By Family, friends, and fans turned out on October 12, 2024 to celebrate the street co-naming in honor of horrormeister George A. Romero—the “Father of the Zombies”—in the Parkchester section of The Bronx, the neighborhood of his youth.
This past Saturday, October 12th the office of Councilwoman Amanda Farías honored legendary horror genre filmmaker and “Father of the Zombies”—GEORGE A. ROMERO—with a street co-naming at the intersection of Metropolitan Oval and Metropolitan Avenue in the Parkchester section of the Bronx, where he was born and raised by Lithuanian and Spanish/Cuban parents!!
Grateful that I, along with my LATIN HORROR cohort (Christian A. Morán, Cynthya Blandino, Pepper Negrón and Elena Martínez), was invited by Amanda and her team (Rebecca Nieves and Randi Malman) to join the ceremony, as well as say a few words. We were humbled to be part of such a singular moment with Romero’s wife, Suzanne (president and founder of The George A. Romero Foundation), and daughter, Tina in attendance no less! It was a huge honor for me as a life-long fan of Romero’s work. We were also joined by Bronx Borough President (aka ‘Bronx Boss’), Vanessa L. Gibson, who presented a proclamation to the family in recognition of the momentous occasion.
This has inspired me to re-double my efforts of having Romero inducted into the 2025 Bronx Walk of Fame (see below). He deserves that and more, especially in the borough where he was born and once called home.
AND, please keep and eye out for news on a wide-raging exhibit I will be curating honoring ROMERO in partnership with LATIN HORROR, The Bronx County Historical Society, The George A. Romero Foundation, and Bronx Music Heritage Center opening Halloween 2025! You heard it here first.
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A toast to the master in his own words:” STAY SCARED!
Quotes from the Street Co-naming Ceremony
Born in 1940 to a Lithuanian mother and a Spanish-born Cuban father, George Romero grew up in Parkchester. Even in his youth, Romero displayed a deep passion for film, a spirit of adventure, and a commitment to creativity. At just 14 years old, while making his film “The Man From the Meteor” Romero was arrested after throwing a dummy off a roof to capture a scene, an early testament to his dedication to the art of filmmaking.
Romero went on to attend Carnegie Mellon University and eventually became a pioneering filmmaker, earning the title “Godfather of the Dead” for his groundbreaking work in the horror genre. His “Night of the Living Dead” series, starting with the original “Night of the Living Dead”, introduced the modern concept of a zombie apocalypse and continues to be celebrated for redefining the zombie in film. These films have sparked generations of excitement and fascination with the undead, cementing Romero’s status as a major contributor to the zombie image in modern culture.
George A Romero left us a rich legacy of films and written works.He has had an enduring impact that interconnects across time. I am always hoping that this street naming event and other celebrations of his work inspires others to create art and to encourage people to see and read his body of works.
— Suzanne Desrocher Romero, President and Founder, GARF
“George Romero’s legacy goes beyond film; he influenced generations of filmmakers and sparked meaningful conversations about societal issues,” said Majority Leader Amanda Farías. “It is an honor to recognize his roots here in Parkchester and ensure his contributions to cinema and culture are forever remembered.”
— Council Member Amanda Farías
“Bronxites have been innovators of many cultural phenomena over the last 100 years—from hip hop to salsa, fashion, graffiti and street art, and so much more. What many folks don’t realize is that the “Father of the Zombies,” George A. Romero, is also a son of The Bronx, hailing from Parkchester. The street co-naming is a fitting way to memorialize Romero’s pivotal role in shaping the modern horror genre, with his cinematic depictions of the walking dead becoming the gold standard for zombie flicks thereafter. The Bronx County Historical Society celebrates Romero’s legacy as one of the most important innovators of horror thus far, right alongside Edgar Allan Poe, whose Cottage in The Bronx, his last permanent home, we are caretakers of.”
— Steven Payne, Bronx County Historical Society
“To many George A. Romero is the undisputed ‘Father of the Zombies,’ but to me as a lifelong horror fan and filmmaker working in genre production, he was also a tangible inspiration with whom I could easily identify. I was too young to see his seminal and ground-breaking “Night of the Living Dead” in theaters when it originally premiered. But when I watched “Dawn of the Dead” in 1978 at a local Bronx drive-in, I could not get enough of his “Walking Dead” stories.
His subsequent canon of work mirrored the zeitgeist of the times when the films were made, also making Romero a documentarian who embedded his narrative feature work with historical context. This ceremonial dedication is a fitting tribute to a son of The Bronx, who through his creation of the brain-eating Zombies, has kept the world in terror for over five decades, with no end in sight.”
Edwin Pagan, Founder-in-Chief, LATIN HORROR
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