Sid Haig

Sid Haig

Sid Haig, 2007
Born Sidney Eddy Mosesian
(1939-07-14) July 14, 1939
Fresno, California, U.S.
Occupation Actor
Years active 1960–present
Spouse(s) Susan L. Oberg (m. 2007)
Website http://www.sidhaig.com

Sid Haig (born July 14, 1939)[1] is an American actor. His roles have included acting in Jack Hill's blaxploitation films of the 1970s as well as his role as Captain Spaulding in Rob Zombie's horror films House of 1000 Corpses and The Devil's Rejects. He had a leading role in the television series Jason of Star Command, as the villain Dragos. He has appeared in many television programs including Batman, Star Trek, Mission: Impossible, Gunsmoke, The Rockford Files, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, Get Smart, Fantasy Island, Sledge Hammer!, The A-Team, The Fall Guy and MacGyver.[2]

Early life

Haig was born Sidney Eddy Mosesian[3] in Fresno, California, and was raised in an Armenian community.[4] His father, Haig Mosesian, was an electrician.[5] Haig's career began somewhat by accident. As a young man, his rapid growth interfered with his motor coordination, prompting him to take dancing lessons.[6] At the age of seven years, he was a paid dancer in a children’s Christmas show, and later joined a vaudeville revival show.[7]

Haig also displayed musical talent particularly for the drums, prompting his parents to buy him a drum set, on which he mastered a wide range of music styles, including swing, country, jazz, blues and rock and roll. He found it easy to earn money with his music, and signed a recording contract one year out of high school. Still a teenager, Haig went on to record the single "Full House" with the T-Birds in 1958, which shot to #4 on the charts.[6][8][9]

The Pasadena Playhouse

When Haig was in high school, the head of the drama department was Alice Merrill, who encouraged him to pursue an acting career.[6] Merrill had been a Broadway actress who maintained her contacts in the business. During his senior year, a play was produced in which Merrill double cast the show, to have one of her Hollywood friends assess the actors in order to select the final cast.

The Hollywood contact who saw Haig perform was Dennis Morgan, a big musical comedy star from the 1940s, who chose Haig for a prominent role in the play. Two weeks later, he returned to see the show and advised Haig to continue his education in the San Fernando Valley and consider acting as a career. Two years later, Haig enrolled in the Pasadena Playhouse,[7] the school that trained such noted actors as Robert Preston, Gene Hackman and Dustin Hoffman. He later moved to Hollywood with longtime friend and Pasadena Playhouse roommate Stuart Margolin.[7]

Acting career

Haig's first acting job was in Jack Hill's student film at UCLA titled The Host, which launched Haig's more-than-four decade acting career in over fifty films and 350 television episodes.[6] He became a staple in Hill's films, such as Spider Baby, Coffy and Foxy Brown.

Haig was a regular player for producer-director Roger Corman. He appeared in George Lucas' THX 1138 and the 1971 James Bond film Diamonds Are Forever. His television credits include appearances in such programs as Batman, Gunsmoke, Get Smart, Mission: Impossible (at least eight appearances in eight different roles as a villain), Charlie's Angels, Jason of Star Command, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, The Dukes of Hazzard, Automan, MacGyver and The A-Team (in which he played a jailed motorcycle gang leader) and Emergency! (again as a motorcycle gang leader).

Sid Haig with his wife, Susan L. Oberg, at the 2007 Scream Awards

Haig retired in 1992, feeling typecast: "I just didn't want to play stupid heavies anymore. They just kept giving me the same parts but just putting different clothes on me. It was stupid, and I resented it, and I wouldn't have anything to do with it".[6] Haig did not work in acting for five years, instead training and becoming a certified Hypnotherapist.[6]

During this time, he was offered the role of Marsellus Wallace (later to be played by Ving Rhames) in Pulp Fiction, Quentin Tarantino's second film.[10] At the time, Haig was concerned that low budget television had been ruining his career and, at seeing the shooting script and the short number of days dedicated for each locale, he passed on the project. He has said that he always regretted this decision.[11] Then, in 1997, Tarantino wrote the part of the judge in Jackie Brown specifically for Haig.[6]

In 2003, Haig starred in Rob Zombie's debut film House of 1000 Corpses, as Captain Spaulding. The role revived Haig's acting career, earning him a "Best Supporting Actor" award in the thirteenth Annual Fangoria Chainsaw Awards, and induction into the Horror Hall of Fame. His image as Captain Spaulding has become iconic in today's horror genre. Haig reprised his role as Spaulding in Zombie’s sequel to House of 1000 Corpses, entitled The Devil's Rejects.

