The Observer Becomes the Befriender
The Observer’s Jas Obrecht seems to have become quite smitten with convicted “Hot Rod Killer” Bill Morey, who served a rather light 19 years for murdering a nurse on her way home from the night shift when he was 18 (after two unsuccessful attempts by him and his two accomplices to kill other young women walking alone at night in the Old Fourth Ward.) Of course, there’s nothing wrong with a writer seeing the humanity in a killer, but the distance here between journalist and source is perhaps a little too close. The piece concludes:
My friend Bill Morey died the next day, on August 26, 2005. The obituary in the Ann Arbor News made no mention of his crimes, featuring instead one of his favorite quotations, from Rafael Sabatini’s Scaramouche: “He was born with a gift of laughter and a sense that the world was mad.” Morey himself would be the first to admit that he’d contributed to that madness. Personally, though, I’ll miss the laughter.
We hope he’s actually referring to the family-sponsored death notice; a newspaper would be rather remiss to leave out the fact that the subject of an obituary was at the center of one of the area’s most famous murder cases. Mad, one might even say.
“Personally, though, I’ll miss his propensity to murder people on the street.”
posted by Real Big on October 3rd, 2005 at 8:03 pm“rather,” what a stupid word.
posted by Jonas on October 3rd, 2005 at 8:35 pmWell, I already used “quite” — what do you want?
posted by ann arbor is overrated on October 3rd, 2005 at 8:40 pmKilling enbiggens us all….Or something.
posted by Kozzie on October 3rd, 2005 at 10:54 pmWell, I guess if I had to choose between the laughter and the homicidal tendencies, I’d choose the laughter, too.
posted by Anna on October 4th, 2005 at 8:13 amClearly, Mr. Morey had a twinkle in his eye and a spring in his step which John Norman Collins lacked. Verily, with his lovable grandfatherly charm, he put the “Opa” back in “Sociopath.”
posted by brett on October 4th, 2005 at 8:21 amIt’s a perfectly cromulent word.
posted by js on October 4th, 2005 at 12:56 pmbrett: that was absolutely fantastic.
js & kozzie: simpsons references, equally fantastic.
This is shaping up to be a great thread - perhaps that’s a sign of Morey’s sparkling sense of humor… that from the fertile soil of his passing could spring the fruit of pure comedic gold.
posted by Real Big on October 4th, 2005 at 3:02 pmWow! I thought I was the only one who thought that article was an odd way to recount a murder spree.
posted by Sketchy on November 29th, 2005 at 3:57 pmRe: Comments on Bill Morey. Bill was a highly intelligent and extremely immature teenager when he committed a terrible deed…murder. However, people change. He served over 20 years in jail and prison for his crime. And he lived a productive and contributory life after his release. He helped a lot of people and continued to seek redemption to his last days. So, to those who complain that none should say a good word for him in passing, I say, get a life. Your pathology does not say much for you.
posted by ed tromanhauser on January 16th, 2007 at 11:54 am