“Dr. H. H. Holmes and the Whitechapel Ripper” ~ “New World” Discoveries!

Galileo

 

In 1616 Galileo Galilei, Italian physicist, mathematician, astronomer, and philosopher, published in his Dialogue on the Two Chief World Systems the Dialogue on the Ebb and Flow of the Sea, that the Copernican System discovered by Nicholas Copernicus (Copernicus a century prior to Galileo – actually stunned the scientific world), with theories, the earth was not the center of the universe.  Galileo proved the earth actually rotated on its axis and it rotated around the sun, dispelling centuries of belief in science.

Christopher Columbus

On the evening of August 3, 1492 another Italian, Christopher Columbus, set sail from Spain on a mission to acquire new possibilities in the South Seas for trade and barter on the behalf of the Spanish monarchy.  As three ships embarked for the open sea, the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria, onlookers observed the ships fading off into the horizon. The spectators from the 15^th Century assumed the three ships, like the many before them that never returned to port, fell off the edge of the earth.  When Columbus returned to Spain and reported he had discovered a “New World” and furthermore, the earth was not flat, it was in fact “pear shaped”.  Columbus was ridiculed and his sanity was in question for his remarkable statements.  However, the Spaniards were amazed and intrigued at his return on the 15^th of March in 1493, begging the question, why did Columbus not fall off the edge of the earth if he did indeed travel the distances he claimed to have sailed.

As recent as the mid 1800’s people continued to believe the earth was flat.  I suppose the most conclusive evidence of the earth’s shape came about on July 20, 1969 when Apollo 11 penetrated the earth’s atmosphere and global attention was directed at the media coverage of the most significant lunar mission in history.  We knew beyond a shadow of doubt through the images sent back to earth by Apollo 11, and previous space missions, the earth was indeed round and men actually walked on the surface of the Moon.  Nevertheless, doubters and skeptics questioned the authenticity of the proof of Apollo 11, and still do to this day, with mistrust in the mission’s authenticity.

Today we know the earth is not the center of the universe.  We also know the earth is not flat and you can travel in any direction and completely circle the earth.  Like those who mistrusted the judgment of explorers whose beliefs and theorems were doubted and scoffed at, and subsequently questioned, as they were unsuitable to popular thinking, there will be many who feel making a case for a century old crime is no more worthy of consideration than the Italian explorers whose sanity were in question for believing the world was not the center of the universe, or that the earth was not flat.

It is not without conviction and a dedication to explore the truth of Jack the Ripper and Dr. H. H. Holmes, that I make such bold statements.  I believe, like those many pioneers who precede me, one individual can make a difference.  It is my faithful commitment to present a case study of the crimes, which will establish a foundation reflecting the pretenses held regarding Jack the Ripper for the past 125 years, have been in in fact, held in err.  The historic account I present will reflect history itself has altered the account of Jack the Ripper over time to exclude such culprits as Dr. H. H. Holmes.

“Dr. H. H. Holmes and the Whitechapel Ripper” ~ Coming Soon!

In addition, the evidence indicates, Herman Webster Mudgett a.k.a. Dr. Henry Howard (H. H.) Holmes has played a major role in the case of Jack the Ripper.  As has been demonstrated through Galileo and Columbus, history has been, and can be, rewritten.  As is the case with these monumental discoveries of yesteryear, and the case with regards to Dr. H. H. Holmes and his connection to Jack the Ripper, history may need time to adjust to the idea of maxims and factuality proven through evidence.

For now, we will continue on the journey of venturing into the High Seas setting our course for truth and revelation as we continue onward with due diligence in our quest of evidentiary truth in the case of “Dr. H. H. Holmes and the Whitechapel Ripper.”

Dane Ladwig

http://www.daneladwig.com

The Case of “Jill” the Ripper: The Verdict Is In!

Mary Pearcey a.k.a. Mary Eleanor Wheeler

The Petition

To consider the possibilities of Jack the Ripper’s identity, one must maintain that all potential suspects regardless of social status, political affiliation, religious beliefs, age, race and gender be scrutinized equally and fairly against the evidence of the case.

Today, I am examining the theory of “Jill” the Ripper a.k.a. Mary Pearcey a.k.a. Mary Eleanor Wheeler (maiden name).  The presumption of a woman behind the Whitechapel District crimes is not a new argument.  Some of the most fascinating fiction writers in history have entertained the idea of a woman as a Ripper candidate.  Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the creator of the Sherlock Holmes suspense novels, postulated the Ripper might have been a woman; Sir Arthur, as is evident in his writings, was intrigued by the suspense of the dramatic opposite and the (im)probability of the impossible.

The task of connecting the murderer Mary Pearcey to Jack the Ripper has caught the attention of curious spectators. Ms. Sarah Beth Hopton, a copywriter and graphic designer by trade, has been promising for more than two years to release a book detailing her opinion regarding Mary Pearcey’s connection to the Ripper slayings.  Ms. Hopton alleges the book is written (she claims it has been since December of 2012), that it is edited and available for publishing.  Yet, for unknown reasons, the public awaits its impending arrival.  I look forward to its arrival any possible new evidences Ms. Hopton may produce.

