Talk:Charles Starkweather

Capital Punishment in 1994
This could use a citation: ". . . until 1994 when the people of Nebraska demanded the return of capital punishment." Also, the phrase "demanded the return" could be rendered in a more neutral tone. Was there a vote? Did the governor or the legislature make a decision? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2604:2000:8116:F600:AD7D:49:F5F4:418F (talk) 01:18, 31 August 2020 (UTC)

Colvert
This article is neglecting much of Starkweather's history, such as additional homicides (Robert Colvert, for example). Anyone have some good sources to flesh this out? -- Kaszeta 18:19, 24 Nov 2004 (UTC)
 * Well, at least in the case of Robert Colvert, I know the article is pretty well fleshed out now, since I talked with a relative of Robert Colvert. I'll try to fill in some of the details the relative gave me.  -- Kaszeta 23:42, 13 April 2006 (UTC)
 * The paragraph about 7 of his murders was deleted by an anonymous user. I replaced the paragraph but I haven't cross-referenced it or anything. --suburbancow 02:23, 16 November 2006 (UTC)

Fugate's date of birth
In this article, Caril Ann Fugate year of birth is given as 1944, and year of parole is 1976. In Caril Ann Fugate article, year of birth is 1943, and year of parole is 1977. Which is the right one ? Jay 11:20, 24 August 2005 (UTC)


 * Caril was born on July 31, 1943 and paroled in June 1976 —Preceding unsigned comment added by 184.203.155.46 (talk) 15:32, 6 January 2011 (UTC)

Turns out Caril's birthday is July 30th, not the 31st. She just turned 70! — Preceding unsigned comment added by 107.41.181.174 (talk) 09:50, 17 October 2013 (UTC)

Dog
One part says that he "snapped the dog's neck just for good measure." i think a colloquialism like "just for good measure" can be omitted. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 87.222.102.10 (talk) 22:11, 12 October 2011 (UTC)

Caril Ann Fugate
People who have been referring to the Caril Ann Fugate article, what exactly are you talking about? The only thing in her article is a redirect to this page. Is there a way we can get an article about her written, or is it considered that the details of her life in this article are sufficient, as it is all she is notable for?TheNeutroniumAlchemist (talk) 06:24, 5 January 2010 (UTC)


 * Someone redirected the article to this page without discussion. It is there. Wildhartlivie (talk) 18:41, 5 January 2010 (UTC)


 * I am also questioning the veracity of the claims/ presentation of Caril Ann Fugate as an innocent victim in this article - I've seen multiple accounts that she was not only present/ but participated in the murders of her family, as well as the murder of Carole King. Also, while young, her actions in the immediate days after the murders of her family members strongly suggest collaboration in these crimes.  This angle should be further explored.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.86.2.92 (talk) 02:58, 23 September 2007 (UTC)

FWIW, Starkweather is also mentioned in the Movie "The Frighteners" (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0116365/). -- Anon


 * Caril was born on July 31, 1943. I found the date in Earl Dyer's book, Headline Starkweather. MrNWA4Life 03:03, 18 February 2006

Linda Starkweather?
The last line in this article used to say "No relation to Linda Starkweather." Anyone know who this person is? There's no article on a Linda Starkweather on Wikipedia, and a Google search throws up numerous Linda Starkweathers, but no one I'd say is definitively the one refered to.

I've removed it for the time being for those reasons, and partly because (looking at some of that user's other edits) I'm tempted to say it was just vandalism. g026r 05:52, 25 April 2006 (UTC)


 * No idea who Linda Starkweather is. But I can confidently say they are not related. Charles Starkweather was my great uncle, and looking at our family tree there is no Linda Starkweather. 2804:1A04:800B:D00:A0D3:6C8:6CC9:698A (talk) 03:26, 7 August 2023 (UTC)

Date of birth
Someone changed Charlie's date of birth. His date of birth is 11/24/1938, not 11/25/1938. A total stranger paid for his tombstone in December 1970 and got his birthdate wrong. MrNWA4Life

My "Labor Of Love"
This took quite some time to do but I finally finished it. There are some lists of executions on Wikipedia, some lists include a state's complete list of executions. Some, like Nebraska, only list the post 1976 executions. I got the full, complete, list of all 34 Nebraska executions (14 from when they were carried out by the various counties, the other 20 by the State). And for both Charlie and John Joubert, I included the link from their page to the list. I just hope nobody messes with it now. Enjoy! MrNWA4Life

