Eye of newt and toe of frog: what was really in the witches’ cauldron in Macbeth?
(CW: torture, death, historical racism, historical antisemitism, animal and human body parts)
Ever since Scott Cunningham first made the following claim in the 1980s, there has been an increasingly widely circulated belief that the ingredients of the Macbeth potion were not grisly animal parts at all but merely herbs and plants, concealed under code names:
“every ingredient (Shakespeare) lists as being in the witches' pot refers to a plant and not the gruesome substance popularly thought”
This proposal had not appeared at all in analyses of Shakespeare prior to Cunningham’s Magical Herbalism: The Secret Craft of the Wise but is now extremely popular, especially the often-cited proposal that ‘eye of newt really meant mustard seed’. Lists of ‘herbal codes’ circulate online, purporting to explain all the different ingredients of the Macbeth potion away as plants. Witches, according to these lists, were grossly misrepresented. Their grisly concoctions were nothing but herbal mixtures.
Code-names and substitutions have certainly played a part in magic in history. Cunningham was familiar with, and makes reference to, the Greek Magical Papyri in which a famous list of secret substitutions is given. For example, ‘the tears of a Hamadryas baboon’ are to be taken to mean ‘dill juice’. The concept of a secret herbal code in which grisly-seeming or mythical ingredients are in fact plants – and only the enlightened few are aware of this - was therefore not a new one.
Was Cunningham correct?
First let’s look at the historical context.
Shakespeare wrote Macbeth under the patronage of James VI of Scotland / I of England. The King was paranoid about witches, was personally present at the interrogation of at least one, and wrote a book called Daemonologie all about them. The depiction of witches in Macbeth would have needed to flatter and support the King’s personal convictions. These fictional witches are therefore evil through and through, and we should be suspicious of any interpretation that seeks to lessen their horror.
Other plays were written around the same time that feature witches in similar roles, such as Jonson’s Masque of Queens and Middleton’s The Witch. We will come to those in due time.
Let’s examine the evidence for Cunningham’s claim, line by line.
Round about the cauldron go;
In the poison’d entrails throw.
Right from the start, we have a reference to ‘poison’d entrails’. This immediately tells us that the ingredients are characterised both by being poisonous or venomous in nature and by coming from living creatures. Herbs and plants do not have entrails.
Toad, that under cold stone
Days and nights hast thirty one
Swelter’d venom sleeping got,
Boil thou first i’ the charmed pot.
The first ingredient is, quite plainly, a living toad. Specifically, it is a toad that has been secreting venom over a period of time.
The choice of a venom-secreting toad as the very first ingredient cannot have been a coincidence, seeing as the King had himself interrogated an accused witch who had been put to torture, and who had ‘confessed’ to collecting toad’s venom in order to use it in a sorcerous attempt against the King’s life.
The alleged witch’s name was Agnis Thompson, and the King interrogated her in 1591. His account of this is written up in his book, Daemonologie. Agnis Thompson 'confessed' to having taken a black toad, hung it up and collected the venom that dripped from it over three days in an oyster shell. This venom was supposedly intended to be used in a spell that would bewitch the King to death, 'and put him to such extraordinary paines, as if he had beene lying vpon sharp thornes and endes of Needles.'
It is worth noting at this point that the King also recorded his belief that the Devil causes witches to "joint dead corpses, & to make powders thereof" which are then used in spells. This belief can also be found in Daemonologie.
So in the very first ingredient that goes into the cauldron, the live toad steeped in its own venom, we have an immediate disproof of Cunningham’s claim that ‘every ingredient refers to a plant’, along with a clear reference to the King’s own personal lived experience and profound beliefs concerning witches.
It ought to go without saying that King James VI/I was a deluded bigot who had innocent women tortured and put to death in service to his twisted agenda, but let’s say it anyway.
Fillet of a fenny snake,
In the cauldron boil and bake;
As with ‘entrails’, the use of the term ‘fillet’ leaves in no doubt that we are dealing with a dismembered living creature. A fenny snake is simply a snake from the fens.
Convoluted attempts have been made to identify ‘fillet of a fenny snake’ as a plant of some kind, but given that Cunningham’s claim has already been disproved, there seems no point in not taking Shakespeare at face value.
Eye of newt
Let’s get this out of the way: there is zero historical evidence that ‘eye of newt’ ever meant ‘mustard seed’. There are no herbals that give this as a name – not that were written prior to the 1980s, at any rate. The obvious conclusion is that it is modern lore created in sympathy with Cunningham’s claim. The ‘mustard seed’ interpretation is all over the Internet, of course, because sites typically copy one another without bothering to look for original sources.
(I would like to say, for the record, that if I assert here that ‘no historical source says X was ever used to mean Y’ and anyone later provides a historical source that unambiguously DOES say X was used to mean Y, I will print this article out and eat it. With mustard.)
Assertions that eye of newt meant mustard seed usually also assert that it was a popular component of witches’ spells. In fact, Macbeth is the one and only historical instance of ‘eye of newt’ appearing as a spell component. It is famous because the play is famous, not because it was in widespread use. The idea that it was a codename for some other ingredient thus appears even less credible.
Other attempts to interpret Shakespeare according to the Cunningham agenda include the rival claim, sometimes seen, that ‘eye of newt’ actually meant a type of daisy. Just as with mustard seed, there is no historical evidence at all to support this.
We should perhaps expect to encounter multiple claims as to the ‘real meaning’ of the potion ingredients, because the point of these claims is not to provide a definitive substitution code that was actually used by practitioners of the past, but simply to repeat the insistence that Shakespeare’s words do not mean what they say.
It is, of course, possible to assert that the enlightened ‘mustard seed’ interpretation has simply been handed down secretly through the years from witch to witch, never once appearing in print until the 1980s when such things could at last be shared openly within the hallowed pages of Llewellyn books. Claims of this sort are unanswerable.
Incidentally, the typical construction for plant names is not ‘B of A’, but ‘A’s B’ or simply ‘AB’, as we find with names like day’s eye (daisy), baby’s breath, coltsfoot and foxglove. If Shakespeare’s spell had run ‘breath of babe and eye of ox / foot of colt and glove of fox’ then we would be having a very different conversation.
Tongue of dog
This ingredient is the first one where the Cunningham agenda might seem credible, if it had not already been disproven by the very first of the ingredients. There is a herb called ‘houndstongue’, Cynoglossum officinale, which is also known as houndstooth and dog’s tongue.
Was Shakespeare referring to a herb here, then, rather than the tongue of a literal dog? Given the anatomical specificity of some of the later ingredients, there is no reason to think so. Animal tongues have played a part in magic for centuries. The Epistula Vulteris (800 CE), for example, proposes putting a vulture’s tongue in your shoe to make enemies adore you. The 16th century Tree of Knowledge instructs the reader to take the tongue of a hoopoe and hang it on the right side of the body, close to the heart, in order to defeat anyone in court.
Wool of bat
Despite this ingredient being relatively innocuous – ‘wool’ could theoretically be harvested from a bat without harming it – attempts have been made to identify this as moss, or even as holly leaves, via a convoluted train of association that links the shape of bat’s wings with the shape of holly.
No historical sources give ‘wool of bat’ or ‘bat’s wool’ as a term for a plant.
Toe of frog
Some modern sources assert that ‘toe of frog’ refers to the buttercup, possibly because the Latin name Ranunculus means ‘little frog’. One is left to wonder what part of a buttercup the ‘toe’ might refer to.
Unfortunately, no historical sources give ‘toe of frog’ or ‘frog’s toe’ as a term for a plant.
Adder’s fork
At first sight this looks like another possible point for Cunningham. Adders have forked tongues, and there are several plants that bear the name ‘adder’s tongue’. However, there is no evidence of the use of the specific term ‘adder’s fork’ to refer to a plant.
We would also have to explain why, given that these ingredients are demonstrably not being presented in an overall context of plant symbolism, any of the plants known as adder’s tongue would be intended here over the surface meaning.
Blindworm’s sting
The ‘sting’ (fang) of a venomous snake, or possibly a slow-worm, which are ironically not venomous. This ingredient is probably intended to pair with the last one: they are both from the mouths of reptiles.
No historical sources give ‘blindworm’s sting’ as a term for a plant.
Lizard’s leg
The leg of a lizard.
No historical sources give ‘lizard’s leg’ as a term for a plant.
Owlet’s wing
The wing of an owlet, or baby owl.
No historical sources give ‘owlet’s wing’ as a term for a plant. (I am getting as tired of typing this as you probably are of reading it.)
Scale of dragon
An ingredient that at first glance appears to buttress Cunningham’s claim, because unlike the others it cannot possibly mean what it says. Dragons don’t exist. However, ingredients that use the term ‘dragon’ in their naming do exist, such as ‘dragon’s blood’.
Excitingly, there is a plant known as the dragon’s scale fern, Pyrrosia piloselloides. Should we concede a point to Cunningham here?
Unfortunately, I do not think we can. The dragon’s scale fern is native to Singapore and was first catalogued by Carl Linnaeus in 1763. There seems no way that Shakespeare could possibly have heard of it. Moreover, ‘dragon’s scale’ is merely an English translation of the term ‘sisek naga’. I’ve been unable to find any use of the name ‘dragon’s scale fern’ in English prior to the 20th century.
Did Shakespeare mean a literal dragon, then? Considering his plays involve literal ghosts (e.g. Caesar, Banquo, Hamlet’s father), literal monsters (Caliban) and literal witches with the power to ‘hover through the fog’ and summon storms at sea, we needn’t worry about Shakespeare depicting things which we now know to be impossible. So yes, literal dragon’s scale.
Tooth of wolf
It is tempting to identify this ingredient as the herb houndstooth, but the problem there is that houndstooth is the same as houndstongue, for which see ‘tongue of dog’ above.
No historical sources give ‘wolf’s tooth’ as a term for a plant.
Witches’ mummy
Either ‘the mummified flesh of dead witches’ or ‘mummified human flesh, as used by witches’.
Bizarre though it may sound, mummified human flesh was used for medical purposes before and after Shakespeare’s time. See Sir Thomas Browne, Hydriotaphia, 1658: ‘The Egyptian mummies which Cambyses spared, avarice now consumeth. Mummy is become merchandize, Mizraim cures wounds, and Pharaoh is sold for balsams.’
No historical sources give ‘witches’ mummy’ as a term for a plant.
Maw and gulf
Of the ravin’d salt-sea shark
The mouth and stomach of a shark.
No historical sources give ‘shark’s maw’, ‘shark’s gulf’ or ‘shark’s stomach’ as a term for a plant. There is a succulent called Shark's Mouth Mesemb that is native to South Africa, but given the additional description lavished on the shark – ‘ravin’d, salt-sea’ – it seems pretty obviously a literal shark.
Root of hemlock digg’d i’ the dark
Here we come to our first actual plant ingredient, which is named as such. Do please note the significance of ‘digg’d i’ the dark’. It’s not just hemlock, it’s hemlock that has been gathered in the ‘proper’ way. Where literal plants are concerned, the time and method of harvesting is magically significant. This suggests that far from everything in the spell being a plant as Cunningham proposed, the actual plants involved are special and treated with particular care.
Liver of blaspheming Jew
Exactly what it appears to be, disgusting historical antisemitism and all.
Gall of goat
The gall (bile) of a goat. (Goat’s gall and honey were used as a treatment for cancer in Saxon times. Who knew?)
No historical sources give ‘goat’s gall’ or ‘goat’s bile’ as a term for a plant.
Slips of yew
Sliver’d in the moon’s eclipse
Another actual plant ingredient, named as such. Just as we saw with the hemlock root, when the spell calls for actual plants, the witch is careful to specify the method of gathering. ‘Sliver’d in the moon’s eclipse’ means that the yew was peeled off in slivers during an eclipse of the moon.
Nose of Turk
The literal nose of a literal Turkish person. My suspicion is that this mocking of foreign people and their religions was deliberate pandering to the King, almost to the point of pantomime.
Tartar’s lips
See above.
Finger of birth-strangled babe
Ditch-deliver’d by a drab
The severed finger of a baby strangled at birth, having been born in a ditch to a sex worker.
There is a Korean succulent called ‘baby’s finger’ but there is no hope whatsoever that Shakespeare could have meant something so innocent.
Tiger’s chaudron
A tiger’s entrails. Derives from the exact same source as ‘cauldron’, so Shakespeare was frankly cheating a bit to use it as a rhyme here.
No historical sources give ‘tiger’s chaudron’ or ‘tiger’s entrails’ as a term for a plant.
A baboon’s blood
Curiously, ‘the blood of a Hamadryas baboon’ is one of the ingredients in the Greek Magical Papyri which is deemed to be a code name. Unfortunately for Cunningham, the ingredient it is a code name for is the blood of a spotted gecko, bringing us all the way back to lizard’s legs and newts’ eyes.
It’s worth noting in passing that Shakespeare wouldn’t have been familiar with the Papyri Graecae Magicae, given that they weren’t rediscovered and republished until the 19th century.
In any case, no historical sources give ‘baboon’s blood’ as a term for a plant.
In summary, of the twenty-three ingredients that go into the witches’ cauldron:
two – yew and hemlock - are unambiguously plants and named as such, with the method of gathering described
two – tongue of dog and adder’s fork – resemble extant folk names for plants, i.e. houndstongue and adder’s tongue
the remaining nineteen are all animal or human body parts, or in the case of the toad, the entire animal
Cunningham does not seem to have considered that disguising innocent herbs with grisly sounding names would have invited trouble rather than deflecting it. For example, even if ‘wool of bat’ had been a codename for moss, no practitioner with an ounce of sense would have referred to it as such when they could just call it moss. Gathering moss might be eccentric; gathering wool of bat could be seen as diabolic.
Some commentators have taken the view that Shakespeare might have been using ironic humour, by listing ingredients that were grisly sounding but also folk names for ordinary plants, intending the audience to pick up on his clever references. The audience would, so the theory claims, have recognised the wordplay because the folk names would have been in common use at the time. This theory falls apart, however, simply because the vast majority of the ingredients were not folk names for plants, and only two can possibly be considered such. Even in their case it is necessary to use some creative interpretation.
There is an additional problem with the ‘secret herbal code’ hypothesis. Cunningham’s core argument is that ‘witches, magicians and occultists wished to keep secret the most powerful of the old magics’, hence the use of codes. And yet, the arguments advanced for which ingredient represents which plant are based on common folk names, not secret lore unavailable to the masses. One cannot draw a link between ‘tongue of dog’ and the herb houndstongue, insist that the parallel is obvious, and then claim that this was a secret code.
