DAWN OF THE DEAD F.A.Q.

DAWN OF THE DEAD F.A.Q.

SEND IN YOUR QUESTIONS to Trioxin5@aol.com - I may have an answer!

When is Anchor Bay’s definitive three-disc edition being released?
September 2004. Cast commentary on the Euro cut, producer commentary on Cannes edition and a re-issue of the 127m DVD.
What are the differences between the 127min. and the 139 min. and the 115min. and the 555min. versions?
See the Versions section.
Did Dawn get released in 1978 or 1979?
The filming wrapped up in 1978, and starting that September, Europe saw it first. The following April (1979) it saw U.S. release. It was copyrighted in 1978 so often you will see "© MCMLXXVIII Dawn Associates."
I read that a meteor was the reason the dead reactivated...is this in any version?
Yes, it was an unofficial explanation (read: not approved by Romero) added to the Japanese television edit. See the Videos and Versions sections.
How did all the zombies get inside the mall (before Peter and co.) with raiders and patrols outside?
See the Mistakes section.
Was the suicide ending filmed?
See the Production section. George mentions in Document of the Dead that both endings were shot. It's believed that a certain producer has it if it remains at all.
Do you have the suicide ending version of the movie?
See above. It doesn't exist in any cut of the film.
Why did they ax the original ending?
Romero has likened it to not wanting to play the same trick twice (insofar as another downbeat ending like Night). And he liked the characters too much.
Was the motorcycle gang real?
Yes most belonged to the Pagans.
Why is one zombie dead on the escalator already (before Peter and co. arrived)?
Guess he fell and hit his head.
Are dead people really blue?
No the dead in Dawn are famously unrealistic. A recently-dead corpse would be more of a bruised color, even purple. But a nice cool powder grey-blue, no - and not for the months these creatures have been walking around in the movie.
A real corpse that has been dead as long as the zombies in DOTD
Shouldn't the mall stink?
Yes. The only time a stench is suggested is when Peter says "this place is gonna be rotten" - isn't it already???
Note that in Day of the Dead the zombie smell is referenced more.
How did they do the effect of the one-legged priest in the tenement?
Jese Del Gre, the man who played the priest, was found at the YMCA in Pittsburgh. He really has one leg and was one of the amputees who didn't volunteer to play a zombie.
I heard parts of the music from "Dawn" in some movie...
If its the orchestrated parts heard in the SWAT raid or elsewhere, you're hearing library cue tracks from De Wolfe Library. These have turned up in Monty Python and even cartoons like Darkwing Duck. The Muzak heard in the European versions are from the spaghetti Western I Vado, Vedo e Sparo, performed by Carlo Rustichelli.
Who performs the song "Cause I’m a Man" heard in the countryside sequence?
The Pretty Things. The song was written by Peter Reno in 1967. The Pretty Things were a 60s British Invasion group whose members were Phil May (vocals), Dick Taylor (guitar), John Povey (drums), Wally Waller (bass). The brass parts are Reg Tilsley.
They disbanded a year after Dawn was released. They released many albums and a few for the DeWolfe library to be licensed in movies without credit. They are credited as being the original rock opera band (yes, even Pete Townshend acknowledges this fact!).
This will be released with Incidental Music in June 2004.
The name of the record that has the track (and even an instrumental version) is Electric Banana (De Wolfe DWLP-1040). If you're the type that cannot find even the Dawn LP, you will have a rougher time tracking this down but it looks like this:

If not, here are the lyrics:

Cause I'm a Man (Reno)

I never wake up early in the morning
Don't get home 'til late at night
Don't believe in overworking
And I never treat a woman right
Cause I'm a man
Cause I'm a man

I like to be the center of attraction
Let the people know just who I am
Like my movie shows with lots of action
Take my beer straight from the can
Cause I'm a man
Cause I'm a man

I'm not the type for settling down or raising a family
Just give me a room with music and ice
That's the place for me

I never like to lose a nickel
Although I am a gambling fan
Smoke the cigarettes until my throat is raw
Don't believe in living to a plan
Cause I'm a man
Cause I'm a man

Why aren’t there good quality action figures or video games ?
MKR Group are all about the highest bid, and I suppose no one has the bucks they require for the license. They are also not actively looking to license such things. Believe me, the notion has popped up to Sideshow, NECA, Reel Toy, and a host of other companies.
Why are Goblin credited as The Goblins?
Along with mucking up Taso Stavrakis' name (it's NOT Taso Stavrakos), you can blame the titlers.
What is the name of the other zombie movie with Goblin music in it (from Dawn)?
Night of the Zombies (1981). This title is also known by Hell of the Living Dead and Inferno of the Living Dead. It sucks by any name.

