Ever wondered where Hollywood's most iconic villains came from? In our landmark 50th episode, we pull back the curtain on Edward Theodore Gein—the Wisconsin recluse whose nightmarish crimes spawned Norman Bates, Leatherface, Buffalo Bill, and countless other fictional monsters.
Born in 1906 to an alcoholic father and fanatically religious mother, Ed Gein's childhood was defined by isolation and psychological abuse. His mother Augusta, who taught him that all women were "harlots," kept her sons completely secluded from society on their 155-acre farm. When she died in 1945, Ed—then in his late 30s—was left utterly alone, having never developed basic social skills or relationships outside his family.
What followed was a descent into unimaginable horror. While the sleepy town of Plainfield saw Ed as merely an odd, pitiable figure who babysat local children, he harbored gruesome secrets. After the disappearance of hardware store owner Bernice Worden in 1957, authorities discovered her body at Ed's farm—along with furniture upholstered in human skin, bowls made from skulls, face masks crafted from women's faces, and most infamously, a belt made entirely of human nipples.
From Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho" to "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" and "The Silence of the Lambs," Gein's influence on horror cinema is immeasurable. As Netflix prepares to release "Monster: The Ed Gein Story" on October 3rd, join us for this unflinching exploration of the real-life nightmare behind your favorite scary movies. Because sometimes, truth is more terrifying than fiction.

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