To use the Papyri Graecae Magicae as an example of a genuine secret substitution system, ‘a physician’s bone’ is code for ‘sandstone’. There is no conceivable way a person could have inferred the real ingredient from its code name. And yet, the supposed herbal codenames in Macbeth are all based on inference, such as ‘finger of birth-strangled babe’ being taken to mean ‘bloody finger’ and thus ‘foxglove’.
Media magica in other Jacobean dramas
As mentioned above, it was not only Shakespeare who wrote plays in which witches prepared concoctions that contained human or animal body parts. However, only Shakespeare seems to have been singled out for his alleged use of secret herbal code names (which, as we have seen, does not bear scrutiny).
Ben Jonson’s The Masque of Queens was written for King James VI/I and was first performed in February 1609 (three years after Macbeth) in honour of the King’s eldest son, Prince Henry. Like Macbeth, it flatters the King’s obsession with witches by featuring a gathering of them. They discuss the ingredients they have gathered, such as:
I have been all day, looking after
A raven, feeding upon a quarter;
And, soon, as she turn'd her beak to the south,
I snatch'd this morsel out of her mouth.
This hag has snatched a morsel of human corpse that had been cut into four pieces (as in ‘hung, drawn and quartered’) out of the beak of a raven.
Just as in ‘Macbeth’, we then hear of a miscellany of gruesome ingredients, such as the bitten-off sinews of a hanged murderer, the fat of an infant, the brains of a cat, frog’s blood and backbone, owl’s eyes, viper’s skin and basilisk’s blood, none of which can possibly be taken to be codenames for plants. Moreover, we are fortunate to have Jonson’s own notes on his work, in which he laboriously details the sources he used and the practices he intends to depict:
But we apply this examination of ours to the particular use; whereby, also, we take occasion, not only to express the things (as vapours, liquors, herbs, bones, flesh, blood, fat, and such like,
which are called Media magica) but the rites of gathering them, and from what places, reconciling as near as we can, the practice of antiquity to the Neoterick and making it familiar with our popular witchcraft.
Jonson’s representation of plants is of particular interest here. He has one hag declare:
And I have been plucking, plants among,
Hemlock, henbane, adder's-tongue,
Night-shade, moon-wort, libbard's-bane;
And twice, by the dogs, was like to be ta'en.
And offers the following explanatory text:
Cicuta, hyoscyarnus, ophioglosson, solanum, martagon, doronicum, aconitum are the common venefical ingredients remembered by Paracelsus, Porta, Agrippa, and others; which I make her
to have gathered, as about a castle, church, or some vast building (kept by dogs) among ruins and wild heaps.
Just as with Shakespeare’s mention of hemlock and yew, there is no suggestion of code names.
‘The Witch’ by Thomas Middleton was also performed by the King’s Men. It, too, depicts witches in exactly the way the King expected to see them depicted. For example, Hecate says to Stadlin:
[Giving her a dead child's body] Here, take this unbaptised brat.
Boil it well, preserve the fat
The subject of herbs comes up in this graphic exchange:
STADLIN
Where be the magic herbs?
HECATE
They're down his throat:
His mouth cramm'd full, his ears and nostrils stuff'd.
I thrust in eleoselinum lately
Aconitum, frondes populeas, and soot-
You may see that, he looks so b[l]ack i' th' mouth-
Then sium, acorum vulgare too,
[Pentaphyllon], the blood of a flitter-mouse,
Solanum somnificum et oleum.
Middleton even brings a comic touch to the loathsomeness of the witches’ concoctions. Almachildes (who has brought the witches toads in marzipan as a gift) is invited to dine with them, and responds
How? Sup with thee? Dost think I'll eat fried rats
And pickled spiders?
Conclusions
The witches depicted by Shakespeare, Jonson and Middleton for the entertainment of King James VI/I are shown employing animal and human body parts as well as plants in their spells, in accordance with the King’s personal beliefs and with the playwrights’ understanding of magic as depicted in such texts as Cornelius Agrippa’sDe Occulta Philosophia.
There is no evidence to support the suggestion that any of the ingredients named are meant to be taken other than literally. They are not codenames for plants. Eye of newt in particular is not a folk name for mustard seed and never has been.
Scott Cunningham’s assertion that “every ingredient (Shakespeare) lists as being in the witches' pot refers to a plant and not the gruesome substance popularly thought” is simply wrong.
Although Cunningham was wrong, and may well have known it, his motivation is understandable. Modern witches are revolted by the idea of body parts being used in spells and wish to distance themselves from it. The ‘herbal code’ interpretation provided a means to recast the horrific Jacobean witch (who did not exist outside of the popular and kingly imagination) as an enlightened and humane herbalist.
But if we allow ourselves to misrepresent Shakespeare in this way, we risk erasing the memory of the real victims: Agnis Thompson, the accused witch who was tortured into ‘confessing’ her use of a toad, and her fellows. Squeamishness must not be allowed to prevent us from confronting the uncomfortable facts of history.
On March 5th, 1993, Frank Ainsworth was found dead in bed in his trailer, in the small town of Ilwaco, Washington, a small fishing town that, at the time, only had about 900 people. Deputies found Frank deceased, after relatives had asked them to check on him.
Interestingly, one of the people who also asked for Frank to be checked on, was a man named Gregory Wood. Wood had told police that he was concerned “his friend may have overdosed on barbiturates.”.
The circumstances around Frank’s death revealed themselves to be, interesting, to say the least.
On March 11th, 1993, The Morning News Tribune posted an article titled: “Depressed Man Hired Out His Own Killing; 2 Charged”.
The article stated that Gregory Wood, 33, and William Joshua Young, 17, had been arrested and charged with aggravated first degree murder, in the death of Frank Ainsworth. At the time of the article, they were held in jail without bail, pending their arraignment.
The article stated that Frank Ainsworth wanted to die, and promised Gregory Wood his truck, if Wood killed him. Wood then got William Joshua Young involved, to carry out the killing, in exchange for drugs. Frank Ainsworth was reportedly depressed over the breakup of his marriage, before his death.
Sheriff Jerry Benning stated:
“He didn’t want to kill himself, so his friend, Mr. Wood, was going to do it for him. But he, (Wood), didn’t have the guts to do it himself, so he hired the kid.”.
Sheriff Benning stated that William Joshua Young was hired to do the job, because he was “known not only as a satanic worshiper, but also as an extremely violent young man.”.
When Frank Ainsworth’s body was found, his head was bludgeoned, and neck was slit. At the time of the article, Sheriff Benning stated that they believed Frank was sleep when he “took the first hit”.
A knife and ax handle were found in a ditch nearby Frank’s home, that authorities believed were used in the killing. The article speculated that the first blow to Ainsworth’s head was likely from a large wine bottle that was found shattered near his body. Authorities also speculated that Gregory Wood wasn’t around when the attack happened. Wood and Young were arrested that same day when Frank’s body was found.
Pacific County Deputy Prosecutor Jim Conley stated that the motive was likely that, Wood and Ainsworth entered the agreement to kill Frank, for his truck, and Young was brought in with the offer of drugs.
There were to be statements presented by the Defense, about Ainsworth’s death wish, Young’s alleged “Devil Worship” and willingness to kill for drugs when they went to court later that week.
Interestingly, at the end of the article, there were a couple of blurbs about “Satan Worship”. It states:
“Satan worshipers often gather in an abandoned concrete bunker atop McKenzie Head trail at Fort Canby. This is a sacred Satan Church.” Supposedly, there was a “marking in the pitch black underground outpost”.
The article ends with Sheriff Benning stating:
“We’ve had satanic worship in this country for quite some time. They come down and they wear robes and burn their incense and have their little ceremonies. They’re not hiding that. They do that when other folks are around.”.
—
On March 10th, 1993, Longview Daily News posted an article titled:
“Ilwaco Man’s Death Brings Satanism Into Light”.
The article starts with a giant picture of a park ranger named Larry Chapman looking at the “Occult Symbols” in a Fort Canby bunker. At the time, investigators were trying to find a link between Frank Ainsworth’s murder and Satan worship. The image itself shows a faint pentagram and “Satan” on the wall, in what I presume to be old spray paint. Over it, seemed to be newer spray paint, of a cross, and “777” on top of the pentagram.
The article itself talked about William Joshua Young more, calling him “Josh Young”, which is what I assume what name he went by. The article stated that Josh had changed in the previous year, going from an ordinary boy into a drug user quick to pick a fight. The article stated that Josh Young, and his own father William, told Sheriff Benning that Josh considered himself a satan worshipper.
Because of the teen’s interest in so called devil worship, investigators actually looked into this as a potential lead into Frank Ainsworth’s death. The article stated: “The possible connection has some Long Beach Peninsula people figuring it’s time to look into signs that interest in devils may be more than a childish game.”.
Supposedly, in this article, park ranger Larry Chapman “shone flashlights on pentagrams, devils, goats heads, and graffiti.”. One marking even said, “This is a sacred Satan church”. The article stated that paintings marked several remote cement cells in the pitch black underground outpost.
Sheriff Benning was quoted again, with the same talk about Satan worshipers, their robes, and burning incense, though it expands on the quote a little more. Benning also stated:
“Satan worship is not as taboo as it used to be. It’s kind of like AIDS, it’s coming out of the closet.”.
The article then quoted a man named Dan’l Markham, an Ilwaco minister and sheriff’s department chaplain, who stated:
“Some of it can be serious. Some of it’s kids being stupid kids. So I think there needs to be a balance between overreacting and not closing our eyes. I think that we need to keep our eyes open. Yet at the same time, when we run across something written on a wall we shouldn’t overreact.”.
Two students from Ilwaco High School, where Josh Young attended, stated that Josh dropped out and spent most of his time “with all the stoners”. He was recalled as having been “fine in middle school.”. Josh was described as somewhere around 200 pounds, and had recently, at the time of the article, had started a fight over a “foosball game”. A former classmate stated that Josh Young had “some pretty wacked out fruitcake friends.”.
The Ilwaco minister and Sheriff’s Department Chaplain, Dan’l Markham stated that, “Young people unsure of themselves and their beliefs, and those who can’t find acceptance among their peers, are particularly vulnerable to getting involved in strange groups. They’re lonely because of an emotional need but they become ensnared. That’s when they cross the line.”.
The article stated that Josh Young lived with his family in a place called “Gilpin’s Trailer Court”, where a quote from one of Young’s own peers stated that people called the place, “Gilpin’s Ghetto”. The article states that Young only lived five minutes from Frank Ainsworth’s trailer. Gregory Wood, lived inbetween these two homes.
The article states that Gregory Wood claimed that Ainsworth had asked to be killed, because he was too depressed to go on living. Ainsworth was described as very despondent over personal matters. Sheriff Benning actually stated that Frank Ainsworth had actually talked to deputies about helping him end his life.
The article goes on further to state that Frank’s daughter, Patty, had told the news they tried desperately to help Frank. Right before his death, Frank’s wife Patricia was separated from him, though, she had been trying to get him some help, trying to get him committed “for over a month”. Frank’s daughter stated, “My dad would never hurt anybody, he was depressed, but he was not violent.”.
Neighbors of Frank stated that he was a loner who seldom had company, and would always go out the door to greet visitors. “You didn’t get a chance to get through the door.” One was quoted.
At the time of the article, Gregory Wood and Josh Young potentially faced the death penalty, as the prosecution was still considering whether to pursue aggravated murder; which at the time, was an offense that the state of Washington would execute for.
--
On March 14th, 1993, the Oakland Tribune posted an article titled:
“His is a long tale of drinking and drugs and death”.
There wasn’t much newly uncovered in the article, though we saw a few more details into the life of Frank Ainsworth. In it, it was revealed that Frank had moved to Washington from Oklahoma several years before, and separated from his wife Pat, only a couple months before his death.
Frank was a mechanic who worked on and restored cars. He built private roads and driveways, and had tried his hand at woodcutting. His wife had left him because of his drinking. Even though he had stopped in the past, he had recently picked it up again. Once again, it was revealed that Ainsworth had called the Sheriff’s department several times, and talked about suicide.
Gregory Lee Wood was described as a drinking buddy of Frank’s, who agreed to take Frank’s life in exchange for Ainsworth’s 1954 Ford Pickup Truck. Interestingly, the article stated that Wood had a pickup that was “crumbling in his driveway” and didn’t run. So Frank Ainsworth would be the one to pick him up and drive him places.
This article states that William Joshua Young was a 17 year old high school drop out that lived in a tent in the woods. “He told people he had a split personality. Some days he was Billy The Kid.”.
By this time, the prosecution had charged Wood and Young with aggravated murder, asking to try Young as an adult.
The article stated that Frank was likely sleep when the wine bottle was smashed over his head. Frank was beaten severely, and his throat was slashed.
On March 5th, 1993, William Joshua Young stated, “I know Frank’s dead, but I did it.”. Young apparently told this to a neighbor, though the neighbor thought it was a lying boast. He also noted that Young looked drunk, or on drugs.
—
On March 13th, 1993, The Daily Advertiser posted an article titled:
“Depressed man arranges his own murder”. It states many of the same things as the article before, but there were a few more interesting details. For example, there was the contention that, if Young was tried as a juvenile, he would only be imprisoned until his 21st birthday. If tried as an adult, he would face either life in prison without the possibility of parole, or the death penalty.
One neighbor stated that Frank had came to her house recently before his death, to see if she had heard anything from his wife. At the time, Frank’s phone didn’t work, and he had been worried that his wife may have been trying to reach him. The neighbor stated that Frank had looked like he had been crying and shaking.
This article states that Greg Wood had lived mostly on government disability checks, benefits from a fall he sustained before moving to Washington from California. Neighbors stated: “Wood drank, and maybe did drugs too. He’s got a bad drinking problem.”.
It was also pointed out the 1954 Pickup that was Frank’s “pride and joy”, something that he had driven from Oklahoma to Washington.
Neighbors recalled that Josh Young had pulled a bottle of homemade wine out of a gym bag and offered it to others. At some point, he also made the claims that he was a Satan worshiper. What’s most interesting, is that the article states that Sheriff Benning had also told this to reporters, though in this article he states:
“Satanism has nothing to do with this. He wasn’t killed in a Satanic ritual.”.
The article states that Young had been put on suicide watch after being sent to juvenile lockup. Interestingly, some people in the article didn’t believe that Gregory Wood had much involvement in Frank’s death. “One way, I don’t want to believe he’s involved in it. But when they go mixing drugs and alcohol, you don’t know what they might do.”.
