Are you a Joker or a Palinista?

If you intend to dress up as either the character from the Batman series or Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, yours may be just another mask in the crowd of most popular Halloween costumes.

The edgy performance of the late Heath Ledger in "The Dark Knight" has helped make The Joker one of the must-have costumes this Halloween season.

"The Joker, we can't even keep in the stores," said John Vargo, regional manager for Spirit Halloween Superstores.

The store, with locations in Penn Center East in Wilkins, the Waterfront in Homestead, Pleasant Hills and the Northland Center on McKnight Road in Ross, sells a full Joker costume for children including a mask for about $30 and an adult one with mask for about $40.

Also flying off the shelves is a Joker makeup kit for adults, which sells for $9.99.

The Joker took the top spot for movie-inspired male costume in a survey by Fandango, the online moviegoer site. Batman came in second, and Iron Man took third.

"Movies have always been great fodder for Halloween costume ideas," said Ted Hong, vice president of marketing for Fandango. "Many of pop culture's most iconic characters come from film. The best part is that each year you get a new supply of costume suggestions, thanks to the latest Hollywood inspirations, and this year has provided a bumper crop."

As for those who want to make a political statement with a latex likeness of the Republican vice presidential candidate, those masks are harder to find than a moose at a political rally.

Unlike masks for Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama and Ms. Palin's running mate, Sen. John McCain, most Halloween stores don't have a Palin mask -- or a Biden one for that matter. Most masks are made overseas, and the vice presidential selections were made too late for those manufacturers.

Howard Biege, executive vice president of Rubie's Costumes in Queens, N,Y., said his store has been producing the masks, but it is a painstaking process.

Making latex masks means hand-pouring latex into a mold, waiting for it to dry and hand-painting, so the company will be making only about 15,000 of them.

"Everyone says, 'Why don't you manufacture more,' but they are all individually produced by hand, and that takes time," Mr. Biege said.

The Palin masks should be available (as long as supplies last), he said, for $29.99 at Party City, which has stores in Cranberry, Pleasant Hills, Northway and Waterworks malls and online at Costume Super Center and Buy Costumes.

Amazon. com is selling a deluxe Sarah Palin mask for $89.99 new and used ones for $29.99.

If you can't get a mask, try putting together your own Palin outfit via a wig and those famous glasses.

"If they're going to go with her, put on the wig, the frames and wear a lot of red lipstick," said Nick Parrila, a sales associate for Costume World on Smallman Street in the Strip.

He said the store specially ordered the Palin frames with clear glass, and the Palin wig is actually called International Beauty.

Costume World is also selling a lot of Obama and McCain masks together.

"A lot of people who come in to get one, get them both," he said. "It's pretty shocking."

While "there's no one costume the phone's ringing off the hook for," popular costumes at S.W. Randall Toyes & Gifts include Dorothy from "Wizard of Oz," Spider-Man, Batman and the traditional witches and vampires, said owner Jack Cohen.

Many women, he said, are looking for skimpy outfits that can turn any profession or vocation into a sexy one: sexy witch, sexy maid, sexy barmaid, sexy pirate, sexy angel or sexy devil.

Indeed, the top vote-getter for female movie-inspired costume in the Fandango poll is "The House Bunny" from the movie of the same name, followed by Fox, played by Angelina Jolie in "Wanted"; "Hannah Montana"; and Gabriella (actress Vanessa Hudgens) from the "High School Musical" films.

For those wanting to get more for their money in these tough economic times, Spirit Halloween sells double-sided costumes for adults for about $60. For example, you can be an angel at one party and a devil at another.

When it comes to babies and toddlers -- who look cute in just about anything -- monkeys, fairies, pumpkins and Elvis make the top 10 in the Yahoo list.

Just don't ask us where to find baby sideburns.