Malc'm the Ripper
Recently, the BBC History Magazine held a poll, which named Jack the Ripper as the worst Briton in history, despite the fact that so little is generally known about him. For one thing, the name “Jack the Ripper” came from letters sent to the police around the time of the murders, the vast majority of which were hoaxes sent in by London citizens with too much free time on their hands. The kind of people who find it amusing to send letters to the police, claiming to be notorious serial killers. Due in large part to their efforts, as well as several copycat killers, finding factual information on Jack is next to impossible. But, here's the best I've been able to piece together in my research.
First off, his real name wasn't Jack. In actuality, it was Malcolm. His last name is still unknown to me. The entire point of his murderous spree was to “put his name down in history.” That was the sole consideration behind his choice of victims. Mary Nichols, Anne Chapman, Liz Stride, Catherine Eddows, and Mary Jane Kelly. Taking their first names in order, their initials spell “MALCM.” Malcolm had actually planned an Olivia followed by another Liz before killing his final target of Ms Kelly. To explain why he specifically wanted to kill Ms Kelly, we need to look at his life.
Malcolm was a student of history, and he noted time and time again how people who seemingly didn't deserve it were remembered for generations. He also noticed how there are only a few dozen people remembered by history each generation. Looking at his life, Malcolm realized that he wouldn't be one of those few dozen. He was also angry and envious over the fame that belonged to someone he knew, ironically named “Jack,” most likely a brother or other relative who was a marginally well known athlete at the time. Mary Jane Kelly was a prostitute Jack frequented. This is known because of the one letter actually sent by Malcolm to the police. It was sent to the London police after Mary Nichols' death had already been announced.
“I have seen who people dote on, gentlemen, and I don't like it. People are revered as gods simply for their running speed and skill with a child's toy. I have read history as well, and found that public opinion is similarly skewed in favor of those in who were simply in the right place at the right time. Well, gentlemen, I intend to change that. I am going to write my name in the pages of the obituaries. You already know of my first victim, but she will not be my last. I may be forgotten in a number of years, but I swear I will be remembered long past that thick-skulled moron Jack, but his whore Mary Kelly will be my M.”
I corrected several spelling and grammatical mistakes. Malcolm may have been a historical student, but his capture of English was sub-par at best. It's unknown why Malcolm killed Ms Kelly before his O or L, but the best guess is that he was spooked. He had killed both Liz Stride and Catherine Eddows on the same day, September 30th, 1888, and wasn't sure he was going to be able to find an O or another L before he got taken by the police. So, Malcolm did the next best thing. He took the fact that very few people actually pronounced the second syllable of his name, and effectively replaced the O and L with an apostrophe, and only phonetically spelling his name in the obituaries.
Malcolm would likely have started on his last name, whatever that may have been, but he was nabbed by Corporal Benjamin Pierce when trying to kill his next victim, Annie Farmer. However, he was released when authorities decided that Farmer's wounds were self inflicted, despite Pierce's claims that he'd seen Malcolm attack her in person. After that, no mention of either one can be found anywhere.
This wasn't the only time a notorious serial killer was popularly known by a false name he didn't choose. But that's not this story.
First off, his real name wasn't Jack. In actuality, it was Malcolm. His last name is still unknown to me. The entire point of his murderous spree was to “put his name down in history.” That was the sole consideration behind his choice of victims. Mary Nichols, Anne Chapman, Liz Stride, Catherine Eddows, and Mary Jane Kelly. Taking their first names in order, their initials spell “MALCM.” Malcolm had actually planned an Olivia followed by another Liz before killing his final target of Ms Kelly. To explain why he specifically wanted to kill Ms Kelly, we need to look at his life.
Malcolm was a student of history, and he noted time and time again how people who seemingly didn't deserve it were remembered for generations. He also noticed how there are only a few dozen people remembered by history each generation. Looking at his life, Malcolm realized that he wouldn't be one of those few dozen. He was also angry and envious over the fame that belonged to someone he knew, ironically named “Jack,” most likely a brother or other relative who was a marginally well known athlete at the time. Mary Jane Kelly was a prostitute Jack frequented. This is known because of the one letter actually sent by Malcolm to the police. It was sent to the London police after Mary Nichols' death had already been announced.
“I have seen who people dote on, gentlemen, and I don't like it. People are revered as gods simply for their running speed and skill with a child's toy. I have read history as well, and found that public opinion is similarly skewed in favor of those in who were simply in the right place at the right time. Well, gentlemen, I intend to change that. I am going to write my name in the pages of the obituaries. You already know of my first victim, but she will not be my last. I may be forgotten in a number of years, but I swear I will be remembered long past that thick-skulled moron Jack, but his whore Mary Kelly will be my M.”
I corrected several spelling and grammatical mistakes. Malcolm may have been a historical student, but his capture of English was sub-par at best. It's unknown why Malcolm killed Ms Kelly before his O or L, but the best guess is that he was spooked. He had killed both Liz Stride and Catherine Eddows on the same day, September 30th, 1888, and wasn't sure he was going to be able to find an O or another L before he got taken by the police. So, Malcolm did the next best thing. He took the fact that very few people actually pronounced the second syllable of his name, and effectively replaced the O and L with an apostrophe, and only phonetically spelling his name in the obituaries.
Malcolm would likely have started on his last name, whatever that may have been, but he was nabbed by Corporal Benjamin Pierce when trying to kill his next victim, Annie Farmer. However, he was released when authorities decided that Farmer's wounds were self inflicted, despite Pierce's claims that he'd seen Malcolm attack her in person. After that, no mention of either one can be found anywhere.
This wasn't the only time a notorious serial killer was popularly known by a false name he didn't choose. But that's not this story.