Odds & Trends

Hartmania. The name of the mane is the Gretta Wig, but it makes the wearer look like Mary Hartman. Just now arriving in department stores, the Louise Lasser look-alike locks come from Alvah Hair Creations in 20 shades (no grays) and are made of Elura, a modacrylic fiber that can be shampooed or cream-rinsed. Price: around $55.

S.O.Seattle. Unlike other cities that promote ad campaigns to lure tourists, Seattle is waging a battle to persuade people who live in the city to stay in the city. Six 30-sec. commercial spots, being aired free of charge by the three major commercial TV stations, emphasize the theme that Seattle is "an interesting place to live." One spot depicts a rush-hour traffic jam with the single spoken message: "If you lived in Seattle, you'd be home by now." The commercials were made for less than $2,000 of public money--and, say city officials, will have paid for themselves in taxes if they persuade only three or four families to resist the flight to the suburbs.

Little Monsters. For the child who does not get enough blood and ghoul from TV or movies, new Monster Make-Up and Horror Make-Up kits provide the wherewithal for 56 basic variations of Lon Chaney, including leprous or misshapen cheekbones, deformed foreheads, grotesque scars, dagger wounds, drooping, bulging eyeballs, bullet holes--plus a bottle of nontoxic gore. The kits, which sell for less than $20 each, were designed by Veteran Makeup Artist Dick Smith, who turned Linda Blair's head in The Exorcist and aged Marlon Brando in The Godfather. They come with a packet of powdered gelatin, which when melted in hot water becomes Flex Flesh and can be shaped in a variety of plastic molds. The skin-thin horror mug is kept in place with spirit gum and can take makeup. New York's Pressman Corp., which makes the sets, has sold some 250,000.

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