1 00:00:01,480 --> 00:00:04,560 Speaker 1: The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are solely 2 00:00:04,600 --> 00:00:07,760 Speaker 1: those of the authors and participants and do not necessarily 3 00:00:07,760 --> 00:00:11,240 Speaker 1: represent those of I Heart Media, Stuff Media, or its employees. 4 00:00:11,880 --> 00:00:16,599 Speaker 1: Listener discretion is advised from my Heart Radio and Tenderfoot TV. 5 00:00:17,280 --> 00:00:27,840 Speaker 1: Monster Presents Insomniac. In a late evening of September five, 6 00:00:30,480 --> 00:00:36,080 Speaker 1: just hours before his scheduled execution, Donald Henry Gaskins Age, 7 00:00:37,640 --> 00:00:41,760 Speaker 1: better known as Peewee Gaskins, was found bleeding in his 8 00:00:41,880 --> 00:00:46,199 Speaker 1: holding cell. Gaskins it's snu gonna razor blade by swallowing 9 00:00:46,240 --> 00:00:48,680 Speaker 1: it and then coughed it up to cut his wrists. 10 00:00:50,800 --> 00:00:52,879 Speaker 1: It was either his last ditch effort to stall the 11 00:00:52,920 --> 00:00:57,279 Speaker 1: execution process or to altogether rob the South Carolina authorities 12 00:00:57,280 --> 00:01:01,680 Speaker 1: of their planned execution of the convicted killer. Either way, 13 00:01:02,600 --> 00:01:07,720 Speaker 1: it didn't work. They stitched him up, bandaged his still 14 00:01:07,800 --> 00:01:12,240 Speaker 1: leaking risks, and led him to the electric chair as scheduled. 15 00:01:13,920 --> 00:01:16,680 Speaker 1: It was now the early morning hours of September six, 16 00:01:19,080 --> 00:01:22,520 Speaker 1: just after midnight, and he had just minutes to live. 17 00:01:24,160 --> 00:01:28,360 Speaker 1: Pee Wee was aptly named, but despite his diminutive size, 18 00:01:29,319 --> 00:01:33,160 Speaker 1: he was something of a larger than life character, only 19 00:01:33,160 --> 00:01:37,559 Speaker 1: not in the way anyone would ever admire. In fact, 20 00:01:38,280 --> 00:01:40,560 Speaker 1: Peewee seemed to be rotten from the time he was 21 00:01:40,600 --> 00:01:43,880 Speaker 1: a young boy right up until the very minute he died. 22 00:01:46,520 --> 00:01:49,920 Speaker 1: In addition to his crimes on the outside and later 23 00:01:50,520 --> 00:01:53,400 Speaker 1: his crimes on the inside, one of which he would 24 00:01:53,400 --> 00:01:57,200 Speaker 1: pay for with his own life, pee Wee had somehow 25 00:01:57,240 --> 00:01:59,680 Speaker 1: managed to pull off what was likely the most audacious 26 00:01:59,720 --> 00:02:03,000 Speaker 1: death row killing of another inmate that the US and 27 00:02:03,080 --> 00:02:07,920 Speaker 1: maybe even the world, had ever seen. Once he learned 28 00:02:07,920 --> 00:02:10,880 Speaker 1: who Peewee was and how he lived his corrupt life, 29 00:02:12,040 --> 00:02:14,160 Speaker 1: you'll think that he would have had something profound or 30 00:02:14,160 --> 00:02:16,519 Speaker 1: even outrageous to say as he was strapped to the 31 00:02:16,560 --> 00:02:20,280 Speaker 1: electric chair in that September evening. But the last words 32 00:02:20,280 --> 00:02:23,160 Speaker 1: he ever said were simply, I'll let my lawyer speak 33 00:02:23,200 --> 00:02:27,200 Speaker 1: for me. I'm ready to go. And shortly after those 34 00:02:27,240 --> 00:02:31,160 Speaker 1: words were uttered, the man who earned the nickname the 35 00:02:31,240 --> 00:02:36,079 Speaker 1: Meanest Man in America was dead at one oh five 36 00:02:36,120 --> 00:02:45,680 Speaker 1: am on September six. I'm Scott Benjamin and everything I'm 37 00:02:45,720 --> 00:02:56,360 Speaker 1: about to tell you is real. This is insomniac. He 38 00:02:56,400 --> 00:02:59,480 Speaker 1: was eventually called the Meanest Man in America, but he 39 00:02:59,520 --> 00:03:02,640 Speaker 1: was also own as the hitchhikers Killer and the redneck 40 00:03:02,760 --> 00:03:07,400 Speaker 1: Charles Manson. Admittedly he had a funny nickname for a 41 00:03:07,400 --> 00:03:12,440 Speaker 1: grown man, pee Wee, But