Bobby "Boris" Pickett, whose dead-on Boris Karloff impression gave Halloween its best known anthem in 1962, making him one of musics best one-hit wonders, has died of leukemia. He was 69.

Pickett, died Wednesday night at the West Los Angeles Veterans Hospital, said his longtime manager, Stuart Hersh.

"Monster Mash" hit the Billboard chart three times: when it debuted in 1962, reaching No. 1 the week before Halloween; again in August 1970, and for a third time in May 1973.

The recording, done in a couple of hours, the song was rejected by four major labels before Gary Paxton, released "Monster Mash" on his own label. In a 1996 interview with People magazine, Pickett said "When I hear it, I hear a cash register ringing."

Picket had other mild hits such as, his "Monster's Holiday," a Christmas follow-up, reached No. 30 in December 1962. And "Graduation Day" hit No. 80 in June 1963.

He continued performing through last October and appeared at many well known haunts in our industry including Spookyworld, Boston, MA, Terror on the Wharf, Salem, MA and The Darkness, St. Louis. The Monster Mash WILL ALWAYS be known as the theme song for our industry. We're proud to say we knew Bobby Pickett and will miss him... others may quote a famous line from him but the famous line we know him for is this...

"Elvis once said The Monster Mash was the dumbest song he ever heard" Pickett would say but then follow up with "But Elvis I'm still here'. No longer but we'll miss him all the same.

Bobby Pickett Dead Bobby Pickett
February 11, 1938 - April 25,2007

"The old man's gone picking herbs on the mountainside, cloud-hidden, whereabouts unknown"...Alan Watts