Death Row Brides

I think we’ve all heard of these. Some guy murders a bunch of people, perhaps in a particularly newsworthy way. All of a sudden, he’s getting tons of fan letters from the opposite sex.  In fact, there’s actually a technical term for this sort of thing, “hybristophilia.”

Here’s a list of the top women who actually married their “bad boys.” I’m listing them in rough order of interestingness/renown. Let’s see what we’ve got.

Arthur Shawcross / Clara Neal

Him:  Raped & killed 2 pre-teens; got out of prison 12 years later and then killed 12 sex workers

Her:  ???

Them:  She was 66; he was 52

How they met:  Had a long-running affair before his conviction; he used her car to prowl for victims & gave her jewelry he took from their bodies (both of which helped the cops nail him)

Marriage:  After Shawcross’s previous wife passed away

Ever after:  He died in prison; she ???

Phil Spector / Rachelle Short  *

Him:  Genius, but highly unstable record producer who was convicted of shooting an actress in his home

Her:  Former waitress at Jerry's Famous Deli, Playboy model, aspiring singer/songwriter

Them:  He was 69; she was 26

How they met:  At Hollywood restaurant Dan Tana’s, where they were introduced by a mutual acquaintance 

Marriage:  When he was out on bail

Ever after:  

• He divorced her after 10 years, citing “irreconcilable differences” (possibly meaning she spent all his money); died in prison
• She cut a record, got a private investigator license & continued to live in his palatial home until just this year

Jack Henry Abbott / Naomi Zack

Him:  In prison for forgery, bank robbery & manslaughter, he was freed by some NYC liberal intellectuals in quite the cause celebre (they thought he had some writing talent); 6 months later he stabbed a waiter in a Manhattan cafe

Her:  Philosophy instructor at the Univ. of Albany, with a PhD from Columbia

How they met:  While Abbot was in prison the second time; wrote a book together

Marriage:  1988-???

Ever after:  He committed suicide in jail; she went on to become a full professor, write 13 books & act as editor for 5 more, and is currently at CUNY

James Earl Ray / Anna Sandhu  *

Him:  Avowed racist & 2-bit crook who murdered Martin Luther King Jr., Nobel Peace Prize winner & father of the Civil Rights movement

Her:  Divorcee, formerly married to an Indian man (her family disowned her when she married him)

Them:  Shared an interest in art

How they met:  At his trial, where she was a sketch artist

Marriage: In the visiting gallery at Tennessee's notorious Brushy Mountain state prison; divorced after 10 years, she was upset that she wouldn’t be making any money off of Ray’s soon-to-be-published book

Ever after:  He died in prison; she went into hiding, suffered depression, married another prisoner, was arrested for animal cruelty (she was a crazy “dog lady”), and now makes money off her paintings

Charles “Tex” Watson / Kristin Joan Svege  *

Him:  On of Charlie’s kids (see below), accounting for most of the “dirty work”

Her:  20-year-old born-again Christian

How they met:  After Tex became a born-again Christian; she wrote him

Marriage:  In prison; honeymooned in an on-site trailer

Ever after:  Divorced after 24 years & 4 kids; he’s still in the slammer

Erik Menendez / Tammi Saccoman

Him:  With his brother (see below), shot-gunned their wealthy parents from behind while they were sitting on the family room couch; went on a $700K spending spree before the police put two and two together

Her:  Widow (her husband committed suicide), with infant daughter

Them:  She was 37; he was 28

How they met:  She wrote him after watching the trial on TV

Marriage:  Their wedding cake was a vending machine Twinkie; 23 years and going strong

Ever after:  He’s still in the pokey; she appeared on TV & wrote a book

Lyle Menendez / Anna Eriksson, Rebecca Sneed

Him:  See Erik, above

Her:  Divorcee, former model (including in Playboy) and salon receptionist

How they met:  She watched the trial on television and felt sorry for Lyle, who seemed to be getting less attention than Erik

Marriage:  Done over the phone

Ever after:  She divorced him after 5 years, when he started writing other women 

Her:  Magazine editor

How they met:  She wrote him while he was married to Anna 

Marriage:  In the visiting area of the Mule Creek State Prison; still hitched as far as I can tell

