Summary: Murder Sheet—Spin Docs: Monster: The Ed Gein Story (2025) with Author Harold Schechter

Podcast: Murder Sheet
Episode: Spin Docs: Monster: The Ed Gein Story (2025) with Author Harold Schechter
Release Date: October 21, 2025
Hosts: Áine Cain (A), Kevin Greenlee (B)
Guest: Harold Schechter (C), true crime author and Ed Gein expert

Overview: Episode Theme and Purpose

This episode of Murder Sheet marks the second installment of the "Spin Docs" miniseries, where hosts Áine Cain and Kevin Greenlee analyze the accuracy, ethics, and impact of popular true crime docudramas. In this episode, they focus on Netflix’s "Monster: The Ed Gein Story" (season 3 of the Ryan Murphy/Ian Brennan anthology series), a dramatization that has quickly become both popular and controversial for its lurid and highly fictionalized portrayal of Ed Gein.

Rather than watching the series themselves, the hosts consult premier Ed Gein expert and author Harold Schechter, whose groundbreaking book Deviant is foundational in bringing Gein’s true story to public attention. Schechter offers a critical take on the series, calling out inaccuracies, sensationalism, ethical lapses, and discussing the real facts of Gein’s life and crimes.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Introduction to Ed Gein and His Case ([05:20]–[08:35])

• Background: Ed Gein was a reclusive Wisconsin farmer whose bizarre crimes—grave robbing, murder, and creation of furniture from human remains—shocked the nation in the 1950s.
• Media Influence: Gein inspired horror classics like Psycho and The Texas Chain Saw Massacre.
• Hosts’ Position: Both Áine and Kevin state they did not watch the Netflix series, explaining their discomfort with dramatized violence about real-life murder victims.

2. "Monster: The Ed Gein Story"—Dramatization and Controversy ([09:05]–[12:10])

• Netflix’s Monster franchise is known for its graphic, lurid dramatizations and is often criticized for factual inaccuracies and insensitivity toward victims.
• The hosts highlight listener concerns about the accuracy of the latest Monster season and resolve to fact-check it with the help of Schechter.

3. Interview with Harold Schechter ([13:16]–[47:22])

Schechter’s Credentials and Relationship with the Ed Gein Case ([13:50]–[15:33])

• Schechter is recognized as the premier Gein expert, having conducted deep, original research and interviews for Deviant.

Schechter’s Reaction to the Netflix Series ([15:33]–[16:40])

• “For a long time I was aggrieved and upset because I felt sure [...] that anyone doing the Gein story would have to rely on my book [...] After I saw the series, I was upset because they didn’t use my book. Well, they did use it. [...] But there’s so much distortion and flat out fabrication and lies in the series that barely, except in the broadest way, it has very little to do with the historical facts.” — Harold Schechter [16:09]

Legal and Ethical Issues ([16:59]–[20:33])

• Schechter considered legal action against Netflix due to the use of material from his book, but determined there was no legal basis since most was fictionalized and Gein is a public figure.
• “There’s no real legal basis [...] probably an ethical basis, but you can’t really enforce that.” — Harold Schechter [19:47]

Accuracy of the Portrayal & Fabrications ([20:33]–[26:59])

• “Are people who watch this show going to walk away with an accurate understanding of who Gein was and what he did?” — Kevin [20:33]
  • “No, absolutely not.” — Schechter [20:46]
• Major inaccuracies:
  • No evidence Gein engaged in autoerotic asphyxiation or had an affair with a woman named Adeline Watkins.
  • “Adeline Watkins”: a real woman, but not Gein’s young lover/accomplice; she fabricated stories for publicity [22:05].
  • Gein did not help solve the Ted Bundy case, never had contact with Richard Speck or other famous killers, and was not an influencer for later serial killers.
  • The show falsely portrays Gein as the predecessor and model for serial killers, which is historically untrue.
  • Gein was not a sadistic “serial killer” in the behavioral sense—he killed for access to corpses, not pleasure in killing [23:22].
  • “He did murder two women, but he was not interested in torturing them. He executed very swiftly. He was just interested in having their corpses to bring back [...] to perform his different, you know, mutilations on.” — Schechter [23:56]
  • There is no evidence Gein killed his brother or multiple other alleged victims (hunters, Evelyn Hartley, etc.). [24:54, 34:49]

Gein’s Real Motivation ([24:47]–[26:59])

• Gein’s crimes stemmed from a severe Oedipal fixation and necrophilic compulsion.
  • “Underlying his crimes was this desire both to bring his mother back into his life, to resurrect his mother, whom he consciously worshiped [...] and at the same time enact these undoubtedly unconscious homicidal impulses towards her.” — Schechter [24:47]

Hollywood’s Dramatization and Ethics ([26:59]–[29:27])

• Modern docudramas emulate old Hollywood biopics—broad sketches, filled in with whatever is thought to entertain.
• The issue is that Monster and similar series present themselves as “true crime,” misleading viewers.

