Frank Green

Here is Frank Green. He is 53, proud father of two and loving husband to Rebecca Green. Eleven months out of the year, he plays the family man. He takes Emily to the mall and she picks out clothes from the Limited Too and gets sparkly earrings from Claire's. Ryan is autistic. Frank doesn't see this as a problem, he loves Ryan for who he is. He is impressed when Ryan can name all 42 American presidents in under a minute at the age of seven, a feat that might have made a nice party trick for an adult, but garners little respect from a class of second graders. When Ryan is twelve, Frank and Rebecca switch him to a school across town where he will get a little more attention and have a little more time to work things through. Emily stays at the school down the block and runs home in the afternoons with her friend Anna to play with dolls and makeup.

Eleven months out of the year, Frank's job is a professional sandwich shop singer. He brings an acoustic guitar and a microphone and sets it up by a metal chair in the corner of Stuffer's. He plays old songs that he knows people like hearing: a little James Taylor, some Bob Dylan, the Beatles. He plays newer stuff too, 90's alt rock and recent soft rock radio hits. Sometimes he throws in a jingle to see if people are paying attention, and sometimes they are. If one a neighbor or friend walks in, Frank leans into the microphone and says "Hellllooo, Mr. Davison," or whatever the surprised person's name might be, in a low, radio announcer voice.

That is Frank Green, eleven months out of the year. For the month of October, however, he is Freaky Frank. Freaky Frank is a haunted house superstar, a hayride rocker and a costume party crooner. He dresses like a vampire and sings campy songs about werewolves through the lisp of his fangs; he dresses in a swirly moustache and a slick tuxedo and plays a film noir villain. His favorite persona is the hilbilly ghost. He paints his face white and streaks blood makeup on his cheeks and mouth, puts black caps over his front teeth, and wears a bright plaid shirt and overalls over his chubby body. This is his passion, Halloween. When he is busy being Frank Green, family man, sandwich shop singer, he secretly relaxes in the evenings by doodling picture postcards of monsters and ghouls.

When we encounter Frank Green, it is nearing the end of September. Frank is lining up gigs for the holiday season and shopping for costume materials. Stuffer's feels like a cage in which the Cheers theme song slides into "Mr. Jones" and then into "American Pie" in an endless loop. It is still warm outside, but the children are in school now and the air finally smells like a real midwestern autumn. Emily is a freshman now, and Ryan is 17 going on 18, but Frank has been avoiding the problem of what Ryan will do after high school until now. Frank finishes singing some Sinatra, and there is a smattering of applause. A wave of heat fills the room as the door of Stuffer's opens. He glances at the door and sees three girls come in from the parking lot, clearly enjoying themselves. He recognizes one and leans in to say, "Hellllooo, Miss Booth." His neighbor turns to look at the source of the greeting and waves a friendly hello in return. Frank smiles and starts idly strumming while thinking of a song to play. The girls focus the menu, and Frank thinks they are probably about Ryan's age. He thinks Miss Booth's two friends look familiar, maybe he'd seen them in the neighborhood, or maybe in a newspaper article about a school play or a track meet. He starts to play the 90s hit, "Closing Time," and the girls are obviously delighted. They start singing along as they bring their trays over to a table to sit. The Booth girl says to the others, "Did you know he's my neighbor?" Frank hears a note of pride in her voice, and though he can't tell if it is real or joking, he appreciates the recognition anyway.

A few songs later, the girls get up to leave and wave goodbye to Frank. In the parking lot, he sees them each light a cigarette, passing a pink lighter between them. In the same moment, a blue Jeep pulls up with Rebecca and Ryan in the front seats. They are there to pick up a sandwich and to drive Frank home from work. The Booth girl gives a small embarassed wave of recognition to Ryan and he nods awkwardly in return. Frank sighs and remembers that he has other things to do and wishes that he didn't. He winds up the set by playing "Wild World" and brightens with the knowledge that ghoul season is only a few weeks away.