AH Man's Dying Wish: Put His Ashes In His Home Halloween Display

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, IL — An Arlington Heights man responsible for elaborate Halloween displays for nearly 20 years died this week, and his final wish was to have his ashes be a part of the haunted attraction that he had become known for over the years. Michael Podlin died of pancreatic cancer Monday at his home, according to the Daily Herald. He was 55.

For 17 years during Halloween, Podlin and his wife, TammySue Margalit, turned their home into Scary's Forrest Frights, a spooky outdoor display that incorporated hundreds of lights, detailed decorations, animatronic creatures and continuous music and sound effects. It took about six weeks and around 1,000 hours to create the entire experience, the Herald reports.

Podlin was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2016, but that didn't keep him from continuing his Halloween tradition, according to NBC 5 Chicago. The couple still created a display last year, and Podlin even posted online videos of how he constructed certain parts of it.

Now Margalit is considering how to honor her husband's last request. One option is to have his ashes sealed in a custom skull urn that would be placed in a window during Halloween.

“If it were up to him, his bones or his casket would be right out there live,” she told NBC 5. “It’s a little illegal, so I’m not going to do that.”

While the specifics on how to handle his remains still need to be worked out, Margalit does know one way she'll be making sure Podlin will have a presence in this year's haunted Halloween home display. A gravestone Podlin wasn't able to complete before he died will be set out, NBC 5 reports, and it will include the following epitaph, which he wrote: "Cancer sucks."

Along with Margalit, Podlin also is survived by two daughters — Sabrina, 16, and Ginger, 14 — and a son, Sam, who turned 17 on Halloween. A memorial Mass will be held at 10 a.m. Friday, June 15, at St. Alphonsus Church, 411 N. Wheeling Road, Prospect Heights. Condolence calls will be from 3 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 19, through Thursday, June 21, at the couple's home in Arlington Heights.

More via the Daily Herald and NBC 5 Chicago

The late Michael Podlin's haunted Halloween display at his Arlington Heights home in 2017. (Screen shot from video via Michael Podlin | YouTube)