With his glowing, orange pumpkin nose and fierce loyalty to his master, Zero is the ghost dog companion to Jack Skellington. In tune with Jack’s melancholy mood, Zero keeps Jack company when they go for walks by playing in the cemetery or curling up in his basket in the tower for a nap. During that pivotal moment in the film when Sally is desperately trying to ground the sleigh to keep Jack in Halloween Town where he belongs, Zero’s dazzling nose saves the day and earns him his place at the head of the skeleton reindeer pack, guiding the way through the thick fog. To give Zero his ghost-like appearance, sometimes he was double-exposed on film, a technique where two layers of film shot separately are layered on top of one another creating a ghost-like effect; or he was filmed in front of an additional backdrop using a beamsplitter, a device that splits the light of an object into two making a hazy effect. A diffusion filter went between the splitter and the puppet, giving him a ghostly, hazy look.

Good boy! Designed to be knit in as few pieces as possible, the Magic Loop method of knitting in the round and minimal sewing for effortless finishing makes this project suitable for adventurous beginner knitters. This ghostly pup is worked in one continuous piece and stuffed as you go, with construction beginning at the backend of his body, and finishing with his pumpkin nose. Eye and ear placement are marked with purl stitches and all shaping is done with simple increase and decrease stitches. The collar is knit in the round, then moves directly into the sheet worked flat. The ears are knit separately in the round and then sewn onto the head, completing this faithful companion.