Founding Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids guitarist Scott Mitchell Putesky, formerly known by his stage name Daisy Berkowitz, is battling stage-four colon cancer. Asked about how his treatment is going, Mitchell tells New Times:
"I don't know how the cancer happened but my diagnosis was this past August, and I learned I had symptoms as far back as 2006. Caught it just in time. It's stage 4 metastatic colon cancer. It's treatable, so it's beatable, and that is what's happening now. It's not killing me; I'm killing it. It's very expensive, but I got Medicaid -- that's strictly for treatment (chemotherapy every two weeks for six months) and drugs."
Putesky founded Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids with Brian Warner (AKA Marilyn Manson) in 1989 in Fort Lauderdale and was signed to Trent Reznor's label Nothing Records, releasing Portrait of an American Family in 1993. The guitarist left the band in 1996 after a falling-out. He has since spoken to Manson and done a little patching up, he says, though the old band won't be reuniting.
Putesky says he is keeping a positive attitude through this tough time, even growing a mustache that represents his "personal crusade." Putesky told Loudwire that it's like, "Cancer: Take my hair. Take my mustache. I challenge you. I still have my hair and mustache. So I'm winning."
You can show your support by attending his benefit show, this Saturday (November 16) at Churchill's Pub in Little Haiti, the spot where Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids played their first show.
The "Beat 4 Life" benefit concert was put together to raise money to help Putesky pay for his cancer treatment. The event will also offer artwork to be auctioned off to help support Putesky's fight. Putesky, currently living in Philly, where he is receiving aggressive life-saving treatment, will not be in attendance.
For more information on the "Beat 4 Life" benefit and updates on Scott's progress, visit his Facebook page here.
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