Ever after:  She’s now a defense attorney; lived with Tammi Saccoman for awhile

Angelo Buono / Christine Kizuka

Him:  Half of the Hillside Strangler – tortured, raped & killed 10+ women (one who was 12 years old), dumping their naked bodies over the sides of roads in the hills of LA

Her:  Single mother of 3 & supervisor at California Employment Development Department

How they met:  She met him while visiting her ex in jail

Marriage:  14 years, ending with Buono’s death

Ever after:  He died of a massive heart attack in jail; she faded into obscurity

Kenneth Bianchi / Shirlee Joyce Book

Him:  The other half of the Hillside Strangler, also accounted for 2 more deaths on his own

Her:  From Louisiana, originally corresponded with Ted Bundy

How they met:  She wrote him

Marriage:  Met in-person for the first time only the day before

Ever after:  He is still alive (and in prison) at age 74; she purportedly divorced him after he started corresponding with other murder groupies, passing away just this year

Note:  Veronica Compton, shown below, attempted to do a copycat killing while Bianchi was in jail, to throw the police off his tail 

Richard Ramirez / Doreen Lioy  *

Him:  The Night Stalker, a Satanist who raped and killed 15+ girls and women, from ages 8 to 79

Her:  Editor at Tiger Beat magazine, devout Catholic & self-described virgin

How they met:  She sent him a birthday card, then started writing and eventually visiting him regularly

Marriage:  13 years; she left him after DNA evidence tied him to the rape and killing of a 9-year-old (she never did file for divorce)

Ever after:  He died in jail at age 53 of cancer; she was disowned by her family & slipped into obscurity

Note:  One of Ramirez’s jurors, Cindy Haden, also fell in love with him

 

Ted Bundy / Carole Ann Boone  *

Him:  Raped and killed 36+ girls and young women (two only 12 years old) in 7 different states; engaged in necrophilia

Her:  Twice divorced with 1 kid

How they met:  Before incarceration – worked together at Washington State Department of Emergency Services

Marriage:  

• In Florida courtroom where Ted was on trial (state law allowed anyone recognized as counsel to get married before a judge)
• She divorced him after 7 years when he started confessing to dump sites (or, as they call it, “bones for time”) 

Ever after:  Ted was fried; Carole, who may have changed her name, shied away from the media and was rumored to have married again and eventually to have passed away

Children:  1 girl

Charles Manson / Afton “Star” Burton  *

Him:  Manipulated a cult of drug-crazed hippies to slaughter 7 people in an attempt to start a race war

Her:  Drop-dead ringer for former Manson Family member Susan Atkins (names are oddly alike too, aren't they?)

How they met:  She was attracted by his environmental philosophy and wrote him a letter when she was 17

Them:  He was 80, she was 26

Marriage:  Got a marriage license, but never actually got hitched

Ever after:  He died in prison at age 89; she seems to have disappeared from the limelight

 

Afton / Susan

* -  author read the book / watched the doc 

Sports Anthems – Hidden, Interesting & Fun Facts

I love sports. I love music. So, arguably “stadium rock,” or “anthem rock,” or “sports rock,” or whatever you want to call it should be my favorite genre.

Well, it’s not. But it is a pretty cool cultural phenomenon.

Now, what’s interesting about it is that these songs are just as likely to come from Florian Senfter or Steam as from the Stones or Queen. In fact, there’s lots of interesting things about these songs.

I’m including some of those factoids, sample lyrics (esp. those of the inane, inappropriate, or incomprehensible variety), and a funny / unusual / bizzare result from Google Images. All in reverse order of popularity.

Enjoy!

20.  Let's Get It Started / Black-Eyed Peas, 2003

• Originally titled “Let’s Get Retarded”
• “Bob your head like me, Apl.de" was originally "Bob your head like epilepsy”
• Won a Grammy for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
• Was in Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle, American Dad & a Walmart commercial

Party, party
Party, party
Party, party
Party, party
Party, party (up in here)

19.  Whoomp! (There It Is) / Tag Team, 1993

• Tag Team was 2 guys, one who was working at a strip club at the time
• He spent $25K to press 800 records
• Rejected by a number of record companies
• Came out a month after “Whoot, There It Is” (which was really just a coincidence)
• Lyrics have a Disney theme
• Currently in a Geico commercial, with the ice-cream-oriented chorus of “Scoop, there it is!”

