Killer Queens - Volume 1 - Leopold & Loeb

Book excerpt: The Killer Queens Series of books explores the world of murder in the gay community, whether the victims or the killers themselves, and sometimes both are homosexual.Volume 1 of the series focuses on what has been called "The Crime of the Century" in the 1920s United States. At the center of this murder case were Nathan Leopold Jr. and Richard Loeb - two wealthy University of Chicago students who, in May of 1924, kidnapped and murdered 14-year-old Bobby Franks.With Leopold and Loeb, both males, the dominance shifted from one to the other. But, regardless of who held it, the result was the same. They were both very interested in crime and pushing the envelope for the next thrill. The vicious "thrill kill" of Bobby Franks was the bloody result of an intense and unhealthy co-dependent bond between the murdering duo.As you read the exploration of the case in this book, ask yourself: Would these young men be as vulnerable to their manipulations today? If they couldn't have harnessed and used shame as a control tactic, would they have been as successful at recruiting a criminal counterpart? Finally, to what degree can we hold the prevalent homophobia of this era accountable as a force to bear on this tragedy?