—
On June 19th, 1993, the Longview Daily News posted the article: “Ilwaco Homicide Suspect Pleads Guilty”. The article stated that William Joshua Young plead guilty to lesser charges, and was sentenced to 15 years in prison. Initially, he was to go on trial in July of 1993, on charges of second degree conspiracy to commit murder and conspiracy to commit residential burglary. Young admitted to bashing Ainsworth’s head with a wine bottle and an ax handle, and to cutting Ainsworth’s throat with a knife while he slept. Young admitted to his father and police that he had killed Ainsworth.
Deputy Prosecutor James Conley said that he had planned an “all or nothing” case of aggravated first degree murder against Young and Gregory Wood. But, when the final autopsy reports came in, Dr. William Brady said that the could not positively conclude that the attack killed Ainsworth. Frank Ainsworth’s death may have come from a lethal dose of anti anxiety medication and alcohol he ingested before William Young ever laid a hand on him.
The defense began laying the groundwork for lesser charges trying to have Young tried as a juvenile. They lost the bid in May of 1993, though the Defense decided that they were going to put the coroner on the stand, and “force testimony that there was no proof Young’s attack killed Ainsworth”.
At that point, Judge Penoyar stated that he still wanted Young tried as an adult, though expected a trial over lesser charges, such as “attempted murder”. Penoyar handed down consecutive sentences of 10 years for the murder conspiracy charge, and gave a few years on the burglary conspiracy. The article estimated that Young would be out in 10-12 years if he behaved in prison.
It goes on to further say that William Young had been drinking most of the afternoon before attacking Ainsworth. There were doubts that he “would do such a thing sober”. Young’s lawyer stated that people thought that he “got away with murder” because of the “bizarre overdose twist”.
“But any time someone is facing 15 years in prison, it’s hard to say they got away with a great deal. He wants to make amends for what he’s done and get it over with.”.
The lawyer also went on to say that he saw Young as “a half child half man who just got involved in something that should have never happened.”.
This article reveals that Young had been arrested initially on a minor possession charge, to where he confessed to attacking Ainsworth.
Of course, Sheriff Benning told reporters that Young was a Satan worshiper when he announced that Ainsworth’s assailant was in custody. But, witnesses at subsequent hearings discounted the claim, saying that, “any such remarks by Young were macho bravado, with no basis in truth”.
“That’s pure b—s—“ attorney Smith said. “The kid’s a Baptist.”.
The article stated that Young was a “remorseful young man whose future depends on what he makes of it.”. Testimony at previous hearings portrayed William Young as “something of a lost soul, who once was a C+ student and football player at Ilwaco High School”.
“But about a year ago, relatives and psychologists said Young’s drinking and drug abuse got the better of him. They said he had bounced between family and friends, quit school, and hung out mainly with older people who led him even further astray.”. Gregory Wood was one of those people.
At the time of the article, Gregory Wood was scheduled to go to trial on August 3rd, 1993, for his role in Frank Ainsworth’s death. He had faced charges of conspiring to murder and rob Frank.
—
On July 9th, 1993, the Longview Daily News posted an article titled: “Ilwaco man admits he arranged killing”. In it, Gregory Wood plead guilty to conspiracy to commit manslaughter in the first degree. At the time, he faced up to five years in prison for the attack on Frank Ainsworth. Wood’s attorneys and judge Penoyar agreed to give wood a 44 month prison sentence, though the judge could impose up to 60 months. The article quoted one of the lawyers who stated, “Either way, he’s out fairly soon. With time off for good behavior, Wood could possibly serve as little as 30 months.”.
Because of the strange evidence and testimony with the case, there was a risk of acquittal with the defendants. So as not to risk this, Frank’s widow Patricia believed it was better to accept guilty pleas from both defendants to ensure that they would serve at least some prison time. Lawyer Sullivan is quoted saying:
“Reducing any risk of acquittal, Mrs. Ainsworth and the state are willing to accept this agreement. But I don’t think you could say more than that….Nobody’s happy.”.
—
On July 15th, 1993 the Longview Daily News posted the article: “Wood Gets 3 3/4 years in prison for his part in Ilwaco murder”. It stated that Gregory Wood was sentenced to 45 months in prison, followed by two years of community supervision. Wood plead guilty to first degree conspiracy to commit manslaughter.
At the hearing, Patricia Ainsworth stated that she had been trying to find forgiveness for those who had caused her so much pain. She’s quoted saying:
“I have suffered tremendously through this process. Frank’s family also have suffered-his parents, as well as our children. The lesson I pray will be learned through this is two-fold:
We must learn to forgive, with God’s help. But the biggest thing we must learn from this-drugs and alcohol are lethal. Adults as well as children need to be aware of the dangers they present, and try to stop the spread of these lethal weapons. I loved Frank dearly, and I know he loved me.”.
Before Wood’s sentencing, Frank’s daughter Patricia said that she, and other relatives were starting to come to terms with her father’s death. But their sorrow was compounded by knowing that he had been so mentally ill, he wanted to die. Patricia stated that she was disappointed that Wood and Young weren’t going to spend more time in prison. She also expressed worry that Young would receive little, if any, rehabilitation in prison, especially with the prediction that he’d be free in less than a dozen years.
Patricia said that Young was likely to return to the streets, capable of committing an equally serious crime. She was cognizant of the fact that when people go to prison, “They come out worse than they went in.”.
—
From there, I could not find any more articles about William Joshua Young, or Gregory Wood. I assume that they were both released, and disappeared back into society.
It is puzzling why Satanism was brought up at all, though I speculate that William Young thought that it made him sound “cool” and “scary”. I agree with the one article that claimed it was something said for the sake of “bravado”. What I find especially strange though, is how the Sheriff himself seemed to put more emphasis on this, than there really was. I can only speculate that it made great news, for a small town, during what was still the Satanic Panic era. And just like many other pieces from that time period, there was emphasis on all the wrong things, instead of the right. It’s very clear that William Young was a disturbed person, “Satanic worship” excluded. What I find crazy about this situation as a whole, is how Young was found more culpable than Wood. Young was brutal, but Wood was the one who told him about Ainsworth to begin with. The fact that both were free no later than 2008, is crazy to me, to say the least.
—
On April 8th, 1993, an obituary for Frank Ainsworth was posted in the Longview Daily News. Frank Ainsworth was born on November 24th, 1939, in Madill, Oklahoma, and had lived in Washington since 1979. He was a self employed mechanic and landscaper, and enjoyed reading the Bible, and books on math, science, and history. Graveside services were to be held on April 19th, 1993, and he was buried next to his brother Doyle.
Frank was buried at Woodberry Forest Cemetery, in Madill, Oklahoma. He was 53 years old.
His family suggested to send contributions to any local mental health organization.
Somewhere, around September 1967, a tiger named Jimmy was born, and he was the only one out of his litter of 5 to survive. I assume that he was born in captivity, at the San Francisco Zoo, because the zoo director of the time, Ronald Reuther, took Jimmy to his home when Jimmy was only a few days old. I could not find any articles about Jimmy’s birth in the newspaper archives.
On December 11th, 1967, Jimmy the tiger wound up missing from the San Francisco Zoo. The Press Tribune released an article called, “Tiger Stolen From San Francisco Zoo”, stating that authorities were more concerned about the welfare of the tiger cub, than they were with the thief.
The article stated that they were more “afraid the missing animal would be loved to death”. He had big paws that he spent most of his time stumbling over, and delighted children with his “laughable growl”. At the time, he weighed 30 pounds.
Jimmy was valued at $750, which would be $7,185 when adjusted for inflation in 2025. At the time of the article, zoo director Ronald Reuther discounted money as a motive to steal Jimmy. He’s quoted saying:
“He was so lovable and so cute. I suppose someone just thought he would like to have Jimmy as his own.”.
Jimmy had made appearances at “some of the best schools and playgrounds, where a keeper stood by to protect Jimmy from his fans.”.
Jimmy had been taken from his locked cage in the lion house. Police stated that the lock had been cleanly picked, or opened with a key.
On December 14th, 1967, the Camarillo Star posted, “Tiger Cub’s On Way Home”. It stated that a Hermosa Beach pet shop owner was sending Jimmy back to the San Francisco Zoo. The shop owner, Ray Folsom, said he didn’t know that he was offered a “hot” tiger, when he purchased it from 3 hippies for $150…or $1437 in 2025.
Jimmy was returned by plane, and there were a few pictures taken on December 16th of that year. An article from The Sacramento Bee states that Ray Folsom, the man who bought Jimmy, immediately called the police when he heard of the missing tiger.
Jimmy was flown on Flying Tiger Airlines, and was coaxed down the ramp with a bottle of milk. When returned, zoo director Ronald Reuther said, “We’re awfully glad to have you back.”.
A clip from The Independent states that the hippies told Folsom they bought the tiger in Colorado.
Unfortunately, Jimmy’s life was cut incredibly short.
On December 23rd, 1967, The Houston Post released an article titled: “San Francisco Zoo’s Famous Tiger Cub Dies”. It states that Jimmy choked on a piece of meat. Ronald Reuther waited to initially announce Jimmy’s death, until they were sure he wasn’t poisoned. Apparently, night watchman Joe Colla, had been making his rounds, and found Jimmy lying down in his cage. He thought Jimmy looked ill, and immediately summoned Reuther, who took Jimmy to the zoo hospital. Jimmy died an hour or so later. Jimmy was in prefect health until the small piece of meat caught in his windpipe.
I am unsure of what they did to Jimmy’s remains, and the hippies that stole him, were never caught.
The reason I read this book, strangely, is because I had a dream about it one night, during the summer of 2025. In my dream, I was in a courtroom, watching Karla and Zeena. Someone, a disembodied female voice, told me to read ”The Secret Life of A Satanist” to understand more about Karla and Zeena. At the time, I was still reading through the 2022 version of “We Are Satanists”.
I walked into the book basically blind, wanting to learn as I read, not trying to ruin it for myself. Long story short, I already knew what most of the book was about, as it was the original blue print for what became “We Are Satanists”. I’ll be completely honest, in that I was rather disappointed with this book, as I had hoped for a more historical look at Anton Lavey, but it devolved into more of an interview with him and would showcase his diatribes. In some ways, the book was just another soapbox for him, which is odd, when you consider that it was supposed to be a biography, not an autobiography. While exploring the thoughts and viewpoints of the subject for a biography could help enrich a book, Anton’s antics and diatribes only seemed to detract from the reading experience overall.
I’m unsure who the ideal demographic is for this book, at least, for when it was originally written. In many ways, it is preaching to the choir, surely a book created for those already in the know about Anton Lavey, and The Church of Satan.
Many of the things Lavey would say would either be just completely off the wall, semi entertaining, or just completely ridiculous. Many of the things said in this book could be taken as dog whistles. Even though Lavey himself called racists stupid, the way this book is written, it can easily be misinterpreted to bolster such thought points even still. It is so odd to me that Lavey really believed there was something special about the people who considered themselves Satanists, that he also wanted them to breed, and create a “master race”. How can you say things like that, mention eugenics, approving a police state, mention Hitler as much as they do through the book, and mention a “final solution” without it being some sort of dog whistle? But I guess that I shouldn’t be surprised; as many religions have an elitist complex that believe their group of people are the special chosen ones. There’s even texts within Mormonism and Christianity that try to justify racism.
It’s very Christian of Lavey to believe that the followers of Satanism are truly special. For example, in the Bible, they mention the 144,000 in Revelations. Many people of a Christian background aware of this, tend to believe that they are part of the “144”, and are thus special, gifted, and among God’s elite.
Lavey’s idea of Satanists having some sort of special chromosome or gene, and should reproduce because of it, is utterly ridiculous. Why should people reproduce because of a spiritual belief? Do you even hear yourself? Just because someone can reproduce, doesn’t mean that they should. Satanic or not. Lavey said himself, that Satanists are born, not made. So, by suggesting that Satanists should reproduce with other Satanists, that’s assuming every baby would be a born Satanist, and that’s clearly not true. It reminds me a lot of the Christian idea that everybody is a born Christian. It all comes off as religious craziness to me.
It’s certain points like that, which showed the off the wall ideas that Anton Lavey would have. Others include his fixation on trapezoids, how to become a werewolf, his misogyny, complaining about women always being cold, and his rather creepy fixation on glorified sex dolls.
On the flipside, Anton would say things in the book that would be legitimately funny. I laughed when they mentioned the McDonald’s ice cream machine being broke, even back in 1990! The idea of a man wearing a T-Shirt and underwear not having the same effect as a woman doing it was funny, and even something I remember being the idea of a comic by The Oatmeal back in the early or mid 2000’s. In general, Anton would make rather humorous and somewhat true observations about people that I could agree with in some ways.
I found it interesting how Anton would unintentionally predict/call things that did end up happening in the near future, when the book was originally released. For example, he did call that public shootings would only get worse, and they did. Lavey passed away in 1997, and only 2 years later, in 1999, Columbine happened.
There were some ideas that I didn’t completely agree with, though I did see his point on. For example, he talked about how Heavy Metal wasn’t Satanic. Today, in 2025, many people would beg to differ, but thinking about the state of Metal back in 1990, a lot of the Satanic/Diabolist/Luciferian type bands really weren’t around. Even still, not every Metal band is Satanic. Just because a band is Metal, doesn’t automatically make them evil or Satanic. Would I consider Mastodon Satanic? Hell no! Though, I know that this wasn’t what Lavey was really getting at. The way he described it in this book, he was just anti-Metal. Many sources today state that Lavey hated Metal, which is fair. Many Metalheads hate Metal too!
I thought that his idea of the music he listened to growing up being the true Satanic music as interesting, though it didn’t seem like a key to true esoteric knowledge. The way Lavey described it, it just came off as a pretentious Grandpa claiming that the old days were better, and new music sucks now. The idea of using music to achieve a goal during a magical ritual did make sense, though the book describes it as if a person should only use the 30’s and 40’s music, because it’d have a “better charge”. While I understood what the point Lavey was making was, from an outside perspective, I already knew that him saying that totally lost a lot of the readers of this book. That is one of the faults of this book in general, it seems to assume that the reader is already immersed in magic, rituals, and even practices regularly. I often wondered if this was the intent…to only appeal to such a niche audience, or if Lavey believed that more people practice and know about magic than there really are.
It’s because of this assumption that the reader already knows a thing or two about magic, that it comes off as a lot more pretentious that intended. It’s ironic that Lavey claimed he wasn’t pretentious, then essentially challenged any potential detractors with a keyboard battle in the book. Even more ironic, considering that Pretentiousness is considered a sin according to the Church of Satan.
