Charles Schmid

Charles Howard Schmid Jr. (July 8, 1942 – March 30, 1975), also known as the Pied Piper of Tucson, was an American serial killer whose crimes were detailed by journalist Don Moser in an article featured in the March 4, 1966, issue of Life magazine.

Schmid's criminal career later formed the basis for "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?", a short story by Joyce Carol Oates.

On the evening of Sunday, May 31, 1964, Schmid—in the presence of his then-girlfriend and an acquaintance—blurted a statement: "I want to kill a girl tonight!"

The trio drove to the home of Alleen Rowe, a high school student living with her divorced mother, whom Schmid knew worked nights.

It is believed Schmid selected Rowe to be his victim as the teen had refused to engage in casual sex with Schmid and other local youths.

Schmid instructed his girlfriend, Mary French, to persuade Rowe to accompany her, Schmid, and John Saunders to the desert.

The teenager agreed, although shortly after arriving at the desert, Schmid bound the teen's arms behind her back as Rowe pleaded, "Why are you doing this to me?"

to which Schmid responded: "It's Mary French's idea. She hates you."

Saunders then removed Rowe's bathing costume before Schmid informed him to "take a walk".

Upon Saunders' return, he observed Rowe—having been raped in his absence—meekly attempting to redress herself.

Schmid instructed Saunders to likewise rape the teen, but Saunders was unable to sustain an erection.

Saunders reportedly then refused Schmid's instructions to bludgeon Rowe with a large rock—instead returning to Schmid's car to retrieve French, who had remained in the vehicle listening to the radio.

Schmid then bludgeoned Rowe to death in the others' absence.

Schmid then returned to the car, where he kissed French, telling the girl, "Remember, I love you."

The three then buried her.

Several months after the murder of Alleen Rowe, Schmid encountered a 16-year-old local teen named Gretchen Fritz at a local swimming pool.

Fritz was the daughter of a wealthy, prominent Tucson heart surgeon and community leader, and via local gossip, Schmid had learned the girl had recently been expelled from her private school due to her involvement in an attempted armed robbery.

Unknown to Schmid, tutors at Fritz's private school had classified her as a pathological liar whom they had recommended undergo psychiatric treatment.

That evening, Schmid drove to Fritz's home, where he presented himself as a pots and pans salesman as a ruse to introduce himself to her.

According to Schmid, Fritz scrutinized the cutlery in his hands and then said "They look like they've all been used."

She then smiled and calmly offered to buy his wares, but when Schmid explained the cutlery in his possession were "just samples", Fritz shrieked "I want them! All of them!"

When he revealed the true reason for his visit, the teen calmed down.

Shortly thereafter, the two began dating, but Fritz was markedly possessive and frequently became hysterical if she observed Schmid in the company of other females or learned of parties he hosted to which she was not invited.

According to Schmid, by 1965, Fritz frequently called him "five or six times a day", and he began making efforts to distance himself from her.

In 2008, The Library of America selected Moser's article for inclusion in its two-century retrospective of American true crime literature.

Charles Schmid was born to a single mother, he was adopted by Charles and Katharine Schmid, owners and operators of Hillcrest Nursing Home in Tucson, Arizona.

He had a difficult relationship with his adoptive father, whom his adoptive mother later divorced.

When Schmid tried to meet his birth mother, she angrily told him never to come back.

Schmid did poorly in school, but was described as good-looking, intelligent and well-mannered.

An accomplished athlete, he excelled at gymnastics and even led his high school to a state championship, but quit the team in his senior year.

Just before graduating, Schmid was suspended for stealing tools from the school's machine shop; he never returned to school.

Schmid began living in his own quarters on his parents' property and received an allowance of $300 a month.

His parents left him to run on his own with a new car and a motorcycle.

Schmid was called the "Pied Piper" because he was charismatic and had many friends in Tucson's teenaged community.

For a time, the members of his teenage would keep the secrets of his murders.

His best friends were John Saunders, Richie Bruns, and Paul Graff, the latter of whom lived with him.

He spent much of his time on Tucson's Speedway Boulevard, picking up girls and drinking with friends, although he tended to be a loner.

Schmid was a short man who wore cowboy boots stuffed with newspapers and flattened cans to make him appear taller; he explained to impressionable teenagers his resultant rolling gait was a result of a "crippling fight" with Mafia members.

He used lip balm, pancake makeup and created an artificial mole on his cheek.

Schmid also stretched his lower lip with a clothespin to make it resemble Elvis Presley's.