CLEWS The Historic True Crime Blog

True Crime Junkies: More Emotional?

The true crime and romance genres overlap quite a bit these days, as I recently mentioned, and a comment from Jean (on what I thought was a bit of a flippant subject) intrigued me.

She remarks that this curious marriage isn't surprising: " both true crime and romance are formula genres that deal with the strongest of emotions. Many true-crime texts are themselves perverse love stories, as you've noted, or 'dystopian romance' in the words of critic Laura Browder. I call them the 'romance-gone-wrong' narratives, for they always end with somebody's death instead of marriage. "

Ah, the evocation of strong emotions. Is that why we read them? True crime reader, do you want to be psychoanalyzed?

Along these lines, I was taken with an essay posted by true crime authors Jack and Mary Branson on their website. The Bransons are authors of the well-reviewed new release Murder in Mayberry.

Have you ever read a horoscope that seemed to eerily apply to your life? That is the sense this essay gave me - my sun sign isn't Capricorn, it's True Crime. In their essay - "The Readers" - they remark:

Who reads true crime? Well, since we’re big fans of the genre ourselves, we believe true crime readers are highly intelligent, introspective people. We know that more women read true crime than men (about 60/40).

And we’ve noticed that most true crime readers are addicts. Once you close that first book and shiver, reading true crime can be addictive. Websites and blogs are continually asking and answering, “What’s new in true crime?” because true crime readers are loyal to the genre.

They’re emotional. They want to suffer with the victim and his or her family and even with the criminal. They want to experience strong emotions, even unpleasant ones. They like extremes. They’re unlikely to prefer vanilla anything.

They’re thinkers who enjoy analyzing how investigators identify and capture criminals. They like CSI details. They’re more comfortable with blood spatters, DNA, and blunt trauma than bicycle rides and dewy meadows....

And they’re well-rounded people who live life to the fullest. They experience every emotion to the max—horror, fear, pain, love, joy, laughter. The people who like to read about death are very much alive, and we’re glad to have them as our readers.

Read the rest here.

Does this apply to you?

Finding the Romance in True Crime

Today I posted a brief ditty at In Cold Blog on the Curious Convergence of Romance & True Crime.

Two wildly popular literary giants are coming together these days in curious ways.

No, I'm not talking of steamy stories a la True Crime Writer On Book Tour meets Starry-Eyed Fan. That's so seventies.

I'm talking about the genres of True Crime and Romance - which many may well think ought to remain two ships that pass in the night....

Read the rest here.

"Most Horrible And Shocking Murders!"

The United States National Library of Medicine in Bethseda, Maryland has some interesting old documents in its vast archive. Recently it dusted off its collection of true crime pamphlets, some of which go back to 1692, and put them on display. The collection is open for viewing through mid-June.

The library has this to say about its murder pamphlets:

Ever since the mid-1400s, the public's appetite for tales of shocking murders-"true crime"-has been one of the most durable facts of the market for printed material. Murder pamphlets were hawked on street corners, taverns, coffeehouses, newsstands, and bookshops. Typically, the pamphlets claimed to be true accounts of a murder, consisting of a narrative, trial transcript, or written confession of the murderer before his or her execution. Sometimes they featured medical commentary.

The pamphlets on display in "MOST HORRIBLE & SHOCKING MURDERS" were printed between 1692 and 1881. Some deal with cases of interest to the emerging field of forensic medicine. Others deal with cases in which doctors were accused of-or were victims of-heinous crimes. Still others have no medical connection whatsoever. Today, murder pamphlets are a rich source for historians and crime novelists, who mine them to study the history of medicine, class, gender, the law, the city, religion and other topics.

Images from past exhibitions at the library are available online.

The True Crime Genre Circa 1570

My dearest reader, this is unfortunately, may God have mercy, one piece of horrifying news after another ... so that my heart nearly breaks and my eyes fill with tears. I don't know how it seems to you, for there are many who will refuse to believe, since it does not affect them and appears to be false and invented.

-A German true crime author, writing in 1582

True crime stories started rolling off the presses as soon as presses were invented. A recent article delving into some of Germany's oldest machine-printed crime accounts contains some surprises for those who think Truman Capote or William Roughead "invented" true crime, such as the morons who wrote the absurd and error-laden Wikipedia entry on the true crime genre.

