Love & Death: The Dark True Story That Inspired HBO’s Furor Series

A friday the 13th June 1980, one of the most heinous crimes was committed in the city of Wyllie, Texas. Betty Gore was killed with 41 ax blows.

This case was so sensational, not only for the violence of the facts, but also for the perpetrator who committed it, that it was portrayed in a film (A murder in a small town), two series and one book (Trials of love: a true story of passion and death in the suburbs).

HBO adds in its series category love death, the story of the ax murderer. Telling it chronologically, the actress elizabeth olsen reincarnates into Montgomery Candy, a housewife bored with routine, who decides start a relationship with your neighbor. The series tells the before and after the murder of Betty; when the extramarital affair began and how the process went. But what is the real story of this miniseries?

The true story behind Love and Death

it was the year 1977 when Candy Montgomerywith her husband Pat Montgomery and their two children they moved to the county of Wylly, Texas. The couple began attending Lucas First United Methodist Church, where they also participated in choir. Over there Candy met Betty Gorethe daughters of both have become friends and the relationship between them has resulted in a friendship over time.

Everything seemed to be going well in Candy’s life: the typical American family of those years. A housewife, with a stable job, a husband, children to look after and extracurricular activities that she did to occupy her time. In October 1978, Candy starts at be attracted to Allan GoreBetty’s husband, and decides to propose to her have an affair. They agreed it would just be about sex. The relationship lasted 11 months.

The tension began to build when Betty and Allan decided to try couples therapy. Steeped in guilt and wishing his marriage would work for the sake of his wife and daughter, Allan has decided to put an end to his adventure extramarital affair with Candy after returning from Marriage Encounter show. Candy took it well and both separated, but always maintaining a good relationship.

Friday 13th: the day of the crime

It is not known how Betty learned about the relationship that her husband had with her friend and neighbor, perhaps it was female intuition or the letters that lovers exchanged helped her. What is known is that on that Friday in 1980 Betty confronted Candy about that relationship.

Allan was out of town on business and Betty was at home with her newborn. Candy went to her friend’s house to get something. Everything was fine, the women sat and chatted a bit, until Betty asked Candy if she was having an affair with her husband.

Far from lying to him, she confessed that yes, but it ended a long time ago. As portrayed in the scene from the HBO series, Betty tells Candy to wait a moment and proceeds to enter the laundry room, where take out an ax threaten the mistress to leave her husband.

There is only one version of what happens in between: that of the killer. When Candy manages to snatch the ax from Betty, there was a mistake where she “lost her mind” after the victim made a gesture that reminded her of the Ax Killer’s childhood, and he attacked her. Second Texan Monthly, an American magazine, Betty received 40 of 41 hacks while her heart was still beating. She was beating on the face and head, legs, hands and torso. The laundry room, where the crime took place, was soaked in blood.

While there is a culprit, the crime against Betty has yet to receive justice. Candy Montgomery was pleaded not guilty at trial: it was for self-defense. The defense brought in a psychiatrist who testified that Candy had experienced what is called a dissociative event, after Betty shushed her, turning her emotions into uncontrollable rage, and she didn’t realize what she was doing.

Where is Candy Montgomery now?

When Candy was last found, she was living in Georgia and working with her daughter Jenny as a mental health counselor. She also learned that she divorced Pat and changed her last name to her maiden name: Wheeler.

It is also unknown if the Love & Death team has contacted the protagonist of the events for a more truthful interpretation of the character. What is known is that Jessica Biel, who also played Candace in the series Candy from Hulu (2022), an attempt was made to contact him but there was no response.