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Producer: TODAY's Halloween extravaganza started with my mom

From TODAY producer Amanda C. MarshallGrowing up in Los Angeles, Halloween was one of the few reminders that fall had actually arrived. Suburban streets scattered with orange, yellow, and brown leaves were the stuff of magazine covers. In my hometown, the palm trees didn’t change color and the temperature on October 31st often hovered at a balmy 70 degrees. Instead, the season was welcomed by my
By Parents

From TODAY producer Amanda C. Marshall

Growing up in Los Angeles, Halloween was one of the few reminders that fall had actually arrived. Suburban streets scattered with orange, yellow, and brown leaves were the stuff of magazine covers. In my hometown, the palm trees didn’t change color and the temperature on October 31st often hovered at a balmy 70 degrees. Instead, the season was welcomed by my mother’s Halloween traditions.

Custom costumes Each October, Mom encouraged my brother, sister and I to think up our own costumes. I was sure I had her stumped when at, age nine, I asked to be a pet fish. For an entire month, my family’s dining room table was taken over by fabric and the “shush-shush-shush” sound of her Bernina sewing machine could be heard late into the night. Two days before the holiday, an electric blue unitard with custom-made fuchsia flippers and a satin headdress magically appeared. “Think creatively,” she said with a smile. Giant pumpkin As if sewing made-to-order costumes weren’t enough, on the third Saturday of every October my mother would head to our elementary school armed with three galloons of orange paint. She and a handful of volunteers would then paint an enormous 25 x 20 foot pumpkin on the school’s cement playground. A trick that never failed to treat, we were always thrilled by the school’s surprise artwork come Monday morning. “Dream big,” she reminded us. Halloween parade The highlight of my mother’s Halloween festivities was actually a school-wide parade. Three hundred costumed children marching around her playground pumpkin was a sight to behold. She spent days pairing songs like “Purple People Eater” and “Monster Mash” to individual classes and stuffing goodie bags for each child. She would then direct the entire pageant. “Share joy with others,” was her mantra. For the past three years, I have produced the TODAY Halloween Special. Starting in August, I work with our anchors and design team to come up with a theme, costumes and set. We then spend the next three months getting ready for the big day. I often think back to my childhood Halloweens during this time and look forward to a certain phone call after the show airs. “What a great Halloween, Honey.” she likes to say. “The best one yet!” My response is always the same, “Mom, it started with you.” Take a look back at Amanda's TODAY Halloween specials:Slideshow: 2008 fairy-tale HalloweenSlideshow: 2007 monster bashRelated:TODAY's spooky Halloween guide