I’ve read a lot about magical and esoteric topics, thanks to some of the music I listen to. Many of the musicians I enjoy have made nods towards Goetia, esoteric symbols, and things of the like within their songs, album art, and merchandise. Even knowing what I do, Lavey would just lose me when he’d go off about certain topics. One of these being: The Trapezoid.
I don’t understand the fixation he had about Trapezoids. Even with the parts I know about esoteric subjects, the talk about trapezoids comes off as a neurodivergent fixation, instead of a true magical piece of knowledge. While I find the concept of “suspending your disbelief” to be important when talking about esoteric topics, Lavey is the only one to have talked about trapezoids, let alone that much. It makes little sense to me. Why would a trapezoid make for a stronger connection than a pentagon, or parallelogram? This is not explained in the book, and remains a mystery to me. It’s parts like this, that I question why this was included in the book. This was one of the parts of the book that made me seriously question, who was this book written for? Anton Lavey perhaps….
I don’t ask that in a brusque way, but out of genuine curiosity. While I’ve read about The Church of Satan before reading this book, there was still so much more that I wanted to know. When reading “The Secret Life Of A Satanist”, I still felt out of the loop when it came to the history on the Church. I often wondered if the intended audience was for people that had been a part of the Church for a long while. If so, that leaves out a major audience who could have found the book more interesting, if more historical information was relayed.
Then again, we have to remember. “The Secret Life of A Satanist” is the approved biography of Anton Lavey. That doesn’t automatically mean it’s the most accurate, historical, or even logical.
While the book starts off as a more historical type, eventually, it devolves into a diatribe from Lavey. This disrupts the flow of how the book reads. Despite being less than 300 pages (depending on what version you get), the book itself chugs and chugs, making small bits of information longer than you’d expect, or want them to be. As a reader, this was not a fun book to read. It felt like Anton interjected too much, turning this biography into an autobiography. While it’s not bad to create an autobiography, we shouldn’t act like this book was just a completely separate project that Blanche Barton completed by herself.
At what point would we be able to call this an autobiography? Anton was so involved with this, that I truly consider this to be one. And that’s not a bad thing! I think it would have come off as more genuine if they conveyed the book this way. The more I looked at reviews from other people online, many said the same thing. I think it’s a justified opinion to have, that Anton was much more involved with the book than it seems.
What’s strange to me, is how people have referred to Blanche Barton as just Anton’s secretary. It’s strange how this has been used as a way to make her seem insignificant, when she was among his baby mamas! Blanche, who I’ll call Professor Barton, was also one of the people would speak on behalf of the Church, especially against the Satanic Panic. Barton is actually incredibly intelligent, and has made great points about the ridiculous witch hunt that was the Satanic Panic back in the 80’s. Even in her position as “Anton’s secretary”, that doesn’t diminish her intelligence, wit, and writing skills as a person.
What I find interesting, is how Professor Barton mentions Stanton Lavey more than his own mother Zeena, ever did. Stanton passed away in 2022, but before he did, she apparently disowned him and left him with Diane, Zeena’s mother, to raise him. Stanton is talked about in the book “Charles Manson Now”, where it states that he did not know who his father was, nor was there one listed on his birth certificate. Despite there being rumors that Anton was the father, “Charles Manson Now” states that the father may have been a stoner “ local delinquent who dropped out of my mother’s school.” Stanton is also quoted: “She dumped me off on my grandmother Dianne and swore she’d never speak to either of us again. Which, considering I had never done anything wrong to her, is strange.”. Later in 2022, Zeena did an interview with Jordan Peterson, and she did not even mention Stanton by name. Stanton Zaharoff, Lavey.
I looked through the sources that were cited at the end of the book. While I could not find every, single, book listed, there were plenty of news articles that actually did corroborate the things written in this book. For example, it is true that Jayne Mansfield would call Anton for a “happy spell”. Anton and Jayne did take some photos together. Now, we can’t prove that he and Jayne had a romantic relationship, but I did find it odd that some of the events, like Anton allegedly going to dinner with Mansfield before one of Brody’s crashes were plausible.
There are a lot of things that Anton said, which couldn’t be completely proven, but were plausible. Perhaps that’s what Anton wanted. To create a web of plausible stories that made him seem a lot more grand than he really was.
Looking through the newspaper archives, the earliest clip I could find of Anton, was a 1955 San Francisco Chronicle where the “Anton Laveys” went to a birthday party. In 1957, the SF Chronicle posted an ad for Anton, who was to be playing at the Wilshire and a couple of other places. On September 30th, 1957, the SF Chronicle posted a snippet about Anton, who was selling his paintings at an art festival. He was referred to as an artist. It’s here that you start to see Anton as more of a showman. A snip from December 16th, 1959, shows a quote from Lavey, who seemed to have had this “Satanic thinking” already underway.
Even through all the articles and clips that found, there were still things that I couldn’t find. I could not find any records in the news about the house Anton allegedly bought, being sold to him. I couldn’t find anything about Marilyn Monroe being a burlesque dancer at the Mayan Theater…though there was a clip I found of her being a burlesque dancer in a movie she was in, in 1948.
To me, it’s clear that this book is not about Howard Stanton Lavey. It’s about Anton Szandor Lavey, the showman. These were two different people in my eyes.
In some ways, I understand why Zeena and Nikolas Schreck came out with a fact sheet disproving many of things that Anton said, or claimed to have done. Especially back in the 90’s, when there wasn’t any other way to investigate his claims so easily, I can see how there’d be a lot of people that would believe everything he said. To me, I think it’s easy to see when some of his claims were pure bullshit, but I guess if you knew or talked to Anton in person, it’d be easy to be pulled into his allure or draw.
This fact sheet is mentioned in the updated version of “The Secret Life of a Satanist”, in the last two chapters. After Anton died in 1997, it was released. In a 2025 interview, Nikolas Schreck claimed that Zeena was being hounded by press to confirm details about her father’s life, so they could create obituaries on him. Allegedly, the fact sheet was for the press, and somehow got leaked and posted by someone online. This is referenced on wikipedia and even archived, titled “Anton Lavey: Legend and Reality”.
Certain parts were only minor details clarified, such as the “true names” of Anton’s parents, who, in the past told people/the press his parents’ middle names instead of their first names; and of course that Anton’s birth name was “Howard Stanton Lavey”.
Various other parts discuss Anton never having been a part of the circus, never visiting Germany at age 15, never having been enrolled at San Francisco city college, never having been a part of Rosemary’s Baby, and more.
While it may be true that not all of that happened, I couldn’t help but wonder, “So what did he do?”. I looked up Anton, or Howard, through the 1950 census, and it stated there that his employment was OT. Other. If he wasn’t in college or at the circus, what the hell was he doing?!
The fact sheet also claims that Anton was abusive, towards people and animals. “The Secret Life of A Satanist” mention’s Anton’s “Nubian lion” Togare, who Anton would bring to local areas for kids to see. Anton had to give up Togare after neighbors complained about Togare’s roars, though in a few news clips I found, it turns out that it was more because Anton had agreed to babysit a friend’s jaguar, and the two big cats did not get along. This caused a cat fight, a water pipe getting busted, and Togare having to be sent to the zoo.
Of course, the question comes to mind, “What was with these people and their affinity for big cats?”. In a post 2020 world, it just reminded me of the whole “Tiger King” thing. It appears that Anton definitely knew multiple people who owned big cats like he did. Looking at old news articles from the 60’s about Anton, it just seemed like a show of opulence, than a true love for wild animals. Of course to me, I don’t agree with owning big cats in a suburban setting. The food cost alone would be outrageous, and no backyard is big enough for a wild animal like that. In that sense alone, I do think that it’s cruel to own an animal like that, who was created to roam free.
Nikolas and Zeena’s fact sheet states that Anton would use a cattle prod to frighten Togare, and put him into submission. It also states that Anton only made 2 visits to Togare when he was sent to the San Francisco Zoo. This seems to be corroborated in a news article by The San Francisco Examiner, dated March 3rd, 1970. Titled, “The Anything Goes Church”, the end of the article states that Lavey rarely visited Togare. He’s quoted saying:
“I would like to see him more often, but Togare gets too emotional. He yells and cries because he thinks I’ve come to take him home.”.
I looked up Togare on the newspaper archives, and he was not mentioned anymore after this, the only exception being from a drawing by Zeena, dated September 21st, 1970, from The San Francisco Chronicle. Zeena, aged 6 years old, had won the Junior Art Champion, for her drawing of “Togare And His Cubs”.
While in captivity at the SF Zoo, Togare had a few cubs. A 1969 article from The Sacramento Union stated that Togare was eventually moved into a cage with a widow lion named Virginia, and she gave birth to cubs on December 13th, Friday The 13th, of 1968.
The story of Togare is also absurd, where Lavey had even tried to get the lion recognized as a California Pioneer, in an article from The Daily Report, dated 1966.
After Togare was given to the San Francisco Zoo, he ended up at Tippy Hedren’s care. She wrote about various big cats in her book “the Cats of Shambala”, which I was able to rent on the internet archive. The few instances of Togare, mentioned the lion a rather shocking way. I took screenshots of the book, to share what I found.
Hedren’s book stated that Togare, who had “been owned by someone involved in black magic”, came to the canyon flats from the San Francisco Zoo. The zookeepers found Togare “too belligerent for the Bay City zookeepers to handle”. Though he frightened Hedren, Togare did end up being a good father to his cubs.
Interestingly, Togare came with another lion, named Alice, who Hedren stated were “2 wayward black magic lions from the San Francisco Zoo.”. If we know that Togare came from Anton Lavey, where did Alice come from, for there to be another black magic practioner? Hedren’s book does not name Lavey, or the other potential black magician.
Hedren’s book would go on to mention that Togare scared/intimidated most other people. The final part of Hedren’s book on Togare states:
“Though I was afraid of Togare for much of his life, and rightfully so, I still felt a deep loss when he left us.”.
—
I’m not going to get into the “He said, she said” parts of the Lavey history. What happened within that family has nothing to do with me, and ultimately, detracts from the review about the book.
—
There are many parts to this book that just did not age well. Many things that Lavey said seemed to be taking the piss, and potentially humorous for the time, back in 1990. Of course, that’s 35 years ago now, as of 2025, so I can’t expect these jokes to hit the same, but with the passage of time it has made these bits just flat out disgusting.
Lavey’s misogyny and anti-feminist rhetoric came off as the perfect type of person you’d see on modern day twitter, or streaming on Kick. The idea that women control the world by always being cold, and making the rooms cold was just dumb. It’s scientifically proven that men have more body heat than women. Why go on a tirade about that? His misogyny was actually true though, especially in how he remembered women like Marilyn Monroe, and especially Jayne Mansfield. They were recollected as nothing more than sex objects, while their other talents and skills were diminished. The book states that Jayne hadn’t picked up the violin since she was a girl, but that’s not true. Ten years before her death, she was on TV playing the violin, and piano. Remembering her as a sex doll who loved to piss herself is incredibly dismissive, and does not do her any justice. The fact that the affair Lavey and Jayne allegedly had wasn’t technically acknowledged, was strange to me. It seemed incredibly dismissive of Diane, who had already had a child with Anton by that time.
—
Of course, one of the major parts I was interested in reading about was the Manson connection. I found it disappointing how much the connection between Anton Lavey, Susan Atkins, and the Church of Satan was downplayed. While yes, Susan Atkins was definitely a crackhead, she actually talked about her involvement with the CoS more than Lavey did. I often wondered if Lavey hated hippies because he was a San Francisco resident, and was likely surrounded by them…or if Susan perhaps attributed to his hatred for them. I’m not sure how true it is, but in “Charles Manson Now”, Stanton Lavey stated that Susan had a much bigger role in The Church of Satan than Anton said. Apparently, Stanton had written Charles Manson at one point even, Manson even remembering the letter. Manson said that he recalled Anton would “do anything for a buck”. Which, we didn’t need Charlie to tell us that, as it seemed quite obvious that Anton was quite the showman.
From a magical standpoint, this book, and Lavey in general, really didn’t delve that deeply, not as much as I would have wanted. He spent most of his time talking about social philosophies, and conveying an absolutist, brutal, idea of how people should stay within the confines that he made up. The 1998 book, “Satan Speaks” conveys this very clearly, with Lavey admitting that he was against abortion…though oddly for compulsory birth control, stating that essentially, not every person should be a parent. Sometimes, I wonder if this mentality is why Zeena ended up giving birth at the age of 14. To me, that pregnancy breaks the tenant of “do no harm to little children”.
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Overall, I cannot recommend this book. There are some books that are written to be read, and there are books that are written to be written. To me, this book was written to be written. It’s not fun to read. It’s not leisurely. There are too many stops and when you finally get to go, it’s still slow. It chugs, and chugs, and even when you find an interesting bit of information, it’s like a needle in the haystack. While I thought that it was interesting, some of the interactions that Lavey had with true crime people such as the Manson Family, such as potentially swapping houses where Jay Sebring used to live, allegedly knowing Abigail Folger’s mother, supposedly being stopped on the street by Richard Ramirez, and even being gifted a John Wayne Gacy painting by Marilyn Manson, these instances were few and far between. It’s here that I see why the book is called the “authorized biography”, and not the “true” biography. Granted, as I stated before, this isn’t the biography on Howard Stanton Lavey, it’s about the showman, Anton Szandor Lavey.
Do I believe that Anton had a genuine interest in magic and mysticism? Yes. There’s even news articles that prove that. He definitely had some sort of small practice going, and genuinely believe that he was a magician of sorts. In the early days of the Church of Satan, he really leaned into those curses. But as time went on, especially after the Satanic Panic, it seems that Anton’s interest in magic waned, and he focused more on writing down his philosophies. I feel like that is the more appropriate way to remember Anton Lavey. 20th century philosopher and showman. Part time magician.
In a way, the Church of Satan reminds me of how McDonalds was founded by the McDonalds brothers, but lead to success by Ray Kroc. Despite Lavey founding the Church of Satan, and its philosophies, it was Blanche Barton, Peter Gilmore, and Peggy Nadramia, that expanded on the thoughts of self freedom that were initially written about. Strangely, despite all of the controversial things that Anton wrote or said, he would also have good ideas about not harming or bothering people. It’s up in the air if he practiced his own philosophy, but the idea to not be kind to those who don’t deserve it, is of course, agreeable. Granted, there are a lot of things that were written, that I feel a normal person could agree with. Yet, that wouldn’t make them a Satanist.
In conclusion, I wouldn’t waste my time reading this book. You won’t find any information that clarifies any potential questions you might have about Lavey or the Church of Satan. It’s just another soapbox for him.
“When The Kite String Pops” is an album that I’ve been familiar with for a long time, yet never got around to reviewing.
