Starkweather: The Untold Story of the Killing Spree That Changed America
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- Create Date：2023-12-21 13:21:47
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- Author：Harry N. MacLean
- ISBN：1640095411
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Summary
The definitive story of Charles Starkweather， often considered to be the first mass killer in the modern age of America
On January 21， 1958， nineteen-year-old Charles Starkweather changed the course of crime in the United States when he murdered the parents and sister of his fourteen-year-old girlfriend （and possible accomplice）， Caril Ann Fugate， in a house on the edge of Lincoln， Nebraska。 They then drove to the nearby town of Bennet， where a farmer was robbed and killed。 When Starkweather’s car broke down， the teenagers who stopped to help were murdered and jammed into a storm cellar。 By the time the dust settled， ten innocent people were dead， and the city of Lincoln was in a state of terror。 Schools closed。 Men with rifles perched on the roofs of their houses。 The National Guard patrolled the street。 If there is a cultural version of PTSD， the town suffered from it。
Starkweather and Fugate’s capture and arrest， and the resulting trials about the killing spree， received worldwide coverage。 The event would serve as the inspiration for the movie Natural Born Killers and Springsteen’s iconic album Nebraska。 Today， the story has dropped far from the national consciousness。 With new material， new reporting， and new conclusions about the possible guilt or innocence of Fugate， the tale is ripe for an updated and definitive retelling。 In Starkweather， bestselling author Harry N。 MacLean tells the story of this shocking event and its lasting impact， a crime spree that struck deep into the heart of the heartland。
On January 21， 1958， nineteen-year-old Charles Starkweather changed the course of crime in the United States when he murdered the parents and sister of his fourteen-year-old girlfriend （and possible accomplice）， Caril Ann Fugate， in a house on the edge of Lincoln， Nebraska。 They then drove to the nearby town of Bennet， where a farmer was robbed and killed。 When Starkweather’s car broke down， the teenagers who stopped to help were murdered and jammed into a storm cellar。 By the time the dust settled， ten innocent people were dead， and the city of Lincoln was in a state of terror。 Schools closed。 Men with rifles perched on the roofs of their houses。 The National Guard patrolled the street。 If there is a cultural version of PTSD， the town suffered from it。
Starkweather and Fugate’s capture and arrest， and the resulting trials about the killing spree， received worldwide coverage。 The event would serve as the inspiration for the movie Natural Born Killers and Springsteen’s iconic album Nebraska。 Today， the story has dropped far from the national consciousness。 With new material， new reporting， and new conclusions about the possible guilt or innocence of Fugate， the tale is ripe for an updated and definitive retelling。 In Starkweather， bestselling author Harry N。 MacLean tells the story of this shocking event and its lasting impact， a crime spree that struck deep into the heart of the heartland。
Reviews
Chaz
，
2。5 stars I guess。。。Interesting book on a topic I knew nothing about。 Certainly not a book that will ever be promoted by the Nebraska Board of Tourism （if there is such a thing）。。。 It's pretty stark。I will say the book could have used a better， more competent editor。 The text is liberally sprinkled with typos， the occasional redundant/repeated sentence （see if you can find the nearly verbatim repeat on pages 17 & 18！）， and even some factual errors which I picked up despite not knowing the story: 2。5 stars I guess。。。Interesting book on a topic I knew nothing about。 Certainly not a book that will ever be promoted by the Nebraska Board of Tourism （if there is such a thing）。。。 It's pretty stark。I will say the book could have used a better， more competent editor。 The text is liberally sprinkled with typos， the occasional redundant/repeated sentence （see if you can find the nearly verbatim repeat on pages 17 & 18！）， and even some factual errors which I picked up despite not knowing the story: One of the key locations in the story is "924 Belmont Street" in Lincoln， Nebraska。 However， according to Google it should actually be Belmont Avenue as there appears to be no Belmont Street in modern day Lincoln。 The author also states the current day address is a field， which also appears incorrect according to Google。 Maybe I am looking at the wrong place？Additionally there is an obviously incorrect photo caption stating the fugitives' car was abandoned the night of Jan 21， 1958， when it is in fact perfectly obvious from the text the car was abandoned on the 27th。 