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The Making of Eddie Gein – The Real Life Psycho and Inspiration for the Character Norman Bates

A Childhood Full of Brimstone and Fire

Edward Theodore Gein was born to George and Augusta Gein on August 27, 1906 in La Crosse, Wis. With a brother who was 7 years his senior, Eddie was the baby of the family. Augusta was a domineering and extremely religious woman. She was convinced that her views were absolute and true. She raised her boys with a strict moral code, continuously warning them of the dangers of immoral and loose women: Her hope was to discourage her boys from giving in to their sexual desires due to their fear of being cast into the depths of hell. read more

Many call Italian child Rosalia Lombardo (December 13, 1918 – December 6, 1920) “Sleeping Beauty.” Unfortunately, due to pneumonia, Lombardo lived a very short life. Her death left her father (Mario Lombardo) devastated and eager to preserve her body. To preserve her corpse, he reached out to famous Sicilian embalmer Alfredo Salafia (November 7, 1869 – January 31, 1933).

There is not much known about the life of Rosalia. However, what is known, is that amazingly, thanks to the work of Alfredo Salafia, Lombardo is now one of the best preserved mummies in the world. read more

On July 27, 1768, in the region of Normandy that is now referred to as Orne, Charlotte Corday was born. Corday was a 5th generation matrilinear descendant of Pierre Corneille, who is typically considered the first great seventeenth-century French dramatist. Charlotte Corday was born into this aristocratic family as Marie-Anne Charlotte de Corday d’Armont: Keeping wealth and power in the family was important, as such, her parents were cousins.

While still a young girl, Charlotte Corday’s mother and older sister passed away. Her father’s inability to cope with the death of his wife and daughter, led to his sending Corday, and her little sister, to live in a convent in Caen. read more

Author Krystian Bala’s 2003 novel ‘Amok’ is more than a thriller, it’s a nightmare.

The perfect murder, no witnesses, no suspects and the case is closed. Krystian Bala is a Polish author. He penned the novel, ‘Amok.’ Bala debuted the novel in 2003 and despite its intriguing warning “For Adults Only,” it did not sell well. However, the novel does eventually become a best-seller in Poland. Although ‘Amok’ is chock-full of pornographic Oedipus complexes, bestiality and random sexual violence, the detailed narrative of a young woman’s murder raises the eyebrows of police because of the similarities between the actual murder of Dariusz Janiszewski and the book’s victim, Mary. read more

Some consider Bertha Gifford (October 1872 – August 20, 1951) to be America’s third female serial killer. This wicked woman was accused of murdering at least 17 people with large amounts of arsenic. Unfortunately, Gifford’s victims were forced to endure a very slow and agonizing death. The majority of historians agree that the murders had occurred over a period of twenty-one years.

The Early Years

Bertha Alice Williams Graham Gifford was born in Grubville, Missouri. During the early 1900s, she was a farmer’s wife in rural Catawissa, Missouri. In 1907, she married Eugene Gifford and was the mother of one child named James. People in her small farming community saw her as a good Samaritan who was always willing to help those in need. Gifford eventually earned the name “angel of mercy.” read more