Captain Spaulding (Rob Zombie)
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- This article is on the character from Rob Zombie's films. For other uses, see Captain Spaulding (disambiguation)
Captain Spaulding is a fictional character created by Rob Zombie. He was portrayed by Sid Haig in House of 1000 Corpses and The Devil's Rejects.
[edit] Background
Captain Spaulding was born on April 13, 1918 in Ruggsville, Texas with the name Johnny Lee Johns. He spent a small part of his childhood in the Ruggsville County home for orphaned boys until being adopted by a black family. Johnny Lee would soon grow very close to his adoptive brother Charlie. Johnny Lee developed an interest in sideshow deformities and violent crime photography, foreshadowing his Captain Spaulding persona. He began his murder spree as Mr. Ding Dong a Bo-Bo using his clown character's name. Charlie would refer to him as Cutter after Johnny Lee stabbed a man to death, which he would take as his name.
Around the fall of 1947, Cutter met Mother Firefly, who at the time took the alias Eve Wilson. She already had two children of her own, Rufus and Tiny. Cutter lived with Eve Wilson, even raising their daughter Vera Ellen together. During the summer of 1965, Otis B. Driftwood, wandered into Ruggsville County. He and Otis quickly became close companions and rivals. The two would often fight for control of the family. Otis was asked to live with the family; whom Otis called The Fireflys and it was he who also nicknamed Cutter, Captain Spaulding.
At the beginning of 1968, Cutter and Charlie, began using another alias, "Wolf J. Flywheel", in the tradition of Cutter's new family's Groucho fascination. He began running an illegal moonshine business from Charlie's ranch. Cutter saw this as a way of raising money in order to build a facility which Cutter could use to share his two loves — serial murder and fried chicken — with the world.
Sometime during this period Charlie and Otis encountered each other at Charlie's ranch, now doubling as a cut price brothel. This encounter lead to hostility towards Charlie from Otis. What caused this is unclear but it is thought that Charlie was supplying local law enforcement officials with hooch and women behind Cutter's back and keeping all the proceeds.
In 1971, Captain Spaulding began his work building the now infamous road side attraction Captain Spaulding's Museum of Monsters and Madmen. Only five years after the beginning of its construction, the museum was attracting tourists from all over the country to experience the new Dr. Satan attraction which was based on tales recounted to Cutter by Otis and Vera Ellen, now known as Angel Baby or Baby, about a local madman who ran a cult that the two were briefly members of. The Firefly family would incorporate the legend of Dr. Satan into their grisly murder spree.
[edit] The Films
In House of 1000 Corpses Spaulding is the proprietor of "Capt. Spaulding's Museum of Monsters and Madmen". Spaulding's infamous Murder Ride is the catalyst which motivates the teenagers to investigate Dr. Satan, who was featured during the ride. This later leads to the teens' encounters with the Firefly Clan and their deaths.
Captain Spaulding's role is expanded in the second film, The Devil's Rejects as his role as the patriatch of the Firefly family is revealed. After the Firefly House is raided by Sheriff Wydell and the cops, Spaulding's daughter Vera-Ellen (now called Baby) and Otis reunite with Spaulding. He takes them to his pimp brother Charlie Altamont's for refuge, but Charlie is bullied by Wydell into giving them up.
The insane sheriff takes them back to their house where he proceeds to torture them. After stapling a picture of one of Otis's victims to his chest, Wydell takes out a picture of one of Baby's victims. Spaulding tries to take credit for his daughter's crime so she won't get hurt, but his effort is in vain as he can only watch as Wydell tortures her. Wydell takes Baby outside to kill her and lights the house on fire so Otis and Spaulding will die. It is only the last minute intervention of Tiny that saves them. As Spaulding and Baby are reunited, the two cry in each other's arms.
Later, the family drives down an open highway only to be faced by a wall of officers. Otis hands Spaulding the biggest gun (an act, according to Sid Haig and Bill Moseley, that symbolizes Otis finally handing Spaulding the reins to the family's leadership in their last moments) and they head off in one final blaze of glory before being shot to death by the police.
