Walmart has bought a piece of movie history in western Pennsylvania. The Monroeville Mall, in the Pittsburgh suburb of Monroeville, was the set for the 1978 George Romero classic, Dawn of the Dead. The mall still stands, for now, but in true Walmart fashion, the box store corporation is already planning on demolishing it.
Many of the Romero zombie movies take place in Pennsylvania, starting with the original, Night of the Living Dead. The choice of a mall as the set for Dawn of the Dead was a statement at the time about mindless consumerism, but the second movie in Romero’s famed series stuck close to its roots. Monroeville and its mall have both grown a lot since the movie was filmed, and visitors to the mall might not recognize it compared to the structure that was featured in the movie.
The Monroeville Mall in Dawn of the Dead (1978)
Today’s mall has familiar mall staples, like Auntie Anne’s and Macy’s, but also features a storefront museum celebrating the Living Dead franchise and its Pennsylvania roots. A bronze bust of George Romero also decorates the mall near the museum. Both the museum and the mall itself draw horror fans on pilgrimage to one of the genre’s most famous sites. It even has an annual “Living Dead Weekend” event.
Walmart is wasting no time in its plan to “improve” the mall by demolishing it. The investment companies representing the box store giant have already told lessees of the storefronts that they need to be out by April 2027. Plans are to turn the mall into an open-air market with a Walmart, a Sam’s Club, and other restaurants and venues.
The Monroeville Mall in Dawn of the Dead (1978)
It’s true that the mall is nothing like it was in the movie, but the plans in store for the site are tragic. It is ironic that a location famous for lampooning mindless consumerism would be demolished by the same mindless consumerism. Hopefully, the Monroeville Mall can be like the zombies that made it famous and rise from the dead by somehow evading demolition plans. Otherwise, fans should plan their final visit before 2027.
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‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.yahoo.com ’
