Last minute costumes and fake gun shot wounds at Halloween Adventure

PHOTO by ROSHEILA ROBLES

What can Halloween Adventure do that the combined might of your abysmal credit rating, Judd Apatow, and rising movie ticket prices hasn’t quite managed to do? Easy: make you wish you were back in high school––specifically, when you were looking for work. Seriously, if you can name a better first job than working part-time at a seasonal Halloween store, I owe you a nice chalky roll of Smarties.

Jumping into the shells of other (often shuttered) businesses every September and October (a la The Hidden), seasonal stores have actually managed to become part of Halloween nostalgia itself, and the only thing more exciting this year than seeing the first doorstep pumpkin on my block was spotting this Halloween superstore, residing in the hollowed-out carcass of the departed CompUSA store in the Los Altos Center.

Near the entrance an employee waits, handing out alarmingly bright-colored plastic handbaskets to customers as they enter and greeting each one with an equally alarmingly enthusiastic, “Welcome to Halloween Adventure!” Providing the mood music is a solitary, three-watt grey speaker in a back corner, laying down a tinny soundtrack of screams and staccato orchestral pieces. And the array of costumes and makeup lining (and filling) the store on black metal grids is staggering: the staples are here, of course, with supplies for your Sexy Virtually Anything, and standard costumes like the Crow, plus presidential masks (and even a presidential scandal, with a Monica Lewinsky latex mask featuring an extra big . . . uh . . . breathing hole).

But the point of a Halloween specialty store is the amazing hidden treasure, a unique costume that will help you stand out as you try to hook up with one of the Sexy Virtually Anythings. To that end, there’s plenty of rare, pre-packaged complete costumes, starting with the licensed gold: an adult-sized Ghostbusters costume; lots of Freddy/Jason/Michael Myers paraphernalia; and the usual superhero fare, as well as obscure stuff like the Flash, Beast, and Captain America. There is also a wide assortment of cartoon options, such as Peter from Family Guy, a truly disturbing Cartman mask, and a plethora of Simpsons characters including Mr. Burns and Radioactive Man. You can even go corporate with a mask of the King of Burger King, complete with logoed crown; and if you’re looking for stuff that isn’t currently copyrighted, options range from the generic (pirates, knights, and princesses) to the bizarre (flaming clown head with a two-foot tongue sound good?). Or dress as a walking beer keg . . . or a bad pun, like the giant blood-splattered letter “B.” (Get it? Killer B? Hee!)

In addition to the top-notch selection, the customer service helps to make this the best local place to get your fake blood and silly string, as the employees I’ve talked to are funny and at the ready with costume suggestions. Case in point: one staffer suggested I buy a fake beard (available in four sizes and three colors!) for a whisker-challenged friend of mine so he could dress up as Man Biologically Capable of Growing a Beard. As for myself, I purchased a Captain America costume and fake gunshot wounds, plus a $16 latex Jurassic Park dilophosaurus mask for my wife (because honestly, 14 years after its release, I still can’t resist official Jurassic Park merchandise).

Already planning for next year’s Halloween? The store will be selling its remaining stock at 50% during the last two days of operation, on Nov. 1 and 2. Halloween Adventure also operates more than a dozen other seasonal stores in Southern California, but if you’re one of those weirdos who likes their Halloween on Christmas, or Easter, or Flag Day, their Alien Queen warehouse in Canoga Park is open 365 days a year. For those who don’t feel like driving an hour away for superior selection, though, Long Beach’s local store is your best bet. But get there soon, before it rots and gets tossed away like just another $4 pumpkin.

HALLOWEEN ADVENTURE 2150 BELLFLOWER BLVD | LONG BEACH 90815 | 562.799.3821 | OPEN MON-SAT, 10AM-11PM, SUN 10AM-10PM | COSTUMES FROM $15-$100

Tags: adventure, freddy, ghostbusters, gun shots, halloween, jurassic park, sexy anythings, store