In a long piece exploring in detail early typeset German true crime accounts, New Jersey history professor Joy Wiltenburg sets the cultural record straight.

And what were these Germans reading in the late 1500s? Of all the crimes in the calendar, which captivated Germany in that time? Most of the accounts, says the professor, told stories of family annihilators. "Murder within the family was by far the most common theme, accounting for over half of the reports," she says.

The professor has a theory about why this particular rare form of murder dominated the early German genre: economics. "In their evocation of the horror of household bloodshed, a number of works pointed also to economic strain: The children were hungry and reminded the raging father of his economic failure; the greedy youths demanded their inheritance; the father's anger over debts drove him to violence."

In the piece she also explains:

* The authors and collectors of early publications were often ministers interested in exploring moral questions. "Virtually all crime accounts published during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries connected their stories with an edifying Christian message," the professor notes. (I am reminded of the Ogden Standard-Examiner, which produced fascinating true crime accounts for decades, not coincidentally a Mormon mecca, birthplace of Donny & Marie. It too focused on charting, with specific examples, "the descent and destruction of the human spirit.")

* The authors probably did not "make money off murder," that tired old charge. Professor Wiltenburg says true crime, from its earliest days, "almost certainly brought little reward to authors."

* The accounts were written for and purchased by the upper classes.

* A great emphasis was placed on the truthfulness of the accounts; it was strictly a non-fiction genre, or sold as such, at least.

* The accounts were extremely gory. (They might not even see print today, except as fiction.)

* Many accounts heaped praise upon police officials, singling them out for their pursuit of justice.

* Authors focused on the victims; "the perpetrators were usually not examined closely as individuals, nor was the audience offered vicarious entry into their minds."

* Some of the most famous cases were revisited decades later; one account, republished many times, told the story of a family annihilated in 1504.

Point being, the true crime genre is much older than some would have it - as is the historic true crime genre.

Overused word? I'll give you a &*^#@)^& overused word

On the New York Times blog "Paper Cuts" appears a fun piece by Bob Harris called Seven Deadly Words of Book Reviewing - his list of overused adjectives that regularly appear in book reviews because the English language only has so many permutations of "great" or "lousy".

But there's a word missing from the overused list. It too often appears in reviews the Times deigns to publish in our favorite genre. If you have ever found yourself wondering what became of Lizzie Borden's hatchet, I suspect it's on the desk of the non-fiction editor of the New York Times Book Review. As regular as a vegetarian, the Times can be counted on to denigrate true crime as TABLOID.

Storming Las Vegas by John Huddy - "tabloid".

Entering Hades by John Leake - "tabloid".

Everything ever written by Vincent Bugliosi - "tabloid".

Everything ever written by Ann Rule - "tabloid".

Unless, of course, the author is from New York. Those reviews rely on a special, superlatives-only dictionary and two more overused words said comparatively - Truman Capote.  For all its literary pretentions, when it comes to books, the Times is a local rag.

On a brighter note, my local tabloid caught wind of the tabloid book I am writing. I told my comrades down at the township hall about my obsession-cum-tabloid hardcover, and they told the South Lyon Herald. Those folks were nice enough to write up a little ditty about it. I swear, if the Times ever did put its dirty tabloid mitts on my book, it wouldn't be with my consent, and rather than read any review they'd deign to publish on this Detroiter's true crime book, I'd save myself some time and just drop a frying pan on my foot.

Edgar Beef

The Edgar Award for Best Fact Crime, issued annually by the Mystery Writers of America, is the most prestigious literary award bestowed in the true crime genre (aided by a lack of varsity competition). While I love to see my favorite genre get some chits, I’ve come to distrust this award.

Some short-listed books are just not worthy of the honor.

Some giants in the genre who should have Edgar awards have none – Ann Rule, for one.

Some authors of high-quality works are excluded because, as I understand it, publishers can only submit two books apiece, which squeezes out a lot of great books.

Other authors are excluded from consideration because their publishers aren’t “approved,” which is a bit mystifying. An author’s publisher must give “fair treatment to authors” (definition not provided) in order for the author to be eligible for an Edgar award. How fair is that?

And if your book is published by a university press, it ought to be a “major” university as opposed to a “minor or relatively unknown” institution (definitions not provided). Kent State University Press, which has a true crime series and publishes some of the most interesting true crime books being released today, is currently not on the list of approved publishers, even though a Kent State book was short-listed for the award in 2007. Strange.