Nevertheless, we now consider the case of Mary Pearcey and weigh it against known evidence…

The Case

Mary Pearcey, born Mary Eleanor Wheeler in 1866, lived to her 24th year (1890), when she was executed for murdering Mrs. Phoebe Hogg and her infant child.

“Mary Wheeler took the name “Pearcey” from John Charles Pearcey, a carpenter with whom she had lived. He left her because of her infidelity. She later took up residence with a furniture remover, Frank Hogg, who had at least one other lover, Phoebe Styles. Styles became pregnant, and Hogg married her at Pearcey’s urging. They lived in Kentish Town in London. Styles gave birth to a daughter also named Phoebe Hogg” (Wiki — http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Pearcey).

History records reflect Mary Pearcey as a scorned lover, she was having an affair with Mr. Hogg and she grew weary of vying for Mr. Hogg’s affections only to be second in his heart to his beloved wife.

On the afternoon of 24 October 1890, Pearcey requested the presence of Mrs. Hogg at her, Ms. Pearcey’s, residence.  At 4:00 PM in the afternoon, Mrs. Hogg and her infant child appeared at the doorstep of Mary Pearcey.  Later that evening, Mrs. Hogg was found deceased in a pile of rubbish in Hampstead, she had suffered a crushed skull and her head nearly severed from her body.  About a mile away, in Finchley, the eighteen-month-old baby child Hogg was found in its buggy soaked in blood, but no apparent wounds, the baby was asphyxiated – smothered to death.

When Mary Pearcey was arrested, she and her home were covered in a bloody mess.  When questioned by the officers she repeated over and again, “Killing mice.  Killing mice.  Killing mice.”  This irrational response provoked the investigators to question Mary Pearcey’s sanity.

As Reported

By the Victoria Daily Colonist, Sunday October 26, 1890, Page 3 (two days following the murders, one day following the coroners medical report).

“A medical expert has made a careful examination of the body of the woman found last night murdered in South Hampstead. The examination shows the murder was committed in a manner not characteristic of Jack the Ripper, and also negatives the suggestion that the victim was of the Whitechapel type, which has thus far furnished the Ripper’s prey. The body is that of a woman apparently 30 years of age, clad in material, the texture and cut of which indicated the wearer to have been a person of some refinement. The underclothes were found to be marked, a fact upon which the police place great stress, as furnishing a clue to the murderer. When a boy found it, it was seen that the woman’s skull had been fractured and then her throat had been cut. The pockets were empty. Near the body the police found an empty perambulator, containing a blood stained fur rug. The officers surmise that the perambulator was used to carry the body of the victim from the place where the murder was committed to the point at which it was found.”

Evidence

Mary Pearcey was arrested, charged with murder, and hanged for the murders of Mrs. Phoebe Hogg and her infant child on 23 December 1890.  To this day, there have been no direct evidences reflecting Mary Pearcey as a suspect in the 1888 Jack the Ripper slayings.  However, skeptics such as Ms. Sarah Beth Hopton are taking a position in making a case for “Jill” the Ripper, based on inconclusive evidences.  Why now?  Why make a case for Jill the Ripper?  Perhaps only Ms. Hopton, the person claiming to write a book about such things, which has yet to be published despite the attention she currently receives touring the country (allegedly she receives a substantial fee according to the media) lecturing Colleges and Universities based on her unpublished theories, perhaps eventually her book will reveal the answer to this ambiguous mystery.

As for the case, and the file evidence of Mary Pearcey.  Let us consider the Modus Operandi (M.O.), or the means and methods the scorned lover – Mary Pearcey – operated under.  Then we will examine each claim individually.

1)     Ms. Pearcey invited Ms. Hogg to her residence.

Jack the Ripper’s victims met with their fatal ends where they conducted business as women of the evening, on the streets of the East End of the Whitechapel District.  As far as history has recorded, Scotland Yard, and the Metropolitan Police and countless case investigators, the Ripper never invited his (or her) victims to a residence where they were then slain or disemboweled.

2)     Ms. Pearcey murdered in the light of day (the afternoon, it was 4:00 PM when Mrs. Hogg called upon Ms. Pearcey and she was presumed to have perished shortly after 4:00 PM).

Each one of Jack the Ripper’s murders were disguised in the darkness of the evening shadows.  The darkness of the night was the choice of the perpetrator(s) in the Ripper victim slayings as it served two purposes, 1) the obscurity of night provided perfect cover for concealment of weapons, disguise of identity, and obscurity of the nightshade to hide any traces of blood from victims etc.  Each of Jack the Rippers known crimes were successfully committed as the night sky allowed him (or her) to commit the crimes and move about the streets and corridors of London with little concern of detection.

3)     The scorned Ms. Pearcey murdered an infant child – eighteen-months-old.

