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

by John Heidenry

In 1953, six-year-old Bobby Greenlease, the son of a wealthy Kansas City automobile dealer and his wife, was kidnapped from his Roman Catholic elementary school by a woman named Bonnie Heady, a well-scrubbed prostitute who was posing as one of his distant aunts. Her accomplice, Carl Austin Hall, a former playboy who had run through his inheritance and was just out of the Missouri State Penitentiary, was waiting in the getaway car with a gun, a length of rope and a plastic tarp. The two grifters thought they had a plan that would put them on the road to Easy Street; but, actually, they were on a fast-track to the gas chamber. Shortly after they snatched the little boy, the two demanded a ransom of $600,000.00 from the Greenlease family and it was paid; but, Bobby was already dead, shot in the head by Hall and buried in a flower garden behind the couple’s house, exactly where his body was found by police shortly thereafter. The Greenlease ransom was the highest ransom ever paid in the US to that date and the case held the US transfixed in the same way the kidnapping of the Lindbergh baby had done decades earlier. In a bone-chilling account of kidnapping, murder and the dogged pursuit of a child’s killers, John Heidenry crafts a haunting narrative that involves mob boss Joe Costello, a cast of unsavory grifters, hardboiled detectives and a room at the legendary, but now razed, Coral Court Motel on Route 66. Heady and Hall were apprehended quickly, convicted and executed in a rare double execution in the State of Missouri’s gas chamber on a cold December night not long before Christmas. By that time, little Bobby Greenlease was stone cold in his grave and a fickle America had turned back to its Post-War boom. However, one question has never been as Hall was being pursued around Kansas City and St. Louis, half of the ransom was lost and never recovered. Did it end up with the mob via Joe Costello? To this day, no one knows and dead mob bosses tell no tales. In a book that brings to mind films like “Chinatown” and “Double Indemnity”, John Heidenry has written a compelling work that blends true crime and American history to take a close look at one of the United States’ most notorious murders.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, History, Crime, Mystery

240 pages, Hardcover

First published December 1, 2009

About the author

Founding editor of St. Louis Magazine and the St. Louis Literary Supplement. Former executive editor of The Week.

Reviews

[Anne Hawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this book was the most complete of all the books I've read. At the time Bobby Greenlease was murdered, I was a 9 year old kid in a Catholic school in St. Louis just like Bobby, and I thought I might get kidnapped also:>) My father worked for the FBI and he worked long hours on this case.

Most books don't report the second half of this story, the disappearance of a portion of the ransom money and the suspicions surrounding Lou Shoulders who was the Sheriff at the time.

Other reviewers have commented that the book was dry and boring and I think that is partially true. The fact is that these people were really stupid and lived extremely sordid lives. There was nothing in any of them to identify with. Other books have given more information about Bobby and dealt with the crime from that point of view, but I found that this book gave me information that allowed me to put all the pieces of the things I understood and felt at the time into an adult perspective.

Actually, the case went on long after Hall and Heady were captured and that was the part I remembered best. The FBI was totally involved with wire taps of Lou Shoulders that were actually conducted in our basement on my dad's ham radio equipment. There were agents in our basement round the clock. I also remember bringing in all of our paper money and checking it with a list of serial numbers my dad had.

I have an amusing and personal recollection. At the time that Bonnie Heady was executed, we were just going out for recess at school when the lights dimmed. We all believed that they dimmed because the power was thrown to electrocute Bonnie Heady. I can remember how I felt about it at the time. It was exhilarating and yet mysterious at the same time. It was a strange experience to know the actual moment a person died and I thought a lot about it. Of course, the execution didn't make our lights dim, but then she was executed at that time, so who knows?

[Kathleen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm not sure how the author managed to make this tale of kidnapping and murder boring. He included everything in excruciating detail. A few of these details, as it turns out, would be crucial to the story later. But just a few. If you can slog your way through the first half, the rest is less dull. Personally, I read this as fast as I could hoping that it would get better, then just to finish the thing when it didn't.

