George Andrew Romero

 George Andrew Romero (February 4, 1940 – July 16, 2017)

He was a filmmaker, writer and editor, best known for his series of gruesome and satirical horror films about an imagined zombie apocalypse, beginning in 1968 with Night of the Living Dead, which is often considered a progenitor of the fictional zombie of modern culture. Other notable films in the series include Dawn of the Dead (1978) and Day of the Dead (1985). Aside from the Dead series, his works include The Crazies (1973), Martin (1978), Creepshow (1982), Monkey Shines (1988) and The Dark Half (1993). Romero is often noted as an influential pioneer of the horror film genre, and has been called an "icon" and the "Father of the Zombie Film." He was married three times, and had three children. Romero died of lung cancer on July 16, 2017 at age 77. He is buried at Toronto Necropolis Cemetery and Crematorium in Toronto, Ontario in Canada.