Charles Howard Schmid Jr. charmed and befriended the teenagers of Tucson, Arizona in the 1960s all while brutally murdering three young girls.
Charles Schmid was slight, short, and scrawny, and often wore garish makeup and lifts in his shoes to make himself seem more imposing than he really was. Schmid also had a predilection for luring young girls to get close to him then killing them.
Schmids chilling sway over the teenage population of his hometown earned him the nickname The Pied Piper of Tucson. But the cutesy nickname belied the brutality of the crimes and the equally brutal way in which, eventually, he would meet his end.
This is the horrifying true story of serial killer Charles Schmid.
Born on July 8, 1942, to an unwed mother, Charles Howard Smitty Schmid was quickly given up for adoption. The Schmids Charles and Katharine, who owned and operated a nursing home in the Tucson, Arizona area adopted him just one day after he was born.
But it was far from an idyllic childhood: Schmid was constantly at loggerheads with his father until his adoptive parents ultimately divorced when he was 4 years old. Later, he tried to meet his birth mother but she chased him away and told him to never return.
Though his academic career left much to be desired, Charles Schmid excelled in sports. In 1960, he led his high school to the State Gymnastics Championship. He competed in the flying rings and still rings competition winning first place in both placing in the long horse, and earning fifth place on the horizontal bar. Later, Schmid would describe what attracted him to gymnastics in the first place.
The thing that kept me fascinated with gymnastics was that it frightened me, he said. If I slipped or fell, that could be the very last time. But the fear didnt enthrall him enough, because he quit the team in his senior year. Shortly thereafter, he was suspended for stealing tools from his schools shop class; he ultimately left and never returned.
With no prospects, no job, and no high school diploma, Charles Schmid moved into his own quarters on his mothers property, with her giving him a $300 monthly stipend. Eventually, friend Paul Graff moved in with him, and the pair also befriended John Saunders and Richie Bruns.
The group would spend their evenings on Speedway Boulevard trying to pick up girls and drinking. But Schmid was far from classically handsome: Short in stature, he would frequently stuff his boots with rags and metal cans to appear taller than he was. He also drew a mole on his face and dyed his hair black, in a bid to come across more attractive and to better resemble his idol, Elvis Presley.
With that, Schmid believed he was able to finally attract women. But thats when things took a turn for the worse.
Charles Schmid always wanted to know what it felt like to kill someone. And on May 31, 1964, he got his wish.
He enlisted his girlfriend, Mary French, and his friend John Saunders to kill 15-year-old Alleen Rowe. French had tried to persuade Rowe to come along on a double date with her and Schmid, with the pretext that Rowe would date Saunders while French would date Schmid.
However, all involved knew of Schmids chilling plan. The trio drove Rowe out to the desert, where the men raped her and cracked her skull with a rock all the while, French was waiting in the car, listening to the radio. When the deed was done, they buried the body in the desert.
Charles Schmid eventually told Richie Bruns about the killing, and this would prove to later be his undoing. But Schmids horrifying crime was an open secret amongst Schmids high school friends in Tucson. A lot of people knew, but it was already too late. Telling would just have made it tough on everyone, claimed one friend.
Just one year after Rowe disappeared, Schmids 17-year-old girlfriend Gretchen Fritz and her younger sister Wendy also disappeared. As with his first killing, Schmid couldnt resist getting others involved, so he told Richie Bruns about the bodies and showed him where they were.
Bruns eventually began to fear that Charles Schmid would kill his own girlfriend, so he fled to Ohio to his parents house, where he told them everything he knew about the murders. Later, Bruns would be a key witness for the prosecution when Schmid was eventually arrested and tried for the murders of the three girls.
I was a witness to him losing his mind, Bruns wrote in his book about the murders. Like the time he grabbed his cat, tied a heavy cord to its tail, and began to bash it bloody against the wall.
Now dubbed The Pied Piper of Tucson by the fascinated news media, Charles Schmid was put on trial for the murders of Alleen Rowe, Gretchen Fritz, and Wendy Fritz. F. Lee Bailey who had worked on the Boston Strangler case, and would eventually gain notoriety for his work on the O.J. Simpson murder trial was brought in as a consultant.
