Scream Queens: Nannie Doss

Nannie Doss (1905-1964) was an American serial killer who may have been responsible for the deaths of at least 12 people, four of which were her spouses. Journalists gave Nannie the nicknames “The Giggling Granny”  and “the Lonely Hearts Killer.”

For Further Reading:

• Nannie Doss

• The Story Of Nannie Doss, The ‘Giggling Granny’ Who Spent Decades Murdering Relatives And Husbands

• Remember the Ladies: Lonely hearts serial killer

• The Giggling Granny

• UNSEEN 1957 Interview - NANNIE DOSS - The Giggling Granny Serial Killer 

October is the perfect time to delve into all things spooky. So this month, we're talking about the women who give us goosebumps. Some are real-life creators of spine-chilling works of fiction. Others are the subjects of frightening folklore. Either way, these Scream Queens are sure to give you a scare.

History classes can get a bad rap, and sometimes for good reason. When we were students, we couldn’t help wondering... where were all the ladies at? Why were so many incredible stories missing from the typical curriculum? Enter, Womanica. On this Wonder Media Network podcast we explore the lives of inspiring women in history you may not know about, but definitely should.

Every weekday, listeners explore the trials, tragedies, and triumphs of groundbreaking women throughout history who have dramatically shaped the world around us. In each 5 minute episode, we’ll dive into the story behind one woman listeners may or may not know–but definitely should. These diverse women from across space and time are grouped into easily accessible and engaging monthly themes like Educators, Villains, Indigenous Storytellers, Activists, and many more. Womanica is hosted by WMN co-founder and award-winning journalist Jenny Kaplan. The bite-sized episodes pack painstakingly researched content into fun, entertaining, and addictive daily adventures.

Womanica was created by Liz Kaplan and Jenny Kaplan, executive produced by Jenny Kaplan, and produced by Grace Lynch, Maddy Foley, Brittany Martinez, Edie Allard, Lindsey Kratochwill, Adesuwa Agbonile, Carmen Borca-Carrillo, Taylor Williamson, Sara Schleede, Paloma Moreno Jimenez, Luci Jones, Abbey Delk, Hannah Bottum, Lauren Willams, and Adrien Behn. Special thanks to Shira Atkins.

Original theme music composed by Brittany Martinez.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Before we get started with today's episode, a warning that
this episode contains mentions of sexual assault, abuse, and murder.
Hello from Wonder Media Network. I'm Jenny Kaplan and this
is Wamanica. October is a perfect time to delve into
all things spooky. So this month we're talking about women
who give us goosebumps. Some are real life creators of

(00:22):
spine chilling works of fiction. Others are the subjects of
frightening folklore. Either way, these screen queens are sure to
give you a scare At first glance. The woman we're
talking about today seemed like a sweet, giggly housewife, but
appearances can be deceiving. After pleading guilty to a string
of murders, she became a media sensation. Let's talk about

(00:45):
the giggling Granny Nanny Doss. Nanny Doss was born in
Blue Mountain, Alabama, in nineteen oh five to a poor
farming family. The kids worked on the farm rather than
going to school, and Nanny's father was strict. He forbade
his daughters from wearing makeup and dresses and attending social events.

(01:06):
When Nanny was seven years old, she had an incident
that she would later say changed her life forever. She
was riding a train and when it suddenly stopped, she
hit her head on a metal bar in front of her.
The injury left her with intense headaches. Nanny spent her
teen years reading romance magazines and the Lonely Hearts column
in the newspaper. The column featured personal ads and marriage announcements.

(01:30):
She dreamed of the day she would be whisked away
from the farm with her one true love, and when
she was sixteen years old, she might have thought that
day had finally come. After a brief courtship, Nanny married
Charlie Bragg's, but the marriage was far from her dreams.
For starters, Charlie's mother moved in with the couple. Then,
in the span of about five years, Nanny had four children.