Charlie's "Mugshot"
Hate to break the newws, but the pic of Charlie is not his mugshot. What kind of jail would take a mugshot of someone with a cigarette hanging from their mouth? None, it didn't happen. This pic (which is the most famous pic of Charlie) was taken by photographers after being brought back to Lincoln. Charlie's actual mugshot can be found on this page: and the pic itself is here:  Perhaps someone could get the Lincoln Sheriff's Office to provide a better scan?MrNWA4Life

Sister
This entry states that Caril was not home when her sister was killed, yet the entry for her states that she made lunch while her sister was killed. Which is it?

Edit to "Impact on culture" secton
It was previously stated in this section that in Stephen King's "The Dark Half", the character George Stark's name was inspired by Starkweather. The character was actually named after Richard Stark, pseudonym of novelist Donald E. Westlake. See character list on King's official site:

http://www.stephenking.com/pages/works/Dark_Half/characters.php —Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.97.90.98 (talk) 23:53, 17 September 2007 (UTC)

re:Stakweather (band) A friend and I formed a duo in 2001 called Starkweather and wrote around twenty songs. We had intended to write and record an album about Starkwethaer and Fugate. This was never completed, though three songs were written and recorded. We are not "notable" but I have included this here for those who may be interested. www.myspace.com/starkweatherforyou. Mary Harper 11:52, 14 October 2007 (UTC)

Why is there no mention of the many movies based on Starkweather in this section? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.212.212.172 (talk) 18:53, 14 July 2008 (UTC)

Vandalism that I cannot repair
There's some vandalism on this page, near the end of the article. Someone wrote some nonsense about chuck norris on it, but for some reason I cannot delete this segment of the text. If I click the edit button it does not show up in the text, as is it's not there, but it is.

Can someone fix this and if possible tell me how it's done? Damn vandals, don't they got better things to do. --Marjolijn 17:08, 2 Januari 2008 (CET)

Conflicting information
"The two stayed in the house for six more days" under 'Other Murders'.

Caril Fugate's article says they stayed for seven days.DanTheShrew (talk) 11:48, 19 March 2008 (UTC)

I believe it was 6 days. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 184.203.155.46 (talk) 15:06, 6 January 2011 (UTC)

At the begging of the page is says Fugate served 17 years but at the end it says 18. Which is correct? — Preceding unsigned comment added by ZekeymanRS (talk • contribs) 20:08, 11 June 2012 (UTC)

Neither, Caril was sent to prison on November 21, 1958. She was paroled on June 8, 1976. She served 17 1/2 years. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 107.41.181.174 (talk) 09:56, 17 October 2013 (UTC)

Date of birth
someone keeps changing Charlie's date of birth. Will whoever it is cut it out. Charlie was born on November 24, 1938, not November 25th. Yes, I know his gravestone lists November 25th, but it is wrong. Keep in mind his first gravestone was paid for by a total stranger in December 1970. After it was trashed, a new one was paid for by Martin Sheen in the 1980's. I've seen copies of both his birth announcement in the Lincoln Star and his Death Certificate and they BOTH list November 24th.


 * BTW, another indication gravestones aren't always accurate, the Bartlett's grave marker lists their date of death as January 25, 1958. They were found on January 27th and the Lincoln newspapers said they were dead at least 3 days. But Charlie & Caril was in the house for 6 days, meaning they were actually killed on January 21, 1958. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 184.203.155.46 (talk) 15:29, 6 January 2011 (UTC)


 * Does anyone know why Martin Sheen would have paid for Starkweather's headstone? What was the relationship?  Thanks.  Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 19:52, 15 August 2013 (UTC)


 * No relationship. He starred in Badlands, one of the first movies inspired by the killing spree. He ended up being friends with Caril Ann Fugate, paid for Charlie's second marker, and still visits Lincoln every few years. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 107.41.181.174 (talk) 10:01, 17 October 2013 (UTC)


 * Thanks. Pretty interesting information.  I did not know that.  Thank you.   Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 04:01, 9 January 2014 (UTC)

The Bruce Springsteen Song
It should definitely be added to his "cultural impact"-section that he worked as the inspiration for the song "Nebraska", written and performed by Bruce Springsteen. Together with the Malick-movie, it could be argued that the song is responsible for keeping Starkweather present in comtemporary thought. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.217.70.203 (talk) 19:13, 14 November 2009 (UTC)

Who is Spencer?
In the section "Trial and execution" it says, "Spencer did not believe that ...". Who is Spencer? This name is mentioned nowhere else in the article. I guess it has been orphaned by previous edits. Could somebody who knows please tidy this up. HairyWombat (talk) 05:07, 3 May 2010 (UTC)

Maybe the judge Harry Spencer?

