Who Did What Now – Episode 174

The Texarkana Moonlight Murders – Part I
Host: Katie Charlwood
Date: January 3, 2026

Episode Overview

Katie Charlwood kicks off 2026 with a deep dive into a chilling chapter of American true crime: the Texarkana Moonlight Murders of 1946. As the first episode in a two-part series, this installment sets the stage with historical, social, and cultural context before meticulously recounting the Moonlight Murders’ first attack. With her trademark wit and candor, Katie explores the personalities, police mishandlings, and social blindspots that shaped the narrative of a town about to be haunted by a hooded killer.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. New Year, New Themes & Podcast Structure

• Katie shares excitement for the upcoming year, highlighting better organization and a month-long thematic approach to topics.
• (04:00) "From about August last year, I started doing month-long themes and I found that this works so much better...research is actually taking slightly less time because I have the historical context for each setting."
• The focus for January: 1940s Crime—part fascination, part excuse for vintage outfits and true interest.

2. Sources & Research Transparency

• Katie lists comprehensive sources to ensure historical accuracy, including FBI files, prison records, several newspapers, and a host of books and case studies.
• (08:20) “There was a lot of reading in this. So I’m naming them. Okay, this was not fun.”
• She’s also listened to other podcasts on the topic, noting their tendency for drama over fact, whereas she vows to cover discrepancies.

3. Setting the Scene: Texarkana in 1946

• Thorough context of Texarkana as a “twin city” straddling Texas and Arkansas, with interconnected economies and cultures.
• Outlines its railroad history and multiple origin stories for the city’s name.
• Post-WWII Texarkana is depicted as economically buoyant but with “invisible wounds of trauma” (i.e., PTSD) glossed over by a culture of emotional suppression.
• (17:32) “...Why carry so much emotional baggage when you can compress it down to a conveniently sized grief case?”

4. The Divide of Booze & Culture

• Details lingering effects of Prohibition, noting a “wet/dry” split between Bowie County, Texas (dry) and Miller County, Arkansas (wet).
• Tells of veterans returning to leisure and prosperity, from swing dances to “girly shows” (burlesque), painting a lively, layered social picture.

5. Foreshadowing the Violence to Come

• Though described as a “typical small southern town,” Katie underscores that only white residents truly felt secure—a “comfort blanket...about to get torn to shreds.”

The First Moonlight Attack: A Detailed Account

6. The Night of February 22, 1946 (29:33–42:00)

• Couple Attacked: Jimmy Hollis (24) and Mary Jean Larry (19) parked on Lovers Lane after a movie date.
• Quote (30:49): “It was around 11:45pm, and the amorous pair are disturbed by a flashlight blinding through the window...a hooded figure stooping beside the car. And with a gruff voice, the man said, 'I don’t want to kill you, fellow, so do as I say.'”
• A masked assailant (described as over 6ft tall), wielding both flashlight and gun, orders Jimmy to undress, then savagely beats him with the pistol.
• Assaults Mary Jean physically and sexually using the barrel of his gun—Katie is careful to clarify 1940s reporting terms vs. modern definitions of such an attack.

7. Victim Survival and Reactions

• Mary Jean escapes, frantically seeking help at a nearby house and flagged down a passing car.
• Jimmy, despite severe skull fractures, stumbles to the road to get help after the attacker flees the scene.
• Quote (40:29): “Now, the driver...refused to let the clearly injured man into his car. Instead, he zoomed towards town, where he called the Texarkana Funeral Home. Before you think that’s pessimistic, the mortuary had an ambulance...”

8. Immediate Police and Community Response (42:23–52:00)

• Sheriff Bill Presley arrives quickly with deputes. They send the traumatized victims to hospital; Jimmy is critically injured, Mary Jean is stitched up and sent home.
• Contradictory victim descriptions of the assailant (race, mask/no mask) lead police to suspect the couple is hiding something, reflecting not just 1940s policing but the deep racial biases and gender discrimination of the era.
• Quote (47:28): “Both victims gave different descriptions of the attacker. Both agreed that he was at least 6ft tall. But that’s where the similarities end.”
• Katie contextualizes this with local history, including a racially motivated lynching just four years prior—a grim reminder of the climate of terror for Black residents.

9. Mishandlings, Assumptions, and Victim-Blaming

• Police focus on the couple as suspects, harassing them for two months. Sexual assault is not made public.
• Jimmy is out of work for months, both eventually leave town. The police consider the case personal (revenge or jealousy), not fearing a repeat.
• Quote (51:42): "Meanwhile, the police, believing that the couple were protecting their attacker and that this was a personal attack, decided that it wasn’t really necessary to keep looking."
• Jimmy warns police the assailant will strike again, but the authorities and community still believe their home is too safe for a random killer.

Katie’s Notable Takeaways & Riffs

• Discussion of Power in Sexual Violence:
  (39:33): “Rape is about power, about having control over another person. Sexual gratification is secondary, a byproduct, if you will. Power is the goal.”
• Cultural Blindspots:
  (50:00): She investigates why the attacker’s white hood wasn’t linked to Klan identity in contemporary reporting, underlining both a social and police refusal to engage with the idea.
• On True Crime Podcasting and Victim Respect:
  (56:42): “In order for me to tell the story...so succinct it would fit into one episode, I would have to remove a lot of information about the victims. And I won’t do it.”
• Critiques sensationalism and dramatization, highlighting the value of historical accuracy and respecting victims as people, not narrative devices.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• (17:32): “Why carry so much emotional baggage when you can compress it down to a conveniently sized grief case?”
• (43:36): “He was diagnosed with two or three skull fractures, depending on which report you read...slipped into a coma.”
• (46:58): “...Bonk on head makes remembering hard. Right. So the police, they don’t think about any of that because it’s 1946...”
• (47:50): “There’s a violent white hooded figure in the south and not one person suggests Klan...I read every report and it’s not a mention, it’s not a suggestion, it’s not a consideration.”
• (56:55): “You are getting a second episode and you are getting it soon...I didn’t want to brush over facts or victims and I didn’t want to half-arse this. So...I would have to remove a lot of information about the victims. And I won’t do it.”

Important Segment Timestamps

• Podcast Format & 1940s Crime Theme: 00:25–05:30
• Research & Sources: 05:30–08:50
• Texarkana History & Early Context: 09:10–23:00
• Texarkana in the Postwar Era: 23:00–27:00
• The First Attack – Detailed Narrative: 29:35–42:00
• Police Arrival and Early Investigation: 42:23–52:00
• Racial Tensions, Discrepancies, and Aftermath: 47:00–54:00
• Closing, Victim Respect, and Part II Preview: 55:00–end

Closing Notes & Recommendations

Katie closes with book, podcast, and show recommendations (including support for indie creators and friends: On Fire for History podcast), and teases that Part II will cover the subsequent, fatal attacks, the suspects, and the town’s transformation in the killer’s shadow.

She emphasizes: this story can’t be told “succinctly” without erasing the humanity of those involved, promising thoroughness and compassion in the next episode.

For listeners, Part I is a rigorous, context-rich narrative that devastates with its detail and emotional insight.
Stay tuned for Part II: the murders escalate, the manhunt begins, and a small town enters legend.