Remembering GWAR's The Sexecutioner
Chuck Varga, Founding Member of Heavy-Metal Band GWAR and The Sexecutioner, Dies at 68
Anonymous
Chuck Varga, a founding member of the theatrical heavy-metal band GWAR and the performer behind its Sexecutioner character, has died at 68 after battling cancer. Bandmate Casey Orr announced that Varga died peacefully with his wife, Bambi, by his side. Varga helped shape GWAR’s music and visual identity, including its elaborate stage shows, and performed with the band across several periods beginning in the 1980s. GWAR had rallied fans to donate blood in his honor and later organized a fundraiser to help with his treatment and care.
Key Points
1
Varga met fellow Virginia Commonwealth University student Hunter Jackson, and they established The Slave Pit as a space for making student films; the creative community that formed there went on to give rise to GWAR.
2
During his time with GWAR, Varga took part in more than 1,000 performances across eight tours, contributed to a gold record and was part of a Grammy-nominated film.
3
GWAR was nominated for a Grammy in 1993 for its long-form music video “Phallus in Wonderland” and again in 1996 in the Best Metal Performance category for “S.F.W.”
4
GWAR’s June fundraiser was intended to cover not only treatment and care expenses, but also the cost of keeping Varga’s Brooklyn apartment while his wife took time away from work to care for him full-time.
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