Criminal Adaptations
Criminal Adaptations is a True Crime/Movie Review Podcast discussing some of your favorite films, and the true crime stories that inspired them. With hosts Remi, who spent over a decade working in the film and television industry, and Ashley, a clinical psychologist and forensic evaluator. They discuss a new movie each week and compare the film to the real life events that the film is based on.
Criminal Adaptations
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil
In this episode, we dive deep into the shadows of Savannah to uncover the truth behind Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (1997). The bestselling book and Clint Eastwood’s film adaptation, staring John Cusack and Kevin Spacey, turned the city’s notorious murder case into a cultural phenomenon – but how closely does Hollywood’s version match reality? Join us as we unravel the real story of Jim Williams, the charismatic antiques dealer at the center of four dramatic trials for the shooting death of Danny Hansford, and explore how the movie reshaped timelines, characters, and motives for cinematic effect. From the true personalities behind Savannah’s eccentric social scene to the legal twists that kept the city spellbound for nearly a decade, we separate fact from fiction and reveal what details the film left out.
Primary Source:
- Berendt, John. Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. Random House (1994).
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Theme: DARKNESS (feat. EdKara) by Ghost148
Welcome to Criminal Adaptations, the show where we take a look at some of your favorite movies and the true crime stories that inspired them. I'm Remy. I spent over a decade working in the film and television industry in Los Angeles, California.
Ashley:And I'm Ashley. I'm a clinical psychologist and forensic evaluator in the state of Oregon.
Remi:And welcome back, everybody. Hope you all are having a Merry Christmas and a happy holidays, whatever your beliefs may be. How are you doing today, Ashley?
Ashley:I am doing great. It's hard to believe that this episode is going to be releasing the week of Christmas because we are recording this in advance, and there's still a little bit ways to go until we reach that point. But man, this year has been flying by.
Remi:And I'm pretty sure before we realize it, it's going to be like a week away. But you know the old saying, the days are long, but the years go quickly. So what are we talking about today, Ashley?
Ashley:Today we have a bit of a doozy. We are covering Clint Eastwood's movie, which will not be the last Clint Eastwood film we cover for this podcast, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, starring John Cusack and the infamous Kevin Spacey. I know you have a lot of thoughts about Kevin Spacey.
Remi:Indeed, I do. There's an old expression about separating art from the artist, which basically means judging or appreciating a piece of art, like a film, song, book, or painting, independently of the personal actions, beliefs, or moral character of the person who created it. Some examples being enjoying Michael Jackson's music, despite all the allegations, or appreciating Roman Polanski movies like Chinatown or Rosemary's Baby while still condemning his personal crimes.
Ashley:Which side note, Chinatown is on our list of movies to cover because it is about a civil case based out of California. So we will be diving a bit into Roman Polanski sometime in the future.
Remi:Well, the whole separating the art from the artist thing, I have realized that I am not someone who is able to do this. Since all the allegations came out, I just can't watch a Kevin Spacey film the same way that I used to. And honestly, I just don't now. So this is the first Kevin Spacey movie I've watched in quite some time.
Ashley:But you said that this movie was less problematic for you to watch since he is playing the villain.
Remi:He plays the villain a lot, but it kind of just grosses me out to watch him these days. I mean, I used to think he was a great actor, like in The Usual Suspects and Seven, but after all of the allegations came out, on top of the stories I have heard from people who met him personally, I just cannot look at him now without seeing him as a sickeningly detestable sexual assaulting piece of shit.
Ashley:And for those of you who are unaware or may not know as much about the sexual assault allegations against Kevin Spacey as you would like. There is also a docuseries that aired rather recently on HBO.
Remi:But enough about Spacey. What about Clint Eastwood? This is directed by him, not starring him. Do you have any feelings or thoughts about Mr. Eastwood?
Ashley:I mean, my thoughts are one, he's so old and has so many kids. When it comes to his line of work, I like him better as a director than an actor. He has directed some really remarkable pieces of work.
Remi:And I've often heard his directing style praised as being really quick and efficient. Like a lot of people like working on Clint Eastwood films because they'll be home by 5 p.m. to eat dinner with their family, which is something extremely rare in the film industry.
Ashley:I know we have at least one other Clint Eastwood movie on our list, which he also stars in, The Mule.
Remi:And there's been some debate over us covering Richard Jewell or not, because technically he did not commit a crime and he was falsely accused. But if anyone out there is interested, we have been debating. So any votes out there would be appreciated.
Ashley:No, no, no. I forgot that movie was directed by him. That debate was closed because I had pled my case for so long, and you ended up seceding that it does count for a criteria of a true crime film and case. So we will be doing Richard Jewel before the mule.
Remi:And it gives me an excuse to discuss Paul Walterhauser, who we will also be discussing in a few future episodes. I know he was in the Tanya Harding film, but I think he is a magnificent character actor, and I look forward to discussing him someday.
Ashley:Well, what about this movie, Remy? Had you ever seen Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil before this episode? I know I had not. I had not read the book, and I didn't know anything about the case. I knew it was a book. It's kind of compared to Truman Capote's In Cold Blood. It had that much of an influence in society as a nonfiction novel, but I had never seen the movie or read it.
Remi:Neither had I, believe it or not. This was on my list for quite some time. It came out in the 90s when I was first getting into film. And at the time I was a fan of Kevin Spacey and John Cusack, but just never got around to checking this one out. I remember seeing the trailer and being interested and cut to 20 years later, and I'm just now getting around to it.
Ashley:Well, I'm excited to hear about your thoughts and what you learned about the pre- and post-production. So let's get into it, shall we?
Lady Chablis:You know, it's like my mom always said two tears in a bucket, motherfuckets. I have to remember that one.
Remi:Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is a 1997 American crime drama directed and produced by Clint Eastwood, starring John Cusack and Kevin Spacey. The screenplay was written by John Lee Hancock and was based on John Barrent's 1994 nonfiction book of the same name.
Ashley:Which obviously is what I read for my portion of the podcast.
Remi:Back in 1986, only four years after graduating from Baylor Law School, John Lee Hancock was still balancing two lives, practicing law by day and writing plays, short stories, and screenplays by night. Eventually, he reached a crossroads, having to choose between staying on the path towards partnership and stability with the firm, or taking a chance by pursuing his other passion of becoming a writer.
Ashley:Obviously, he chose taking a leap, but man, that is a certain future of being a well-respected attorney, making a very comfortable income that he is giving up.
Remi:I actually read an interview where he was discussing this, and he said basically he was choosing to pursue something that he was doing for free in his spare time, which usually does not pay very well when you're first getting started, by leaving a very secure job that would lead to a lot of promising things in the future. So yeah, he really gambled on himself and remarkably it did work out for him. Well, after moving on out to Tinseltown, Hancock's big break wouldn't come until the early 90s, when his writing finally caught the attention of a certified Hollywood legend, Clint Eastwood, who just a few years earlier earned three Oscars at the 65th Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor for his 1992 Western Unforgiven.
Ashley:And for those of you who did not listen to our last episode of A Few Good Men, this was the movie that Gene Hackman turned down Colonel Jessup for a supporting actor role in this film and won.
