George A. Romero

{{Infobox person

| name =

| image = George Romero, 66ème Festival de Venise (Mostra).jpg

| caption = Romero at the 2009 Venice Film Festival

| birth_name = George Andrew Romero Jr.

| birth_date = {{Birth date|1940|2|4}}

| birth_place = New York City, U.S.

| death_date = {{Death date and age|2017|7|16|1940|2|4}}

| death_place = Toronto, Ontario, Canada

| burial_place = Toronto Necropolis

| citizenship = {{hlist|United States|Canada}}

| years_active = 1960–2017

| othername = {{hlist|Godfather of the Dead|Father of the Zombie Film}}

| education = Carnegie Mellon University (BFA)

| occupation = {{hlist|Film director|screenwriter|editor|actor}}

| known_for = Films based on an imagined zombie apocalypse

| spouse = {{ubl

| {{Marriage|Nancy Romero|1971|1978|end=div}}

| {{Marriage|Christine Forrest|1980|2010|end=div}}

| {{Marriage|Suzanne Desrocher|2011}}}}

| children = 3

| website = {{URL|officialgeorgeromero.com}}

| signature = George A. Romero signature.svg

}}

George Andrew Romero Jr. ({{IPAc-en|r|ə|ˈ|m|ɛər|oʊ}}; February 4, 1940 – July 16, 2017) was an American-Canadian film director, writer, editor and actor. Regarded as an influential pioneer of the horror film genre and in particular zombie films, he has been called an "icon" and the "Father of the Zombie Film".{{cite news |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/george-a-romero-dead-night-living-dead-director-was-77-945346|title=George A. Romero, Father of the Zombie Film, Dies at 77 |work=The Hollywood Reporter |access-date=July 16, 2017 |language=en}}{{cite news |url=http://www.abcactionnews.com/news/national/zombie-movie-icon-george-romero-dies-at-77 |title=George Romero, zombie movie icon, dies at 77 |last=Davis |first=Clint |date=July 16, 2017 |work=WFTS |access-date=July 16, 2017}} The first half of his Night of the Living Dead series, Night of the Living Dead (1968), Dawn of the Dead (1978), and Day of the Dead (1985), are considered three of the best and most influential horror films made, and were major contributors to the image of the zombie in modern culture.{{cite web|url=https://www.popmatters.com/pm/column/159439-legacy-of-the-living-dead/|title=The Zombification Family Tree: Legacy of the Living Dead|date=June 15, 2012|author=J.C. Maçek III|work=PopMatters}}

Noted for his frequent social commentary, Romero had a prolific career outside of zombie films, albeit mostly still within horror: The Crazies (1973), The Amusement Park (1975), Martin (1977), Creepshow (1982) and Monkey Shines (1988) are regarded as minor cult works, as is his anthology television series Tales from the Darkside (1983-1988). His ventures outside horror include the feminist drama Season of the Witch (1972) and the action film Knightriders (1981), while his final three films, Land of the Dead (2005), Diary of the Dead (2007) and Survival of the Dead (2009), form the second half of his Night of the Living Dead hexalogy.

Early life

Romero was born on February 4, 1940, in the New York City borough of the Bronx, the son of Anne Romero (Dvorsky) and George M. Romero, a commercial artist.{{cite web |url=http://www.filmreference.com/film/70/George-A-Romero.html |title=George A. Romero Biography (1940–) |publisher=Filmreference.com |date=February 4, 1940 |access-date=January 23, 2016}} His mother was Lithuanian, and his father was from Spain and had emigrated to Cuba as a child.{{cite web |url=http://www.genreonline.net/GENRE_ONLINE_Interview_George_Romero.html |title=The GENRE ONLINE.NET Interview – Writer and Director George A. Romero |publisher=Genreonline.net |access-date=January 23, 2016}}{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bem_DQAAQBAJ&q=%22Romero%22+%22Ann+Dvorsky%22&pg=PT6 |title=Nights of the Living Dead: An Anthology |first1=Jonathan |last1=Maberry |first2=George A. |last2=Romero |date=July 11, 2017 |publisher=St. Martin's Press |isbn=9781250112255 |via=Google Books}} His father has been reported as being born in A Coruña, with his family coming from the Galician town of Neda,[http://www.centrallibrera.com/FERROL/GeorgeARomero.htm George A Romero: un director de cine casi nedense] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004213755/http://www.centrallibrera.com/FERROL/GeorgeARomero.htm |date=October 4, 2013}}, article by historian Manuel Pérez Grueiro in Revista de Neda. Anuario Cultural do Concello de Neda, nº 11, pp 21-24, 2008, re-published on Central Librera Ferrol bookshop's website.[http://praza.gal/cultura/5560/os-zombis-tenen-orixe-galega/ Os zombis teñen orixe galega], Praza Pública, October 1, 2013. although Romero once described his father as of Castilian descent.{{cite web|url=http://blogamole.tr3s.com/2010/05/25/george-a-romero-on-his-latino-heritage-i-was-the-shark-not-the-jet|title=George A. Romero On His Latino Heritage: 'I Was The Shark, Not The Jet'|access-date=September 11, 2010|archive-date=July 17, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717082902/http://blogamole.tr3s.com/2010/05/25/george-a-romero-on-his-latino-heritage-i-was-the-shark-not-the-jet|url-status=dead}}

