This year's Halloween parade scheduled for Saturday October 25th starting at 7:00PM promises to be a memorable event. This year's new extended route starts in Midtown at NW 13th and Walker, goes south on Walker to NW 10th, makes a left on 10th over to Broadway in Automobile Alley, then south again all the way into Bricktown. Last year, Wayne Coyne led 405 skeleton costumed fans with torches and it was a remarkable sight . . . this year, his record label is behind his participation in the event and the number will be 1000. The floats, music and people marching in the parade last year were a total hoot, and there will be plenty more to see and hear this year.

Home | Gazette's Ghouls Gone Wild (http://www.ghoulsgonewildokc.com)

The Midtown Development Corporation is doing a party on the roof terace of Cafe Do Brazil from 6:00PM to 10:00PM with food and an open bar for $100 per person. There are only a limited number of tickets still available and the age limit is 21. Anyone interested in having one of the best seats in town for this spectacular show can PM me for info . . . but don't wait around or it will be sold out.

I went to this last year and it was one hell of a time. The skeleton parade was awesome, truly one of the most visually stunning things I have ever seen. Can't wait to see what it is like more than twice as large.

So they ARE doing the 1,000 skeleton march again? I hadn't seen that. We might be on a float with some other friends. If that doesn't pan out, I definitely want to do the skeleton march.

We missed it last year as we were on vacation.

YEAH!!! This was so much fun last year!! I can't wait to do it again. The paint on my face feels horrible...but it is absolutely worth it. I still pull out my skeleton costume from last year and put it on sometimes. :) That was one of the funnest and most memorable times in my life. Wayne and the rest of the crew really made the long day a blast and I'm glad I got to be part of that. Bring on another 500 people! I think we need a bigger parking lot to assemble...

You know - Ghouls on Parade is one of the events that could put a city on the cultural map. It would be similar to San Francisco Bay to Breakers (without all the gay nudity) or Tampa's Gaparilla Festival.

Gasparilla Pirate Festival - Tampa, Florida (http://www.gasparillapiratefest.com/)

I couldn't agree more. We need to absolutely rally around this event and help it grow.

I agree. I know last year people drove down from several states to be skeletons. This year I know people who planned their vacations around it and are coming down from New York, Washington DC, and Florida just to watch! I think we could make it a huge event. One that is unique to our state only.

I agree. I know last year people drove down from several states to be skeletons. This year I know people who planned their vacations around it and are coming down from New York, Washington DC, and Florida just to watch! I think we could make it a huge event. One that is unique to our state only.

That's awesome. I wonder if the CVB has started to push this with the regional media yet. You're absolutely right in that it could really make OKC a destination Halloween fun city.

I'm so lucky in that this year I'll get to get my freak on with the parade and then turn around and head out west with the real "freaks" of San Francisco. Halloween evening on Alcatraz island, then a party in the Haight....can't beat that with a stick!

Ghouls on Parade is one of the events that could put a city on the cultural map.

Very true. I wonder how much of a boost will be provided by Warner Bros. being involved with Wayne's part.



(without all the gay nudity)

Is nudity inherently gay? If not, what can make nudity gay... the person who is nude or the person who is exposed to the nudity?

Personally, I don't think a little nudity now and again would hurt this town. Whether that makes one feel gay or not, well I guess that's something they have to work out on their own.

:)

BDP - Watch Bay to Breakers in San Fran. It will answer all questions about gay nudity and will leave zero doubt in your mind.

Bay to Breakers is NOT a gay event. Don't be so closed-minded, guys.

Correct - the event is mearly run a across San Francisco, but if you don't think there is an extreme amount of nude (or various stages of over exposure) homosexual men and lesbian women then you don't know what you are talking about. I lived in Northern California for 19 years. Saying that the San Francisco gay contingency isn't well respresented in the Bay to Breaks is like saying women don't expose themself at Mardi Gras.

OMG!!! Run, scream, hide, cover your eyes...the nude gays are coming!!!! (Or is that gay nudes, I forgot which.)

The GGW Parade is awesome! I had a ton of fun last year, and the skeleton march was creepy as hell.

OMG!!! Run, scream, hide, cover your eyes...the nude gays are coming!!!! (Or is that gay nudes, I forgot which.)

Whether that's what you're looking for, or if that's what scares the hell out of you, you'll be disappointed at Ghouls Gone Wild. However, I did see one guy at last year's parade who was sproting a rather loosely knotted tie.

BDP - Watch Bay to Breakers in San Fran. It will answer all questions about gay nudity and will leave zero doubt in your mind.

I used to live there. I just didn't know that nudity itself could be gay.


However, I did see one guy at last year's parade who was sproting a rather loosely knotted tie.

