Songfacts®:

• Glenn Danzig, who was lead singer of Misfits at the time, wrote this song about the dark side of Halloween, an American holiday where kids put on costumes and go door-to-door collecting candy. Taking place every October 31st, Halloween is also celebrated by many adults who dress up for the holiday.
• As the reigning kings of horror punk in 1981, the Misfits were almost obligated to write a song about Halloween, and the release has endured as a favorite of costume party playlists throughout the years. Originally released on October 31, 1981, the single featured a B-side entitled "Halloween II," with lyrics sung in non-standard Latin. Like many Misfits singles, "Halloween" was included on multiple albums, including the 1985 release Legacy of Brutality, and Collection II a decade later.
• "Halloween" was recorded during a pivotal time for the Misfits. In fact, the cover of the single marked the first time they referred to themselves simply as Misfits, rather than The Misfits. This change coincided with the introduction of the now-infamous horror-styled band name logo, with lettering inspired by the niche horror magazine Famous Monsters of Finland.
  
  Personnel changes were underway as well, and halfway through the recording process, guitarist Bobby Steele was replaced by Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein (known in his pre-Misfits life as Paul Doyle Caiafa), younger brother of Misfits bassist Jerry Only. Mr. Von Frankenstein was only 16 years old when he joined the Misfits, and continued to play with Misfits frontman Glenn Danzig long after the band dissolved.
• "Halloween" starts out innocently enough to be sung at an elementary school harvest festival, but after the first two lines about bonfires and pumpkins, things get predictably dark. With lyrics about dead cats, burning bodies, and razor blades in candy apples, it's an anthem for those who embrace the darker side of the holiday, and prefer it served with a side of camp and gore.
• Dead Kennedys released their own song called "Halloween" a year later in 1982, although lead singer Jello Biafra claimed they had written the song before the Misfits did theirs. In the magazine Forced Exposure, Glenn Danzig shared his thoughts:
  
  "Jello Biafra is an a--hole... That's like us releasing a record called 'Holiday In Cambodia' and saying, 'Oh, we had this written a long time ago,' or if we released a song called 'California Über Alles' and saying, 'Who are the Dead Kennedys, never heard of them.' It's just stupid and lame."
• AFI, one of the many bands influenced by the Misfits, covered this song in 1999.