Harold Schechter

Harold Schechter is a "true crime" writer who specializes in serial killers. He attended the State University of New York at Buffalo, where he obtained a Ph. D. He is professor of American literature and popular culture at Queens College of the City University of New York.

His books include:

True Crime

* "Depraved: The Shocking True Story of America's First Serial Killer", the story of Chicago serial murderer Herman Mudgett, alias Dr. H. H. Holmes
* "Deranged: The Shocking True Story of America's Most Fiendish Killer!", the story of New York serial murderer Albert Fish
*"Fiend: The Shocking True Story of America's Youngest Serial Killer", the story of Jesse Pomeroy, child murderer.
*"Bestial: The Savage Trail of a True American Monster", serial murderer Earle Leonard Nelson, who killed in Canada and the United States.
*"Deviant: The Shocking True Story of the Original "Psycho", the story of Ed Gein, the killer who inspired "Psycho", "The Texas Chain Saw Massacre" and "The Silence of the Lambs"
*"Fatal : The Poisonous Life of a Female Serial Killer", the story of 19th century murderess Jane Toppan
*"A to Z Encyclopedia of Serial Killers" (co-written with David Everitt)
*"The Serial Killer Files : The Who, What, Where, How, and Why of the World's Most Terrifying Murderers"
*"Panzram: A Journal of Murder" (Introduction)
* "The Devil’s Gentleman: Privilege, Poison, and the Trial that Ushered in the Twentieth Century," New York: Random House/Ballantine Books, 2007.
* "True Crime: An American Anthology," New York: Library of America, 2008.

Mystery

*"Nevermore" - Edgar Allan Poe joins Davy Crockett to solve a series of shocking murders in Baltimore in 1835.
*"The Hum Bug -" Poe teams with Showman PT Barnum to solve a series of murders in New York.
*"Mask of the Red Death" - Poe joins forces with Kit Carson to track down a liver-eating murderer. Like the previous book, this one also takes place in New York.
*"The Tell-Tale Corpse" - Poe groups with author Louisa May Alcott to put down yet another murderer. This time, he takes his mystery to Massachusetts.
*"Outcry" - A Novel based on the fictional son of Ed Gein, and his path of destruction

Popular culture

*"The Manly Movie Guide"
*"Savage Pastimes: A Cultural History of Violent Entertainment"
*"Real to Reel"
*"Patterns in Popular Culture: A SourceBook for Writers"
*"Film Tricks: Special Effects in the Movies"
*"The Manly Handbook"
*"Kidvid: A Parents' Guide to Children's Videos"
*"American Voices: A Thematic/Rhetorical Reader"
*"Start Collecting Comic Books"

Academic works

*"Discoveries: Fifty Stories of the Quest"
*"Bosom Serpent: Folklore and Popular Art"
*"New Gods: Psyche and Symbol in Popular Art"
*"Original Sin: The Visionary Art of Joe Coleman"
* "Conversation Pieces: Poems that Talk to Other Poems," editor with Kurt Brown, New York: Knopf/Everyman, 2007.

External links

* “Harold Schechter’s Dangerous Pastime, “ by Gary Shapiro, http://www.nysun.com/on-the-town/harold-schechters-dangerous-pastime/13904/
* “Murder by Mail:in gilded Age New York” book review by William Grimes, http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/24/books/24grim.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
* Poison Served His Purpose: a murder in New York gives us a landmark case and one gripping story,” book review by Nathan Ward, http://www.opinionjournal.com/la/?id=110010807
* Harold Schechter’s “Five Best Killer Stories: sensational murder trials…,” http://www.opinionjournal.com/weekend/fivebest/?id=110010848
* [http://www.reason.com/news/show/36205.html Review of "Savage Pastimes: A Cultural History of Violent Entertainment"] at Reason magazine
* [http://haroldschechter.com Official Website]