Nicholas Furnari is a dear friend, despite acting like an old man. He also loves Halloween, so to get in the spirit of October (because Halloween is the only thing that matters), we’ll have a lovely chat about all things spooky and scary and cozy.
The Baesics:
Name: Nicholas Alfio Furnari. But Alfio was originally going to be my first name. That or Bartholomew. I’m convinced they chose Nicholas to prevent bullying.
Year: Junior
Birthday: September 7th, 1995
Hometown: Lawrence, Massachusetts
Year: Sophomore
Major: Anthropology
Dorm: Currently Fisher, but used to be in Siegfried. I’ll probably stay in Fisher though. I like the community here.
Cuddling with bae
On Halloween
Do you like Halloween?
Yes, it’s my favorite holiday. There’s a certain mystique that surrounds the current American version of the holiday that’s kind of removed from its pagan roots. This idea of crisp leaves and apple cider and small children pestering their neighbors for goods. I’m a huge fan of scary things.
What is your favorite horror movie?
Oh dear. I would say The Shining, which is a disgrace for me to say because the book is so different from Kubrick’s movie. But the movie is a great combination of visual appeal and psychological horror. It’s very disturbing.
I hate saying this because it’s such a popular answer, but The Exorcist is also such a great movie. It’s so well funded that every single scene is beautiful. Pause it anywhere and the aesthetics are incredible.
What about a Halloween-specific movie?
It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. I love the Peanuts. Unless you consider A Christmas Carol movie as a Halloween movie, which some people do! The George C. Scott version is my favorite movie of all time.
What’s your favorite candy?
Generally speaking, I don’t much like candy. But if I ever have have a hankering for something, it’s Swedish fish. They’re disgusting and delightful all at once. I want to puke when I eat them, but they’re delicious. And I love Whoppers.
Are you going to wear a costume this year?
Absolutely not. That’s my least favorite part of the holiday. I like seeing little kids have fun dressing up, but I never really did. I have a lot of allergies so I couldn’t really trick or treat as a kid.
If you were going to dress up though, what would it be?
I’d either dress up as a Catholic bishop, which a friend of mine did once in a very non-satirical way. I just want to see what people would act like, almost as a social experiment. So either that or something really silly, like a mad scientist costume.
You’re an anthropology nerd – what do you think of the holiday from that perspective?
Halloween is an interesting example in the way that an holiday with very distinct cultural and ethnic roots can be commercialized and reshaped into something completely different. It’s cultural disassociation. It’s completely removed from the original ritual, but it’s become it’s own mainstay in our culture.
What’s your favorite Halloween tradition?
My family tradition was to go outside and have a fire and roast marshmallows, roast pumpkin seeds and drink apple cider. We’d invite neighbors over and we’d just share scary stories. That’s how we celebrated it.
Smolder
That’s Nicky-Pooh!
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All images provided by the interviewees