To the knowledge of Scotland Yard and the Metropolitan Police, Jack the Ripper never harmed a single child, or an infant.  Jack’s primary victims were women, they were prostitutes, and they were, by products of their environment, and as such heavy drinkers.

4)     Ms. Pearcey killed out of lover’s revenge and a scorned heart.

As the Ripper’s victims were “working” women, it is highly unlikely Jack committed his crimes as the result of a lovers quarrel, lover’s triangle, or because of a scorned lover’s heart.  The methodical nature of Jack the Rippers crimes indicate, as the mortician attending the autopsy of Rippers victims, “… the murders appear to be with the precision of an individual who has the knowledge of a medical surgeon, unlike what you would find in an atlas of the human anatomy”.  Had Mary Pearcey the skill of a medical surgeon there is little doubt she would have crushed the head of her victim.  Mary Pearcey’s MO for killing Mrs. Phoebe Hogg, and her infant Child was one of a jealous lover.  Based on Mary Pearcey’s M.O. we cannot establish her as a candidate for the Ripper murders given her motive as a jealous scorned lover as the Rippers victims were prostitutes and appear to have been selected for no other reason than their profession and the misfortune of their presence in the Whitechapel District.

Furthermore, the careless and haphazard fashion Mary Pearcey discarded the bodies of Mrs. Phoebe Hogg and her infant child are inconsistent with the Rippers methods of slashing the bodies and disemboweling the victims in public.

Even if an argument could be entertained that Mary Pearcey followed her husband and witnessed him having extra-marital affairs with the women of the East End of the Whitechapel District, the likelihood of her committing these crimes two years prior to her sentencing would have been rare.  She reflected a fledgling inability to conceal the murders of Mrs. Hogg and her child.  To stymy the efforts of the investigators of Scotland Yard and the Metropolitan Police, would have taken quite a bit more proclivity of criminal disposition and intelligence than Mary Pearcey exhibited.

The Verdict

In conclusion, the span between the crimes of Jack the Ripper in 1888 and Mary Pearcey’s capture and execution in 1890 leave two years unaccounted.  Mary Pearcey targeted her lover’s wife and child, whereas Jack the Ripper targeted prostitutes.  Mrs. Hogg’s head was crushed, “then” her throat was slashed, and her child was smothered to death.  According to the morticians report and autopsy records of Ripper victims, Jack the Ripper slayed his victims with a physician’s surgical knife and he had advanced knowledge of the human anatomy.

I, for one, am hard pressed, to consider Mary Pearcey, as a viable suspect in the case of Jack the Ripper without further conclusive evidence; thus, in the case for “Jill” the Ripper and Mary Pearcey as her viable suspect, I believe the case remains inconclusive.

Not Guilty by reason of insufficient evidence!

¯                    ¯                    ¯

Coming soon!

¯                    ¯                    ¯

Now Available at Amazon.com!

¯                    ¯                    ¯

Holmes Manuscript Update…

It is apparent from the search parameters people are using on both my website and my blog (yes, I can check them lol); the majority of inquiring minds wish to know what’s going on in my world with Dr. H. H. Holmes.

As many of you are aware, I have written a book titled Piercing the Veils of Death: A Paranormal Exploration, and a great deal of my time is devoted to marketing, radio and newspaper interviews and such. In addition, I am writing Dr. H. H. Holmes and the Whitechapel Ripper (forecasted for a fall 2013 release).

To pen such a monumental book, which will reveal facts about Herman Webster Mudgett a.k.a. Dr. H. H. Holmes and his many links to the infamous Jack the Ripper, which have never before been made public, is painstakingly difficult.

First, I must make sure the information is credible, and that includes case file information from the Holmes case and the open crime case of the Ripper. The people I am working with in the U.K. and home in the U.S. must be impeccable resources. Lastly, I must consider all possibilities before making the assumption Dr. H. H. Holmes is the principle candidate as the prime suspect in the Ripper slayings of 125 years ago.

To accomplish this enormous task, I have sought the assistance of experts from all over the globe. I am currently working with Scotland Yard, the London Metropolitan Police, the United Kingdom National Archives, the United States National Archives, the Gilmanton, New Hampshire Historic Society, Dartmouth College, the University of Michigan Medical School, and various experts and certified investigators in a unified and collaborative effort to expose the truth.

What has this benefited so far? Good question. I will share a misunderstanding people have had for several decades regarding Dr. H. H. Holmes. While Holmes was incarcerated, he documented his story. He told of a tale when he was a small boy living in Gilmanton, NH.

The sensationalized story passed on from Holmes was regarding his schoolmates, “hooligans”, who shoved him into a doctor’s office and frightened the boy Holmes/Herman Mudgett, by thrusting an articulated skeleton upon the terrorized child. This was only partially true.

My research has discovered the true story; the doctor’s identity, and a bond/relationship the doctor and Herman had throughout Herman’s life until the doctor’s unfortunate passing. Coincidentally, the doctor graduated Dartmouth College and mostly lectured at the University of Michigan Medical School. Herman Mudgett/Holmes attended Dartmouth for one year and graduated from the University of Michigan Medical School.

