Hello dear listeners, as always, I'm Chelsea Weber Smith and today I'm doing things a little

differently and bringing you a preview of a new podcast I think you'll really enjoy. From 48 hours it's called

Candyman, the true story behind the bathroom mirror murder. I'm sure that many of

you have seen the horror cult classic Candyman and heard the

Candyman myth behind it that a killer would appear if his name was said five times

into a mirror. It's very much a film about urban legends and

folklore so it's always been one that has fascinated me. But did you know that the movie

was partly inspired by a real life murder?

In 1987, 52 year old Ruthie May McCoy frantically called 911, stating they want to come through the bathroom. At first,

dispatchers were confused, but when police finally entered her Chicago Housing

Project apartment a full two days later, they found her shot to death.

Journalists in Chicago native, Domitie Pongo,

revisits McCoy's death and the themes of racial injustice, housing, equality, and the stigma of

mental illness surrounding this tragic event.

I'm about to play you a clip from Candyman, the true story behind the bathroom mirror murder.

Here it is.

When I was a kid, I was scared of Candyman.

He was the killer from this old horror movie from 1992

that became a cult classic.

Candyman had a hook for a hand and he got you with it for no other reason than that you said his name five times into a bathroom mirror.

Candyman. Candy man.

And there was something about candy man that seemed more real, like more dangerous than any other movie villain.

...