This morning I found out that the first zombie that ever scared me, giving me many sleepless nights when I was very young, has passed away. Bill Hinzman, 76, succumbed to his battle with cancer.
I’m very saddened by the news, and I’m glad that I met him and spoke to him on many occasions. I first met him in 2008, when he was the special guest for the promotion of the Eerie Horror Film Festival at the Millcreek Mall (first photo below). At that time I interviewed him for the Midnight Podcast, and was really impressed with how kind the man was.
Since then I’ve talked to him on many occasions, and he was always willing to hang out and talk. I always looked forward to seeing him.
The last time I encountered Mr. Hinzman was at Horror Realm 2010, and had to snap another photo with him because he was decked out in all his zombie glory (second photo below).
I’ll be watching Night of the Living Dead (1968) and Flesheater (1988) in his memory.
Corey! Is that a Darhma Initiative t-shirt?!
Nice.
No, I wish I was that cool! It’s actually a Phish shirt for Festival 8, their New Year’s shows a couple years ago.
Can’t believe I just found out he had died. Sorry I never met him. He was also the one that scared me to death when I was younger too. Thanks for sharing the photos! Kind regards, Callum