This line makes no sense
"Starkweather first claimed Fugate was captured by him and had nothing to do with the murders" —Preceding unsigned comment added by 108.35.32.21 (talk) 07:13, 25 March 2011 (UTC)


 * It make perfect sense.. assuming you speak English. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 125.236.57.133 (talk) 05:05, 6 October 2011 (UTC)
 * snarky, rude, unhelpful comments aside, it is a rather confusing sentence. Igottheconch (talk) 21:54, 15 February 2012 (UTC)


 * Tripped me up, too. When I saw this comment I decided to fix it. The proper English term for the crime Starkweather claimed to have committed, rendering Fugate an unwilling accomplice, is "kidnap". "Captured" is for criminals. Laodah 18:23, 30 June 2017 (UTC)

Unattributed quotation
The centered quotation that begins "He could be the kindest person" is not attibuted to any source. It's included in the Allen biography. Shouldn't a citation be included? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.121.24.168 (talk) 19:41, 3 April 2012 (UTC)

I have the book also. It was Bob Von Busch that made the comment. He was married to Caril Ann Fugate's sister Barbara. It was his idea to set up his buddy Charlie with his then girlfriend's younger sister. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 184.246.99.187 (talk) 13:08, 27 October 2012 (UTC)

Fencl name contradictory spellings
While some media and books appear to prefer the spelling "Lillian Fencl" for one of the victims in this case, what is purported to be her gravestone reads "Lilyan": http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=8448518. And some media reflect that spelling; e.g.: http://journalstar.com/special-section/news/third-victim-on-th-street/article_6ec99488-b351-5de2-9d66-fbb387a4ec01.html  71.234.44.10 (talk) 08:39, 13 December 2012 (UTC)

Why was Charles Starkweather executed so quickly?
He was executed less than one and a half months after his arrest. Today, serial killers spend decades on trial and staying on death row before the execution is carried out (if ever).

Why was Charles Starkweather executed so quickly? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 118.189.8.238 (talk) 00:30, 23 May 2014 (UTC)

One and a half months? More like one and a half years. Guess you don't know how to read English, especially the part where it says he was executed 17 months after his crimes. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 205.167.35.5 (talk) 08:17, 3 June 2015 (UTC)

It's not so much a question of why it was so quick then, but why it takes so long now. In that era convicted murderers didn't languish in prison for 20 or more years. A year or two at the most was quite normal. When Caryl Chessman went to the California gas chamber in 1960 he had been on death row for 12 years - At that time the longest of anyone in the U.S., and for a case far more convoluted and with far more appeals and stays than Starkweather. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.178.60.181 (talk) 07:15, 17 April 2022 (UTC)

External links modified
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Spree vs Serial; Original Research
Hi there. You left a concerning edit summary (thanks for actually writing one) when you made changes regarding whether Starkweather is a spree, serial or both killer. Original research is not accepted as article content on Wikipedia. Could you please ensure that any claims that Starkweather is one thing or another are derived from quality publications and not, as your edit summary suggests, your own research? Cheers. 20:58, 12 January 2024 (UTC)


 * Wikipedia says a serial killer is defined as typically a person who murders three or more persons, with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant period of time between them. Starkweather has both of those so I believe he fits. 2600:1010:B16C:D1D3:34DC:A20E:F20F:EFE7 (talk) 21:01, 12 January 2024 (UTC)
 * Wikipedia is not a reliable source; where a definition (like a classification of killer) should be sourced, as with all statements, please prefer quality secondary sources (see WP:RS). However, how Starkweather should be classified in this article is not for us to determine at all. In line with summarizing the content of sources, our classification should respect and echo his common classification, even if not true.  21:25, 12 January 2024 (UTC)