You would think that when strapped to a gurney,
knowing the life-force in you is about to expire, you’d want to say something nice
to someone, or profound, or perhaps apologize to the family of the victim that is watching
your demise. Then again, if you were an innocent person
about to have his veins filled with a lethal cocktail, you might not be in the mood to
deliver a tender speech. You might also be a ruthless and heartless
psychopath that wants to fill the air one last time with your monstrous voice. As you’ll now find out, that has happened,
and it might send shivers down your spine hearing what they said. First up -
Richard Aaron Cobb Cobb was executed by lethal injection in 2013
in Texas. His crime was walking into a convenience store
with an accomplice and robbing it. It didn’t stop there. They took two female employees and one male
customer and forced them into a car. They took them to a secluded place and shot
them execution style and then drove away thinking they were all dead. Only the man actually died. His last words were very strange, starting
out nihilistic. He then finished with something very surprising:
“I hope that someday this absurdity that humanity has come to will come to an end,”
and then seconds later after he started to pass away, “Wow. This is great. Thank you, warden.” This next one is slightly more gruesome. John Wayne Gacy
You all know the story of this man and we won’t go into detail about what he did. He murdered 33 people in the 1970s and hid
many of the bodies under his house. He is one of the USA’s worst serial killers. His last words show that he had no remorse
whatsoever. Those were:
“Kiss my ***” We can’t say that last word otherwise the video will get demonetized,
but we are sure you can guess what it is. There’s no cursing in this next one, but
we think you’ll agree it is pretty darn dark. Peter Kürten
You’ve never heard of this guy we bet. He was a German serial killer at a time when
there were a few of them about in Germany. That was the early 20th century. He killed at least nine people and did terrible
things with the bodies. One other thing was that he drank the blood
of his victims, and that’s why he was sometimes named, “The Vampire of Düsseldorf.” In 1931, he was beheaded by guillotine and
just before that happened he looked at his psychiatrist and said, “Tell me, after my
head has been chopped off, will I still be able to hear, at least for a moment, the sound
of my own blood gushing from the stump of my neck? That would be the pleasure to end all pleasures.” Before the blade came down the psychiatrist
replied, “No.” Aileen Wuornos
This woman you might have seen portrayed in a Hollywood movie called Monster. She worked selling her body on the streets
and killed six of her male customers. She had claimed she was defending herself
but that didn’t hold up in court. She is now known as one of America’s worst
female serial killers. She was executed in 2002 and just before that
she promised she’d come back to life again. She said:
“I'd just like to say I'm sailing with the rock, and I'll be back like Independence Day
with Jesus, June 6. Like the movie, big mother ship and all. I'll be back.” Sticking with serial murderers, this next
monster fits the bill. Carl Panzram
This guy was a serial killer in the U.S. at the start of the 20th century. He committed murders, among many other despicable
things. He said he had killed 22 people in all. He was sentenced to be hanged in 1930 and
just before the executioner put the cover on his head he spat in his face. He was asked if he had any last words. This is how he replied:
“Yes, hurry it up, you Hoosier bastard ! I could kill a dozen men while you're screwing
around!”. In case you’re wondering, a “Hoosier”
is someone from the state of Indiana. Up next is arguably the funniest on this list. James French
French killed two people in the late 50s and mid-60s in the USA. One of those people was his cellmate. The two didn’t get along very well. His actual last words when sitting in the
electric chair were, “There’s nothing else to say.” But the last thing he said to a reporter was
this: “If I were covering my execution, do you
know what I'd say in the newspaper headline tomorrow?" The reporter said, “What?” He answered, “French…Fries.” Yep, that was amusing. We think this next guy was also attempting
to make a joke. Jeffery Matthews
Matthews shot and killed his uncle during a robbery and he was executed in 2011 in Oklahoma
because of that. His last words aren’t exactly frightening,
but his dark sense of humor at the end is perhaps a little bit shocking. He said a few things, but his very last words
were: “I think that governor’s phone is broke. He hasn’t called yet.” Robert Charles Comer
You can say the same about this man. At the end he either had a twisted sense of
humor or was on another planet, mentally speaking. In 1987, he killed a man, but he had also
committed some other serious crimes throughout his life. When asked if he wanted to say something at
the end, he said: “Go Raiders.” That’s in reference to an American football
team. Such a statement you might assume encapsulates
how little he thought about himself and life, and his victims. Robert Alton Harris
Alton was executed in California in 1992 for multiple murders. He had been a career criminal with a long
rap sheet, although his killing of two boys is why he got the gas chamber. He was incredibly heartless if you read his
story, but we won’t go into it today. At the end he became poetic, with his last
words being: “You can be a king or a street sweeper,
but everybody dances with the grim reaper." He’s not wrong about that. He’s not as amusing as the next person,
though. Vincent Gutierrez
This guy was executed in Texas in 2007 after being found guilty of killing a man. Gutierrez had been trying to steal the man’s
car, and then shot him in the back. He was under the age of 18 when it happened. He said a few things for his last words and
