Synopses & Reviews
2015 Edgar Award Nominee Beekman Place, once one of the most exclusive addresses in Manhattan, had a curious way of making it into the tabloids in the 1930s: andldquo;SKYSCRAPER SLAYER,andrdquo; andldquo;BEAUTY SLAIN IN BATHTUBandrdquo; read the headlines. On Easter Sunday in 1937, the discovery of a grisly triple homicide at Beekman Place would rock the neighborhood yet againandmdash;and enthrall the nation. The young man who committed the murders would come to be known in the annals of American crime as the Mad Sculptor.
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Caught up in the Easter Sunday slayings was a bizarre and sensationalistic cast of characters, seemingly cooked up in a tabloid editorandrsquo;s overheated imagination. The charismatic perpetrator, Robert Irwin, was a brilliant young sculptor who had studied with some of the masters of the era. But with his genius also came a deeply disturbed psyche; Irwin was obsessed with sexual self-mutilation and was frequently overcome by outbursts of violent rage.
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Irwinandrsquo;s primary victim, Veronica Gedeon, was a figure from the world of pulp fantasyandmdash;a stunning photographerand#39;s model whose scandalous seminude pinups would titillate the public for weeks after her death. Irwinandrsquo;s defense attorney, Samuel Leibowitz, was a courtroom celebrity with an unmatched record of acquittals and clients ranging from Al Capone to the Scottsboro Boys. And Dr. Fredric Wertham, psychiatrist and forensic scientist, befriended Irwin years before the murders and had predicted them in a public lecture months before the crime.
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Based on extensive research and archival records, The Mad Sculptor recounts the chilling story of the Easter Sunday murdersandmdash;a case that sparked a nationwide manhunt and endures as one of the most engrossing American crime dramas of the twentieth century. Harold Schechterandrsquo;s masterful prose evokes the faded glory of post-depression New York and the singular madness of a brilliant mind turned against itself. It will keep you riveted until the very last page.
Synopsis
A riveting account of a gruesome triple-homicide at Beekman Place in Depression Era New York, with an intriguing cast of characters including the brilliant but mentally-disturbed sculptor, Robert Irwin.
Synopsis
2015 Edgar Award Nominee
Beekman Place, once one of the most exclusive addresses in Manhattan, had a curious way of making it into the tabloids in the 1930s: "SKYSCRAPER SLAYER," "BEAUTY SLAIN IN BATHTUB" read the headlines. On Easter Sunday in 1937, the discovery of a grisly triple homicide at Beekman Place would rock the neighborhood yet again--and enthrall the nation. The young man who committed the murders would come to be known in the annals of American crime as the Mad Sculptor.
Caught up in the Easter Sunday slayings was a bizarre and sensationalistic cast of characters, seemingly cooked up in a tabloid editor's overheated imagination. The charismatic perpetrator, Robert Irwin, was a brilliant young sculptor who had studied with some of the masters of the era. But with his genius also came a deeply disturbed psyche; Irwin was obsessed with sexual self-mutilation and was frequently overcome by outbursts of violent rage.
Irwin's primary victim, Veronica Gedeon, was a figure from the world of pulp fantasy--a stunning photographer's model whose scandalous seminude pinups would titillate the public for weeks after her death. Irwin's defense attorney, Samuel Leibowitz, was a courtroom celebrity with an unmatched record of acquittals and clients ranging from Al Capone to the Scottsboro Boys. And Dr. Fredric Wertham, psychiatrist and forensic scientist, befriended Irwin years before the murders and had predicted them in a public lecture months before the crime.
Based on extensive research and archival records, The Mad Sculptor recounts the chilling story of the Easter Sunday murders--a case that sparked a nationwide manhunt and endures as one of the most engrossing American crime dramas of the twentieth century. Harold Schechter's masterful prose evokes the faded glory of post-depression New York and the singular madness of a brilliant mind turned against itself. It will keep you riveted until the very last page.
