Information from the website: "Mrs Astor and the Gilded Age":
William O. Burton (who anglicized his surname from Bernheimer), heir to a beer fortune, was an aspiring portrait painter who studied at the Yale School of Fine Arts, the Art Students League, and the School of Applied Arts. He married Lucile Wolfe at Elberon, NJ on 25 September 1920, and they had a daughter, Patricia Hartley Burton. His wife eventually divorced him for desertion in 1925; an underage boy was named as one of the correspondents.
After a succession of other male “protégées”, William finally became besotted with a handsome young Canadian. Wayne Lonergan came to New York City in 1939 as a “chair boy” hired by wealthy patrons to push rickshaws through the New York World’s Fair. Soon after meeting William, there was no need for him to continue working.
Only a year later, however, Burton died, leaving his seven million dollar fortune to his teenage daughter, Patricia. Lonergan promptly transferred his affections from the father to the daughter and in the winter of 1941 the two eloped to Las Vegas against the wishes of the bride’s mother, who knew the nature of his relationship with her late husband.
The marriage was unhappy from the start, but the couple produced a son seven months after the wedding. Lonergan returned to Canada to volunteer in the Royal Canadian Air Force. In October of 1943 he was home in New York City on a weekend pass when he spent much of the night in a succession of gay nightclubs. His 22 year-old wife was said to have spent the night also lost in a similar quest for alcohol and attractive men.
Both arriving at their home at 313 East 51st Street at approximately 7:00 a.m., they collapsed onto their marital bed and, amazingly, began passionate sex. The situation turned unexpectedly violent when Patricia reportedly bit her husband in a sensitive area. Enraged and in pain, Lonergan picked up a candelabra from the nightstand, beat Patricia about the head, and strangled her to death.
Lonergan then calmly dressed, taking care to use makeup to hide her scratch marks on his face. He cut up his bloody military uniform and threw it into the river (where it was never found) before taking a taxi to a weekend house party to which he had been invited. After his eventual arrest, his unorthodox alibi was that he could not have killed his wife as, at the time of the murder, he was having anonymous sex with a soldier he had picked up during the night. Lonergan also said the soldier had stolen his uniform.
The resulting media frenzy was inhibited only by what the newspapers could not say about the murder, other than an attempt by one to write that Lonergan was “in great pain” when he killed his wife. He eventually confessed but later tried to recant saying the confession was beaten out of him by Canadian police. The first attempt at justice was declared a mistrial before the jury was chosen, and in the second trial Lonergan was convicted of second degree murder and sentenced to 35 years to life in prison. Released in 1967, he was deported to Canada. While still in prison he attempted to gain his wife’s fortune but the courts ruled that he was “civilly dead” and thus could not inherit.
His son, who was only one year old at the time of his mother’s murder, changed his name (he had been told he was an orphan) and in 1954 legally inherited his mother’s fortune. Lonergan sought a second trial in 1965 based upon his forced confession but was unsuccessful. He was paroled in 1967 on the condition that he remain in Canada. Wayne Lonergan died on 2 January 1986 in Toronto at the age of 67. He was reported to have spent his last years as a companion to an elderly actress.
William O. Burton (who anglicized his surname from Bernheimer), heir to a beer fortune, was an aspiring portrait painter who studied at the Yale School of Fine Arts, the Art Students League, and the School of Applied Arts. He married Lucile Wolfe at Elberon, NJ on 25 September 1920, and they had a daughter, Patricia Hartley Burton. His wife eventually divorced him for desertion in 1925; an underage boy was named as one of the correspondents.
After a succession of other male “protégées”, William finally became besotted with a handsome young Canadian. Wayne Lonergan came to New York City in 1939 as a “chair boy” hired by wealthy patrons to push rickshaws through the New York World’s Fair. Soon after meeting William, there was no need for him to continue working.
Only a year later, however, Burton died, leaving his seven million dollar fortune to his teenage daughter, Patricia. Lonergan promptly transferred his affections from the father to the daughter and in the winter of 1941 the two eloped to Las Vegas against the wishes of the bride’s mother, who knew the nature of his relationship with her late husband.
