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Robert Andrew Berdella Jr. (January 31, 1949 – October 8, 1992) was an American serial killer who kidnapped, raped, tortured, and murdered at least six young men after forcing his victims to endure periods of up to six weeks of captivity. His crimes took place in Kansas City, Missouri, between 1984 and 1987. Describing his murders as being "some of my darkest fantasies becoming my reality",: 264  Berdella pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for the first-degree murder of one of his victims, Larry Pearson, in August 1988, and would later plead guilty to one further charge of first-degree murder, and four charges of second-degree murder in December 1988. He died of a heart attack while incarcerated at the Missouri State Penitentiary in October 1992. Berdella became known as the "Kansas City Butcher" due to his practice of extensively dissecting his victims' bodies, which he would then dispose of in garbage bags, and "The Collector" due to the movie which he stated was the basis of the fantasies behind the modus operandi of his crimes. Early life Robert Berdella was born on January 31, 1949, in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio,: 45  the first of two sons born to Robert Andrew Berdella Sr., a die setter for the Ford Motor Company, and Mary Louise (née Huffman) Berdella.: 245  Berdella's father was a devout Roman Catholic of Italian descent, while his mother was of German and British descent. The family regularly attended Mass, and both sons regularly attended religious education courses. As a child Berdella was intelligent, but a loner who rarely played outside his home and seldom had friends visit to socialize. He had a speech impediment and wore thick glasses from the age of five because he was severely nearsighted; he was also diagnosed with high blood pressure for which he took several medications. Berdella was largely unathletic, whereas his younger brother, Daniel, seven years his junior, displayed an aptitude for sports from an early age. Berdella's father valued sports and physical education and viewed his older son's lack of interest in sports as a sign of failure, often comparing him unfavorably with his younger brother. Occasionally, Berdella's father physically and emotionally abused his children, such as beating them with a leather strap.: 183  Berdella performed well academically, though teachers often found him difficult to teach, in part due both to his aloofness, and his being the recipient of bullying by other students. Because of this he seldom socialized with his peers.: 46–47  When Berdella reached puberty he discovered that he was homosexual; initially, he kept this fact a closely guarded secret and he did not become open about his sexuality for several years. Nonetheless, in his early teens he briefly had a girlfriend.: 47  Adolescence By his mid-teens, Berdella had begun to display a degree of aggression, becoming rude and condescending to others, particularly women. He learned about cooking and art and developed showmanship. On Christmas Day 1965, the Berdella family drove to Canton, Ohio to visit relatives. That evening, Berdella's father had a heart attack at the age of 39. Two days later, Berdella returned to Cuyahoga Falls by himself. When he arrived home his family told him his father had died.: 353  Berdella sought solace in his Catholicism, reading extensively about many faiths. He eventually became cynical about all religion. In 1965, Berdella saw the film adaptation of the John Fowles novel The Collector. The plot of the film revolves around a disturbed man who stalks and then abducts a young woman whom he finds attractive, holding her captive in his windowless stone basement, and viewing her as little more than an attractive specimen. After several weeks, the woman dies of a contracted illness despite her captor's efforts to keep her alive. Berdella later stated that this movie had formed a lasting impression on him. Shortly after the death of Berdella's father, his mother remarried, an action that was met with resentment by Berdella, who viewed it as a form of betrayal against his father. As a result, he became increasingly withdrawn, and further immersed himself in the solitary activities he had participated in since childhood such as painting, collecting coins and stamps, and writing to foreign pen pals. Berdella would later claim that his hobby of writing to pen pals in countries such as Vietnam and Burma and their sending him stamps, and photographs of mythical and historical icons, ancient cultures, and architecture, would lead to his avid interest in primitive art, photographs, and antiques. From approximately 1965, he began collecting such artifacts; this practice would inspire him to open his own antiques business in 1982. Relocation to Kansas City College years In the summer of 1967, Berdella graduated from Cuyahoga Falls High School. Throughout his studies in high school, he had earned such excellent grades and showed such potential that in 1966, one teacher had placed him in an independent study program.: 100  Shortly after graduation, Berdella relocated to Kansas City, enrolling in the Kansas City Art Institute (KCAI), with aspirations of becoming a college professor.: 46  In his first year at the KCAI, Berdella was considered an attentive and talented student, although by his second year, he became vocally anti-authoritarian, becoming acquainted with a clique of students who supplied him with drugs, which he then sold to other students at a profit. In addition, he began regularly abusing alcohol. He also engaged in acts of animal torture on at least two occasions; during one of these instances, he decapitated a duck in the presence of his peers, and in the second, he experimented with sedatives and tranquilizers on a dog.: 104  At the age of 19, Berdella was arrested for attempting to sell methamphetamine to an undercover officer; he was released after posting a $3,000 bond (equivalent to about $25,100 as of 2024). He would later plead guilty to the offense and was handed a five-year suspended sentence. One month after this first arrest, Berdella and two other students were arrested for possession of marijuana and LSD in Johnson County. On this occasion, Berdella could not post bond, and he spent five days in jail; the charges against him and one of the other students would be dropped due to a lack of evidence.: 103  4315 Charlotte Street In 1969, Berdella voluntarily withdrew from KCAI after receiving harsh criticism from college administrators for killing and cooking a duck for the sake of art. He chose to remain in Kansas City and in September of that year, he moved into an address within the Hyde Park district: 4315 Charlotte Street.: 247  By this stage, Berdella had been openly gay for several years. He began spending much of his free time with male prostitutes, drug addicts, petty criminals, and runaways. Berdella would typically befriend these individuals, then "try t.... Discover the Christopher Bryson popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Christopher Bryson books.