Raised in the Parkchester section of the Bronx, he would frequently ride the subway into Manhattan to rent film reels to view at his house.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/10/movies/10onst.html?_r=0|work=The New York Times|title=Horror Auteur Is Unfinished With the Undead|date=February 10, 2008|author=Onstad, Katrina|access-date=November 22, 2015}} He was one of only two people who repeatedly rented the opera-based film The Tales of Hoffmann, the other was future director Martin Scorsese.{{cite web |url=http://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/feature/2015-07-08-george-a-romero-talks-zombies-religion-and-genocide-in-karlovy-vary-feature-story-by-richard-mowe |title=Romero – master of the macabre |publisher=Eye for Film |access-date=July 23, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150723173645/http://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/feature/2015-07-08-george-a-romero-talks-zombies-religion-and-genocide-in-karlovy-vary-feature-story-by-richard-mowe |archive-date=July 23, 2015}} Romero attended Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh.{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/16/movies/george-romero-dead.html | title=George Romero, Father of the Zombie Movie, Dies at 77 | date=July 16, 2017 | access-date=July 24, 2017 | author=Salam, Maya | work=New York Times}}

Career

=1960s=

File:Night of the Living Dead (1968).webm

After graduating from college in 1960,{{cite web |author=Pennsylvania Center for the Book |url=http://www.pabook.libraries.psu.edu/LitMap/bios/Romero__George.html |title=George Romero |publisher=Pabook.libraries.psu.edu |access-date=January 23, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071102224243/http://www.pabook.libraries.psu.edu/LitMap/bios/Romero__George.html |archive-date=November 2, 2007 |url-status=dead}}{{cite news |last=Coyle |first=Jake |date=July 16, 2017 |title=Pittsburgh's George A. Romero, 'Night of the Living Dead' creator, dies at 77 |url=http://www.post-gazette.com/ae/movies/2017/07/16/George-A-Romero-Night-of-the-Living-Dead-creator-dies-at-77-Pittsburgh/stories/201707160196 |work=Pittsburgh Post-Gazette |access-date=May 2, 2018}} Romero began his career shooting short films and TV commercials.{{cite journal |last=Block |first=Alex Ben |title=George Romero Discusses 'Night of the Living Dead' in Previously Unavailable 1972 Interview |url=https://variety.com/2017/film/news/george-romero-discusses-night-of-the-living-dead-in-previously-unavailable-1972-interview-1202598349/ |date=October 25, 2017 |access-date=June 20, 2018 |journal=Variety |publisher=Penske Business Media, LLC.}}{{cite news |title=Let's learn from the past: George A. Romero |url=http://www.post-gazette.com/life/my-generation/2016/08/25/Let-s-learn-from-the-past-director-George-A-Romero/stories/201608250049 |date=August 25, 2016 |access-date=June 20, 2018 |newspaper=Post Gazette |last=Ball |first=Lauren |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160828200704/http://www.post-gazette.com/life/my-generation/2016/08/25/Let-s-learn-from-the-past-director-George-A-Romero/stories/201608250049 |archive-date=August 28, 2016 |publisher=PG Publishing Co., Inc. |url-status=live}} One of his early commercial films was a segment for Mister Rogers' Neighborhood in which Fred Rogers underwent a tonsillectomy.{{cite web|url=http://www.diamonddead.com/diary/view.php?s=YToyOntzOjM6ImFpZCI7czoxOiIzIjtzOjI6ImlkIjtzOjI6IjI4Ijt9 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070216005517/http://www.diamonddead.com/diary/view.php?s=YToyOntzOjM6ImFpZCI7czoxOiIzIjtzOjI6ImlkIjtzOjI6IjI4Ijt9 |archive-date=February 16, 2007 |title=Mr. Rogers Gets a Tonsillectomy |access-date=February 16, 2007 |url-status=dead}} With nine friends, including screenwriter John A. Russo, Romero formed Image Ten Productions in the late 1960s.{{cite book |last=Pegg |first=Simon |author-link=Simon Pegg |title=Nerd Do Well |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PUTTYG-FRXgC&pg=PA231 |publisher=Random House |date=October 14, 2010 |page=231 |isbn=9781409023937}} This is the production company that produced Night of the Living Dead (1968). Directed by Romero and co-written with John A. Russo,{{cite book |last=M. Rowan |first=Terry |title=The Book of the Undead A Zombie Film Guide |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8tvGBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA139 |publisher=Lulu.com |year=2012 |page=139 |isbn=9781257129454}}{{self-published source|date=February 2020}}{{self-published inline|date=February 2020}} the film became a cult classic and a defining moment for modern horror cinema.{{cite book |last=M. Rowan |first=Terry |title=Hollywood Monsters & Creepy Things |date=October 14, 2016 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bSdNDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA126 |publisher=Lulu.com |page=126 |isbn=9781365462108}}{{self-published source|date=February 2020}}{{self-published inline|date=February 2020}}

Among the inspiration for Romero's filmmaking, as told to Robert K. Elder in an interview for The Film That Changed My Life,{{cite web|url=https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1556528256/ref=nosim/wwwrobelderco-20|title=The Film That Changed My Life: 30 Directors on Their Epiphanies in the Dark: Robert K. Elder: 9781556528255: Amazon.com: Books|website=Amazon|access-date=May 25, 2012}} was the British film The Tales of Hoffmann (1951), from the Powell and Pressburger team.