Schmid was found guilty of murder in 1966. For the murder of Rowe, he got 50 years to life in prison; for the double murder of the Fritz sisters, he got the death penalty. When the Arizona supreme court abolished the death penalty, Schmids sentence was commuted to life in prison. After a failed prison break attempt, Schmid was stabbed repeatedly by his fellow inmates on March 20, 1975. He lost an eye and kidney in the attack and died 10 days later.
But the story of Charles Schmid still lives on in popular culture.
The brutal case inspired the 1966 short story Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? by Joyce Carol Oates. In 1985, the film Smooth Talk with Treat Williams in the Schmid role was released. And Rose McGowans 2014 directorial debut, Dawn, told the story of Charles Schmid through the eyes of his first victim, Alleen Rowe (who was renamed Dawn in the film).
Now that youve read about Charles Schmid, the Pied Piper Of Tucson, learn about Richard Huckle, the Gap Year Pedophile who assaulted over 200 children and was stabbed to death in prison. Then, read about Skylar Neese, the 16-year-old girl who was stabbed to death by her best friends because they didnt like her anymore.
The rest is here:
Meet Charles Schmid, The Murderous Pied Piper Of Tucson - All That's Interesting
- Niskayuna comptroller suspended after blackface accusation - The Daily Gazette [Last Updated On: June 24th, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 24th, 2020]
- From the Band to Beyonc: concert films to fill the live music black hole - The Guardian [Last Updated On: June 24th, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 24th, 2020]
- The Geffen Years: How Neil Young Followed His Muse In The 80s - uDiscover Music [Last Updated On: June 24th, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 24th, 2020]
- Yo or Hell No? Kangana Ranaut's White Pantsuit for Virtual Inauguration of India Pavilion at Cannes 2020 - Report Door [Last Updated On: June 24th, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 24th, 2020]
- Rockall, a Broadridge Business | Broadridge [Last Updated On: June 24th, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 24th, 2020]
- Rockall Rockall, Scotland - Atlas Obscura [Last Updated On: June 24th, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 24th, 2020]
- Rockall - gov.scot [Last Updated On: June 24th, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 24th, 2020]
- Rockall - Wikipedia [Last Updated On: June 24th, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 24th, 2020]
- Power Distribution Market 2020 With Top Countries Data: Industry Trends, Share, Size, Top Key Players Analysis and Forecast Research - Cole of Duty [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- The Best Metal on Bandcamp: June 2020 - bandcamp.com [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- This Bold Makeup Bundle Is the Perfect Way to Show Your Pride All Year Long - POPSUGAR [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- Your daily 6: Gambling without booze or smoking, Hong Kong crackdown and virus 'grim and getting worse by the day' - STLtoday.com [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- Here Are the Best Fourth of July Sales This Year - Thrillist [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- Front-Row Seat: Striking the chords for live musics return - MPNnow.com [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- The Big Thank You...to Northampton Borough Council, collecting our rubbish, looking after the vulnerable and keeping us safe - Northampton Chronicle... [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- RED WHITE AND CHIC: 4th of JULY SHOPPING GUIDE - vmagazine.com [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- Coaches must remember kids coming back to sport just want to have fun again - Echo Live [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- Author says 2400-year old coin artifact may be proof that Atlantis is real - EconoTimes [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- 'The Office,' '30 Rock': All the TV shows to pull blackface scenes - Los Angeles Times [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- Pride-inspired accessories you can rock all year round - Hindustan Times [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- The All-American Glory of Yacht Rock - National Review [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- Brexit fishing battle: Britain and Ireland 'to clash over ownership of tiny rock' - Express.co.uk [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- Color Star Technology Announces the Addition of Renowned Musician Larry Carlton to its Color World Online Education Platform - Salamanca Press [Last Updated On: July 8th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 8th, 2020]
- Were the Rolling Stones Better in the '60s or '70s? Roundtable - Ultimate Classic Rock [Last Updated On: July 23rd, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 23rd, 2020]
