ID is readying an explosive exposé into a conspiracy of networks of men preying on children in the 1970s, a decade when pedophiles and child killers could hide in plain sight and tragically get away with murder. Connecting the murders of John Wayne Gacy in Chicago with the Houston Mass Murders by Dean Corll, THE CLOWN AND THE CANDYMAN traces a path through the past to expose how this dark web was able to exploit America’s youth, and the legacy of pain it left behind.
The 1970s saw a rise in serial killers unlike anything the United States had previously seen. Two of the killers operating during this time were John Wayne Gacy in Chicago and Dean Corll in Houston. Gacy often performed as a clown for hospitals and charity events and became known as “The Killer Clown,” while Corll, whose family owned a factory, often gave away candy to kids in the neighborhood which earned him the nickname “The Candyman.” Gacy and Corll were far more sinister than their outward facing personas, and their depraved actions resulted in the deaths of more than 60 young men and women and brought heartbreak to countless families, with some of their victims still unidentified to this day. The police believed the murders were the work of sole killers, but for the first time, the sordid secret revealing the network of pedophiles spanning the country is explored. This network included prominent members of American society with tentacles in some of our most trusted institutions.
In the eight-episode podcast THE CLOWN AND THE CANDYMAN, journalist and television producer Jacqueline Bynon investigates this pedophile network that exploited children across the U.S. It is a story of secrets, coverups, and conspiracies that extended to other high-profile cases at the time. The podcast features interviews from police who investigated these predators, the reporters who exposed them, and the families of victims still reeling from their loss. Bynon peels back the layers of the past to investigate and illuminate the networks that allowed these killers to thrive. Two episodes of THE CLOWN AND THE CANDYMAN drop today, and new episodes release weekly on Tuesdays. The podcast is available now on Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Listener discretion is advised.
Premiering next month, the four-part companion special THE CLOWN AND THE CANDYMAN takes viewers down the rabbit hole to a murky world of predators in the ’70s. Centered around the evil of Gacy and Corll, the special offers a deep dive into their crimes, how they were discovered, and the race to identify their remaining nameless victims. The special also investigates their connections to John David Norman, the key operator of a nationwide pedophile ring, while never-before-heard tapes of Gacy offers viewers a glimpse into the disturbed man and his hideous actions. The documentary THE CLOWN AND THE CANDYMAN premieres on ID on Monday, January 18 and Tuesday, January 19 from 9-11pm, with the entire four-part special available to stream on discovery+ beginning January 18. Viewer discretion is advised.
THE CLOWN AND THE CANDYMAN is produced by Cineflix (Candyman) Inc. for Investigation Discovery. Jacqueline Bynon and Charles Tremayne are the executive producers and Kim Bondi serves as the producer for Cineflix. Tim Baney is the executive producer for ID.