The marriage was unhappy from the start, but the couple produced a son seven months after the wedding. Lonergan returned to Canada to volunteer in the Royal Canadian Air Force. In October of 1943 he was home in New York City on a weekend pass when he spent much of the night in a succession of gay nightclubs. His 22 year-old wife was said to have spent the night also lost in a similar quest for alcohol and attractive men.
Both arriving at their home at 313 East 51st Street at approximately 7:00 a.m., they collapsed onto their marital bed and, amazingly, began passionate sex. The situation turned unexpectedly violent when Patricia reportedly bit her husband in a sensitive area. Enraged and in pain, Lonergan picked up a candelabra from the nightstand, beat Patricia about the head, and strangled her to death.
Lonergan then calmly dressed, taking care to use makeup to hide her scratch marks on his face. He cut up his bloody military uniform and threw it into the river (where it was never found) before taking a taxi to a weekend house party to which he had been invited. After his eventual arrest, his unorthodox alibi was that he could not have killed his wife as, at the time of the murder, he was having anonymous sex with a soldier he had picked up during the night. Lonergan also said the soldier had stolen his uniform.
The resulting media frenzy was inhibited only by what the newspapers could not say about the murder, other than an attempt by one to write that Lonergan was “in great pain” when he killed his wife. He eventually confessed but later tried to recant saying the confession was beaten out of him by Canadian police. The first attempt at justice was declared a mistrial before the jury was chosen, and in the second trial Lonergan was convicted of second degree murder and sentenced to 35 years to life in prison. Released in 1967, he was deported to Canada. While still in prison he attempted to gain his wife’s fortune but the courts ruled that he was “civilly dead” and thus could not inherit.
His son, who was only one year old at the time of his mother’s murder, changed his name (he had been told he was an orphan) and in 1954 legally inherited his mother’s fortune. Lonergan sought a second trial in 1965 based upon his forced confession but was unsuccessful. He was paroled in 1967 on the condition that he remain in Canada. Wayne Lonergan died on 2 January 1986 in Toronto at the age of 67. He was reported to have spent his last years as a companion to an elderly actress.
Information from the website: "Mrs Astor and the Gilded Age":
William O. Burton (who anglicized his surname from Bernheimer), heir to a beer fortune, was an aspiring portrait painter who studied at the Yale School of Fine Arts, the Art Students League, and the School of Applied Arts. He married Lucile Wolfe at Elberon, NJ on 25 September 1920, and they had a daughter, Patricia Hartley Burton. His wife eventually divorced him for desertion in 1925; an underage boy was named as one of the correspondents.
After a succession of other male “protégées”, William finally became besotted with a handsome young Canadian. Wayne Lonergan came to New York City in 1939 as a “chair boy” hired by wealthy patrons to push rickshaws through the New York World’s Fair. Soon after meeting William, there was no need for him to continue working.
Only a year later, however, Burton died, leaving his seven million dollar fortune to his teenage daughter, Patricia. Lonergan promptly transferred his affections from the father to the daughter and in the winter of 1941 the two eloped to Las Vegas against the wishes of the bride’s mother, who knew the nature of his relationship with her late husband.
The marriage was unhappy from the start, but the couple produced a son seven months after the wedding. Lonergan returned to Canada to volunteer in the Royal Canadian Air Force. In October of 1943 he was home in New York City on a weekend pass when he spent much of the night in a succession of gay nightclubs. His 22 year-old wife was said to have spent the night also lost in a similar quest for alcohol and attractive men.
Both arriving at their home at 313 East 51st Street at approximately 7:00 a.m., they collapsed onto their marital bed and, amazingly, began passionate sex. The situation turned unexpectedly violent when Patricia reportedly bit her husband in a sensitive area. Enraged and in pain, Lonergan picked up a candelabra from the nightstand, beat Patricia about the head, and strangled her to death.
Lonergan then calmly dressed, taking care to use makeup to hide her scratch marks on his face. He cut up his bloody military uniform and threw it into the river (where it was never found) before taking a taxi to a weekend house party to which he had been invited. After his eventual arrest, his unorthodox alibi was that he could not have killed his wife as, at the time of the murder, he was having anonymous sex with a soldier he had picked up during the night. Lonergan also said the soldier had stolen his uniform.
