Night Of The Living Dead DVD Retrospective

[JohnIan101]

PART IV: BOOKS - A1

As the title above indicates, this week I'm covering some of the relevant reading materials you might be interested in or had not heard of. This wasn't so much, something I intended to cover, but the more peripheral research was done - the more it became apparent that I should. So here we are!

An importance notice; starting after the next post, this Retrospective goes monthly. I have so many titles to cover next year. I'll be honest - most of them are crap. And not the good kind.



Lets begin at the start of the infection...

I'm going to cover the various novelizations of the movie by screenplay co-writer John Russo.

The text inside is the same with minor differences which I'll address.

So take my hand and squeeze tight for... luck.



The first book came out in 1974. This has an introduction by Romero as well as sixteen pages of photos from the movie. This sold from Warner Paperback Library.

Back in early 1980s or late 1970s I HAD an opportunity to pick this up. But didn't, the paperback was priced fairly at $1.25. This was from Circle K or 7-11 can't recall which.

I would still have that now if I had. Even as a little kid I had respect for books and took care of them. I still have novels bought in my childhood. Anyhow, this book is one hundred eighty-nine pages long (including that black and white galley).

Of all the novelizations this one has my favorite cover, illustration by Paul Weller. Later on, there is a re-pressing with tries to replicate the art. Didn't quite hit the mark.

Anyhow, the first pressing came with a full page ad for Kent cigarettes, just so you know.



The second pressing (well more like third since Warner Paperback re-released, minus the ad) came out in 1981 from Pocket Books. There change (beyond the obvious), it is now one hundred seventy-six pages long and sold for $2.50. A gallery is included here - BUT the images are different. It appears the Romero introduction was not carried over.

They are coming, filling the night with a furious howl, and staining the earth blood-red... their powers are swelling, from feasting on flesh and gnawing on bone, now they are drunk on the sweet taste of blood... and they march to the rhythm of death. Now they will crash down the gates, take all that is theirs, and wipe the blood from their lips...

- rear text

Pardon? They don't wipe. Nor howl.

Don't like the artwork (which is indicative of that time), but I will say it's quite meta with the ghoul's hand ripping though the book itself to reach the girl - Barabra? You guess is as good as mine. Though you could say that it foretold the future; 1990's Barbara is a redhead. *Inception horn* Though 90's Barb is short haired.



This pix took forever to find and required image restoration to make presentable (10/20/18). The original image used in 2015 was barely passable. Replacement still sucks, but far less than the first time.

This is the third pressing from New English Library Ltd. in the United Kingdom.

It was released in 1983 and is one hundred seventy-six pages. No idea on price tag.

The image feels a bit similar to the 1999 Columbia TriStar Home Video DVD cover. *nods*



The fourth pressing... I guess is a collector's item; the Canadian paperback from Ravenmor Books (part of Commonwealth Pubns Inc.), released in 1996. This is one hundred eight-four pages. I don't believe the Romero introduction is included.

Special?

This was pure greed, wicked bosses who wanted all the maple for themselves, indeed.

Ravenmor Books was sued into oblivion by their authors. Because? They didn't pay them - the publisher later went bankrupt. Anyhow, the price tag for this paperback is unknown.

I'll give them credit for doing something new for the cover, they put some effort into that picture.



This is what I talked about earlier. The fifth pressing came from Burning Bulb Publishing in 2014. One hundred ninty pages.

It is priced at $9.99, a softback.

As you can see the picture tires to recreate that mood set in the first pressing. The hand have the same color and texture as the board securing the broken window. It looks ugly and quite unappealing, at least for me.

Plus the hands kinda look like chicken claws. Why is that? The Weller cover has the hands, window frame and lumber all in different hues (even the broken glass). They stand out from each other, not like this reimagined mesh (or mess).

I'll take a pause and do an international edition.



This ditty is from Spain, published by Martinez-Roca in 1985.

Price is unknown, but it is one hundred fifty-nine pages long. More than likely zero gallery.

TRUTH.

I don't have a clue and am taking a lot of guess as to reissues. It's a quite a mess, the novel has be re-pressed so many times it's almost a cliché. The number is a mystery when you count the global editions.

That being said. WTF?

Is that suppose to be Helen Cooper as a ghost? She's transparent on that skull. It kinda looks like her. Was the candle on the skull added for a gothic flavor? And why is this taking place at the cemetery (background)? Hinting a voodoo ritual that brought the dead back to life?

"Super Terror", I see. Okay I suppose.

So many unanswered questions.



Next is a new adaptation by Christopher Andrews from Rising Star Visionary Press in 2009. This is two hundred and six pages long and sold for $13.95. This softback is a book I want to own.

The book addresses why Harry Cooper is such an asshole. And how Tom and Judy got to the farm house. How the Karen got bit and so on.

We also get the horrors at Beekman's Diner witnessed by Ben.

In short; we get back stories and a faithful novelization. The book has gotten many good reviews. This is on my list to own as is the 1974 novel. But Andrews cover is weak, the ghoul with the open maw - that looks like bad CGI given some texture.



Gonna change gears for a moment and cover the first draft screenplay; "Night Of The Living Dead: A True Copy Of The Original Screenplay By John A. Russo & George A. Romero".

This softback was released by CreateSpace Independent Publishing in 2012. And sells for $19.95. It is ninety-two pages long. This is a replica of the original script when it was called "The Anubis".

Please Be Aware: There are places where the printed pages are not entirely legible due to the use of an old-fashioned inefficient mimeograph machine that we had in our offices back in 1967 when the script was first written. This does not mean that you have bought a defective copy; rest assured that you have gotten an honest replica of the script as it has always existed.

- Russo's foreword

I can't see myself owning this. This veers far too deep in novelty territory. I'm puzzled why they didn't enhance the pages to make them more legible; this act does not take away nor negate its content - at all. It just makes it much more readable. I've seen page samples, it needs it.

Come back here on December 17th, 2015 for next part; yeah - in two weeks. Will it be worth the wait?

How about the unpublished Romero novel detailing how the contagion began? That caught your attention?

See you then.