Four decades passed after the world was struck by a cinematically styled homicide that was no less than a horror-psycho thriller. With a number of series and movies featuring the real-life story of Candy Montgomery, the ax killer who befriended and killed Betty Gore, the sane public is still on the verge of knowing what exactly happened that night on June 13, which changed many lives.
After a while, the name Candy Montgomery is again buzzing among everyone with the release of Hulu’s Candy and HBO Max’s Love and Death, both of which will feature the fire flowers she sparkled with her lover, Allan Gore, and the tragic end of Betty Gore.
Who Is Candy Montgomery?
The controversial main character, Candy Montgomery, is an American homemaker whose real name is Candace Wheeler. Montgomery was married to Pat Montgomery, an electrical engineer, with whom she had two kids, a daughter, and a son. The couple met while Candy was serving as a secretary and soon got married in the early 1970s.
The religious Christian wife was 30 when she committed the barbarous felony with an ax, half as long as she was.
What Is The Story Of Candy Montgomery?
While attending the First United Methodist Church of Lucas, Candy heightened a strong friendship with Betty Gore, the elementary school teacher and the victim of the incident.
The friends, Candy and Gore, maintained a healthy benevolence until Candy Montgomery tackled a flirty relationship with Gore’s husband, Allan. Gore and Allan had two children together and lived quite a healthier life with each other.
Things turned gray when Allan had to move out of the town. Allan, despite trying to contact his wife and kids, sought the help of their neighbor to have a check-up on his family. By the time the tort was done and dusted,
The butchered corp was found in the crime spot, next to which Gore’s daughter, Bethany, was crying aloud. The undigested incident took place on June 13, 1980, in Texas. Montgomery was taken under custody by law enforcement 14 days after the crime scene.
Is Candy Montgomery A True Story?
Though unbelievable, the Candi Montgomery story is a true story, with the original characters of Betty Gore, Allan Gore, Pat Montgomery, Bethany Gore, and Candy Montgomery herself, just like in the Hulu series, Candy.
The series is only a pictorial representation of the real incident that happened in Texas in 1980. The story of Candy Montgomery, who actually lived, is what pointed several fingers in her direction.
How Did Candy Montgomery Meet Betty Gore?
Moving to Whylie, Texas in 1977, the Chastain couple, Candy and Pat Montgomery cherished going to the First United Methodist Church of Lucas every day, where Candy met Betty, the fifth-grade teacher, for the first time.
The local residents became friends soon after meeting at the church at times. They were the vocalists in the church choir. The friendship grew even stronger among both mothers, as their daughters turned out to be best friends like themselves.
When Did Candy Kill Betty Gore?
What a coincidence that Candy killed Betty on June 13, a couple of months after the premiere of the film series, Friday the 13th. The film itself focused on a group of teenagers who were stabbed and murdered.
It is reported that Alisa Gore, elder daughter of Betty and Allan, went to Montgomery’s house for a night’s stay on the night of the 13th, and Candy offered the young girl a drive to her home to get her swimsuit for the next day’s swing lesson. The alleged crime took place when the mothers began to argue about the romantic relationship between Candy and Allan.
Very strangely, the crime scene was spotted with an open advertisement that talked about the psychological horror movie, The Shining, which told the story of an isolated family. Similar to the movie plot in which the wife was chased with an ax, it is quite surprising that Betty was also chased and killed with a 3-foot-tall ax by her friend, Candy.
How Many Times Did Candy Montgomery Stab Betty Gore?
Candy Montgomery stabbed Betty Gore’s head alone 28 times. That at first misled the investigation into thinking Betty had a headshot, considering the condition her head was in, heavily injured and scattered. Betty’s body took a total of 41 strikes from the 3-foot-tall ax that covered her face, torso, arms, legs, and hands. Post-mortem reports revealed that Betty was still alive after 40 beats and gave up on the last stab.
The horrible crime shrouded the body of the corpse with blood that at a glance would match any horror movie adaptation.
Did Cardy Montgomery Continue To Strike Betty Gore With An Axe After She Died?
During the Hulu series’ information collection, the team went in-depth with their research and revealed that on the 40th stab, Betty had already breathed her last, and on the 41st stab, which was the last one, she was dead and the strike hit her corpse.
The condition of the dead Betty Gore made it crystal clear to the investigators that the murder at no cost would possibly be a result of a defense mechanism, whereas the mutilated body indicated that the homicide was out of rage and pre-planned.
That paved the way for the investigation team to doubt Betty’s husband, Allan Gore, who was away from the town for his business needs exactly on the same night of the crime, which doubled the suspicion of Allen. However, the fingerprints and footprints indicate that the murderer is none other than Candy.
The detectives even found a bloody fingerprint on the door and discovered patches of blood and hair found under the water tap, indicating that the murderer had tried to wash off the stains.
Did Candy Montgomery Really Have An Affair With Betty Gore’s Husband?
Definitely yes. With the reliable information attained for the Hulu series, it was found that the murder happened one and a half years after the extra-marital affair of Candy Montgomery with Betty Gore’s husband, Allen Gore.
