Book dossier

Never the sinner

by Logan, John

In 1924, two young millionaires - Nathan Leopold Jr. and Richard Loeb - abducted and killed fourteen-year-old Bobby Franks, horrifying a nation. Never the Sinner is John Logan's documentary play about the infamous Leopold and Loeb case, known in its time as the "crime of the century" and still one of the most notorious. Leopold and Loeb were richer than most, and smarter. They knew every hot topic of the day, from Freud to Nietzsche; they were also lovers. Considering themselves Nietzsche's "supermen," they decided to commit the "perfect murder," just for the thrill of it. But they proved to be considerably less than supermen, and within a matter of hours police questioners cracked their alibis. In the ensuing sensational trial, they were defended by the legendary Clarence Darrow, who got them life sentences rather than the expected execution.