WHOOMP, there it went (Tag Team: Go MICKEY)
WHOOMP, there it went (Tag Team: Get busy)
WHOOMP, there it went (Tag Team: Come on, Come on)
WHOOMP, there it went (Tag Team: YEEEAAAAAHHHH)
WHOOMP, there it went (Tag Team: Go Donald)
WHOOMP, there it went (Tag Team: Get Busy)
WHOOMP, there it went (Tag Team: Lemme INNNNN)
WHOOMP, there it went (Tag Team: YEEEAAAAAHHHH)

18.  Hip Hop Hooray / Naughty by Nature, 1992

• Includes samples from James Brown, the Isley Brothers, Cannonball Adderley & Peter Gabriel
• Spike Lee directed the music video
• In it appear Queen Latifah, Eazy-E, Kris Kross, Tupac Shakur & Run–D.M.C
• Was Ken Griffey Jr,’s walk-up song & was played after homers in Yankee Stadium

Don't lamp with a freestyle phantom
Ain't tryin' to be handsome
Shrinkin' what you're thinkin', 'cause I'm vampin'

17.  Jump Around / House of Pain, 1989

• Rejected by Cypress Hill, Ice Cube & B-Real
• The source of that weird squeal has never been completely identified & has been linked to a saxophone, bagpipes, a horn, a clarinet & Prince’s singing
• The video was recorded during New York City’s St. Patrick’s Day parade
• The group is indeed made of white rappers, primarily with an Irish-American background (one of the members is named Danny Boy)

I never eat a pig, 'cause a pig is a cop
Or better yet a Terminator, like Arnold Schwarzanegger

16.  Song 2 / Blur, 1997

• Was originally a much-slower acoustic with the “woo-hoo” chorus whistled
• Was redone as a parody of Grunge
• 2nd song on their 5th album
• Northrup Grumman wanted to use it advertise their next generation of stealth fighters, but the band said no
• Has been covered by Vampire Weekend, My Chemical Romance, Imagine Dragons & Avril Lavigne
• Has been featured in Starship Troopers, Thunderbirds, the Simpsons, South Park, Parks & Recreation, video games & commercials

Woo-hoo
Woo-hoo
Woo-hoo
Woo-hoo

One of those video games

15.  The Power / Snap!, 1990

• Snap! was mostly 2 German producers
• They tried to get Chaka Khan for the vocals (& got her backup instead)
• They found the rapper on an American Army base
• The Russian at the beginning means “The American company Transceptor Technologies has started production of the Personal Companion computer”
• Reached #1 in the UK, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, Greece & Zimbabwe
• Has been in Glee, Family Guy, Portlandia, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Hudson Hawk, Bruce the Almighty, Coyote Ugly & Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie

It's getting, it's getting, it's getting kinda hectic
It's getting, it's getting, it's getting kinda hectic
It's getting, it's getting, it's getting kinda hectic
It's getting, it's getting, it's getting kinda hectic

14.  Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now) / C+C Music Factory, 

• Was originally offered to Trilogy, who rejected it
• From an album of the same name
• Has been featured in films such as Space Jam, Sister Act,  Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa & Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
• Has been featured in TV shows like The Simpsons, American Dad, King of Queens & The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
• Has been featured in commercials for Applebee’s, Target & Pringles

It's your world and I'm just a squirrel
Tryin' to get a nut to move your butt

13.  Get Ready for This / 2 Unlimited, 1991

• 2 Unlimited is a 2-person Dutch group
• The 2 were working as a cook in an airport restaurant and a traffic warden at the time
• Was originally an instrumental titled “Orchestral Mix”
• Has appeared on compilations Radio Disney: Kid Jams, New York Yankees Greatest Hits Vol. 2, Chicago Bulls Greatest Hits Vol. 1 & Party Time Vol. 3
• Has appeared in 6 episodes of The Simpsons

