The Good-bye Door: The Incredible True Story of America's First Female Serial Killer to Die in the Chair (True Crime Series (Kent, Ohio).) (Paperback)

by Diana Britt Franklin (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Nicknamed the "Blonde Borgia," Anna Marie Hahn was a cold-blooded serial killer who preyed on the elderly in Cincinnati's Over-the-Rhine District in the 1930s. Told here for the first time is Anna Marie's gripping story, an almost unbelievable tale of multiple murders, deceit, and greed.

Born in Bavaria in 1906, Anna Marie brought shame to her pious family when as a teenager, she gave birth to an illegitimate son, Oscar. Shipped off to America in 1929 where she initially lived with the elderly relatives in Cincinnati, she married Philip Hahn, a Western Union telegrpher, with whom she bought a new house and opened a delicatessen/bakery.

Pressed economically by the Great Depression, the ever-resourceful Anna Marie found other ways to get the money to support her passionate pasttime -- betting on horses. She tried burning down the house, then the deli, for the insurance, and she tried killing her husband, also for the insurance. Then she took to befriending the neighborhood elderly, latching on to their life savings before feeding them arsenic with deadly results. How many did she dispatched in this way? Some say as many as a dozen.

For weeks her Cincinnati trial for "the greatest mass murder in the history of the country" was a front-page sensation across the nation. Thousands of curiosity seekers came daily to the courthouse to try to get a glimpse of Anna Marie. Nearly 100 witnesses gave damning testimony against her, and the jury's guilty verdict put her on the path to the electric chair. Finally, when all appeals were exhausted, Anna Marie, age 32, was executed on December 7, 1938, at the Ohio Penitentiary in Columbus. In a handwritten "confession" found in her cell, she admitted to four murders.

From the Publisher
WINNER!: Governor Thomas Worthington Award for Ohio Biography -- Ohio Genealogical Society WINNER!: Silver Medal for True Crime Book of the Year -- ForeWord Magazine WINNER!: Bronze Medal for True Crime -- Independent Publisher

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Product Details

• Paperback: 244 pages
• Publisher: Kent State University Press; 1st ed edition (October 30, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0873388747
• ISBN-13: 978-0873388740
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #177,534 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating True Crime Story!, February 14, 2007

By	A. Cole (Cincinnati, OH USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is a fascinating true story about America's first female serial killer to die in the electric chair. The book covers Anna Marie Hahn's life as a favored child in Bavaria, to her descent into crime as a serial killer, and finally to her execution. The book is an easy, but compelling read--I couldn't put it down and read it in less than 2 days! I had the pleasure of meeting the author, Diana Franklin, and discussing the book with her. Diana's thorough research investigating these murders (which took place in the mid- to late-1930s) and the resulting trial and media coverage is clear. She was able to recreate Anna's actions in astounding detail. Anyone who is interested in reading true crime stories should definitely add this book to their list of "must reads"!

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A MASTERFUL RECREATION !!!, May 17, 2007

By	Marlene (Lake Worth, Tx) - See all my reviews

"The Good-bye Door" is a masterful recreation of a heinous crime that took place almost 80 years ago. The manuscript is so vividly crafted that I felt like a voyeur, watching every move made by this serial killer, Anna Marie Hahn. When she finally was arrested, I was there when police questioned her. When her trial began in a crowded Cincinnati courtroom, I was sitting in the first row. When she stood rigidly before the bar, I felt the judge's pain at having to pronounce the death sentence. And when she went to the electric chair after a year in the Ohio penitentiary, I was swept up by the emotional scene in front of me. Readers will be amazed, as I was, at the author's skill in bringing this story to life. A wonderful book.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Good-bye Door, January 28, 2007

By	William Blackburn (Seattler, Washington) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

As an avid reader of true crime, I thoroughly enjoyed "The Good-bye Door." How this incredible story, told in such captivating detail by the author, escaped attention all these years is hard to fathom. In its day, it was describled as "the greatest mass murder in the history of the country." Fortunately for history, this author took the time to chronicle Anna Marie Hahn's arrest, trial, incarceration, and execution in Ohio. "The
Good-bye Door" is engrossing from beginning to end. I loved it.