let me assure you there's 42 00:03:12,520 --> 00:03:16,400 Speaker 1: absolutely nothing funny about the life and the seemingly endless 43 00:03:16,440 --> 00:03:20,640 Speaker 1: crimes of this undersized criminal. When he was a fully 44 00:03:20,639 --> 00:03:24,000 Speaker 1: grown man, pee Wee stood just five ft two inches 45 00:03:24,040 --> 00:03:28,360 Speaker 1: tall and weighed about one and thirty pounds. He had 46 00:03:28,360 --> 00:03:31,440 Speaker 1: always been small for his age, and he clearly wasn't 47 00:03:31,440 --> 00:03:35,200 Speaker 1: ever going to intimidate anybody with his size. But pee 48 00:03:35,240 --> 00:03:37,800 Speaker 1: Wee didn't need size to strike fear into the lives 49 00:03:37,800 --> 00:03:41,600 Speaker 1: of those around him. He endured a lifetime of torment 50 00:03:42,040 --> 00:03:45,400 Speaker 1: and pain, and he would return that pain and suffering 51 00:03:45,440 --> 00:03:50,000 Speaker 1: to those unfortunate enough to cross his path. His criminal 52 00:03:50,080 --> 00:03:53,400 Speaker 1: records spanned decades, and he more than earned the reputation 53 00:03:53,640 --> 00:03:57,880 Speaker 1: as the meanest man in America. In the end, pee 54 00:03:57,880 --> 00:04:00,000 Speaker 1: Wee would claim he was responsible for more than one 55 00:04:00,120 --> 00:04:05,760 Speaker 1: hundred murders men, women, and even children among his victims, 56 00:04:06,960 --> 00:04:10,280 Speaker 1: Yet he was convicted of just nine, and we say 57 00:04:10,400 --> 00:04:14,160 Speaker 1: just because those crimes only begin to tell his story. 58 00:04:15,480 --> 00:04:17,880 Speaker 1: Was the South Carolina native as violent as he claimed 59 00:04:17,880 --> 00:04:20,599 Speaker 1: to be, or was he just trying to inflate his 60 00:04:20,640 --> 00:04:23,080 Speaker 1: image to be known as the most prolific serial killer 61 00:04:23,120 --> 00:04:27,599 Speaker 1: to date. Many of these killings were never proven, of course, 62 00:04:28,680 --> 00:04:32,120 Speaker 1: and maybe he was just bragging. But when he was alive, 63 00:04:32,800 --> 00:04:35,320 Speaker 1: Peewee claimed to be one of the deadliest serial killers 64 00:04:35,320 --> 00:04:41,200 Speaker 1: on record, and there was good reason to believe him. 65 00:04:41,200 --> 00:04:44,839 Speaker 1: To begin, we have to travel to Florence County, South Carolina, 66 00:04:45,600 --> 00:04:51,839 Speaker 1: on March the day when a tiny four pound baby 67 00:04:51,880 --> 00:05:02,599 Speaker 1: boy named Donald Henry Parrott Jr. Was born. Of the 68 00:05:02,680 --> 00:05:06,279 Speaker 1: long list of illegitimate children born to his mother, Juliah Parrott, 69 00:05:07,120 --> 00:05:11,839 Speaker 1: Donald Henry Parrott Jr. Was the last. Not only was 70 00:05:11,880 --> 00:05:14,359 Speaker 1: he the baby, but he was also the smallest of 71 00:05:14,360 --> 00:05:18,640 Speaker 1: all of her children. Right from the beginning, pee Wee 72 00:05:18,640 --> 00:05:20,960 Speaker 1: earned his nickname among his siblings and friends for his 73 00:05:21,000 --> 00:05:24,919 Speaker 1: small size growing up, He was always small for his age. 74 00:05:26,920 --> 00:05:29,440 Speaker 1: To say that Peewee had a difficult childhood would be 75 00:05:29,480 --> 00:05:33,960 Speaker 1: an understatement. The neglect was so severe he was even 76 00:05:34,040 --> 00:05:37,320 Speaker 1: rumored that Gaskins accidentally drank a bottle of kerosene as 77 00:05:37,360 --> 00:05:43,479 Speaker 1: a child, which led to convulsions. Peewee would later tell 78 00:05:43,480 --> 00:05:45,400 Speaker 1: others of the way he was neglected as a kid. 79 00:05:46,920 --> 00:05:49,599 Speaker 1: Being born on a farm, I know the difference between 80 00:05:49,680 --> 00:05:54,640 Speaker 1: raising something and it just growing. You raised tobacco and vegetables, 81 00:05:55,160 --> 00:06:00,200 Speaker 1: pigs and sheep, they got purpose you tend them, but 82 00:06:00,279 --> 00:06:04,640 Speaker 1: weeds