Synopsis
Beekman Place, one of the most exclusive addresses in Manhattan, hasnt always been home to the rich. In the 1930s, when bluebloods like the Vanderbilts and Rockefellers began to build luxury towers, poor European immigrants lived in filthy slums among the riverside factories and abbatoirs. It was in this setting that a young man committed a grisly triple-murder on Easter Sunday, 1937. The details of the case were so sensational that one might think it had been cooked up in a tabloid editors overheated imagination. The charismatic perpetrator, Robert Irwin, was a promising young sculptor, but he was also deeply disturbed. An obsession with Veronica Gedeon, a stunning photographer's model, would inspire him to murder. Harold Schechter masterfully tells the story of the "Mad Sculptor" case, one of the most engrossing American crime dramas of the twentieth century—evoking an atmosphere and a madness that will have readers glued to their chairs.
Table of Contents
and#160;and#160;and#160; Cast of Charactersand#160;and#160;and#160;ix
and#160;and#160;and#160; Prologue: 268 East 52nd Street, New York Cityand#160;and#160;and#160;xiii
Part I: Beekman Place
and#160;and#160;and#160; Dead Endand#160;and#160;and#160;3
and#160;and#160;and#160; Vera and Fritzand#160;and#160;and#160;7
and#160;and#160;and#160; and#8220;Beauty Slain in Bathtuband#8221;and#160;and#160;and#160;29
and#160;and#160;and#160; Sex Fiendsand#160;and#160;and#160;47 Part II: Fenelon
and#160;and#160;and#160; The Firebrandand#160;and#160;and#160;53
and#160;and#160;and#160; The Brothersand#160;and#160;and#160;62
and#160;and#160;and#160; Epiphanyand#160;and#160;and#160;69
and#160;and#160;and#160; Romanelli and Radyand#160;and#160;and#160;81
Part III: The Shadow of Madness
and#160;and#160;and#160; Depressionand#160;and#160;and#160;103
and#160;and#160;and#160; The Gedeonsand#160;and#160;and#160;110
and#160;and#160;and#160; Werthamand#160;and#160;and#160;113
and#160;and#160;and#160; Bug in a Bottleand#160;and#160;and#160;124
and#160;and#160;and#160; The Snake Womanand#160;and#160;and#160;130
and#160;and#160;and#160; Cantonand#160;and#160;and#160;138
and#160;and#160;and#160; Crisisand#160;and#160;and#160;146
Part IV: The Mad Sculptor
and#160;and#160;and#160; Bloody Sundayand#160;and#160;and#160;157
and#160;and#160;and#160; The Party Girland#160;and#160;and#160;169
and#160;and#160;and#160; Murder Sellsand#160;and#160;and#160;182
and#160;and#160;and#160; Prime Suspectand#160;and#160;and#160;203
and#160;and#160;and#160; Manhuntand#160;and#160;and#160;208
Part V: The Defender
and#160;and#160;and#160; Murder in Times Squareand#160;and#160;and#160;223
and#160;and#160;and#160; Henriettaand#160;and#160;and#160;231
and#160;and#160;and#160; The Front Pageand#160;and#160;and#160;237
and#160;and#160;and#160; Confessionand#160;and#160;and#160;243
and#160;and#160;and#160; Celebritiesand#160;and#160;and#160;248
and#160;and#160;and#160; Lunacyand#160;and#160;and#160;267
and#160;and#160;and#160; Pleaand#160;and#160;and#160;277
and#160;and#160;and#160; Aftermathand#160;and#160;and#160;291
and#160;and#160;and#160; Epilogue: The Lonergan Caseand#160;and#160;and#160;303
and#160;and#160;and#160; Acknowledgmentsand#160;and#160;and#160;309
and#160;and#160;and#160; Notesand#160;and#160;and#160;310
and#160;and#160;and#160; Bibliographyand#160;and#160;and#160;334
and#160;and#160;and#160; Indexand#160;and#160;and#160;342