Jim Siedow(1920-2003)
- Actor
Jim Siedow was a marvelously quirky and distinctive character actor who
achieved instant cult favorite status with his terrific portrayal of
the weary and irascible the Cook in Tobe Hooper's immortal and
outstanding horror classic "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre." Siedow was
born on June 12th, 1920 in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Siedow first began acting
in high school drama class. He moved to New York City at age 18 and
continued to perform in touring shows for the W.P.A. theater. He served
with the Army Air Corps during World War II. Following his tour of duty
Siedow then moved to Chicago, Illinois and did radio soap operas.
Siedow met his future wife Ruth while living in Chicago. They got
married in September, 1946 and eventually moved to Houston, Texas. The
couple had three children altogether. Siedow soon established himself
as an important and substantial part of the Houston stage scene. Siedow
created one of Houston's first original local community theaters and
directed Houston's first production of the acclaimed play "Who's Afraid
of Virginia Wolf?". Other plays Siedow directed include "Visit To a
Small Planet," "Critic's Choice," and "Murder Among Friends." Siedow
also acted in stage productions of such plays as "Cat on a Hot Tin
Roof" and "The Lion in the Winter." Siedow made his film debut as a
rock star's estranged father in the obscure indie drama "The
Windsplitter." But it was Siedow's dead solid perfect performance as
the Cook in "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" that really put him on the
cinematic map. Alas, Siedow's film roles after "The Texas Chainsaw
Massacre" were few and far in between. However, Siedow was excellent as
a bitter mad bomber in the superior made-for-TV suspense thriller "Red
Alert" and had a funny bit as a cantankerous shotgun-toting hillbilly
in the hilariously raucous car chase romp "Hotwire." Siedow was once
again spot-on as Drayton Sawyer (a.k.a. the Cook) in the worthy and
unjustly maligned sequel "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2." Siedow was
prominently featured as an interview subject in the enjoyable and
informative documentary "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: A Family
Portrait." Jim Siedow died at age 83 from emphysema complications on
November 20th, 2003.
