- Michael Malloy
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This article is about the Irish-American murder victim. For the American radio host, see Mike Malloy. For the Australian comedian, see Mick Molloy.
Michael Malloy (1873 – February 22, 1933), alias "Mike the Durable" and "Iron Mike", was a homeless Irishman from County Donegal who lived in New York City during the 1920s and 30s.[1][2] Although he was a former firefighter, he is most famous for surviving a number of attempts on his life by five acquaintances, who were attempting to commit life insurance fraud.[1][3]
Contents
Failed murder attempts
The events that led to Malloy's death began in January 1933.[1][2] He was, at the time, alcoholic and homeless.[1][2] Five men who were acquainted with Malloy, Tony Marino, Joseph Murphy, Francis Pasqua, Hershey Green, and Daniel Kriesberg (later dubbed "the Murder Trust" by the headlines), plotted to take out three life insurance policies on Malloy and then get him to drink himself to death.[1][2] The first part of the plot was successful (probably achieved with the aid of a corrupt insurance agent), and they stood to gain over $3,500 (more than $61,000 by 2011's standards by the CPI) if Malloy died an accidental death.[1][2]
Marino owned a speakeasy and gave Malloy unlimited credit, thinking Malloy would abuse it and drink himself to death.[1][2] Although Malloy drank for a majority of his waking day, it did not kill him. To remedy this, antifreeze was substituted for liquor, but still, Malloy would drink until he passed out, wake up, and come back for more.[1][2] Antifreeze was substituted with turpentine, followed by horse liniment, and finally mixed in rat poison.[1][4] Still, Malloy lived.
The group then tried raw oysters soaked in methanol.[1][2] This idea apparently came from Pasqua, who saw a man die after eating oysters with whiskey.[1] Then came a sandwich of spoiled sardines mixed with poison and carpet tacks.[1][1][2][5]
When that failed, they decided that it was unlikely that anything Malloy ingested was going to kill him, so the Murder Trust decided to freeze him to death. On a night when the temperature reached -14 °F (-26 °C), Malloy drank until he passed out, was carried to a park, dumped in the snow, and had five gallons (19 L) of water poured on his bare chest.[1][2] Nevertheless, Malloy reappeared the following day for his drink. The next attempt on his life came when they hit him with Green's taxi, moving at 45 miles per hour (72 km/h).[1][2] This put Malloy in the hospital for three weeks with broken bones.[2] The gang presumed he was dead but was unable to collect the policy on him.[1] When he again appeared at the bar, they decided on one last approach.
Malloy's murder
On February 22, after he passed out for the night, they took him to Murphy's room, put a hose in his mouth that was connected to the gas jet, and turned it on.[1][2] This finally killed Malloy, death occurring within minutes.[1][2]
He was pronounced dead of lobar pneumonia and quickly buried.[4] However, the members of the Murder Trust proved to be their own worst enemies—they talked too much and squabbled among themselves over the division of the loot.[1][2] Eventually police heard rumors of "Mike the Durable" in speakeasys all over town, and upon learning that a Michael Malloy had died that night, they had the body exhumed and forensically examined.[1][2]
The five men were put on trial. Green went to prison, and the other four members were executed in the electric chair at Sing Sing.[1][6]
Michael Malloy in popular culture
- "You Can't Kill Michael Malloy" is an instrumental piece by The Spent Poets. A clip of the song appears on the album Frizzle Fry by the band Primus.
- In 1993, a play based on Malloy's murder was made, titled The Killing of Michael Malloy, by Erik Jendresen.
- "Michael Malloy" is the name of a song by grindcore band Gob on their 7" split with Agoraphobic Nosebleed.
- An episode, "The Durable Mike Malloy Case," of the 1952 television series Gang Busters seems to have been inspired by this incident.
- The story is the plot of the 1949 pulp novel All Dames Are Dynamite, by Timothy Trent.
- "You Can't Break Mike Malloy" is the first song on the debut album, Kick it till you like it, of the Dutch rock band SUNBURN.
- The story of Malloy's murder was featured on an episode of the BBC series QI in 2011.
- An episode, "One for the Road," of Amazing Stories (TV series) features bar patrons trying to murder a drunk named Mike Malloy for insurance money.
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u Simon Read. On the House: The Bizarre Killing of Michael Malloy, Berkley Books, 2005. ISBN 978-0425206782
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Deborah Blum. The Poisoner's Handbook: Murder and the Birth of Forensic Medicine in Jazz Age New York, Penguin Press, Feb 18, 2010. ISBN 978-1594202438. The story of 'Mike the Durable' is retold in chapter 10 "Carbon Monoxide". See also Blum's article "The Strange Death of Mike the Durable" in Women in Crime Inc, March 23, 2010.
- ^ The Killing of Michael Malloy
- ^ a b O'Connor, Michael (2007-10-07). "The Durable Mike Malloy". New York Daily News. http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime_file/2007/10/14/2007-10-14_the_durable_mike_malloy.html.
- ^ "Sarasota Herald - Oct 18, 1933". http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=KOMhAAAAIBAJ&sjid=TmQEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5261,2067448&dq=michael+malloy&hl=en. Retrieved 2010-03-30.
- ^ Trestrail, John Harris; Trestrail, John Harris III (2007). Criminal Poisoning: Investigational Guide for Law Enforcement, Toxicologists, Forensic Scientists, And Attorneys. Humana Press. p. 15. ISBN 1-588-29821-3.
External links
Categories:- 1873 births
- 1933 deaths
- Irish people murdered abroad
- People from County Donegal
- Deaths from carbon monoxide poisoning
- People murdered in New York
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