They're alive!! ... And running!

Vampires? So passé. These dark days, it's all about the zombie.

And whether you’re new to the soulless-corpse craze sweeping the nation or have been a part of the dead-body revival since it started, The Ticker is here to help you have a harrowing Halloween. Read on for some zombie-seeking – or fleeing – fun, TC-style:

Run, Zombies, Run!
Contrary to belief, zombies can shuffle fast – and even sprint – at least in Traverse City. Packs of the running dead will fill the streets and wend their way through Central Neighborhood during the 4th Annual 5K Zombie Run, starting at 9 a.m. next Saturday, October 27. Will Zombie Jesus make an appearance again this year? Note: Being a spectator is (almost) as fun as running.

And have no fear: If all that running makes you one thirsty zombie, you’ll be happy to know the run ends right where it begins, outside the front door of Right Brain Brewery’s new location on Sixteenth Street. Zombies and brains … a perfect pairing.

TC Fright Night
If being chased is more your style, head over to the inaugural Fright Night and Zombie Chase in the spook-filled fields and woods on the grounds of the former State Hospital from 6 to 10 p.m., also next Saturday (the 27th).

The Party: Local entertainment featuring DJ JR, the Bayside Bombshells burlesque troupe and a screening of locally-produced horror flick, Dogman; local food and libations. Admission is $10 and for the 21 and up crowd only. All proceeds benefit the restoration of the Historic Barns and Botanical Gardens.

The Chase: For an extra $10, you get a flashlight and two flags representing the left and right sides of your brain. The challenge? Some 40 zombies lurking in the shadows with one goal: to scare the heck out of – and “infect” – you. But, if you capture the four elements of the vaccine needed to stay alive before the zombies capture your flags, you win. If you don’t? Well, we know what happens but have been sworn to secrecy. Let’s just say it’s not for the faint of heart.

Feeling brave? Sign up here. (Pre-registration strongly encouraged.)

Couch Potato Festivities
If staying in and hiding (er, snuggling) under a blanket is your idea of fun, have no fear; the third season of AMC’s zombie drama The Walking Dead premiered to a record-setting 10.9 million viewers last Sunday night. You can tune in at 9 p.m. on Sundays. 

More gore more your thing? Here are a few film favorites from the live – and not so live – wires on The Ticker staff:

The classic: Night of the Living Dead (1968, U.S.): first of director George Romero’s zombie trilogy, followed by Dawn of the Dead & Day of the Dead.

For foreign film aficionados: Dellamorte Dellamore (1994, Italy); if you’re too scared to read subtitles, it was released in the U.S. as Cemetery Man.

For Academy buffs: 28 Days Later (2003, U.K.): one of Danny Boyle’s many flicks before grabbing the Best Director Academy Award for Slumdog Millionaire.

Oh, you prefer non-fiction? Check out The Serpent and the Rainbow, a book by ethnobotanist Wade Davis, who traveled to Haiti to investigate the story of Clairvius Narcisse – a man who was allegedly poisoned and buried alive, and who, upon release, received an herbal brew whose effects produced something called a zombie.