Ed Gein: The real monster behind Charlie Hunnam's 'Monster 3'
Netflix's Monster Season 3 will bring the infamous Ed Gein, known as the "Butcher of Plainfield," back to life with Charlie Hunnam portraying him. Gein is one of the most notorious serial killers in history. Although he confessed to only two murders, authorities suspect him of several others. His first known victim was Mary Hogan, who disappeared in 1954. Here's everything about Gein and what he did with his victims.
Suspicion over Gein's brother's death
In 1944, Gein's older brother Henry died of asphyxiation when they were clearing some vegetation by setting it on fire. Initially believed to be a tragic accident, many now suspect that Gein killed his brother due to his unhealthy obsession with their mother. This left the mother and son alone for a year before she passed away in 1945. Her death is considered a significant trigger that led to Gein's horrific crimes in the subsequent years.
Gein's second murder and the gruesome discovery
Gein, also dubbed the "Plainfield Ghoul," committed his known second murder in 1957. After Bernice Worden, a local hardware store owner, mysteriously disappeared, police traced her last customer. Gein was the last person to visit the store and interact with 58-year-old Bernice. This led the police to his house, which was filled with human remains. Authorities found Bernice in Gein's kitchen, decapitated and hung by her ankles.
Gein's house of horrors
Most of the utensils in Gein's kitchen were made from human skulls and bones. Chairs in his house were upholstered with human skin, nipples were used to fashion belts, and several masks were crafted from human faces. The police also discovered the remains of Mary, who had been missing. Despite the solid evidence against Gein and his confessions, his trial was a complex process.
His trial and his bizarre motive
Gein confessed to the murders of Bernice and Mary. He also revealed his bizarre desire to create a "woman suit" for himself. Gein wanted to wear the suit and bring his mother back to life by transforming into her. Gein had a macabre habit of exhuming graves and stealing body parts. He claimed to have obtained body parts of nine different women from various local graveyards and scattered them around his house.
How Gein was convicted for his gruesome crimes
In 1957, authorities declared Gein unfit to stand trial due to insanity. He was held at the Central State Hospital for the Criminally Insane until he was deemed fit to stand trial about 10 years later. The court convicted him only of Bernice's murder, as they saw the trial for Mary's murder as a futile process. Doctors diagnosed Gein with schizophrenia, and he spent the rest of his life in a hospital. He died in 1984.
His influence on pop culture
Gein's chilling crimes have had a profound impact on popular culture, serving as a dark muse for countless horror films and novels. His gruesome acts of necrophilia, murder, and cannibalism have inspired iconic characters like Norman Bates from Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho (1960) and Leatherface from The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (2003). Gein also influenced the character of Buffalo Bill in The Silence of the Lambs (1991), with his disturbing behaviors mirrored in the film's portrayal of psychopathic killers.
