Sammy Terry, the spooky character that became a late-night staple in central Indiana, will be featured during this year’s Halloween Town celebration in Franklin. The event will last throughout the day Oct. 22.
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The Master of Scare-monies is coming back.
As downtown Franklin becomes Halloween Town this weekend, the spooky proceedings will be overseen by the Hoosier State’s very own nightmarish ghoul — the legendary Sammy Terry.
Terry’s appearance anchors a frighteningly fun weekend planned throughout the city. During the annual Halloweeen Town event, people can take part in a Halloween-themed run, dress their dogs or cats up in a pet costume contest and enjoy a traditional autumn hayride.
Catch the spooktacular classic “Ghostbusters” at the Historic Artcraft Theatre, and kids activities throughout the afternoon.
Trick or treat at downtown businesses, then kids can top off their candy baskets at Trick Your Trunk, a treat giveaway at the downtown amphitheater.
“It’s a chance to do something different. Throughout the year, we have concerts, we have festivals, we have different things. This touches our creative side,” said Holly Johnston, community events and program director for Franklin Parks and Recreation. “The whole day is a lot of different things, and it’s fun all day.”
Halloween Town is a relatively new celebration for Franklin, created by the city’s parks department in 2018. Organizers used a $2,500 grant from Festival Country Indiana, the county’s tourism organization, to stitch together a few other longtime Halloween traditions into a single event.
The parks department had organized a Halloween-themed 5K on a late-October Friday, and planned the traditional trunk-or-treat event the following night on Saturday. But organizers decided it made more sense to combine the two on one day, rather than spread it out over two.
The inaugural event was a hit, with hundreds of people flocking to the downtown square to take part. Though following years have proved challenging, both from weather and from the pandemic, parks department leaders are excited to return to normalcy.
“It’s been so wonderful this year to have things back to normal,” Johnston said. “We had the COVID year, and then the post-COVID year, where people weren’t really sure yet if they wanted to do things. This year, everyone had been all in.”
The day starts with the Halloween Hustle, a 5K run or walk, with an option for a 1-mile family fun walk as well. This year’s race will have a new route, starting from the DriveHubler.com Amphitheater and weaving through the city.
“We haven’t a new course in years, so we’re excited about that,” Johnston said.
Kids activities, including face painting and games, continue through the afternoon. Food trucks will be open to keep your family’s energy up, and hay rides will depart regularly from the amphitheater.
Sammy Terry will be featured on the amphitheater’s stage from 2 to 4 p.m. The character was created by Bob Carter, a producer, director and performer at WTTV Channel 4 in Indianapolis. From 1962 to 1989, Carter would don the creepy makeup and hooded cape, introducing that week’s spooky film on Nightmare Theater. Together with his sidekick, a rubber spider named George, he would mix humor and horror in a way that kids and adults found exhilarating.
Even after Nightmare Theater went off the air, Carter continued to portray Sammy Terry until 2010. His son, Mark Carter, took over, and has done public appearances, festivals and television specials ever since.
Throughout the history of the Halloween Town event, Sammy Terry has been a hit, Johnston said.
“He contacts us now — he loves to come to Franklin, and we love to have him,” she said.
Animal lovers won’t want to miss the pet costume contest, where entrants can dress up their dogs or cats — and get into the Halloween spirit themselves.
“It is a highlight; it’s so fun. People really get into it. Some people even dress up in a theme with their pet,” Johnston said.
Downtown businesses will pass out candy in the early evening, before Trick Your Trunk opens at 5 p.m. This year the trunk-or-treat extravaganza will be housed at the amphitheater, which provides a new dimension to the event, Johnston said.
“It’s such a larger space, we have more area to do things,” she said. “We’re going to have a safe place for people to stand in line. They won’t be on the busy road, Jefferson Street, lined up for blocks. And we have so many people signed up for it.”