I first came across the album in the early 2000’s, when I was a young teen, and through the various online forums, I remember seeing someone use this album cover for their avatar. I’ll never forget looking it up, and reading what little information there was, about Acid Bath at the time. For many years, there wasn’t that much info about the band, though a lot of that changed once Sammy Duet did his live streams, during the covid years.
I saw “Kite String” in person, at a record stare when I was 18. I remember going there, a place called “Ernie November’s” in Rapid City, South Dakota. The day I saw that album, I seriously considered buying it, but as an 18 year old that worked at Burger King, I couldn’t afford the $30 CD, that the store was selling.
But I never forgot seeing that CD. Looking back now, I wish I bought it.
If I knew then, what I know now, a lot of things would be different, but I suppose that’s something most of us would say.
It wasn’t until 2022 that I actually got to sit down, and listen to Acid Bath, I’m almost ashamed to say! To be fair, Rotten records never bothered to make Acid Bath’s music available, before covid.
I think that it should be noted, how it took a worldwide pandemic to cause Acid Bath’s music to finally be put on spotify. I’m not sure if the music was always available for download on the Rotten Records site, but the lack of availability of this band’s music, has been odd. I will never understand why Rotten Records refused to uplift this talented band of musicians. Perhaps it was greed? I can only speculate though, if they wanted money, you’d think that they would promote this band to have a larger fanbase…so they could make more money. Honestly, Acid Bath should have shirts in stores like Spencers. I’ve seen all kinds of band shirts at those type of stores, including Type O Negative.
But, this is about the music. And very simply, the music on this album is great.
“When The Kite String Pops” was released on August 8th, 1994. I found this interesting, because it’s on the 25th anniversary of the Tate murders. For those unaware, on the evening of August 8th, 1969, members of the Manson family went to 10050 Cielo Drive in Los Angeles, and murdered everyone there; except for one person, the caretaker, William Garretson.
Tex Watson, Patricia Krenwinkel, Susan Atkins, and Linda Kasabian went to Cielo Drive; Linda staying outside while the other three murdered the others at the residence. Steven Parent, Sharon Tate, Jay Sebring, Abigail Folger, and Voytek Frykowski, were murdered in the late hours of August the 8th, to early August 9th.
When I saw that this album was released on August 8th, I couldn’t help but wonder if this was on purpose, or a complete coincidence.
In December of 2022, I interviewed Sammy Duet, and asked him if this was on purpose. He was actually surprised when I pointed this out, and as far as he knew, it was a coincidence, though, he did tell me that Dax Riggs, the singer of Acid Bath, always had an interest in true crime things.
What’s even funnier, is that Acid Bath’s 2nd album, “Paegan Terrorism Tactics”, was released on Charles Manson’s 62nd birthday, November 12th, 1996.
There’s always been this true crime connection between the arts, and release dates with Acid Bath. The most notorious being the art to “Kite String”, which was created by John Wayne Gacy.
Gacy, a serial killer from Chicago, Illinois, was sentenced to death in the 80’s, after there were multiple dead bodies found buried underneath his house, in 1978. After his conviction, Gacy spent his time painting; many of his paintings being of clowns.
The album art for Kite String had already been made by Gacy, when they decided to use the art. In an video, Sammy Duet stated that they knew a guy in Florida, who would get in touch with, and write to serial killers, including Charles Manson!
None of the 5 band members could decide on an album cover, and Ron Peterson of Rotten Records suggested it. At first, the band just saw it as a clown, but when they were told it was made by a clown that killed people, they became more interested. They had to pay for the artwork, of course, and according to Sammy, Gacy was still alive when they got his artwork. The person who got them this, is the same one who would later get them the Richard Ramirez art seen on a demo.
When I looked through various sources and archives of John Wayne Gacy’s art, almost none could conjure up the art used on this album. Today, I don’t know who technically owns it, or where the original sits.
I found this interesting though, because that means Acid Bath unintentionally preserved one of Gacy’s artworks, that can’t seem to be found anywhere.
The front work is titled, “Pogo The Clown #15”, and on the back is “Skull Clown 171”. Before Gacy was locked up, he used to dress up like a clown, either going by the name Patches or Pogo, and visiting people in hospitals.
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Now, onto the music, I think that “Kite String” is legitimately a fantastic album, resurgence aside.
It’s a legitimately good metal album, heavy, and sludge. I think that Sammy and Audie really provided the heavy. Sam has always had that “evil” influence in his music, and it’s clear that he had a special dynamic when playing with Audie.
When I think of Acid Bath, I’ve always thought of Audie Pitre as the main reason for their sludge sound. Sam, with his heavy ass guitars, compliments Audie’s bass, providing this thick, evil duo, that unfortunately, has never been recreated in any of Sam’s other dynamics.
Though the band had 2 guitarist, Mike Sanchez and Sammy Duet, they seemed to play more in unison with each other, than being 2 separate players bringing their own unique styles. It tends to sound like one person playing to me. I know that this was Sam’s first album, so many of the nuances of his style hadn’t appeared yet, but, I get this feeling that Sammy was holding back somewhat. I think that he wasn’t completely sure of himself yet, and it sounds like he let Mike take the lead most of the time. And that’s okay! Sam is a great rhythm player, in general, he has great rhythm.
Even though the music is fantastic, you can still hear how there were different things each member would try to do to show their style in each song. For “Kite String”, this medley of styles works. Each person brings their separate ingredient into the pot, and it creates a delicious meal. Audie would be the meat, like some sort of beef pot roast. Mike is the stock. Jimmy would be the mirepoix. Dax would be some sort of expensive spice or garnish to drive up the price of the meal, and impress people. And Sam, I think we know what he would be. Same would be some sort of blackened seasoning, in cooking terms. If Sam were a dorito chip, he’d be one of those Cooler Ranch ones covered in extra seasoning. One of those chips that make you say, “God Damn!” when you see all the seasoning on it. But it works. Deliciously Salty.
I love the heaviness to this album, seen on songs like “Dr. Seuss Is Dead”, “Dope Fiend”, and “God Machine”. I always felt like the album could have been heavier, though. It seems that some of the demos confirm this. The demo for “Dr. Seuss” is waaay heavier, basically a death metal song. The demo has Audie, Dax, and Sammy on it, which blew my mind when I first heard it. I remember Sammy saying in one video though, that Dax wanted to lower the other vocals to highlight his voice, which is why the album version sounds the way it does.
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Dax’s lyrics are written beautifully. He has a way with poetry. If he released a book just filled with his poems, like Mike Williams has done, I’m sure people would buy it.
I enjoy his vocals on “Kite String”. The screams, the singing. This album seems more of the heavy screams, than the haunted ghoul type voice seen in the second album.
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I remember Sam talking about “The Bones of Baby Dolls” in one of his livestreams. He said that Mike Sanchez was the one to play that intro riff, because Sam could never get it right. I wonder if he ever did?
My favorite songs off this album are, “Dope Fiend”, “Toubabo Koomi”, and “Dr. Seuss Is Dead”. Not surprising, because I just like heavier stuff in general.
I view Kite String as a metal album, even though I know there are plenty of non metal elements to it. I has this nostalgic, 90’s aspect to it, in all the good ways. I can’t help but think of all the memories of my childhood, back in the 90’s, when I listen to his. I’m reminded about the road a lot. Much of my childhood consisted of being in the car as my parents would drive on the long road to wherever we were moving to. Often times, they’d play Lenny kravitz, and the song, “Are You Gonna Go My Way?”, which was released in 1993, the year before this album. Thinking of it now, it makes a lot of sense that I would make that connection. I guess I’ve always associated Rock and Metal as fast driving music. Road trip music. When I’m on the road, I’ve gotta play something fast, or heavy.
With “Kite String”, I’ve listened to it everywhere! On the road, in the tub, at night, in the afternoon, and more! It’s very versatile, but I think it’s best listened to at night. That way, the darkness of the outside compliments the darkness of this album/
“Kite String” holds a special place in my heart because of the personal experiences in my life. But even musically, it is special. Every bend Sammy does. Audie’s rolling gravel tone. Dax’s lyrics, like a ghost haunting a window, or something you’d read in a diary from Resident Evil or Silent Hill.
I do hope, that people will continue to listen, and love this album, in the years to come. It’s not one to be overlooked.
On February 19th, 1982 a partially skeletonized set of human remains were found on the river side of the levee, at the Belle River. On namus, it states that Jane Doe was estimated to have been 40-55 years old, white, 5’4”, though her weight was unknown. At the time of discovery, she was estimated to have been deceased for 8 months, putting her death around late 1981.
Her remains were found at Nine Mile Board on LA Highway 70, Louisiana near Belle River, all parts recovered. She is stated to have been a complete, or a near complete skeleton. Hair and eye color are unknown. Her remains were found wearing a western style green plaid shirt, size 12. There has been one exclusion to her case, Phyllis Brewer from Ohio.
On the Doe Network, the picture used is noted as a reconstruction of the victim.
Here, it says that she was found in Stephenville, Saint Martin Parish, Lousiana. Her cause of death is noted as blunt trauma to the head.
Distinguishing marks include: a previously injured nose, left rib, and 3 vertebra. Antemortem trauma to the nose with remodeling in surrounding areas; an antemortem fracture on the 7th left rib; and antemortem compression fractures on thoracic verts 5-7.
Antemortem trauma means that these injuries happened before death, and had started to show signs of healing.
As for her dentals, Jane Doe did not have teeth during her life. The Doe Network states that “upper and lower jaw had no teeth during life”. There was pronounced bone resorption and remodeling suggest a long term denture wearer, though no dentures were recovered at the scene. A complete DNA profile is available at the state lab.
Along with the shirt she was found in, Jane Doe was found with 2 rinds, a 3 stone engagement ring, and a gold ring with an emerald stone. She also had a pendant with a bull and a star.
The Doe Network states that Jane Doe suffered a severe facial injury shortly before her death.
I estimate that she was either a Taurus, or a girlfriend of one. The bull is Taurus’ zodiac symbol, and emerald is that sign’s birthstone.
Though listed on the LSU repository, which is how I found her, they don’t have any new information to add. Here it spells the location as Stevensville, LA.
There is a thread for her on websleuths, as started by the user Folieadeux Nola. They stated that they’re familiar with the area, and that there are 2 bordering parishes where Jane Doe was found.
During the time that Jane Doe was found, this was the height of the oil and gas industry boom, where there were workers from all over the country. The area is fairly well traveled, betwixt Morgan City, Belle River, and Pierre Part, there may have been locals in Jane Doe’s area specifically; the area doesn’t have lights, is a tad rural, and off the beaten path, at least, in 2016, when they made that post.
They linked to an article from KATC, but as of January 2025 when I initially wrote this, the link is defunct, and was redirecting to a hentai website.
Quotes from that article include a tidbit saying that a “medical ID necklace showing that Jane Doe was a diabetic” was found. Supposedly, the department, I’m unsure if it mean the Sheriff’s department or police, never received a missing person’s report, and says that Jane Doe may have been visiting the area. I could not find the article on the KATC website. Jane Doe’s case was reopened in 2007 due to Robert Charles Browne confessing to the murders of a dozen women in Louisiana.
A further post in the thread states that the antemortem injuries may have been caused by a car accident. “It is presumed the woman was strangled due to the absence of a bone in her neck (hyoid?), and had been potentially raped due to the position the body was found. Law enforcement had no missing persons reports fitting her description, and presumed she was not from the area, and that her body was brought to the discovery spot and disposed of, or she was traveling/hitchhiking through the area.”.
In January 1985, St. Martin Parish officials potentially linked Henry Lee Lucas and Otis Toole as the suspects of raping and murdering Jane Doe. Toole and Lucas were suspected by law enforcement to have picked up a hitchhiker along I-12 near Baton Roughe, driving her to Stephensville, killing her and dumping the body. Lucas and Toole had travelled through Louisiana betwtixt 1975 and 1982. Lucas had confessed to 4 slayings in the New Orleans area. All though Lucas claimed to have beat an 81 year old Metarie woman with a crowbar in 1982, that was later proven false.
Overall, the original poster suggested various serial killers that may have murdered Jane Doe. User MadMcGood made a good point, in my opinion, comparing Jane Doe as a match for Bettina Antone, a woman who went missing in 1980. Side by side with the reconstruction, it seems very possible.
Bettina Minnie Antone went missing on March 29th, 1980, from Redding, California. At the time, she was 44 years old, having been born on February 21st, 1936. She was 5’3, 120 pounds, white, with black hair, her left eye described as blue, her right eye, white. Minnie had ear piercings, a mole on the left cheek, and a surgery scar on the lower back. She was also known to use the names Tina, Betty Antone, Bettina Minna Antone, and M. Tina Armstrong.
On namus it states: “On April 1st, 1980, Tina called a family member to say she was going camping in the clear creek area of Redding, California, with 2 male friends. An entry in her calendar said she was going hiking in the Lassen Park area. Tina left personal belongings, and her vehicle behind, and has not been seen, nor heard from since.”. Tina wore prescription glasses. There have been 8 exclusions to her case.
On the Doe Network, it states that Bettina had a fractured arm, and fractured leg. She also had dimples on both cheeks. At the time of her disappearance, she was suffering from alcoholism and depression, and she was schizophrenic.
Dentals are not available, but it says that she wore upper and lower dentures. That is very compelling to me, in regards to this Jane Doe.
The Doe Network states that Tina had been in therapy for depression, when she disappeared from her apartment at the California moten in Redding, in late march, or early April 1980. Left behind were her toothbrush, makeup, clothes, car, and photographs of her 2 children, and grandchildren. She may have been in a mental health facility.
The Charley Project states that Bettina’s sister found some money and a note stuffed on or in one of Bettina’s shoes at the motel after her disappearance. The note read, “please save”. Her sister believed that she was either killed, or a patient in a mental facility. It also states that Bettina was transient.
Another person suggested is Doris Anne Tetreault, who went missing on June 1st, 1978, from Blackstone, Massachusetts. At the time of her disappearance, she was 34 years old, and 95 pounds. Doris was white, with black hair and brown eyes. The only details on namus, is that she wasn’t living with her husband at the time, and her mother reported her missing. She was last heard from in june, 1978. There have been 10 exclusions to her case. Based on one of the pictures alone, Doris looks eerily similar to the namus reconstruction.
