Zero at the Bone

The Playboy, the Prostitute, and the Murder of Bobby Greenlease

John Heidenry

St. Martin's Griffin

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In this haunting true crime tale, John Heidenry brings to life the 1953 kidnapping and murder of Bobby Greenlease by two grifters with bone-chilling precision. Bobby’s killers, Carl Austin Hall and Bonnie Heady, met in the seedy underbelly of the Missouri crime world. Hall lost a $200,000 inheritance and ended up in the State pen for holding up taxicabs.  Heady—whom he met on his release—was the former wife of wealthy livestock breeder now turned prostitute. Bobby, the son of a wealthy automobile dealer, was but six-years-old when he turned up dead in a geranium patch right after a $600,000 ransom was paid. With the ransom in hand, Hall panicked and set off a chain of events that ended when mobster Joe Costello arranged to steal half the ransom. It was never recovered. After their arrest and quick conviction, Hall and Heady died manacled side by side in a rare double execution in the Missouri gas chamber.

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Reviews

Praise for Zero at the Bone

"A tough, gripping chiller of a book, written straightforwardly yet cloaked with the trappings of pulp fiction. This hard-boiled crime story bears a resemblance to Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood. Clean, cool, even clinical in its efforts to fathom a tale of unconscionable destruction."--Janet Maslin’s “Top Ten Books of the Year”, The New York Times

"This true crime caper by Heidenry of a 1953 Kansas child kidnapping gone bad carries a solid punch....Heidenry neatly tells this harrowing tale and its impact on all involved."--Publishers Weekly

"Heidenry delivers a lean, mean account of an infamous 1953 kidnapping and murder....Harsh, chilling, lurid and gripping."--Kirkus Reviews

In the Press

Books of The Times - John Heidenry?s ?Zero at the Bone? Examines 1953 Kidnapping - Review - NYTimes.com
This tough, gripping chiller of a true-crime story, about the 1953 kidnapping and murder of a Missouri boy, isn’t a book about good people gone bad; it’s about evil.
- The New York Times

Book Review: ‘Zero at the Bone’ - WSJ.com
John Heidenry revisits the infamous 1953 kidnapping of Bobby Greenlease, the young son of a wealthy Kansas City auto dealer. George H. Gurley reviews.
- The Wall Street Journal

The Daily Beast Recommends - The Daily Beast
This week: a chilling true-life murder mystery, a moving tale of a musician after the Holocaust, and a love letter to New York City.
- The Daily Beast

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About the Author

John Heidenry

JOHN HEIDENRY is a contributing editor to The Week, founding editor of St. Louis Magazine, and author of several books, including The Gashouse Gang and What Wild Ecstasy. He lives in Hoboken, New Jersey.

John Heidenry

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Available Formats and Book Details

Zero at the Bone
The Playboy, the Prostitute, and the Murder of Bobby Greenlease
John Heidenry

Trade Paperback

Trade Paperback
St. Martin's Press
St. Martin's Griffin
June 2010
Trade Paperback
ISBN: 9780312641962
ISBN10: 0312641966
5 1/2 x 8 1/4 inches, 256 pages, Plus one 8-page b&w photo section
$14.99

Hardcover

Learn more about this edition
Hardcover
St. Martin's Press
July 2009
Hardcover
ISBN: 9780312376796
ISBN10: 0312376790
6 1/8 x 9 1/4 inches, 240 pages
$25.99

e-Book Agency

Learn more about this edition
e-Book Agency
St. Martin's Press
July 2009
e-Book Agency
ISBN: 9781429969383
ISBN10: 1429969385
6 1/8 x 9 1/4 inches, 240 pages
$9.99
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