(01:54):
Nanny and her husband both started drinking and some say
started having affairs. This led to fights in a lot
of tension. In nineteen twenty seven, two of Nanny's children
died suddenly after eating breakfast. Their deaths were suspected to
be from food poisoning. Charlie got an anonymous warning not
to eat any food prepared by Nanny. He heeded that

(02:18):
warning and took his eldest daughter, Melvina, and left Nanny,
their newborn child, and his mother behind. A year later,
he divorced Nanny and returned to their daughter, Melvina. Nanny
took her children and moved back in with her parents.
When she wasn't working, she turned to her trusty Lonely
Hearts newspaper column to find a new husband. Nanny and

(02:39):
her new admirer, Frank Harrelson, sent each other love poems
and photos before marrying in nineteen twenty nine, but that
marriage also soured quickly. Frank was known to be an
alcoholic and was prone to violent outbursts. Nanny endured Frank's
temper for years. In nineteen forty five, Nanny's daughter, Malvina,

(03:00):
gave birth to a daughter of her own. It was
a difficult labor, and afterwards she was in a haze.
She said she thought she saw Nanny stick the baby
with a pin. No one confronted Nanny about it, and
the baby died soon after birth. That same year, Nanny's
two year old grandson died suddenly, and she collected the

(03:20):
five hundred dollars life insurance policy she'd taken out on
the child. Months later, Frank drunkenly stumbled home after a
night at the bar and forced Nanny to have sex
with him. The next day, Nanny poured rat poison into
his moonshine. A week later, Frank was dead, and Nanny
collected his life insurance money. Nanny found her next husband

(03:43):
in North Carolina thanks to the Lonely Hearts column. His
name was Arley Lanning. Like Frank, he was an alcoholic,
and Nanny quickly poisoned him. After his death, Nanny's house
burned down and her mother in law died in her sleep,
and her sister also died suddenly. Nanny left the state
with more insurance money in her pocket. In nineteen fifty two,

(04:05):
in Kansas, Nanny married her fourth husband, Richard Morton. It
didn't take long for him to also die suddenly and mysteriously.
A year after that, Nanny married Samuel DAWs in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Samuel was strict. He forbade Nanny from watching television and
disapproved of Nanny's romance magazines. The marriage was rocky, but

(04:27):
still Samuel agreed to take out two life insurance policies
and named Nanny as the beneficiary. Not long after, Samuel
fell suddenly ill after eating some prunes. After about a
month in the hospital, Samuel returned home to Nanny, and
that's where Samuel died. Nanny likely would have collected another
life insurance payout if it wasn't for one doctor. Samuel's

(04:50):
physician suspected something was off. A seemingly healthy man doesn't
fall ill so suddenly. He immediately ordered an autopsy, and
Nanny signed the off theorization herself. The autopsy found large
amounts of arsenic and Samuel Dass's system. The police were
notified and they arrested Nanny. Nanny was not the prototypical

(05:12):
serial killer. She looked like a nice older woman, and
the media had a field day. They gave Nanny nicknames
like the merry widow, loving Nanny, the giggling Granny. One
newspaper even printed a reader's take on o Tannenbaum inspired
by Nanny's story. One line read, Oh, Granny Doss, the
mark you made puts Lizzie Borden in the shade. The

(05:35):
Tulsa Tribune ran Nanny's police interview and confession on the
front page. In the end, she confirmed that she had
poisoned four of her husbands. However, she maintained she never
harmed her blood relatives. Nanny appeared flippant in interviews and
during the trial. She laughed, joked, and smiled, but she
also claimed her husband's had abused and mistreated her, and

(05:57):
then there were all the headaches she complained of due
to her childhood head injury. At the trial, Nanny pleaded
guilty to the murder of Samuel DAWs. She was given
a life sentence. Nanny spent ten years in prison before
she died of leukemia on June second, nineteen sixty five,
at the age of fifty nine. After Nanny's dramatic case

(06:17):
played out in Tulsa, the state adopted new legislation. It
required medical examinations of people who die in the state
without a doctor present. It was popularly known as the
Nanny Doss Law. All month, We're talking about screen queens.
For more information, find us on Facebook and Instagram at
Wamanica Podcast special thanks to Liz Kaplan, my favorite sister

(06:39):
and co creator. Talk to you tomorrow.