Remi:Beating Jack Nicholson. Damn you, Hackman. John Lee Hancock and Eastwood first work together on A Perfect World in 1993, starring Kevin Costner as an escaped prisoner who kidnaps a young boy and sets out on the run with him as his hostage. Along with directing the film, Eastwood also co-stars as the determined Texas Ranger pursuing the wanted convict. A few years later, Hancock wrote the screenplay adaptation of John Barrent's Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, and brought it to Eastwood before he'd ever even read the book. Eastwood ended up reading the script first, found it intriguing, and only then went back to read the source material that had inspired it.
Clint Eastwood:They see who they see in it, and and um they're always hoping that their favorite sequence from the book will be will appear. I know a lot of times it's disappointing when when it isn't, but hopefully we've captured the essence of Savannah.
Ashley:It is always so weird to me to watch these old interviews because I know in my mind that Clint Eastwood has been around since the dawn of time. And at one point he was young, but I only know Clint Eastwood as a young man who sounds remarkably different than he does in that interview, and looks and moves differently than he does in that interview. It's just weird to me.
Remi:He seems like he has just been around forever. I have also never known Clint Eastwood as a young man. He's always been a gray-haired, sandy-skinned, older gentleman. But I respect that he has been doing this for the astonishingly long amount of time that he has, and still continues to do so.
Ashley:Oh yeah, every time I see that there's a Clint Eastwood movie coming out, it's one I'm definitely gonna watch.
Remi:Well, Hancock said that working with Clint Eastwood was his version of film school. Though Hancock held degrees in English and law, along with a few years of courtroom experience, he had no formal training working in film. Despite this, Eastwood welcomed him to the sets on a perfect world and Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, giving him a hands-on education in filmmaking by learning the pace of working on a set, and how to lead a crew while still balancing artistry with restraint. Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil also marked the 20th film directed by Clint Eastwood at the time. In 1996, while preparing for the film, Eastwood visited Savannah, Georgia, where most of the film would later be shot. Eastwood recalled, I didn't get to know too many people at the time, mostly places, but I did meet some people who knew about Jim Williams, and I met the attorney Sonny Seller, who was very helpful in helping everyone understand what the attitude and atmosphere was in Savannah in the 1980s. The character of John Kelso was loosely inspired by the book's author, John Barrent.
Ashley:From what I know about this film and how closely it follows the outline of the book, I'm gonna argue that it is more than loosely inspired by the author. It is the author.
Remi:Yeah, if he's not playing the author, I don't know who he's supposed to be playing in this film. John Cusack is definitely playing John Barrent in this film. But the role was first offered to Edward Norton, who turned it down before John Cusack was eventually cast. Eastwood chose Cusack after seeing his sharp, quick-witted performance in Gross Point Blank earlier that year, believing Cusack would bring the perfect mixture of both comedy and restraint to juxtapose against the eccentric world of Savannah, Georgia. Have you ever seen Gross Point Blank, Ashley?
Ashley:Nope, and I've never heard of it.
Remi:Oh, it's great. It's about a hitman that goes to his high school reunion. We will definitely be watching that this week. Before filming began, John Barent himself gave Cusack a personal tour of Savannah, introducing him to many of the real people and places that had inspired his book.
Ashley:But still, Cusack is only loosely inspired by this author.
Remi:For the role of notorious murdering millionaire Jim Williams, Eastwood wanted an actor who could capture Southern sophistication with equal parts intelligence, refinement, and intrigue. Early considerations included Robert Redford and Jack Nicholson, two people we discussed on the past two episodes of this show.
Ashley:I cannot imagine either of them playing this role. As I was reading this, Kevin Spacey is who I pictured in my mind.
Remi:Yeah, I do hate to say it, but Spacey was kind of the perfect casting for this role. Nicholson would have been too sinister, and Redford would have been too laid back and charismatic. Spacey has like a weird balance of charismatic and sinister that really works well for the role. And after seeing pictures of the real Jim Williams, Spacey also looks the part as well.
Ashley:What had he done before this?
Remi:Well, at the time, he was basically at the height of his career and still riding high from his Oscar win for the usual suspects, along with garnering critical acclaim for his performances in films like Seven and LA Confidential, which won the Best Picture Award that same year. Eastwood said that he admired Spacey's effortless ability to keep audiences guessing while balancing charisma with moral ambiguity. Oh, how right you were, Clint. Before filming began, Spacey spent time in Savannah, quietly observing locals to master the city's distinctive Southern drawl. Clint's daughter, Alison Eastwood, was cast in the role of Mandy Nichols after three auditions, several read-throughs, and multiple screen tests, having to earn the part on her own merit rather than nepotism.
Ashley:I know this was probably very obnoxious for her, because if I had a father that was Clint Eastwood, I would be super annoyed if I had to put any effort into getting any sort of casting role, especially for a movie he was making. But I appreciate that Clint Eastwood did this.
Remi:I have also heard interviews with Scott Eastwood where he basically says the same thing. His dad did not give him a leg up at all, and didn't really help his kids very much along the way, which is rare in Hollywood. I gotta admire that. Clint later welcomed his eighth and final child, Morgan, into the world around the same time that this film rapped at the ripe old age of 66.
Ashley:So, unlike Robert De Niro, who had his last child in 2023 at the ripe age of 79, and Albacino, who recently fathered his last child at the age of 83, Clintice Wood has stopped reproducing at a rather young age.
Remi:Yeah, he stopped at retirement age. The production featured several real-life Savannah residents appearing as themselves, including Lady Chablis, pianist Emma Kelly, and attorney Jerry Spence. Jim Williams' sister Dorothy Kingery, his nieces Susan and Amanda, and Georgia Senator John R. Jack Riley also appear as guests during the film's Christmas party scene. Sonny Seller, the real lawyer who defended Jim Williams, appears as Judge Samuel L. White, while his onscreen counterpart was played by Australian actor Jack Thompson, who impressed the real Sonny with how naturally he captured his accent and mannerisms. The real life victim, Danny Hansford, was renamed Billy Hansen for the film, and is portrayed by a 24-year-old Jude Law in one of his very first major film roles. And finally, though the courtroom and action scenes were later recreated on a Warner Brothers soundstage, filming did partially take place inside Mercer House, which was Jim Williams' real home, as well as the location of the actual murder.
Ashley:Oh yeah, I got some facts on Mercer House.
Remi:Well, darling, are you ready to get on down to Savannah with me?
Ashley:Yeah, I'm excited. I've never been to Georgia before.
Kevin Spacey:That old black magic has me in its spell. That old black magic lets you weave so well. Those ice.
Remi:Our story begins in Savannah, Georgia, at the grave of John H. Mercer, born November 18th, 1909, and laid to rest on June 25th, 1976. And in case you were wondering, John H. Mercer was the Savannah-born, Oscar-winning American songwriter of such classics as Moon River and That Old Black Magic Woman, which Kevin Spacey was singing at the beginning of this segment. Oh, and he was also the co-founder of Capitol Records.
Ashley:Johnny Mercer was actually an infamous singer-songwriter. He is a four-time Oscar winner and 18-time nominee. So very, very impressive.
Remi:Well, John is not directly involved in this story, but his family's Mercer house will come into play later in the film. From there, the scene shifts to a hauntingly memorable old African-American woman named Minerva, played by Irma P. Hall, sitting on a park bench bickering with a squirrel. Her attention soon drifts skyward, towards a plane making its descent into a local airport, which provokes a deeply delighted laugh from Minerva at the very sight of it. Inside that plane is John Kelso, played by John Cusack. And after landing, John catches a double decker tour bus to soak in a bit of Savannah's southern charm as he rides into the city.
