'Cheech Wizard'.
Vaughn Bodé attended Syracuse University, where his first work, 'The Man and the Cheech Wizard' was published (this title was later reprinted by the Print Mint in 1972). Moving to Manhattan in 1969, Bodé worked as an editor on the first two issues of Gothic Blimp Works. His expressive art appeared in dozens of magazines through the early days of the underground comix era: 'Lizard Zen', 'Cosmic Circus', 'Junkwaffle', 'Deadbone Erotica' and several collections of 'Cheech Wizard'.
'Cheech Wizard Meets His Maker'.
In 1975, Bodé unexpectedly died at age 33. The official cause was listed as suicide. However, interviewed by Sammy Harkham for Cultured Magazine (24 November 2025), Bodé's friend and colleague George DiCaprio revealed that he owned a letter by Bodé, meant for his young son Leonardo informing him how wonderful his life was going to be. DiCaprio said: "I keep the letter because people say he committed suicide. The letter to unborn Leonardo is not the kind of letter written by someone who has suicide on his mind. It’s an artifact that I cherish." In reality, Bodé died from auto-erotic asphyxiation.
Now, many years after his untimely death, Bodé is still a big influence on the hip-hop and graffiti scene that emerged in the 1980s. His son, Mark Bodé, also a comic artist, occasionally does the artwork on some of his father's unfinished scripts.
Vaughn Bodé was an influence on Ralph Bakshi, Dave Cooper, Kevin Eastman, Bernie Mireault and Jim Valentino.
'Vaughn Bodé By Himself', 1973.