Halloween revelers

by Philip Elliott
THE POST

With a strong showing of cross dressers, flashers, feather boas and shaved chests, Athens, Ohio University and their frolickers survived another round of the annual Halloween fray.

And the range of costumes and behaviors was varied, too.

The 18-foot Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man costume, designed by OU senior and industrial engineering major Adam Sheets, warranted responses. The monster spewed shaving cream from its frame of foam, pipe and flashing lights. Eight people helped operate the costume.

Another student dressed as a stereo - which blasted dance music. The crowd surrounded him as he traveled down the street.

"You never know what you will see," said Rick Lanning, of Hocking County.

Others used resources from around the house, including the reveler who covered himself in a white trash bag and labeled himself "White Trash," or the man who constructed a costume from empty cases of Milwaukee's Best beer. Another partygoer wore a shell of a keg as a costume.

Uptown also had its share of traditional costumes, including the Kissing Booth and the "Free Breast Exams Man."

Despite the variety, not all partygoers were impressed with the brouhaha.

"We haven't seen anything impressive," OU senior Courtney Smith said. "It's more calm this year."

But not all revelers were peaceful. One disturbance at 110 E. State St. spilled into the street and blocked traffic.

On Court Street, a squad of women dressed as police officers hung from windows and responded to the crowd's taunts. The show slowed the flow of pedestrian traffic for 40 minutes and almost brought down a light pole.

Uptown also had its dose of religion and morality. A group of evangelists condemned homosexuals and the undertones of Halloween. Members of the group wore shirts that read, "Got AIDS Yet?"- which read "GAY" when aligned vertically.

"It's Satan's Day all over," said Sharon Abram, a non-denominational demonstrator from Marietta. "To stand for Jesus, where better to come to spread God's word?"

Athens Police stepped in to quell the debate between the preachers and the hecklers.

Also Uptown, at least one bagpiper led a processional that included a sign that read, "Repent or Perish."

OU students were mixed in their reactions to the events Uptown.

"I expected more than this, but it is still absolute chaos," OU freshman Elise Smith said.

Some out-of-town visitors also were in awe.

"It was a blast," said Nick Dipadova, an Ohio State University freshman. "(It was) much better than I expected. The craziest thing I saw was a giant penis."

For those who chose not to go Uptown, OU tried to provide alternatives around campus.

The Front Room hosted a band and provided food, but few attended.

"What you see is what you get," said Kevin Lush, OU junior and Front Room employee, of the three customers in the coffee shop.

Many of the night's customers in the Front Room were high school students, freshmen and sophomores, said Natalie Franko, a Front Room worker and OU senior.

Campus Crusade for Christ sponsored a costume and dance party at Baker University Center's Corner Room.

"We do this to have alternatives to the bar scene," said Megan Jerse, an OU junior and social director of Campus Crusade.

About 250 people belong to Campus Crusade and the group anticipated about 50 to 150 people to attend the dance, Jerse said.

Though the Court Street noise could be heard throughout the city, not all of Athens was jumping.

Alden Library was almost a morgue, said Keri Hall, OU senior and library employee. She said she estimated a dozen students entered Alden through the second-floor entrance.

"I didn't expect anyone to be here," Hall said. "Sometimes I wonder why we have to be here."

Residence Life was quiet as well, Director Joe Burke said.

"I think things worked very well for us," he said.

Stepfanie Romine and Natalie Myers contributed to this story.