Ed Gein

[Nomad]

eBay ad for Ed Gein property got one offer before being pulled



Robert Imrie, Associated Press Last update: April 10, 2006 – 2:29 PM







Ed Gein is shown at the time of his arrest in 1957, after murdering a woman at the local hardware store in Plainfield, Wis., and taking her body home to hang in his shed. Gein, who was also a grave robber who would dig up women's bodies and take home their body parts, did most of his grave robbing at the Plainfield Cemetery. He was 77 when he died in a mental hospital in 1984. A fictionalized account of Gein by writer Robert Bloch led to the Norman Bates character in Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho." Associated Press







WAUSAU, Wis. ” The man trying to sell the land where Ed Gein ” the grave robber and murderer whose story inspired the movie "Psycho" ” was arrested said today he received one offer before eBay yanked his ad off its online auction site.

Mike Fisher said the offer was far lower than his $250,000 asking price. Fisher said eBay pulled his real estate advertisement on Saturday, five days after it was first listed, calling it a violation of the site's murder memorabilia policy.

"It was bound to be controversial," Fisher said.

The 40-acre property near Plainfield about 70 miles south of Wausau once contained Gein's ramshackle home and part of his farm, where Gein was arrested and body parts and clothing made from human skin were found in 1957.

Fisher, who inherited the land from his grandfather, listed the property on eBay on April 4 under the heading, "Ed Gein's Farm ... The REAL deal!"

Fisher's sales pitch drew the attention of a man leading a national campaign against sales of serial killer memorabilia. Andy Kahan of Houston said Fisher was wrong for trying to use a horrible crime and the notoriety of it to "hook a higher price" for his land.

Kahan said today he purposely didn't contact eBay about the ad to see whether the company was enforcing its policy.

"It finally got pointed out to them," he said. "Obviously, they passed with flying colors. We applaud eBay for being a consistent watchdog and not allowing the sale of murderabilia."

In a telephone interview from his home in southern Wisconsin, Fisher said his eBay ad received more than 10,000 hits before it was pulled. He refused to disclose details about the lone offer, which he did not immediately accept.

The property remains for sale, he said. "I have a number of interested parties. We have yet to exchange information. They want to take a look at the place, that type of thing."

Fisher said he doesn't plan to list the property with a real estate company.

"The word is out. If someone is truly interested, they can track me down," he said. "Public records will show where I am at. As with any real estate deal, price is always negotiable."

Kahan said he was not surprised Fisher's ad attracted 10,000 hits.

"It's human curiosity. People are always fascinated with the morbid and the macabre," he said.

Gein was arrested for murder when the headless body of a hardware store owner was found hanging at his farm home. The woman's body was dressed out like a deer carcass. Investigators also found parts of other bodies. They concluded Gein had robbed graves and may have murdered other people.

Gein, eventually ruled guilty but criminally insane, died in a mental hospital in 1984 at the age of 77.

Fisher's grandfather, Emden Schey, bid $3,883 for Gein's farm plus another $775 for the homestead site, outbuildings and 40 acres in 1958. The farmhouse on the property burned down before the auction.

Schey later sold off some of the land, and the 40-acre homestead site was passed down to Fisher and his brother. Fisher, 40, said he bought out his brother's interest. The 40 acres is covered with trees, planted by his grandfather to try in some way to redeem it from its ugly past, the grandson said. Fisher and friends have hunted deer on it for more than two decades.

[lady cop]

so did ted bundy.

[Sheryl]

Wow someone with actual 'beedy' looking eyes.