George Romero, Grandfather of the Zombie

Today’s the day folks! The man who started it all, aptly titled the ‘Grandfather of the Zombie,’ George A. Romero turns 70 years old.

He’s best known for kicking off the zombie craze with his 1968 classic Night of the Living Dead. In those 96 minutes of glorious black and white, Romero took the audience to a place they had never been before.

For me, my introduction to the movie was an old VHS bootleg I picked up in my hometown’s spring festival. I was browsing through a stack of tapes when the guy at that table stopped me, picked out the Night tape and said “This is what you’re looking for.”  I brought that tape home and watched in awe as the dead came back to life and proceeded to eat people.  I was hooked! Shortly after I watched Dawn of the Dead at a friends house and I’ve been a Romero follower ever since.  His “Dead” series has been through quite a few twists and turns. Some groundbreaking and some disappointing, but it’s always a fun ride walking into one of his movies.

The next installment for the series is due out later this year and will be called “Survival of the Dead.” In the meantime, I think a viewing of Night is in order to honor Mr. Romero. Tonight I’ll be watching the 1969 classic – Millennium Edition of course (never the 30th anniversary re-edited nonsense) – followed by 1990 Tom Savini remake.

Happy Birthday and keep the zombie flicks coming…

Night of the Living Dead's Ghoul Girl

If you haven’t already checked out Morbid Decor on ETSY, well, you’re clearly not as cool as me, but you’re also missing out on some pretty sweet lighting for your home, dungeon and/or cave

With a nice selection of lamps and hanging or standing light-boxes you’re bound to find something to meet your needs.  These products feature stills shots from some of the greatest horror movies of all time. Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Night of the Living Dead, and Nosferatu just to name a few!

I prefer the hanging light-boxes and my personal favorites are the Night of the Living Dead Ghoul Girl (featured in the image to the left) and Leatherface Flipping Out! There’s something special about capturing the moment of young girl trying to eat her parents brains… or a psychotic killer having a hissy fit because he couldn’t catch you in time to cut you up with his over sized chainsaw. Poor babies!

Go check them out now before they’re all gone! Also, look for them at Monster Mania this March 12-14 in Cherry Hill, NJ.