Ashley:And I'm gonna interject here. So throughout this book and through talking to Remy, I have learned that there are a lot of random characters in this story.
Remi:So many random characters.
Ashley:And pretty much none of them have anything to do with the actual crime. None of them matter. So I have omitted them from most of my part, but they are in the novel. So as Remy is going through the movie, I am going to interject here to give any sort of fun facts, tidbits, insights into the inspiration behind these characters that the audience might want to know. And this is the first difference here. John Barent actually lived in New York for 20 years and was writing and editing for magazines like Esquire and the New York Times and decided to make Savannah his second home. Mostly because he saw the city portrayed and gone with the wind and treasure island and just thought it was beautiful. So the whole story is based on his experiences that he accumulated from living there for eight years as a part-time resident. He would basically live in Savannah for a month, fly back to New York for a little bit, live back in Savannah for a month.
Remi:So he wasn't brought in to cover a story in Savannah.
Ashley:No, he just happened to be there, just living life, flying back and forth from Savannah to New York when this murder happened.
Remi:Well, that is definitely not how the character of John Kelso starts off in this film, because he is cruising into Savannah for the very first time as his guide is rattling off bits of history and local lore. But John's attention lands on a young man with a Confederate flag tattoo washing his muscle car by the side of the road, whom we will later learn is named Billy Hansen, played by Jude Law.
Ashley:And I leave this out, but the person who inspired Billy Hanson's character did have a Confederate flag tattoo on one arm and a marijuana leaf on the other.
Remi:They excluded the marijuana leaf in the film adaptation, but they held true to the Confederate flag tattoo. John soon arrives at the gates of a grand antebellum mansion where he's greeted by an elderly woman named Mrs. Baxter. She welcomes him with the kind of southern warmth that feels both genuine and rehearsed, offering him a drink as they stroll through the grounds. We learn that John is a writer for Town and Country magazine, sent to Savannah to write a short 500-word feature on an annual Christmas party being hosted the following night by a wealthy antiques dealer named Jim Williams, who also owns the historic Mercer House along with several other notable properties around town. Later that day, John sets out to meet the man himself, but is first introduced to Jim's attorney, Sonny Seller, played by Jack Thompson, whose office walls are lined floor to ceiling with framed photographs of the University of Georgia's beloved mascot, Uga the Bulldog.
Ashley:I do want to point out that point one of this book, which actually turns out to easily be the first half, is all about these random people that the author meets. And there is a whole chapter about Uga the Bulldog. And no offense to people that are fans of this football team or this dog, but it was very obnoxious to someone who was reading the book trying to highlight facts that actually had any bearing on the case to have to sift through all of this slog.
Remi:I had not heard of Ugga the Bulldog. I originally just wrote it down as he had an office full of bulldog photographs on his wall, which would be even weirder. But he is apparently a very long-standing beloved mascot of the University of Georgia.
Ashley:Oh, and people in the South take their college football very, very, very seriously.
Remi:Well, when John is introduced to Sonny, Sonny asks John to sign a confidentiality agreement, which he claims is a standard formality, but John declines, worried that signing such a document could potentially compromise the integrity of his story. In spite of this, the meeting still proceeds, and John is introduced to Jim Williams, played by Kevin Spacey, a sharply dressed mustachio gentleman whose slow southern draw projects an aura of calm refinement, confident charm, and quiet command. In contrast, John comes across as a polite, clear-spoken, observant outsider, who stands out like a sore thumb against Savannah's eccentric atmosphere. The two men then take Uga the Bulldog out for a stroll through the park to get acquainted.
Ashley:Wait, they actually are in possession of the mascot? This scene is clearly an addition to not make it weird about how obsessed this attorney is with this mascot.
Remi:On their stroll, they pass by a man walking what appears to be an invisible dog during their excursion.
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil - CLIP:You signed Sonny's papers? Actually, no. Good for you. Sonny's overly protective of my interests. Thank you very much. Well, thank you for having me. No matter what you and I ever do in our lives, Mr. Kelso, neither of us will ever be as famous as Uga.
Ashley:Oh my gosh, everyone needs to watch this video because Uga is so cute.
Remi:Well, sidebar here, the bulldog featured in the film was the real Ugga. Or more specifically, Ugga 5, the official University of Georgia's mascot at the time of filming.
Ashley:That is a nice little addition that Clint Eastwood didn't just get any Bulldog for the movie. He got Ugga.
Remi:Oh, you gotta get Ugga. During their walk, Jim casually reveals that there will actually be two Christmas parties. One for the town's elite the following night, and another that very evening, reserved strictly for bachelors.
Ashley:I omit this for my portion, but Jim did have two parties. And this was the criteria for the invitations.
Remi:Jim invites John to attend, but on the condition that he come purely as a guest and not as a reporter. John hesitates, feeling that every experience should be treated as potential material, and since agreeing to those terms would mean compromising his work, John politely turns down Jim's invitation. That night, as Jim's bachelor soiree unfolds, John watches the festivities from afar out of his hotel room window from across the street. Eventually, John calls it a night and puts on a cassette tape of New York City noise pollution to help him fall asleep.
Ashley:I mean, I guess if you've lived there your whole life and that's what you're used to having in the background as you're sleeping, silence might be rather disturbing to you.
Remi:I will say this: I was born and raised in New York, and there is a weird thing of how you can kind of always hear the outside street, even when you're inside somewhere. So I guess I can kind of understand that. His sound sleep doesn't last long, however, because just a few hours later, John is jolted from his slumber by the sounds of incessant knocking at his door. When he answers, John is met by the striking sight of a young blonde woman with a bohemian edge, who introduces herself as Mandy Nichols, played by Alison Eastwood. Without hesitation, she brushes right past John, claiming that she needs some ice, though her tone does suggest that she may be open to more interesting possibilities. And I'm also just gonna say this now to get it out of the way, but Mandy is a completely pointless character. She was clearly out. To give John some sort of a love interest, and she pops up here and there throughout the film, but she really doesn't add anything significant or meaningful to the plot in any way, which is kind of crazy because this character is played by Clint Eastwood's daughter of all people, who apparently had to audition multiple times just to play this nothing role in her father's film. Now, I'm not saying she deserved the Sophia Coppola Godfather 3 treatment or anything like that, but come on, man, at least give her something to do as long as she's here.
Ashley:So this character is clearly based on Mandy Nichols, who does end up dating someone named Joe Odom. Are you gonna get into Joe at some point?
Remi:Oh, we'll get to Joe in just a moment.
Ashley:Okay. I will hold off on talking about Mandy and Joe for now, but what I will say is this is how the author met her.
Remi:I am totally surprised by that.
Ashley:She is not fictitious. How the author talks about her in the book. There is no mention of any sort of love interest, but it makes sense giving her age and how they met that that would be incorporated in the film just to add a little, you know.
Remi:So after filling a bucket with ice, Mandy alluringly invites John to throw on some pants and join her at another party, far less polished than the upper crust shindig being thrown across the street. After slipping into some trousers, they head across town to a crumbling old savanna mansion, currently occupied by squatters throwing a makeshift celebration. Inside, John is introduced to the party's host, Joe Odom, played by Paul Hip, a charming rogue with a devil may care attitude and a laid-back confidence.