{{Cquote|It was the filmmaking, the fantasy, the fact that it was a fantasy and it had a few frightening, sort of bizarre things in it. It was everything. It was really a movie for me, and it gave me an early appreciation for the power of visual media—the fact that you could experiment with it. He was doing all his tricks in-camera, and they were sort of obvious. That made me feel that, gee, maybe I could figure this medium out. It was transparent, but it worked.Romero, George A. Interview by Robert K. Elder. The Film That Changed My Life. By Robert K. Elder. Chicago: Chicago Review Press, 2011. N. p261. Print.}}

=1970s and 1980s=

File:George Romero Directing.jpg, 1980]]

The three films that Romero created that followed Night of the Living Dead: There's Always Vanilla (1971), Jack's Wife / Season of the Witch (1972) and The Crazies (1973) were not as well received as Night of the Living Dead or some of his later work.{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/george_a_romero/|title=George A. Romero|website=Rotten Tomatoes}} The Crazies, dealing with a bio spill that induces an epidemic of homicidal madness, and the critically acclaimed arthouse success Martin (1978), a film that deals with the vampire myth, were the two well-known films from this period.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/17/movies/5-george-romero-films-to-remember.html|title=5 George Romero Films to Remember|author=Erik Piepenburg|date=July 17, 2017|work=The New York Times|access-date=July 20, 2017}}{{cite web|url=http://www.post-gazette.com/ae/movies/2017/07/17/George-Romero-Martin-John-Amplas/stories/201707180020|title='Martin' star recalls George Romero|author=Maria Sciullo|date=July 17, 2017|work=Pittsburgh Post-Gazette|access-date=July 20, 2017}}

Romero returned to the zombie genre in 1978 with Dawn of the Dead. Shot on a budget of $1.5 million, the film earned over $55 million internationally and was later named one of the top cult films by Entertainment Weekly in 2003.{{cite web |url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Dawn-of-the-Dead-(1979)#tab=summary |title=Dawn of the Dead (1979) – Financial Information |website=The Numbers |publisher=Nash Information Services}}

Romero shot Knightriders (1981), about a group of modern-day jousters who reenact tournaments on motorcycles,{{cite web |url=https://www.indiewire.com/2017/07/george-romero-dead-knightriders-set-ed-harris-tom-savini-1201855977/ |title=How George Romero's Semi-Autobiographical Labor of Love 'Knightriders' Gave Him the Independence He Wanted So Badly |author=Anne Thompson |date=July 16, 2017 |website=IndieWire |access-date=July 20, 2017}} and Creepshow (1982), written by Stephen King, an anthology of tongue-in-cheek tales modeled after 1950s horror comics.{{cite book |author=Marcello Gagliani Caputo |date=January 14, 2017 |title=Guide to the Cinema of Stephen King |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6t2pDQAAQBAJ&q=creepshow+ec+comics&pg=PT52 |location=Google Books |publisher=Babelcube Inc. |isbn=9781507163788}} The cult-classic success of Creepshow led to the creation of Romero's Tales from the Darkside, a horror anthology television series that aired from 1983 to 1988.{{cite magazine |url=https://ew.com/article/2013/11/12/tales-from-the-darkside-cw/|title='Tales from the Darkside' reboot at the CW|author=James Hibberd |date=November 12, 2013 |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |access-date=July 20, 2017}} Romero also drafted "Pinfall", a screenplay for Creepshow 2 based on a draft by Stephen King ("Pinfall" was ultimately never filmed).{{cite book|first=Stephen|last=Jones|title=Creepshows: The Illustrated Stephen King Movie Guide|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gD7qwAEACAAJ|year=2002|publisher=Billboard Books|isbn=978-0-8230-7884-4}} He made the third entry in his Dead series with Day of the Dead in 1985. As the decade drew to a close, Romero directed Monkey Shines (1988), about a service animal.

=1990s=

Romero updated his original screenplay and executive-produced the 1990 remake of Night of the Living Dead directed by Tom Savini for Columbia/TriStar. Savini is responsible for the makeup and special effects in many of Romero's films including Dawn of the Dead, Day of the Dead, Creepshow, and Monkey Shines.

The early 1990s featured directorial efforts Two Evil Eyes (1990), an Edgar Allan Poe adaptation in collaboration with Dario Argento and The Dark Half (1993) from a novel written by Stephen King. In 1991, he made a cameo appearance in Jonathan Demme's The Silence of the Lambs (1991) as one of Hannibal Lecter's jailers.{{cite web|last=Kennedy|first=Michael|title=Silence Of The Lambs: George Romero's Cameo Role Explained|url=https://screenrant.com/silence-lambs-movie-george-romero-cameo-role-explained/|work=Screen Rant|date= February 4, 2021|access-date=June 24, 2021}}