grow on their own, tended or not. I grew. 83 00:06:05,600 --> 00:06:10,599 Speaker 1: I wasn't raised, That's for damn sure. He was always 84 00:06:10,600 --> 00:06:13,320 Speaker 1: a poor student, didn't get along with the other kids, 85 00:06:13,960 --> 00:06:17,680 Speaker 1: and he quit school at the age of eleven. He 86 00:06:17,760 --> 00:06:19,960 Speaker 1: took a job as a mechanic at the local garage, 87 00:06:20,839 --> 00:06:24,240 Speaker 1: and he had always seemed to be mechanically inclined. He 88 00:06:24,240 --> 00:06:30,920 Speaker 1: could fix almost anything. Toys, cars, appliances, electronics, you name it, 89 00:06:31,000 --> 00:06:35,960 Speaker 1: he could repair it. When Gaskins was just thirteen years old, 90 00:06:36,760 --> 00:06:40,200 Speaker 1: he and two other boys from town, Danny and Marsh, 91 00:06:40,880 --> 00:06:44,840 Speaker 1: formed a group called the Troubled Trio. The trio began 92 00:06:44,920 --> 00:06:49,680 Speaker 1: burglarizing homes, raping young boys, and picking up prostitutes in 93 00:06:49,760 --> 00:06:54,640 Speaker 1: nearby cities. As a part of this juvenile delinquent group, 94 00:06:55,240 --> 00:06:58,799 Speaker 1: Peewee's first arrest came early when he was just thirteen 95 00:06:58,880 --> 00:07:03,440 Speaker 1: years old. Having answer to Peewee his whole life, he 96 00:07:03,480 --> 00:07:06,080 Speaker 1: first earned his real name when it was read aloud 97 00:07:06,160 --> 00:07:09,320 Speaker 1: during this court appearance for a crime s Free Gascons 98 00:07:09,320 --> 00:07:14,760 Speaker 1: committed with the troubled trio att Peewee was still too 99 00:07:14,760 --> 00:07:18,360 Speaker 1: young for jail, he was confined in the South Carolina 100 00:07:18,440 --> 00:07:22,440 Speaker 1: Industrial School, a reform school for boys, until he turned 101 00:07:22,480 --> 00:07:27,040 Speaker 1: eighteen years old. As you can imagine, it was not 102 00:07:27,120 --> 00:07:31,560 Speaker 1: a good experience well. At the reform school, he was 103 00:07:31,640 --> 00:07:35,400 Speaker 1: tormented and even gang raped by as many as twenty 104 00:07:35,440 --> 00:07:40,200 Speaker 1: other young inmates. From that point forward, he spent all 105 00:07:40,240 --> 00:07:42,880 Speaker 1: of his time either accepting protection from the boss boy 106 00:07:43,120 --> 00:07:49,040 Speaker 1: in exchange for sex, or plotting his own escape. Peewee 107 00:07:49,080 --> 00:07:52,120 Speaker 1: had grown so accustomed to being a target that all 108 00:07:52,120 --> 00:07:55,280 Speaker 1: of this was nothing new to him. Due to his 109 00:07:55,360 --> 00:07:59,160 Speaker 1: small size, Peewee was regularly the focus of attention from 110 00:07:59,200 --> 00:08:02,600 Speaker 1: bullies and often found himself in a position of having 111 00:08:02,600 --> 00:08:05,600 Speaker 1: to endure violence in school, just as he was now 112 00:08:05,600 --> 00:08:10,480 Speaker 1: experiencing in the reform school. Pee Wee eventually did manage 113 00:08:10,520 --> 00:08:13,440 Speaker 1: to escape the school, and while he was out, he 114 00:08:13,520 --> 00:08:16,560 Speaker 1: got married to a thirteen year old girl and lived 115 00:08:16,600 --> 00:08:20,360 Speaker 1: on the run for a while. This was the first 116 00:08:20,360 --> 00:08:23,800 Speaker 1: of many marriages he would have six in total over 117 00:08:23,840 --> 00:08:27,239 Speaker 1: the years, but none of them knew about his other brides, 118 00:08:28,240 --> 00:08:30,760 Speaker 1: and he would only ever divorce one of the women. 119 00:08:32,800 --> 00:08:34,920 Speaker 1: Going on the advice of his current mother in law. 120 00:08:35,600 --> 00:08:39,400 Speaker 1: Pee Wee soon returned voluntarily to complete his sentence at 121 00:08:39,400 --> 00:08:43,440 Speaker 1: the reform school. After a sentence was completed in nineteen 122 00:08:44,880 --> 00:08:47,880 Speaker 1: at eighteen years old, Gaskins took a job at a 123 00:08:47,880 --> 00:08:52,600 Speaker 1: local tobacco plantation. It wasn't long before he found a 124 00:08:52,600 --> 00:08:56,920 Speaker 1: way to make additional money. He found a partner to 125 00:08:56,920 --> 00:09:00,559 Speaker 1: conduct insurance fraudwidth and they would work with tobacco farmers 126 00:09:00,600 --> 00:09:04,080 Speaker 1: to burn their barns for a fee, collecting the insurance payout. 