Sharp - witted writer Damon Runyon dubbed the 1927 violent death of Albert Snyder “ the dumbbell slaying , ” but it was n’t due to the murder weapon system ; this photo present what Ruth Snyder and her buff Henry Judd Gray used to end her hubby ’s life . The nickname came because the killers were , to put it bluntly , stunned .
It was a narration that ’ll ring familiar to fans of photographic film noir and crime fiction : world-weary homemaker meets a married valet de chambre with whom she start a torrid involvement . Her inconvenient hubby ? Well , he ’s still good for something , but only if he ’s all in : insurance money .
In Ruth ’s lawsuit , it took awhile for her to convince Judd that Albert needed to be done away with . Their hush-hush kinship was in its 2nd twelvemonth when the deed was carry out . Judd travel to Long Island , where Ruth lived with her husband and their nine - year - honest-to-goodness daughter , snuck into the menage ’s excess bedroom , andcounted the minutes until Ruth ’s scheme could be put into play . At stake was$48,000 in liveliness - insurance doughthat Ruth had recently purchased .
It did n’t go smoothly . First , the execution itself was a mussy spot , and the aftermath was even moreso . As aNY Daily Newsprofile of “ Ruthless Ruth ” recalls , Albert Snyder was fast asleep , blissfully unaware of the impending doom about to be work by the lovers who called each other “ Momsie ” and “ Bud : ”
[ Henry ] slugged him on the head with a 4 - pound windowpane sash weight , anticipate to knock the man unconscious . But Albert press back fiercely , and Gray shout out , “ Momsie , for God ’s interest , aid ! ”
The pair finished the chore , but it was not an elegant slaying . The bludgeon was backed up with a dose of chloroform and strangulation with stiff wire .
The jambon - handed killer then staged a robbery . Gray left Ruth obligate before flee , and she severalize police a flimsy news report about two Italian intruder .
As the investigation was just getting started , a tec notice Gray ’s name in Snyder ’s chequebook and address book .
He need the cleaning woman a simple question : “ What about Judd Gray ? ” The cop was floor when Snyder puff , “ Has he confessed ? ”
He had n’t . But she might as well have .
Eventually , both Gray and Snyder did own up – each naming the other as the brain . Runyon dub it the Dumbbell Murder because the scheme was so screw-loose . Another scratch awl called it a “ trashy crime imply cheap people . ”
The subsequent trial , in which the conspirators turned on each other , brought with it amedia frenzy . Both Ruth and Judd were found shamefaced and faced the electric chair onJanuary 12 , 1928 .
Ruth Snyder ’s death penalty made history by being “ the first known mental image of a execution at Sing Sing and the first photograph of an burning ; ” the NY Daily News dub the now - iconic , on the QT - obtainedphoto “ the most famous sneak shot picture in tabloid chronicle . ” See it on Time ’s websitehere . And if you had n’t hazard already , this sheath would go on todirectly influencethe book Double Indemnity , later on made into the classic Barbara Stanwyck noir thriller .
All images : AP Photo
Noir
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