Another potential match is Ina M. Arnall, who was also mentioned in the websleuths thread. Ina went missing on May 28th, 1981 from Poteau, Oklahoma. At the time of her disappearance, she was 46 years old, having been born on June 14th, 1934. Ina was 4’11-5’2, white, 90-110 pounds, with brown hair and hazel eyes. She is noted to have had stretch marks on her abdomen, and full upper dentures. She is listed as having a diamond wedding ring set, diamond dinner ring, a bracelet with diamonds, and a diamond watch. She was last known driving a 1980 Oldsmobile, a 4 car, that was Diesel powered. There are 7 exclusions to her case on namus.
The Charley Project states that Ina also had on a purple shirt, pantyhose, a half slip, a multicolored blouse, brown sandals, and possibly an off white rain coat. She may have used the last name Kreitlein.
It says that she left her home to go visit her daughter 100 miles away in Tulsa, Oklahoma, but she never arrived. She was never heard from again. The following day, Ina’s daughter found her mother’s abandoned car, in a parking lot at the Tulsa airport. Authorities believe Ina left on her own accord. She may have traveled to Nevada, or San Francisco, California. The Doe Network lists similar information.
There seems to be few news articles about Jane Doe, at least what can be found through tools available to the public. Let us not forget, that Louisiana has state laws that prevent a lot of information being known to the public.
An article from Teche News, dated May 26th, 1982, was titled, “Skeletal Remains Those of Woman”. It stated that New Orleans anthropologists confirmed that a skeleton found in Stephensville that prior February, was that of a woman, but the exact cause of death remained a mystery.
In a report compiled for the sheriff’s department, Dr. R. Christopher Goodwin of New Orleans, reconstructed the physical features of the person, whose skeleton was discovered on February 19th, by four hunters along the levee some 5 miles north of Stephensvile.
Dr. Goodwin concluded that the bones were those of a woman in her forties, who stood 5’4 tall, and weight 120 pounds. The article states that she had medium brown hair, which was relatively short at the time of death. She had worn full dentures for a number of years, had blood Type A, and may have been diabetic.
The presence of a diamond engagement ring, and a wedding ring, a gold pierced type earring post, and a ladies western style shirt were found on the remains.
The only sign of recent injury were fractures of the facial bone on the right side of the skull. Dr. Goodwin’s report stated that such injuries are usually caused by a direct, blunt blow to the face. Although the injury appeared to have been inflicted shortly before death, it was not considered severe enough to have caused death.
The report indicated that the body had lain in place for several months before discovery.
In an article titled, “Sheriff links Lucas and Toole to St. Martin Murder Cases”, Henry Lee Lucas was questioned about the woman, titled “Jane Doe 2”. The article stated that Lucas was “very straight forward in the interview, but would not admit to anything.”.
Personally, I do not believe that Jane Doe would have been murdered by Henry Lee Lucas. The information about her antemortem injuries tells me that she was a victim of chronic abuse, in what seems to have come from a loved one. The jewelery, mainly the rings, tells me that she was with somebody, and they, or her, may have been a Taurus, potentially pitting their birthdays between April and May.
I’m unsure what else we could potentially find out about the case, without any sort of DNA testing.
Beyond that, there is little else known about the case.
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I can't post all the links due to tumblrs rules
By bringing people, information, forensic science and technology together, NamUs helps resolve cases.
Unidentified White Female
Discovered: Feb 19, 1982 - Stephensville/Belle River (St Martin/St Mary/Assumption Parish)
Skeletal remains f
On January 13th, 1969, a skull was found in the desert of Needles, California, lying on the sandy surface of a dry wash, just south of a dirth road, 300 yards west of highway 95. The skull, designated “John Doe #01-69”, did not included a torso or hands. According to namus, the remains were not recognizable; partial remains, with soft tissues.
Hair and eye color are unknown, and the skull was found, what I assume to have been completely bald, as they state on namus. John Doe is estimated to have been deceased for months prior to being found. His age range is from 20-40 years of age, though height and weight are unknown. There are no exclusions to the case, and his namus profile was created on August 25th, 2008.
One thing to note, is that John Doe had a deformity, a “large supra orbital notch on the right side, and a single supra orbital foramen on the left side.”.
He is not on the Doe network. I could not find any news articles about him either.
Chipps Island Doe, as I am calling them, was found on April 21st, 1968, in Chipps Island, California. The information to the case is extremely scant, with their gender and race uncertain. On namus, they are estimated to have been 12-14 years old, and may have been deceased for 1-2 years before being found. Namus states that they were located on Chipps Island in Honker Bay under approximately 4 inches of soil. The remains were not recognizable, partial skeletal parts only. Nothing else is known about this case. The namus profile was created on July 4th, 2023.
I did not find any more information about this scenario, and they were not listed on the Doe Network. This is a case, where information is so scant, to the point that I couldn’t find a news article about it, though one seemed similar, I was unsure if it was relevant to this case.
There have been 0 exclusion to the case, as of July 6th, 2025.
Sigmund Myers is a man listed as missing from Portland, Oregon. The date of last contact, as on namus, is stated to have been January 1st, 1920. At the time of his disappearance, he was 44 years old. Though I don’t believe he is still alive today, if he somehow was, he’d be 147 years old.
Sigmund, also known as Sig, was a white male who was 5’9”, and 165-175 pounds. All details on namus are approximated from his family.
There are exclusions to his case on namus, 2 from Oregon.
There is very little information about this man, and his background. There is a websleuths thread about him, though it hasn’t had many leads.
A clip from The Oregon Daily Journal was posted, which is dated from April 10th, 1915. It states that a well dressed man was fished out of the river at the Inman-Poulsen mill the prior Thursday. Interestingly, it said:
“The man remained unidentified at the time of article. Relatives of Patrolman Sig Meyers, who has been ill for several months and has been missing for five weeks, called at the morgue; but they were unable to identify the body. The man appears to be about 40 years of age, and the cuff links bear an old English letter H.”
One user, PayrollNerd, made a good point in that he may have succumb to the Spanish Flu, as it was something going around from that time period.
Interestingly, the article stated that Sig Meyers had been missing for five weeks at that time. So that would place his disappearance around late February or early March.
I found an article from The Oregon Daily Journal dated Feb 28th, 1915, where the bodies of a horse and a man were found badly decomposed. It stated that the corpse was still at the morgue, unidentified. Because of the decomposition, the body was turned over to disposal that following monday.
I could not find much on Sigmund in the newspapers. There were a few mentions in time prior to 1915, but even searching for him in 1920 reared nothing.
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There are a few unidentified bodies on namus that are from Oregon. I also used the ‘unsure’ and ‘unknown’ boxes, in case there may be very old skeletons.
One case is a John Doe that was found on August 26th 1972. He was found in Bandon, Oregon, and estimated to have been dead for years. John Doe is estimated to have been 50-80 years old, 5’9, and had full upper and lower denture plates with the number “S1214/66” etched in them. John Doe was found wearing tan leather lace up boots with white soles that were the “Bilt Rite” brand. Next to his body, was a thin brown leather belt, buckled at 42 inches; remnants of gray wool socks with green and red stripes at the top. His remains were near completely skeletonized , if not completely, with one or both hands not recovered. As it goes on namus, the skeletal remains were discovered in a brushy area off of Hwy 101, north of Highway 101 and Highway 42 junction. There have been 3 exclusions to his case, one from Oregon. Interestingly, it was not Sigmund.
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A second John Doe was found on February 6th, 1974 in Multonomah county, Oregon. This case has only had one exclusion. Very little is known about this John Doe, but namus states that he may have been 22-30 years old, 5’8, and that the remains were found skeletonized in the aforementioned county. There is nothing else known about him, such as the estimated amount of time he may have been deceased when found. His race is considered unknown at this time.
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Beyond this, there is little else known about his case.
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By bringing people, information, forensic science and technology together, NamUs helps resolve cases.
By bringing people, information, forensic science and technology together, NamUs helps resolve cases.
By bringing people, information, forensic science and technology together, NamUs helps resolve cases.
Sigmund Myers Went Missing In Portland Oregon in January 1920
Missing
Last seen alive: January 01, 1920
Circumstances: MP's family belie
Babies In The Basement
Greencastle, Indiana Cold Case
While doing research for another video (LMX) I came across a news article that was chilling, and saddening.
On October 20th. 1961, the Tuscon Daily Citizen posted an article title, “Infant Bones In 4 Boxes, Suitcase Found In Indiana Basement”. In Greencastle, Indiana, 4 boxes and a suitcase were found in the basement of an old one story home. In the containers, were the bones of infants.
Coroner John Whitaker said that the bones represented “possibly 4 or 5 skeletons” of babies. He said the exact number would not be known until the fragments were examined by a police laboratory, but he believed there were five. Police discovered the cache of remains, after the present occupant of the time reported that he found a single skeleton stuffed with a handful of rags in a hole near the foundation.
An Indiana State Police Officer said that the bones of three skeletons, and the skull of a fourth were taken to the police laboratory at Indianapolis. Sgt. Gene Trowbridge of the lab said from all indications of the skeletons, were those of “small infants” who had been dead “for some time”. By “some time”, he meant years. “We have no idea how long they have been dead.” Trowbidge said.
The first body was found on October 19th, 1961, by Jack Lawallen [Also spelled at Lewellyn, and Lewellen in other articles], who had been renting the house at the time. Jack had been cleaning up the basement when he noticed a bundle of rags stuffed into an opening between the flooring. Lewallen, who had only lived in the house for several months, said he pulled the bundle out and found a skeleton. He then called the police.
First, officers found another skeleton in a suitcase when they launched a search that morning. Then, they found 4 boxes with bones of three more babies. Police immediately announced they would “dig up the whole basement.”.
The Logansport Press posted an article on October 21st, 1961, talking about the discovery. It states that Jack Lewallen found the skeleton when cleaning up the dirt floor cellar. The bones, wrapped in soiled rags, had been thrust into a small opening between the building foundation and floor above.
Police conducted a further search that Friday and found 4 more skeletons. One in a metal box, another in a suitcase, and two more in piles of trash. Police said 2 other skeletons turned out to be the bones of a dog and cat.
Coroner John Whitaker said it appeared that the remains were several years old, but that they were too badly decomposed to determine immediately the cause of death. Police Chief Roy Newgent said the skeletons looked to him like the remains of full term infants, and not the result of abortions.
The house, unpainted and some of the windows broken, was situated near the Pennsylvania Railroad Tracks south of the DePauw Campus. At the time of the article, the home was owned by Mary Moore, a spinster in her 90’s that was in a nursing home near Greencastle. Miss Moore moved into the house in 1917, and the dwelling was occupied in the early 1930’s by her brother, Joe Moore, and his family of 3 daughters and 1 son. The house had been recently converted into a 2 family unit; state police technicians said it would have possibly taken a month to complete the examination of the skeletons.
An article from the Princeton Daily Clarion, dated October 20th, 1961, states that the house was located on S. College Avenue, only 3 blocks from the campus of DePauw.
On October 26th, 1961, The Star Press posted the article, “Greencastle Babies’ Bones May Belong To One Mother”. This articles states that there were four babies, and though not proven, were believed to have all had the same mother. Coroner John Whitaker said that the verbal report he received from Indiana Police State Labs were mostly inconclusive, but it did confirm that the babies had been in the cellar of the old house for varying lengths of time.
“This means they could all belong to one mother, but it does not prove that they were. The pathologist is not going to be able to do much more than say that. Our best hope now is that an anthropological study will provide more data.” Whitaker is quoted.
Whitaker confirmed that rumors about a dead baby in the cellar of the house had been circulating in Greencastle prior to the discovery. There had never been an official report until the one with Jack Lewallen. “Police get reports like this sometimes and do not check them out because they seem to be of dubious origin” Whitaker stated.
Jack Lewallen heard the rumors about what was in the cellar of the house he was renting from a 90 year old “invalid” so he started probing in the half century of accumulated junk and found the first little skeleton. The others were found by police later. Whitaker said that the preliminary report did confirm the babies were full term. “But he may never know whether death was anything but natural. We probably won’t know for sure they weren’t stillborn.”. He is quoted.
The coroner said that a skeleton found in a can was the most recently born of the four, but that the preliminary report did not indicated how recent in the terms of years. He said authorities located and talked to some of the former tenants of the old house, just off the DePauw University Campus. “But there is not much questioning that can be done until we have more information.”. He was quoted.
Multiple articles from the this time said the same things.
On June 13th, 1962, The Indianapolis News posted the article, “Fallout Tests Planned In Mystery of Baby Bones”. It was about how investigators were still trying to determine the times of death for the four infants. The investigators believed that they would have been able to gain some answers through the testing for Strontium 90 deposits.
Strontium 90 is a radioactive element released in the explosion of a nuclear weapon. It is absorbed in the bones of living animals exposed to atomic fallout, or in animals which eat growing matter that’s been exposed to such fallout.
The evidence in this case included the 4 small skulls, and the larger part of 3 skeletons, all found on October 20th, 1961, in the “crumbling basement of a weather beaten house, some 6 blocks south of the DePauw University Campus”.
The investigating team turned over the remains found in the debris littered basement to the anthropology department at Indiana University. Dr. George K. Neumann, an anthropologist, said the infants were full term babies, possible from the same mother. Dr. Neumann could not determine the time or cause of death in any instance. The remains were then transferred to the state police laboratory at Indianapolis.
Lt. Charles A. Davis was in charge of the laboratory service, and stated that the check for Strontium 90 was about the only investigative process that they had left. His plan was to test the remains for traces of radioactive Strontium 90, and if there was a measurable amount to compare the findings with known amounts of Strontium 90 which all human beings now (at least at the time of article), carry in their bones.
“We know there was a measurable amount in humans before the first atomic bomb exploded in New Mexico in July 1945. The level was increased somewhat after the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombs drops the following month. After the United States tested the hydrogen bomb in the Pacific in 1952, the level rose quite sharply.
I hope then to measure the amount of Strontium 90 -if any- in the bones and determine if the infants died prior to 1945 or 1952.” -Lt. Charles Davis
Because the state police lab did not have the equipment for such an experiment, it had to be conducted at the Indiana University Medical Center in Indiana. “It may take months” Lt. Davis said.
Meanwhile, authorities had compiled a record of the residents who lived in the house where the infant bones were found. They assembled a list of persons who lived in the area and who may have had access to the house. Clues were scant, and the coroner hadn’t made any inquests.
Roy Sutherlin, Putnam County Prosecutor for that time, said that the case was far from closed. Sutherlin hinted that there were some suspects, but authorities had not been able to move until laboratory tests gave them some answers.
I could not find any more articles about this cold case. I have no idea what ever happened, and what, if any, conclusions there were.
The house is more than likely no more. In modern day, it looks like DePauw University has expanded its campus. I speculate that the house was on what is part of the southern part of the university, in 2024. I could not find any old houses on zillow that would have fit the description of the one in the articles.
