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GEIN Edward Theodore

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Biography[]

Early life[]

Edward Theodore Gein (/ɡiːn/ geen), was born on August 27, 1906, in La Crosse, Wisconsin, and grew up on a small farm near Plainfield. His childhood was marked by a domineering mother, Augusta Gein, who instilled puritanical and harsh religious beliefs in him. Ed's father, George, was an alcoholic who died in 1940.

Mother's Death and Isolation[]

In 1945, Augusta Gein passed away, leaving Ed devastated. His mother's death triggered a period of extreme isolation, and Gein boarded up rooms in the family farmhouse to preserve them as shrines to his mother's memory.

Grave Robbing and Macabre Hobbies[]

Ed Gein's descent into darkness escalated when he began robbing graves in local cemeteries. Fascinated with anatomy and death, he would later admit to exhuming bodies and crafting various items, including masks and clothing, from human remains. Gein's macabre hobbies foreshadowed more sinister acts.

Murders and Abductions[]

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Between 1954 and 1957, Gein committed two known murders. Bernice Worden, a local hardware store owner, disappeared in 1957, and investigators discovered her decapitated body at Gein's farm. Gein also confessed to killing Mary Hogan, a tavern owner, years earlier.

Some speculation and rumors have circulated over the years, suggesting that Ed may have had a role in his brother Henry Gein's death. The official cause of Henry's death, which occurred on May 16, 1944, was listed as asphyxiation due to a brush fire. At the time, Ed and Henry were fighting the fire on their property.

House of Horrors[]

Upon searching Gein's farmhouse, authorities uncovered a gruesome scene. Human body parts were fashioned into furniture, clothing, and ornaments. Gein's home became infamous as a "house of horrors." The shocking discoveries included human skulls, a human heart in a pot, and a suit made from human skin.

Legal Proceedings[]

Ed Gein was declared mentally unfit to stand trial for the murders but was found guilty of the grave robbing charges. He spent the rest of his life in psychiatric institutions. Due to his mental state, he was never tried for the murders but remained institutionalized until his death.

Legacy and Cultural Impact[]

Ed Gein's case profoundly influenced popular culture, inspiring iconic horror characters like Norman Bates in "Psycho," Leatherface in "The Texas Chain Saw Massacre," and Buffalo Bill in "The Silence of the Lambs." His twisted obsessions and heinous acts continue to captivate the public's imagination and remain a chilling chapter in the annals of true crime history.

Death[]

Ed Gein died on July 26, 1984, at the Mendota Mental Health Institute in Madison, Wisconsin from respiratory and heart failure due to lung cancer.

Victims[]

Confirmed victims[]

Name Age Disappeared Body Found Cause of Death
Mary Hogan 51 December 8, 1954 November 16, 1957 Shooting[note 1]
Bernice Worden 58 November 16, 1957 November 16, 1957 Shooting[note 2]

Suspected victims[]

Name Age Disappeared Body Found Cause of Death
Henry Gein 43 May 16, 1944 May 16, 1944 Asphyxiation
Georgia Weckler[1] 8 May 1, 1947
Victor Travis November 1, 1952 Never found
Ray Burgess November 1, 1952 Never found
Evelyn Hartley[2] 15 October 24, 1953

Timeline[]

Timeline Incomplete
This article has an Incomplete Timeline. You can help Serial Killer Database Wiki by expanding it. (September 15, 2024)
Date Age Event
August 27, 1906 0 Edward Theodore Gein is born in La Crosse, Wisconsin.
April 1, 1940 33 Gein's father, George Gein, dies of heart failure caused by his alcoholism.
December 29, 1945 39 Gein's mother, Augusta Gein, dies after a series of strokes.
December 8, 1954 48 Mary Hogan, a tavern owner, disappears. Later, it is discovered that she was one of Gein's victims.
November 16, 1957 51 Bernice Worden, a hardware store owner, is reported missing. Evidence found in Gein's home leads to his arrest.
November 21, 1957 Gein is arraigned on one count of first-degree murder in Waushara County Court.
January 6, 1958 Gein pleads not guilty by reason of insanity.
November 7, 1968 62 Gein is found guilty of first-degree murder but also found insane at the time of the crime, thus committed to Central State Hospital for the Criminally Insane.
1974 68 Gein's house of horrors is destroyed by fire; arson is suspected but never proven.
July 26, 1984 77 Gein dies of respiratory and heart failure due to cancer at Mendota Mental Health Institute.

Bibliography[]

Literature[]

  • Gollmar, Robert H. (1981). Edward Gein: America's Most Bizarre Murderer,. ISBN 978-1558171879
  • Schechter, Harold (1989). Deviant: The Shocking True Story of the Original "Psycho",. New York: Pocket Books. ISBN 978-0671644826
  • Woods, Paul Anthony. Ed Gein -- Psycho!, St. Martin's Griffin. ISBN 978-0312130572

Articles[]

Documentaries[]

Television[]

YouTube Documentaries[]

Podcasts[]

In popular culture[]

Film/TV adaptations[]

Trivia[]

  • The character Patrick Bateman, in the 1991 novel American Psycho and its 2000 film adaptation, mistakenly attributes a quote by Edmund Kemper to Gein, saying: "You know what Ed Gein said about women? ... He said 'When I see a pretty girl walking down the street, I think two things. One part of me wants to take her out, talk to her, be real nice and sweet and treat her right ... [the other part wonders] what her head would look like on a stick'."
  • According to George W. Arndt, news reports at the time of Gein's crimes spawned a subgenre of "black humor", called "Geiners".[7][8]

Related Articles[]

See also[]

  • Jame Gumb, a fictional character from Silence of The Lambs , was partially based on Ed Gein. Gumb and Gein both fashioned trophies and keepsakes from the bones and skin of corpses they dug up at cemeteries. They also made a female skin suit and skin masks.

Links[]

Notes[]

  1. ↑ Shot with a .32 caliber pistol
  2. ↑ Shot with a .22-caliber rifle

References[]

  1. ↑ Georgia Jean Weckler. The Charley Project.
  2. ↑ Evelyn Grace Hartley. The Charley Project.
  3. ↑ Mark Singer (February 2, 1989). Predilections. The New Yorker. Archived from the original on December 15, 2014.
  4. ↑ Aidan Bryant (September). Errol Morris & Werner Herzog Planned To Dig Up a Serial Killer’s Mom’s Grave for a Film. Collider.
  5. ↑ J. R. Radcliffe. What's real and what's fiction in Netflix's Jeffrey Dahmer series, 'Monster'. Journal Sentinel.
  6. ↑ Ray Flook (16 Sep 2024). Monster: Charlie Hunnam Set as Serial Killer Ed Gein for Season 3. Bleeding Cool.
  7. ↑ Gollmar, Robert H.; George W. Arndt (1989). Appendix A: Gein Humor". Edward Gein: America's Most Bizarre Serial Killer (3rd ed.), Pinnacle Books. ISBN 978-1-55817-187-9
  8. ↑ Arndt, George W.. Humor and Human Nature: Community Reactions to a Horrifying Event, Menninger School of Psychiatry.
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