I need a costume

[wakela]

Any recomendations? 

I'm going to a business conference and there is going to be the annual costume party and contest.  The theme this year is "a trip to the movies,"  since the conference is being held near Los Angeles.  I'd like to do something SciFi, but it's a pretty non-geeky crowd so something like the sixth Doctor, or Admiral Akhbar would probably go over their heads.

I'm thinking of going as Spock.  It's simple, cheap, will travel easily, and is highly recognizable.  But I thought I would open this up to the Escape Artists Hive Mind for suggestions.

[Russell Nash]

Han Solo would also have a lot of the same attributes.  Maybe not as recognizable because of the lack of pointy ears.

[Jason M]

Ford Prefect.  Hmm.  Probably go over their heads.

Jedi Master or Sith Lord isn't too hard, either.

Zombies are always a favorite of mine, just pick some character and undeadify it.
Chuck might not be a bad choice.

How much time, effort and money are you looking at?

[wakela]

Han Solo is a good idea.  White shirt, vest, khakis, boots, gun.  Maybe a cheap teddie bear for amusement.

Zathras, not a huge amount of time money or effort, but I'd like it to be good.  At a convention you could wear a costume for a day or even three, but in this case the party is a few hours and then I'll never need this again.  On the other hand, the winner by popular vote gets a bottle of hooch. 

The year the theme was pirates saw some great, imaginative costumes, and actually the winners were ghost pirates, close enough to zombie pirates.  For Cowboy year the winner was the "Electric Cowboy."  He strung ordinary cowboy garb with Christmas lights.  Last year the theme was "Castaways" which basically leaves Tom Hanks or a member of the Gilligan's Island crew.  The winner was an unimaginative but well-executed Gilligan.

This is a convention of manufacturers.  There is one guy I know who is a Star Wars fan, but other than that they are not geeks.  Zombie Han Solo or Zombie Spock are great ideas (actually, zombie Spock is the funniest thing I've heard in a long time), but I need to go pretty conventional.

Now that I think of it, the Star Wars guy might go as someone from his world.  All the more reason for me to go Spock. 

Where do I get ears and a wig?

[Bdoomed]

party city.

[Planish]

Dryer vent hoses (preferably aluminum) and two cardboard boxes - instant robot.


Then there was the prize-winning "Tony the Banana Flasher". Trenchcoat, wrap-around sunglasses, fedora, cigar, rubber boots, and a large bunch of bananas hanging from a string around his waist like a codpiece. Nothing else.

True story (ah, art college days), but maybe not much in the way of SF content.

[Russell Nash]

Then there was the prize-winning "Tony the Banana Flasher". Trenchcoat, wrap-around sunglasses, fedora, cigar, rubber boots, and a large bunch of bananas hanging from a string around his waist like a codpiece. Nothing else.

True story (ah, art college days), but maybe not much in the way of SF content.

Color the bananas blue and they can be from a plantation on another planet.

[stePH]

Fifth Doctor.