How come the music heard in the 139 min. version where Roger and Peter first go into the mall is not on the complete Zombi CD released by Cinevox in 1998?
Because it’s a library track and not Goblin.

I heard that they will kick you out of the Monroeville Mall if you take pictures (and take your film)?
I have not heard this and everyone that I know that goes there to take pictures gets out with their pictures. Some people have taken more from the mall than just pictures…
Is the Monroeville Mall still there/changed/does it have a sign or plaque saying DOTD filmed here in 1978/etc?
Since May 1969, the mall has been there, all 1.3 million square feet. There is no plaque or commemorative item as some have imagined. The skating rink was turned into a food court and the tower clock is long gone. Most of these changes took place in 1987. From the Airport, it's about 35 minutes.
Heard you can’t slide on the middle part of the escalator (like Roger does) at the Monroeville Mall?
True.
Isn't Dawn the highest grossing zombie movie ever?
No but the remake and Resident Evil are. Richard Rubinstein's Pet Sematary is also up there ($57, 469, 512). Dawn is however, one of the top five. Rubinstein also has another top 5 grossing zombie movie, Creepshow.
Did you know Metallica's Cliff Burton loved Dawn?
The late bassist Cliff Burton from the popular band Metallica was often photographed on stage around the mid 80’s era (their thrash years) wearing an original Dawn crew shirt. Rob Zombie has also been seen with one. There are other music culture fans. Obscure UK death metallers Cancer borrowed the famous machete zombie still for a cover graphic on their CD "To the Gory End". House of Pain’s hip-hop hit "Jump Around" from 1992 threatens "I'll make you wake up in the Dawn of the Dead". Heavy metal horror fans White Zombie sampled Foster’s line "it gets up and kills" on their popular 1993 Devil Music album. More sampling abound in the Gorillaz 2002 release "Hip Albatross". The punk group Mourning Noise named one of their songs after the film. And some bands like The Tubes and The Dickies have named their CDs after the movie (i.e. Dawn of the Tubes).
What movies reference Dawn?
The 1985 John Hughes comedy Weird Science contains a reference in the first few minutes of the cable version. Teenaged Gary (Anthony Michael Hall) admits how scary Dawn is and how he needed to sleep with his parents and discuss his childhood with his grandmother. Other movies like Psychos in Love (1986) had their title characters at a video store renting the trilogy. Even the subtitle of Evil Dead 2: Dead By Dawn is an obvious reference. Universal’s horror sampler Terror in the Aisles lists Dawn among it’s clips. In Tales From the Darkside: The Movie (1990). Directed by John Harrison, it was only natural that the scene used was his screwdriver zombie scene (playing on a television in one of the segments.) In the Waxwork films, horror movies come to life supernaturally. In the first, Night of the Living Dead was briefly re-enacted. In the sequel (subtitled Lost in Time) 70’s horror films are homaged, and Dawn is re-enacted complete with bell-bottomed zombie extras. The Resident Evil movie (2002) either ripped off or paid homage to Dawn depending on your perspective, with its S.W.A.T. like S.T.A.R.S. commando squad. One character is a direct attempt at a Peter recreation. There is also a bit of dialogue that recalls Roger’s delirious plea to Peter: "I don’t wanna be walking around after I’m dead…"