Sources and Credit ([29:27]–[30:59])

• Schechter regrets the lack of attribution but feels “relief” his work was not more closely tied to the show’s fabrications.

Debunking Other Myths and Fabrications ([31:16]–[36:49])

• Gein did not write letters to Richard Speck.
• He did not mentor or inspire other famous serial killers.
• Gein’s crimes were not widely known before Schechter’s book.
• He did not perform magic shows with body parts for neighborhood kids; he was a quiet, reportedly kind babysitter.
• He had nothing to do with the Evelyn Hartley case or any other torture murders.

What Did the Show Get Right? ([35:25]–[36:49])

• Gein’s mother died.
• He dug up graves, created strange “artifacts,” and wore a “mammary suit.” (but details are often exaggerated or fabricated)
• Any accurate details are likely derived from Schechter’s book Deviant.

Dangers of Factually Inaccurate Storytelling ([36:52]–[39:07])

• “Passing off [...] total bullshit as historical truth [...] is just promulgating ignorance.” — Schechter [37:07]
• Many viewers are unaware of the extent to which “true crime” shows fictionalize.
• Real people, including highly educated viewers, are misled—“She was saying, well, I know it’s dramatized, but, you know, I just assumed it was real. And she’s a very smart person.” [38:03]

The Role of Violence in Horror and True Crime ([39:07]–[41:24])

• While graphic violence is at the heart of horror cinema, it becomes ethically troubling when depicted as real events that never happened, especially when real victims are involved.

Actor’s Portrayal and Final Thoughts ([41:38]–[46:06])

• Schechter found the actor’s portrayal of Gein satisfactory, if more physically imposing than the real man.
• He recognizes the slow build of reality is less “entertaining” for TV, prompting the creators to dramatically escalate events.
• If the show had begun with a disclaimer stating its fictionality, Schechter would have had less objection.

Gein as Myth versus Reality ([44:54]–[46:37])

• Gein has become mythologized, like Billy the Kid or Jesse James—the facts are subsumed by legend when retold for entertainment.
• The problem arises when the show claims to present the “true story.”
• “If our understanding of this case is just through what’s on the Netflix show and we need to go deeper than that to really understand this case.” — Áine Cain [45:37]
• Schechter’s epigraph in Deviant (“the man that wandereth out of the way of understanding shall remain in the congregation of the dead” – Proverbs 21:16) is cited as prophetic.

Schechter’s Other Work and Recommendations ([46:51]–end)

• Schechter plugs his graphic novel, Did You Hear What Eddie Gein Done?, created with Eric Powell.
• The hosts urge listeners to read Deviant or Schechter’s other non-fiction for an accurate account.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the show’s fabrication:
  “There’s so much distortion and flat out fabrication and lies in the series that barely, except in the broadest way, it has very little to do with the historical facts.” — Harold Schechter [16:09]

• On the “influence” myth:
  “The notion that these serial killers saw Gein as a model or inspiration [...] is totally insane.” — Harold Schechter [31:22]

• On viewers’ misconceptions:
  “One of the things that’s upsetting to me is that people are going to come away from the show thinking they know who Ed Gein was and what his story was.” — Harold Schechter [20:46]

• On ethical responsibility:
  “Passing off, you know, total bullshit as historical truth—[...] it’s just promulgating ignorance. [...] You’re making people think they know something when they don’t.” — Harold Schechter [37:07]

Essential Timestamps

• [03:31] Content warning and episode theme
• [05:20] Ed Gein’s real case overview
• [09:05] Hosts explain why they didn’t watch Monster
• [13:16] Interview with Harold Schechter begins
• [16:09] Schechter’s blunt assessment of the show’s accuracy
• [22:05] Truth about Adeline Watkins
• [23:56] Gein’s actual methods and motives
• [26:59] Why Hollywood distorts the case
• [31:22] Debunking notion that Gein “inspired” other killers
• [37:07] On the danger of fictionalizing true crime
• [39:07] Thoughts on depiction of violence
• [46:06] Proverbs epigraph and warning about relying on sensationalized media

Conclusion

This episode of Murder Sheet offers a thorough debunking of Netflix’s "Monster: The Ed Gein Story," using Harold Schechter’s expertise to separate fact from fiction. The hosts and Schechter critique the ethical pitfalls of sensationalized true crime media and stress the importance of accurate, respectful storytelling. They encourage listeners to pursue well-researched sources, such as Schechter’s own work, for a true understanding of the Ed Gein case.

Recommended Reading:

• Deviant: The Shocking True Story of the Original "Psycho" by Harold Schechter
• Did You Hear What Eddie Gein Done? (graphic novel by Harold Schechter & Eric Powell)