He’s the decorator from hell.
Each year around Halloween, Bath Beach resident Domenic Lagonigro festoons his porch and front yard with so many skeletons, monsters, and zombies that some children are too scared to even walk past his house.
“I’ve always enjoyed Halloween, ever since I was a kid,” Lagonigro said. “I’ve been a horror fanatic my whole life.”
And for the last nine years, Lagonigro has single-handedly transformed his Bay 20th Street house into a scene out of “Tales from the Crypt.” This year’s new addition is a ghostly pirate ship floating on a corpse-strewn sea.
“It took me three days to do it,” he said. “But this is something I really enjoy.”
And the neighborhood likes it almost as much as he does.
“I get a thousand compliments,” he said. “Sometimes people stop their cars and take pictures.”
But Lagonigro didn’t always get to have this much fun. As a child, his parents weren’t enthusiastic about Halloween, a mistake he made sure not to repeat — even though his kids are now 17- and 22-years-old.
“My kids loved it when they were younger,” he said. “Now they think I’m nuts.”
This Halloween, you’ll find Lagonigro sitting amid a strobe light and fog machines on his porch, ready to dispense candy to about 150 trick-or-treaters who make a yearly visit to his house.
But don’t wait too long to walk by. The decorations will only stay up for a few days after Oct. 30, since Christmas — Lagonigro’s second-favorite holiday — is right around the corner.