Ashley:Brief breakdown for Joe Odom, since he has so many pages worth of representation in this book for no real reason.
Remi:Good, because this is literally the last time I mention him.
Ashley:Joe Odom was basically a tax lawyer and real estate broker in Savannah who ended up losing all of his respect through shady business practices. After that, he made his money by either renting homes or sometimes squatting at them and renting them out for tours under the guise that the homes he was living in were historic landmarks.
Remi:So he was a hustler.
Ashley:Basically, yes, he was a hustler. He made this money. He had a couple business ventures, didn't pay the contractors who were working to restore the bars and houses he tried to reinvent. And then he ends up getting sued. He has four or five wives. He's just a scoundrel.
Remi:He is an extremely interesting character, and he pops up later on with a one-horse-drawn carriage, which he was apparently given because of a fender bender. But yeah, he really has no bearing on the story whatsoever. He's just kind of a colorful character thrown into the mix.
Ashley:What I got from the vibe of reading the book is that the author thought he was a very interesting character. But when it comes down to it, he's not. He's a guy that didn't like paying his rent. He's a guy that didn't like paying the contractors, and just schmoozed his way out of it. He is really just a piece of shit, dude.
Remi:The next morning, John finds a neatly wrapped package waiting at his hotel. Inside is a tuxedo from Jim Williams, along with a short note inviting John to that night's real Christmas party. When John arrives early, he takes in the details of Jim's home. A masterpiece of Southern restoration filled with gleaming antique furniture, polished mahogany hallways, and perfectly arranged paintings and collectibles that reflect Jim's wealth, taste, and quiet obsession with control. That night's Christmas party unfolds like the pages of a Southern society novel. Refined and elegant, yet faintly surreal, as Savannah's eccentric elite sip from crystal glasses while they mingle and gossip like characters from another era.
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil - CLIP:Harry was just about to show us the latest edition to his awful. You know what that is? That is a 25. My late husband blew his brains out. So did Mom. I was fixing myself a drink, and gun smoke was on TV, and I heard a show. I thought it was part of the show till I walked in, and there was Lama Bling sprawled in his favorite jam. And you know, everyone knew a marriage was a disaster. I'd so much as touched that gun, later charged me with my.
Remi:Which is one of the reasons that I think that they brought the John Cusack character in early. As you mentioned, he really didn't get involved with this whole thing until after the murder had occurred. But in this film, they bring him in a bit early. And I think that's because John Cusack is basically supposed to be the audience, the outsider being introduced to this new world and all of these weird things, and he's basically the audience's avatar reacting to all of this wackiness. And sidebar here, for the Christmas party scene at Mercer House, they actually invited a large number of people who had previously been at James Arthur Williams' parties, including several members of his family. Later in the evening, John and Jim share a quiet drink in Jim's study, where the conversation turns more personal, and John learns more about the man behind that evening's decadent southern splendor. Jim reveals that he was born in Gordon, Georgia, the son of a barber and a secretary, with no family fortune or grand inheritance to fall back on, and all of the power and possessions he now wields were only obtained within the last 11 years. Suddenly, without warning, the door bursts open and in walks Billy Hansen, making one of the most entertainingly disruptive entrances I have personally ever seen.
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil - CLIP:Fuck you, goddamn bitch! Wouldn't they even let me in the fucking house had to come in a servant's entrance?
Kevin Spacey:Billy, I thought we agreed you'd stay away tonight. Don't give me that drag ass shit, Jimmy. My guy stood up tonight.
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil - CLIP:I'm pissed off. Give me $20. You get paid on Friday like everyone else. What do you need $20 now? Give me $20 a need to get fucked up is what? Well, I'd say you've accomplished that support. Give me the money. I ain't even close to getting fucked up the wild moon. No, I'm not gonna give you money for liquor and marijuana cigarettes and whatever else you've been buying them for. You, Jim. You don't give me warnings. I give them to you, remember, because I can back mine up. You, you piece of shit. You better watch yourself. Okay.
Ashley:So this is pretty accurate, at least per the book, of how the author and Danny Hansford first meet. Minus the breaking the glass and wielding it as a weapon. He just kind of comes in, is in a drunken rage, and demands money. Jim gives him the money and he leaves.
Remi:Personally speaking, Jude Law is fucking terrible in this film, but he did get better, at least, later in life.
Ashley:I don't think he was really bad in that scene, but granted, that's all I've seen thus far.
Remi:Well, that is his only scene in the film, so that's all he gets. Billy dramatically storms out of the room, leaving John and Jim alone in awkward silence. Seemingly having dealt with this sort of thing before, Jim appears remarkably unfazed, gliding over to a nearby piano and calmly taking a seat. With a flick of a switch, a large red curtain sweeps open at the front of the room, revealing a massive hidden pipe organ as Jim launches into a boomingly jaunty little ditty purely to irritate his neighbor's dogs for his own amusement. You gotta take joy in the petty things in life, apparently, when you're this rich. Once the party has concluded and the guests have all cleared out, John and Jim have one last drink together before John heads back to his hotel and calls it a night. John's beauty sleep is disrupted for the second night in a row when he is awoken soon after by flashing blue and red lights illuminating his room and the intrusive sounds of sirens echoing through the quiet square outside. Checking out his window, John notices that police cruisers have lined the streets along with numerous officers assembling outside Jim's mansion.
Ashley:So, side note, the Christmas party scene that we previously just saw is obviously from December. The murder of Danny Hansford, aka Billy Hansen, in this film, actually took place at the beginning of May, not the night after the author met Danny.
Remi:Did it occur at a party?
Ashley:No. So the author first met Danny at a big party, and then, as I'll explain in my portion later, the murder occurred five months later when it was just Jim and Danny spending the night together.
Remi:Okay, so they're condensing the timeline.
Ashley:Yes, which what I've heard from you is something that continues throughout the remainder of the spell.
Remi:Wanting to get a closer look, John joins a gaggle of neighborhood onlookers being served cocktails and hors d'oeuvres by Joe Odom, watching the events unfold from across the street as if it were a stage play. When John inquires what all the fuss is about, he is given the shocking news that Jim Williams shot and killed Billy Hansen sometime after John had left for the evening. John rushes inside to find Jim, rattled and shaken, giving his statement to the police. According to Jim, Billy came back later that night, drunk and enraged, threatening him with a handgun, firing first and narrowly missing. Acting in self-defense, Jim claims to have then grabbed his own Luger pistol from his desk drawer and returned fire, consequently ending Billy's life in the process. In Jim's office, investigators photograph Billy's lifeless body, face down on an ornate rug, with a gun still clenched between his fingers and bullet holes in the opposing wall. The next morning, John gets on the phone with his literary agent, explaining how what was supposed to be a quick, easy 500-word piece about a Christmas party had unexpectedly turned into a full-blown true crime story overnight. So John was now planning on staying in Savannah to continue covering the story with the intention of expanding the material into a novel. John begins his investigation at Billy's old apartment, a small, run-down little carriage house, which Billy shared with a local drag performer named Lady Shablis, played by Chablis DeVoe, a sharp, confident transgender woman who is also totally uninterested in talking to John.
