October Is For Costumes; November, Not So Much

I can't tell which story is more pathetic, about men gone bad while wearing costumes, as well as the nearby doppelgangers that appear to spawn. Exhibit A, from London, tells of a gun-toting Teletubby that robs a woman, as well as the police who show up and question a different man who also happens to be wearing a teletubby costume:

Halloween took a bizarre and frightening turn in London this weekend when a man dressed as a children's television character, a purple teletubby, robbed a woman at gunpoint near the city's core.

London police say a costume-wearing, gun-toting teletubby confronted the woman near the intersection of Talbot and Mill streets just after midnight and demanded cash.

The woman, in her 20's, gave an undisclosed amount of cash to the robber, who then ran south on Talbot.

The woman wasn't injured but her misfortune wasn't hers alone. A second man dressed in costume was later stopped in the area by police and questioned — but police had the wrong teletubby.

"He was deemed not to be the teletubby we were looking for," Const. Kevin Lui said.

What are the chances?

And then, Exhibit B: closer to home, a Spider-Man impersonator on Hollywood Boulevard allegedly hits a man; and once again, the cops go after a different man in another Spider-Man costume:

A Spider-Man impersonator was arrested on outstanding criminal warrants Wednesday after an incident in which he allegedly slugged a man near the Hollywood & Highland complex, police said.

It was not immediately clear what led to the altercation, which was reported about 12:30 p.m. in the 6800 block of Hollywood Boulevard. But it's the latest in a string of incidents involving movie characters and celebrity look-alikes who vie for space -- and attention -- along the tourist-filled corridor that includes Grauman's Chinese Theatre.

Christopher Loomis, 39, was being held on outstanding misdemeanor warrants in lieu of $5,500 bail, police said.

The incident began when Los Angeles Police Department patrol officers received a radio call reporting battery by a man in a Spider-Man costume. When they arrived, they encountered four people dressed as the web-slinging crusader.

"They stopped one, it wasn't him," said LAPD Lt. Beverly Lewis. "They stopped the second, and it was the suspect."

Second time's the charm, I suppose.

photo: Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times