- Bunny Gibbons
Bunny Gibbons was an
funfair owner in the 1950s, based in and aroundRockford, Illinois [ [http://www.prairieghosts.com/ed_gein.html http://www.prairieghosts.com/ed_gein.html] ] ."Ed Gein's Ghoul Car"
Gibbons' fair's most memorable attraction was the car of the infamous
serial killer Ed Gein . The car was a 1949Ford sedan, and had been used to transport the bodies of the victims of Gein's murders. Gibbons won the car in an auction for Gein's estate, held in 1958 [http://www.unknown-armies.com/content_comments.php?id=P2445_0_3_0] . 14 different bids were placed for the car [http://seraja.ics.uci.edu/experience.jsp?eventID=663757] , yet Gibbons held out and won, usingpseudonyms such as "Koch Brothers", "Cook Brothers" and "Kook Brothers". Gibbons ended up paying the then-considerable amount of $760 [ [http://www.karisable.com/skazgein.htm http://www.karisable.com/skazgein.htm] ] .Gibbons called his attraction the "Ed Gein Ghoul Car" and charged fair-goers 25 cents admission to see and have their pictures taken next to the car [ [http://serialkillercalendar.com/killerextrasSERIALKILLERTRIVIA.html http://serialkillercalendar.com/killerextrasSERIALKILLERTRIVIA.html] ] .Controversy
The car was first displayed in
Seymour, Wisconsin in July 1958. In its first two days, the attraction pulled in over 2,000 visitors. The exhibit was immediately embroiled in controversy, and officials fromMental Health America ofWisconsin fought to close the exhibit. Despite Gibbon's initial delight with the publicity, interest began to fade in the car. While visitingSlinger, Wisconsin , the town sheriff shut down the exhibit. Eventually, the state of Wisconsin banned the exhibit. Gibbons traveled with the fair to southernIllinois , where he faded into obscurity [ [http://lemagazineducrime.blogspot.com/ Le magazine du crime ] ] .References
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