In 1994, Romero shot a short film, Jacaranda Joe, about people running into a community of Bigfoot.{{cite web|last=Squires|first=John|title=Unseen George Romero Short 'Jacaranda Joe' Being Preserved by the University of Pittsburgh|url=https://bloody-disgusting.com/movie/3666168/unseen-george-romero-short-jacaranda-joe-preserved-university-pittsburgh/|work=Bloody Disgusting|date=May 20, 2021|access-date=June 6, 2021}} Filmed at Valencia College in Florida, it was the first film that Romero shot entirely outside of Pittsburgh.{{cite web|last=Whitacre|first=Andrew|title=Video: Adam Charles Hart, "Beyond the Living Dead: Treasures from the George A. Romero Archive"|url=https://cms.mit.edu/video-adam-charles-hart-living-dead-george-romero-archive/|work=MIT Comparative Media Studies (CMS)|date=November 13, 2020|access-date=June 6, 2021}}

In 1998, Romero produced and directed an unaired pilot about professional wrestling entitled Iron City Asskickers.{{cite web|last=Owen|first=Rob|title=TV Talk: George A. Romero wrestling TV pilot will get DVD release|url=https://triblive.com/aande/movies-tv/tv-talk-george-a-romero-wrestling-tv-pilot-will-get-dvd-release/|work=TribLive|date=March 3, 2021|access-date=June 8, 2021}} It was released on DVD and VHS in 2021.{{cite web|last=Millican|first=Josh|title=Trailer: "Lost" IRON CITY ASSKICKERS by George A. Romero Will Be Released in April + "Reunion Party" This Wednesday 3/3|url=https://www.dreadcentral.com/news/378593/trailer-lost-iron-city-asskickers-by-george-a-romero-will-be-released-in-april-reunion-party-this-wednesday-3-3/|work=Dread Central|date=March 1, 2021|access-date=June 8, 2021}}

In 1998, he directed a live-action commercial promoting the video game Resident Evil 2 in Los Angeles. The 30-second advertisement featured the game's two main characters, Leon S. Kennedy (portrayed by actor Brad Renfro) and Claire Redfield (Adrienne Frantz), fighting a horde of zombies while in Raccoon City's police station.{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2016/film/spotlight/resident-evil-george-romero-failed-1201942677/|title=Why George Romero's 'Resident Evil' Film Failed to Launch|first=Matthew|last=Chernov|date=December 16, 2016|work=Variety}} The project was familiar territory for Romero and the Resident Evil series has been heavily influenced by the Dead series. The commercial was popular and was shown in the weeks before the game's actual release, although a contract dispute prevented it from being shown outside Japan. Capcom was so impressed with Romero's work, it was strongly indicated that Romero would direct the first Resident Evil film. He declined at first — "I don't wanna make another film with zombies in it, and I couldn't make a movie based on something that ain't mine"{{cite web|url=https://www.polygon.com/2017/7/17/15983438/george-a-romero-resident-evil-commercial|title=Watch George A. Romero discuss his Resident Evil 2 commercial|first=Samit|last=Sarkar|date=July 17, 2017|website=Polygon}} — although in later years, he reconsidered and wrote a script for the first movie. It was eventually rejected in favor of Paul W. S. Anderson's version.

In the mid 1990s, he wrote a script for a film adaptation of the first original Goosebumps book Welcome to Dead House. It was eventually rejected altogether, although Romero's screenplay is kept archived by The University of Pittsburgh.{{cite web |last1=Hart |first1=Adam Charles |title=George Romero's Goosebumps |url=https://horrorstudies.library.pitt.edu/content/george-romeros-goosebumps |website=horrorstudies.library.pitt.edu |publisher=University of Pittsburgh |access-date=February 26, 2022}}

=2000s=

File:George A. Romero - 2005 horror convention.jpg, 2005|272x272px]]

2000 saw the release of Bruiser, about a man whose face becomes a blank mask.{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2017/film/news/george-romero-dead-dies-night-of-the-living-dead-director-1202497068/|title=George A. Romero, 'Night of the Living Dead' Director, Dies at 77|first=Pat|last=Saperstein|date=July 16, 2017|work=Variety}} Universal Studios produced and released a 2004 remake of Dawn of the Dead, with which Romero was not involved. Later that year, Romero kicked off the DC Comics title Toe Tags with a six-issue miniseries titled The Death of Death. Based on an unused script that Romero had written for his Dead series, the comic miniseries concerns Damien, an intelligent zombie who remembers his former life, struggling to find his identity as he battles armies of both the living and the dead. Typical of a Romero zombie tale, the miniseries includes ample supply of both gore and social commentary (dealing particularly here with corporate greed and terrorism — ideas he explored in his next film in the series, Land of the Dead). Romero has stated that the miniseries is set in the same kind of world as his Dead films, but featured other locales besides Pittsburgh, where the majority of his films take place.{{cite web|url=http://www.dccomics.com/comics/toe-tags-featuring-george-romero-2004/toe-tags-featuring-george-romero-1|title=TOE TAGS FEATURING GEORGE ROMERO #1|date=March 4, 2012|publisher=DC Comics}}

Romero directed Land of the Dead, released in 2005. The film's working title was Dead Reckoning. Actors Simon Baker, Dennis Hopper, Asia Argento, and John Leguizamo starred and the film was released by Universal Pictures (who released the Dawn of the Dead remake the year before). The film received generally positive reviews.{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/land_of_the_dead|title=Land of the Dead|website=Rotten Tomatoes|date=June 24, 2005|publisher=Fandango}}