Information on this cold case is scant. I’m unsure why someone would also keep the bones of deceased animals in the basement. I fear that all of the deceased were hidden, after death. I am cognizant of the possibility that all might have had their lives taken from them.
Either way, I mourn the deceased, and burn a candle for them. This is a dark story.
If anyone has anymore information about this case, or perhaps, even any anecdotes that may be relevant, please let me know.
Further Questions:
What happened to Jack Lewallen after this?
Was there any chance that the babies were from Miss Mary Moore’s own family?
Was the house destroyed after this? Did the college buy the house and land?
Who all rented the house? Would it have possible for the babies to have belonged to college student there?
What happened to those babies? I could not find any info on the results of the remains. I don’t know what happened to them. I couldn’t find any grave on find a grave, nor any results about the Strontium 90. I’m inclined to believe that they didn’t find any Strontium, which if that was the case, that may have dated the infants back to the 1930’s. This is my speculation though.
I’m not even sure how to solve a case like this in modern day. Without any idea of where the remains went, we cannot do any sort of DNA testing.
On February 15th, 1947, a newborn baby boy was found in a clump of weeds at the Provo, Utah Golf Course, by three boys. The boys called the police and an inquest was held into the baby’s manner of death. The baby boy was described as white/Caucasian, and well developed. He was very badly decomposed. There were marks of violence on the body. The physician estimated that the baby had been in the water for one to two weeks. Police admitted they had no clues, and no leads, unless someone came forward, but the baby remains unidentified.
He is listed on namus as having been white, remains not recognizable, with other features unknown. The namus profile was created on April 23rd, 2022. He doesn’t seem to be listed on the Doe Network. There are no comparisons to his case on namus.
There’s very little information about this case, even the Utah gov website’s page is scant on this one.
On February 18th, 1947, The Daily Herald posted the article, “Coroner’s Jury Finds Babe Met Felonious Death”. The article stated that the baby was scheduled to be buried in Provo’s Potter’s field that same day. I’m not sure what cemetery that would be in modern day. I looked on find a grave, but there wasn’t anything that looked like Baby Doe’s grave.
The coroner’s jury ruled that the baby met his death by felonious means. An inquest was held that Monday afternoon into the death of the baby, whose body was found late that recent Saturday, floating in the Provo Millrace at the Golf course. A 3 man jury returned a verdict that the child met death “feloniously by either drowning, or hemorrhage, caused through felonious intent by a person, or persons unknown.”.
The article stated that the case would more than likely go no further, unless the people involved came forward, or if doctors were able to find a clue.
Testimony that Monday came mostly from the 3 boys that found the baby, and Dr. Fred Taylor, who examined him. Dr. Taylor said that the “body was well developed, and that there was no evidence of broken bones and apparently no marks of violence.”. He is quoted, “I rather believe the mother had no medical aid”, he told the jury. “My opinion is that the child was born alive, but I cannot be sure.”.
The doctor said he couldn’t state whether or not the death was caused by unlawful means; he estimated that the baby had been in the water one to two weeks, though he added that he didn’t think an autopsy would add anything or reveal anything further.
Beyond this, there doesn’t seem to be any more info known about this case. I have my speculations and questions about this situation though. My first question is. “Why would someone dump the body of a newborn, anywhere?”. Why would someone just dump the body outside, if the baby was stillborn? No matter if the baby was stillborn or born with a disease, or perhaps even died of SIDS, that doesn’t justify dumping the body anywhere. I speculate that this baby may have been potentially born out of wedlock and dumped there, or, another theory.
From the details in the article and namus, I am inclined to believe that the child may have been a victim of Shaken Baby Syndrome. Shaken Baby Syndrome is a real and dangerous brain injury, caused by forcefully shaking an infant or toddler. The Mayo Clinic states that it’s also known as, “abusive head trauma”, “shaken impact syndrome”, “inflicted head injury”, or “whiplash shaken infant syndrome”.
Shaken Baby Syndrome destroys a child’s brain cells, preventing the baby from getting enough oxygen to their brain. This can lead to permanent brain damage or death.
What’s important to note, is that you won’t always see symptoms of physical injury to the child’s outer body. Injuries can be internal and include:
-bleeding in the brain and eyes
-spinal cord damage
-fractures of the ribs, skull, legs, and other bones.
On the Mayo Clinic website, they sate that Shaken Baby Syndrome usually occurrs when a parent or caregiver severely shakes a baby due to frustration or anger-often because the child won’t stop crying. Babies have weak neck muscles, and can’t support the weight of their heads. If a baby is shaken, their fragile brain moves back and forth inside the skull, causing bruising, swelling, and bleeding.
This is something that we learned about when I was in school. When I was in college, we were required to take a Child Psychology course, to which, it was very helpful. The books stated the same thing the Mayo Clinic does, and went into the reasons why it happens.
One of the main reasons is tiredness and frustration from the parent, though that alone does not justify killing your child (nothing does!). Other risk factors include:
-young parents
-single parents
-domestic violence
-history or mistreatment of babies, and more.
In one way or another, it seems that the cycle of abuse contributes to this.
Going back to Baby Doe, I speculate that he may have been the victim of this, as his body was dumped, like as if the perpetrators were embarrassed and tried to hide their actions. Like as if disposing the body away from where they lived would have made the death “okay”. The fact that the coroner had no real signs of violence (at least according to the news article), can point to the decomposition process destroying the signs of abuse. If there were bruises, they would be long gone due to the state of decay. Further, shaken baby syndrome would have been hard to determine in an autopsy, at least in 1947, before much of the technology we have today came around. I do wonder if the coroner speculated if this was the cause of death too.
Unfortunately, there isn’t much else to say about this scenario. I am unsure as to the state of/location of the remains, and I have no idea if any DNA has ever been submitted through Namus’ website.
[originally written 11/22/2024]
[SOURCES]
By bringing people, information, forensic science and technology together, NamUs helps resolve cases.
Before getting started, I have to preface by saying that this is simply my own opinion.
“Carving Out The Eyes of God” came out in 2009, and was Goatwhore’s 4th album. Their 2nd album with Metalblade, and their 2nd album produced by Erik Rutan.
I’m going to get straight to the point. I find this one to be Goatwhore’s weakest album, in their catalogue. It’s not bad, but for some reason, I just cannot find myself as interested in this album, like I have with all the others. Strangely enough, I find something very boring about it, but I don’t know why. Lyrically and instrumentally, it’s good. I suspect, for me, it has to do deal with the production of the album that I don’t like.
When I listen to the previous three Goatwhore albums, there seems to be this distinct medieval esoteric element to the music. While these elements are seen lyrically, artistically, even instrumentally to me, Carving seems to be missing that. While this is the 2nd album produced by Erik Rutan, it has a notably different sound from the previous album, “A Haunting Curse:.
[[GOUTWHORE]]
While Goatwhore is just loud in general, especially if you see them live, Carving is just LOUD to me in general. Many of Goatwhore’s albums start immediately, like a punch in the face. Carving, A Haunting Curse, Blood For The Master, and Constricting Rage For The Merciless are all like this.
Carving is a lot more “Power Metal” oriented to me. The guitars are loud, thrashy, and you see Benjamin’s vocal start start to adapt into what I call his “Medieval Krampus” style, and what ended up becoming a departure from the “clean spoken” type vocals from the first 2 albums. The, “Black Metal Moans of Despair” are completely gone bu this album, and do not re-emerge in their later releases, at least, in their discography up through 2022. The closest to this would be the song, “To Mourn and Forever Wander Through Forgotten Doorways”. To me, that sounds more like Krampus walking to himself though, than the type of “cleaner” vocals seen on the first 2 albums. That said, I like the song, and it’s one of my favorites from the album.
Speaking of favorite songs, there’s a few that really stick out to me on this album.
“Provoking The Ritual of Death” is really good to me, because of the way Sammy pulls on those strings at times. He’s got that kundalini, where he can make a riff so tantalizing, and dare I say, sexy. It’s something that I wished he did more on Goatwhore albums. This same sound is why I love the song, “Silence Marked By The Breaking of Bone” from the previous album, and why I love “Sonic Excess” album by Crowbar. He just knows how to bend those strings.
“In Legions, I Am Wars of Death” is another favorite, as the song gets really good when it gets to the part where Sammy screams “Rise”. It sounds so evil, and like they were summoning a storm for Leviathan. The way Sammy plays is like the rain that pours down violently at night, during a particularly violent torrent. This is a style that I find very definitive of this time period for him in general, something very prominent from the albums produced during the Rutan years.
“Shadow Of a Rising Knife” is the one that stuck out to me the most. It has a cadence lyrically, like that of A Haunting Curse, and the guitar riffs are very fun and punky. It gets heavier and more death metally, and I really enjoy the solos!
Other songs I liked were, “The All Destroying” and “Carving Out The Eyes of God”. I like “Apocalyptic Havoc”too, though that one is a given, since they tend to play that song live, and it’s a fun song to listen to live.
The more I listened to the album, the more I realized why I, personally, didn’t care for it that much. In a very strange way, “Carving Out The Eyes of God” is too modern for me. The way it’s produced is definitely an album that has “Rutan’s Curse” on it. Even though I know that Erik Rutan is a cool guy and talented musician, I just don’t like the way he produces albums. His most popular band to have produced for is, of course, Cannibal Corpse. Listen to other albums produced by Rutan from that era: KILL, Evisceration Plague. They have this same problem. While technically, it’s good, everything is modernized and put together on a computer at the end of the day, it somehow has its authenticity stripped from it. A lot of Rutan’s resume consists of creating walls of sound, that results in this “sterile” end production. I know that this will make people mad, but that’s how it comes off to me. Having seen Goatwhore live multiple times, I’ve really come to know their performances are like. They always put on a good show, and many songs sound better live, than what was recorded in the studio.
“Carving Out The Eyes Of God” isn’t a bad album, but I think it suffers greatly from how it was mastered or produced. You mainly hear Ben’s vocals and Sam’s guitars. Zack’s drums came third to me, and finally, I barely hear Nathan’s bass. Personally, I liked Nathan’s bass playing, greatly enjoying him on the previous album, “A Haunting Curse”. I’m not sure why his bass is put in the background on this album, along with Zack. To me, all parts of a band are equal. They are the “sum of their own parts”, to quote Johnny Kelly. I find it especially odd, considering how Sam and Zack have a playing style that really bounces off of each other, even more notable live. I just shake my head at whoever made those mixing decision on this album. To me, it was like Goatwhore was put into someone’s formula and they had more say, than the own band members of the album.
I bought the album on bandcamp, which allows for lossless versions of the album to be downloaded. I listen to almost all of my music in .flac, a lossless format that allows audio to be heard in a way that isn’t horrifically compressed. I think that, because of this, I really hear how loud Sammy’s guitars are, over the other members. I know that many people think of guitars first with Metal music, but I just find the way this is done, to be in a strange way. It would have been really nice to hear the bass on this album, is all I’m saying.
Overall, this is a decent album. A good metal album you’d probably expect, as a metal album should sound. But to me, it’s lacking in what makes something a phenomenal Goatwhore album. I suppose that I know, in hindsight, how talented these musicians can be. I suppose, in my eyes, I know how good this could be. I know how hard working, talented, dedicated, and determined Benjamin and Sammy are, especially.
I wish that this album would have been heaver. I wish that it was more estoteric like the ones before it. But I don’t hold it against them or anything.
If anything, “Carving Out The Eyes of God” is a stepping stone for Goatwhore. Another chapter in the book that had to be written, in order to further themselves in the next chapter of their books.
And it seems that the next chapter in their lives, was an exciting one, overall/
“Blood For The Master” was released on February 13th, 2012, though in some interviews from that time period, people thought that it came out on Valentine’s day. Close enough I guess. In various interviews with Ben Falgoust, he is quoted as saying that it wasn’t intentional, and just turned out that way.
Either way, the album starts out immediately in what is like a punch in the junk, a punch in the pussy which could summon blood…for the master.
This was Goatwhore’s 5th album, and the third produced by Erik Rutan. It’s a relatively short album, at 38 minutes, but the 37-40 minute area seems to be the sweet spot for Goatwore.
This time around, they had James Harvey on bass, who really seemed to change things around. James seemed to be like a breath of fresh air in the band, his playing style seemed to be a lot more naturally in tune with Zack and Sammy’s James having this Rock N Roll type style which perfectly melded with Zack’s drum style. What I also liked about James’ playing, was that he naturally was the rhythm to Sammy’s playing. You can tell that he just naturally knew what to do on that album. And I think that something should be said too, of the way this album is mixed. This one is much better than its predecessor, as each instrument is equal! I don’t have to turn on the equalizer to hear someone! Naturally, James’ bass is audible, and clearly there. You just have to know what you’re looking for.
“Parasitic Scriptures of The Sacred Word” is a fun and punky song. It really marks the beginning of this cycle of Goatwhore, where they endured this thrashy punk sound which became popular for this era. I can’t help but be a bit nostalgic when thinking of this time period. I graduated high school in 2011, and remember going to the record store with my first boyfriend. We’d browse the records at Ernie November’s in Rapid City, and on the speakers, music in this same tune would be playing.
I remember this era of “Neo-Thrash”, if that’s what you want to call it, becoming quite popular in the metal scene back in the 2010’s. I remember going to concerts in 2015 and 2016 that would have bands playing in this similar style. I remember this era of metal music quite well, and find myself very nostalgic about it, looking back. In many ways, this album reminds me of those nights walking around Downtown San Antonio waiting for a show to start; or going to the Korova when I went to see Deicide, and other bands. This album reminds me of those days where I went to the Aztec theater to see various bands there, like Steel Panther, Down, Obituary, and Cannibal Corpse. In some ways, it is like a bittersweet memory of the past.
I’m not that fond of the song “Judgement of the Bleeding Crown”. It’s not bad, but it just doesn’t groove to me. “Beyond The Spell of Discontent” is the same to me. Not bad, but I just don’t personally care for the blatant brute force of the riffs. Granted, I love that riff at the 2 minute mark of the song, where it’s got that bit of kundalini in it. But I’m a sucker for any time Sammy bends his guitar strings.
My absolute favorite song on this album is “Death To The Architects of Heaven”! It is like water in some ways. The song just flows. I don’t know why they never played this song live, at any of the shows of theirs that I went to. This song would be so awesome to hear live! It grooves, it’s thrashy, it’s punky, and dare I say, it’s something to shake your ass to! This song is a great example of the genius that Sammy Duet is capable of. I don’t know what magick happened for this song to come out this way, but something perfect happened here. I think that this is among one of Goatwhore’s greatest songs, seriously. What makes this song a bit different too, is how Sammy’s playing is like a storm, yes, but not in the usual frozen rain type of way that is on the rest of the album. This song is more like a summer storm, where the water is cool, but not freezing. Where the softness of the water breaks on your skin, and does not hurt, but there is still that danger of drowning.
