Most people are fond of Halloween because it is that one moment in the year when you can dress up as sexily or spookily as you always wanted to. It is your one chance in the entire year to look like someone else. And as these images from the 1970’s show, Halloween and the cultures are nothing new. They are pretty much the same. From demonic figures and characters to dressing up like the Pope, the list has it all. You will even find nuns and scary clowns. The photographs have all been taken at yearly parties in Kennett and Missouri back in 1970. The owner of the pictures Steve Mays says, “The costumes were worn were worn more out of stupidity and a love of horror movies than a desire to express racial hatred.”
He added, “We were young and stupid and pretty self-absorbed. More concerned with having a winner costume than racial sensitivity. Our little town was in southern Missouri and literally segregated until the mid-60s and culturally segregated for long after.”
Some of his friends even asked him to pull the pictures down from the social media but he said, “We have to own those moments. And I’m pretty sure nobody was thinking about Nazi atrocities or the evils of the KKK. It was the stuff of movies for most of us.”
Images via DailyMail
Here are the images that reveal how Halloween was celebrated in 1970s America.
1. This costume depicts a man and woman dressed up as pure figures with a secret party streak.
2. Here’s the father with a glass of beer in his hand.
3. A fruity superhero and a scary clown.
4. Mr. Pumpkinhead and his family.
5. A creepy ship captain and a woman dressed up as a chicken.
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6. Music lovers dressed up as Dolly Parton.
7. Carmen Miranda. OMG!
8. A pretty beauty Pageant winner.
9. A group shot. Can you spot a ghost somewhere in the picture?
10. A woman downing a bottle of beer, showing her wild side.
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11. Groucho look with a cigar and mustache.
12. The KKK outfit, all inspired by the movies.
13. A pimp, Zorro, and a tourist. WOW!
14. A pair of clowns.
15. A boy scout and a girl scout.