That kind of mistake just seems really sloppy and makes me wonder what other errors are sprinkled throughout the text that I didn't （or couldn't） pick up on。Speaking of photos， the author makes many repeated references to a widely circulated photo of Starkweather and Fugate sitting on a love seat。 This photo is referenced dozens of times， yet it is not included in the book。 Sure， the photo can easily be found on the web。。。 But still。。。 It seemed odd not to include it。。。 A pretty big miss in my opinion。And then there is the epilogue where the author pays an uninvited visit to the elderly and infirmed Caril Fugate Clair in her nursing home。 Although according to his account the visit goes well （until the nursing home staff chases him away） I can't help but feel a little。。。 Ick。 That scene feels a bit stalkerish and fanboy。Also in the epilogue， the author pays a visit to the Nebraska State Historical Society because he wants to see （and hold！） the three guns used in the crime spree。 C-R-E-E-P-Y。 But even here another miss: He claims to have photographed the guns， so why not include the photos？ What was the point other than to scratch the authors personal itch？All-in-all a good read。 The courtroom/trial sections are a bit of a drag if I'm being honest。 But worth the read I think。 。。。more
Dr。 Peter
，
This is one of the best books on the issues of mass murders and the book follows the lives of both Charlie Starkweather and Caril Fugate and the 1958 murders in Lincoln Nebraska and the trials and life of Caril thereafter （Charlie was put to death）。 Research is extraordinary and the writing is detailed and crisp。
Erica Gilbert
，
3。5/5
Tom Pace
，
What an amazing book。 This is at least the fifth book of MacLean's that I have read and it is his best。It is mesmerizing， meticulous in detail， draws you in and won't let you go until its very emotional ending。 In 1958 Charles Starkweather went on a killing spree killing ten people over a period of ten days across the state of Nebraska， terrorizing the states of Nebraska and Wyoming where he was finally caught。 I was a teenager living in Casper Wyoming at the time and remember well the fear we a What an amazing book。 This is at least the fifth book of MacLean's that I have read and it is his best。It is mesmerizing， meticulous in detail， draws you in and won't let you go until its very emotional ending。 In 1958 Charles Starkweather went on a killing spree killing ten people over a period of ten days across the state of Nebraska， terrorizing the states of Nebraska and Wyoming where he was finally caught。 I was a teenager living in Casper Wyoming at the time and remember well the fear we all felt as he moved west from Lincoln。 MacLean captures how Nebraska and its neighboring states were paralyzed by the fear of what was coming toward them。 He chronicles in detail the killing spree and he writes thoroughly about Starkweather's growing up， the abuse and ridicule he faced - a red haired runt of a kid。 With Starkweather was a 13 year old girl named Caril Ann Fugate。 This girl was treated by law enforcement as Starkweather's accomplice even though she claimed to be innocent and a hostage。 One of the major questions he tries to answer is about her guilt。 When you read this book you must go on to the epilogue which is a personal account of what MacLean went through both as the writer of this book and as a teenager from Lincoln at the time of the killings。 He was 3 years younger than Starkeather and his older brother Mike was in a class with Starkweather in high school。 Because of his own deep involvement in this case this book has much more of an emotional wallop than his previous books。 。。。more
Geo Forman
，
Highly touted， terribly disappointing。 Truman Capote， he's not， In Cold Blood， it isn't。 I ended up skim reading after a third of the book。 Highly touted， terribly disappointing。 Truman Capote， he's not， In Cold Blood， it isn't。 I ended up skim reading after a third of the book。 。。。more
Caitie
，