Romero collaborated with the game company Hip Interactive to create a game called City of the Dead, but the project was canceled midway due to the company's financial problems.{{cite web|url=https://www.ign.com/games/city-of-the-dead/ps2-723002|title=City of the Dead – PlayStation 2|website=IGN|access-date=July 20, 2017}}{{cite web|url=https://www.gamespot.com/articles/city-of-the-dead-hunts-for-publisher/1100-6130500/|title=City of the Dead hunts for publisher|date=August 8, 2005|author=Benjamin Golze|website=GameSpot|access-date=July 20, 2017}}

In August 2006, The Hollywood Reporter announced that Romero signed on to write and direct George A. Romero's Diary of the Dead, which follows a group of college students filming a horror movie who proceed to film the events that follow when the dead rise.[http://cinescape.com/0/editorial.asp?aff_id=0&this_cat=Movies&action=page&type_id=&cat_id=270338&obj_id=52080 Cinescape] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091129190737/http://cinescape.com/0/editorial.asp?aff_id=0&this_cat=Movies&action=page&type_id=&cat_id=270338&obj_id=52080 |date=November 29, 2009}}{{cite web|url=https://aintitcool.com/display.cgi?id=24404 |title=Aintitcool.com |publisher=Aintitcool.com |access-date=January 23, 2016}}

After a limited theatrical release, Diary of the Dead was released on DVD by Dimension Extreme on May 20, 2008, and later to Blu-ray on October 21, 2008.{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/diary_of_the_dead2007|title=Diary of the Dead (2007)|website=Rotten Tomatoes|date=February 15, 2008 |access-date=July 20, 2017}}

Shooting began in Toronto in September 2008 on Romero's Survival of the Dead (2009). The film was initially reported to be a direct sequel to Diary of the Dead, but the film features only Alan van Sprang, who appeared briefly as a rogue National Guard officer, reprising his role from the previous film, and did not retain the first-person camerawork of Diary of the Dead.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/28/movies/28survival.html?ref=movies&_r=0|title=Maybe These Zombies Need to Focus on Their Veggies|author=Jeannette Catsoulis|date=May 27, 2010|work=The New York Times|access-date=July 20, 2017}} The film centers on two feuding families taking very different approaches in dealing with the living dead on a small coastal island. The film premiered at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival. Prior to the May 28, 2010, theatrical release in the United States, Survival of the Dead was made available to video on demand and was aired as a special one-night showing on May 26, 2010, on HDNet.{{cite web|url=https://bloody-disgusting.com/news/18837|title='Survival of the Dead' Release Plans Locked, Loaded and Firing!|author=Brad Miska|date=January 26, 2010|website=Bloody Disgusting|access-date=July 20, 2017}}

Some critics have seen social commentary in much of Romero's work. They view Night of the Living Dead as a film made in reaction to the turbulent 1960s, Dawn of the Dead as a satire on consumerism, Day of the Dead as a study of the conflict between science and the military, Land of the Dead as an examination of class conflict, Diary of the Dead as a film made in reaction to the "emerging media" and Survival of the Dead as a study on war and conflict.{{cite web|url=http://www.slate.com/blogs/browbeat/2017/07/18/george_romero_s_movies_were_about_more_than_zombies.html|title=The Defining Feature of George Romero's Movies Wasn't Their Zombies. It Was Their Brains.|author=Caetlin Benson-Allott|work=Slate|date=July 18, 2017|access-date=July 20, 2017}}

=2010s=

File:George A. Romero by Gage Skidmore.jpg

In 2010, Romero stated that he had plans for two more Dead films which would be connected to Diary of the Dead and they would be made depending on how successful Survival of the Dead was. Romero, however, said that his next project would not involve zombies and he was going for the scare factor, but offered no further details.{{cite news|url=https://www.dreadcentral.com/news/19115/george-a-romero-offers-more-living-dead-updates-comments-on-deep-red-remake|title=George A. Romero Offers More Living Dead Updates, Comments on Deep Red Remake|last=Barton|first=Steven|publisher=DreadCentral|date=August 23, 2010|access-date=May 29, 2011}}

Romero made an appearance in the second downloadable map pack called "Escalation" for the video game Call of Duty: Black Ops. He appears as himself in the zombies map "Call of the Dead" as a non-playable enemy character.{{cite web|url=http://kotaku.com/5798024/george-romero-explains-the-story-behind-call-of-the-dead-then-gets-zombified|title=George Romero Explains The Story Behind Call of The Dead... Then Gets Zombified|author=Brian Crecente|website=Kotaku|date=May 3, 2011|access-date=July 20, 2017}} Romero is featured alongside actors Sarah Michelle Gellar, Danny Trejo, Michael Rooker, and Robert Englund, all of the four being playable characters. He is portrayed as a powerful "boss" zombie armed with a movie studio light.