Who has died that was in Dawn or that worked on it?
Barth Bartholomae, the real helicopter pilot on the film.
Is John Russo in the movie?
No, he had nothing to do with it fortunately. Some fans might mistake a man wearing eyeglasses in the police as Russo but it is not him.
Hey, any connection to the mall alarm that says BIG BRUISER and the Romero movie BRUISER?
No.
Where can I get the full three hour version?
You can’t. See Versions section.
What awards has Dawn won?
One in Germany (Golden Screen Award).
What channels has Dawn been aired on?
Usually movies go to cable a year after their theatrical release. Instead of licensing it to HBO or Cinemax in the early 80s, MKR Group decided to keep "Dawn of the Dead" alive in theaters for double bills (i.e. "Mother's Day", "Creepshow") and midnight screenings from 1981-83. The MKR Group licensed the first ever cable broadcast rights in the U.S. to Cinemax in 1997. Unfortunately the old Thorn EMI version (complete with the EMI leader) was the only one they were allowed to air. It was never shown on basic cable (even "Zombie" the Lucio Fulci ripoff has appeared on TNT in the middle of the night!) The Japanese aired a different version (with the meteor explanation) prime time in 1984. Eleven years later, the British aired the 139m. version. The next time it was aired on U.S. cable was on June 2, 1998 at 8 P.M. on Cinemax. MoMax (Cinemax2) aired it throughout that month as well at least four times and on Halloween. The Movie Channel aired it in 1999 and Showtime Extreme did so through 2000. Independent Film Channel followed these channels with premieres in October 2000 (with premieres of Document of the Dead).
What did the television listings read when it was aired?
TV Guide had a blurb about Tom Savini's appearance in the film in the Evening Highlights section but the actual description of the movie was as follows:

Dawn of the Dead (1979) R: SL, GV.
The second film in George Romero's
living dead trilogy finds four survivors
fending off zombies within the confines
of a shopping mall. Stephen: David Emge.
Peter: Ken Foree. (2 hrs. 10 min. HHH)

MOVIE * * * "Dawn of the Dead" (1979, Horror) David Emge, Ken Foree. Four people fortify an abandoned shopping mall against an army of flesh-eating corpses. NR. The TV Book (included with most national newspapers) was a little off the mark with their capsule:

Dawn of the Dead HHH (79,
Horror) David Emge, Ken Foree.
Cannibal zombies reach for a
couple and two former National
Guardsmen in Philadelphia.
Directed by George Romero.
NR. Language, violence. (2:05)

Later it became:
Dawn of the Dead HHH (79, Hor-
ror) David Emge. Cannibal zombies
pursue Philadelphians. Directed by
George Romero. NR. (2:05)
How much is my Dawn posterbook/clock/prop/etc worth?
Email me for these "appraisals" - a list here would be monstrous. At some point, I may add values inside the site sections.
Where can I get the Dawn game (or other memorabilia)?/Do you have this (item) for sale?
Dawn goods show up on ebay all the time. I can't provide my collecting sources or networks. A lot of what I have I got a long time ago and through different means. Gone are the days of buying multiple copies of something to sell or trade with, so please do not ask me if I will sell you or find you an item.
Was Quentin Tarantino (director of Pulp Fiction/Kill Bill) in Dawn? I heard he was.
No. Quentin had lied about this on his resume, saying he was an uncredited biker near the end. Now he talks about that and how much of a fan he was or how he treasures his board game.

What conventions have there been for Dawn?
The first Dawn related appearances were by Romero at the Pittsburgh Fantasy Film Celebrity Con held Sept. 15-17, 1978 at the Sheraton-Inn near the Monroeville Mall. August 10-12 , Tom Savini, Mike Gornick and George Romero appeared at the same Con again this time at the Hilton in Pittsburgh. The Night of the Living Dead 25^th Anniversary Zombie Jamboree Aug. 27-29, 1993 included a Monroeville Mall tour hosted by Tom Savini. The first Dawn of the Dead convention was held by Video Wasteland (in their Cinema Wasteland series of shows) on September 18, 2000. In attendance were David Emge, Ken Foree, Scott Reiniger, Leonard Lies, David Early, Tony Buba, James Baffico, Tom Savini, James Krut, Bob Michelucci, Marty Schiff and Nick Tallo. Gaylen Ross was invited but declined. She had previously attended the Weekend of Horrors 1999 New York show alongside of Lori Cardille and Judith O’Dea. There has since been annual tributes by the Pittsburgh Comic Con people.

