My Dark Path

Elmer McCurdy's Second Life


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How does someone’s corpse get so exploited and degraded that, decades later, everyone mistakes him for a prop? After Elmer McCurdy’s death, his embalmed body was exploited as a sideshow attraction, a movie prop, and ultimately a decoration in an amusement park’s haunted house. Listen to learn more about

  • Elmer McCurdy—a train robber who was killed in 1911 after attempting to steal $400,000 from a train in Oklahoma.
  • When a TV crew preparing to shoot an episode discovered that the mannequin they thought was just a prop was actually a human corpse.
  • The history of Hollywood and the events of Elmer McCurdy’s life that led to his death.
  • The implications of how easy it can be to dehumanize others.


 The full show notes can be found at https://www.mydarkpath.com/season1episode4

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My Dark PathBy MF Thomas, Creator & Host

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