Feelin' kinda better 
Put on your sweater

It’s the last one

12.  Who Let the Dogs Out / Baha Men, 2000

• The group is from Bahama
• When they first heard the song, one of the band members said, “No way in hell we're recording that song”
• The writer claimed the song had a feminist message
• Became popular after its appearance in Rugrats in Paris: The Movie
• Won a Grammy for Best Dance Recording
• Introduced to stadiums by Mississippi State, whose mascot is the Bulldogs
• Has made multiple worst or most annoying songs lists

Say, a doggy is nuttin' if he don' have a bone
All doggy, hold ya' bone, all doggy, hold it
A doggy is nuttin' if he don' have a bone
All doggy, hold ya' bone, all doggy, hold it

11.  Cha Cha Slide / DJ Casper, 2000 

• Written for step aerobics 
• Also popular at school dances, prom nights, birthday parties, ice-skating and roller rinks, bar mitzvahs, barbecues, quinceaneras & weddings
• Casper originally sold copies out of the trunk of his car
• Appeared in a McDonald’s commercial
• Google it, click on the sparkly microphone, then keep clicking (just do it!)

Everybody clap your hands
Clap, clap, clap, clap your hands
Clap, clap, clap, clap your hands

10.  Kernkraft 400 / Zombie Nation, 1998

• Title means “nuclear energy 400”
• First song on album Leichenschmaus (“funeral feast”)
• First played at arena football games
• Fans bouncing to the song have threatened structural damage to several stadiums
• The “group” is basically DJ & producer Florian Senfter

Zombie
Zombie
Zombie
Zombie
Zombie
Zombie
Zombie
Zombie
Zombie
Zombie
Zombie
Zombie
Zombie
Zombie
Zombie

From the video

9.  Another One Bites the Dust / Queen, 1980

• Written by bassist John Deacon
• Bass line was inspired by Chic’s “Good Times”
• Deacon played all the instruments except drums
• Topped the pop & disco charts
• Christian evangelists claimed that the chorus, played backwards, endorsed marijuana use
• Used to teach the right number of beats for chest compression
• Parodied by Weird Al Yankovich as “Another One Rides the Bus”

Another one bites the dust ow
Another one bites the dust he he
Another one bites the dust haaaa

8.  Sweet Caroline / Neil Diamond, 1969

• Inspired by Caroline Kennedy, who was 11 when it was released
• Was really for Diamond’s wife Marsha, but he needed a name with 3 syllables 
• Introduced to stadiums by the Boston Red Sox, who played it for a baby girl named Caroline
• Very popular with soccer teams in the UK
• Bowing to COVID-19, Diamond changed the lyrics to "Hands ... washing hands ... don't touch me ... I won't touch you”

One, touching one
Reaching out, touching me, touching you

7.  Seven Nation Army / White Stripes, 2003

• Jack White debuted it to a record executive who told him he “could do better”
• Originally intended as a Bond theme
• Title came from White’s childhood mishearing of “Salvation Army”
• According to White, “The song's about gossip. It's about me, Meg, and the people we're dating.”
• Does not have a chorus
• Grammy for best rock song

I'm going to Wichita
Far from this opera forevermore
I'm gonna work the straw
Make the sweat drip out of every pore

6.  Blitzkrieg Bop / The Ramones, 1976

• Music was inspired by the Bay City Rollers’ “Saturday Night”
• Lyrics were inspired by the Rollings Stones’ “Walking the Dog”
• Original title was “Animal Hop”
• Is about some kids going to a rock concert
• Recorded at Radio City Music Hall
• Opening track on their debut album
• Has appeared in films, video games & commercials (including Taco Bell)

Hey ho, let's go! Hey ho, let's go!
Hey ho, let's go! Hey ho, let's go!

