Halloween Urban Legends and Myths That Just Need to Die

Every year, right around Halloween, the urban legends rear their ugly heads, instilling fear into some of the general public. Some of the legends are newer to the scene, while some have been around since Jimmy Carter was in office. A little research and fact checking will debunk these little nuggets of fear mongering.

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The Razor Blade in the Apple

When I was a wee lad in the 1980s, I loved going door to door to beg for candy. Dressed up in homemade costumes, it was one of the best nights of the year. My parents would take me around and I would load up. But they’d always check my candy as soon as we were home for needles or razor blades. It turns out that it was an urban myth. Any reports of actual occurrences have mostly turned out to be hoaxes. You’d be hard pressed to find any actual, reputable instances of sharps in candy.

Candy Laced With Drugs

This one also goes back to the 1980s after some jerk put cyanide in medicine, and then put it on store shelves, and killed seven people. Like the meme says, no one likes your kids enough to put drugs in your food. Whether it’s legal cannabis or an illicit substance, that stuff is expensive and inflation is real. While there have been recorded instances of laced candy, they’re very few and far between. Still, it’s best to stick to sealed candy items.

Temporary Tattoos Will Make You Trip on Acid

See above section. This one has been bandied around since the 1970s, and claims that dealers aim to get new clients by lacing temporary tattoos with LSD and tricking kids into applying them to take a trip. That’s a very expensive way to get new customers. Per Snopes.com, there has never been a verified case of this happening.

Black Cats Are Bad Luck

I’m just going to lump this one in because I feel like it intensifies on Halloween. Black cats are not bad luck on October 31 or any other day. I’m the proud cat dad to two black cats. One is the sweetest little vibrating fuzzball, and we have full on conversations. Black cats are sadly the last to be adopted from shelters, and the stigma needs to end!