In 2012, Romero returned to video games recording his voice for Zombie Squash as the lead villain, Dr. B. E. Vil. Zombie Squash was released by ACW Games for the iPad in November 2012.{{cite web|title=George Romero's Zombie Squash Game is Now Available for the iPad|url=https://dailydead.com/george-romeros-zombie-squash-game-is-now-available-for-the-ipad/|website=DailyDead.com|date=November 22, 2012}}

In 2014, Marvel Comics began releasing Empire of the Dead, a 15-issue miniseries written by Romero. The series is broken up into three acts, five issues each, and features zombies and vampires.{{cite web |url=http://www.newsarama.com/19346-romero-zombies-don-t-run-in-marvel-s-empire-of-the-dead.html|title=Romero: Zombies Don't Run in Marvel's Empire of the Dead|publisher=Newsarama|date=October 22, 2013|first=Zack|last=Smith|access-date=June 18, 2014}}

A prequel comic book series based on Romero's unproduced zombie film idea Road of the Dead was announced by IDW in July 2018.{{Cite web|url=https://www.bleedingcool.com/2018/07/21/george-a-romero-road-of-the-dead-comic-idw/|title = George A. Romero's Road of the Dead to be Published as a Comic by IDW|date = July 21, 2018}}{{Cite web|url=https://comicbook.com/horror/2018/11/06/road-of-the-dead-george-romero-night-of-the-living-dead-comic/|title=George Romero's 'Road of the Dead' Getting Comic Book Series From IDW|website=Horror|date=November 6, 2018 }} The 3-part mini-series was released in December 2018.

In April 2021, it was announced that Romero's unproduced film treatment for Twilight of the Dead was put back into development under the supervision of Suzanne Romero, with co-writer Paolo Zelati finishing the script. Suzanne told The Hollywood Reporter, "This is the film he wanted to make. And while someone else will carry the torch as the director, it is very much a George A. Romero film."{{cite web | url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/twilight-of-the-dead-george-a-romeros-final-zombie-movie-in-the-works-4175965/ | title='Twilight of the Dead,' George A. Romero's Final Zombie Movie, in the Works (Exclusive) | website=The Hollywood Reporter | date=April 30, 2021}} In August 2023, the film was announced to start production in fall 2023 once the current SAG-AFTRA strike comes to an end.{{cite web | url=https://bloody-disgusting.com/movie/3771831/twilight-of-the-dead-george-a-romeros-planned-zombie-movie-finally-coming-to-life/ | title='Twilight of the Dead' – George A. Romero's Planned Zombie Movie Finally Coming to Life | date=August 2, 2023}} A month later, it was announced that the film would be directed by Brad Anderson.{{cite web | url=https://bloody-disgusting.com/movie/3778380/twilight-of-the-dead-brad-anderson-directing-zombie-movie-that-began-as-a-george-a-romero-treatment/ | title='Twilight of the Dead' – Brad Anderson Directing Zombie Movie That Began as a George A. Romero Treatment | date=September 8, 2023}}

Personal life

Romero was married three times. He married his first wife, Nancy, in 1971. They divorced in 1978. They had one child together, Cameron, who later became a filmmaker.{{cite web|last=Han|first=Angie|date=October 16, 2014|title=George Romero's Son Cameron Crowdfunding 'Night of the Living Dead' Prequel 'Origins'|url=https://www.slashfilm.com/night-of-the-living-dead-prequel-origins/|access-date=January 26, 2015}} and also worked in collaboration with Sergey Titov to produce the game Romero's Aftermath, a spinoff of Infestation: Survivor Stories and was released by Free Reign Entertainment for PC on September 25, 2015.{{cite web |url= http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2015-03-27-infestation-survivor-stories-the-war-z-gets-a-reboot-with-romeros-aftermath |title= Infestation: Survivor Stories / The War Z gets a reboot with Romero's Aftermath |date= March 27, 2015 |access-date= September 25, 2015 |work= Eurogamer |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150927075937/http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2015-03-27-infestation-survivor-stories-the-war-z-gets-a-reboot-with-romeros-aftermath |archive-date= September 27, 2015 |url-status= live |df= mdy-all }}

Romero met his second wife, actress Christine Forrest, on the set of Season of the Witch (1972), and they married in 1981.{{cite web|title=George A. Romero|url=https://www.pabook.libraries.psu.edu/literary-cultural-heritage-map-pa/bios/Romero__George|work=Pennsylvania Center for the Book|access-date=August 18, 2021}}

Romero met Suzanne Desrocher while filming Land of the Dead (2005), and they married in September 2011 at Martha's Vineyard and lived in Toronto.{{cite web|url=http://www.scifimoviepage.com/art_landof.html |title=Scifimoviepage.com |publisher=Scifimoviepage.com |date=October 21, 2005 |access-date=January 23, 2016}} He acquired Canadian citizenship in 2009, becoming a dual Canada-U.S. citizen.{{cite web|url=http://www.nowtoronto.com/movies/story.cfm?content=176352|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160208194811/https://nowtoronto.com/movies/features/q-and-a-george-a-romero-2010-08-19/|archivedate=February 8, 2016|title=Q&A: George A. Romero|author=Norman Wilner}}

Death

File:Grave of George A. Romero (1940–2017) at Toronto Necropolis 1.jpg

On July 16, 2017, Romero died following a "brief but aggressive battle with lung cancer", according to a statement by his longtime producing partner, Peter Grunwald. Romero died while listening to the score of one of his favorite films, The Quiet Man (1952), with his wife, Suzanne Desrocher Romero, and daughter from his second marriage, Tina Romero, at his side.{{cite news |last1=Anderson |first1=Tre'vell |title=George A. Romero, 'Night of the Living Dead' creator, dies at 77 |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-me-george-romero-20170716-story.html |access-date=December 1, 2020 |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |date=July 16, 2017}} He was buried at Toronto Necropolis.