127 00:09:05,800 --> 00:09:09,160 Speaker 1: By nineteen fifty three, he was known as a barnburner 128 00:09:09,760 --> 00:09:14,839 Speaker 1: and people were onto him. Gaskins employer's daughter and friend 129 00:09:15,440 --> 00:09:18,480 Speaker 1: confront of Gaskins about his reputation as the barn burner, 130 00:09:18,960 --> 00:09:22,880 Speaker 1: and he wasn't happy. In a rage, he hit her 131 00:09:22,880 --> 00:09:25,040 Speaker 1: in the head with a hammer and split her skull. 132 00:09:26,559 --> 00:09:28,960 Speaker 1: This led to a six year prison sentence at the 133 00:09:29,000 --> 00:09:32,400 Speaker 1: South Carolina Central Correction Institution for assault with a deadly 134 00:09:32,440 --> 00:09:38,000 Speaker 1: weapon and attempted murder. Upon arrival, similar to his time 135 00:09:38,040 --> 00:09:41,800 Speaker 1: in reform school, Gaskins was attacked by the other inmates. 136 00:09:43,320 --> 00:09:46,960 Speaker 1: He was raped and owned in prison by the older, 137 00:09:47,000 --> 00:09:51,080 Speaker 1: bigger inmates, but in order to become a more powerful player. 138 00:09:51,080 --> 00:09:54,200 Speaker 1: While he was behind bars, Peewee knew that he had 139 00:09:54,240 --> 00:09:58,440 Speaker 1: to make a change in order to survive. He knew 140 00:09:58,440 --> 00:10:01,760 Speaker 1: what he had to do. He had to kill somebody 141 00:10:02,480 --> 00:10:05,760 Speaker 1: in prison to become what was known as a power man. 142 00:10:08,559 --> 00:10:12,000 Speaker 1: Gaskins managed to manipulate himself into a relationship of trust 143 00:10:12,080 --> 00:10:15,680 Speaker 1: with Hazel Brazil, the fiercest power man in the prison 144 00:10:15,679 --> 00:10:20,440 Speaker 1: at the time. After gaining the man's trust, Gaskin's cut 145 00:10:20,440 --> 00:10:23,880 Speaker 1: his throat. It was the first time pee Wee had 146 00:10:23,880 --> 00:10:27,320 Speaker 1: ever killed, and it gave him a sensation unlike anything 147 00:10:27,360 --> 00:10:31,560 Speaker 1: he had ever felt before. Pee Wee was found guilty 148 00:10:31,559 --> 00:10:34,160 Speaker 1: of manslaughter and he spent the next six months in 149 00:10:34,240 --> 00:10:37,839 Speaker 1: solitary confinement, but he was now known as a power 150 00:10:37,920 --> 00:10:42,280 Speaker 1: man among other prisoners. Things would be different for Pee 151 00:10:42,280 --> 00:10:46,640 Speaker 1: Wee moving forward. For his crime, the killing of Brazil, 152 00:10:47,480 --> 00:10:49,920 Speaker 1: pee we would spend an extra three years in prison, 153 00:10:50,960 --> 00:10:55,400 Speaker 1: but he got his wish. He was no longer a victim. 154 00:10:55,400 --> 00:11:00,280 Speaker 1: He was now the top dog. E was the tale. 155 00:11:11,160 --> 00:11:13,880 Speaker 1: As part of my research for this episode, I took 156 00:11:13,880 --> 00:11:17,880 Speaker 1: the time to read Peewee gaskins memoirs, Final Truth, The 157 00:11:17,880 --> 00:11:21,480 Speaker 1: Autobiography of a Serial Killer by Donald Gaskins, and Wilton Earl. 158 00:11:22,679 --> 00:11:26,000 Speaker 1: It's his life story in his own words, and he 159 00:11:26,040 --> 00:11:29,560 Speaker 1: doesn't hold back, even reveals a few things he wouldn't 160 00:11:29,559 --> 00:11:32,040 Speaker 1: tell the authorities while he was alive, out of fear 161 00:11:32,080 --> 00:11:35,200 Speaker 1: for how he would have been treated in prison. Some 162 00:11:35,280 --> 00:11:37,679 Speaker 1: of the things Peewee says in his book are far 163 00:11:37,760 --> 00:11:40,400 Speaker 1: more graphic and harsh than just about anything I've ever 164 00:11:40,440 --> 00:11:43,600 Speaker 1: read in my entire life. And as you can imagine, 165 00:11:44,000 --> 00:11:46,240 Speaker 1: I've collected a lot of true crime books over the years. 