Girls, I am telling you, I have to hand it to "Evil, I!!!!!!!!!" Just when I think I have the serial killer market cornered, they come up with someone I have not heard about yet, and last night was a doozy. I am talking about Robert Berdella, pictured above, who was known as "The Kansas City Butcher." That is Kansas City, MO, darlings!!!!!!!!!!!! This guy should have been cell mates with Jeffrey Dahmer; the two would have been trading secrets like women at a Bridge club swapping recipes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Mr. Berdella was a man of many talents. He knew how to wield a knife, because he worked as a cook at a series of Italian restaurants. Bet his veal picata was something special!!!!!!! He had attended the Kansas City Art Institute, from 1967 to 1969, so he had some creative flair. And he got out of the culinary business and into merchandising, opening and operating a knick knacks shop called "Bob's Bizarre Bazaar," specializing in occult items. Since Berdella's reign of terror lasted from about 1984 till 1987, one wonders if the shop created by Stephen King in his novel, "Needful Things" was influenced by Berdella.
And, of course, like all good serial killers, Mr. Berdella had his "issues." But, honey, I am telling you, serial killer or not, who doesn't????? And not all of us with issues become serial killers.
Even more unusual, in light that victims are usually female, is that, in Berdella's case, they were not. When he was young, his father died, and his mother remarried almost immediately, which he greatly resented. Clearly, he was acting out rage toward his mother, which, if his victims had been female, it would have made an odd kind of sense.
But those he chose were male itinerants, always gay, sometimes prostitutes--"lost souls", as he called them, whom he wanted to help. How, Bob???? By injecting things like Draino into them, and recording the effects???? By shooting electric voltage through some of them, then stopping, then starting again??? Did he have sex with these guys??? Oh, sure. Which is why I think he killed them. Inwardly, I think Berdella was your classic self-hating homosexual, and he took this to the extreme by wiping out any evidence that he had had homosexual contacts, at all.
Did he send them on their way, with cash and good wishes???? Oh, no!!! He killed them, then dismembered (yes, girls!!!!!!!) the bodies, stuffed them into black Hefty trash type bags, and left them out with the trash. Their poor families never got closure on the bodies. As he said in the program, "After the first three times, who would catch me?"
He did not count on one of those victims being able to escape. But one did, a young man named Chris Bryson, burning through his rope with matches, and fleeing the House Of Horrors to get help, tell the cops, which led to them looking into past missing men cases...and before you know it, Berdella was behind bars, for Life!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
But it was not a long one. He died in prison, of a heart attack, at the young age of 43. He wrote a note, claiming that he was not being given his heart medication. Having had a drug history when he was younger, I think his heart gave out, due to that.
Oh--I personally resent the swipe at John Fowles, who wrote one of my all-time favorite books, "The French Lieutenant's Woman." Berdella had said that seeing the film version of Fowles' "The Collector" (1965, with Terrence Stamp and Samantha Eggar) had an impact on him, and influenced him to do what he did. Too bad he wasn't inspired to jump off a roof, holding an umbrella, like Mary Poppins!!!!!!!!!!!!
Robert Berdella was one of the most disturbing cases I have seen on "Evil, I." And of course he gave gays a bad name. I wonder how he lured his victims, as he was not much to look at. Money, perhaps????? Shelter????? Darlings, I would not even date a guy who looks like Berdella, let alone go home with him.
Boys need to watch out for Mr. Goodbar, too. It's enough to consider swearing off Italian restaurants. But what fun would that be??????????
Interesting that Berdella did not live with his mother. Maybe she knew too much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
After you see this one, girls, you will need to soak in a hot tub!!!!!!!!!!
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