Clowns are a perennial Halloween costume: Not particularly zeitgeisty or inspired, but timelessly creepy and easy to recognize. This Halloween, however, one town in France has other ideas. In a decree issued Oct. 28, just days before the big day, Pierre Dudieuzere, mayor of Vendargues, a small town near Montpellier, banned all clown costumes for anyone over 13 on Halloween and for a month afterward.