After thinking it over， I think I'll settle on 3。5/5 stars for this one。I found Starkweather to be an interesting read， but I think the author got too bogged down in the details at times。 I think I remember seeing the Charles Starkweather and Caril Fugate case on some TV show （American Justice， maybe？ But it doesn't matter） and thought it was a disturbing case of two young people who go on a killing spree across Nebraska in January of 1958。 The pair grew up in Lincoln， the state capital。 Charles After thinking it over， I think I'll settle on 3。5/5 stars for this one。I found Starkweather to be an interesting read， but I think the author got too bogged down in the details at times。 I think I remember seeing the Charles Starkweather and Caril Fugate case on some TV show （American Justice， maybe？ But it doesn't matter） and thought it was a disturbing case of two young people who go on a killing spree across Nebraska in January of 1958。 The pair grew up in Lincoln， the state capital。 Charles Starkweather was 19， had quit school and was a garbage man。 Caril was fourteen and an eighth grader。 The two were dating and were very close。。。。apparently。 Charles Starkweather killed Caril's mother， stepdad and two year old sister Betty。 He then kept Caril hostage in her own home for six days （while some believe that Caril knew about the killing of her parents and she was hiding in plain sight）。 To keep people away， because they kept stopping by the house， Caril initially said that everyone had the flu。 Eventually a note appeared on the back door stating that no one could come into the house。 After those 6 days， Charles and Caril left Lincoln and Charles would end up killing a total of 11 people。 This included a teenage couple and a wealthy couple and their maid。 I appreciated the author's attempts to how this crime spree changed the way people in Nebraska saw their young people。 While Nebraska is seen as boring now， this crime put Lincoln on that map。 Caril was essentially vilified， made out to be a jealous and was oversexualized--seen as the reason she helped Starkweather。 But what people don't seem to realize， or remember， was that Caril was a teenage girl， who's brain wasn't fully developed。 I do tend to agree with the author that she wasn't at home when Starkweather killed her family， and didn't know what to do when he just kept killing people。 But MacLean's description of the trial and how Caril's brain wasn't fully and trauma was so much。 Too much detail that could've been simplified in a short chapter。 Yes， Caril grew up poor on the "wrong side of the tracks，" as it were， but there was probably a better way to explain all of this。 And that was part of the problem， anyone who isn't in the norm is obviously a bad person in the 195os when "sameness，" was everything。 People didn't want to look deeper into the case， because it was tragic but went against everything that people stood for: that teens could go wrong in such a big way。I think I was just expecting something else from this， I didn't need the author's discussion of his own time growing in Lincoln （contemporary of Starkweather and Caril）。 。。。more
Gay Specking
，
Interesting but too much detail。 Obviously the author did a lot of research but much of the writing is repetitive with unnecessary details。 The only way I got through it was to scan many of the pages。Maclean made his point about Carli’s innocence but much of the book is unnecessary。
Cate Glenn
，
Starkweather is a gripping true crime novel that delves into the enigmatic role of the only witness to this killing spree。Was Karil Fugate an accomplice or a victim？Dive into this thought-provoking， superbly written story that uncovers the complexities of this haunting story and decide for yourself。
AB
，
This is not the definitive story of Charles Starkweather it claims to be。This book would be better titled Fugate， because what I read was not an analysis or explanation of Starkweather’s crimes， but rather an attempt at a psychological explanation for Caril Ann Fugate’s behaviour during them。 The majority of the book is in fact devoted to Caril and her role in the crimes。 Which is fine， Caril is the most interesting （and most wronged） person in this whole saga。 But Starkweather is strangely abse This is not the definitive story of Charles Starkweather it claims to be。This book would be better titled Fugate， because what I read was not an analysis or explanation of Starkweather’s crimes， but rather an attempt at a psychological explanation for Caril Ann Fugate’s behaviour during them。 The majority of the book is in fact devoted to Caril and her role in the crimes。 Which is fine， Caril is the most interesting （and most wronged） person in this whole saga。 But Starkweather is strangely absent from his own story， there is no serious attempt to explain and analyse his crimes in a wider social context， which is the first thing I expected from a true crime book， and any book dealing with a historical event。Maclean goes into great detail about Starkweather’s childhood and how he was bullied relentlessly and how this contributed to the rage he carried throughout life， but he stops short of any further analysis。 There is little to no discussion of Starkweather’s class background， which was a cause of great anguish to him throughout his life and is what drove his hatred of society and what was arguably the underlying cause for the killing spree。 Starkweather himself said ‘I just got fed up with having nothing and being nobody。 