Influences

Romero ranked his top ten films of all time for the 2002 Sight & Sound Greatest Films Poll. They are The Brothers Karamazov, Casablanca, Dr. Strangelove, High Noon, King Solomon's Mines, North by Northwest (a film on which a teenaged Romero worked as a gofer), The Quiet Man, Repulsion, Touch of Evil and The Tales of Hoffmann. Romero listed the films in alphabetical order, with special placement given to Michael Powell's The Tales of Hoffmann, which he cites as "my favorite film of all time, the movie that made me want to make movies."[https://web.archive.org/web/20021026160507/http://www.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/topten/poll/voter.php?forename=George+A.&surname=Romero BFI – Sight & Sound Top Ten Poll 2002] December 21, 2015. Retrieved December 24, 2015.

Awards and nominations

On October 27, 2009, Romero was honored with the Mastermind Award at Spike TV's Scream 2009. The tribute was presented by longtime Romero fan Quentin Tarantino, who stated in his speech that the "A" in George A. Romero stood for "A Fucking Genius."{{cite magazine|first=Daniel|last=Kreps|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/movie-news/george-a-romero-pioneering-horror-director-dead-at-77-198502/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180913223250/https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/movie-news/george-a-romero-pioneering-horror-director-dead-at-77-198502/|title=George A. Romero, Pioneering Horror Director, Dead at 77|quote=[...] when the Pulp Fiction director presented Romero with the Mastermind Award at the 2009 Scream Awards, Tarantino noted that the 'A' in 'George A. Romero' stands for 'A Fucking Genius.'|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=July 16, 2017|archive-date=September 13, 2018|access-date=July 18, 2019|url-status=live}}

In 2016, he was honored with the Ted M. Larson Award at the Fargo Film Festival for his contribution to cinema.{{Cite web |title=Ted M. Larson Award {{!}} Fargo Film Festival |url=https://fargofilmfestival.org/awards/special-awards/ted-m-larson-award/ |access-date=2024-08-29 |language=en-US}}

Legacy

Regarded as the "Godfather of the Dead",Flaherty, Joseph (June 15, 2010). [https://www.wired.com/2010/06/george-a-romero-zombies/ "'Godfather of the Dead' George A. Romero Talks Zombies"]. Wired. as well as the "Father of the Modern Movie Zombie",Day, Patric Kevin (November 1, 2013). [https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/showtracker/la-et-st-george-romero-walking-dead-soap-opera-20131101-story.html "George Romero dismisses 'The Walking Dead' as 'soap opera'"]. Los Angeles Times. critic Owen Gleiberman said of Romero that he was "a maestro of zombie terror who created the ultimate horror-movie metaphor" and remarked that "the real metaphor isn't only about Vietnam, or capitalism, or even disease, or anything else that you can stuff into a fortune cookie. It's about something more basic but ethereal, something that you can sense without putting it into words: the hidden aggression we all feel deep down, as the price of too much civilization."{{cite web | url=https://variety.com/2017/film/columns/george-a-romero-was-a-maestro-of-fear-1202497182/ | title=George A. Romero: A Maestro of Zombie Terror Who Created the Ultimate Horror-Movie Metaphor | date=July 17, 2017}}

In 2010, writer and actor Mark Gatiss interviewed Romero for his BBC documentary series A History of Horror, in which he appears in the third episode.{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00vcwm7|title=A History of Horror with Mark Gatiss – Q&A with Mark Gatiss|access-date=November 12, 2010|work=BBC News}} Los Angeles Times. Romero's influence, and that of Night of the Living Dead, is widely seen among numerous filmmakers and artists, in particular those who have worked in the zombie subgenre,{{cite book|author=White, Michele|date=March 14, 2015|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qQTrBgAAQBAJ&pg=PT72|title=Producing Women: The Internet, Traditional Femininity, Queerness, and Creativity|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781317680239|access-date=March 13, 2016}} including comics writer Robert Kirkman, novelist Seth Grahame-Smith,Franklin-Wallis, Oliver (February 16, 2016). [https://www.wired.co.uk/magazine/archive/2016/03/play/pride-and-prejudice-and-zombies "Would you survive a zombie apocalypse?"]. Wired. and filmmakers John Carpenter,Carpenter, John (writer/director). (2003). Audio Commentary on Assault on Precinct 13 by John Carpenter. [DVD]. Image Entertainment.Q & A session with John Carpenter and Austin Stoker at American Cinematheque's 2002 John Carpenter retrospective, in the 2003 special edition Region 1 DVD of Assault on Precinct 13.{{cite web | url=https://variety.com/2017/film/news/john-carpenter-george-romero-tribute-1202499095/ | title=John Carpenter Remembers the 'Profound Impact' of George Romero | work=Variety | date=July 19, 2017 | access-date=August 1, 2017 | author=Saperstein, Pat}} Edgar Wright{{cite web | url=http://www.ifc.com/2012/05/hcff-george-romero-honored-by-edgar-wright-robert-kirkman-zack-snyder-and-simon-pegg | title=HCFF: George Romero honored by Edgar Wright, Robert Kirkman, Zack Snyder and Simon Pegg | publisher=IFC | date=May 21, 2012 | access-date=June 20, 2017 | author=Schwartz, Terri| work=IFC }} and Jack Thomas Smith.Wien, Gary (October 19, 2014). [http://www.newjerseystage.com/articles/getarticle.php?ID=4077 "Infliction: An Interview With Jack Thomas Smith"]. New Jersey Stage.

