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The Mad Sculptor: The Maniac, the Model, and the Murder that Shook the Nation

The Mad Sculptor: The Maniac, the Model, and the Murder that Shook the Nation

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On Easter Sunday, 1937, New York’s Beekman Place was shaken by the discovery of a brutal triple homicide. The killer was Robert Irwin, a gifted young sculptor whose brilliance was matched only by his violent obsessions. His crimes would make headlines nationwide, earning him the name the Mad Sculptor.

Irwin’s victim, Veronica Gedeon, was a pulp-era model whose scandalous pinups became morbidly famous after her death. His trial drew in a cast of larger-than-life figures, including celebrity defense attorney Samuel Leibowitz and psychiatrist Fredric Wertham, who had chillingly predicted Irwin’s violence months earlier.

Drawing on rich archival research, The Mad Sculptor tells the true story of one of the most sensational cases of the 20th century—an unforgettable collision of art, madness, and murder in Depression-era New York.

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