Lee Karr - The Making of George A. Romeros Day of the Dead

Im flying down McKnight Road in Pittsburgh hitting about 70 miles per hour. My heart is racing. I am exhilarated. The cop behind me doesnt seem as thrilled as I am, but what he doesnt know is that I just got hired on DAY OF THE DEAD, for fucks sake! An hour before, I had met George and Christine Romero for lunch and these words came out: We just got a green light on Day of the Dead do you want a job?

Now, we need a bit of history here. The roads between zombies and I intersected in very unique and strange ways in my youth. My uncle, Sam Nicotero, an actor, writer, and local disc jockey in the 1970s, wrote one of the first mainstream articles about George in Cinefantastique. He and George knew each other then he actually had a supporting role in The Crazies. I grew up about twenty minutes from the Evans City Cemetery, where Night of the Living Dead was filmed, and I was in high school in 1977 when a friend mentioned that his dad worked at the Monroeville Mall and they were shooting a movie there. Do you want to go visit?

It goes on and on from there. In Pittsburgh, Georges contributions to the horror genre and, more specifically, zombies were nearly as popular as Iron City Beer, Primantis, and the Steelers. Thank God for Bill Cardille and Chiller Theatre: it was the one thing I anxiously awaited every Saturday, the chance to watch horror double features from 11:30pm until 3:00am. Cardille, a local weatherman, also played himself in Night of the Living Dead (see, I told you everywhere you looked it was zombies). It was on this program that I first saw an interview with George televised. Our worlds collided with full force in an Italian Restaurant in Rome during August of 1976. While on vacation with my family, I noticed a tall, lean, bearded man a few tables over and knew INSTANTLY that it was The George Romero. What are the chances of that? Of course, my younger brother and I were in awe, and once we were done not eating (cause we were geeking out even though I dont think that term had been invented yet) we timed our departure with theirs.

Hey, are you George Romero? my brother Brian asked. He turned and smiled. Yes!

I stepped in, my hand outstretched. My name is Greg Nicotero I believe you know my uncle? That was my opening line of course, at thirteen that was pretty good.

He lit up, smiled and shook my hand. We chatted for a moment and then he said, Come visit the office when you get back to the burgh. Low and behold, on returning to the States I was even more enthralled with this man, and went to his office on Fort Pitt Boulevard several times to say hello, walk through the offices and get a taste of Hollywood.

Flash forward to to 1981. I had recently graduated from high school and was about to leave for college. George was prepping Creepshow, and Id gone to visit while they were building the sets for The Crate in a warehouse, not seven miles from the mall. At this point, George and I had been trading VHS tapes we had quite a collection and Id offered to make him copies of any rare films he did not have. On one of my visits, I found myself on the stage, exploring the basement set where Fluffy was soon to be found, when I stumbled upon Tom Savini. He and his assistant, Darryl Ferrucci, were getting ready to meet Adrienne Barbeau, who had just arrived from LA, but in the midst of his prep Tom stopped, smiled, and introduced himself. Within an instant, a barrage of people entered, including George, Adrienne and a few other crew people. I graciously bowed out, vowing to return and visit. This is where it all changed. I had loved creature stuff Planet of the Apes, The Exorcist, anything Harryhausen or Jack Pierce related but becoming friends with Tom only solidified my interest in make-up. Granted, in Pittsburgh back then, the available filmmaking opportunities were pretty much only with this group of people, but I honestly never imagined that this hobby, this interest, would ever have taken me where it has.

Cut back to July and I am getting a speeding ticket. Oh well, what do I care? I just got hired on DAY OF THE DEAD! By the time I got home, I called Tom and very excitedly informed him that Id just been hired and would like to be his assistant. One thing I had learned in my dealings with George and Tom was that Toms enthusiasm and passion for what he did was unparalleled, and to have a chance to work with him, handling the day-to-day tasks of wrangling rsums, ordering supplies and coordinating for him would allow me to get hands-on training, and leave Tom free to focus on realizing the gags at hand. This proved to be a perfect fit, and not only carved out a place for us to collaborate on many more projects, but allowed me to develop the skills that led me from Pittsburgh to New York then LA in a years time.

Day of the Dead has always marked the most creative period of my life. The transition to filmmaking, the relationships I cultivated with people who would forever change my life, and the ability to express my creative instincts changed me to the core. I wanted to remember every moment, every nuance as it happened. I photographed nearly every aspect of the production, documented the prep and shoot with Toms video camera, and even wrote an outline immediately after wrap with the hopes of crafting a Making of book. Sadly, at the time the book was deemed competition for Paul Gagnes book about George and his films, The Zombies That Ate Pittsburgh. But lo and behold, so much of what I chronicled is represented here, in the dedicated hands of Lee Karr.

Greg Nicotero inside the whirlybird helicopter on Sanibel Island, December 1984. (Courtesy of Taso Stavrakis.)

Gregory Nicotero,
From the set of The Walking Dead,
Spring 2013

Since beginning his career on Day of the Dead, Greg Nicotero has gone on to co-found one of the most successful and prolific make-up effects studios in the business: the prestigious KNB EFX Group. To date, his incredible efforts have won him four Emmy Awards, two Saturn Awards and a BAFTA award. Besides handling the makeup effects and zombies on The Walking Dead, Nicotero has become an executive producer and accomplished director on the popular television show.

Greg Nicotero with zombie friend on the Georgia set of season four of The Walking Dead. (Courtesy of AMC Network Entertainment LLC.)

Though I didnt know it at the time, in 1985 my life changed forever. While watching one of my favorite TV shows, Late Night with David Letterman, I caught a demonstration by a man named Tom Savini, showcasing how gory make-up effects were created for horror films. Before this I was afraid to watch anything with blood in it, and would never watch horror films never! I was basically a wuss. But Savini changed all of that with one television guest appearance.

That evening Savini was promoting the newest zombie film from George A. Romero, Day of the Dead. Somehow, I was aware of what these types of films were about. I knew that they showed explicit gore and people being eaten. How I knew that, I cant quite remember. I think Id figured it out from perusing video-store shelves, and assumed that they were definitely not for me. I mean, I cringed when Elliott cut his finger on a saw blade in Steven Spielbergs E.T.! Seeing graphic scenes of blood and guts? No way.