I hear they are going to be watching that closely this year. We don't want any gay ties in OKC. ;)

There are only a limited number of tickets still available and the age limit is 21.

What do you mean the age limit is 21? I hope this is a typo and you meant to say minimum age is 21.

I think the age limit is 18 to participate in the parade.

How exactly do you sign up to be a skeleton. I told my husband about it and he totally wants to do it. I on the other hand like to watch. (Oh, that did not sound like I meant it to.)

What do you mean the age limit is 21? I hope this is a typo and you meant to say minimum age is 21.

Yes sir you are correct Mr. Tex. We will be serving alcoholic beverages and you must be at least 21 to purchase a ticket and attend the party . . . . my bad. I'm the OLD Downtown Guy. Thanks for pointing out my error. Hope to see you there.

How exactly do you sign up to be a skeleton. I told my husband about it and he totally wants to do it. I on the other hand like to watch. (Oh, that did not sound like I meant it to.)

When they start accepting applicants I will post a link where he can sign up. You have to sign a waiver and fill out a form. If you get in, you pay a small fee but you get to keep your skeleton outfit and torch.

Alright, I want to go to this year, but i have a question or two. What makes it so awesome? Everyone thats gone has said its been an awesome time so i just wanna hear from those of you who have gone. And do you think it will help set our city apart somewhat in a good way?

Just some thoughts...

Alright, I want to go to this year, but i have a question or two. What makes it so awesome? Everyone thats gone has said its been an awesome time so i just wanna hear from those of you who have gone. And do you think it will help set our city apart somewhat in a good way?

Just some thoughts...

Just Google it . . . .

Whether that's what you're looking for, or if that's what scares the hell out of you, you'll be disappointed at Ghouls Gone Wild.

Says you.

FritterGirl and I are leading the Port and Starboard Streak Brigade this year. Boys on port, girls on starboard...To make sure that there's no inappropriate touching going on (gotta keep it wholesome!) We've got a whole 2 people lined up so far. We're having a bake sale/recruitment drive down at the nudie bars next week to get some more participants. The only reason we didn't do this last year is due to some really poor planning in our fundraising event. By the way, a "Bacon Cookoff" is a really bad idea at a nudist's convention.

Yes, I'll be wearing a tie.


Well...More of a bow...Anyway...

Here is how to get in the March of 1000 Flaming Skeletons!!


30 September, 2008: Take Part In The 2008 March of 1000 Flaming Skeletons
Want to participate in this year's March of 1000 Skeletons? The parade will take place on Saturday, October 25th in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma...You Are Going to Have Fun!!!. Place your order for your admission, costume, t-shirt, and torch package at the Flaming Lips official online store at flaminglips.com/store

Here's a few things you should know before purchasing your bundle:

1. 2008 Death March branded skeleton costumes come in 2 sizes: Standard and Large. Each bundle comes with a torch and 2008 March of 1000 Skeletons event t-shirt. The shirts are available in sizes Small through X-Large so choose your T-SHIRT size at checkout.

2. You may only purchase 2 costumes. Every costume must be for a person so we need a person's name and e-mail address attached to each costume.

3. Every skeleton will be carrying a torch with real fire. Anyone in the parade must be 18. Anyone in the parade must sign a waiver.

4. You will be told at a later date when and where to be so be sure to enter a valid name, email, mailing address and phone number at checkout.

5. A person must have the ability to march in the parade for up to 2 hours.

6. If you do not show up at the assigned time to pick up your outfit and be in the parade you forfeit your fee and will not receive a refund.

7. There are no refunds.


Flaming Lips Store (http://www.flaminglips.com/store/)

Sweet! Thanks for all the info..

Please don't rain, please don't rain. I'm going no matter what this year.

Did it rain last year?

I don't know, I didn't go and was kicking myself for not going... my luck, I'll go this year and it will pour.

As I recall, the weather was awesome.
And for anyone who is wondering wether or not to go, when was the last time you attended a parade at night? Had a beer outside, downtown?

It is almost a time warp for adults who miss the fun of Halloween.

If you're not marching with the skeletons and want a cool t-shirt sign up to volunteer! Home | Gazette's Ghouls Gone Wild (http://www.ghoulsgonewildokc.com). Or call up to the Gazette at 605-6789. We still need parade marshals!

Just signed up to march. Who else is marching?

A few questions....

1) Is this family friendly or mainly for adult entertainment? It's okay to bring kids?

2) Does pretty much everyone wear a costume or just the parade skeletons? We're trying to decide weather to wear our (funny) costumes but don't want to have to drive back home if no one else is dressed up. It's a bit vague here.

1. there were quite a few kids there last year
2. most of the people were dressed up, at least in the area I was at

I thought last year was good especially for a first time event. I think this years will be even better.