[Brooke · Rating 2 out of 5]

Quick read, compelling simply due to the nature of the crime. But where was the insight? The telling of this story was absolutely bloodless. I was left with little more than facts and no insight. The author of this book states boldly (in the afterword) that as a child his father took him on a search for the ransom, and I felt that the ransom still held sway in his mind throughout the book. He cared far more about the money trail than he did the characters.

I wanted background. The author sums up the history of Bonnie Heady, one of the perpetrators, in one sentence. She had a bad marriage, a husband who "made her have 11 abortions." She stated to a neighbor that she "began to hate children." She also was a woman who, when put to death, owned a farm that provided a good income, yet she was a prostitute. None of this was explored - all of it summed up in what amounted to a page spun throughout the book.

In contrast, what was bought with the ransom money by Carl Hall and the gangsters (shoes, hats, drinks, etc.) was put down in detail and filled chapters.

This book could have been so much more.

[Shawna · Rating 4 out of 5]

The “good old days” were never really all that good. This case fell the same year as the Rosenbergs’ execution and five years before the infamous “In Cold Blood” murders. I was interested in this case – which I wager is largely forgotten today, because it happened partially in St. Louis, where my family is from, and my great grandmother had actually cut out articles from the paper about the case and saved them. This book was clearly painstaking researched – but that level of minute detail might not be for everyone. (Judging by other reviews some readers found it dull and tedious reading.) I found myself stunned by the seemingly random, wild machinations that occurred after the ransom was delivered. It’s amazing what two drunks with no conscience can manage to accomplish with a little luck, and when they run into a number of people who are as cagey and opportunistic as they. Terribly interesting story – the mystery in the end was: were Heady and Hall repenting for their crimes when they sobbed in their cells at night, or were completely cold-blooded and remorseless, only sorry they didn’t have more of a chance to spend the ransom money before they were caught?

[Teri · Rating 3 out of 5]

An exciting read for someone living in St. Louis South City. Most of the places described (Hampton Village, the rented apartment on Arsenal across from Tower Grove Park, Gurney Court) are still here today.

[Kara Thomas · Rating 1 out of 5]

I usually reserve 1 star reviews for books that I can't finish. And while I did complete this book, it was only for a reading challenge. The writing was redundant and disjointed. The best thing about this book was the title. I wouldn't waste your time.

[Stephen Rynkiewicz]

Carl Hall had a great fall. The scion of a prominent family in my mother's hometown of Trading Post, Kansas (his grandfather Austin survived the Marais des Cygnes border massacre) had a less-than-stellar career in the Marines, including a stretch in the Quantico brig, then ran off with Irene Holmes, who watched him squander his fortune. Things did not improve when Irene left. After robbing a series of cab drivers at gunpoint, Missouri sent him to the state pen, where he hatched a scheme to kidnap Bobby Greenlease, nephew of a former military school classmate. The subtitle is a spoiler: Hall hooks up with a hooker and kills their captive by page 7. This account of the notorious 1953 case follows their boozy improvisations to collect a $600,000 ransom. Many clues suggest that no one fares well.

[Suzann · Rating 5 out of 5]

This fantastic work now ranks as one of my all-time favorite books, and it will have a place of honor in my personal collection. It isn't easy to recount the notorious murder of a small child without becoming sensationalist in order to convey the gravity of the crime. The author has managed to pen a tastefully presented narrative that explores the character of a full spectrum of players.

This book is on the level of "In Cold Blood," and that's a very high standard, indeed.

[Stacy Kielczynski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb

Excellent research into a sad, sordid story. A couple of greedy ghouls who met a fitting end. An excellent object lesson how the love of money caused nothing but misery for everyone involved.

[Greg Jolley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well researched and a great ugly story!

[Maureen · Rating 2 out of 5]

My great uncle was mentioned in this book twice.
I don't recommend this book unless you're super into true crime from missouri in the 1950s.

[Missy · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐️

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating true story, extra captivating by ties to local places in STL and KC.

[Tiffany Barber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing!

This book was such a good read. I read it in 5 hours. The most accurate true story that I have read in a long time.

[JR · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read this because I'm semi-obcessed with one of the minor players of this crime. Didn't learn anything new.

