About this episode
Explore the chilling 1918 spree of the Axeman of New Orleans, who spared homes that played jazz and vanished without a trace.[INTRO]ALEX: Imagine it’s a humid Tuesday night in March 1919. Every single dance hall, bar, and living room in New Orleans is erupting with the loudest jazz music possible because a serial killer promised to murder anyone who stayed silent.JORDAN: Wait, a killer who mandates a city-wide jam session? That sounds more like a weird movie plot than a police report.ALEX: It was very real. For eighteen months, the "Axeman of New Orleans" terrorized the city, breaking into homes to attack families with their own tools, only to pause his spree for a night of jazz.[CHAPTER 1 - Origin]ALEX: The terror officially began in May 1918. New Orleans was already a powder keg of post-war tension and shifting demographics, especially with a booming population of Italian immigrants.JORDAN: So the city is already on edge. Was there something specific about who this guy was targeting?ALEX: Yes, and that’s where the pattern gets dark. He almost exclusively targeted Italian-American grocers. These were hard-working families who lived in apartments attached to their shops.JORDAN: Okay, so maybe a protection racket? The Mafia or the "Black Hand" we always hear about in that era?ALEX: That was the leading theory at the time. But the method of entry was bizarrely consistent and didn't scream "professional hitman."JORDAN: What, he didn't just kick the door in?ALEX: No, he was surgical. He would use a chisel to painstakingly remove a lower wooden panel from the back door—just enough space for a person to crawl through. Once inside, he wouldn't bring a gun. He’d find the family’s own axe or hatchet and use it on them while they slept.[CHAPTER 2 - Core Story]ALEX: On May 23, 1918, Joseph and Catherine Maggio became the first victims. The killer chiseled through their door, grabbed an axe, and murdered them in their bed.JORDAN: Did he steal anything? Usually, these grocery stores would have cash on hand, right?ALEX: That’s the thing—he left the money. He left the jewelry. He just left the bloody axe and vanished into the night.JORDAN: So it’s not about the money. He’s a sadist.ALEX: Exactly. This happened again and again. In June, he attacked Louis Besumer and Harriet Lowe. In August, he struck a pregnant woman named Anna Schneider and then an elderly man named Joseph Romano. The city was paralyzed.JORDAN: I’m guessing the police were completely out of their depth?ALEX: Totally. This is before DNA, before centralized fingerprinting. They were chasing ghosts. At one point, they even arrested a victim, Louis Besumer, holding him for nine months before realizing he couldn't have done it.JORDAN: But what about the jazz? How does a serial killer become a music critic?ALEX: This is the turning point. On Marc
