The Double Indemnity Murder: Ruth Snyder, Judd Gray, and New York's Crime of the Century

By Landis Mackellar

Queens Village was a picture-perfect postcard New York suburb. But in March 1927 the fa ade of respectability was stripped away to reveal an underside of greed, lust, and crime. Few incidents in crime history have been so notorious as the murder of Albert Snyder by his wife and her lover. Resonant of the footloose Jazz Age, it made persistent headlines and led to a sensational trial. The crime spawned a 1920s Broadway play and inspired the classic noir film of the 1940s, Double Indemnity. This book assesses the entire case, from grisly slaying and shabby cover-up to sharp police work and aftermath. Moreover, it explores sociocultural questions that beg to be answered: what effect does news reportage exert upon high profile cases, and why did such a transparent crime earn such an enduring place in the popular psyche?

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0815608241
• ISBN13: 9780815608240
• Release Date: October 2006
• Publisher: Syracuse University Press
• Length: 420 Pages
• Weight: 1.37 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

riveting

I was familar with this case. As a kid, I read about it in a True Crime encyclopedia set called "Crime and Punishments" ( not the classic by Dostoevsky). I always found this crime to be particularly ordinary but also strangley, hypnotic. I guess that was why everyone from D.W. Griffith to Ring Lardner to Aimee Macpherson attended the celebrated trial in 1927. I was totally impressed by Mackeller's work. It was methodically researched and expertly written. One wonders how this man got such in-depth information from the sources that he did (even the present owners of the Snyder home are anonymously mentioned). The trial section was terrific, the details from the murder and subsequent interrogation was riveting. However, the days leading up to Mrs. Snyder and Mr. Gray's final days in Sing Sing before their subsequent electrocutions was mesmirizing. I read this book in three days. The last section stayed with me for quite awhile especially the details of their final hours. Wow! This certainly packed a wallop!

Informative and captivating account of the Snyder-Gray case.

I borrowed this book from the library. This is a well-written account of the Ruth Snyder-Judd Gray murder case in 1927. It held my interest as Landis MacKellar made me feel like an eyewitness to all that has happened. Even the events of the couple's separate final moments are riveting. For example, I envisioned seeing a tearful Ruth Snyder entering the death chamber with a prison matron at her side, the warden in the lead, and her priest reading from his prayer book. In regard to reading about the couple's separate executions, I was at the hairdresser, under the hair dryer. Again, I tried to place myself in that grim situation as the warm/semi-hot air dried my hair; and partially feeling the heat on my covered neck and shoulders! I was preparing for the Easter holiday. Of course, being under a hot hair dryer is absolutely NO comparison to an actual electrocution. I won't reveal further details, but one can use their imagination when reading this account, as I did. By now, most readers are pretty familiar with the grim 1928 (sneak) photo of Ruth Snyder being electrocuted. The New York Daily News had recently published an article about the case (and, of course, the execution photo). That was enough to arouse my curiosity to find out more about this case since my books on the 1920's ("Only Yesterday", "Ain't We Got Fun", and "The Jazz Age" [Time-Life Books]) don't elaborate much on it. On a personal note: I hope, one day, the actual Snyder-Gray case be made into a movie. There have been plays and the 1940's movie "Double Indemnity" based on the case. It's time, now, for Ruth Snyder and Judd Gray to be portrayed onscreen as themselves. Landis MacKellar's book should be the basis for the film.

The Best Ruth Snyder Book Yet!

Landis Mackellar is to be commended for writing the most readable, and inclusive, account of the 1927 "Double Indemnity" murders yet published. The book is scholarly, but not dry, and I read it all in one sitting. True, the major points have been covered many times before, but Mr. Mackellar provides enough new supporting detail, drawn from the trial transcripts, other archival sources, and the newspapers, that I, who have read everything published on the Snyder case that I have been able to get my hands on, did not think to myself, "oh great, another rehash" and put it aside for later reading. He is also to be commended for NOT using recreated dialogue, an authors' conceit that usually causes me to view a book with distrust if it purports itself to be a "true account." My only complaint, and it is a minor one, is that given the wealth of photos available of every aspect of the case, the book seems under illustrated. But, I'll gladly do without a photo section if a book on a topic with which I am well versed keeps me interested and does not irritate me with recreated dialgue or speculative 'insights' into the minds of people long dead whom the author never met. Good work, Mr. Mackellar!

The 'Double Indemnity Murder'

Landis MacKellar's new book, The Double Indemnity Murder, explores one of the most sensational murders of the 20th century. When Albert Snyder was killed in his bed by his wife Ruth and her lover, Judd Gray, some eighty years ago in March of 1927, Queens Village, New York City, and much of the United States was captivated by the aftermath of this notorious crime. The slaying became a symbol of the jazz/flapper era and resulted in a Broadway pla and a 1940's noir movie, and has gone down in the annals of crime literature. Ironically, the murder involved little intrigue. Due to excellent police work and an ineffective cover-up from the co-conspirators, Ruth Snyder and Judd Gray were brought to justice with swiftness unheard of in the 21st century. MacKellar's research for this book was exceptionally thorough. Broken up into three parts - the crime, trial, and last days, with three appendices, the book provides a psychological profile for both killers and the victim, as well as their unfortunate cast of on-lookers. Because the crime was so transparent, Double Indemnity doesn't quite read like a mystery. However, MacKellar's profiling is enough to allow each reader the background to make their own assessment as to the motivation behind this legendary crime.