The resulting media frenzy was inhibited only by what the newspapers could not say about the murder, other than an attempt by one to write that Lonergan was “in great pain” when he killed his wife. He eventually confessed but later tried to recant saying the confession was beaten out of him by Canadian police. The first attempt at justice was declared a mistrial before the jury was chosen, and in the second trial Lonergan was convicted of second degree murder and sentenced to 35 years to life in prison. Released in 1967, he was deported to Canada. While still in prison he attempted to gain his wife’s fortune but the courts ruled that he was “civilly dead” and thus could not inherit.
His son, who was only one year old at the time of his mother’s murder, changed his name (he had been told he was an orphan) and in 1954 legally inherited his mother’s fortune. Lonergan sought a second trial in 1965 based upon his forced confession but was unsuccessful. He was paroled in 1967 on the condition that he remain in Canada. Wayne Lonergan died on 2 January 1986 in Toronto at the age of 67. He was reported to have spent his last years as a companion to an elderly actress.
William O. Burton (who anglicized his surname from Bernheimer), heir to a beer fortune, was an aspiring portrait painter who studied at the Yale School of Fine Arts, the Art Students League, and the School of Applied Arts. He married Lucile Wolfe at Elberon, NJ on 25 September 1920, and they had a daughter, Patricia Hartley Burton. His wife eventually divorced him for desertion in 1925; an underage boy was named as one of the correspondents.
After a succession of other male “protégées”, William finally became besotted with a handsome young Canadian. Wayne Lonergan came to New York City in 1939 as a “chair boy” hired by wealthy patrons to push rickshaws through the New York World’s Fair. Soon after meeting William, there was no need for him to continue working.
Only a year later, however, Burton died, leaving his seven million dollar fortune to his teenage daughter, Patricia. Lonergan promptly transferred his affections from the father to the daughter and in the winter of 1941 the two eloped to Las Vegas against the wishes of the bride’s mother, who knew the nature of his relationship with her late husband.
The marriage was unhappy from the start, but the couple produced a son seven months after the wedding. Lonergan returned to Canada to volunteer in the Royal Canadian Air Force. In October of 1943 he was home in New York City on a weekend pass when he spent much of the night in a succession of gay nightclubs. His 22 year-old wife was said to have spent the night also lost in a similar quest for alcohol and attractive men.
Both arriving at their home at 313 East 51st Street at approximately 7:00 a.m., they collapsed onto their marital bed and, amazingly, began passionate sex. The situation turned unexpectedly violent when Patricia reportedly bit her husband in a sensitive area. Enraged and in pain, Lonergan picked up a candelabra from the nightstand, beat Patricia about the head, and strangled her to death.
Lonergan then calmly dressed, taking care to use makeup to hide her scratch marks on his face. He cut up his bloody military uniform and threw it into the river (where it was never found) before taking a taxi to a weekend house party to which he had been invited. After his eventual arrest, his unorthodox alibi was that he could not have killed his wife as, at the time of the murder, he was having anonymous sex with a soldier he had picked up during the night. Lonergan also said the soldier had stolen his uniform.
The resulting media frenzy was inhibited only by what the newspapers could not say about the murder, other than an attempt by one to write that Lonergan was “in great pain” when he killed his wife. He eventually confessed but later tried to recant saying the confession was beaten out of him by Canadian police. The first attempt at justice was declared a mistrial before the jury was chosen, and in the second trial Lonergan was convicted of second degree murder and sentenced to 35 years to life in prison. Released in 1967, he was deported to Canada. While still in prison he attempted to gain his wife’s fortune but the courts ruled that he was “civilly dead” and thus could not inherit.
His son, who was only one year old at the time of his mother’s murder, changed his name (he had been told he was an orphan) and in 1954 legally inherited his mother’s fortune. Lonergan sought a second trial in 1965 based upon his forced confession but was unsuccessful. He was paroled in 1967 on the condition that he remain in Canada. Wayne Lonergan died on 2 January 1986 in Toronto at the age of 67. He was reported to have spent his last years as a companion to an elderly actress.
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