Selling Fear for Fun and Profit
“Zombies tap into a lot of different elements of our psyche,” says Hollywoood.com’s Dergarabedian. “People wonder what happens to souls when they die. People relate to it.”
In large numbers, apparently. Since 2001, groups around the world have successfully promoted zombie walks, in which thousands of participants dress up as zombies, shuffle and lurch along city streets together, for fun and, increasingly, for charity.
In 2008, a Zombie Fest in Pittsburgh gathered more than 2,000 pounds of food for the hungry. In Detroit, World Zombie Day Walk Against Hunger has gathered more than 8,000 pounds of food and 18,000 in the past four years. In Manchester, U.K., and Dublin, Ireland, thousands of zombies raised money to fight cancer.
It just goes to show, even the horror business has a heart.
