Talk about your killer appetite.
In his series, No Seconds, photographer Henry Hargreaves cooks up eerie recreations of the final feasts served to America’s death row inmates.
Hargreaves, who mixed prison documents with a pinch of his own imagination to produce each shot, initiated the project after learning of plans in Texas to eliminate elaborate last meals for convicts. According to the photographer, the photo shoot brought the notorious killers, kidnappers, and thieves – including Ted Bundy and John Wayne Gacy, Jr. – into an odd new light.
“Researching this topic strangely personalized these people for me,” he says. “For a moment, I was able to identify with them through the common denominator of food.”
Dig in to Henry’s shots below, then check out more of his food-focused work on his site.
Victor Feguer, 28 years old
CRIME: Kidnap and murder
METHOD OF EXECUTION: Lethal injection
LAST MEAL: A single olive with the pit in it
John Wayne Gacy, 52 years old
CRIME: Rape and 33 counts of murder
METHOD OF EXECUTION: Lethal injection
LAST MEAL: 12 fried shrimp, a bucket of KFC fried chicken, French fries, and 1 lb of strawberries
Timothy McVeigh, 33 years old
CRIME: 168 counts of murder
METHOD OF EXECUTION: Lethal injection
LAST MEAL: 2 pints of mint and chocolate chip ice cream
Ricky Ray Rector, 42 years old
CRIME: 2 counts of murder
METHOD OF EXECUTION: Lethal injection
LAST MEAL: Steak, fried chicken, cherry Kool-Aid, and pecan pie*
*Rector left the pecan pie, telling a guard he was “saving it for later”
Stephen Anderson, 49 years old
CRIME: Burglary, assault, escaping prison, and 7 counts of murder
METHOD OF EXECUTION: Lethal injection
LAST MEAL: A pair grilled cheese sandwiches, a pint of cottage cheese, corn, peach pie, chocolate chip ice cream, and radishes
Ted Bundy, 43 years old
CRIME: Rape, necrophilia, prison escape, and 35+ counts of murder
METHOD OF EXECUTION: Electric chair
LAST MEAL: Bundy declined a “special” meal, so he was given the traditional last meal of steak, eggs, hash browns, toast with butter and jelly, milk, and juice
Angel Nieves Diaz, 55 years old
CRIME: Murder, kidnapping, and armed robbery
METHOD OF EXECUTION: Lethal injection
LAST MEAL: Diaz declined a last meal. Authorities served him a regular prison meal, yet he declined this also
Ronnie Lee Gardner, 49 years old
CRIME: Burglary, robbery, and 2 counts of murder
METHOD OF EXECUTION: Firing squad
LAST MEAL: Lobster tail, steak, apple pie, and vanilla ice cream, all consumed while watching the Lord of the Rings trilogy
Allen Lee “Tiny” Davis, 54 years old
CRIME: Robbery and 3 counts of murder
METHOD OF EXECUTION: Electric chair
LAST MEAL: Lobster tail, fried potatoes, ½ lb of fried shrimp, 6 oz of fried clams, ½ loaf of garlic bread, and 32 oz A&W root beer
Teresa Lewis, 41 years old
CRIME: Murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and robbery
METHOD OF EXECUTION: Lethal injection
LAST MEAL: Fried chicken, peas with butter, apple pie, and Dr Pepper
Ferdinando Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti, 36 and 39 years old
CRIME: 2 counts of murder*
METHOD OF EXECUTION: Electric chair
LAST MEALS: Soup, meat, toast, and tea
*In 1977, Governor Michael Dukakis of Massachusetts issued a statement saying Sacco and Vanzetti had been unfairly tried and convicted. The case remains open
Ronnie Threadgill, 40 years old
CRIME: Murder
METHOD OF EXECUTION: Lethal injection
LAST MEAL: Baked chicken, mashed potatoes with country gravy, vegetables, sweet peas, bread, tea, water, and punch*
*Texas abolished the last meal in 2011, so Threadgill was given the same meal as everyone in his unit
Special thanks to Henry Hargreaves for providing the photos in this post.
Photo: Henry Hargreaves
