Monster: The Ed Gein Story - What happened to Addison Rae’s character Evelyn Hartley in real life?

Monster: The Ed Gein Story is the third and latest installment of the Monster series on Netflix. Created by Ian Brennan, this season follows the fictional depiction of the crimes committed by Ed Gein. Ed Gein was a convicted serial killer and body snatcher who terrorized the residents of Plainfield, Wisconsin, in the 1950s.

One of the characters heavily featured in Monster: The Ed Gein Story is Evelyn Hartley, played by actress, singer, and internet personality Addison Rae. In the show, Evelyn is shown to be tortured and murdered by Ed Gein, but what happened to the real Evelyn Hartley? Keep reading to find out.

Monster: The Ed Gein Story: What happened to the real Evelyn Hartley

In Monster: The Ed Gein Story, Evelyn Hartley is a fictional character, and her fate in the show does not match her fate in real life, as far as the latest investigations go. In the show, Evelyn Hartley is from Wisconsin, facing the challenges of a polio diagnosis. Her medical condition makes her quit her babysitting job.

Ed Gein is seen to have many odd jobs, one of which is babysitting. When Evelyn quits her job, he is the one hired in her place. Gein’s disturbing tendencies quickly surface after he takes the children to his barn, a place filled with his gruesome creations, leading to him getting fired.

When Evelyn later returns to the job, Gein, due to his delusional thoughts, believes that Evelyn is the reason he was fired, despite knowing it was his unhinged actions that led to his termination. This makes him obsessed with Evelyn, and his obsession spirals into violence and revenge. Gein kidnaps Evelyn and brings her to his barn, where he kills her in a way that is both cruel and visually scarring to watch.

The real Evelyn Hartley was named Evelyn Grace Hartley and was born in 1937 to a college biology professor. When she was fifteen years old in 1953, she vanished while babysitting in La Crosse, Wisconsin. She had been watching the infant daughter of Professor Viggo Rasmussen when she disappeared without a trace. An extensive community search involving more than 2,000 people scoured the area, but no clues were found. Thus, we don't know who took her, why, or what could have happened to her ultimately.

In 1957, when the gruesome crimes of Ed Gein became public news, there was renewed attention to Evelyn’s case. After being arrested for the murder of Bernice Worden, Gein confessed to killing two women and disturbing multiple graves to collect human remains. Investigators questioned him about the disappearances of several others, including Evelyn Hartley and young Georgia Weckler. But Gein insisted he had nothing to do with Evelyn and Georgia's disappearances.

Although Gein had been nearby when Evelyn went missing, no physical evidence tied him to her. However, since he was nearby when Evelyn went missing and no one else was suspected of having kidnapped her, there is still speculation that Gein was responsible. Thus, we see Evelyn Hartley as a character in Monster: The Ed Gein Story, due to the long-standing suspicions. But as official records go, the real Ed Gein did not kidnap or kill Evelyn Hartley.

Monster: The Ed Gein Story is streaming on Netflix.

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