- Meet REDSIX, the Indonesian band crafting addictive, pop-punk classics - Happy [Last Updated On: July 23rd, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 23rd, 2020]
- "The follow through decides where it's going to go" - Kick it like Matty Forde - SportsJOE.ie [Last Updated On: July 23rd, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 23rd, 2020]
- In praise of the masked man - Winnipeg Free Press [Last Updated On: July 23rd, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 23rd, 2020]
- 40 years of Back In Black: a celebration of AC/DC's hard rock opus - Mixdown [Last Updated On: July 23rd, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 23rd, 2020]
- There's no plaice like home: Why we should be eating British fish - The Conservative Woman [Last Updated On: July 23rd, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 23rd, 2020]
- Sony WH-1000XM4 review - Sound Guys [Last Updated On: August 26th, 2020] [Originally Added On: August 26th, 2020]
- Maybe I'd Seen Too Much of The Walking Dead - Premier Guitar [Last Updated On: August 26th, 2020] [Originally Added On: August 26th, 2020]
- Get Out and Vote / Municipal Elections Held TODAY (Tuesday, August 25th) in Cherokee County - weisradio.com [Last Updated On: August 26th, 2020] [Originally Added On: August 26th, 2020]
- Letter: Senator Ed Markey is the true progressive in the race - SouthCoastToday.com [Last Updated On: August 26th, 2020] [Originally Added On: August 26th, 2020]
- On the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh: The way of the sword, and the way of the monk - Moneycontrol.com [Last Updated On: September 18th, 2020] [Originally Added On: September 18th, 2020]
- Chris Rock talks about unmade all-black Oceans Eleven remake with Trump as the villain - Republic World - Republic World [Last Updated On: September 18th, 2020] [Originally Added On: September 18th, 2020]
- Ugg footwear discounted up to 70 percent at Zappos and more top brands - New York Post [Last Updated On: September 18th, 2020] [Originally Added On: September 18th, 2020]
- Internet Banking Market 2020 Global Innovations, Competitive Analysis, New Business Developments and Top Companies Global Forecast to 2026 - The... [Last Updated On: December 6th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 6th, 2020]
- Online Banking Market Overview with Qualitative analysis, Competitive landscape & Forecast by 2027 - Khabar South Asia [Last Updated On: December 6th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 6th, 2020]
- Internet Banking Market By Key Players, Product And Production Information Analysis And Forecast To 2026 - Murphy's Hockey Law [Last Updated On: December 6th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 6th, 2020]
- Scientists Are Sharing The Miscommunications That Bug Them The Most - IFLScience [Last Updated On: December 6th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 6th, 2020]
- Boston College vs. Virginia Odds & Picks: Should the Eagles Really Be Favorites in Charlottesville? - The Action Network [Last Updated On: December 6th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 6th, 2020]
- Gastroenterology Education and CPD for trainees and ... [Last Updated On: December 6th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 6th, 2020]
- Who owns Rockall? A history of disputes over a tiny ... [Last Updated On: December 6th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 6th, 2020]
- Rockall (band) - Wikipedia [Last Updated On: December 6th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 6th, 2020]
- Internet Banking Market 2020 Analysis by Demand, Business Growth, Evolving Technologies, Emerging Trends, Key Players and Forecast to 2025 -... [Last Updated On: December 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 19th, 2020]
- Parenthood: The Important Profession on Planet - Brighter Kashmir [Last Updated On: December 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 19th, 2020]
- #16 Iowa 28, Wisconsin 7: Home Is Where The Heartland Is | Go Iowa Awesome - Go Iowa Awesome [Last Updated On: December 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 19th, 2020]
- article image Rock group Motrhead and their music is still as relevant as ever - Digital Journal [Last Updated On: December 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 19th, 2020]
- Lil Kim Teams Up With PrettyLittleThing for a Super-Hot Capsule Collection - Us Weekly [Last Updated On: December 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 19th, 2020]
- Broadridge - Technology & Operations, Communications, Data ... [Last Updated On: December 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 19th, 2020]
- Total Bank Solutions and Rockall Technologies Collaborate ... [Last Updated On: December 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 19th, 2020]
- Monday Night Football: Josh Allen, Stefon Diggs carry Bills to 38-9 win over Patriots - NBC Sports [Last Updated On: December 30th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 30th, 2020]
- BLACKLOUD ties off 2020 with stimulating 'Synesthesia' EP - EARMILK [Last Updated On: December 30th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 30th, 2020]