Poverty gives you nothing。 People who are poor take what they can get。’ He worked dead end jobs he hated; he saw himself condemned to poverty for the rest of his life: ‘What kind of future do you think I’d have throwing garbage？ How long do you think I’d lived？ Forty years？ Too long。 Ten years？ Too long。 Better a week with the one who loved me for what I was。’ His situation was particularly crushing given he was living in a time in which the country was experiencing an unprecedented economic boom （Maclean gives a fantastic write up of the 1950s in his introduction but fails to link it to Charlie and Caril’s situations）。 The book suffers for these oversights。 It is in no way the definitive story of Charles Starkweather when it completely ignores comments like this， comments which give the reason behind his murder spree。 It renders Maclean’s conclusions of why Starkweather went on his rampage as incredibly simplistic – his wish was ‘not to puncture or punish society but simply walk violently down the path before him and become more in death than he had ever been in life。’ （p。153） As Charlie’s above quotes show， and the many more he made in his ‘autobiography’ Rebellion， his biggest beef was with society – ‘dead people are all on the same level。’The untold story of the killing spree that changed America left untold; the book turns to Caril。 The central part of the book is examining Caril’s actions during the spree to determine whether or not she was a hostage as she claimed or a willing accomplice。 Maclean did his own research into adolescence psychology， PTSD， acute distress disorder amongst other things and goes step by step through the spree， discussing how he believes Caril’s brain would have reacted throughout the entire ordeal， concluding that because of this she is not culpable。 He sets out a strong argument but it is beyond excessive。 For one Maclean is not a psychologist， and two it’s very hard to diagnose someone retroactively， especially 65 years after the fact。 All it is， all it ever can be， is speculation。 The book then delves into how Caril didn’t get a fair trial。 Here again it is too excessive。 Instead of focussing on the injustices of the time， Maclean sets out to prove how， if Caril’s trial happened today， she would have been found innocent。 To do this Maclean references trials that came after Caril’s and retroactively applies their findings to hers。 Whilst this shows have far the legal system has come， frankly it has nothing to do with Caril’s 1958 trial and thus shouldn’t have been included to the extent it was。The book also suffers from repetition （‘Clara Ward’s red-and-white shirt’ appears three times in as many pages， the fact that Caril liked to swear and swore like a sailor is mentioned continuously）， name inconsistences （Chief Carrol when his name was Carroll， Marjorie Marlett when her name was Marlette， the dual use of Lilyan and Lillian） and errors （Sissy Spacek didn’t wear majorette boots in Badlands）。 There was also an entire chapter dedicated to the history of the state of Nebraska which was frankly pointless。 None of it related to Charles Starkweather in any way or added any context to his crimes。 Maclean does however make very good observations in different parts of the book。 His fact-based dismissal of the now gospel theory that Charlie turned against Caril because she called him crazy was very good， as was the argument that even though Caril had broken up with Starkweather before the rampage， her love for him was still there that she could not have untangled herself from him so easily。 The new evidence and information about her he included is also very good。 The ending was particularly powerful。Overall， this book lacking in information in some parts， oversaturated with it in other parts。 It reads more like a legal studies book than it does a true crime one。 I’m still glad I read it for the new insights I gained， but it is in no way the definitive story of Charles Starkweather。I recommend reading the trial transcripts and police statements of Charlie and Caril if you really want to get to the bones of the case。 Also read Pro Bono by Jeff McArthur and Starkweather by William Allen。（Starkweather’s quotes taken from Hunting Humans by Elliott Leyton， which I also recommend） 。。。more
Lisa Mcbroom
，
Psychological study of teenage spree killer Charles Starkweather and his accomplice 14 year old Caril Ann Fugate in the "Badlands " in the 1950s。 This case has always fascinated me ever since I saw the movie Badlands starring Sissy Spacek and Martin Sheen in which the case was based on。 Another good film is Murder in the Heartland with Tim Roth and Fairuza Balk。 Psychological study of teenage spree killer Charles Starkweather and his accomplice 14 year old Caril Ann Fugate in the "Badlands " in the 1950s。 This case has always fascinated me ever since I saw the movie Badlands starring Sissy Spacek and Martin Sheen in which the case was based on。 Another good film is Murder in the Heartland with Tim Roth and Fairuza Balk。 。。。more