This is but a brief moment of the research I am conducting to bring Dr. H. H. Holmes and the Whitechapel Ripper into the focus of speculation. Was Dr. H. H. Holmes coup de grâce, his most significant contribution to society and history, to be disregarded as the murderous Ripper for a century and a quarter, and go unnoticed… as a ghost in the night?

Just when I think I have Holmes figured out, someone sends me more information. When dealing with Holmes, I have learned there’s always a new angle, a new direction. To be the first to bring it together, I feel like Alfred Hitchcock on the set of a Hollywood blockbuster horror spectacle – only this one is real. This one really did happened!

Stay tuned as I bring you more and don’t forget to check out my website for more about my books and Dr. H. H. Holmes: www.daneladwig.com

Dane

* * *

Dreamer ~ My Life in Retrospect

When I was a kid my mom would constantly yell at me, “Stop taking the family radio apart. Do you know what’ll happen if your dad finds out you took that thing apart again?” He never found out because I would put it back together before he would get home, and the wild thing is… the radio always worked when I reassembled it. I have always been a dreamer.

In grade school I was the one who never paid attention and always starred out the window. By the time I made it to Junior High School I became bored and resorted to the role of class clown and hallway bully. I never did my homework and I got bad grades, not because I didn’t know the stuff, but because I “didn’t pay attention”. Somehow I just knew the stuff they were teaching me in class and felt it was a waste of time. I was always interested in things like history and science. One year I entered the school’s Science Fair, I won second place, really ticked off the kids who studied. I have always been a dreamer.

The odds have always been against me. I dropped out of school well before graduation, so I lacked formal education. Based on the way my life was going, everyone was convinced I was headed for the morgue or the penitentiary. I came from a broken home and I lived on the streets. I was about to become another statistic on societies least favored citizens list. I resorted to everything negative and bad, and when I say everything, I do mean everything. When I was a kid, not a day passed by when I did not wish to depart this world; I imagined the next existence as a much nicer place. I have always been a dreamer.

As an adult I have worn many hats. I decided to take control of my education and I have been to Technical School for automobile mechanics, Theology training at a Bible College, and a private College for English and Philosophy degrees. I have worked in many fields along they way, but the ones which stand out in my life as the best and most rewarding were automobile mechanic, construction, a security guard protecting celebrities, working with Homeland Security on Presidential detail, working for a National Football Team, and now spending my life as an author. I have always been a dreamer.

I have met some really incredible and influential people in my lifetime; sports figures, actors, musicians, dignitaries and Heads of State from across the globe. The most inspiring of these people I have had the pleasure of knowing are some of the least famous; they are people stricken and inflicted with disabling conditions who refuse to allow life to dictate unacceptable terms — they are my hero’s and heroin’s. Like them, I too have a disability and I refuse to give in and accept nothingness as an existence. I have always been a dreamer.

I couldn’t tell you when the exact turning point was in my life, perhaps it was more of a culmination and a sort of process. Truth be told, I don’t think I would change a single thing about my life; every day and every nuance of my life made me who I am today. I harbor no bitterness, no resentments, only vague memories of a person I once was — a person I no longer recognize. I suppose, if I think about it real hard, the one constant has always been… I have always been a dreamer!

 

Dane Ladwig

 

http://www.daneladwig.com

Notre Dame Fighting Irish: Interesting Facts

Just north of South Bend, Indiana in St. Joseph County a University proudly sits in an unincorporated community the University of’ Notre Dame du Lac or simply stated Notre Dame. The Catholic research university — Notre Dame — boasts one of the nation’s most spectacular sports programs to have ever existed. The “Fighting Irish” have once again made history. Having an undefeated season, the football team has shocked the country and earned themselves a trip to the Discover BCS National Championship (Mon, Jan 7, 2013).

As members of the NCAA Division 1 — Independent, Notre Dame’s Fighting Irish has eleven National Championships to their credit, seven Heisman Trophy winners, and sixty-two Alum in the College Football Hall of Fame.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish Mascot

All-American Knute Rockne is an Alum of Notre Dame. Rockne later became one of Notre Dame’s most esteemed football coach’s ever 1914-1940. Rockne grew up in Chicago’s Logan Square neighborhood where he first played football as a child with the Logan Square Tigers. At the age of 22 Rockne had saved enough money to enroll in college, he chose to attend Notre Dame. Rockne graduated Notre Dame in 1914 with a degree in Chemistry and Pharmacy. In 1913, while on Notre Dame’s football team as an end (receiver), when the team beat Army at West Point by way of the Quarterback throwing to the receivers as opposed to a ground game (running plays), they shocked the nation winning 35-13. Rockne’s methods were now being considered as a new “standard” if teams expected to compete and win. Knute Rockne went on to have an impressive overall career high record of 105 wins, 12 ties, and 5 loses, 1 bowl game and 3 National Championships (1924, 1929–1930). Notre Dame and Knute Rockne revolutionized football forever.

