Charles (Chuck) Perry Craig was born 27 May 1932 in Parkersburg, West Virginia. He was the elder son of Perry and Luella (nee Fogle) Craig of St. Marys, West Virginia.
He graduated from Wooster High School in 1950 and served in the United States Army from 1952-1954. There followed many years as a radio broadcaster with WWST Wooster, WHBC Canton, WJWCleveland, WCKY Cincinnati, WNCO Ashland, and WTAE Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and With the Radio Production Company of Hardman and Associates in Pittsburgh.
While in radio, Chuck wrote and recorded a series of programs entitled The Sands of Time highlighting notable people and events in history. This effort received recognition from Freedom's Foundation at Valley Forge, PA. Another of his broadcast authorships was produced under the title of Christmas Facts and Fables.
"The Teahouse With Jason Flake" was a morning comedy show that premiered on WRYT on Jan. 24, 1966. It was produced by Rege Cordic Show contributor Karl Hardman, hoping to capture some of the Cordic audience after he left KDKA for Los Angeles.
WRYT/WTAE described the show as an off-beat comedy-variety program. Jason was your every day type person who was "put on" by a series of oddball characters. It starred Marilyn Eastman and "Jason Flake".
Jason Flake was in fact played by Charles Craig, who would also make personal appearances in character.
While working with Hardman Associates in Pittsburgh, Chuck became a featured actor in the horror film classic Night of the Living Dead where he played four parts, He was the voice on the radio and the newscaster on T.V who warned us all " Kill the Brain and you kill the Ghoul." He had a role as a flesh eating Ghoul in the film and can be seen outside of the farmhouse grabbing and eating intestines of the victims. He then was one of the posse members walking across the field with his gun. Chuck's Ghoul character was also included on the Night of the Living Dead US one sheet theatrical movie poster.
As Chuck had been a real news reporter, he wrote his own lines for all the News copy that he read out in the movie.
In 1984 he began employment in Wooster as a veterans' service officer and continued as President of the Wayne County Veterans Service Commission. His service to local veterans and their families spanned 34 years. He was named Wayne County Veteran of the Year in 2003 and was inducted into the Ohio Veterans' Hall of Fame in 2007, an annual ceremony in Columbus, where Chuck frequently served as master-of-ceremonies.
Chuck was a volunteer leader with Killbuck District Buckeye Council of Boy Scouts of America. He was recognized as Scouter of the Year for Killbuck District in 1987. He holds the Fifth Year Pipestone.
He served with the Salvation Army Wooster Corps, Kiwanis Club, Wayne County Emergency Management Agency, Wooster Cemetery Board, and was President of Pee Wee Hollow Scout Camp.
He and his wife Judithe performed for many years together as a musical duet under the name Valley Voices. They were featured performers aboard the Valley Gem Sternwheeler tourist boat on the Ohio and Muskingum Rivers.
Chuck was a fan favourite at many Horror conventions due to his role in Night of the Living Dead, He attended the Living Dead Festival multiple times and always loved to recite his lines for the fans. During the Living Dead Weekend of October 2018, He joined his fellow cast and crew members on stage for the 50th anniversary screening of Night of the Living Dead, which took place at the Byham Theatre in downtown Pittsburgh, formerly the Fulton Theatre where the movie had its premier nearly 50 years to the day earlier.
Chuck passed away on Sunday, February 24, 2019.
Chuck is survived by his wife Judithe (nee Jacob) and a sister-in-law Karen Craig of Roswell, Georgia. Also surviving are his nephew Christopher Craig (Amanda) and their sons Andrew, Peter, and Joshua of Marietta, Georgia, and his niece Catherine (Jim) Takeuchi and their children Evelyn and Stephen of Woodstock, Georgia. He was preceded in death by his first wife Mary (Vance) in 2000 and by his brother Neil in 2008.
Researched and compiled by Daz Sargeant
Text and photos © Image Ten, Inc.
If you know of any family, friends or acquaintances that appeared as extras in the original Night of the Living Dead, please contact John Vullo at jmv3683@gmail.com