166 00:11:47,400 --> 00:11:50,640 Speaker 1: Peewee's descriptions of not only as many murders and violent attacks, 167 00:11:51,440 --> 00:11:53,840 Speaker 1: but also the rape and torture of many women and men, 168 00:11:54,400 --> 00:11:58,360 Speaker 1: and even one infant are so descriptive that they've left 169 00:11:58,360 --> 00:12:00,720 Speaker 1: an impression on me the will take more than a 170 00:12:00,720 --> 00:12:04,480 Speaker 1: little while to forget. The only other true crime book 171 00:12:04,520 --> 00:12:07,160 Speaker 1: I've ever read that even comes close to this level 172 00:12:07,160 --> 00:12:09,920 Speaker 1: of brutality is a book that was written by another 173 00:12:09,960 --> 00:12:14,080 Speaker 1: serial killer, Gerard John Schaeffer, while he was in prison. 174 00:12:15,000 --> 00:12:18,640 Speaker 1: That book was called Killer Fiction. The reason these two 175 00:12:18,640 --> 00:12:21,840 Speaker 1: books stand out among others is simple they're written by 176 00:12:21,840 --> 00:12:25,520 Speaker 1: the killers themselves. When a man gets to a point 177 00:12:25,520 --> 00:12:27,640 Speaker 1: where he can say anything he wants without the fear 178 00:12:27,679 --> 00:12:31,120 Speaker 1: of prosecution or judgment by others, he can freely admit 179 00:12:31,160 --> 00:12:34,440 Speaker 1: to anything and everything evil that he's done throughout his 180 00:12:34,600 --> 00:12:38,520 Speaker 1: entire life. This can be read in one of two ways. 181 00:12:39,520 --> 00:12:42,800 Speaker 1: You could be thought of as his final confession, or 182 00:12:43,520 --> 00:12:45,160 Speaker 1: it could be a way for the killer to brag 183 00:12:45,280 --> 00:12:49,200 Speaker 1: or boast about his crimes one final time while people 184 00:12:49,200 --> 00:12:51,000 Speaker 1: are still paying attention to what he has to say. 185 00:12:52,640 --> 00:12:54,400 Speaker 1: Pee Wee saw his book as a way he confess 186 00:12:54,480 --> 00:12:57,240 Speaker 1: everything he'd ever done, and what he left behind is 187 00:12:57,240 --> 00:13:01,440 Speaker 1: his stomach churning, deeply disturbing piece of literature. If you 188 00:13:01,480 --> 00:13:04,560 Speaker 1: can call it that, there will no doubt haunt you 189 00:13:04,600 --> 00:13:08,000 Speaker 1: for a long time to come. Yes, there are detailed 190 00:13:08,000 --> 00:13:10,800 Speaker 1: descriptions of murderers and rapes and plenty of true crime books, 191 00:13:10,960 --> 00:13:14,760 Speaker 1: and many of them are quite vivid, but very few 192 00:13:14,840 --> 00:13:18,200 Speaker 1: can compare to the brutal descriptions found in Peewee's book. 193 00:13:26,760 --> 00:13:28,960 Speaker 1: You would think that Peewee would have almost enjoyed the 194 00:13:28,960 --> 00:13:33,120 Speaker 1: remainder of his time in prison, after all, he was 195 00:13:33,160 --> 00:13:38,600 Speaker 1: now looked upon with some respect after having killed Hazel Brazil. However, 196 00:13:39,480 --> 00:13:43,400 Speaker 1: in by hiding in the back of a garbage truck, 197 00:13:44,160 --> 00:13:46,640 Speaker 1: pee Wee was able to escape from prison, and he 198 00:13:46,720 --> 00:13:50,680 Speaker 1: quickly fled to Florida. He avoided arrest by working with 199 00:13:50,720 --> 00:13:55,840 Speaker 1: a traveling minister as his driver and general assistant. Eventually, 200 00:13:56,120 --> 00:14:00,640 Speaker 1: he was discovered and arrested soon after, but he was 201 00:14:00,679 --> 00:14:05,439 Speaker 1: once again paroled in August of nineteen sixty one. As 202 00:14:05,480 --> 00:14:08,240 Speaker 1: soon as pee Wee got out of prison, now aged 203 00:14:08,240 --> 00:14:11,400 Speaker 1: twenty eight, he immediately went back to his old way 204 00:14:11,440 --> 00:14:17,960 Speaker 1: as a burglary, stealing and fencing