Here and there on the internet I’ve seen people mention their status as judges in this category, and without singling anyone out, as a whole they strike me as quite unqualified. How does a fiction mystery writer wind up judging true crime? They are entirely different animals. No one would let the editor of Cat Fancy judge at the Westminster dog show. True crime authors, kindly take note. We need some qualified judges to give the award real heft.

As of early July, these true crime books have been submitted for this year’s award. I’ve only read a couple of these books so far; I particularly enjoyed The Enigma Woman by Kathleen Cairns. I will put $20 against any takers that Vincent Bugliosi will get his third Edgar next year, not necessarily because his book is the best, but because his book is the longest.

Adams, Sam, PRECIOUS BLOOD

Alpert, Stanley, THE BIRTHDAY PARTY

Bugliosi, Vincent, RECLAIMING HISTORY: THE ASSASSINATION OF PRESIDENT JOHN F.KENNEDY

Butcher, Lee, LOVE ME OR I'LL KILL YOU

Cairns, Kathleen A., THE ENIGMA WOMAN: THE DEATH SENTENCE OF NELLIE MAY MADISON

Casey, Kathryn , DIE, MY LOVE: A TRUE STORY OF REVENGE, MURDER, AND TWO TEXAS SISTERS

Cook, Kerry Max, CHASING JUSTICE: MY STORY OF FREEING MYSELF AFTER TWO DECADES ON DEATH ROW FOR A CRIME I DIDN'T COMMIT

Craughwell, Thomas J., STEALING LINCOLN'S BODY

Crier, Catherine, FINAL ANALYSIS: THE UNTOLD STORY OF THE SUSAN POLK MURDER CASE

Fanning, Diane, UNDER THE KNIFE: A BEAUTIFUL WOMAN, A PHONY DOCTOR AND A SHOCKING HOMICIDE

Good, R. Stephanie, EXPOSED: THE HARROWING STORY OF A MOTHER'S UNDERCOVER WORK WITH THE FBI TO SAVE CHILDREN FROM INTERNET SEX PREDATORS

Hall, Allan &, Leidig, Michael, GIRL IN THE CELLAR: THE NATASCHA KAMPUSCH STORY

Klaidman, Stephen, CORONARY: A TRUE STORY OF MEDICINE GONE AWRY

Mladinich, Robert &, Benson, Michael, LETHAL EMBRACE

Recko, Corey, MURDER ON THE WHITE SANDS: THE DISPPEARANCE OF ALBERT AND HENRY FOUNTAIN

Rodriguez, Teresa, DAUGHERS OF JUAREZ: A TRUE STORY OF SERIAL MURDER SOUTH OF THE BORDER

Rule, Ann, TOO LATE TO SAY GOODBYE

Scott, Robert, KILLER DAD

Spellman, Paul N., CAPTAIN J.A. BROOKS, TEXAS RANGER

Stodghill, Rod, REDBONE: MONEY, MALICE AND MURDER IN ATLANTA

Swingle, Morley, SCOUNDRELS TO THE HOOSEGOW

Utley, Robert M., LONE STAR LAWMEN: THE SECOND CENTURY OF THE TEXAS RANGERS

Valez-Mitchell, Jane, SECRETS CAN BE MURDER

Wallis, Michael, BILLY THE KID: THE ENDLESS RIDE

Wenzl, Roy, BIND, TORTURE, KILL: THE INSIDE STORY OF THE SERIAL KILLER NEXT DOOR

White, Emily, YOU WILL MAKE MONEY IN YOUR SLEEP:THE STORY OF DANA GIACCHETTO, FINANCIAL ADVISOR TO THE STARS

Genre Bits

OJ Simpson's 'If I Did It' Coming Soon The father of Ronald Goldman has the rights to OJ's ghost-written confession, and he's publishing it. Said his lawyer: "I guess this is the start of the book tour. You'll find justice in the true crime section of the local bookstore."

Murder as a Game Show?!? What does anyone expect on a channel devoted to the viewing tastes of crass frat boys? But the show premiering tonight on "Spike TV" could be called Murder as a Half-Hour Contest. It should also be called "disgusting and gory" according to the New York Post (yes, the Post). Says columnist Linda Stasi: "Since the real-life victims are now real dead victims, it's impossible to know whether they would have liked their last terrifying moments to have been turned into a TV game show. I assume the answer would be 'no.'"

