood.

robother said...

Interesting that Adult Halloween took over as Kid Halloween got smothered to death by Concerned Parents and Media Scare Stories.

My dad told stories about Halloween in the 20s, when Tricks involved tipping over outhouses, etc. and Treats weren't a major brand candy marketing opportunity. Even we used to throw rotten apples at teenager's hot rods, and run like hell.

rehajm said...

If Hillary is elected the inaugural theme perfectly capturing the mood of the country would be Walk of Shame...

CJinPA said...

It's a funny portrayal of a scenario that I think 99% of real people never experience. You have to live a town that caters to such things, and most people don't.

That's my way of saying I'm sad that no one ever invited me to an adult Halloween party.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Too real? That New York women are not anything like the rest of the nation?

New York women are yucky. They vote HIllary and they mean to.

traditionalguy said...

Halloween is boring.

damikesc said...

For women, it seems an opportunity to slut it up (how many "sexy" costumes exist as opposed to, apparently, un-sexy ones?). For men, it's an opportunity to see women slut it up.

Our culture is dominated by leftists who have been teaching women they can act like idiots without consequences for a long time.

Then the women get all mad, at men of course, when they find out there are consequences for acting like idiots.


And I will defend the original feminists on this. They didn't play this nonsense. My mom is a feminist, but thinks that if you're going to a guy's room late at night alone, nobody is blind enough to not know what you're going there for. And thinks that modern feminists whining that telling girls to not get drunk at parties is "victim blaming" is simply insuring that they will be victims.

As she says, "Telling somebody to lock your door isn't blaming you for robbery. It's advice to avoid that as much as you can"

Not to be mean, nothing has a lower IQ in existence than a group of drunken women.

Ron Winkleheimer said...

My experience of halloween as an adult includes helping my kids with their costumes, teaching them how to carve a pumpkin, and maybe dressing up too as I walk with them from house to house in our neighborhood.

My experience of Halloween as an adult includes taking my nephew house to house on his first Halloween, helping out at the "Trunk and Treat" at my Church, handing out candy to kids at my house, watching The Nightmare Before Christmas and Hocus Pocus.

One time my wife and I were in New Orleans for Halloween and even wore costumes, but we refrained from drinking "too" much and there was no crying. The wife didn't like it because it was to crowded and she, quite sensibly, does not like to be in large crowds.

rehajm said...

Too real Halloween is having to patrol the streets for polar bears.

n.n said...

Alien culture.

MadisonMan said...

Too many adults don't want to grow up. If you're happy with your life, no need for a costume to escape into fantasyworld.

Will Cate said...

Achilles --quite agree. Damikesk -- ditto.

We dressed up just a handful of times when our sons were little. Only one time ever did we dress up and go to a club (and that was before kids).

The only reason Halloween exists as it does now is because it makes a lot of money for retailers -- 2nd only to Christmas.

SteveR said...

Like many "celebrated" days, its an excuse to party. New Year's Eve is the best example. But you got to add in Halloween, St Pats, Cinco de Mayo, ad infinitum. Promoted by beer companies, etc. But if you want to party, party. But hanging out with other people who are supposed to be partying because... Get a life.

MadisonMan said...

Let me just add my annual observation: There is nothing "Fun" about "Fun-Sized" candy bars.

Brando said...

Nights to avoid going out--New Years Eve, St. Patricks, Cinco de Mayo, Halloween. Stay home and have a small private gathering. You don't want to be stuck behind ten layers of douchebags waiting for a drink, or getting on the bathroom line well before you need to pee because you know some idiot is barfing in there.

Brando said...

"Let me just add my annual observation: There is nothing "Fun" about "Fun-Sized" candy bars."

I always thought they were being ironic about "fun". Like, "have fun with your tiny candy!"

SteveR said...

My idea of partying is not hanging out with idiots -- too much like a job.

Ignorance is Bliss said...

MadisonMan said...

Let me just add my annual observation: There is nothing "Fun" about "Fun-Sized" candy bars.

Amen! We always give out full size candy bars. Although it's gotten hard to find full size for many types, unless you buy them one-at-a-time way overpriced. For the varieties that we can only find in 'fun' size, we let the kids take a handful. Or we would, if any kids ever showed up at our house. Which they don't. Only a couple kids live within walking distance, and they all get driven to one of the denser subdivisions for a more target-rich environment. We keep buying the full-sized candy anyway

MadisonMan said...

CostCo sells full-size bars in packs of 30.

Todd said...

MadisonMan said... [hush]​[hide comment]
Let me just add my annual observation: There is nothing "Fun" about "Fun-Sized" candy bars.

10/24/16, 12:20 PM


Agreed!

Now THIS is a "fun size": https://www.amazon.com/HERSHEYS-Milk-Chocolate-Bar-5-Pound/dp/B000IW68YC

I would just want it in "dark chocolate".

Oh, and don't forget, if you do decide to "go for it" get it through the Althouse Amazon portal!

Lewis Wetzel said...

Some people think that cliched=imaginative.

Fabi said...

MadisonMan is right: there's nothing fun about a "fun size" candy bar -- you have to eat at least three!

BJK said...

Talking about last weekend's SNL and Halloween without Tom Hanks' commitment to the absurdity of David Pumpkins is just a missed opportunity.

ALP said...