Why doesn’t Gaylen Ross do conventions?
She is not really interested in staying known as that chick from Dawn.
Why is Gaylen Ross credited under a pseudonym in "Madman" (1982)?
From Gaylen: "Alexis Dubin's a name I thought of on an elevator. I was in the [Actors] union then."
What kind of car is in the mall?
VW Scirocco.
Why didn't Foree/Ross/etc come back for another movie?
Virtually any actor in a Romero movie has said nice things about working with him, and wanted to work with him again, as in the case of Foree who describes Romero's directing much the way he is: pleasant, relaxed, humorous, etc.

What other movies have the cast been in?
Ten years after his work in the film, Dave Emge was sought by Dawn fans making their own movies like Basket Case 2 (1990) and Hellmaster (1992). Foree appeared in minor roles in The Wanderers (1979), Romero’s Knightriders (1981), Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life is Calling (1986), From Beyond (1986), Death Spa (1988), Phantom of the Mall: Eric’s Revenge (1989), Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre III (1989), Hangfire (1991), Night of the Stalker (1991), Sleepstalker (1995) and The Dentist (1996). Scott Reiniger actually started directing programs, after minor roles in Knightriders (81) and The Other Victim (81). Gaylen Ross appeared in Romero’s Creepshow (1982) as one of the drowned zombies, and the same year starred under the name Alexis Dubin in Madman. She also served as casting director for Day of the Dead. Two documentaries were co-produced or directed by Ross including Dealers Among Dealers (1995) and Blood Money: Switzerland’s Nazi Gold (1997). Taso N. Stavrakis assisted Tom Savini again on Friday the 13^th (80), worked the effects on He Knows You’re Alone (80), appeared in Romero’s Knightriders (81) and Day of the Dead (85), choreographed fights in Stuck On You (84), and returned to stunt work for Creepshow 2 (87), Bloodsucking Pharoahs in Pittsburgh (91) and The Mask of Zorro (98). David Early had minor roles in Romero’s Knightriders (81), Creepshow (82) and The Dark Half (93) as well as Silence of the Lambs (91). Richard France first associated with Romero in There’s Always Vanilla (71) as well as a portraying a scientist in The Crazies (73). James Baffico III can be seen in Knightriders (81) and All the Right Moves (83) both shot in Pittsburgh. As most people know, Dario Argento continued directing horror movies with Inferno (80), Tenebrae (83), Creepers (85), producer and co-writer of Demons (85) and Demons 2 (87), Terror At the Opera (89), The Church (89), co-director with George Romero on Two Evil Eyes (91) and producer/co-writer of Devil’s Daughter (91); Trauma (93).

What do you (Mr. Webmaster) think of the remake that they announced?
I think most people would agree that the makeup could be improved but certain things should not be touched – the Goblin score, for one. I think they could find a much more state of the art mall to shoot. Had George Romero been rightfully involved in this remake plan (which he wouldn’t see the point in even if asked), it may have been a promising idea. But instead we have:
- no rhyme or reason for the zombie plague; they just show up
- the usual little girl zombie; I thought Resident Evil covered this with their useless apparition of a creepy little girl
- running hordes of people that look more like bums and not dead bodies. Close-ups feature the typical Halloween ghoulie monster makeup we have seen a million times.
- a hip young cast of pretty faces we don't relate to. And who are on screen only to die one by one.
- a Maximum Overdrive-like sequence of street "horrors".
- R-rated Night of the Living Dead remake style action (usual gunfire, blood drippings, suggested bites).
- A 00s Hollywood hyperaction movie soundtrack.
- Impossible timeline of events - things crumbling too quickly (Night of the Living Dead doesn't exist...)
- Instant zombies (where is the power of the panic to potentially save lives after a zombie bite?)

Zombies or bloody bums?
Where is your extended coverage of the remake?
Not going to happen. The producers have enough money to promote that themselves and they won't find support from me here. I truly do not want to see nor read about the project. But I will post a review for it soon.