The reality is depicted with truly collected shreds of evidence in the miniseries that portrayed Candy proposing to Allen after a church volleyball game, suggesting that they would engage in an affair as she was attracted to him intensely. Allan accepted the choir singer’s offer on one condition that the relationship would remain within the sexual desires of both.
The affair continued for nearly a year, yet the homicide took place more than 6 months after the breakup. The split was initiated by Allan, after attending a Marriage Encounter Programme at church with his wife, Betty, which ultimately brought a significant amount of regret in his heart for cheating on his dear partner. To strengthen the bond, Allan suggests parting ways with Candy, which, as expected, did not put any pressure on Candy, as for her, the relationship was nothing more than sex.
Who Was Candy Montgomery’s Lawyer?
Candy Montgomery hired Robert Udashen, a defense lawyer for herself, who argued before the court that the entire incident was a part of his client’s self-defense and also asserted that Betty took the ax to attack Candy, and as a result, Candy had to kill Betty.
Candy Montgomery’s trial began in October, almost 3 months after her arrest. During the 8 days-long trials, Candy continuously argued that she did not intend to kill her friend. What she did was purely an act of self-defense.
Was Candy Montgomery Found Guilty?
Though the district attorney, Tom O’Connel, put forward his take on the lawsuit, stating that it is disproportional to consider the case as merely an act of self-defense, focusing on the 41 strikes Candy had placed on Betty, the court still passed its verdict in favor of Candy. In short, Candy Montgomery was not found guilty by the court.
With the strong support of the attorney, Udashen, Candy could convince the judge by claiming that the confrontation was only a defense mechanism opted at the last moment when Betty actually tried to stab her with the same ax.
The defense team also bought a psychiatrist and performed a hypnosis session on Candy that revealed that the suspect had undergone a condition that is commonly called a dissociative event. The Houston Psychiatrist further added that Candy acted without conscience at the time of her confrontation with Betty, and whatever crime she is supposed to have committed was done without proper mindfulness.
The court listened to more of the words uttered by the psychiatrist, who said that the altercation with Betty had taken Candy back to her childhood trauma, in which she was struck on the head, which led to heavy bleeding, and Candy’s mother at that time made a gesture by taking a finger close to her mouth and creating the “shhh’ voice to mute Candy, who was crying out of pain.
He then said that Betty also made a similar gesture at the time of their altercation and pointed at the very same actions to have triggered the previous trauma Candy had, which pushed the lady to bang on Betty with rage.
Even though the post-mortem reports stated that Betty was unconscious at the time of the last ax blow, the polygraph test showed positive for Candy and indicated that she was only telling the truth up to her knowledge.
On October 30, 1980, the final verdict in the lawsuit was released by Tom Ryan, the district judge who concluded the ruling that said Candy Montgomery was not guilty of the offense.
The ruling was criticized by the public and the verdict was considered an insane judgment. At the time of freeing the suspected culprit, Candy, many yelled and shouted at her, screaming, “Murderer,” “murderer.”
Following the verdict, a couple of words were shared by Betty’s father, who was unhappy with the verdict. He stated that she would be punished as if she was the real murderer. Then she will have to bear the sin within herself. He also said that it would be impossible for them to find the truth as the case has already marked its end.
Where Is Candy Montgomery Today? Is Candy Montgomery Still Alive?
Candi Montgomery, 72, who is still residing in Texas under the name Candy Wheeler, is currently serving as a therapist for adults and teens. The one with mental trauma herself is counseling the patients who have depression. Apparently, Pat and Candi got divorced following the final verdict rendered by the court, and Pat moved to Georgia. No chains of laws are surrounding Candy today. She has been absolutely set free.
Both Candi and Allan had no intention of ruining their peaceful marriages. However, their fling altered and scattered the perfect marriage they were previously blessed with. When asked about the grounds of her extra-marital affair, Candy said that Allan was a remedy for her boring married life with Pat.
Though she is innocent before the law, she will be suffering within herself during these times, and the sin will definitely haunt her throughout her lifetime.
A source has collected information regarding Candy’s lover, Allan Gore, who then remarried after moving from his hometown, Texas, leaving his children to Betty’s parents. It is reported that Allan is currently residing in Florida with his new girlfriend.
About Hulu’s Upcoming Series ‘Candy’
Based on the book, Evidence of Love: A True Story of Passion and Death in the Suburbs, Hulu’s Candy premiered on May 9, 2022, in the US, and Candy will air in India on July 15, 2022.
The horrific tale is portrayed with necessary terror by Jessica Biel as Candy Montgomery and Melanie Lynskey as Betty Gore. Michael Uppendahi, the director of Candy, recently said that he is changing his way of approaching being materialistic, despite considering what is true and what is not, which will ultimately make him flexible.
A Killing in a Small Town, which was released in 1990 by CBS TV, a decade after the killing of Betty, was based on the true story of Candy Montgomery, starring Barbara Hershey as Candy Montgomery, with her character name being Candy Morrison. Apart from that, another HBO Max miniseries was also released in 2022 titled, “Love and Death,” with Elizabeth Olsen portraying the role of Candy Montgomery.