Many other well-known individuals have graduated Notre Dame. The list is endless, but I will mention just a few. Joe Montana, Condoleezza Rice, Regis Philbin, Phil Donohue, Mike Golic, Jeff Samardzija, Jerome Bettis, Julius Jones, Brady Quinn, Paul Hornung, Ricky Watters, Tim Brown, Bob Golic, Joe Theismann, John Paxon, Carl Yastrzemski, Nicholas Sparks, Bronko Nagurski, Jack Snow, and so many more.

Millard Sheets mural The Word of Life as seen from the campus of Notre Dame

If you have ever been to Notre Dame or watched a game played at Notre Dame, you would not miss the enormous mosaic mural, which overshadows over the stadium. “Touchdown Jesus” as it has been deemed, is a mural of the resurrection depicted by artist Millard Sheets entitled The Word of Life, donated to Notre Dame and installed atop the Hesburgh Library building on campus. From the stadium, the up-stretched raised arms of Jesus resemble a referee signifying a touchdown, hence the moniker “Touchdown Jesus”.

“Touchdown Jesus” The Word of Life mosaic mural as seen from Notre Dame’s football stadium.

To add to the luster of Notre Dame’s rich history, the movie Rudy (1993) based on the life of Daniel “Rudy” Ruettiger, whose life-long dream was to play football at Notre Dame, was shot on campus and actor Sean Astin portrayed Rudy.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish “Golden Domes”

The Fighting Irish have been scrutinized for their “golden domes” — the helmets they sport at every game. Many people view this as a pompous statement, a golden dome with real gold in the paint. It is said, every helmet has 23.9-karat gold flakes in their spray paint. In all fairness, the golden dome helmet is fashioned after the golden dome on Notre Dame’s main campus building. Paying homage to your Alma Mater by wearing a proud statement upon your head in the form of a golden dome does not sound pompous, if you ask me, it sounds respectful and traditionally rich.

The golden dome atop the main building on Notre Dame’s campus. The football helmet is fashioned after this golden dome!

The same can be said for Notre Dame’s fight song, the Notre Dame Victory March. Perhaps the most recognized fight song in Collegiate sports in America. Below is the song sung by the Fighting Irish and recognized by more college students across America than any other rally song in existence.

Rally sons of Notre Dame:
Sing her glory and sound her fame,
Raise her Gold and Blue
And cheer with voices true:
Rah, rah, for Notre Dame
We will fight in ev-ry game,
Strong of heart and true to her name
We will ne’er forget her
And will cheer her ever
Loyal to Notre Dame

Cheer, cheer for old Notre Dame,
Wake up the echoes cheering her name,
Send a volley cheer on high,
Shake down the thunder from the sky.
What though the odds be great or small
Old Notre Dame will win over all,
While her loyal sons are marching
Onward to victory.

*          *          *

This article has been presented to you by Author Dane Ladwig. You can visit Dane Ladwig’s website at: http://www.daneladwig.com

New Year’s Resolutions: UNDERSTANDably… So?

With the coming of a new year we greet it with the same old song, “This year I will…” Then a week or two passes and we slide back into our same old habits, tossing aside the resolutions we entered into; as if we are indebted to our habits and refuse to boldly go where no person has gone before — at least, where we have never ventured before.

Perhaps we are confused on what resolutions are and why they are so difficult to keep. That would explain why so many New Year’s resolutions are broken with each New Year season.

Some resolutions are commendable and offer the recipient a great deal of benefit. “I vow to lose twenty pounds by June”, or “I will quit smoking”, are just a few. Then there are those others that are just, well, let’s say, self-aggrandizing. “My resolution is to own a Lamborghini (on a modest $35,000.00 annual salary, I don’t think so!).” And one of my favorites, “This is the year I will find a husband (or wife), marry and live happily ever after”. Let’s face it you are 46 years old and there is a reason why you are still single.

What is a “resolution”? First, it requires much more than reciting a sentence or verse and expecting miraculous change. It requires action on the part of the individual entering into the declaration of a resolution.

Resolution is a determination followed by a strong will. One must act boldly and courageously in earnest towards the goals set forth, which takes fortitude and put plainly — guts. And by all means, if you are serious about your resolution you must first be honest and truthful with yourself.

Have you set reasonable and attainable goals? Can you admit you are willing to stand firm in your decision and doggedly pursue the fixed purpose, to persevere even when the odds are against you? Do you have the resolve to sincerely devote the willpower required?

Too often we enter into resolutions with little forethought to the plan. That is why many resolutions fail. Also, don’t set yourself up for failure. If you know the plan is doomed from the get-go, then it is at best a weak resolution. To say, “My resolution is to give up consuming alcohol”, but you work in a bar, all your friends are heavy social drinkers and your family parties like it’s 1999, that is a weak resolution — one you are sure to fail. However, you can say, “My resolution is to drink less and begin finding ways to surround myself with better role models.”

New Year’s resolutions take backbone and a renewed frame of mind. You must believe you are unwavering and unconquerable. Devotion to mastering your accomplishments will bring a greater sense of fulfillment and pride when you have gone the distance.