5.  YMCA / The Village People, 1978

• Reached #1 in 15 countries (but not alas the US)
• The arm movements originated on American Band Stand
• Was once used as the wake-up call on the Space Shuttle
• Was the dance number when  over 44,000 people danced to it to set a Guinness World Record 
• The band settled out of court with the actual YMCA for trademark infringement
• Is used by the grounds crew at Yankee Stadium when they groom the field

You can get yourself clean, you can have a good meal
You can do what ever you feel

4.  Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye / Steam, 1969

• “Na na na na hey hey” were originally written as placeholder lyrics
• Written in 1961, but not released until 8 years later
• Originally intended as a B side
• Introduced as a sports anthem by the White Sox organist after hearing fans sing it spontaneously in the stands
• Featured in Remember the Titans, where it is sung – reverently – at a funeral
• Has been sung by members of Congress, in Congress

Hey hey, goodbye
Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey, goodbye
Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey, goodbyeNa na na na, na na na na, hey hey, goodbye

Hey hey, goodbye
Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey, goodbye
Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey, goodbye
Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey, goodbye

Hey hey, goodbye
Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey, goodbye
Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey, goodbye
Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey, goodbye

3.  We Are the Champions / Queen, 1977

• Inspired by crowd singing "You’ll Never Walk Alone" after concert in Stafford
• Was the B side to “We Will Rock You”
• Voted the world's favorite song in a 2005 poll
• In 2011, a team of scientific researchers concluded that the song was the catchiest in the history of popular music
• Official theme song for the 1994 World Cup

And bad mistakes
I've made a few …
I've taken my bows
And my curtain calls

[What is this, “I Did It My Way”?]

2.  Rock n Roll Part 2 / Gary Glitter, 1972

• Debut single on debut album
• Gary Glitter’s real name was Paul Francis Gadd
• He was convicted of child sex offenses (pornography in England & abuse in Vietnam)
• Song is generally discouraged from being played these days
• Has appeared in Meet the Fockers, The Simpsons, Joker & The Office
• There is a Part 1

Rock'n Roll Rock, Rock'n Roll, Rock'n Roll Rock, Rock'n Roll
Rock'n Roll Rock, Rock'n Roll, Rock'n Roll Rock, Rock'n Roll

1.  We Will Rock You / Queen, 1977

• Also inspired by the Stafford concert
• There is a fast version
• Most played song the year after it came out in NFL, MLB & NHL
• Was in a Pepsi commercial
• Has been covered by Celine Dion, Nirvana, My Chemical Romance & Blake Shelton
• Parodied by the Muppets & Big Bang Theory (“We Will Percussive Shock You”)

We will, we will rock you (sing it)
We will, we will rock you (everybody)
We will, we will rock you
We will, we will rock you
Alright

Cute Killer Kids – Famous Murderers as Children (Foreign Edition)

Hard to believe, but the good ol’ US of A does not have a monopoly on deranged killers. Here are some more from around the globe.

 

Charles Sobrhaj (“The Bikini Killer”)

Crimes:  Guru-like sociopath who killed possibly 20 tourists all over Asia, burning some of them alive

Childhood:

• Illegitimate & abandoned by father
• Neglected by stepfather & new family
• Parents divorced & was constantly shuttled between France & Vietnam
• Runaway
• Engaged in petty theft

Country:  multiple

Paul Bernardo  *

Crimes:  Teamed up with his drop-dead gorgeous wife to rape up to 20 & kill 4 teens and young women (including his wife’s younger sister)

Childhood:

• Father was a pedophile, including with his own daughter
• Was also alcoholic & abusive, as well as a peeping tom
• Mother was depressed & withdrawn, lived in the family basement & neglected to provide the children with food and clean clothes
• Started collecting pornography and engaging in voyeurism at age 10
• When he was 16, his mother confessed that he was illegitimate, the offspring of an adulterous affair, causing a major rift between the two

Country:  Canada

Rosemary West

Crimes:  With husband Fred (see below), tortured, murdered & dismembered at least 13 young women over a period of almost 15 years, including a stepdaughter and a daughter of her own

Childhood:

• 1 of 7 children born into a poor family
• Mother was depressed, receiving ECT while pregnant with Rosemary
• Father was schizophrenic & abused Rosemary
• “Broken” family
• Molested her younger brother
• Petty theft
• Moved in with Fred at age 15
• Illegitimate daughter at age 16
• Abused Fred’s 2 daughters from a previous marriage