Back in my fag hag, dancing queen days, when I spent an inordinate time on the dance floor gyrating to ABBA - I knew lots of drag queens. The "full time" drag queens didn't resemble any kind of female I'd ever hung out with: festooned with glitter and sequins, a pound of eye shadow, and shoes I'd never be caught dead in, these were the guys that not only wanted to be women, the wanted to be **specific**, very famous entertainers. I knew more "Lizas" than I could count.

Halloween gave the gay guys I hung out with, the non-cross dresser, permission to be a "drag queen for a night".

Oh. My. God. Those amateurs could teach the pros a thing or two as they were the ones that really looked like NORMAL women. Like the ones you see at the DMV, your local library, your kid's teacher. I'll never forget those drunken, dance floor, early 1980's Halloween celebrations, with bars packed full of dowdy, normal looking "women".

Brando said...

Here's the proper naming conventions for candy bars:

1) Biggest: Type 2 Diabetes Size
2) Next Biggest: Fun Size
3) Next Biggest: Don't Judge Me Sized
4) Next Biggest: Meal Sized
5) Next Biggest: This is an Insult Sized
6) Next Biggest: Enemy Size
7) Smallest: Not Worth Opening the Wrapper Size

Mountain Maven said...

Ties in with the left's obsession with death and the rise of satanist clubs at public schools. Not surprisingly, a full closet of "costumes" is de rigueur in urban dumps like San Fran. I am still creeped out by the effigies hung in people's front yards

That said we had fun taking our kid trick or treating and going to the super tame neighborhood parties.

n.n said...

A rape culture in the twilight of liberation progresses to darkness with baby trials.

rehajm said...

Let me just add my annual observation: There is nothing "Fun" about "Fun-Sized" candy bars.

Holy shit! Full size Snickers!

California Snow said...

Give me a King Sized bar and I'll tell you it's too big. Too much sugar. Give me "Fun Size" bars an I'll eat the equivalent of six King Sized bars.

Original Mike said...

Loved your cartoon, rehajm.

Anthony said...

I put out a pumpkin, I let my kids dress up. I happily hand out candy.

I DO NOT get in costume. Let kids have their holiday and their fun.

And by kids I do not mean 35 year old adolescents

bagoh20 said...

Just go with it and have fun or ignore it, but bitching about adults or anyone else having fun by letting their guard down and playing a little just sounds old and crotchety. I'm no fan of the whole thing either and resist in similar crotchety manner it until my family, who loves the stuff, finally overpowers me and I go along only to have a great time.

We went to the Universal Studios Halloween thingy two weeks back which sucked becuase it was overpriced, under-imagined, with long lines and a dry venue inside. Last night we went to the Queen Mary's version of it and it was much better, with more fun stuff, more open room to move about, short lines, and lots of bars all through the place, which just improves the crowd's and my mood immensely. Much much more fun, although still pricy.

bagoh20 said...

You really make your own fun at theses things. The venue just provides a backdrop and some props.

Paddy O said...

Bagoh, the Knot's one was really good when they first started in the late 80s early 90s. Knott's Scary Farm. But then a good idea got adopted and overdeveloped by the other theme parks. Then the arms-race pushed everything to an extreme and took over the parks for October.

The Queen Mary version sounds exactly like it used to be, which isn't surprising since the QM is a lower-tier destination. But still worth going to. And it has the benefit of being possibly actually haunted!

Earnest Prole said...

Actually, I’m surprised that SNL is getting away with doing humor that criticizes young women in any way -- especially since the behavior it's satirizing is, you know, so true to life

Big Mike said...

21st century women reserve the right to get drunk, initiate sex, and claim rape. Is this a great county or what.

rcocean said...

Adults celebrating Halloween is just another manifestation of the Boomers not wanting to grow up. When i was a kid, it was a Holiday *for* kids. Adults didn't need a special holiday to get drunk or have a party.

Virgil Hilts said...

I have no memories of Halloween from childhood, but shall never forget the group of women friends in college who would dress up as cats in tight leotards with tails, little whiskers drawn on their faces and those cute little cat ears.
Halloween should not be wasted on stupid little brats stuffing their faces with unhealthy sugar.

Achilles said...

About 20 years ago I was working at a fire cache. We were a warehouse that supplied the fire fighting camps run by the forest service. The expiration date went past on some MRE's and we were told to open them up and discharge the heater packs. While doing this we found many of them had King Sized Snickers in them so we filled up the refrigerator. Someone eventually read the wrapper and said "see, they only have 600 calories each."

Each serving.

After 2 weeks some of the more vulnerable employees demonstrated noticeable weight gain. They quietly disappeared.

Roughcoat said...

Día de Muertos is an adult holiday, right?

Ignorance is Bliss said...

bagoh20 said...

Just go with it and have fun or ignore it, but bitching about adults or anyone else having fun by letting their guard down and playing a little just sounds old and crotchety.

Some of us go with it, have fun, and play a little by being old an crotchety.

jg said...

maybe one laugh in it. way too paint-by-numbers. watch 'black jeopardy' instead - actually funny, which is rare for SNL. baldwin trump 3rd-debate was a dud too - baldwin is great but the writing is all blinkered "hillary is so great hahahaha you gave her a chance to talk about her STELLAR record going back 30 years, BORING us all AGAIN" - no wit.