What a resolution is not; it is not compliance, indecision and weakness. All too often resolutions are entered into with the presumption, “All I have to do is follow a few basic rules and it’s all good.” My friends, that is referred to as compliance. That is what we do in order to make drive to and from work without getting a speeding ticket. The other error we allow is the occasional, “Well, it’s okay just as long as I only do it once (slip back to the old behavior).” No! That is indecision and it makes you a casualty of weakness.

The recipe for a successful New Year’s resolution is to remember to set reasonable attainable goals. Be honest and courageous when deciding your resolution and be willing to participate in the process of attaining your resolution. Lastly, do not waver. Your resolution is a process of re-creation, which you are in full control of — be willing to take matters into your hands and enjoy the benefits when your goals have been met!

By the way — my New Year’s resolution is to publish two books in 2013 (very doable) and to better my current health situation (which includes losing weight and quitting my nasty habit of smoking cigars). Will I succeed in reaching all my resolutions? You bet your sweet bumpkiss I will!

Dane Ladwig

You can follow Author Dane Ladwig on his website at: http://www.daneladwig.com

Massacre at Sandy Hook: Want to Know Why it Happened? Read On…

To address the mass murder at Sandy Hook School as a tragedy almost diminishes its severity, it is much, much more. Within moments of the crime, it seemed before investigators had the chance to walk through the gates of the crime scene, media had given birth to the most sensationalized mass murder in history. Not without good cause.

The numbers of victims to have been sacrificed to this crime ranged a full spectrum for the first several hours, as did the speculation of the identity of the victims and the killers motive. However, even amidst the confusion, one fact remained as we watched this ordeal unfold — children had lost their lives. Parents everywhere reflected on their priorities.

Now that the facts have begun to surface in this case — and so the speculation has intensified immeasurably — people are asking for the answer to the all-important question… Why? Why did this have to happen? Why did the killer target children?

The most recent theory, that the killer was motivated by a psychological disorder, have ranged from the unbelievable to Asperger’s Syndrome, are all immaterial and total nonsense. I happen to have family and friends, who are Autistic and have Asperger’s Syndrome, and it is my belief through having many years of knowledge in Autism and Asperger’s Syndrome, I know these particular disorders do NOT account for homicidal massacres and rampages. But our society has a great desire to place blame and in turn, we refuse to accept this type of behavior could come from a human unless the unbelievable act of the monstrous fiend is given a label.

I refuse to use the killers name; I will simply refer to him as “the killer”. You may ask why? Because I believe the children and adults, whose names are listed below, are the individuals worthy of honoring, mentioning and remembering, NOT the killer.

These people — the victims — deserve remembrance; Charlotte Bacon, Daniel Barden, Rachel Davino, Olivia Engel, Josephine Gay, Ana M. Marquez-Greene, Dylan Hockley, Dawn Hochsprung, Madeleine F. Hsu, Catherine V. Hubbard, Chase Kowalski, Jesse Lewis, James Mattioli, Grace McDonnell, Anne Marie Murphy, Emilie Parker, Jack Pinto, Noah Pozner, Caroline Previdi, Jessica Rekos, Avielle Richman, Lauren Rousseau, Mary Sherlach, Victoria Soto, Benjamin Wheeler, Allison N. Wyatt.

When people ask why? I feel they should take a long hard look at our society and the media. A theater in Oregon is shot up and the media swarms it, the public treats it as if it were an extension of the Silver Screen. Killers become instantaneous celebrities — forever immortalized in history through their gruesome diabolic acts against humanity.  This behavior from the media — exalting killers — dates back many years. Name one person from the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing that leveled the Alferd P. Murrah Federal Building, where there were 168 victims’, which included 19 children from the America’s Kids Day Care Center.

My point is, although you may not be able to name a single victim of the Oklahoma City bombing, and you may not know the names of Chase Dalton Smith (3 years-old) or Colton Wade Smith (2 years-old), brothers who were at America’s Day Care Center at the time of the Oklahoma City bombing, or 29 year-old Sgt. Benjamin LaRanzo Davis, a Marine recruiter, you will most likely know the name of the bomber Timothy McVeigh.

There is something faulty in a system when the culprit, the killer, the oppressor is the person we have lifted up and remember. News broadcast builds up this most recent murder spree as, “The second deadliest shooting behind Virginia Tech.” Through the media as a catalyst, we are sending the message as a society that if you want to be remembered, all you have to do is “top” the last most memorable “deadliest” and it will ensure you a mention, and the topic of conversation, in nearly every household throughout the world. This is a most sad state of affairs!

It is not about politics or demographics, it is not about wealth or poverty or social status. It is not even about gun control as the gun only becomes a weapon after the trigger is pulled. It is about people and the culture and a society and what we have accepted as the “norm”. It is about time the people take back their country, their rights, and their safety. They must band together and first recognize there is a problem, then decide — as one — how to effect change.