stolen property. There he 205 00:14:18,040 --> 00:14:23,040 Speaker 1: met another young woman. She was seventeen and married for 206 00:14:23,120 --> 00:14:27,080 Speaker 1: the fourth time. She found out he was on the run, 207 00:14:27,760 --> 00:14:30,920 Speaker 1: and she eventually turned him into the police, who convicted 208 00:14:30,920 --> 00:14:35,400 Speaker 1: Gascons of the twelve year old rape. He received six 209 00:14:35,480 --> 00:14:39,320 Speaker 1: years at the Columbia Penitentiary and was eventually paroled in 210 00:14:39,360 --> 00:14:44,640 Speaker 1: November nineteen sixty eight. Pee Wee was now thirty five 211 00:14:44,720 --> 00:14:49,520 Speaker 1: years old. Upon his release, Peewee moved to the town 212 00:14:49,560 --> 00:14:52,400 Speaker 1: of Sumpter, South Carolina, and took a job with a 213 00:14:52,480 --> 00:14:57,040 Speaker 1: roofing company. He was a convicted murderer, but at this 214 00:14:57,120 --> 00:15:01,960 Speaker 1: point he had only killed him prison. Throughout Gaskin's life, 215 00:15:02,520 --> 00:15:05,920 Speaker 1: he described feelings that forced him into criminal activity, which 216 00:15:05,920 --> 00:15:09,800 Speaker 1: he referred to as them aggravated and bothers some feelings. 217 00:15:13,120 --> 00:15:16,520 Speaker 1: In September of nineteen he found a way to get 218 00:15:16,560 --> 00:15:20,640 Speaker 1: relief from those feelings. He became a killer once again. 219 00:15:22,440 --> 00:15:24,040 Speaker 1: This was the first of what he would call his 220 00:15:24,080 --> 00:15:28,120 Speaker 1: coastal kills, murders that he committed simply for his own pleasure. 221 00:15:29,680 --> 00:15:33,240 Speaker 1: Gaskins picked up a female hitchhiker in North Carolina, and 222 00:15:33,280 --> 00:15:36,080 Speaker 1: he became angry when she laughed at his sexual propositions. 223 00:15:37,240 --> 00:15:42,600 Speaker 1: He beat her until she was unconscious. Gaskins then raped, sodomized, 224 00:15:42,920 --> 00:15:46,880 Speaker 1: and tortured her. He took her to a swamp, weighed 225 00:15:46,920 --> 00:15:50,080 Speaker 1: her body down, and sank her into the murky water. 226 00:15:51,840 --> 00:15:54,440 Speaker 1: Later he would recall that he enjoyed the feeling of 227 00:15:54,440 --> 00:15:59,040 Speaker 1: power he had over her. She was helpless, he said, 228 00:15:59,560 --> 00:16:02,160 Speaker 1: all like think about is how I could do anything 229 00:16:02,200 --> 00:16:08,840 Speaker 1: I wanted to her anything. This was just the first 230 00:16:08,840 --> 00:16:11,440 Speaker 1: of many many victims that pee We would leave in 231 00:16:11,480 --> 00:16:15,360 Speaker 1: his wake. He drove around the American South, hiding the 232 00:16:15,400 --> 00:16:19,200 Speaker 1: bodies as he went about his work. Gascons took both 233 00:16:19,240 --> 00:16:23,320 Speaker 1: women and men for his coastal kills, averaging to kill 234 00:16:23,360 --> 00:16:29,080 Speaker 1: about every six weeks. All were murdered for his own gratification. Later, 235 00:16:29,680 --> 00:16:32,280 Speaker 1: pee We would claim. His coastal kills were even more frequent, 236 00:16:33,240 --> 00:16:36,920 Speaker 1: killing a person before the tenth of each month. He 237 00:16:36,960 --> 00:16:40,200 Speaker 1: had finally discovered how to satisfy his urges, and from 238 00:16:40,240 --> 00:16:44,320 Speaker 1: that point on he was the driving force in his life. 239 00:16:45,920 --> 00:16:49,400 Speaker 1: He worked on mastering his skill of torture, often keeping 240 00:16:49,440 --> 00:16:53,680 Speaker 1: his mutilated victims alive for days. As time went on, 241 00:16:54,760 --> 00:16:58,240 Speaker 1: his depraved mind grew darker and he committed even more 242 00:16:58,280 --> 00:17:03,840 Speaker 1: horrific crimes. He even ventured into cannibalism, eating the severed 243 00:17:03,880 --> 00:17:07,280 Speaker 1: parts of his victims while forcing them to watch in horror. 