For this film, he received the award for "Best Actor" in the 15th Annual Fangoria Chainsaw Awards, as well as sharing the award for "Most Vile Villain" at the First Annual Spike TV Scream Awards with Leslie Easterbrook, Sheri Moon and Bill Moseley as The Firefly Family.[12] He was also nominated as "Best Butcher" in the Fuse/Fangoria Chainsaw Awards, but lost to Tobin Bell's Jigsaw from Saw II.[13]

Recently, Haig reunited with Rob Zombie once again, albeit briefly, in the director's Halloween remake, in the role of cemetery caretaker Chester Chesterfield.[14] Sid Haig also reprised the role of Captain Spaulding in Rob Zombie's animated film The Haunted World of El Superbeasto.[15] Haig most recently starred in the independent horror film Brotherhood of Blood, which was shot in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, he also appeared in The Lords of Salem (reuniting him with Rob Zombie), Hatchet 3 and Devil in My Ride.[16]

Haig starred in the documentary film Vampira: The Movie, which based on Maila Nurmi's cult character Vampira.[17]

Selected filmography

Year Film Role Director Notes
1960 The Host The Fugitive Jack Hill Short film
1962 The Firebrand Diego Maury Dexter
1965 Beach Ball Drummer for Righteous Brother Lennie Weinrib
1966 Blood Bath Abdul the Arab Jack Hill, Stephanie Rothman
1967 It's a Bikini World Daddy Stephanie Rothman
Point Blank First Penthouse Lobby Guard John Boorman
1968 Spider Baby Ralph Jack Hill
The Hell with Heroes Crespin Joseph Sargent
1969 Pit Stop Hawk Sidney Jack Hill
Che! Antonio Richard Fleischer
1970 C.C. and Company Crow Seymour Robbie
1971 THX 1138 NCH George Lucas
The Big Doll House Harry Jack Hill
Diamonds Are Forever Slumber Inc. Attendant Guy Hamilton
1972 The Big Bird Cage Django Jack Hill
1973 The No Mercy Man Pill Box Daniel Vance
Black Mama, White Mama Ruben Jack Hill
Emperor of the North Pole Grease Tail Robert Aldrich
Coffy Omar Jack Hill
Beyond Atlantis East Eddie Eddie Romero
The Don Is Dead The Arab Richard Fleischer
1974 Busting Rizzo's Bouncer Peter Hyams
Foxy Brown Hays Jack Hill
Savage Sisters Malavael Eddie Romero
1975 Who Is the Black Dahlia? Tattoo Artist Joseph Pevney TV film
1976 Swashbuckler Bald Pirate James Goldstone
The Return of the World's Greatest Detective Vince Cooley Dean Hargrove TV film
1978 Evening in Byzantium Asied Jerry London
1979 Death Car on the Freeway Maurie Hal Needham
1980 Loose Shoes Lone Stranger Ira Miller
1981 Underground Aces Faoud Robert Butler
Chu Chu and the Philly Flash Vince David Lowell Rich
Galaxy of Terror Quuhod Bruce D. Clark
1982 The Aftermath Cutter Steve Barkett
40 Days of Musa Dagh Turkish general Sarky Mouradian
1986 Amazing Stories Season 1: Episode 10 – "Remote Control Man" Thug Bob Clark TV Film
1987 Commando Squad Iggy Fred Olen Ray
1988 Warlords The Warlord
Goddess of Love Hephaestus Jim Drake TV film
1989 Wizards of the Lost Kingdom 2 Donar Charles B. Griffith
1990 The Forbidden Dance Joa Greydon Clark
Genuine Risk Curly Kurt Voss
1992 Boris and Natasha Colonel Gorda Charles Martin Smith
1997 Jackie Brown Judge Quentin Tarantino
2003 House of 1000 Corpses Captain Spaulding Rob Zombie
2004 Kill Bill: Volume 2 Jay Quentin Tarantino
2005 The Devil's Rejects Captain Spaulding/Cutter Rob Zombie
House of the Dead 2 Professor Curien Michael Hurst
2006 Night of the Living Dead 3D Gerald Tovar, Jr. Jeff Broadstreet
Little Big Top Seymour Ward Roberts
A Dead Calling George Michael Feifer
2007 Dead Man's Hand Roy 'The Word' Donahue Charles Band
Halloween Chester Chesterfield Rob Zombie
Brotherhood of Blood Pashek Michael Roesch, Peter Scheerer
2009 Thirsty Radio Evangelist Andrew Kasch Short film, Voice-only
The Haunted World of El Superbeasto Captain Spaulding Rob Zombie Voice-only
Dark Moon Rising Crazy Louis Dana Mennie
2010 The Black Box Radio Evangelist Jonathan Lewis, David Sherbrook Voice-only
2011 Creature Chopper Fred M. Andrews
The Infliction Dr. Gardner Matthan Harris Not yet released
Razor Sam James P. Lay
Mimesis: Night of the Living Dead Alfonso Betz Douglas Schulze
The Sacred The Stranger Brett Donowho
Zombex The Commander Jesse Dayton
Go Straight to Hell Doctor Phillips Edward G. Norris Pre-production
2012 The Lords of Salem Dean Magnus Rob Zombie
2013 Hatchet 3 Abbott McMullen BJ McDonnell
Devil in My Ride Iggy Gary Michael Schultz
2015 Bone Tomahawk Buddy S. Craig Zahler