I say, we can effect change. I say, shift the focus! Show the victims names, the victim’s pictures. A numbers of networks aired the killer’s picture and held round-table discussions with panels of experts attempting to “assess” the killer’s motives. I say, hold your round-table and discuss how we as a country can take back the power we have relinquished to these demented killers and focus on the victims and their families. Sensationalism media is the cause for killing sprees such as the one witnessed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Ct. If you plan to place fitting blame, do so intelligently and responsibly — at the appropriate radical motivator. I say, let’s not allow another Newtown, Ct., killing spree and let’s stand arm in arm and not allow those victims of violent crimes such as Newtown, Ct., be sacrificed in vain, but let us hold their deaths resolute and forge a new America, a safer and more loving America!

*          *          *

You can get information on my books and so much more on my website: http://www.daneladwig.com/

If you enjoy View From My Loft join Author Dane Ladwig on View From My Loft radio live at

Blog Talk Radio:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/welcome-to-view-from-my-loft

Visit and “Like” Dane Ladwig’s Facebook fan page:                                                                                           https://www.facebook.com/AuthorDaneAllenLadwig

As always, Dane Ladwig is just an email away: authordaneallenladwig@gmail.com

*          *          *

Two Steps Back, One Step Forward ~ Time to Move On: A New Manuscript…

In a manner of speaking, I am taking a leap of faith. Despite having run into a roadblock on my current manuscript; the publisher and I are at an impasse, they wish for me to divide the project into two books and I feel I have constructed a single cohesive manuscript for the readers and not one which to line the coffers of the publisher or my own pockets, I have decided to begin working on my next project. In respects to my current manuscript, for those people I interviewed and the people awaiting the release of my book, do not fear, I will still pursue a viable publishing avenue, I have just adopted the attitude; I am sure in time, what will be — will be.

You could say I have been working on my new project for 40+ years. As a teenager, I was obsessed with the Whitechapel murders of Jack the Ripper. I was one of those kids who fantasized about being “Sherlock Holmes” and busting the caped fiend. All my life I have studied every facet and nuance of the Ripper murders from the many erroneous theories to the bizarre and the seemingly feasible.

Jack the Ripper stalks the streets of London’s East End ~ the Whitechapel district.

Sure, I know what you are thinking. Many people have written endless accounts of Ripper hype, what makes you so different? Well, for starters, I have invested a lifetime sifting through that muck you have grown tired of (truth be told, so have I). I have a solid grasp of the modus operandi the Ripper operated under. To further push the envelope, I am taking each “suspect”, past and present, and I am conducting an inductive analysis and then looking at each victim through the lens of the murderer(s).

In addition, I will inspect the prospect of known serial killers at the time of the Ripper murders and compare notes, including modus operandi, motive, whether they could have stalked the streets of London during the slayings, and Scotland Yard case file reports. Could the Ripper have been a doctor, one who has become famous throughout history due to his own murderous rampage — a serial killer believed to have brought great shame upon the World’s Colombian Exposition Fair? Could the Ripper have been none other than a scorned wife of a respected surgeon? Did the monarchy hide evidence, which would have revealed the true identity of the Ripper?

Could Dr. H. H . Holmes, Chicago’s diabolic serial killer, be behind the Jack the Ripper slayings?

I plan to bring these questions into light and offer unequaled inexhaustible summaries to these age old quandaries, which have stifled America, England and the world for much too long.

All too often writers offer opinionated propaganda to generate interest and sales. Frankly, if you are disinterested in the subject I figure you will not read my book, thus, I have an obligation to produce a book I would find interesting and one I would enjoy reading.

I look forward to the journey and hope to serve you well as you anticipate the release of my new endeavor, and as well, the release of my current manuscript, I look forward to your much-appreciated interest.

This Has Been a… View From My Loft

*          *          *

If you enjoy View From My Loft join Author Dane Ladwig on View From My Loft radio live at

Blog Talk Radio:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/welcome-to-view-from-my-loft

Visit Dane Ladwig’s blog’s:

The Infamous Diabolic Dr. H. H. Holmes:

http://holmesmurdercastle.wordpress.com/

The Realm of the Supernatural and the Paranormal:                                                                 http://supernaturalandparanormal.wordpress.com/

Visit and “Like” Dane Ladwig’s Facebook fan page:                                                                                           https://www.facebook.com/AuthorDaneAllenLadwig

As always, Dane Ladwig is just an email away: authordaneallenladwig@gmail.com

*          *          *

Archive Broadcast of H. H. Holmes and Jack the Ripper Symposium 11/8/2012

On Thursday, November 8, I was invited to sit on a panel of “leading experts from around the world” to discuss two of my favorite subjects, London’s Whitechapel fiend Jack the Ripper and the first man ever labeled as a serial killer Herman Webster Mudgett better known as Dr. H. H. Holmes.

The panel of experts included Ray Johnson, a former criminal forensic investigator in DuPage County, Illinois, as well, Ray has invested in academia teaching criminology at the College of Dupage. Ray Johnson skill in research has led to notable recognition for the City of Lights, the Worlds Columbian Exposition (1893).

