I’ve seen a lot of positive reaction from readers when I post things about serial killers.  I think I should do it more often. It’s not directly paranormal, but does fall into the psychology spectrum.  Abnormal psychology.  Probably close to the other branch in psychology, parapsychology. Yea, I think that justifies it a bit.

Recently my girlfriend and I were having a discussion about Ed Gein. One of the most infamous killers known. We were discussing the popular misconception that Ed Gein was a serial killer. Many people refer to him as one. The fact of the matter is that he was only found guilty of two murders. Those of which he confessed about. Mary Hogan, a tavern owner, in 1954, and

Ed Gein

Bernice Worden, a hardware store owner, in 1957. What made poor old Ed infamous was the gruesome discovery of human body parts in his mother’s home. For you see, Ed was a human body harvester. With the cover of darkess he would rob graves and take recently buried bodies of local women and use their body parts to make furniture. Skull bowls and human skin lampshades were found by investigating police. Among these gruesome items, they found heads and noses all over the home, as well as other body parts. One of the most famous findings was the so-called “Mammary vest”. Which included female breasts and was the beginning of a full-on body suit. It’s said that Ed Gein would put on the vest, and dance around in the moonlight pretending to be the opposite sex. This was made famous by the movie “Silence of the lambs” in which Buffalo Bill, the serial killer was cutting up women and harvesting skin to make a full body suit.

Ed Gein is not a serial killer. He killed 2 people that we know of, but the macabre findings is what makes his story so unique.

Ed Gein’s story is a very depressing one. At least to me. Born into a home with an overbearing mother. A religious zealot, she would preach about the abominations of man. Sex was seen as the ultimate sin. Ed’s brother died early on in a fire. With Ed’s father and brother gone, there was protection from his overbearing mother.

‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ was a movie loosely based on Ed Gein. It’s one of my favorite slasher films. In fact, I think it’s the only one that I really liked. There is something very poetic during the last scene when Leatherface, a Texas killer, is chasing Sally, the antihero of the movie. Sally gets away by jumping in the back of a passing truck. Frustrated, Leatherface starts flailing about with his chainsaw in the open road as the sun is rising in those long and lonely Texan roads. With his chainsaw roaring it seems like he is not so much upset about her getaway, as he is enjoying  a psychosis-induced dance. Brilliant writing.

Leatherface

Written by Javier Ortega - javier@ghosttheory.com
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