Monster season 3 true story: Who was the real Ed Gein?

The Netflix series has so far chronicled the story of notorious serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer and just last year, the case of Lyle and Erik Menendez (portrayed by Alexander Chavez and Cooper Koch), who were found guilty of murdering their parents.

It's also been announced that season 4 will focus on Lizzie Borden, who was tried and acquitted of the axe murders of her father and stepmother in 1892. Casting for that series has been confirmed but as of now, there are only a matter of weeks until the new third season – focused on Ed Gein – is released.

Sons of Anarchy star Charlie Hunnam is leading the cast as American murderer and suspected serial killer Gein, whose crimes have gone on to inspire plenty of chilling fictional characters.

As per the Netflix synopsis: "In the frozen fields of 1950s rural Wisconsin, a friendly, mild-mannered recluse named Eddie Gein lived quietly on a decaying farm – hiding a house of horrors so gruesome it would redefine the American nightmare.

"Driven by isolation, psychosis, and an all-consuming obsession with his mother, Gein’s perverse crimes birthed a new kind of monster that would haunt Hollywood for decades."

But who was he? Read on for the true story of Ed Gein, that has inspired the new season of Netflix's Monster.

Monster season 3 true story: Who was the real Ed Gein?

Born in 1906 as Edward Theodore Gein in Wisconsin, Ed grew up alongside elder brother Henry and was the son of George, who struggled with alcoholism, and Augusta, who was deeply religious.

The household was a puritanical one, led by the teachings of Augusta, who Ed soon became devoted to despite her being verbally abusive and domineering. In approximately 1915, Augusta was said to have moved the family from La Crosse to Plainfield, still in Wisconsin, but to a farm. Ed rarely left the farm itself, only to go to school and in 1940, his father passed away, prompting the brothers take more of a leading role in the duties of the farm.

It was in 1944 that Ed's brother Henry was found dead after a routine brush burning went wrong and the fire became uncontrollable. Circumstances were a mystery at the time, with Ed reporting Henry as missing to the police but eventually leading them to exactly where his body was. With Ed's later life events widely known, it has led to speculation that he was somehow involved in the death of his older brother.

Ed's mother Augusta died one year later in 1945, which led to him becoming a complete hermit with the house descending into mess but Augusta's room being preserved as a shrine of sorts. In the wake of her death, Ed earned a living by working as a handyman (and an occasional babysitter) but also developed an interest in books about anatomy.

In 1957, a 58-year-old hardware store owner named Bernice Worden was reported missing in Plainfield and, having been seen with her a short time before her disappearance, police went to visit Ed at his home. It was there that they discovered her decapitated body, while her head was later found in a box and her heart was found in a plastic bag.

On further inspection of Ed's home, the police found that Ed had collected numerous body parts, used to make masks and clothing which he was said to have worn around his home. Household items such as bowls were also found, which were made from human skulls.

The police discovered that Ed had regularly robbed graves in order to collect human remains. They also discovered the head of another missing woman, 54-year-old tavern owner Mary Hogan, at Ed's property, who had disappeared in 1954.

Ed went on to admit to killing the two women (who were said to resemble his late mother) but pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. In 1958, he was deemed unfit for trial after being diagnosed with schizophrenia and was held in numerous psychiatric institutions.

In 1968, Ed was deemed fit for trial and was subsequently found guilty of Worden's murder. It was said that due to financial reasons, prosecutors only tried one murder case, and so Ed wasn't tried for Hogan's murder.

Despite the police trying to tie him to other murders and disappearances, no definitive evidence or conclusions were drawn.

Gein was deemed insane at the time of his sentencing and was returned to a psychiatric institution where he remained until his death in 1984. He died of complications from lung cancer and respiratory illnesses, aged 77.

Monster: The Ed Gein Story will premiere on Netflix on 3rd October – sign up for Netflix from £5.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.

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