Jesse James from the British Point of View This is from Andrew O'Hagan, one of my favorite journalists (it's a short list!) of The Guardian, commenting on the upcoming mega-film on Jesse James:

My spies in them thar hills say that Brad Pitt will remind those of us who adore westerns just why we adore them. He is purported to show us a Jesse James who is both baddie and goodie - reckless and handsome, Irish and American, capable of great gentleness and horrid brutality.

Not just a charming killer, Jesse James is reputed to have lived with a thirst for celebrity and with a homegrown hunger for profits greater than those easily to be achieved via democratic means alone.

He was one of the selfish genes in the body politic - famed and feared, but also admired as a powerful representative of something essentially free and spirited in the American character.

Every culture has its murderer-heroes (we have the Krays), but the new film's portrayal of Jesse James may give us a chance to think afresh about the ways in which charisma can obscure bad motives.

Meanwhile, the historic true crime aficionados at Seacoast New Hampshire (site of a famous historic murder case) have come out with a list and analysis of a few Jesse James films - some of which "have not a whisker of historic fact."

More Gruesome Western Scenes A new book is on my must-read list; it's Frontier Justice: Bungled, Bizarre and Fascinating Executions in the Wild West by R. Michael Wilson. From the back cover, via Amazon: "From 1854 to 1910, in the lawless towns of the Old West, more than one thousand men (and two women) were executed. And while most of the punishments went off "without a hitch," a handful of necktie parties and firing squads stand out in the annals of history."

Nazi's Ticket to Ride A judge in Argentina with an interest in history went poking through musty courthouse storage and came across an interesting curio: a passport issued to Adolf "Following Orders" Eichmann.

Does that count as "murderabilia"?

An All-Girls' Edition of Genre News

There are actually interesting things happening in the true crime arena and not just the wizarding world these days, though my Muggle surroundings will disappear for a time this Saturday morning. Yours, too? Meanwhile, back at the ranch...

Wicked Women are #1 What do you know, a true crime series in its sixth year now is the top ranked show on the Oxygen network. Or is that the Estrogen network? I don't get that channel, alas. The show is called Snapped and a fan recently noticed that it was featured in the New York Times. I understand it to be a show about women who commit murder. Interesting. To many people, obviously. Have you seen this show? Is it well done?

In that Times article, which I won't bother to link because they charge $4 (corporate bastards), some jerk makes this remark about the show and manages to piss off both the true crime fan and the housewife in me:

Should you happen upon it on a random Wednesday morning, you might feasibly reorganize a closet, do some yoga in your living room, make a brisket and still never be forced to change the channel to find something new to watch.

I'd love to show that piece to whoever mops his floors and washes his underwear.

Art: Via

Interesting Ann Rule Review This interviewer asked her about how she chooses her subjects ("I'm hoping to hear about cases that are "sleepers," where the whole world doesn't already know every detail"), her thoughts on In Cold Blood ("When I read that book back in the sixties, I realized that true crime could be presented in the style of a novel, flowing, captivating, and portraying the people involved in deep dimension") and several other interesting questions. 

An Interview with Cathy Scott The true crime author of books on the murders of Biggie Smalls and Tupac Shakur --the latter has sold 200,000 copies (though the former has a much nicer cover) -- offers up some strong words about the investigators. A whole lot of folks are very curious about the author's conclusions, especially about the so very public murder of Tupac Shakur. She states that the Las Vegas police "haven't been in a hurry to solve the case."

Wow, a True Crime Review in the Washington Post This reviewer really liked Seduced by Madness: The True Story of the Susan Polk Murder Case - one of a few books out about what Mrs. Polk did to Mr. Polk and vice versa. This is the story by author Carol Pogash. The reviewer remarks that the story "is not really for true-crime aficionados. This book is for those of us who have flirted with lunacy: turned a bowl of curry over our spouse's head, smashed the wedding china in a fit of pique, hauled off and slugged our parents or our children."

And finally ... I get a sense that this is everyone's favorite part of their favorite category of Clews...