Ron Frampton
，
A book about the first killing spree that changed America and is Carli an accomplice or not？
Lori L （She Treads Softly）
，
Starkweather by Harry N。 MacLean is a very highly recommended true crime story。In the eight days from January 21-29， 1958 nineteen-year-old Charles Starkweather and （possibly） his fourteen-year-old girlfriend Caril Ann Fugate， murdered 10 people the majority in or near Lincoln， Nebraska。 （Another man was killed weeks earlier by Starkweather。） The killing spree began with Caril's mother， stepfather， and little sister。 The reverberations of the case were immediate and Starkweather has been called Starkweather by Harry N。 MacLean is a very highly recommended true crime story。In the eight days from January 21-29， 1958 nineteen-year-old Charles Starkweather and （possibly） his fourteen-year-old girlfriend Caril Ann Fugate， murdered 10 people the majority in or near Lincoln， Nebraska。 （Another man was killed weeks earlier by Starkweather。） The killing spree began with Caril's mother， stepfather， and little sister。 The reverberations of the case were immediate and Starkweather has been called the first modern-day mass killer。 Caril's involvement has never been settled。 Both were convicted。 Charlie Starkweather was executed， while Caril Fugate served 18 years before her parole。In Starkweather， MacLean re-examines official documents， interviews， and notes to provide a new account of this case。 The book is broken down into six parts。 Part I introduces Charlie and Caril。 Part II， The Killings， sets forth two versions of the killings， one from Charlie's point-of-view and another from Caril's。 Charlie gave at least 10 different versions and changed key facts in each version。 Caril's version stayed pretty much the same。 Part III。 The Trials， details both trials。 Part IV， Guilt or Innocence， MacLean shares his own analysis of what he believes happened。 Part V， The Consequences， describes the effect of the killings on various people involved。 Part VI， Impact， he discusses the impact on American culture。 As the author grew up in Lincoln during the crimes， he saved the personal effect his research had for his epilogue。Presenting the conflicting points-of-view of Charlie and Caril as well as then presenting the many changes Charlie made to his recounting of what happened is a smart move。 MacLean's own analysis is quite interesting and he made some good points。 This is a very well written account of a case many are familiar with and crime enthusiasts will appreciate the care taken to the story。Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Counterpoint via NetGalley。http://www。shetreadssoftly。com/2023/1。。。 。。。more
Kira
，
I received this book in exchange for a honest review from NetGalley。I have heard about the story of the Starkweather spree killing in the past on podcasts and other media but I was very impressed with the different approach taken by this author。 I liked that he had a question to pose and focused in on that by looking into whether Caril Ann Fugate was a victim or part of the killings。 The authors use of the differing accounts of both Caril and Charles was very interesting and overall I generally I received this book in exchange for a honest review from NetGalley。I have heard about the story of the Starkweather spree killing in the past on podcasts and other media but I was very impressed with the different approach taken by this author。 I liked that he had a question to pose and focused in on that by looking into whether Caril Ann Fugate was a victim or part of the killings。 The authors use of the differing accounts of both Caril and Charles was very interesting and overall I generally liked this book。 。。。more
Spinster
，
I have read several books about Charlie Starkweather， listened to a few podcasts， and watched multiple documentaries。 Why？ Well， I'm a weirdo。 But I'm not alone--the spree killings that Starkweather committed would shock the country if they happened today。 For people who were there in square， 1950s America， it's safe to say the crimes were traumatic。 It's not surprising that they've become a pop culture trope。 MacLean was there， a resident of Nebraska。 He does a fantastic job recounting each mur I have read several books about Charlie Starkweather， listened to a few podcasts， and watched multiple documentaries。 Why？ Well， I'm a weirdo。 But I'm not alone--the spree killings that Starkweather committed would shock the country if they happened today。 