| Barbara Daly Baekeland | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1922 |
| Died | 17 November 1972 London |
| Nationality | American |
| Other names | Barbara Daly |
| Known for | Murder by her son |
Barbara Daly Baekeland (1922 – November 17, 1972) was a wealthy socialite who was murdered by her son, Antony Baekeland.[1] She was the wife of Brooks Baekeland, who was the grandson of Leo Baekeland, inventor of Bakelite plastic.
She was murdered at her London home. Antony stabbed her with a kitchen knife, killing her almost instantly. When the police arrived, they found Antony, who was 25 years old at the time, ordering Chinese food over the phone.[2] He later confessed and was charged with murder.
Before meeting Brooks Baekeland, Barbara was a model and would-be Hollywood starlet; she had a screen test in Hollywood with the actor Dana Andrews.[3] During their marriage, she was known for her unstable personality, rude outbursts and bouts of severe depression; she also drank heavily and had many affairs. Her husband eventually left her for a younger woman, Sylvie (who some said had first been Antony's girlfriend), which was followed by divorce.[4] This led to severe depression and a suicide attempt (her friend Gloria Jones, wife of author James Jones, saved her).[5]
Baekeland had a complex and allegedly incestuous relationship with her gay son, Antony. Baekeland attempted to "fix" her son by having prostitutes take him to bed; after this failed, Baekeland was alleged to have manipulated or coerced her son into having sex with her. Though Antony displayed signs of schizophrenia with paranoid tendencies, his father refused to allow him to be treated by psychiatrists, a profession he believed to be "amoral".[6] Her son's erratic behavior caused concern among family friends, and over the years, the two had several threatening arguments involving knives.
After the murder, Antony was institutionalized at Broadmoor Hospital until, at the urging of a group of his friends, he was released on July 21, 1980.[7] He relocated to New York City to live with his grandmother, stabbing but not killing her less than a week later. He was sent to Rikers Island and was suffocated with a plastic bag on March 20, 1981;[8] it is unknown whether his death was a suicide or murder.[9]
The first Baekeland murder was made into the 2007 film Savage Grace, starring Julianne Moore, Stephen Dillane, Eddie Redmayne, Hugh Dancy, Elena Anaya and Unax Ugalde. It was based on the book of the same name.
After the film opened, Barbara Baekeland's former lover, Sam Green, wrote an article pointing out elements in the film possibly misleading for those trying to read back to the reality inspiring it. Referring in particular to the scene of Barbara, her son Antony, and Sam in bed together making love, he wrote, "it is true that almost 40 years ago I did have an affair with Barbara, but I certainly never slept with her son...Nor am I bisexual." He went on to give his opinion that "she started telling people she had had an incestuous relationship with her son as a way of 'curing' him of homosexuality... But I don't believe she had sex with Tony. I think she simply enjoyed shocking people." [10]