Be Somebody!! Even If It’s Somebody Else!!

Wearing costumes was too good to save for just Halloween when I was a kid. It was not out of the ordinary to find a young Spencer Hughes wearing an old Batman Cooper Costume around San Francisco in the middle of July.

I look back and I think: “How embarrassing!”

But I was a kid!! I didn’t have inhibitions yet! Watch a child sometime…they do funny and embarrassing things all the time and they don’t care!

One of my favorite comedic characters is Tony Clifton, the alter ego of the late great comedian Andy Kaufman. Clifton is worth doing a “You Tube” search if you are not acquainted with him. Although he may not be for the faint of heart or the thin skinned. You see, Tony always said what was on his mind. He didn’t care what ANYBODY thought about him. It was always “their loss” if they didn’t understand him.

After years of toying with the idea, I recently decided to go for it. My Sweetie spent a bit of time on e-Bay and ended up ordering me all the components of a Tony Clifton outfit.

I have never had more fun in my life playing harmless pranks on unsuspecting people around me!

You see, when I was a kid and wore that Batman costume…I BECAME the Caped Crusader. And now as an alleged adult, I become Tony when I don the wig, mustache, aviator glasses, and bad, smelly smoking jackets!

This weekend I tricked my own MOTHER! It took her ten minutes to figure out it was her one and only son under the disguise and the attitude.

I find that doing this is very therapeutic to play “Uncle Tony” once in awhile. Even the kids love it. They go from being not too sure to wanting to come up and give him (me) a hug. And sometimes the wig and mustache go missing. Hmmmmmm.