I watched the parade last year and it was a pretty festive time. There were a few people in the parade that were inappropriate, but for the most part it was tame. There were a lot of little kids and teens. I brought my 5 and 14 year olds and they enjoyed it. My 5 year old got scared by maybe 2-3 people out of hundreds/thousands? But isn't that what Halloween is about?
There were quite few people in costume, especially the kids. Maybe 1/4 of the adults had some sort of costume. You wont be out of place if you wear one.
There was very little candy thrown, so I would not bring a big plastic candy pail. Maybe a small plastic bag just in case.
Looking forward to seeing the full 1,000 skeletons this year. 500 was pretty impressive last year.

The parade route has been extended this year and will start at NW 13th and Walker, head south to 10th Street where it will make a left turn over to Broadway and then south into downtown. There are a few tickets remaining for the roof top party at Cafe do Brazil sponsored by The Midtown Redevelopment Corp. . . . 6:00 to 10:00 . . . . excellent view of the parade with Wayne Coyne and the 1000 flaming skeletons, Anna’s great Brazilian food and an open bar included at $100 per person. Here is the E-Vite link.

Invitations, eCards, Party Ideas, Party Themes from Evite (http://www.evite.com/pages/invite/viewInvite.jsp?event=DUSYALUTSJAAFOYFUWXN&inviteId=MCWORAPIBTBFTOOYLCMP&showPreview=false&x=7613143)

You can also contact the Midtown office through the website Midtown Oklahoma City (http://www.midtownokc.com) for more information.

I will probably be there.

Coming from Broadway Ext.. what's the best exit to get off to park.. Hubby will be working in Tulsa so I'm going to try to bring the kids by myself.. I'm not used to driving in that area so am not familiar with the exits and parking spots... any help would be appreciated.

Where to Exit
Where to Park
Where to Stand to see the Parade ( or do you follow it or ???)

Thanks!

Depends on what you're wanting to do before and after. If you want to watch the beginning only, get there early and stand on top of the Plaza Court bldg. There isn't much parking in MidTown so get there early. If you want to watch the bulk of the parade. Park in the 5th street parking garage and find a spot somewhere on Broadway. The parade ends in Bricktown near the ballpark but usually dies off towards the end so I woudn't get too close to the end. Broadway is your best bet for people/parade watching. Of course you can eat in MidTown or Bricktown (if you're not familiar with MidTown it's a good time to explore it and eat the fare). Last year I walked along with the parade and that was fun. It's about a mile or so walk one way.

Oh I am so excited! I'm not marching this year, I have obligations after the parade so I'm helping setup and paint skeleton faces instead. This is so fun!

The route is much different than last year so I really can't help with where the best place to view would be. I know the beginning of the route is always fun because people are excited to get moving. By the end of the route they are exhausted but anxious that the end is near...so it just depends on what kind of vibe you want to experience. My friends started at the beginning and then followed the parade to the end. Kind of a fan section that joined the parade.

Karried I know you, go out this week and scope out the route and the parking before Saturday night. I would suggest taking a printed map of the parade route with you and a pen. Take Broadway Ext towards downtown and exit on 10th Street. If you go West on 10th the parade will be between Broadway and Walker. Then you can turn left on Broadway and see how it goes all the way down to the curve on Gaylord. Probably for you, I would try to park somewhere on the North side of 10th so you could get out easily. Maybe around the Iguana Lounge too. And give me a buzz if you get lost or confused! I'll help. I'll be floating around with a camera and camcorder so yell if you see me.

If your going to the parade why not volunteer? Not only do you get get a great view but you also get a really cool t-shirt. All those interested read on.

1.Check in begins at 5 p.m. at the Volunteer Station on 8th and Broadway.
2.Sign a waiver and get your float number then head to your assigned location by 6:30 p.m.
3.Parade will start promptly at dusk or around 7 pm.
4.There are approximately 74 floats and participating groups. Your job as a
Parade Marshal is to ensure the parade goes smoothly by and that floats keep a good distance between them. Each float has it's own Marshal.
Parade floats and participants are not allowed to throw anything into the crowds.
5.Crowds along the parade route are not allowed to throw anything at the floats or parade participants.
6.Police will be on hand at every intersection. If you see any violations or anything that you feel needs to be handled please get to a police officer or security guard, get to a parade official in an orange t-shirt or jacket, or call 911 if there is a true emergency.
7.Do not try and handle any situation yourself. Your job is to be the eyes and ears of the parade.
8.The last float will be Wayne Coyne and The Flaming Lips. Once they pass, the last Parade Marshals can fall behind and walk toward the end of the parade route and join the party at the Field of Screams or head onto the party of your choice.
9.When you see the March of 1000 skeletons heading your way make sure the crowd is standing back to give them enough room. They tend to get wide and they are carrying flames!