References

  1. ↑ Carle, Chris (2005-07-17). "Comic-Con 2005: IGN Interviews Sid Haig". IGN. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  2. ↑ "Sid Haig Interview". ComicMonsters.com. 2005-12-05. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  3. ↑ According to the State of California. California Birth Index, 1905-1995. Center for Health Statistics, California Department of Health Services, Sacramento, California. At Ancestry.com
  4. ↑ Murray, Jodi (2004-05-04). "Fresno: Local devil was inspired by zoo's Angel Fresno's Sid Haig". Armenian Diaspora. Archived from the original on 2008-02-13. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  5. ↑ "Former Fresnan Plays The Heavy Bee". The Fresno Bee. 1969-08-01.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Anderson, Philip. "KAOS2000 Magazine interview with Sid Haig". KAOS2000 Magazine. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  7. 1 2 3 Marcotte, John (2004-07-22). "Interview: Sid Haig". BadMouth. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  8. ↑ "Interview with Sid Haig". Milenko500. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  9. ↑ "At the HorrorHound Film Fest: the cult favorite, Sid Haig". The Herald Bulletin. 2007-08-04. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  10. ↑ A Conversation with Sid Haig
  11. ↑ "Sid Haig Interview". Retrieved 2008-07-20.
  12. ↑ "Spike TV Announces SCREAM AWARDS 2006 Winners!!!". PR Newswire. 2006-10-08. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  13. ↑ "1ST fuse FANGO CHAINSAW AWARDS nominees!". Fangoria. Archived from the original on 2008-02-22. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  14. ↑ Barton, Steve (2007-07-26). "(Haig, Sid) Halloween: Then and Now". DreadCentral. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  15. ↑ Barton, Steve (2008-03-05). "Sid Joins El Superbeasto!". DreadCentral. Retrieved 2008-03-05.
  16. ↑ Miska, Brad (2010-04-30). "New Orleans Creature Feature Introduces 'Lockjaw'". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved 2010-04-30.
  17. ↑ "Today (12/11/10) is Vampira's Birthday; Watch an Exclusive Music Video Premiere". Retrieved 2010-12-11.
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