[Catherine Woodman]

I readily admit that non-fiction is not a genre that I read widely or deeply, so take my opinion with a grain of sale, but I thought this was less than wonderful--it is the retelling of a kidnapping by two really incompetent people, who miraculously pull off nabbing the kid and getting a large ransom--which is amazing considering that they are constantly drnk and occasionally high. They do not plan to hold the child either, which is wise because they would never have been able to keep him quiet--he was dead the minute they grabbed him. It is so sad. They are so unlikable that of course you are relieved when they get picked up. There is no really in depth analysis of what they went through, why this happened, and the whole process of getting the death penalty. The corruption of the cops isn't ferreted out well wither. Not recommended.

[Jan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author was a high school junior in 1953, living in St Joseph Missouri, when 6-yr-old Bobby Greenlease was kidnapped from his private school in the same city, by a woman posing as his aunt. This gripping book recounts the deed, the subsequent killing of little Bobby (briefly-it does not dwell on this sad tale), and the eventual capture of two privileged people, Bonnie Heady and Carl Hall, gone bad. The $600,000 in ranson money they received is the second largest cash haul in US history; about half of it has never been recovered. It is widely believe it went to corrupt policemen and mobsters. This book takes a close look at one of the most notorious murders of the twentieth century.

[flannery · Rating 3 out of 5]

Other reviewers are right; this is a pretty dry, unimaginative retelling of the Greenlease kidnapping. I kept waiting for the gun that appears in the first act to go off in the third act but no, there really are just a lot of inconsequential facts included for the sake of inclusion. Still I love true crime and this is a really well researched book. It's set between Hyde Park, Mission Hills and St. Louis, places where I live, work, and have lived (respectively) so it's hard for me not to take interest. A good but not great book.

[Alecia · Rating 3 out of 5]

It kept me going as these two drunken, amoral 1950's psychopathic criminals were too heinous (and stupid) to believe. The writing is straightforward and almost journalistic. Nothing lyrical or poetic about this writing. But somehow, the laying out of the plan of this kidnapping and murder is horrendous and compelling in the simplicity of the telling.

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good account of a pivotal event in Kansas City's history. Unfortunately the St. Louisan who authored it focused too much on his city's connection to the case and not enough on its impact in Kansas City. The incorrect use of place names and other local lingo was also somewhat annoying.

Like most things in Missouri, this book could have less STL and more KC.

[Mary Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a can’t put it down book. A dark but fascinating glimpse into the seedy underbelly of corruption in 1950’s Saint Louis and Kansas City. Hidden tunnels are rumored to lead from the old Coral Courts motel to the Seminary. The missing ransom money was rumored to be hidden somewhere in this area or on the motel property but was never found!

[Samantha · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick and interesting read about a crime that was front-page news in its time but seems to have been largely forgotten (or at least eclipsed by others). Fact: time from kidnapping to execution = 91 days.

[Lisa Stethem · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a bad read. The book didn't answer the questions I wanted answered like what was the reason they killed the boy? I didn't get much about their psyche but I guess those things we aren't supposed to know in murders.

[Lisa Mcbroom · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing style was as if okay folks this is going to age me... if Joe Friday was narrating Dragnet. @ people kidnap a trusting child and kill him for ransom for his rich parents. Really the ID series A crime to Rememember covered it much better!

[Hilary · Rating 2 out of 5]

I actually only got 1/4 of the way into this one before I gave up. The real murder case was depressing enough, and the author's writing style didn't help.

[Carol]

Very compelling true story, which I had not been aware of around the time and place I was born. Simply written, but gets the job done describing the pathetic moral structure of the kidnappers.

[Jessica Fure · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sadly, this goes astray in the last half. It's disconcerting when there's so much detail in the first part and the second half is noticeably rushed. I feel like I've just read one of my old papers...

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick read and an interesting account of the Bobby Greenlease murder. Good KC history included

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting if poorly-written and edited. I remember this case from when I was little as being sensational and scary and so I wanted to know more about it.

[Michael Hermann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent read if you are into Kansas City history