244 00:17:08,560 --> 00:17:24,680 Speaker 1: On occasion, forcing them to participate by eating their own flesh. 245 00:17:25,680 --> 00:17:28,680 Speaker 1: At night, I've started to psych myself out about sleep, 246 00:17:29,440 --> 00:17:32,439 Speaker 1: laying awake in the darkness, trying to force myself to 247 00:17:32,520 --> 00:17:35,840 Speaker 1: rest when I know I'm supposed to. Sometimes I watched 248 00:17:35,880 --> 00:17:37,800 Speaker 1: the clock because I count down the hours until I 249 00:17:37,840 --> 00:17:40,359 Speaker 1: have to be up for work. If I get to 250 00:17:40,359 --> 00:17:43,600 Speaker 1: sleep now, I'll get four hours of rest. If I 251 00:17:43,600 --> 00:17:46,639 Speaker 1: get to sleep now, I'll have three hours of rest, 252 00:17:47,200 --> 00:17:50,120 Speaker 1: and you know how the rest goes. I always feel 253 00:17:50,119 --> 00:17:52,800 Speaker 1: like I'm in a mental fog, just sort of making 254 00:17:52,800 --> 00:17:56,120 Speaker 1: it through the day in a zombie like fashion. If 255 00:17:56,119 --> 00:17:59,720 Speaker 1: these sleepless or nearly sleepless nights last for more than 256 00:17:59,760 --> 00:18:02,919 Speaker 1: three or four evenings. The feeling I get is a 257 00:18:02,960 --> 00:18:08,159 Speaker 1: sort of delirium. No hallucinations for me, not yet, but 258 00:18:08,240 --> 00:18:10,320 Speaker 1: it's like my brain and the rest of my body 259 00:18:10,359 --> 00:18:13,439 Speaker 1: don't want to work at the same speed. I have 260 00:18:13,520 --> 00:18:15,399 Speaker 1: days when I have trouble speaking more than even a 261 00:18:15,440 --> 00:18:18,360 Speaker 1: few words at a time, struggling to get through meetings 262 00:18:18,400 --> 00:18:22,320 Speaker 1: and conversations with co workers, having to apologize the entire 263 00:18:22,400 --> 00:18:28,840 Speaker 1: day for my mistakes. All of this is embarrassing. I 264 00:18:28,880 --> 00:18:32,840 Speaker 1: can't take operating like this for too much longer. Nighttime 265 00:18:32,880 --> 00:18:35,680 Speaker 1: is supposed to be a time to replenish yourself, to 266 00:18:35,760 --> 00:18:37,800 Speaker 1: sort out the day's events and clear your mind of 267 00:18:37,840 --> 00:18:41,040 Speaker 1: any troubles, to recharge your batteries and get ready for 268 00:18:41,080 --> 00:18:45,760 Speaker 1: the next day. Instead, it only seems to be adding 269 00:18:45,760 --> 00:18:50,040 Speaker 1: to the problem, or maybe it is the problem, I 270 00:18:50,040 --> 00:19:00,639 Speaker 1: don't know. Throughout his life, Peewee Gaskins would operate his 271 00:19:00,640 --> 00:19:04,760 Speaker 1: own chop shop for automobiles, the garage where stolen cars 272 00:19:04,800 --> 00:19:07,159 Speaker 1: were brought to be either repainted and sold at auction 273 00:19:07,200 --> 00:19:10,399 Speaker 1: out of state, or completely stripped and sold for parts. 274 00:19:11,600 --> 00:19:15,719 Speaker 1: It's a lucrative business, completely illegal, of course, but profitable. 275 00:19:17,040 --> 00:19:20,920 Speaker 1: In the year, pee Wee had the opportunity to buy 276 00:19:20,920 --> 00:19:24,280 Speaker 1: an old hearse. It happened when one of Peewee's criminal 277 00:19:24,280 --> 00:19:26,720 Speaker 1: associates drove up one day in the old stolen car, 278 00:19:27,480 --> 00:19:29,320 Speaker 1: looking to get rid of it as soon as possible. 279 00:19:30,320 --> 00:19:33,280 Speaker 1: Peewee couldn't resist, and he bought the car for his 280 00:19:33,359 --> 00:19:38,280 Speaker 1: own personal transportation. And while driving a hearse might sound 281 00:19:38,320 --> 00:19:41,200 Speaker 1: like an unusual choice for anyone, a lot of people 282 00:19:41,240 --> 00:19:44,520 Speaker 1: simply have an interest in that type of vehicle. For one, 283 00:19:44,920 --> 00:19:48,400 Speaker 1: they're all custom built. They aren't mass produced, so each 284 00:19:48,400 --> 00:19:50,160 Speaker 1: example is a one of a kind in some way 285 00:19:50,240 --> 00:19:54,520 Speaker 1: or another. They're