Ashley:Okay, Lady Shablis is in the book, obviously. She has one full chapter and a couple others where she is a strong supporting character, but she did not live with Billy Hansen, aka Danny Hansford. She is just another random person that the author met while he was living in Savannah.
Remi:Wait, so she's not directly involved in the crime at all?
Ashley:No.
Remi:Wow, okay. Yeah, she is like a major figure throughout the entire film. She'd probably be the third build. After Lady Chablis turns down John's Inquisition, John is not deterred. In fact, he drives out to pick up some beautiful pink roses from Mandy's flower shop, then waits outside Lady Chablis' doctor appointment, greeting her with a bouquet of flowers and an offer for a ride home as a kind of peace offering when she walks out.
Ashley:So he does end up giving Lady Shablis a ride home, but not because he was trying to get a story. She just ran into him and was like, hey you, drive me home. And he did.
Remi:Well, Lady Shablis in the film does agree to a ride from John, leading to the following conversation.
Lady Chablis:What'd you want to talk to me about? Billy Hanson. No, Billy's dead. Case closed. Billy, my boyfriend. Were you two lovers? No, hell no. Billy was way too trashy for me, honey. I'm a lady. However, he did date my roommate Corinne for a while. The two of those had some wild times together. So tell me more about her, Corinne. Corinne's like a lot of girls. She found herself attracted to the wrong type of man. Billy was not the right type of man. She thought she could change him, but there was no way of changing that evil son of a bitch. I'd love to speak to Corinne. I'd like to speak to her too. But she skipped town, owing me too much rent. And Billy said that he would pay for it, but now he's, you know, he's Wow.
Ashley:This is a much more tamed-down version of Lady Chablis versus how she is portrayed in the book.
Remi:She's great in this film, but I did expect the girl that Billy was supposedly hooking up with, Corinne, to come back and make an appearance at some point, but she never comes into the story at all. Down at a diner later, John spots a man sitting alone, covered in bumblebees tied to strings attached to his sweater, buzzing all around him like it's the most normal thing in the world. Legend has it that while eating breakfast every morning, the man debates whether or not to use the small vial sitting next to his plate to poison the town's water supply. This also doesn't really have anything to do with the plot, however, but oh well.
Ashley:Yeah, so this is supposed to be Luther Driggers. He was actually a man that for his whole career worked for the government in some capacity. He's actually credited, at least in the book, as being the original inventor of the flea collar, but because he was a government employee at the time, he couldn't get any money for his work. At the time the author met him, he was a technician at the government insectory, where he was responsible for raising colonies of beetles so he could test insecticides on them. When he got bored, he would put flies to sleep and glue long threads to their back so he would just be seen on occasion walking around holding a dozen strings, walking his pet flies around downtown. Sometimes, when they were passed out, he would also glue wasp wings to them to improve their aerodynamics, or make one wing slightly shorter than the other so they would fly in circles for the rest of their lives. He also did claim to have a vial of some super deadly poison that he just would consider dunking into the water supply at night. At the end of the book, it is revealed that while he does have this vial, he knows he couldn't do that because the water supply is from a deep underground aqueduct.
Remi:In the movie, I assume they converted the flies to bumblebees because bumblebees are easier to film on screen. They're a little bit bigger and easier to spot.
Ashley:And cuter.
Remi:Alright, on to the voodoo. Later that night, Jim brings John to a foggy old cemetery hidden out by the live oaks on the edge of town. Out of the darkness comes Minerva, the same woman we saw at the beginning of the film talking to a squirrel, moving through the mist with a lantern in hand, her jewelry glinting faintly in the moonlight, wrapped in layers of shawls and scarves. Turns out Minerva is a voodoo high priestess, and Jim brought her out here to perform a midnight ritual that has something to do with Billy's soul, though the details are vague at best. Whatever it is, it involves chanting, cash, and Minerva lying face down on the grave of her late husband, Dr. Buzzard.
Ashley:Isn't that such a great name?
Remi:It really is. Is that really her late husband's name?
Ashley:It is.
Remi:A few days later, Jim is indicted by a grand jury on murder one charges, potentially facing a life sentence. During his initial hearing, prosecuting attorney, Finlay Largent, played by Bob Gunton, successfully petitions for Jim to be held without bail until the trial. During a later jailhouse interview, Jim opens up to John about his relationship with Billy, admitting that the bond between them hadn't exactly been platonic. Meanwhile, gossip around town is heating up down at the Married Women's Card Club, where Cynthia Vaughn and her married friends play a bridge game while chit-chatting about the case and how no gunpowder residue was found on Billy's hands, directly contradicting Jim's version of the events.
Ashley:So you laugh, but the Married Women's Card Club was actually one of Savannah's most exclusive societies that was founded in 1893 by 16 women in search of amusement during the day while their husbands were at work. It always only had 16 members. Once a month on a Tuesday, everyone gathered at someone's house for two hours of cards, cocktails, and a light dinner. Thirty-two guests were invited by engraved invitation, so the total women always was 48, and everyone followed a strict schedule down to when each cocktail would be served. If a member got divorced, she was forced to resign.
Remi:When the time finally comes to pick the jury, I'll give you one guess as to which colorful character made the final cut. That's right, it's the Bumblebee sweater guy with the poison! The perfect man for the job. And why is that? Well, in the words of Jim's attorney, Sonny, hey, we're the defense. We need all the nuts we can get.
Ashley:Yeah, Luther was not on the jury.
Remi:Three days later, the trial finally begins. The prosecutor, Finlay Largent, kicks things off first with his opening statements, which go on and on for the next two hours. Once finished, Sonny stands up for the defense, gives his opening remarks, and wraps everything up in about two minutes. And quick sidebar here, the judge during the trial was played by Sonny Seller, the real attorney for Jim Williams during the trials. Over the next few days, the prosecution brings in one of the detectives from the case who testifies that there was no gunshot residue found on Billy's hands. This means that Billy's gun was never fired, and that the entire crime scene was likely staged. Sonny fires back by showing photos taken right after the shooting. In them you can clearly see John inside Jim's house along with seven other people, and even a cat, all walking around the scene doing God knows what, and if the place was that busy after the fact, how can anyone trust the evidence? Next up on the witness stand is George Tucker, a young man who knew Billy personally and is being played by Michael Rosenbaum. How well did you know Billy Hanson?
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil - CLIP:What kind of friends was he? Yes, sir. He's about my best friend in the world. We saw each other all the time. There's nothing he wouldn't do for me. And nothing you wouldn't do for him. Look, if you're trying to say I'm lying, I'm not. Take it easy, young man. How well did you know Jim Williams? I mean, you never did meet him, did you? Not shaking hands or nothing, but I stood next to him in the emergency room when Billy O'D. Billy Hansen overdosed on drugs? When was this? About a month before Jim killed him. So Jim Williams took Billy Hansen to the hospital and saved his life. I mean, if you wanted him dead, wh why would he do that? I don't know.
