Documenting the Co-Ed Killer case
Ed Kemper holding his prison ID in front of the fire exit. He liked the contrast, according to photographer Joey Tranchina who took this photo in 1979.
As mentioned on his blog My Life – Tumbled, Mr. Tranchina is preparing a book of photographs he took of Ed Kemper in prison. No release date has been announced yet.
A unique piece: “The Annotated Dracula” hardcover book, signed, dated and dedicated on the inside first page by Ed Kemper in 1992 and signed, dated and dedicated on the title page (second page) by famed author and poet Leonard Wolf in 1978. This book was Kemper’s personal copy given to him by Wolf. I blurred the names in Kemper’s note to protect their privacy.
This book is part of my collection of true crime collectibles.
Two original Polaroids of Ed Kemper and famed author and poet Leonard Wolf together at visitation in 1978 at the CMF in Vacaville. They were the property of Kemper, who has annotated and dated the bottom of both Polaroids. We can appreciate his sense of humour. Leonard Wolf was a professor at San Francisco State University and a regular visitor of Ed’s in the late 1970s.
These Polaroids are part of my collection of true crime collectibles.
Wolf was a professor at San Francisco State University and a regular visitor of Kemper’s in the late 1970s. They befriended one another, and with Wolf’s backing, Kemper was planning on getting a PhD. But Wolf left to go to New York and couldn’t sponsor Kemper anymore. So the PhD never happened.
“…[Leonard] spoke about the psychological perversity of Kemper’s childhood, and about his life in virtual isolation — never as a way to attempt to excuse Kemper’s inexcusable acts rather as a way to attempt to understand them. This was bridging a chasm.”
“…After all, [Leonard] had spent hundreds of hours with Kemper. At this point Leonard knew Kemper, probably, better than anyone ever had, including the psychiatrist who told the parole board that Kemper represented “no threat to society” and could be safely released, after he had killed only two of his 10 eventual victims.”
Excerpts from photographer Joey Tranchina’s blog My life Tumbled – “A day with Ed Kemper” – Parts 1 & 2 – Fall 1979
Who is Leonard Wolf:
Leonard Wolf is a poet, author, teacher, and the father of writer Naomi Wolf. He is known for his authoritative annotated editions of classic gothic horror novels, including Dracula, Frankenstein, The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and The Phantom of the Opera, and critical works on the topic.
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