The song right after that, “An End To Nothing”, is a great tune too. It’s a short song, but very fun and punky. I don’t recall them ever playing this one live at any of the shows I went to, though I wish they did. I know that this would be a great one live, people thrashing around, surely.
The final song on the album, “My Name Is Frightful Among The Believers” is an interesting one. Not because of anything different instrumentally, but it oddly reminds me of Anton Lavey. The song is 4 minutes and 11 seconds long, and Anton Lavey was born on April 11th. Even to this day, in 2025, there are Evangelists that use his name as a sort of boogeyman…making him frightful among believers. Probably a complete coincidence, but I thought that was interesting to note. The lyrics are obviously about apocalyptic themes though.
I don’t really have much to say about the album’s lyrics. It’s the same thing you’d normally expect from Ben Falgoust. He remains in the realm of the esoteric and anti-Christian, though you start to see on this album, his writing take a turn to fit the cadence of Sammy’s guitar playing. This doesn’t abbreviate the length of what is written, but the style more so. To me, reading through his lyrics, you see Benjamin become a bit more in tune with writing for the style of a song, and just a smidgen less of the verbose flow of literature that he’s accustomed to.
—
Blood For The Master marks the first of Goatwhore’s albums to have art created by Jordan Barlow. Barlow, a tattoo artist, and musician in his own right, would later go on to be employed for the art of the next three albums after this one. I think that he was great choice for becoming their album artist, as Barlow has a very esoteric style, and interests himself it seems. This seems to be something that he and Benjamin seemed to have bonded over, as you see a lot of the lyrics represented through Barlow’s art in the next releases also.
On the back of the album, you see more of Jordan’s artwork. What’s interesting to me, is how there are sigils of the band’s names at the bottom of the hourglass. Inside, is something that looks like a granfalloon, mourning souls in the hourglass of time.
—
Overall, I think that Blood For The Master is a good album. It’s fun and punky at times, and nostalgic for that early 2010’s era. If you were the type to go to shows during this time period, for any band, this album might remind you of that.
“Constricting Rage Of The Merciless” was released on July 8th, 2014. This was Goatwhore’s sixth album, and fourth to be produced by Erik Rutan. This would also be the last album to be produced by Rutan. Various interviews and even the wikipedia page note that the band recorded the audio on 2 inch tape. Personally, I don’t hear a difference between this and the other recordings that weren’t on tape. I think that comes down to the end production though.
Constricting starts off with “Poisonous Existence In Reawakening”, a song that, truly, sounds poisonous and venomous with Sam’s guitar riffage. I think about a pile of snakes ready to sink their teeth in you.
I feel like this album put less attention on James Harvey, from the production perspective. He seems to be put in the background, the bass being the least audible out of the other members. I have no idea why the album was produced this way.
Though I enjoy “Poisonous Existence”, I don’t really understand why the album starts with this song. In my person opinion, “Baring Teeth For Revolt” would have been a much better song to start off with, because it is high energy, and instantly draws the listener in.
I’m the type of person that views an album as an experience. For me, the final three albums Goatwhore had produced with Erik Rutan, it was more like a collection of songs. In juxtaposition with the first 2 albums, those are set up like an experience, each song perfectly placed one after the other. In the case of “Constricting”, I feel like this album is more a collection of songs, than the “Goatwhore Experience”.
I’m the type of person that listens to music with just about everything I do. This album is best listened to while driving or doing something relatively fast. Maybe an intense cardio workout or lifting weights. I remember going to a Cannibal Corpse concert in 2015, where I met a couple of body builders that listened to this type of Metal, and would lift to them. Obviously it worked, they were pretty buff.
“Nocturnal Conjuration of The Accursed” Is a punky kind of song. Pretty good, but it doesn’t stand out that much to me. “Schadenfreude” is similar, with this sear-faring sound, if that makes sense. It really reminds me of what songs would play at the bars and venues I’d see shows at in 2015 and 2016. It doesn’t stick out as a mega jam for me, though.
“Externalize This Hidden Savagery” is the final track on the album, and a strange way to end the album, in my opinion. It doesn’t feel like an “end” song, it seems out of place. To end the album with this song seems so sudden, and I usually end up thinking, “Wait, that’s it? The album’s over?”.
The most popular songs on this album are surely, “Baring Teeth For Revolt”, and “FBS”. Rightfully so, because these are great songs to listen to on the studio version and live. These songs are crowd hits, when I’ve seen them play. These are songs that you can shake you ass to! All I can say, is that Sam really knew what he was doing when he made those ones.
What’s interesting, is that you see Ben’s lyrics shift a little bit more to a song type cadence, following Sam’s guitar playing. Lyrically, Benjamin’s themes are essentially the same as always. Looking through, there are multiple mentions about serpents, which is fitting of the album art. Once again, we see Jordan Barlow’s work, in what seems to be an interesting interpretation of passage at the end of the bible, with the woman of wisdom, and the snakes with their diadems. I think it is a reference to Revelations 12.
“Baring Teeth For Revolt” has this fun, punky, Rock and Roll sense to it, which I love. It’s like a call back to “Alchemy of The Black Sun Cult” from “A Haunting Curse”. I know that I’ve said it before, but Sam can really make music to shake your ass too. I think a lot of that comes from his very Punk influences like, The Plasmatics.
My favorite song off the album is “Reanimated Sacrifice”, surprisingly. I’m surprised that I keep going back to that one, but it’s so high energy and fun, that I play it over and over again.
In general, this album is high energy. I’m sure that there’s a lot of cocaine and partying that went into this. What’s interesting to me, is that this album is looked at as one of their best examples of talent, or what someone ”should” listen to if they were to get into Goatwhore. I don’t really agree with that though. “Constricting Rage of The Merciless” isn’t a bad album, but, it does not show everything that these musicians are capable of. There are elements of their sound on other albums that are more consistent with how they play live versus this one. “A Haunting Curse” is a great representation of their high energy live. “The Eclipse of Ages Into Black” is perfect example of their Black Metal themes and esoteric interests. Naturally, Sammy leans towards the Black Metal sound, and his guitars are much heavier live than what you hear on “Constricting”. “Angels Hung From The Arches of Heaven”, their latest as of 2025, is the best representation of Benjamin’s vocals.
I’m not here to shit on anyone, or make people look bad. This is just my opinion. And, in my opinion, I think that a lot of people just instantly wanted to approve anything ever produced by Erik Rutan. I say this as someone who went to shows during the 2014-2017 era, where anecdotally, I would hear people just saying that any album was good because it was produced by Erik Rutan! That’s ridiculous! It always came off as a blind admiration, instead of actually taking the time to process, and analyze his work. To me, the best way to gauge someone’s work as a producer, is to compare his work of a band, with another producer’s work of the same band. In the case of Goatwhore, I really believe that they were constricted, no pun intended, by Erik Rutan. Those last three albums they produced with him feel like boxed in versions of themselves, to fit Erik Rutan’s idea of Goatwhore, as opposed to who Goatwhore were to themselves. I don’t hate Rutan. I just don’t like him as a producer.
Do I prefer this over “Carving”? Sure. But I prefer other albums than this one too. It’s not bad, it’s fun. It’s punky, but there is an element of magick lost here, that was found on “A Haunting Curse”. I still don’t understand what changed so drastically from that album produced by Erik Rutan, versus the next three. In my opinion, “Constricting” is the third best album that they made with Rutan. My favorite Rutan albums would be:
-A Haunting Curse
-Blood For The Master
-Constricting Rage For The Merciless
-and Carving Out The Eyes of God.
While I’m very glad that they stopped recording with him, there are still really great songs that came out of this era. “Silence Marked By The Breaking of Bone”, “An End To Nothing”, “Death To The Architects of Heaven”, “Reanimated Sacrifice”, and “I Avenge Myself” are some of my favorite Goatwhore songs of all time. These all came out of the Rutan era. But when you listen to Goatwhore as a whole, their entire discography, there are elements from the Rutan era that are missing from their previous albums, or minimized. There are elements of Sam’s style that are completely gone, which you would have heard on other albums he’s played. I just think that it’s a conglomerate of strange decisions overall.
If the album could be rearranged, I’d place “Baring Teeth For Revolt” as the first song on the album, “Reanimated Sacrifice” second, “Poisonous Existence” third, and “Unraveling Paradise” fourth. I feel like that order would really change the way this album comes off, and in a way, makes it more high energy.
Goatwhore is a lot like a ship. Benjamin is the captain of that ship in many ways, the guiding force; the one who maps out the route they’ll take, and the one that’ll ensure their destination is met. Sam is the motor, the engine. He is the heart of it; working hard, and giving his all. Without these two, Goatwhore would not be. And it seems, that after this album, their boat changed course.
Back in January of this year, I interviewed Brian Patton of Soilent Green and Eyehategod. He was incredibly kind! If you haven't seen it, I encourage you to check it out!
If you’re a fan of Steely Dan, then you’re familiar with Walter Becker. If not, I’ll summarize briefly. Walter Becker was the second half to the duo that made up Steely Dan. Walter and Donald Fagen were the minds behind the music, the composer, the conductors, the two with the vision behind it all.
There is a lot of Steely Dan Lore that goes around, and most is easy to find proof of. One subject that intrigued me was the story of Karen Roberta Stanley, who was Walter’s girlfriend at one point.
One wikipedia, there is a small blip about her on Walter’s page, stating that she died in his apartment on January 30th, 1980. Karen was an employee of ABC Dunhill Records, and was the personal manager for the band. After her death, her parents filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Walter. Only one source is cited for this, the book, Steely Dan: Reelin In The Years.
It’s hard to find out more information on this subject, but I tried my hardest to look.
On the national news.com, it states that Karen Stanley died of a drug overdose in 1978. The Guardian says that Karen died in January of 1980, “following a drug overdose in his apartment, on the upper west side.”. The following years, Stanley’s mother attempted to sue Becker for 17 million dollars, claiming that he introduced her daughter to cocaine, morphine, heroin, and barbiturates.
A judge found in Walter’s favor, and the case was settled. Walter is quoted:
“I could barely understand what was going on with her, really. If you’ve known anyone that’s chronically depressed like that, it’s hard to appreciate what’s going on: You’re looking straight at it and you still don’t get it, because you’ve never gone through that.”.
This same article says that a month after Karen’s death, Walter was seriously injured when a taxi drove into him in Central Park.
An article from The Independent stated that in some versions of the story, Karen was underage, though this is untrue. Karen’s name appears in the liner notes on early Steely Dan records. They also wrote that a year after Karen’s death, her mother attempted to sue Walter; Walter threatened to counter sue, and the case disappeared.
One source says that it took Walter six months to recover from the car accident. Rolling Stone states that Walter ended up in a wheelchair, while the rest of the album ‘Gaucho’ was recorded. The stress from the sessions strained his relationship with Donald Fagen, and Walter succumbed to a growing drug habit, being Heroin. In January of 1980, Karen overdosed in the apartment that she have shared with Walter.
Another source states that during Walter’s six month recovery, he collaborated with Donald over the phone. The crash shattered Walter’s right leg. The accident also led to multiple fractures, a lengthy rehabilitation, which was made worse by secondary infections. This source also says that Karen’s family lost the case, though the whole process put everyone through a tortuous proces..
Music musings and such states that Karen overdosed in 1978, and soon after, Walter was hit by a minicab in Manhattan, being forced to use crutches.
With this information alone, the story is confusing and rather incomplete. I could not find a Karen Roberta Stanley that passed away in 1980 on find a grave. This doesn’t mean that her death didn’t happen, it’s just likely that Karen may not have a find a grave page at all.
An article from The Philidelphia Daily News, dated January 20th, 1981, mentioned the accident that injured Walter; but nothing about Karen, or the lawsuit. Many articles from early 1981 were like this, talking about the car accident.
One small blip of the lawsuit was mentioned on January 27th, 1981, in the Detroit Free Press. It stated that Walter was being sued for 17.5 million dollars by Lillian Wyshak, who claimed that Walter introduced Karen Roberta Stanley to dangerous drugs like “heroin, morphine, cocaine, and barbiturates in order to achieve control of the person, mind, and spirit of the woman.”.
In an article from the Corpus Christi Times, the attorney for Lillian Wyshak stated that the medical examiner’s office indicated that Karen had died from “acute mixed drug intoxication”.
An article from the Daily Record states that Karen’s age was not available. It also stated that Karen’s mother claimed that Walter “induced and pursuaded her daughter to lived with him in an intimate relationship in California and New York.” She stated that Walter introduced and addicted Karen to dangerous drugs.
I saw in one article, and nowhere else, that the suit also claimed that Walter “negligently and maliciously violated the person of Stanley, after assuming responsibility for her care, and getting her a job with Steely Dan; in addition to persuading and encouraging Stanley to take drugs, Becker in other ways assaulted and battered Miss Stanley until the time of her death.”. This was from the Thousand Oaks Star, January 23rd, 1981.
Post 1981, there doesn’t seem to be any more info about the court case, at least, nothing mentioning Lillian Wyshak. Through the rest of the 80’s, the name “Lillian Wyshak” appeared in the news, but only as part of realty adverts. I’m unsure if this was the same person.
There is an article from April 7th, 1988, where a Lillian Wyshak was mentioned. She was a 59 year old attorney and real estate broker.
An obituary from April 15th, 1993, shoes that a Lillian Wyshak, formerly of Los Angeles, passed away. A record on family search shows that this Lillian was born on December 15th, 1927 in Boston, Massachusetts, and passed away in April of 1993.
Another record on family search shows that Karen Roberta Stanley died in January of 1980. She was born on September 4th, 1948, in Hollywood, California. Her parents were listed as Edwin Stanley, and Mary L Worthing.
I’m unsure of whatever happened to Karen’s family. There are still many missing pieces to the puzzle. Despite my best efforts, I could not find any obituary or burial details for Karen. I’ve never seen any pictures of her face.
There’s a divorce record, from February 1977, where she divorced a man named Stephen M. Poe. Beyond that, I have no other information on her, as it just could not be found. I’m sure that there’s a 1950 census record out there somewhere, with Karen on it.
It’s strange to me that there was the rumor that Karen was underage. I think that stems from the one article that was written, and hinted that she was. Ironically, she was older than Walter, who was born in 1950.
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