apologized for what he had done, but then finished it off by saying:
“Where’s my stunt double when you need one.” John William Rook
Rook believed his difficult childhood was the reason he committed a murder in 1980 in
the U.S. He had 12 hotdogs for his last meal and then
just before they took his life away he thanked them and said, “Freedom, freedom at last.” James W. Rodgers
Rodgers was sentenced to death after killing a fellow worker at a uranium mine in 1957. The two had fallen out over quite a big issue,
and that was how a scoop shovel should be properly greased. They didn’t see eye to eye regarding the
grease and Rodgers shot the other man. He was sentenced to death by firing squad. When Rodgers was ready to have the firing
squad finish his life he was asked if he had any final words. His reply was:
“I done told you my last request ... a bulletproof vest.” Charlie Livingston
In 1983, this man shot and killed a woman in Houston during a robbery. He didn’t seem to see the point of final
words when the time came and he made that point, saying:
“You all brought me here to be executed, not to make a speech. That's it." That was simple enough, quite different from
what’s coming up. Douglas Roberts
This man from Texas was quite the opposite and he had quite a lot to say on the day of
his execution by lethal injection in 2005. He’d been found guilty of kidnapping, robbery,
and murder. When the time came for his last words he said:
“I've been hanging around this popsicle stand way too long. Before I leave, I want to tell you all. When I die, bury me deep, lay two speakers
at my feet, put some headphones on my head, and rock and roll me when I'm dead.” The media later reported that he was “upbeat
and animated” before his execution. Frederick Wood
Wood was another joker, albeit with a dark sense of humor. He was put to the electric chair in 1963 for
the crime of murder. When asked what his final words would be,
he replied: “Gents, this is an educational project. You are about to witness the damaging effect
electricity has on Wood.” The next couple of people you could say are
unique on this list. Mary Blandy
Now we are going really back in time and this is the story of an English woman whose father
didn’t approve of her relationship. She looked to poison to deal with this problem. She was hanged in 1752, and at the time she
was wearing a dress. She was worried people might look up that
dress, even though it wouldn’t matter much after she was dead. Still, she told the executioner:
“For the sake of decency, gentlemen, don’t hang me high.” Sarah Good
Now we go even farther back and to the Salem trials in Massachusetts in 1692. Good was in her thirties when she was accused
of being a witch and then sentenced to death. All 12 jurors agreed that she had to be a
witch. She was accused of lacking in self-discipline
and being a servant of the devil. She had only challenged locals regarding their
very strict Puritan values, but that they said made her in league with Satan. The Reverend Nicholas Noyes was there at the
end and still tried to get her to confess, and she of course refused. Her last words to him were:
“I'm no more a witch than you are a wizard, and if you take away my life God will give
you blood to drink.” Twenty-five years later, Noyes had an aneurysm
and as the story goes he coughed up blood and choked on it. We should say this is what is called, “popular
legend”, but as the witch trials were so terrible we imagine many people might hope
it happened. While these witch trials were madness to the
highest degree, Mary’s husband at least sued the courts for what had happened to her,
and he won. Now we go back to the present day and a couple
of guys that looked death straight in the eye. Clarence Ray Allen
This man was executed in California for killing three people. He was executed in 2006 when he was the ripe
old age of 76. He was also very sick at the time and a lot
of people wondered why the death sentence since it seemed he didn’t have much time
left anyway. His last words were:
“Hoka hey, it's a good day to die.” Melvin White
White had committed the terrible crime of murdering a child and he was executed in Texas
in 2005. We won’t go into details, but what he did
shocked a lot of people. Not many folks felt sorry for this man as
he went to the gurney for his dose of lethal drugs. He did say he was sorry for what he did, and
then said: “All right, Warden, let's give them what
they want.” The next couple of people you might say didn’t
sit too well in their chair of death. Torrey Twane McNabb
In 2017, this man was given lethal injection in the state of Alabama. He had been convicted of killing a police
officer. He and his lawyers had tried to stop it going
through by saying the punishment was cruel and usual, but that didn’t work. He went to the gurney an angry man and with
both hands he pointed two middle fingers in the air. He then said:
"Mom, sis, look at my eyes. I got no tears. I am unafraid. To the state of Alabama, I hate you... I hate you. I hate you.” Thomas J. Grasso
We have perhaps saved the strangest last words until last, and this was the execution of
a man that had been convicted of two murders of elderly women. He was given lethal injection in the state
of Oklahoma in 1995. He wrote a short poem before his death and
part of it went like this: “The warden will read my last creed,
And the deadly brew will flow. As the poison drips into my veins,
And from my body life does drain.” But his last words were in the form of a very
practical complaint. We guess he was being ironic. Those words were:
“I did not get my SpaghettiOs…I got spaghetti. I want the press to know this.” Our last words on this topic are that you
need to watch one of the other great episodes of The Infographics Show right now. Either this video here or click on this one
here. Time is running out so choose now!
