Above: Waxwork's cover for the vinyl release of the House Of 1,000 Corpses, with art by Robert Sammelin. Sid Haig is depicted front and center, and is the first voice heard on the record.
For millions of people, Captain Spaulding personified the riotous hooligan they saw in themselves, an old-fashioned funnyman who also wasn’t afraid to give you the finger or headbutt your aunt in her dumbass face. But for many others, Sid Haig was a shining example of how you could pave your own road and be a solid guy doing it. Sid Haig couldn't afford to be a diva; instead, he was a hard-working creative who had to bust his ass honing his craft. To every person out there being told they’re too tall, chubby, funny-looking or uncouth for show business, Haig is a reminder that those gatekeepers can go fuck themselves.
With Sid Haig’s death, we not only lost one of the world's great character actors, but we also said goodbye to some crazed, hard-working part of ourselves. At the same time, as we remember Sid's life, we can take solace in how a guy like him can entertain millions and leave such an incredible legacy behind -- especially when that legacy involves a fried-chicken-eating skull-crushing harlequin from Hell, Texas. Today, look in the mirror, and wave to the clown.