Pervert of the Week

Recent favorite links

A New Blog to Read I might have to put Court TV's The Informer on the daily must-read list, if I can forgive the network for selling out to fatcats and dumbing down and changing its name from Court TV to "truTV." Please.

Coral's MySpace Page Some naughty prankster has set up a MySpace page for Coral Eugene Watts. I suspect it's the brainchild of an underworked public servant. Meanwhile, I very much enjoyed a prosecutor's account of putting Coral Watts behind bars for good.

Meanwhile true crime author Burl Barer has a MySpace page. I love his writing for his irrepressible ego.

True Crime Author in Murderous Love Triangle Author Caitlin Rother, a Pulitzer nominee with 80,000 copies of Poisoned Love (about beautiful black widow Kristin Rossum) in print, is coming out next year with a book about Patricia Cornwell's alleged affair with a married FBI agent. This of course will sound familiar to those who have read her fiction.

I loved the cover of Poisoned Love. Nice! True crime-y, without being creepy.

I recently noticed that Cornwell's Portrait of a Killer: Jack the Ripper-Case Closed made it onto author and crime historian Rick Mattix's list of worst true crime books. I beg to differ, though; I enjoyed the author's theory of the case and you can too if you promise not to take it too seriously. Is it really as bad as Jack the Ripper: A Psychic Investigation ?

Creepy Tourism in Europe I loved the crisp and self-explanatory title on this list of suggestions. One day I'll make it over there....

Genre News & Notes

The Stocking Stranglings: Is Carlton Gary a Serial Killer or an Innocent Man? Author David Rose's new historic true crime book, The Big Eddy Club, has some shocking things to say about a serial killer who is now on death row in Georgia -- like, his fingerprints don't match.

This author's credentials, by the way, include the BBC and Vanity Fair.

In the 1970s, several older white women were cruelly murdered in the Columbus, Georgia area. Carlton Gary was sent to death row for the crimes.

Says the author: "I've gone and looked at all that evidence, and I can tell you all of it is deeply suspect."

Rose (after earlier finding his book the subject of a strange book review) was recently featured on the Tavis Smiley show. You can read the interview or download the podcast here. It's a great interview. The author details the case they had -- or didn't have -- against Gary, and tells eye-popping stories about the background of the judge assigned to hear the trial.

This is a fascinating story and I think we'll hear much more about this case.

Fred Rosen's Stories of Survivors There But For the Grace of God: Survivors of the 20th Century's Infamous Serial Killers was published a few days ago and has already been featured as an alternate selection by the Doubleday Book Club, Literary Guild, the Mystery Guild, and the Book-A-Month Club. There is so much interest in serial killers - BTK, Berkowitz, Bundy, Dahmer.

But author Fred Rosen took a different approach and interviewed people who through sheer ingenuity, strength, or luck were able to survive their encounters with these beasts. The stories include --

• Kevin Bright, who was shot and left for dead by BTK;
• Nita Neary, a sorority sister who narrowly escaped Ted Bundy;
• Lisa McVey, who talked a serial killer into letting her go;
• Tracy Edwards, who fought off Dahmer.

Interesting cover, too.

My Boss Was BTK This book ought to be a great survivor's story as well. Mary Capps worked for Dennis Rader for several years and describes his "erratic, intimidating" behavior -- he may have been plotting to kill her -- in her new book, My Boss was the BTK Killer; I was the Next Victim. Here's a link to the author's website. "I look back on certain incidents and wonder how close Dennis was to choking the crap out of me...."

Dracula's Castle for Sale If you've got $100+ million for some interesting digs, Archduke Hapsburg is selling his ancestral home. The Associated Press is reporting that Dracula's castle is on the market. You can get a feel for the place on Dracula's Castle.com.

Actually you've been to the clifftop castle before - at least in Bram Stoker's Dracula (1897). 

The government of Romania recently returned it to the family, who tried to unload it onto the locals.

Sounds like a handyman special. Look at all that gorgeous brick work... all that crumbling, gorgeous, bloodstained brick work.... not to mention Dracula didn't actually live there... maybe I'll hold out for Elizabeth Bathory's place.

A New World Record Those who like to blame guns for everything, take note: the body of the first known gunshot victim in the hemisphere has been discovered. Scientists in Peru found an Incan skull with a bullet hole to the back of the head courtesy a Spanish musket circa 1536.