- Kurtas & Crop Tops To Lehengas: Take Cues From Divyanka Tripathi On How To Cue Your Every Outfit To Perfection - IWMBuzz [Last Updated On: January 3rd, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 3rd, 2021]
- Mobile Groove's Peggy Anne Salz on 'the year that forced many to rewrite the marketing playbook' - Pocket Gamer.Biz [Last Updated On: January 3rd, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 3rd, 2021]
- Ireland to net 1.05bn of EU Brexit Reserve Fund heres some of worst-hit sectors who can expect to benef - The Irish Sun [Last Updated On: January 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 19th, 2021]
- IMPACT Wrestling's Kiera Hogan discusses her team with Tasha Steelz, going for the gold at Hard to Kill, and more (Exclusive) - Sportskeeda [Last Updated On: January 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 19th, 2021]
- Dave Grohl's teenage obsessions: 'I learned drums by arranging pillows on my floor' - The Guardian [Last Updated On: January 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 19th, 2021]
- Irish Fishing Fleets to Lose More Than One Quarter of Western Mackerel Quota Share in Post-Brexit Transfers to UK - Afloat [Last Updated On: January 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 19th, 2021]
- 5 Years Ago Today: The Eagles' Glenn Frey Dies at 67 - Taste of Country [Last Updated On: January 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 19th, 2021]
- EU disaster: Irish fishermen turn on Brussels as 93% of ships BARRED from UK waters - Daily Express [Last Updated On: January 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 19th, 2021]
- Roots Rock All Winter Long - Shepherd Express [Last Updated On: January 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 19th, 2021]
- Irish fishery rights to Rockall must be protected - MacManus - Leitrim Observer [Last Updated On: January 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 19th, 2021]
- When Paul McCartney Braved the Set of Roger Cormans The Masque of the Red Death - Den of Geek [Last Updated On: January 23rd, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 23rd, 2021]
- Keller Williams, the one-man band - Livemint [Last Updated On: January 23rd, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 23rd, 2021]
- Louisahhh crafts industrial pop on debut album, The Practice of Freedom - The Vinyl Factory [Last Updated On: January 23rd, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 23rd, 2021]
- Between Takes: Space is the Place for Sun Ra and John Sinclair - WDET [Last Updated On: January 23rd, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 23rd, 2021]
- Pokemon: 10 Key Moves That Shaped Competitive Battling - TheGamer [Last Updated On: January 27th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 27th, 2021]
- Woman who paid to have husband killed, accomplice plead guilty - News Room Guyana [Last Updated On: January 27th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 27th, 2021]
- Tug-of-war developing between three Dail committees over Watt investigation - Extra.ie [Last Updated On: January 27th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 27th, 2021]
- Watch the Eagles Jam With Jackson Browne + Linda Ronstadt - Taste of Country [Last Updated On: January 27th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 27th, 2021]
- PS5 Launch Collection Features Official Hat, Water Bottle, & Socks - Screen Rant [Last Updated On: January 27th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 27th, 2021]
- Covid-19: A sport-by-sport look at the cost to grassroots games - Irish Examiner [Last Updated On: February 2nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 2nd, 2021]
- Global Internet Banking Market 2020 Size Share Upcoming Trends Segmentation And Forecast To 2026 NeighborWebSJ - NeighborWebSJ [Last Updated On: February 2nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 2nd, 2021]
- 'How I cope after losing a dad to suicide and a mum during the pandemic' - Wales Online [Last Updated On: February 2nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 2nd, 2021]
- Did Ohio States 2017 recruiting class live up to the hype? - Land-Grant Holy Land [Last Updated On: February 2nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 2nd, 2021]
- Balls.ie's Ranking Of The Top 10 Irish Sporting Secondary Schools - Balls.ie [Last Updated On: February 2nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 2nd, 2021]
- University of New Hampshire's dean's list for the fall 2020 semester - The Laconia Daily Sun [Last Updated On: February 2nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 2nd, 2021]
- Trojans Renew Rivalry With Warhawks Friday and Saturday - THV11.com KTHV [Last Updated On: February 2nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 2nd, 2021]
- New exhibition to recall Denmark's worst ever maritime disaster - The Post - The Copenhagen Post - Danish news in english [Last Updated On: February 2nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 2nd, 2021]