Country:  UK

Brenton Tarrant

Crimes:  Far-right extremist who opened fire at 2 mosques, killing 51 and wounding 40

Childhood:

• “Broken” family
• Domestic violence in the home
• Victim of bullying
• Loner & misfit
• Racist at a young age

Country:  New Zealand

Anders Breivik

Crimes:  Spree killer who accounted for 77 deaths, mostly teens at a summer camp

Childhood:

• Product of 2 “broken” homes
• Abused & neglected by mother, who was depressed & had borderline personality disorder
• Recommended for foster care (which he never received)
• Estranged from father
• Emotionless loner, showing signs of obsessive-compulsive disorder
• Minor scrapes with the law

Country:  Norway

Harold Shipman

Crimes:  GP who may have killed up to 250 sick & elderly patients by giving them overdoses of pain meds

Childhood:

• Domineering mother
• Isolated, with few friends

Country:  UK

Ivan Milat (“The Backpack Murderer”)

Crimes:  Assaulted, imprisoned, robbed & murdered 7 backpacking tourists

Childhood:

• 1 of 14 children born into a very poor family
• Mother married at 16; abusive to children
• Abusive, alcoholic father who was often absent
• Sent to reform school at age 13 for theft
• Physically abused his younger siblings
• Killed a dog for fun with a machete
• Left school at 15
• Gun nut

Country:  Australia

Ian Brady  *

Crimes:  With partner Myra Hindley, sexually assaulted & killed 5, from ages 10 to 17

Childhood:

• Illegitimate, then given up for adoption
• Loner, secretive, with violent outbursts
• Tortured & killed animals
• Fascinated with Nazism
• Appeared in court several times for housebreaking
• Left school at 15
• Time in juvenile prison

Country:  UK

Peter Sutcliffe (“The Yorkshire Ripper”)  *

Crimes:  Murdered 13 women & injured 7 others; known for hitting them over the head with a hammer then slashing them with a knife

Childhood:

• Abusive, alcoholic father
• Loner
• Peeping tom, specializing in prostitutes & their clients
• Left school at age 15

Country:  UK

John Reginald Christie

Crimes:  Strangled 8, including his wife, then buried them in his house & garden; necrophile; originally fingered someone else

Childhood:

• 1 of 7 children
• Distant, abusive father
• Alternatively coddled & bullied by mother & sisters
• Hypochondriac & hysteric
• Unpopular loner

Country:  UK

Fred West

Crimes:  See Rosemary, above

Childhood:

• Barely literate
• Introduced to sex by his mum *
• Father had sex with his sisters *
• He, in turn, had sex with at least one *
• Engaged in acts of bestiality *

*  According to Fred

Country:  UK

*  author has read the book / seen the doc

Cute Killer Kids – Famous Murderers as Children

Hey, everybody was a cute kid once, right?  Heck, even Hitler:

Same goes for all our favorite figures from the annals of true crime. Let’s see what we can turn up here.

In the list below, I’m including:

• A brief description of their truly horrific crimes 
• Some things from their childhood that might have pointed them in that direction (or not – some have truly horrible childhoods, while others seem no different than you and me)
• An adorable (or weird, or simply existing – some childhoods are more documented than others) picture

I’m listing them in order from more pedestrian (the pix, that is) to – shall we say? – less so.

Gary Ridgway (The Green River Killer)  *

Crimes:  Strangled 49 teens & young women; necrophiliac

Childhood:  

• Domineering mother
• Violent arguments between parents
• Bed wetter until age 13
• Stabbed a 6-year-old at age 16, just to watch him die (the kid survived)

Dennis Rader (BTK)  *

Crimes:  Bound, tortured & killed 10 males and females, from ages 9 to 62, over a period of almost 20 years; taunted the press

Childhood:  

• Largely ignored by his constantly working parents
• Tortured & killed animals
• Engaged in voyeurism, cross-dressing & auto-erotic asphyxiation 

Rodney Alcala (The Dating Game Killer)

Crimes:  Strangled at least 8 girls and young women; known for continuously reviving his victims so he could strangle them again, playing with them like a cat

