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In August 1945, Gladys Lincoln of Sacramento contacted prosperous Dr. W. D. Broadhurst of Caldwell, Idaho, and rekindled a romance from twenty years earlier. After many passionate letter exchanges and several sexually-charged meetings, they were married in Reno, Nevada on May 20, 1946. After a passion-filled three-day weekend together, the doctor returned to his home in Idaho, and Gladys returned to Sacramento … and to her husband, Leslie Lincoln! But Gladys was much more than a bigamist.
Gladys needed something even she didn’t understand. She married her first husband when she was 20, and her second husband only 14 months later. The second marriage lasted only two years, the third less than 16 months. Leslie Lincoln was her fifth, and Dr. Broadhurst became her sixth. But what desperate need drove her to go from marriage to marriage?
Then what dark mindset moved her and her young cowboy chauffeur to commit murder? Find out in ‘TIL DEATH DO US …’ the gripping new true crime from WildBlue Press author Patrick Gallagher whose grandfather was Gladys’ lead defense attorney during her sensational trial.
From The Book:
What is it about Gladys that just doesn’t feel right? When first meeting her, she comes across so well. She is attractive and a good conversationalist. She is outgoing and friendly and has a winning smile. But it is not so much how she relates to you when with her as much as a realization that comes to you over a period of time knowing her. Her judgments are poor and her decision making is downright disastrous. She sounds friendly when speaking with her, but you come to understand that she is just playing a role. She really doesn’t care about you or anyone else besides herself. In time you come to realize that she seems to have frozen at about age 13 and has not matured beyond that point. She was like the character in the J.M. Barrie play, “Peter Pan, or the Boy Who Wouldn’t Grow Up.” It’s as if Gladys refused to become an adult woman, preferring the undisciplined and carefree life of a teenager.
One oddity of Gladys’ personality was perhaps a result of her inability or unwillingness to grow up. She loved the movies. Of course, many adults love going to the movie theater, but for Gladys it was like psychotherapy. She seemed so impressed by the movies, perhaps “impressionable” is more accurate. If she saw a movie she particularly liked, she would often emulate her favorite character or situation in the movie. Bette Davis and Ingrid Bergman were her idols, but she had a whole list of femme fatale actresses that she admired. Perhaps it had something to do with the war being fought at such great cost to American lives, but the movies released in the 1940’s were heavy on drama and suspense.
One movie that had a powerful impact on Gladys was “Leave Her to Heaven,” starring Gene Tierney as Ellen Berent who meets the novelist Richard Harlan, played by Cornel Wilde, on a train. The stunningly beautiful but psychotically jealous Ellen ultimately proposes marriage to Richard. As her jealousy causes the marriage to disintegrate, Ellen turns to murder and finally creates the ultimate revenge scenario.
At one point, Ellen is reading over Richard’s shoulder as he writes his novel, as he types, “’Will you marry me?’ he said.”
Ellen reacts, “Oh, no!”
Richard: “No what?”
Ellen: “Good grief! ‘Will you marry me?’ In the first place, men never propose. They think they do, but it’s really the woman.”
Richard: “Who told you that, Ripley?”
Ellen: “And when men do propose, they never say, ‘Will you marry me?’”
After some more discussion, Ellen asks, “How did you propose to me?”
Richard: “Uh. . . . . .”
Ellen: “You didn’t, I proposed to you.” (Then she grabs his face and pulls it to her and gives him a huge kiss) …. “Remember?”
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Hi Pat, Looking forward to reading your book! Proud of you!! Jin O’Kief
Hello Jim,
It is very good to hear from you. Your Dad and mine spent many days in the courtroom together, representing folks who opposed each other. I hope you enjoy the book, and you may recognize some of the people mentioned!
Cordially,
Patrick
Can’t wait to get my copy! Already very intrigued and excited!
I’m so impressed and intrigued. The cover art is fantastic and I am hooked by the excerpt.. Really looking forward to seeing this book in print!
My stepmom was 10 years old when this happened. She was a witness at the murder trial of this Gladys woman. She witnessed seeing 2 people together. She was driven in the sherriff’s car to the Courthouse in Vale, she said she only said about 1 sentence. She calls it her 10 minutes of fame. She was excited today when she read about your new book in our little Ontario Newspaper!
Hello Georgia,
Thank you for this very interesting information. I had expected that everyone connected to this trial had passed on by now, but obviously that is not correct. I wish your stepmom well, and hope she enjoys reading the book as much as I enjoyed researching and writing it.
Thanks for your note. My stepmom is 88 years old and her mind is as sharp as ever! She would love to hear from you! She is fun to talk to! I’ll tell her you may call her! Virginia Fox 541-889-6262.
Thank you so much for calling Virginia! It made her day! She called me immediately. She can’t wait for your book to arrive! She is a sweetie, And it sounds like you are too! Bless you!
Today was Virginia’s lucky day! She received the papers you sent her and your book that I had ordered for her. She wanted me to thank you for sending those papers! My e-mail address is gsells_2000@yahoo.com should you ever need to contact me!
I received the book this week and started on it two nights ago after work. I arrived home last night and had dinner and thought I would read a little more. The next thing I know, I am at the end of the book. I couldn’t put it down.
Mr. Gallagher did an excellent job. By the end of the book, I thought I was beginning to know the woman first hand. She was a strange one but Patrick covered her behavior well. The book makes me give thought to others like her that may be walking around out there. I am going to share the book with a couple of friends and members of my family. Great job, Patrick
My Dad grew up in Parma with the William’s. He knew Al and his sister. They were quite poor growing up and the dad was a big drinker in town. My Grandpa gave Al work after he was paroled for the murder. If you have any questions for my Dad he would be happy to answer. Al often stopped by over the years to say hi to my Grandparents.
Purchased the ebook today.
Terrific true crime. I am about halfway through & hope the author follows Gladys
after her release from prison. I am not finding anything online
I found this true account of bigamy and murder an absolutely fascinating read! I especially appreciated Gallagher’s sleek style, giving only information and evidence that he was able to access, not embellishing on the story. He asks his readers to analyze the main characters’ personalities, quirks and puzzling behavior.
Ever since I read this book a couple of weeks ago, I find myself thinking about the characters off and on. In my mind, I still haven’t put the book down!
My mom died in 2009, and in some of her stuff was an envelope full of newspaper clippings of this Broadhurst murder. She lived in Caldwell, Idaho and her Uncle Ed Turner had a ranch in Jordan Valley and I guess that is why she kept these clippings. She would have been 13 years old when this crime happened and it must have been quite a scandal for the time. I am looking forward to reading the book because the clippings I have are not dated and it is a bit of a scattered puzzle to read.