Zombies Crash San Diego Wedding

image Imagine this scenario. It's your wedding day. You've been planning for it for months. It's cost you thousands of dollars, but finally the big day has arrived and the entire wedding party is gathered in San Diego's beautiful Balboa Park -- the guests, the caterers, the photographer... and the zombies?

Balboa Park is an extremely popular spot for weddings. In fact, it's where Beverley and I got married five years ago, but it's also completely open to the public. Usually this is no problem. But it became an issue last month when Balboa Park served as the location for San Diego's first-ever zombie walk.

Hundreds of people dressed up as blood-spattered zombies lurched and staggered through the park. It was supposed to be a wacky, flash-mob type event. But the people having weddings there didn't think it was funny. Witness this angry letter-to-the-editor that Glenda Wiederkehr wrote in to the San Diego Union-Tribune:
The zombie enthusiasts who invaded Balboa Park last month need to have their “unheads” examined. The soulless walkers dragged themselves through our friend's wedding reception. Not a “meandering” pass by, but a deliberate, harassing parade over and over through the gathered guests. The bridesmaids and others were left to police them, direct them and loudly encourage them to disperse. A San Diego police detective needs to know they were not “just people having fun.” The zombie makeup artist who stated, “It seems to me that everyone in the world right now is so stressed” and that “we grow up so fast” has made her point. And, believe me, it is not well taken.
However, Jennifer Griffith, the organizer of the zombie walk, has denied that any zombies dragged themselves through the wedding. She writes:
Glenda Wiederkehr is sadly mistaken. There was police presence at that walk and they were stationed very near the wedding reception in question. We passed by the reception: ONCE on the absolute opposite side of El Prado (on our way to the west end) and ONCE on our way back to the east end. I PERSONALLY directed zombies AWAY from the reception; towards the center and opposite side of El Prado... I can guarantee that the official walk NEVER passed through the wedding reception. If a few wayward zombies passed through on the way back to their vehicles, then I personally apologize for their actions, but do not slander our entire group for a few potential bad apples (though I REALLY doubt even that happened).
Personally, I would have loved it if zombies had shown up at my wedding, but then, not everyone shares my appreciation for the odd. I can understand that many people would not include zombies in their idea of a dream wedding.

Paranormal Sex/Romance

Posted on Sat Aug 11, 2007



Comments

Notice how there's nothing about the bride or groom bitching about some zombies at the wedding? Bet they loved it.

The still-drunk-from-the-stag-night best man may have found it a bit freaky, mind.
Posted by Renquist  on  Sat Aug 11, 2007  at  11:14 AM
I would have loved it if zombies had crashed my wedding! Unfortunately, I got married well before there was such a thing as flash mobs.
Posted by Averagae Jane  on  Sat Aug 11, 2007  at  11:48 AM
Does anyone expect the mindless undead to prove anything? And who would accept the word of an undead over someone who is "not-ready-for-undeath-yet" anyway? It must have been a civil wedding, any competent cleric can turn low-level undead like zombies with not very much trouble.

Renquist, the bride and groom are probably off in whatever honeymoon locale they fled to and are trying to forget it. Or plan revenge, Hell hath no fury like a woman who had her "special" day upstaged.
Posted by Christopher Cole  on  Sat Aug 11, 2007  at  11:59 AM
!!

I wish zombies would have crashed my wedding!! That would have been AMAZING!
Posted by MadCarlotta  on  Sat Aug 11, 2007  at  02:29 PM
At my wedding, only zombies will be invited. Of course, the significant other with who I am sharing the occasion may end up having different ideas...
Posted by Transfrmr  on  Sat Aug 11, 2007  at  03:01 PM
Hey, you have your wedding (or any other event) in a public park, you can't get too upset if the public shows up. As they say, it comes with the territory.
Posted by Big Gary  on  Sat Aug 11, 2007  at  04:54 PM
I want Zombies to crash my wedding...

But the woman who felt the need to complain about zombies needs to remove the stick from her ass if she has a problem with an organized event.
Posted by Bob The Fish  on  Sat Aug 11, 2007  at  07:36 PM
The general support seems to be for the zombies. I differ here, my support is for the wedding party. Unless the wedding was not posted in any way, nor did it look like a wedding, the zombies showed extreme lack of respect for other people in crashing the wedding. The organizers of the zombie walk have a responsibility that their fun does not ruin events for other people. Balboa park is large enough so that the walk could occur in plenty of space and leave the wedding alone. Did they really need to shamble past it twice? This wasn't a bunch of people just having fun, this became a bunch of people being sadistic in their demand that everyone respect them while they refuse to respect anyone else.
Posted by Christopher Cole  on  Sat Aug 11, 2007  at  09:11 PM
I don't think I'd complain too much about zombies at my wedding, either...
Posted by Smerk  on  Sun Aug 12, 2007  at  12:42 AM
I saw large crowds of zombies at my second wedding, too. Then I realized we were getting married outdoors and they were just normal citizens of Easton, Pennsylvania.
Posted by Cranky Media Guy  on  Sun Aug 12, 2007  at  03:48 AM
"The general support seems to be for the zombies. I differ here, my support is for the wedding party."
-- Christopher Cole


It depends on whose statement is more accurate. If the zombies were indeed roaming in large numbers through the middle of the wedding, then they did indeed show very poor taste and judgment.

On the other hand, if they were just passing along a pre-arranged marching route that happened to pass near the wedding, well, that's part of what you get from having weddings in public places: the public tends to be around.
Posted by Accipiter  on  Sun Aug 12, 2007  at  07:36 PM
Yep, Zombies for me too.

If one day I did somehow find myself going down that aisle (unlikely, thank goodness) I wouldn't want just an everyday wedding like everyone else has. I'd want a wedding that'd stand out, that'd be remembered, that people would talk about for years to come, that'd get posted on the internet. So, zombies for me, and vampires too, if any happen to be around.

I'd much prefer zombies to the 'releasing butterflies at the moment of the vows' sickliness, the 'totally inappropiate at a family wedding garter toss', and the bad bad baaaad songs the dj plays near the end when everyone is drunk.
Posted by Nona  on  Mon Aug 13, 2007  at  06:17 AM
I am a reporter and covered this event. Zombies did NOT crash the wedding. The reception was out in a public area, and the zombies walked by. Two got too close (I was with them) and immediately got bitched at; we apologized wholeheartedly, and took off. So the person who is griping about this is lying or misinformed. There were police all over, I asked them before and after whether there were any problems and they said absolutely not.
Posted by Brooke  on  Mon Aug 13, 2007  at  08:44 PM
why is George W. Bush safe from Zombies? Cuz they only eat Brains
Posted by Hairy Houdini  on  Tue Aug 14, 2007  at  08:33 PM
:)
Zombies crashed a wedding like a hurricane will hit San Diego in the coming weeks instead of Jamacia.
Posted by Joshua Blauvelt  on  Sun Aug 19, 2007  at  08:03 PM
I heard about this! In some ways it's absolutely hilarious and hopefully they just laughed it off...I mean, it sure makes a great story to tell for years! But I understand the anger too...especially if you're not a costume/zombie type of person. Some people just want 'all pretty' at their wedding and bloody zombies in the background, don't really quality! Crazy!
Posted by Santa Barbara Wedding Photographer - Willa Kveta  on  Wed Oct 28, 2009  at  10:47 PM
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