Jack-O’-Lanterns

Jack-O’-Lanterns used to be simple: triangle eyes, a crooked smile and candle inside.

No more.

Halloween has become a major holiday, not just a silly night of revelry. And, Jack-O’-Lanterns are a big deal.

Southern California color spotter Kathy Jonokuchi alerted us to what’s happening at King Gillette Ranch In Calabasas.

She was there to see Nights of the Jack, a festival that celebrates the Jack-O’-Lantern.

It features thousands of hand-carved, illuminated pumpkins carved as dinosaurs, sharks, celebrities and things that go bump in the night.

Look carefully. What you see are Jack-O’-Lanterns carved from pumpkins, but in all sorts of fantastic forms … another form of fall color seen only at California’s Nights of the Jack.

For those lacking time or the talent to carve a creative Jack-O’-Lantern, Target sells plastic re-useable pumpkins pre-carved and painted in many shades of designer colors … more fall color.

Of course, you can always carve a pumpkin, light a candle inside it and enjoy the orange glow of a traditional Jack-O’-Lantern, crooked smile and all. Or, just marvel at the orange glow of a rising October moon, as Kathy did.