Newspaper Page Text
October 30, 1991
jFkgpole Jtkgazine
Page 5
Ed’s Answers
by Ed Tant
Halloween in America
has become a wild and zany
holiday for adults who are
kids at heart. Here in Athens
and in many other college
towns around the country,
Halloween parties abound and the trick-or-treat
streets are thronged with costumed revelers. This
week I'll try to answer some questions about the
ancient and mysterious day we call Halloween.
1. How did Ha^oween originate?
The roots of Halloween here in America date
back to Scotch and Irish folk customs that are
themselves descended from pre-Christian rites.The
ancient Druids held Halloween celebrations to honor
a god they called Samhain, Lord of the Dead. Early
Halloween celebrations also coincided with times of
harvest. In spite of its pagan beginnings, the name
Halloween comes from the Allhallows Eve obser
vances of the Roman Catholic Church.
2. Where do Jack-O’-Lanterns come from?
From pumpkins, you silly rabbit. Actually, the first
jack-o'-lanterns were carved from potatoes, rutaba
gas and turnips because there were no pumpkins in
ancient Ireland where the jack-o'-lantern custom
originated The name for the carved roots or gourds
comes from an Irish folk tale about an evil man
named Jack who, after he died, was condemned to
wander in an eternal limbo between heaven and
hell. The devil gave Jack a burning ember ofhellfire
to light his way on his unending journey between
the afterworlds. Jack put the glowing ember inside
a turnip he was eating and wandered the afterlife
with his u jack-o'-lantern' in hand.
3. What is the feast of the dead?
State dinner at the Bush White House. No, ac
tually the Feast of the Dead or Day of the Dead is an
important holiday in Mexico. Each November 2,
Mexicans remember the dead in a curious holiday
with a skull and skeleton motif. Vendors sell eerie
toys like jack-in-the-box coffins from which a skele
ton pops out and skull and skeleton pastries and
candies are much in demand.
4. Why are so many Christian fundamentalists
against Halloween?
Many right-wing evangelist types are down on
Halloween because they say that it is a pagan and
sau. He holiday that leads both children and adults
away from the path of the fundamentalist brand of
righteousness. Such religious fanatics were best
described by journalist H. L. Mencken in the 1920s:
“They are basically puritans who worry that some
body somewhere might be having a good time."
Send questions to Ed. He loves the library. You
should too. Write in care of Ed's Answers, Flagpole
Magazine, P.0 Box 1027, Athens, GA 30603.
Really Important Stuff
Human Stuff
Name the only former homeless runaway who
has appeared in an R.E.M. video and also lectured
at Yale and Harvard. Stumped? Probably not, but I’ll
tell you anyway — he’s none other than the outspo
ken leader of rap's Boogie Down Productions, KRS-
ONE (aka Kris Parker). Dubbed “the conscience
of rap" bv Rolling Stone, KRS-ONE uses his hip-hop
creativity as a vehicle for his message of black self-
improvement and the enlightenment of all humanity
His views challenge traditional readings of world
history and attempt to tear down the accepted
Eurocentric myths of American culture. You will
have your chance to hear him speak here at UGA at
8 00 p m., Wednesday, Nov. 6 at the Tate Center’s
Georgia Hall. The show called “Edutainment" is
sponsored by the Committee for Black Cultural
Programs Division of the University Union. Tickets
are $2 for students and $4 for everyone else It is a
show everyone should see You may not agree with
him, but it won’t hurt you to think a little.
SXSW Stuff
Look, two weeks ago (in the Oct. 16 issue, pg.
2) we invited all bands to give a shot at winning a
slot at the South By Southwest Festival '92 (March
11-15) in Austin, TX., via Flagpole. You see, since
we are a co-sponsor of the event, they allow us to
pick a band ourselves No, we don't pay for your trip
to Austin, we just get to pick a band to go, any band.
However, we would like to make it open to as many
bands that are interested So far though, we don’t
have one single entry. Not one. So it's still wide
open Any band can win. But first you have to enter.
To do so, you must send us a complete publicity
package (a new one — the ones we have on file
prior to this contest don’t count). This package
must include: a photo, a band bio, a demo tape of
some sort and the name and number of a contact
person.
So, get it together and get it to us at our office no
later than November 13. Bands already accepted
to SXSW '92 do not qualify. Address all entries to
Flagpole SXSW Contest, c/o Angela Barnes, P.0
Box 1027, Athens, GA 30603. Or just drop it by the
office at 255 W. Broad St. (next to Dixon’s Bikes).
So, what are you waiting for?
Radio Stuff
It was 53 years ago, October 31,1938 when the
Martians landed in Grover’s Mills, NJ. and hysteria
gripped the nation. We all know the rest of the story
— the Martians succeeded in their invasion, they
quietly blended in with the rest of the populace,
slowly infilrrated government institutions and even
tually came to have complete and total control over
every major corporation and political organization.
Yes, you guessed it — George Bush has a cold
green substance for blood. This Thursday, Hallow
een night, you can hear how it all started, if you tune
your radio to either WGNC, 95.5 FM or WGAU, 1340
AM at 9:00 p.m. and listen to the re-broadcast of
H.G. Wells’ classic War of the Worlds. That’s right,
it’s the very same 1938 CBS Mercury Theatre radio
broadcast, narrated by Orson Welles, that sent
thousands of people screaming into the night. And
to think, today it only takes a baseball game...
Stephen Crawford
WUXTRY
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549-7871
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