Childhood:  Raised by single mom after father abandoned family

Dean Corll (The Candyman)

Crimes:  Abducted, raped, tortured, and murdered at least 28 teenage boys

Childhood:  

• Strict father, indulgent mother
• Violent arguments between both parents
• “Broken” family
• Loner

Aileen Wuornos

Crimes:  Shot 6 of her johns (she was a prostitute) at point blank range

Childhood:  

• Child of a 14- and a 16-year-old
• Never met her father, a schizophrenic and pedophile, who committed suicide while in prison
• Abandoned by mother
• Raised by alcoholic grandparents
• Beaten and sexually abused by grandfather
• Incest with brother
• Started exchanging sex for cigarettes, drugs & food at age 11
• Gave up a child for adoption at age 14
• Dropped out of school at age 15
• Thrown out of her grandparents’ house & became homeless

Stephen Paddock

Crimes:  Opened fire at a music concert from a high-rise hotel room, killing 60 people and injuring over 400 in a matter of minutes

Childhood:  

• Father was a bank robber and probable psychopath, spending time on the FBI’s most-wanted list and in prison
• Basically raised by a single mother
• Father beat him when he was around

Timothy McVeigh

Crimes:  Bombed a Federal building, killing 168 people, including 19 children, and injuring 680 others

Childhood:  

• “Broken” home
• Shy and withdrawn
• Gun nut

Richard Ramirez (The Nightstalker)  *

Crimes:  Satanist who raped and killed 15+ girls and women, from ages 8 to 79

Childhood:  

• Abused by alcoholic father
• Heavily influenced by:
• 1) Psychopathic cousin who had killed in Vietnam (and took photos, which he showed to Richard) and who would murder his own wife in front of him 
• 2)  Brother-in-law who took him along on peeping tom forays
• Started drinking and taking drugs at age 10
• Dropped out of school in 9th grade
• Had already started engaging in theft, child molestation & attempted rape by then

Andrew Cunanan  *

Crimes:  Spree killer who shot, stabbed & beat to death 5 gay men, including fashion designer Gianni Versace

Childhood:  

• Habitual liar
• Threw his mother against a wall in an argument over his sexuality (he was gay)

Elliot Rodger

Crimes:  Spree killer who murdered 6 and injured 14 through stabbing, shooting, and running them over with a car

Childhood:  

• “Broken” home
• Strained relationship with stepmother
• Saw multiple therapists starting at age 8, being diagnosed as autistic
• Bullied & increasingly isolated

Adam Lanza

Crimes:  Spree killer at a local elementary school, where he killed 6 adults & 20 6- and 7-year-olds

Childhood:  

• Diagnosed with  Asperger syndrome, sensory integration disorder, depression, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder and possibly anorexia & schizophrenia
• Mother (who he also shot) was a gun nut, with at least a dozen firearms in the home
• Fascinated by mass shootings
• Never left his room, taping the windows over with garbage bags, and communicating with his mother only by email

Not the last skeleton costume you will see here

Ted Bundy  *

Crimes:  Raped and killed 36+ girls and young women (two only 12 years old) in 7 different states; engaged in necrophilia

Childhood:  

• Born in a home for unwed mothers, of unknown paternity (though speculation has focused on an incestual relationship between his mother and her own father)
• Grew up thinking his mother was his sister
• Grandmother had depression and agoraphobia, grandfather fits of violent rage & hallucinations
• Conflicts with his stepfather, who hit him
• Loner with a speech impediment, victim of bullying
• Pornography & compulsive masturbation
• Stripped younger children & ran off with their clothes
• Burned a cat alive
• Created “tiger traps” (camouflaged pits with sharpened sticks at the bottom) that at least one girl fell into, injuring herself
• Crimes included petty thievery & attempted car theft
• Probable first victim at age 14 (victim was 8)

David Berkowitz (Son of Sam)  *

Crimes:  Shot lovers necking in cars, amounting to 6 deaths & 7 injuries; wrote taunting letters to the newspapers & kept New York City on edge for a whole summer

Childhood:  