In addition, Adam Selzer, author extraordinaire and Chicago Haunt’s Ghost Tours guide, Adam has an extensive background in H. H. Holmes research added a flair to the discussion, which placed the listener at the time in history when the crimes were committed and the diabolic Dr. H. H. Holmes unleashed his terror on the innocents in his path.

Author Mark Potts was the third panel attendee known worldwide for his expertise as a Ripperologist. A member of the Whitechapel Society, Mark’s articles on the subject of Jack the Ripper have been studied by Ripper enthusiast and the people closest to the Ripper case located in London’s east end.

Myself and author, I was a member of the panel, and I have written and published countless articles on Jack the Ripper and Dr. H. H. Holmes. This past year, I have worked hand-in-hand with Dr. H. H. Holmes’ great-great grandson, Jeff Mudgett, building a case for Holmes’ murderous spree, Modus Operandi (MO), the construction of the Murder Castle (Holmes’ hotel designed specifically to compliment murder), and after more than a century after the crimes, conducting a prayer vigil and commemorating the grounds as “holy” ground, at the site of the Murder Castle.

The man who assembled this great team of experts to bring about new and fresh perspectives never before considered was Author Jeff Mudgett. Jeff, wrote about his experience in Bloodstains, as he learned he was a descendent of the most feared pathologic liar and psychotic serial killers of all time — Dr. H. H. Holmes. Since learning of his familial connection, Jeff vows to do whatever it takes to reveal the truth behind the many illusions of Holmes’ folklore and bring closure to those many who suffered at the hands of a sick and twisted individual, a man people trusted — a doctor — Dr. H. H. Holmes.

The panel consisting of these five minds discussed many issues for over 120 minutes. From the physical transformation Holmes was to make while awaiting execution to the many possibilities Holmes could have been in London during the time of the Jack the Ripper Whitechapel murders.

Theories, questions, answers and food for thought was abundant. The excitement was infectious and the facts were addictive.

Listen to the archive by visiting the link directly below. Pause it at your convenience and don’t forget to check back at The Mudge Report to see when Jeff has these great minds come together again to compare notes. It will prove to be as great as this show — I guarantee!

Archive Link: The Mudge Report 11/8/2012

*         *          *

If you enjoy View From My Loft join Author Dane Ladwig on View From My Loft radio live at

Blog Talk Radio:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/welcome-to-view-from-my-loft

Visit Dane Ladwig’s blog’s:

The Infamous Diabolic Dr. H. H. Holmes:

http://holmesmurdercastle.wordpress.com/

The Realm of the Supernatural and the Paranormal:                                                                http://supernaturalandparanormal.wordpress.com/

Visit and “Like” Dane Ladwig’s Facebook fan page:                                                                                           https://www.facebook.com/AuthorDaneAllenLadwig

As always, Dane Ladwig is just an email away: authordaneallenladwig@gmail.com

*          *          *

Join The Nation’s Leading Experts: H. H. Holmes Discussion Panel Tonight 9:00 PM CST

H. H. Holmes and his Murder Castle

Tonight, Jeff Mudgett the great-great grandson of the man first dubbed a serial killer for his murderous rampage spanning several years and finally brought to justice in 1893, has invited “The top five leading experts in the world, Ray Johnson, John Borowski, Adam Selzer, Mark Potts, and Dane Ladwig”, to discuss their theories regarding H. H. Holmes…

Holmes was a diabolic fiend. He built his “murder castle, a labyrinth patterned hotel fashioned specifically for the intent to compliment his killing. Patrons of the White City visiting the Colombian Exposition allowed Holmes the perfect setting to accomplish his heinous crimes. One in his care at the hotel, they were his and his alone until their torturous demise.

This will prove to be the most informative discussion panel ever assembled since the trial of the creature they said killed between 20 and 200 innocents. Detective Frank P. Geyer of the Pinkerton’s who captured Holmes and collected evidence to convict him once eluded to Holmes as “Mephistopheles” – the devil incarnate – see what new evidence this panel of experts have uncovered and what they intend for the future. I promise you will not be disappointed!

The Great Debate begins at 9:00 PM CST to ??? possibly infinity…

Taking your questions at: 347-884-9523

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/the-mudge-report/2012/11/09/hh-holmes–the-great-debate

Web Search Parameters: Blog Talk Radio/The Mudge Report/HH Holmes The Great Debate

*          *          *

If you enjoy View From My Loft join Author Dane Ladwig on View From My Loft radio live at

Blog Talk Radio:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/welcome-to-view-from-my-loft

Visit Dane Ladwig’s blog’s:

The Infamous Diabolic Dr. H. H. Holmes:

http://holmesmurdercastle.wordpress.com/

The Realm of the Supernatural and the Paranormal:                                                                 http://supernaturalandparanormal.wordpress.com/

Visit and “Like” Dane Ladwig’s Facebook fan page:                                                                                           https://www.facebook.com/AuthorDaneAllenLadwig

As always, Dane Ladwig is just an email away: authordaneallenladwig@gmail.com

*          *          *