Pittsburgh might be the country's "Most Livable City," but this weekend at the ExpoMart in Monroeville, the first annual "It's Alive!" Zombie Fest aims to demonstrate why our city is also a great place to live if you're Undead.

Zombie Fest will include readings and panels by horror authors and horror movie and video screenings, as well as displays of zombie-themed merchandise and horror-themed work by local and national artists. Organizers expect around 3,000 attendees.

Several cast members from Pittsburgh filmmaker George Romero's 1968 film "Night of the Living Dead" and its sequels will appear, and Zombie Festers can attend Saturday night's Zombie Ball featuring music from local bands, including Deathmobile, the Motorpsychos and the Forbidden 5. A silent auction at the Ball will benefit the Komen for the Cure breast cancer research fund.

Capping off the two-day event will be Sunday morning's Zombie Walk, which organizers hope will break the Guinness World Record for most zombies in one place set at last year's Zombie Walk, also at the Monroeville Mall.

Participants should bring canned goods for donation to the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank. Last year's Walk collected 1,528 pounds of food, and organizers are hoping to collect a ton this year.

Zombie Fest is an outgrowth of WBGN's "The 'It's Alive!' Show," which takes its inspiration from "Chiller Theater," the classic Pittsburgh television show that ran from 1963-1983, showing horror films hosted by local legend Chilly Bill Cardille.

Mark Menold, the creator of both "The 'It's Alive!' Show" and Zombie Fest, said that he wanted the event to be different from typical horror conventions. "Most of them are just a lot of people sitting at tables. We wanted there to be lots to do, for both the people attending and the people performing."

Mr. Menold pointed out that during the Zombie Ball, speakers and performers can mingle with attendees rather than just signing autographs. Several of the event displays will be interactive, like "Rising," a live action "zombie-themed survival game" where Zombie Festers can try their luck against the undead.

Mr. Menold said he may be the idea man behind the event, but it's fans of his weekly show who have made Zombie Fest happen. "I just wanted to have a party before this year's Zombie Walk," he explained. "But then the fan club for 'It's Alive!' just picked up my idea and ran with it. They formed a limited liability company; they recruited a lot of the talent. They're doing it all."

Sandy Stuhlfire, who along with Russell Davison and Rich Delzotto, is one of Zombie Fest's main organizers, said "The 'It's Alive!' Show" fan club members call themselves the "Lifeless," "because we're home watching the show on Saturdays at 10 p.m., when everyone's supposed to be out."

Ms. Stuhlfire conceded that these days, though, she and the other Zombie Fest organizers don't have much time to watch television. Along with overseeing the event itself, the fan club volunteers are handling the Zombie Fest publicity and Web site, as well -- all for no pay. "We're all quite insane," she said, adding, "seriously, we just really enjoy the show, and we're honored that Mark lets us help out."

Ms. Stuhlfire and the "It's Alive!" fan club aren't alone in having a fondness for zombies. Writer and Seton Hill University professor of popular fiction Michael Arnzen will be reading from what he called his "short-short horror stories" at Zombie Fest, and he said he thinks many people identify with the undead.

"We live in a rational world most of the time, so sometimes we long for a chance to explore chaos," he said. And while people might not hunger for brains as zombies do, "we can see the appeal of indulging a few primitive hungers of our own."

Highland Park native Kyra Schon, who appeared in "Night of the Living Dead" as zombie girl Karen Cooper and will appear at Zombie Fest, said her experience as an onscreen zombie -- or ghoul, as they were referred to in the film -- was a highlight of her life.

Ms. Schon said that despite the scary costumes worn by some attendees, no one should be afraid to join in the fun at Zombie Fest. "I go to lots of these conventions, and these are the nicest people you'll ever find. They're just really excited about horror movies."