• Adopted
• Pyromania & petty theft
• Psychiatric consultations
• Conflict with stepmother

Dylan Klebold

Crimes:  With Eric Harris (see below), rampaged through their high school, killing 12 students & 1 teacher & wounding 24 others

Childhood:  Shy & withdrawn

Eric Harris

Childhood:  

• Multiple moves, as his father was in the military
• Faked suicide as a joke to get at former girlfriend
• Anger management issues, including making threats involving bombs

Ted Kaczynski (Unabomber)  *

Crimes:  Killed 3 and injured 23 in a mail bombing campaign that lasted over 20 years

Childhood:  

• Shy loner
• Victim of bullying
• Bursts of anger
• Spells of detachment from reality

Dylann Roof

Crimes:  Neo-Nazi and white supremacist who killed 9 & wounded 3 others who were attending a bible study session in a historic Black church; hoped to set off a race war

Childhood:  

• Product of 2 “broken” marriages
• Verbally and physically assaulted by 1 stepfather
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder
• Early drug use
• Over 9 years, attended 7 different schools
• Social withdrawal

Gary Gilmore

Crimes:  A 2-bit hood, he killed 2 employees in 2 separate robberies, shooting them in the back of the head as they lay on the floor

Childhood:  

• Father was an alcoholic con man & bigamist, who beat his children & wife
• Violent arguments between parents
• Constant moves
• Believed he was illegitimate

He’s the super-serious, adult-like kid in the middle

Charles Whitman  *

Crimes:  Killed his wife and mother, then ascended the Univ. of Texas Tower, where he shot and killed 17 and injured 31 

Childhood:  

• Father was a strict authoritarian, verbally and physically abusing his wife and children
• Father was also a gun nut

NOTE:  He was also an altar boy & an Eagle Scout

Yup, those are two rifles  

Leonard Lake  *

Crimes:  Along with Charles Ng, raped, tortured & murdered up to 25 young women in a murder shack up in the mountains, capturing everything on video tape

Childhood:  

• “Broken home,” raised by grandparents
• Photographed sisters in the nude, forced them into incestuous acts
• Obsessed with pornography
• Tortured and killed small animals

Henry Lee Lucas

Crimes:  Killed at least 11 over 20+ years, starting with his own mother 

Childhood:  

• Born in a 1-room log cabin in the mountains of Virginia
• Mother was a prostitute who forced Henry to watch her have sex with her clients
• Dressed him up as a girl and then pimped him out
• Father was an alcoholic who froze to death in a snow drift
• Dropped out of school in grade 6 and left home
• First prison sentence – for over a dozen counts of burglary – at age 15

He lost the eye at age 10 in a fight with his brother

John Wayne Gacy (The Killer Clown)  *

Crimes:  Lured 29 teenaged boys to his home for gay sex, then tortured, murdered & buried them in the crawl space 

Childhood:  

• Alcoholic father who beat his wife and children
• Caught sexually abusing a young girl at age 7
• Victim of sexual abuse himself from a family friend

Jeffrey Dahmer  *

Crimes:  Responsible for the rape, death, and dismemberment of 17 young gay men, over a period of 12 years; necrophilia, cannibalism

Childhood:  

• Mother was a hypochondriac, demanded constant attention, suffered from depression, kept to her bed, abused prescription drugs & attempted suicide
• Absent father
• Fights between parents, eventually resulting in divorce
• Loner & outcast
• Collected and dismembered animal carcasses
• Alcoholic by age 14

Notice the hands

Charles Manson  *

Crimes:  Manipulated a cult of drug-crazed hippies to slaughter 7 people in an attempt to start a race war

Childhood:

• Illegitimate child of a 16-year-old
• Never knew his biological father, a con artist  
• Mother & 2 stepfathers were alcoholics
• Mother was imprisoned for assault & robbery when Charlie was 5
• Set his school on fire at age 9
• Sent to 4 different reform schools for truancy & petty theft at first, then armed robbery & auto theft later
• Raped & beaten there
• Ran away or escaped over 20 times in total

Leave it to ol’ Charlie to look that deranged even as a mere infant

* -  author read the book / watched the doc