The season eight premiere episode "Mercy" of the zombie-based show The Walking Dead, the first to air after Romero's death, dedicated the episode to Romero; showrunner Scott M. Gimple said that the show "owes a great debt" to Romero for his impact on popular culture.{{cite magazine | url = https://ew.com/tv/2017/10/22/walking-dead-season-premiere-mercy-showrunner-scott-gimple/ | title = The Walking Dead showrunner answers season 8 premiere burning questions | first = Dalton | last = Ross | date = October 22, 2017 | access-date = October 23, 2017 | magazine = Entertainment Weekly}}

In May 2019, the University of Pittsburgh announced it had acquired George Romero's archives and that a multimedia exhibit be created and open to the public in the university's Hillman Library.{{cite news|url=https://www.post-gazette.com/ae/movies/2019/05/16/George-Romero-s-archives-purchased-by-University-of-Pittsburgh/stories/201905150139|title=George Romero's archives acquired by University of Pittsburgh|first=Marylynne|last=Pitz|newspaper=Pittsburgh Post-Gazette|date=May 16, 2019|access-date=May 16, 2019}}{{cite web|url=https://bloody-disgusting.com/news/3561444/university-pittsburgh-library-system-acquired-archives-george-romero/|title=University of Pittsburgh Library System Has Acquired the Archives of George A. Romero|first=John|last=Squires|website=Bloody Disgusting|date=May 16, 2019|access-date=May 16, 2019}}

=The George A. Romero Foundation=

The George A. Romero Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving and promoting Romero's legacy. Founded in 2018 by Romero's wife Suzanne Desrocher-Romero, the Foundation's mission is to advance the causes for which George Romero was a champion – creativity within the horror genre and independent filmmaking in general – as well as preserving and documenting the history of the genre in all forms and contributing to its future by encouraging new generations of filmmakers, artists, and creators.

Bibliography

Dawn of the Dead (with Susanna Sparrow; movie tie-in), 1979.Dawn of the Dead, George A Romero and Susan Sparrow, St. Martins Press, 1978, 9780312183936
Martin (with Susanna Sparrow; movie tie-in), 1984.Martin, George A Romero and Susan Sparrow, Stein & Day, 1984, 978-0812870206
Toe Tags #1-6 ("The Death of Death"; DC Comics), 2004–2005.
Empire of the Dead (Marvel Comics), 2014–2015.[http://marvel.com/comics/series/17943/george_romeros_empire_of_the_dead_act_one_2014_-_present George Romero's Empire of the Dead: Act One (2014 – Present)] marvel.com
Nights of the Living Dead co-edited by Jonathan Maberry and George Romero (St. Martin's Griffin), 2017.{{cite web|url=https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250112248|title=Nights of the Living Dead – Jonathan Maberry – Macmillan|publisher=Macmillan Publishers}}
The Living Dead (with Daniel Kraus), 2020.{{cite web|url=https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/george-a-romero-unfinished-zombie-novel-living-dead|title=Exclusive: George A. Romero Left 'A Lot of Material' for Unfinished Zombie Novel, Co-author Says|date=February 21, 2019}}
Pay the Piper (with Daniel Kraus), 2024.{{cite web|last=Navarro|first=Meagan|url=https://bloody-disgusting.com/books/3802035/pay-the-piper-george-romero-daniel-kraus-novel/|title='Pay the Piper' – Daniel Kraus' New Horror Novel Completes an Unfinished George A. Romero Manuscript|website=Bloody Disgusting|date=March 4, 2024|access-date=May 5, 2024}}

=Forewords written by Romero=

Bizarro! by Tom Savini (foreword), 1984. {{ISBN|0517553198}}
Book of the Dead edited by John Skipp and Craig Spector (foreword), 1989.{{cite web|url=http://www.fangoria.com/new/looking-back-at-the-book-of-the-dead/|title=Looking back at the BOOK OF THE DEAD|last=Parker|first=Trevor|website=Fangoria|access-date=July 18, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171025191200/http://www.fangoria.com/new/looking-back-at-the-book-of-the-dead/|archive-date=October 25, 2017|url-status=dead}}
ZOMBIES! An Illustrated History of the Undead Foreword by George A. Romero.{{cite web|url=https://us.macmillan.com/books/9780312656508|title=Zombies! - Jovanka Vuckovic – Macmillan|publisher=Macmillan Publishers}}
The Extraordinary Adventures of Dog Mendonça and Pizzaboy II – Apocalipse by Filipe Melo and Juan Cavia (foreword), 2011.{{cite web|url=http://www.dog-pizzaboy.com/vol-2|title=The Extraordinary Adventures of Dog Mendonça and Pizzaboy II – Apocalipse|website=dog-pizzaboy.com|access-date=July 18, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171025204442/http://www.dog-pizzaboy.com/vol-2|archive-date=October 25, 2017|url-status=dead}}