Gerard John Schaefer Jr. was born on March 25, 1946, in Neenah, Wisconsin, which is just south of Green Bay. Gerard Sr. worked as traveling salesman for Kimberly-Clark which so happens to be what the town of Neenah is most known for. Senior and wife, Doris, had three children: Gerard, known as “John” around the house, Sara, four years younger than Gerard, and Gary, five years younger than Sara. Doris described Gerard’s childhood as happy as any other kid did, while Gerard thought otherwise. He referred to himself as an “illegitimate child” the product of a “forced wedding”. In Gerard’s view, his childhood was “turbulent and conflictual”, with his dad being frequently absent and starting the life of adultery and an alcoholic.
Gerard believed that his father favored his younger sister Sara, causing much anguish in his psyche. In some cases, he contemplated suicide and even wanted to be a girl. He told psychiatrists, “I couldn’t please my father, so in playing games I always wanted to get killed.” He experimented with sadomasochism and bondage at age 12. Schaefer said, “I’d tie myself to a tree, struggle to get
…show more content…
In 1968, he married Martha Fogg, a singer from Up With People who he had only known for a couple weeks. Two years later, Martha filed for divorce, claiming, “extreme cruelty.” He continued to study at FAU, now studying geography, and graduated in August 1971. Now with a new goal in life, he became a cop. On 1972, Schaefer entered the police academy’s basic recruit certification program, emerging as probation