Louellen Berger is the queen of Halloween on St. Charles Avenue. As the haunted holiday approaches, crowds gather at the corner of State Street to inspect the collection of 80-plus plastic human skeletons that arise in Berger’s front yard each year.

Sure, there’s something creepy about all the macabre empty eye sockets, deathly drooping jaws, and grasping segmented fingers. But Berger’s boneyard isn’t meant to chill the blood, it’s meant to, uh, tickle the funny bone.

That's because Berger doesn’t merely erect a display of flesh-deficient men and women, she costumes them and labels them with wicked, wince-worthy wordplay.

Every skeleton represents a celebrity, from star athletes to beloved musicians to local movers and shakers, alive or dead. Each year there are a few new additions to

See Full Page