Halloween costumes | Beatles memorabilia
It's October 1964…a few days before Halloween…what would you wear for trick-or-treating? You knew what you would do even before you shouted, 'Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!' Was there any doubt? Kids could collect candy as one of the Fab Four! How cool was it to officially dress as a band member for one big night?
John, Paul, George, and Ringo each wore brightly printed flannel-and-nylon costumes made by the Ben Cooper Company in Brooklyn, New York. The company's original visionaries were Ben Cooper and his brother, Nat. Costume artist Frank Romano designed and painted all of the Beatles' masks.
The boxed smocks were 80% rayon and 20% flannel and listed as 'Deluxe Quality—Flame Retardant.' The mask was flannel-topped, molded, and flesh-colored with fuzzy "authentic hair" attached. The front of the costume had a large 4½" diagonal logo printed on the chest, which read, "The Beatles/Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! © NEMS Ent. Ltd. Ldn.” It also featured printed buttons, each having a large "B" on them. The costumes came in small, medium, and large sizes, with the outfit name stamped on the end of the box.
The retail box measured 11" x 12½" x 3½" and included text on one end, such as "Large (12-14) With Authentic Hair Mask."
To promote the product in shops, Ben Cooper manufactured a 22" x 8¼" paper poster for the "Official Authentic Beatle Halloween Costume." The shipping boxes that arrived at retail outlets contained 12 costumes; every box had five Paul, four Ringo, two George & one John, making the John (and George) costume the rarest.
The store display for the costumes: "It measured about 21⅞" x 8⅜", or 56 x 21½ cm, and was made of paper. It has original fold lines, so one was probably in each carton of 12 costumes" – Jeff A.
"The costumes themselves were of each Beatle because that was the license requirement," said Ira Cooper, Nat Cooper's son. Ira Cooper was a salesman for the company for many years as an independent businessman. "There was not (an individual) Beatles box mostly because it was not felt that the popularity could possibly last more than a year or two, and the company was not in the habit of making 'dedicated' boxes ...for something that was likely to be a phenomenon for only one or two seasons."
Cooper continued: "The costume was simply a derivative of what seemed an interesting suit (smock) design- but there was no requirement by the licensor to make it in any particular way. One might have thought it would be their 60s-style slim suits, but a dark blue or gray suit wouldn't have caught anyone's attention in a retail store at the time. Thus, the colorfully striped garment. In those days, again, licensors were not particular about how a Halloween costume looked, as they were considered novelty items and not even full-fledged toys, let alone real garments."
"My father (Nat) was responsible for most of the licensing in the line and the volume sales to large customers. Ben was the artistic innovator and founder of the company while Nat was off to England in World War II."
As to why the costumes were made from rayon, Cooper added, "It was dictated by the retailers - and we innovated production and created the brightly colored plastics which could be roller printed instead of silk-screened, let alone made overseas at lower costs. Rayon is far more collectible, making these vintage costumes more desirable and attractive."
Note: “There were no known fakes of the Halloween costumes made. A few were known of the masks, but none of the actual costumes.” - Dennis Dailey
The Ben Cooper Company
The Seltaeb agreement was with Ben Cooper, Inc., 33 34th Street, Brooklyn, New York, in 1964. The manufacturing license was for ‘Halloween costumes.’
The Ben Cooper Company was located at 33 34th Street, Brooklyn, New York 11232, and the Rubies Costume Company bought it in 1992.
Ben Cooper, Inc. was named in NEMS Enterprises, Ltd. v. Seltaeb, Incorporated, a lawsuit filed in the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, First Judicial Department, dated July 6, 1965, in New York, New York.
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