This devilish decorator is terrifying the neighborhood.
For the eighth year in a row, Bensonhurst resident Dominic Lagonigro is celebrating Halloween by going all out to transform his humble abode into a haunted abode.
Since 2003, Lagonigro has “terrified” the neighborhood with a different theme each Halloween — including a yard filled with spooky pirates last year, and sinister monsters — plus a surprise or two — a few years ago.
“I remember one Halloween, I had several monsters lined up around my door, and I dressed up as Jason Vorhees and sat on my porch,” the Halloween aficionado recalled. “These teenagers came to my house, and point at me and say ‘Wow, look at that one, it looks so real.’ They’d get closer and closer until I jumped up and they took off like bats out of hell.”
Lagonigro did not disappoint with his theme this year — turning his frontyard on Bay 20th Street into a spine-tingling graveyard with eerie ghosts and skeletons “flying” on wires, bloody tombstones on the lawn, and creepy bodies crawling out the ground. The entire setup cost about $300, a small price to pay for becoming the residential mayor of Halloween.
“My neighbors love it, and they look forward to Halloween every year. People always take pictures outside my house.” Lagonigro says.
The decorations attract more than 100 trick-or-treaters every year, who leave happily with their sweet and sugary goodies.
To Lagonigro, Halloween is the best day of the year.
“I enjoy people walking down the block and seeing my house. People look forward to going out and having a drink at the bar. I look forward to this,” he says.
