With its rich history and ghost towns, Kentucky is a state that's inspired many things over the years, including popular songs, books, movies, and TV shows. One of the most recent inspirations derived from the small town of Cynthiana, where Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore are from. If you don't recognize those names, then chances are you are not also from this city and/or you are not a fan of the wildly popular AMC show, "The Walking Dead." These two Cynthiana natives are the creator and artist of this comic book series turned sci-fi TV show, and you can visit this small town in Kentucky that inspired it all.
Located north of Lexington, Cynthiana is a small town that's known for a few distinct things: Post It notes (which are made here) and ‘The Walking Dead.’ The creator and artist of the comic books and show hail from Cynthiana, the small town in Kentucky that inspired them to include it in the storyline.
Robert Kirkman, shown below, decided to use Cynthiana as the hometown for the Grimes family and Shane in the comic book series. While the TV show is based in a different town, it all started in the Bluegrass State.
Cynthiana is a lively little city with a historic downtown, as you can see in the photo of Pike Street below. This picture was taken late at night, so perhaps you can imagine a zombie or two strolling through the town.
Cynthiana has embraced its Hollywood ties and did so in a big way in 2016 with an official "The Walking Dead Day." It was during this event that the eye-catching mural below was revealed.
On this one day in August, the town transformed into the comic book town which it inspired. It was like walking around on the set of the TV show.
This was a one-off event, but perhaps the town will decide to do it again someday. For now, you can still visit Cynthiana, see the mural, and explore everything this city has to offer. Be sure to swing by the police station if you're a fan of the comic books!
Since then, Cynthiana has added and restored several murals throughout the city, so
"The Walking Dead" painting is now one of many. It remains as evidence and a tribute to its former residents who used their hometown as an inspiration for the comic-book-turned sci-fi-TV-series!
‘"The Walking Dead" is one of the most popular TV shows of the past decade and it definitely has a cult following around the world - and it all began in this small town in Kentucky, as Cynthiana natives were inspired to use their hometown as the setting for the very beginning of what would become a legend on the silver screen! Did you already know about this Hollywood/Kentucky connection? Are you a fan of the comic books and show? Share with us in the comments!
While not a ghost town per se, we think Cynthiana, Kentucky, has unofficial "ghost town in Kentucky" status given its connecting with "The Walking Dead!" What do you think?
The Walking Dead Mural Address: South Walnut Street, Cynthiana, KY, 41031.
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