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While there will no doubt be many of the traditional superheroes, witches, ghosts and cartoon characters on the trick-or-treating and Halloween-party circuit this year, many are seeking out of-the-moment celebrity-inspired getups for their celebrations.
According to search data from Yahoo!, Kate Gosselin and Lady Gaga are among the most sought-after looks this month, and Michael Jackson costumes have been in high demand since his death in June.
Other ripped-from-the-headlines costume searches include Barack and Michelle Obama; some creative types are even bringing the "Balloon Boy" story to their Halloween outfits. Costumes from the box-office-topping Where The Wild Things Are movie are being chased down in a big way: the beastly creatures have edged out Wizard of Oz and Star Wars, and are gaining on the all-time-Halloween-favorite, Alice in Wonderland.
Oddsmakers often look to Halloween mask sales as a bellwether for who will win at the polls. Since this isn't an election year, Yahoo! is seeing far fewer numbers for the Sarah and Todd Palin searches in the lead up to last Halloween.
Vampires are this year's second-most-searched-for costume -- no doubt a side-effect of the wildly popular Twilight and True Blood franchises.
In addition to celebrities, many perennial favorites atop the lists of most popular costumes.
Top 10 Halloween Costume Yahoo! Searches (in October)
1. Pirate
2. Vampire
3. Michael Jackson
4. Fairy
5. Witch
6. Alice in Wonderland
7. Gypsy
8. Tinkerbell
9. Flapper
10. Batman/Dark Knight
And it wouldn't be Halloween with out the "sexy-fication" of so many traditional professions and personalities. (Including, um, sexy clown, which sounds more scary than sexy.)
Top 10 “Sexy” Costumes on Yahoo! (in October)
1. Sexy Vampire
2. Sexy Pirate
3. Sexy Sailor
4. Sexy Indian
5. Sexy Devil
6. Sexy Nurse
7. Sexy Cop
8. Sexy Angel
9. Sexy Bunny
10. Sexy Clown
Check out our PHOTOS of movie-inspired costumes!
What are you dressing up as this year? Chime in below!