Remi:And this is just my personal opinion here, but I think that Michael Rosenbaum, who also played Lex Luther on Smallville, would have made a way better Billy than Jude Law did in this film. But again, that's just my personal opinion. During his cross-examination, George testifies that Jim would often give Billy money whenever he needed it, and even bought him a muscle car in exchange for sexual favors. He also mentions that Jim could get jealous quite easily, and that the two of them would fight pretty often. Elsewhere, after receiving her subpoena, Lady Chablis crashes the 40th Annual Alpha Phi Black Debutante Ball at the Savannah Cotillion Club, where John is also in attendance. After suggestively hobnobbing with the upper class Boomonde, Chablis takes to the center of the dance floor to boogie on down to the classical string version of Richie Vallon's La Bamba, stealing the entire evening in the process.
Ashley:There is an entire chapter in the book about this debutante ball, John being invited, and Lady Chablis crashing it because she was mad at John for not inviting her with him.
Remi:That's surprising. I almost didn't even include this because, again, it has absolutely nothing to do with anything.
Ashley:She did, however, not testify at the trial because she had really no relationship with Billy slash Danny at all.
Remi:Well, in the film, despite her initial trepidation about testifying, Lady Chablis does inevitably take to the stand. She tells the court that she knew Billy socially before he started seeing her roommate Corinne, and explains that Billy had a serious drug problem, regularly using weed, cocaine, pills, and alcohol while dealing a little on the side. Whenever Billy got high, though, his behavior would shift dramatically, making him extremely hostile and often violent. Later, after drinks one night, John and Mandy sneak into the morgue to get a look at some of the bodies with a little help from a distraction courtesy of Lady Chablis. While there, John finds out that when Billy's body was first brought in, his hands had not been bagged right away, which is something that should have been done immediately. This mistake contradicts the detective's earlier testimony and means that Billy's hands could have potentially been wiped clean any time before the testing. The next time John visits Jim in prison, Jim finally lays out his version of the events that fateful night. Jim still claims that after a heated argument, Billy did pull a gun on him and pull the trigger, but the safety had still been on, which prohibited its discharge. While Billy fumbled with his weapon, Jim grabbed his own pistol from his top desk drawer, shooting Billy once in the chest, knocking him to the ground. As Billy lay there bleeding, Jim ended his life by shooting him twice more, then staged the crime scene to appear as though Billy had opened fire first. Jim initially plans on giving a full confession, but after learning of the investigation's screw up with the bagging of Billy's hands, decides to instead continue keeping this admission under wraps between he and John for the time being.
Ashley:Hmm, how convenient.
Remi:In court, Sonny calls the administrative nurse on duty the night Billy's body was brought in, who testifies that Billy's hands were actually bagged much later than originally believed. Finally, Jim takes the stand and explains that he first met Billy when he hired him to do odd jobs around the house. Around that time, Jim says he began struggling with hypoglycemia, and Billy started staying over to help him when he wasn't feeling well. Over time, their relationship became intimate. Jim goes on to say that on the night Billy died, Billy showed up extremely high and they got into an argument about an upcoming trip to London. Jim was planning to attend an auction and wanted Billy to come along because of his health condition. Billy insisted on bringing marijuana with him, and since Jim strongly disapproved of drugs, he told Billy he couldn't come if he chose to do that. The argument escalated and Billy knocked over a large antique clock out in the hallway. Back in his office, Jim says that he tried to call the police, but Billy followed him, brandishing a gun and shouted, I may leave tomorrow, but god damn it, you're leaving tonight. As Jim reached for the luger he kept in his desk drawer, Billy fired two shots, narrowly missing him, which Jim claims caused him to shoot back instinctively without even thinking. During the defense's closing statements, I began contemplating how if this movie was remade today, Sonny would absolutely be being played by legendary character actor Steven Root. Anyway, after an indeterminate amount of deliberation, the jury unanimously finds Jim Williams not guilty on all charges.
Ashley:It was one hour.
Remi:Despite the trial being over, John is urgently beckoned from his hotel room that night by Minerva, who takes John on an eerie boat ride through a foggy swamp to Billy's grave. Once there, the two of them drink some wild turkey while Minerva talks to Billy's grave. And honestly, I'm not exactly sure what she's trying to do here. Maybe raise the dead or something, who knows?
Ashley:She's trying to make sure his angry spirit stays away from Jim.
Remi:The next day, Jim invites John to a daytime cocktail party he's throwing and gifts him an overpainting of Newmarket Heath as a token of his appreciation. And sidebar here, this is a real painting by artist George Stubbs from 1765. It was sold at a Christie's auction in London on July 5th, 2011, for 22.4 million euros, which is the equivalent of approximately 35.9 million dollars. Quite the parting gift he is giving to John. As John gets ready to leave, he asks Jim one last time what really happened that night. After lighting his cigar, Jim smirks and slyly responds, Truth, like art, is in the eye of the beholder. Moments after John leaves, Jim is seemingly attacked by voodoo magic, grabs his chest and suddenly collapses from a heart attack and dies. Our story concludes with John moving in with Mandy and settling into a life down in Savannah, while Minerva finally makes peace with the squirrel she had been squabbling with from the beginning of the film. And that was Clint Eastwood's Midnight and the Garden of Good and Evil. Do you have any initial thoughts, Ashley?
Ashley:I do. As I was reading this book, I was just floored because there's a lot of supporting random ass characters that I'm sure are mentioned in the film that Remy just omitted for time's sake. And every one of these characters has at least one chapter. Several of them have multiple chapters that are just dedicated to them and what they were doing during the eight years the author lived in Savannah, but none of them have anything to do with the murder. It is kind of weird to me that all these people were included. And because of that, spoiler alert, Jim Williams didn't have one trial. He didn't have two trials. He didn't even have three trials. He had four. All of that was condensed to be able to fit in all of these random side stories. It just seems like a weird choice to me.
Remi:I agree. It's one of those things where if you live in kind of a quirky town for a while, you'll meet locals who are equally as quirky. And that seems to be what happened to John while he was living in Savannah. He was meeting all of these weird, interesting people who really have absolutely nothing to do with Jim Williams, but he still thought they were quirky and interesting enough to be worth mentioning in some way in this novel. And I had a similar problem as you did, Ashley, when I was watching the film, as you did while reading the novel, where these people were kind of coming in and out that have nothing to do with anything, and I was having trouble taking notes because a lot of this has no bearing on the plot.
Ashley:And it's not like this is a short book or short movie. Both are extremely lengthy and both could have been streamlined in their own different ways.
Remi:This was a two and a half hour movie. If you cut out all of the wacky characters on the side, this could have been two hours easy.
Ashley:But what I will say, I do think the casting was done pretty well. From the scenes that I saw, even though you complained about Jude Law's performance, in the one scene I saw, he was depicting who his inspiration was painted to be. John Cusack just has a dumbfounded, shocked look on his face in every single scene. Like he is just a completely out-of-place person, which is how he comes across in the book. And Jim Williams, to me, is Kevin Spacey.
Remi:And apparently that is a big reason why Clint Eastwood casted John Cusack in this role, because Gross Point Blank is a comedy. And a lot of that movie's comedy is based on John Cusack having facial reactions to weird or crazy shit going on. He's very good at being the straight man who's in an absurd scenario and just kind of giving that look or expression that the audience just understands as just like, can you believe this shit?
Ashley:In every single scene that you showed me, his mouth is agape and he's just like looking around at everyone with that look on his face. Like, is this really happening? Is anyone else shocked? No? That's kind of disturbing me further.
