Anita Benarde spoke to EW about her beloved Halloween storybook
Torn flesh smeared on the sidewalk.
Guts strewn across the lawns.
Skin peeling in the morning sun.
Credit: Anita Benarde
What many dont know is that the story really happened.
Not the witch part.
Benarde and her neighbors never nabbed the actual culprit.
Anita Benarde
We were in a town where Halloween reigned supreme.
Everybody took part in it, says Benarde, now 92.
Thats one reason the trashing of the decorations was such an affront.
Anita Benarde
This was a happy neighborhood.
For someone to come and disrupt Halloween, it was just unbelievable, Benarde says.
After the attack, suspicions were stoked.
Anita Benarde
But we couldnt put the blame on a person.
We couldnt put the blame on an animal, like a dog, Benarde recalls.
There was one boy we thought had done it because he was walking around with a crutch.
We were thinking Jimmy kicked them all and hurt his leg.
But we didnt know.
Maybe it was someone from out of the area.
Rather than turn on each other with accusations or blame, residents of the neighborhood united.
Oh, it was a mess, Benarde says.
But we were going to fight it.
We all decided we were going to go out and get more pumpkins.
But being an artist, she also had another idea.
If the smasher returned, he (or she) wouldnt crack that one.
Ultimately, this concept became the climax of her storybook only with a much bigger rock.
I just wanted to do something about it and make them understand how wrong they were.
And that we bounced back, she says.
Even in my anger, I wasnt going to let that get the best of me.
Many of the characters in the book were inspired by real people.
But shes not living anymore.
The real name was McGrath.
So I made it twins so they were both equally important and both contributed.
I was very conscious of that, even at that moment.
Fans have also noted that another real-life figure seems to turn up in the crowd scene above.
Doesnt that look like Stephen King, just under the General Store sign?
Its just a coincidence, according to Benarde, who doesnt claim to have any prophetic insight.
That is so funny, yeah!
she says, agreeing it does look like him.
I never thought of that.
And dont let the would-be smashers break you.
