One-quarter of American adults say Halloween is their favorite holiday, according to a YouGuv survey. They didn’t survey kids, but we’re betting the numbers would have been higher.
Whatever your preference, here are 13 things about Halloween you may not know.
1. SKELETONS FOR ST. JUDE: A Facebook group by that name is raising funds for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. An unofficial campaign started last year in Holly Springs, North Carolina, when Jeff Robertson placed a St. Jude fundraising sign in his yard after a local television station aired his skeleton Halloween display. After generating $8,200 and meeting several people affected by childhood cancer, Robertson wanted to go bigger in 2021. He teamed up with Jennifer Corcoran, a Facebook influencer in Nashville, who used her following to recruit more homeowners to join the effort. There are more than 300 Halloween homes across the U.S. with St. Jude donation signs. As of last week, they’d raised $49,486 (and counting) of a $45,000 goal. The Home Depot gave a matching $45,000 donation. Facebook pays processing fees, so 100% of the donation goes directly to St. Jude.
2. SWEETS: What’s America’s favorite Halloween candy? CandyStore.com is calling it for Reese’s Cups, based on sales data. Rounding out the Top 5 are Skittles, M&M’s, Starburst and Hot Tamales. Crunching the numbers by state: Alabama’s favorites are Starburst, Skittles and candy corn. Georgians buy Swedish fish, Jolly Ranchers and Reese’s Cups. Tennesseans prefer Tootsie Pops, Skittles and saltwater taffy. The results are based on pounds of candy sold by the online retailer over 15 years, particularly in the months leading up to Halloween. Oddly enough, an earlier report by Zippia.com found that Tennesseans have a strange fascination with Runts, candy that comes in the shape and color of different fruits.
3. SPENDING: Consumer spending on Halloween-related items is expected to reach an all-time high of $10.14 billion this year, up from $8.05 billion in 2020, according to the National Retail Federation. That roughly breaks down to $3.3 billion in costumes, $3 billion in candy, $3.2 billion in decorations and $700 million in greeting cards.