Halloween Enthusiasts Prepare 'Spooktacular' Displays

Many homes in Buffalo Grove might have a pumpkin or two on the front porch, or possibly have some decorations taped to the windows and doors.

And then there's Geoff Miller, who rewired his home several years ago to accommodate his electric Halloween decorations.

"Before I did the electric work, it was hard to figure out where to set everything up without blowing a fuse," he explained.

While Miller built and made many of the Halloween decorations in his front yard, some, such as those that are inflatable, have been purchased. Miller starts decorating his home in the last week of September, and takes it all down after Halloween.

"Putting it together takes longer," he said. "Certain things stay in the same spot every year. The guillotine, for instance, stays by the walkway, but I just try to fit things where I can. I'm running out of room, and one of my neighbors said I could use their lawn."

His mannequins are typically made of PVC pipe and old clothes; the judge, for instance, uses a black graduation robe. The gravestones have names of people that he knows, and the decorations are stored in his garage. The home is lit every night from 7 to 10 p.m.

Miller's home on St. Mary's Parkway is something of a local legend. "It feels pretty cool to think that people come see the house every year for Halloween," he said.  "I got over 400 trick-or-treaters every year for the last three years. People come with video cameras on Halloween. I dress up, and people want pictures of me, too. I like Halloween, and I like to scare people.

"Most people do not mess with the decorations, and I get a lot of compliments," he continued. However, several years ago, someone slashed one of his blow-up characters. "Right now, though, wind is a bigger concern for me, as stuff can get knocked over."

This year, Miller has added a corn maze, a wood chipper and a mannequin of Medusa.

Miller also decorates for Thanksgiving, Christmas, Valentine's Day, and St. Patrick's Day. "I also do red, white and blue decorations for Memorial Day and the Fourth of July," he said.

THOUSANDS OF VISITORS

When Larry and Cheryl Schwartz decorate their home on Margate Drive for Halloween, they get attention.

A lot of attention.

"We get about 4,000 people on Halloween every year," Cheryl Schwartz said. "We started decorating about 20 years ago, and we just keep adding to it."

Every item that moves was custom-built for the Schwartzes. The animatronics include a granny who rocks on a chair, and then her head spins around; a werewolf who appears to climb out of his cage; a convict sitting in an electric chair; a little girl devouring a hand; a mad doctor; and a skeleton at a pulpit. The skeleton explains that the display is lit beginning at 6:30 every evening. It also reminds visitors not to touch the displays.

The Schwartz family passes out 80-90 pounds of candy every year.

"When our kids were younger, we'd use the candy they got from trick-or-treating so we could keep handing out candy," Cheryl Schwartz said. "We can't even eat dinner on Halloween because the doorbell keeps ringing."

There are traffic jams every year in front of their house. "I've even seen people posing for their Christmas pictures in front of the house," Larry Schwartz said.

People come from Chicago, all over the suburbs, and even from California to see their display.

"We've never had our displays vandalized or touched," he said. "I'm more concerned about the weather."

The Schwartz family also sets out buckets to collect donations for Children's Memorial Hospital.

"We collected about $450 last year," Cheryl Schwartz said. "There are kids who can't trick or-treat, and we'd like to do something for them."

The displays are usually planned and assembled on the lawn in the first week of October. By Nov. 2, everything on the front lawn is dismantled and put in storage.

ONE-DAY DECORATORS

Jeff and Jane Berman also go above the norm to decorate their home on Newtown Drive for Halloween.

"The tradition of us decorating the house started off with us just being goofy with our kids," Jeff Berman said. "We found a store with some wild props, and every year we said, 'Let's get something new.'"

Jane Berman said people enjoy seeing the home, and they're glad that the Bermans decorate it.

The Bermans find things that are not intended for Halloween, then repurpose the items as decorations. "We have a play cottage that was originally for the kids. When they outgrew it, we painted it to make it look spooky," Jeff Berman explained. "The more it sits out, the worse it gets."

The Bermans' home is only decorated for a short period of time. The Halloween decorations are brought up from the basement and the electric work is organized the week before. The decorations are placed outside the day before Halloween.

Berman said that having the decorations out for only one day limits him in how much he can put on his front lawn.

"The stuff really takes a beating if it's out too long," he said. "We've never had any vandalism, so I'm more concerned with the wind and the rain. Every year, I need to reset the tombstones because of the wind."