Remi:He doesn't have a lot to do in this film, but he does a good job with what he has.
Ashley:What did you think of the movie?
Remi:It's a mixed bag of nuts for me, I gotta say. There are some good performances, some interesting aspects, but it's kind of a mess. It's all over the place. There are parts of the story that are condensed, and there's other parts that are included that really have nothing to do with anything. I don't know, I feel like there's another version of this film that maybe is a bit more focused that could have been a lot better. But I think the performances in it are almost across the board great. I still don't think Jude Law is very good, but Lady Chablis, who I don't think acted in anything after this, is stealing the show in every scene that she's in.
Ashley:Well, let's get into post-production.
Remi:After filming Rapped in June of 1997, the production celebrated by holding a fundraiser for Savannah's historic Lucas Theater, a 1921 landmark that had fallen into disrepair over the years. Kevin Spacey personally donated $200,000 in Jim Williams' honor, towards the theater's $7.6 million restoration. Spacey spoke fondly of Savannah and even promised to bring a play there someday once the theater had been reopened. I do not know if he ever followed up on this promise. The plan was for Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil to premiere at the newly restored Lucas Theater, but numerous renovation delays led to the event eventually being rescheduled to November 17th at Warner Brothers Studios in Burbank. The Savannah screening at the Johnny Mercer Theater followed three days later, with Jim Williams' sister, Dorothy Kingry, hosting her own private gathering inside Mercer House as the premiere took place. When the movie finally hit theaters nationwide, it struggled to find an audience. With the production budget of around $30 million, the film grossed just $25 million domestically and was considered a box office disappointment. Reviews were decidedly mixed as well, with the film currently holding a 51% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with a critical consensus that reads, Clint Eastwood's spare directorial style proves an ill fit for this Southern potboiler, which dutifully trudges through its mystery while remaining disinterested in the cultural flourishes that gave its source material its sense of intrigue.
Ashley:That's what it kind of felt to me as you were describing it, that it was just a mismatch between director and the book. And honestly, I don't think that this book should have been adapted as honestly as it was to the screen. I don't think we needed all of these supporting characters. I think we just needed a more honest and straightforward story about the murder of Danny Hansford, aka Billy Hansen.
Remi:And I totally agree with you, but despite the film's paltry reception, Clint Eastwood's career continued to climb. Between 2004 and 2015, he picked up eight more Academy Award nominations, winning two Academy Awards for Million Dollar Baby in 2005 for Best Picture and Best Director. Today, Clint Eastwood is 95 years young, with around 40 feature films under his belt as director alone. His most recent film, Juror Number 2, came out just last year in 2024, and is honestly criminally underrated, so if you haven't seen it, you should really check it out.
Ashley:It's really, really, really good.
Remi:As for Kevin Spacey's performance, author John Barrent said in a 2015 interview that he was not impressed, and that Spacey had completely missed the mark. Barrent claimed to have offered Spacey tapes of the real Jim Williams telling stories from his living room in Mercer House, but Spacey declined, saying that he had already listened to the courtroom recordings. When Barrent finally saw the film, he was outright flabbergasted by Spacey's flat and detached portrayal of Williams, which Barrent later blamed on Spacey likely basing his performance on the third trial's recordings when Jim Williams was reportedly on Valium.
Ashley:Interesting. Do you feel like Kevin Spacey was flat in this?
Remi:I thought Kevin Spacey was fine, but I did not know the real Jim Williams, and I could not find any footage or recordings of him, so I really have nothing to base that off of other than what I saw Kevin Spacey do. Spacey's performance as Jim Williams is still one of the most talked-about aspects of the film, with the similarities between Spacey and his character growing disturbingly more apparent over the years. Both men moved in privileged circles and cultivated an air of charm and control while keeping parts of their private lives carefully hidden. Spacey would go on to win his second Oscar in 2000 for American Beauty, a film that, let's be honest, hasn't aged particularly well. Years later, Spacey played a similarly underhanded Southerner as Frank Underwood in the Netflix TV series House of Cards, using almost the exact same voice and accent that he had for Jim Williams. In March of 2017, Spacey was cast as J. Paul Getty in All the Money in the World, directed by Ridley Scott, which we previously covered on our podcast in Season 3, Episode 10. On October 29, 2017, actor Anthony Rapp publicly alleged that Spacey made an unwanted sexual advance towards him at a party in 1986 when Rapp was only 14 and Spacey was 27. Spacey responded shortly after via Twitter, saying he did not remember the incident and apologized for what he described as deeply inappropriate drunken behavior. After Rapp's allegation, more accusers came forward, with multiple people alleging that they had also experienced sexual harassment and misconduct at the hands of Spacey.
Ashley:And again, go to HBO and watch the documentary. The allegations are so disturbing.
Remi:I know people personally who had experiences with Spacey, not to the same degree as some of these others, which I will not go into because those are their stories and I don't feel comfortable sharing them here. But he was a very sexually aggressive man. I'm just gonna put it that way. On November 3rd, 2017, Netflix announced it was severing ties with Spacey and would not have him involved in any capacity on any future projects, and would be suspending production on season six of House of Cards. The show later premiered its final season of just eight episodes on November 2nd, 2018, with Spacey's character dying off-screen and Robin Wright taking over as the lead, playing Frank's wife, Claire Underwood. The film All the Money in the World ended up recasting Spacey's role entirely, and on November 8, 2017, the studio announced that Christopher Plummer would be his replacement. From 2018 to 2022, multiple jurisdictions opened investigations into Spacey, with various charges being made, dropped, or otherwise resolved in different cases. On Christmas Eve, 2018, mere hours after Massachusetts prosecutors announced indecent assault charges against him, Spacey posted a three-minute video on YouTube called Let Me Be Frank, delivered in character as Frank Underwood from House of Cards.
Kevin Spacey:You want me back. Of course, some believed everything and have just been waiting with bated breath to hear me confess it all. They're just dying to have me declare that everything said is true and that I got what I deserved. Wouldn't that be easy? If it was all so simple? Only you and I both know it's never that simple, not in politics and not in life. But you wouldn't believe the worst without evidence, would you? You wouldn't rush to judgments without facts, would you? Did you?
Ashley:If anyone has not seen this full video, go and watch it on YouTube right now. I remember when it was dropped and watching it thinking, this guy is unhinged.
Remi:Well, Spacey went on to film three more videos in character as Frank Underwood, titled Let Me Be Frank 2, 1-800 X-Myth, and Once Again, which were released annually every year on December 24th, before finally ending the Unwanted Yearly Tradition in 2021.
Ashley:I think I only saw the first two.
Remi:I've only seen the first one, so we have a little evening ahead of us, apparently. Spacey was found not liable in the suit brought against him by Anthony Rapp in a New York civil court in 2022. Spacey also faced trial for sexual assault charges in the UK, and in July of 2023, a jury found him not guilty of the remaining nine charges. Despite the legal findings in his favor, the stigma and professional challenges for Spacey have continued. His publicist and agency have both abandoned him, many of his former collaborators have distanced themselves, and his entire career was essentially cancelled. Though his reputation remains severely impacted, Spacey has made a few partial attempts at a return, but thankfully none have succeeded. And on a personal note, let me just close by saying, Fuck you, Kevin Spacey. And that was Clint Eastwood's Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. But this is just one jumbled-up mix version of the story, which is apparently including a lot of wacky characters and excluding a lot of accurate information, which is where I believe you come in, Miss Ashley. Do you want to set the record straight for everyone? Because I'm willing to bet that there are a few inconsistencies here.
