From bobbing for apples and costume parties to lovingly begging for candy, Halloween is becoming a favorite time for Americans in more macabre fashions.

Because Halloween has always dealt with death, it’s no wonder why the day has been morphed into something more sinister, morbid and represented by famous serial killers.

These killers, both fictional and not, are the epitome of scary stories and urban folklore. Freddy Krueger, Michael Myers, Jason Voorhees and many more have been a part of pop culture for decades and they have seemingly been modeled after real life killers.

Leatherface from “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” was loosely inspired by Ed Gein, a man from Plainfield, Wisconsin, who murdered and dug up women’s graves to use their skin as clothing and furniture. Gein is also seemingly the inspiration for characters in other horror movies, such as Buffalo Bill from “Silence of the Lambs.”

In “A Nightmare on Elm Street,” director Wes Craven’s character Freddy Krueger was inspired by someone who bullied Craven as a child.

Michael Myers from the “Halloween” series is the absolute poster child for having the sole life purpose of killing without rhyme or reason.

These fictional serial killers have a large fanbase, mainly because of their anonymity and indestructibility. They just sneak out of nowhere to kill their prey with sheer animal-like instinct. They have no other motivation but to kill.

It seems these reasons are why many are against Halloween and consider it a satanic holiday. The reality though is that it is just a fun festivity that we celebrate every year and the slasher genre is an animated part of that.

These fictional characters are all examples of art imitating life. It’s what brought these facets from real life to the screen as huge money makers and a part of American life — especially part of the Halloween spirit.

I believe Halloween is a fun and happy holiday, not something that is evil or bad. The day was originally created as a Pagan holiday to worship those who have passed on.

Paganism is the worship of nature and Earth, but unfortunately, it has been often associated with satanism. This is far from the truth as these are two entirely different things.

I think it’s a nice thing that those who have died are remembered and honored in a distinguished and noble way.

Halloween is a time to have fun and relish in some fantasy. Even though there have been many horrors in real life that often become associated with the holiday, sometimes we just need levity to deal with it — Halloween helps do that.

Happy Halloween! Be safe and beware.