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  • The Mad Sculptor

  • The Maniac, the Model, and the Murder that Shook the Nation
  • Written by: Harold Schechter
  • Narrated by: Peter Berkrot
  • Length: 10 hrs and 52 mins
  • 3.3 out of 5 stars (4 ratings)

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The Mad Sculptor

Written by: Harold Schechter
Narrated by: Peter Berkrot
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Publisher's Summary

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 these 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 20th century. Harold Schechter’s masterly 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 end.

©2014 Harold Schechter (P)2013 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.
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What listeners say about The Mad Sculptor

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

This IS a good story

I can’t say why, but I had a hard time getting through this one… I kept falling asleep. Something about the narration perhaps, though I did like it. Gets better half way through. Good NYC of the 1930’s story. Interesting overall and a must listen for true crime fans.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Narrator is perfect for this story!

The story was great! Very interesting to hear of what society was like in the 30s/40s. Very interesting to hear how crime scenes were investigated and how the judicial system navigated cases involving mentally ill people. The narrator was superb for this story! He actually made me laugh several times. I will look for more titles read by Berkrot.

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