I'm fired up to march.

I'm fired up to march.

And how will we recognize you Wuz; got a creative costume design in mind?

And how will we recognize you Wuz; got a creative costume design in mind?

Just a skeleton suit and some face paint, old. Maybe an open container. Are you getting in on the action?

Speaking of the skeleton suits, I'm a little concerned...

I bought the large skeleton package form the Lips' website, but I'm not convinced it will be large enough. I'm about 6'3", 250 lbs.

Can anyone tell me their experience with the suits last year? I hope they're really stretchy...

Is anyone going to an afterparty? Should I go to Venu or IAO?

Is it too late to sign up to walk in the parade this year?

Is it too late to sign up to walk in the parade this year?

Don't think so. Go to flaminglips.com - I think you can still buy a costume.

I didn't know Venu was still in business.

I'm going to roll the dice here and assume the best after parties will be at either Copa, Hi-Lo or one of them '8 tattoo minimum' joints like the Blue Note.

Is it too late to sign up to walk in the parade this year?

You have until 3PM today to sign up at the Lips site.

Speaking of the skeleton suits, I'm a little concerned...

I bought the large skeleton package form the Lips' website, but I'm not convinced it will be large enough. I'm about 6'3", 250 lbs.

Can anyone tell me their experience with the suits last year? I hope they're really stretchy...

They are not stretchy, but you should be fine. There were plenty of larger guys who were able to wear it, it just might be a little short. But not noticeable.

You can still sign up to march. Deadline is 3pm today!!

Just a skeleton suit and some face paint, old. Maybe an open container. Are you getting in on the action?

Young people walk . . . old people watch from the curb . . . really old people watch from the Midtown Redevelopment Corp. GGW parade watch party on the Cafe do Brazil roof terrace. Make sure the contents of your open container is not a highly flamable liquid or you could become one with your torch . . . bad scene.

Open Container? My ears perked up! lol

I thought I read this somewhere, can we actually have a Beer and walk behind the parade on the parade route? (without getting arrested of course?)

That would be cool...

So excited! We will be there tonight marching with the FLips! Did it last year and it was so cool! We are having a sweet, skeleton tailgate party to get warmed up for the big march.

This is what my police pals have explained to me regarding beer laws:

The law is that you can have a 3.2 beer that you bring with you but you cannot buy like a draw beer and carry it around. Basically, BYO3.2B if you plan to stroll around with it.

Thanks all for the info.. I'm going to try to head down there around 5:00pm and hope I can find parking and someplace to eat.... I'd like to park towards 2nd or 3rd and Broadway and then walk North on Broadway and follow the parade back to my car... does that sound like a good plan?

A few quickie photos, sorry about the poor quality
http://img390.imageshack.us/img390/6210/img9911ef4.jpg
http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/6018/img9909zs3.jpg
http://img247.imageshack.us/img247/3791/img9855pm4.jpg
http://img247.imageshack.us/img247/9315/img9876om6.jpg

It was prettycool, the skeleton march was excellent. The live bands on trailers was great. Lots and lots of zombies. Pretty hilarious that they all dragged their way through the whole parade route.

Just got back from the parade. My husband and I made the march this year. I highly recommend this to any one hear that will listen to me. I felt like a rock star. I know there were more skeletons this year but I also felt like the crowd was much larger. Does anybody else have any insight here?
I also preferred the parade route. Even though the parade never made it to bricktown I felt that starting in Midtown was great. We made it to McNellie's afterwards and there was a good crowd there but The Grateful Bean was even open until at least 10:30 this evening. I don't know how may times I have craved a sundae from there on the weekends and they were closed so for them to open tonight was a pretty big deal.
We even met a guy named Leon who traveled from Australia just to march in the parade. We also made a new friend tonight from Kansas who made a 4 1/2 hour drive to march tonight.

It was a great parade. I was hoping the parade wouldn't be so strung out (too much space in between floats) this year. The crowd was larger and the weather much warmer.

It was pretty cool..... the march was definitely the highlight and it was pretty awesome... we unfortunately sat in front of Chase and under a street light, which was so bright!, and so the torches weren't all that effective but I'm sure the rest of the crowd got to see the full effect....

We did have beautiful weather and it was great.. the giant aliens were awesome (Cricket?) and the stunt bikes were cool .... it seemed like most of the live music on the floats had technical difficulties right as they passed us.... but that was okay. It was apparent that everyone put a lot of effort into their floats and it was pretty neat to see.

We parked behind Abuelos, had dinner there ( so, so) and then walked to Dean McGee and Broadway .. no problem getting in and out. It was a nice night.

It was awesome - truly one of the coolest things going in this town. People went all out.