It's not easy being Monica - even for one night. The nation's major mask makers have taken a pass on Monica Lewinsky this Halloween, worried about possible lawsuits over the use of her likeness. So revelers will have to improvise with wigs and berets, and many plan to do so.
Party stores and costume makers report that this season's best-selling spooking gear is all about Lewinsky, President Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Linda Tripp and Kenneth Starr.The absence of Monica masks has been a disappointment to some, but the mask companies may have been wise to steer clear. An aide (yes, an aide) to Lewinsky said no one had asked permission to license a Monica mask, but that if anyone did, Lewinsky would refuse. The aide said Lewinsky's lawyers are looking for ways to crack down on entrepreneurs who have used her picture on cookies, T-shirts and postcards.
Thus, the full Monica, like slipping past a Secret Service agent, takes creativity. Cesar Inc. in New York recommends adapting its "Witchy Woman" mask. Abracadabra, also in New York, offers a Monica wig, a beret and a wig-beret combo.
Annie's Costumes and Magic, in Plantation, Fla., offers a blue dress. "The big Halloween dilemma is where to put the stain," said assistant manager Jerry Sturdevant. Frankie Stein, the owner of Frankie Steinz Costumes in New York, considered offering a knit dress with a stain, but he decided it would be tacky.
Halloween fads of recent years suggest that becoming a popular costume is a fleeting measure of infamy. Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker, Saddam Hussein, O.J. Simpson, Lorena Bobbitt and Woody Allen all were hottest when the news about them was the worst.
But Morris Costumes president Philip Morris predicts that Clinton will have a Nixon-like shelf-life. "Ten Halloweens from now, we'll be selling Clinton masks," he said.