For people who were there in square， 1950s America， it's safe to say the crimes were traumatic。 It's not surprising that they've become a pop culture trope。 MacLean was there， a resident of Nebraska。 He does a fantastic job recounting each murder and describing what Lincoln was like in the 50s: the landscape， the culture， the street dividing the city into the "good side of town" and the "wrong side of the tracks。" Americans have become enamored of a version of this story that centers on two rebellious teen lovers leaving a trail of blood in their wake。 With time， cooler heads have begun to revisit the story to examine what was really happening to Caril Fugate。 Was she a murderer， Bonnie to Charlie's Clyde？ Or was she an unwitting victim herself？ MacLean presents a split narrative， describing each crime from Charlie's point of view and then presenting Caril's。 Charlie's story， he notes， changed almost a dozen times whereas Caril's was consistent each time she told it。 Charlie's story is also repetitive in a way that's familiar to anyone who's watched a lot of westerns or action movies。 In his telling， his victims come at him with guns and knives。 They wrestle his weapon out of his hands before he's able to overpower them and shoot in self defense。 Funny， isn't it， that the majority of his victims were shot in the back？ Starkweather provides a detailed retelling of a brutal series of crimes and their aftermath。 I'd recommend it to anyone new to the story， but there's a lot that true crime weirdos like me will find revelatory no matter how familiar with it we are。 Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a free ARC in exchange for this review。 。。。more
Zandt McCue
，
I once rode shotgun with a quiet coworker， and we shared hours of silence during our daily car rides。 The only disruption to our monotony was his choice of true crime podcasts as the soundtrack to our journey。 Although I had a personal connection to a famous case， I usually steered clear of true crime as a genre。 But lately， it seems everyone is binge-watching true crime shows on Netflix， and those car rides immersed me in a world of gruesome murders that I found unsettling。Enter "Starkweather，" I once rode shotgun with a quiet coworker， and we shared hours of silence during our daily car rides。 The only disruption to our monotony was his choice of true crime podcasts as the soundtrack to our journey。 Although I had a personal connection to a famous case， I usually steered clear of true crime as a genre。 But lately， it seems everyone is binge-watching true crime shows on Netflix， and those car rides immersed me in a world of gruesome murders that I found unsettling。Enter "Starkweather，" the chilling surname of the killer chronicled in Harry MacLean's book。 It is the start of spooky season in America， and a series of small events led me to this book。 Admittedly， I don't fit the typical true crime reader profile， but MacLean manages to captivate a broader audience。One standout aspect of the book is MacLean's approach to detailing the killings。 He not only recounts the events but also presents the conflicting narratives of the individuals involved， Charlie and Caril。 Throughout the book， these testimonies evolve， leaving readers to ponder where the truth truly lies。 MacLean's primary focus is unraveling Caril's role in the murders: was she a hostage， a participant， or a victim of an imperfect justice system？In my opinion， the weakest part of the book is MacLean's deep dive into the technical aspects of the legal system。 He delves into topics like fight or flight responses and includes references to other cases， even recent ones like the college student killings in Idaho。 While these details aim to shed light on Caril's situation， I found them somewhat excessive。What truly resonated with me was how MacLean vividly set the stage in 1950's Nebraska， transporting readers to that era。 His ability to provide clear imagery of the events， blending facts with idealized portrayals， makes the book accessible to those who don't typically read about real-life crimes or murders。 Overall， "Starkweather" is an intriguing read that goes beyond the typical true crime narrative。 。。。more
bookmammal
，
As a true crime fan， the subject matter was interesting to me， but there was SO MUCH unnecessary repetition in the narrative。 I understand how the author wanted to organize how he told the story， but it just didn’t work for me。 So many of the same details were repeated over and over again。 I made myself finish the book because I really did want to know how this true story ended， but the writing style just wasn’t my taste。
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starkweather the untold story of the killing spree that changed america