Evans City's Living Dead Fest is deceased for this year, but it should be hoped that, like the unburied dead who returned to life in the classic horror film "Night of the Living Dead," this event will be revived next year and continue for years to come.

Properly funded, organized and promoted, this event has the potential to be a significant tourist attraction for Butler County. It is unfortunate that what was begun two years ago did not grow but, rather, succumbed to apathy, inadequate community sponsorship, and general lack of other support.

"Night of the Living Dead," which is regarded as a "cult classic," was a low-budget movie filmed here in 1968 that has grown in popularity among horror movie fans and continues to see its fan base expand.

The community — and county — should capitalize on that popularity, but it's going to take more support for the festival than what was received last year and the year before.

Perhaps those who organized the event in 2008 and 2009 merit some of the blame for this year's demise, but had the community and county rallied to keep it alive, there might be a Living Dead Fest this year.

While 2008 provided hope that the festival could become an annual attraction, last year's event was hurt by bad weather that curtailed attendance. There were no contingency plans to take into account the possibility of inclement weather, and it's clear that, despite the event being in its second year, few people outside of Butler County were aware of it.

It's unreasonable to think that an event of this potential should continue to be funded almost entirely by one or a few individuals.

Gary Streiner, who started the festival two years ago, paid for the two events held thus far almost entirely out of his own pocket. Rick Reifenstein, a co-organizer of the first festival, said the inability to find sponsors to defray costs this year was the deciding factor in ending plans for 2010.

Jack Cohen, executive director of the Butler County Tourism and Convention Bureau, said last week that the bureau reached out to the organizers but was told that the event wouldn't be held.

He said the bureau wanted to work with the organizers.

But if the festival is going to be held next year, planning must begin soon — not only in developing more activities that might be part of the festival, but also regarding financing and plans for advertising it.

If the festival were to become an annual event, it would be important for it to be prominently featured in tourism bureau brochures.

Butler County has the distinction of being the site of the movie filming; it is Butler County that should be the beneficiary of that distinction — and Evans City officials and community groups should be part of the effort to achieve that.

The Living Dead Fest should not be buried.

The festival can become a significant, and fun, tourism asset if it is not treated as a small-town get-together without broader potential.