Marin residents get in the Halloween spirit
Every year, the pumpkins that sit outside San Anselmo resident Che Prasad’s home are anything but ordinary. Each Halloween season, the musician and pathologist carves creative pumpkin designs, paying homage to his favorite music artists over the years, like David Bowie, Alice Cooper, Jimi Hendrix, ZZ Top and Ace Frehley from KISS.
“I have always loved Halloween and I have always loved music. … From picking out the pattern, the right pumpkin and prepping the pumpkin, it becomes like a ritual. It is almost like a meditation. This is something where I am using my skills to do something that is artistic,” he told the IJ in 2022.
This year, he expands his repertoire beyond music, carving the iconic “Here’s Johnny” scene from “The Shining” and Audrey II from “Little Shop of Horrors” as well as a smiling Bob Marley image. (The stencils he used were from StoneyKins and Zombie Pumpkins!)
Spooky fun
San Rafael resident Dominic Gaidano has always dreamed about creating a haunted house. This year, it’s finally become a reality. Dubbed “The Haunted House of Bret Harte,” a name chosen by his 6-year-old daughter Luna, it will feature 10 themed rooms with a maze, digital projections, animatronics and live actors. Before you enter, a three-minute video will play.
For Gaidano, who started working on DIY props — such as a levitating UFO and a flying ghost in the front yard — eight weeks ago, it has been a wonderful experience to do with his kids.
“My two kids Luna and Dominic have helped me on a daily basis and love participating. In fact, for the last month when I get home from work, the first thing they say is, ‘Daddy, what will we do today for the haunted house?’ This process has been difficult for me, as I run my own commercial and residential painting business (Dominic Gaidano Painting and Decorating), so all the work happens at night and weekends when possible. I feel I am difficult to scare, so most of the attraction is based on ‘what is scary to me,'” he says.
It can be seen from 6 to 9:30 p.m. Thursday at 25 Harte Ave. in San Rafael. Admission is free.
“We are doing this for the spirit of Halloween, and to provide entertainment for neighbors and the community. We hope many come to visit and enjoy,” he says.
Full of whimsy
The magical world of Harry Potter will be brought to life at San Rafael resident Daniel Berson’s home, where each year he creates his “HogwartsMarin” walkthrough surrounding a specific book of the series. This year’s will be about the seventh and final novel, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.”
The experience is not meant to be scary and is a family affair, he says.
“I love putting this together and seeing the enjoyment from kids and adults alike who come through,” Berson, a self-proclaimed Harry Potter “aficionado,” told the IJ in 2023. “And the more people, the more worthwhile the whole thing is.”
See it from 5:30 to 10 p.m. Thursday and Saturday at 1030 Las Ovejas Ave. in San Rafael. Admission is free, but donations are accepted on Venmo @HogwartsMarin. For more information, go to instagram.com/HogwartsMarin.
Halloween staple
For more than 20 years, Jeff Brown’s Tam Valley house has been a must-see stop for Halloween enthusiasts. Called “The Boneyard,” it features several animatronic figures, including a skeleton that rises from a swamp, a jack-in-the-box with a “special surprise” and a show of seven scary characters that pop up from behind their tombstones and sing, says Brown, who is also behind the popular Tam Valley “megatree” that goes up in his front yard during the winter holiday season.
See his Halloween creation at 340 Jean St. in Tam Valley. Admission is free.