also typically beautiful in design inside and 286 00:19:54,560 --> 00:20:00,800 Speaker 1: out because they're created from top end luxury cars like Cadillac, Lincoln, Mercedes, 287 00:20:00,840 --> 00:20:06,639 Speaker 1: Benz or even Rolls Royce. Another point is that their unusual, interesting, 288 00:20:06,760 --> 00:20:10,879 Speaker 1: and well simply different, so they have some appeal to 289 00:20:10,960 --> 00:20:14,000 Speaker 1: certain car enthusiasts too, not just those in the funeral 290 00:20:14,080 --> 00:20:19,120 Speaker 1: industry or the occasional serial killer. Peewee, on the other hand, 291 00:20:19,320 --> 00:20:22,320 Speaker 1: viewed owning a hearse as an opportunity. He could use 292 00:20:22,359 --> 00:20:25,440 Speaker 1: it for its intended purpose and do it right under 293 00:20:25,480 --> 00:20:29,600 Speaker 1: the noses of the authorities. Peewee was flippant with his 294 00:20:29,680 --> 00:20:31,879 Speaker 1: friends and even the local police about what he was 295 00:20:31,960 --> 00:20:36,160 Speaker 1: up to. For instance, when asked about the Hearse while 296 00:20:36,240 --> 00:20:39,240 Speaker 1: sitting at his favorite bar, he would say he needed 297 00:20:39,240 --> 00:20:41,000 Speaker 1: the vehicle to haul all the people he killed to 298 00:20:41,040 --> 00:20:45,080 Speaker 1: his own private cemetery. Everyone would laugh it off as 299 00:20:45,080 --> 00:20:47,360 Speaker 1: if it was a good joke and then go back 300 00:20:47,400 --> 00:20:50,560 Speaker 1: to drinking or whatever they were up to. But the 301 00:20:50,640 --> 00:20:54,359 Speaker 1: reality was that Peewee was using the vehicle for exactly 302 00:20:54,400 --> 00:20:57,800 Speaker 1: that purpose, pulling the dead bodies of his victims to 303 00:20:57,840 --> 00:21:01,280 Speaker 1: his own private cemetery some out of the way property 304 00:21:01,280 --> 00:21:05,359 Speaker 1: he owned in Prospects, South Carolina. Peewee felt that if 305 00:21:05,359 --> 00:21:07,439 Speaker 1: the authorities would laugh and joke with him about the 306 00:21:07,440 --> 00:21:10,520 Speaker 1: hearse and its use, they weren't concerned about him as 307 00:21:10,560 --> 00:21:15,040 Speaker 1: a suspect, and he could hide in plain sight. Even 308 00:21:15,080 --> 00:21:17,520 Speaker 1: had a sign in the back window that said we 309 00:21:17,640 --> 00:21:33,560 Speaker 1: haul anything living, we're dead. Peewee's level of violence was escalating, 310 00:21:34,400 --> 00:21:36,920 Speaker 1: and he even created his own new category of murders, 311 00:21:37,920 --> 00:21:41,280 Speaker 1: one that he kept entirely separate from his random coastal kills. 312 00:21:42,680 --> 00:21:45,960 Speaker 1: There's a twist of the story too, A single murder 313 00:21:46,000 --> 00:21:47,840 Speaker 1: that will cost Peewee his own life in the end, 314 00:21:49,119 --> 00:21:52,600 Speaker 1: the same murder that was thought impossible by everyone, and 315 00:21:52,680 --> 00:21:56,080 Speaker 1: the reason he was known as the meanest man in America. 316 00:21:57,320 --> 00:22:07,199 Speaker 1: Next Time on Insomniac. Insomniac is a production of I 317 00:22:07,320 --> 00:22:11,359 Speaker 1: Heart Radio and Tenderfoot TV, written and hosted by Scott 318 00:22:11,400 --> 00:22:16,080 Speaker 1: Benjamin and produced by Miranda Hawkins, Alex Williams, Matt Frederick, 319 00:22:16,160 --> 00:22:20,120 Speaker 1: and Josh Thaine. Music composed by Makeup and Vanity, set 320 00:22:20,400 --> 00:22:23,679 Speaker 1: and cover art by Trevor Eisler. Follow on Twitter and 321 00:22:23,720 --> 00:22:28,359 Speaker 1: Facebook at insomniac Pod, on Instagram at Insomniac Podcast, and 322 00:22:28,400 --> 00:22:33,280 Speaker 1: at our website insomniac podcast dot com. For more podcasts 323 00:22:33,280 --> 00:22:37,480 Speaker 1: from my Heart Radio, visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, 324 00:22:37,720 --> 00:22:39,959 Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.