The masks of Zorro, and Alice
No rock star of any age is more qualified to talk about Halloween than Alice Cooper.
Cooper (nee Vincent Furnier) pioneered the use of costumes, makeup and props like guillotines and live snakes in rock shows.
He’s penned such tunes as “Welcome To My Nightmare,” “The Black Widow,” “Sick Things” and “Killer,” and there’s a Halloween mask of his mascara-laden likeness sold nationally.
We caught up with Cooper, 59, as he prepared for his favorite holiday, which he’ll spend performing in his hometown of Phoenix:
Q: What were a few of your favorite costumes as a kid?
A: I was always one thing – Zorro. I related to Zorro: all black, a little mustache, a mask, a sword, kind of romantic, kind of dangerous. And there’s a little bit of Zorro in Alice Cooper if you look onstage. I actually use one of the swords that belonged to Erroll Flynn. Even though he never played Zorro, it was the same era.
Q: So you avoided ghoulish costumes?
A: It was funny that it was never scary. You would think that Alice Cooper would have been the scary guy. But I was always more the classic character.
Q: What are the key ingredients for a good costume?
A: You have to make one. I don’t think you go and buy a costume. You have to be more original than that. My parents never bought costumes for us. It doesn’t have to be a scary thing to be original. You could tie an eggbeater to your head and go as a motorboat.
Q: What about makeup?
A: Now, you go to these Halloween stores, and we never had makeup kits that are almost like Hollywood makeup kits. Kids can really do it up.
Q: Any costume ideas for trick-or-treaters this year?
A: If I were a girl, I would definitely go as one of the divas. I’d go as Lindsay Lohan, but I’d be in jail, have a ball and chain. Britney (Spears) would be great this year. You could shave your head, put a T-shirt on, have a big umbrella and beat cars.
Q: Does it startle you to bump into people on Halloween dressed up like you?
A: No, that’s always a compliment. My ego was stroked when I went into a Halloween store and right next to Wolfman and Frankenstein was an Alice Cooper mask, with the correct makeup, broken nose and the whole thing. I went, “Wow, that’s it. I’m actually a Halloween character now.”
The birthday bunch
Singer-actress Melba Moore is 62. Actor Richard Dreyfuss is 60. Actress Kate Jackson is 59. Actor Dan Castellaneta (“The Simpsons”) is 50. Singer Randy Jackson (The Jacksons) is 46. Actress Joely Fisher is 40. Actress Winona Ryder is 36. Actress Gabrielle Union is 34. Actor Brendan Fehr (“Roswell”) is 30.