Skeletons, ghouls and ghosts: Halloween is nearly upon us — this year the spirit-filled night falls on a Tuesday — and with it, a number of strange and bizarre traditions. How did a pagan Celtic festival and an early church holiday become an opportunity for little kids to beg for free candy and college students to dress as a sultry version of Abraham Lincoln?
Halloween has evolved quickly in the United States, from a harvest holiday brought over from Ireland by immigrants, to a celebration for children around World War II, back around to a holiday that embraces grown-up participation in the last few decades.