🧟 Happy Friday!

• Halloween is closing in, so we're digging into Pittsburgh's horror roots, what to do for a scare and why Spirit Halloween keeps haunting big box stores.

☀️ Today's weather: Sunny, high near 72.

• 🌧️ Soaking rain will likely hit Pittsburgh starting Sunday morning due to Hurricane Isaias. Severe weather is not expected here.

🎧 Sounds like: "Howlin' for You," by The Black Keys.

🎂 Happy early birthday to our member Joann Stegall!

🗓️ Programming note: We're off Monday for the holiday!

Today’s newsletter is 998 words — a 4-minute read.

Pittsburgh has a killer claim to fame: We helped put the horror in Halloween.

Why it matters: From pioneering the modern zombie to producing generations of horror talent, Pittsburgh has a legitimate case as America's Halloween capital.

• The setting helps: Victorian houses on steep hillsides, industrial ruins and fog-filled river valleys give the city a naturally eerie edge.

Context: We've dubbed Pittsburgh the most American city. Now, we're making the case that it's near the top of the nation's spookiest.

Case in point: George Romero's low-budget 1968 classic "Night of the Living Dead," filmed primarily in Evans City, Butler County, helped create the modern flesh-eating zombie. The Museum of Modern Art called it one of the most influential horror films in half a century and credits it with reanimating the genre.

• Romero's "Dawn of the Dead" turned the Monroeville Mall into a worldwide pilgrimage for zombie fans, "Martin" brought vampiric terror to Braddock, and "The Crazies" descended on Evans City and Zelienople.
• "Creepshow," Romero's collaboration with Stephen King, was shot throughout Pittsburgh.

Zoom out: Western Pennsylvania's scary movie résumé stretches well beyond Romero.

• Much of "The Silence of the Lambs" was filmed here, including Hannibal Lecter's jail scenes at Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall and Buffalo Bill's house in Perryopolis. Fans can now tour the house or, if you're brave, spend the night.
• Generations of Pittsburghers stayed up with Bill "Chilly Billy" Cardille and "Chiller Theater," the locally produced late-night show that became a regional institution.

Flashback: Pitt last year launched what it calls the world's first academic center dedicated to horror studies. Its collections include Romero's archives, rare books and draft scripts of "Dracula," "Jaws" and "Halloween."

• A 2024 analysis of IMDb ranked Pittsburgh the top U.S. city for Halloween movies, with more than 100 filmed here.

What they're saying: More than half of our readers say they don't break out the Halloween decor until Oct. 1, but Annie Sacks, a South Side-based interior designer who creates Halloween displays for homeowners across western Pennsylvania, said clients are reaching out earlier each year — some as early as late August.

• "Pittsburgh loves its Halloween," she tells Axios.

What's next: WQED's "Dead Air" is celebrating Pittsburgh's love of horror with local films, archival footage and new specials throughout October.

Go deeper

🔮 Allentown has its own ecosystem of curiosities, with The Weeping Glass, Dr. Tumblety's, heavy-metal Grim Wizard Coffee and Death Comes Lifting.

📼 Lawrenceville's Lost Lizard Video is bringing the video-rental era back from the dead, with a focus on cult horror.

🎩 Trundle Manor in Swissvale is packed with macabre artifacts and taxidermy.

🦴 Saint Anthony Chapel in Troy Hill has more than 5,000 Catholic relics, including bones and other remains associated with saints. It's one of the largest such collections outside of the Vatican.

🎓 The Trump administration is investigating nine universities, including Pitt, for potential fraud involving J-1 visas, which allow international students to study and work in the U.S. The probe is the latest effort to restrict international enrollment. (Politico)

• Pitt in a statement said it's reviewing the subpoena from the Department of Labor: "The university participates in federal visa programs, including the J-1 program, in accordance with all applicable federal requirements."

🗣️ If you missed the debate between Gov. Josh Shapiro and state Treasurer Stacy Garrity, you can watch it here in its entirety.

🏚️ Pittsburgh is hosting its first Halloween house decorating contest this year. Submission info here.

🥃 Shorty's at The Waterfront in Homestead has reopened as Shorty's Social Kitchen, with a refreshed look, revamped menu and new cocktail lineup. (Press release)

Here are some of the best ways to celebrate Halloween around Pittsburgh this year. Check out our October events guide for more!

• Demon House | Full schedule | Open through Nov. 1 | 417 Coyle Curtain Road, Monongahela | Times vary | $20+
• Hundred Acres Manor | Full schedule | Open through Nov. 1 | 1 Hundred Acres Drive, Bethel Park | Times vary | $30+
• Portals of Fear | Full schedule | Open through Oct. 31 | 25 Majka St., West Mifflin | $30+
• Castle Blood | Open through Oct. 31 | 100 Schoonmaker Ave., Monessen | Friday-Saturday 7pm-10pm; Sunday 2pm-4pm | $25 for evening admission

13 more things to do

Spirit Halloween is haunting the shelves of former big-box stores again this fall as it opens 1,500 locations nationwide, including more than a dozen in the greater Pittsburgh area.

The big picture: The stores appear and vanish each fall, so finding a Spirit often means relaying directions in retail shorthand: "At the old JoAnn's."

Zoom in: Spirit stores in the Pittsburgh metro include a former Kirkland's on McKnight Road in Ross Township; an old JoAnn on William Penn Highway in Monroeville; and the former JC Penney at the Beaver Valley Mall, per Spirit's locator.

The bottom line: Spirit's most popular costumes this year include "Toy Story" favorites, "K-Pop Demon Hunters," superheroes, warriors and Y2K looks.

Zoom out

👋 Ryan here. A literal murder of crows invaded my walk the other day, further solidifying us as the spookiest city.

The intrigue: Dozens started to roost as the sun set over St. Mary Catholic Cemetery in Lawrenceville.

Zoom in: They were American crows — known for their loud caw — one of two species found in Southwestern Pennsylvania.

• The other is the fish crow, which make a nasally "eh-uh" bellow.

🎙️Chrissy wants your spooky local stories that don't make it into the guidebooks, from ghost stories to strange local lore.

👻 Ryan is looking for fun Halloween plans in the city. Anyone have suggestions?

Thanks to Chloe Gonzales for editing this newsletter.