Ashley:Let's do it. Jim had a modest upbringing. In high school, he developed an eye for objects other people overlooked. He started buying small trinkets, like old oil lamps for a quarter, fixing them up and reselling them for twice the price he paid. As his profits grew, so too did the scale of his fines. He graduated to mirrors and furniture, restoring each piece in a makeshift woodworking shop and selling them through ads in the local paper. William studied piano at Middle Georgia College before switching past and enrolling in the interior design program at Ringling College in Sarasota, Florida.
Remi:Hey, shout out to Sarasota.
Ashley:After two years, he transferred to Mercer University in Mackin, Georgia. In 1952, following a brief stint in the Air Force, he settled in Savannah. He spent a year working in a furniture store, then struck out on his own, opening a small shop specializing in antiques. At age 24, he purchased and personally restored three buildings, a career move that marked the beginning of his legacy. Williams found success almost immediately. He became a central figure in the restoration of Savannah's historic district, a movement that took off in the mid-1950s. Over the course of his life, he restored more than 50 homes in Savannah and surrounding areas, built a thriving antiques empire, accumulated considerable wealth, and cemented himself as a major player in Savannah society.
Remi:50 homes, that's pretty impressive.
Ashley:And these aren't just like your average houses. These are huge historic mansions that few people lived in. They were more things that became kind of like event centers and ballrooms.
Remi:They were like historic buildings.
Ashley:In 1966, he bought the small coastal cabbage island for $5,000. Locals thought he'd been duped. The island was listed for half that amount the year before. But Williams had the last laugh. When phosphates were discovered under several nearby islands, he sold it for $660,000. And that's 1966 money, so it's millions he made from this.
Remi:Not too shabby.
Ashley:With his new fortune, he purchased the historic Mercer House, a three-story, 7,000 square foot mansion built during the Civil War by General Hugh Mercer. And it became the childhood home of singer-songwriter Johnny Mercer. The house was so esteemed that Jackie Onassis once offered $2 million for it. Williams spent the next two years restoring Mercer House, unveiling his work at a lavish Christmas party in 1970. The annual event became one of Savannah's most coveted invitations, with every socialite praying for an invite. In the late 70s, Williams had a chance encounter with 19-year-old Danny Hansford. One afternoon, Hansford happened to be riding by on his bike just as Williams arrived home. Hearing that Williams often hired people with little experience to work in his restoration shop, Hansford boldly asked for a job. He began working part-time, stripping old finishes off furniture, moving heavy pieces, and handling various odd jobs. Unlike Williams, Hansford had a troubled past. One of three sons born in Savannah, he spent his younger years in and out of juvenile homes and psychiatric hospitals, dropped out of school in the eighth grade, became homeless at age 15, and turned to prostitution. He also had a terrible temper. Throughout Williams' four trials, numerous witnesses provided testimony illustrating how Hansford could erupt at the slightest provocation. But despite his temper and inconsistent work habits, Williams grew fond of him. Around 1979, he even began living at Mercer House and became Williams' intermittent sexual partner. But the stability of the arrangement did little to soften his anger. Williams told author John Barrent several stories about Hansford damaging property, getting into fights, and calling in the middle of the night for bail money after alcohol or drug-fueled rages. One of the most severe episodes unfolded on April 3, 1981. And take special notice to this because this incident is going to come up multiple times at Williams' future trials. According to Williams, Hansford was already on edge that night, upset over a friend's insult about his car and frustrated by his girlfriend's refusal to marry him unless he found a full-time job. Fueled by alcohol and anger, he stomped on a table, hurled a lamp and glass pitcher against the wall, and even fired a shot from one of Williams' pistols into his bedroom floor. Before running outside to try to shoot out a streetlight, he allegedly shouted, How damn mad do I have to make you before you kill me? When Williams called the police, Hansford went upstairs and pretended to be asleep. He was arrested, but Williams bailed him out the next morning. Despite the chaos of this night, Williams soon asked Hansford to accompany him to an upcoming European antique spying trip. He claimed he needed a companion due to worsening hypoglycemic blackouts. A few weeks later, Hansford mentioned that he was trying to figure out how to smuggle marijuana onto the plane for personal use during the trip. That prompted Williams to invite another employee, Joe Goodman, instead. A decision Danny didn't seem to mind. A few weeks later, on the night of May 2nd, 1981, the tension between Williams and Hansford erupted again, this time fatally. We'll never know for certain what happened that night, but this is how Williams described it to the police, media, and at trial. On the night of the shooting, Williams and Hansford returned home from a drive-in movie around midnight. Over the course of the evening, Hansford smoked nine joins and drank half a pint of whiskey.
Remi:Wow, nine joints? That's pretty high.
Ashley:While playing some games, Hansford spiraled into another rage. He ranted about his mother putting him in detention centers, claiming she hated him because he resembled the father she divorced. He again fumed about his friend George Hill wanting his car and his girlfriend Bonnie refusing to marry him because he couldn't hold down a steady job. Then he turned on Williams, saying, And you took away my trip to Europe before stomping on the Atari game console. As Williams stood to leave, Hansford grabbed him by the throat and threw him against a door. Williams retreated into his study to call for help, but Hansford followed, demanding to know who he was calling. Williams told him to speak with Joe Goodman to confirm the European trip was off. Goodman later said he spoke briefly with both men around 2.05 a.m. But this call did little to temper Hansford's rage. Williams said he picked up a silver tankard, threatening to throw it through a painting. Fed up with all the property destruction, Williams ordered Hansford to leave. He heard more crashing in the living room, which turned out to be a couple broken cups, maybe a broken chair, and a tipped-over grandfather clock. After several minutes, Hansford returned holding a gun. While pointing it, he allegedly stated, I'm leaving tomorrow, but you're leaving tonight. He fired the gun at Williams, who was sitting at his desk, but all three shots missed before the gun jammed. Williams then reached into his desk drawer, grabbed another pistol, and fired. Panicked, Williams called Joe Goodman once again, then his lawyer, then the police. The time was now about 3 a.m. All three parties arrived at almost the same time. Williams met them at the door and calmly stated, I just shot him. He's in the other room. Oddly, the first officer at the scene, Corporal Michael Anderson, was the same officer who arrested Hansford during the April incident just a month prior. Hansford was found laying face down dead on the floor of Williams' study. He had three gunshot wounds, one each to his chest, back, and behind his ear. Two pistols were recovered, and Hansford's hand was lightly cupped over one. Williams was escorted to police headquarters at 7 a.m., formally charged with murder and held on a $25,000 bond. Instead of calling his attorney, he phoned his friend Goodman and told him where he could find a bag of cash. He was bailed out just 15 minutes later. Williams gave at least two interviews to the local press in the subsequent days. He claimed self-defense and went calmly about his affairs. Four days after the shooting, he petitioned the court for permission to travel to Europe for a week on an antique spying trip. The judge raised his bond to $100,000 and let him go. Locals drew their own conclusions about the case long before forensic testing was completed. Stories about Hansford's troubled upbringing and uncontrollable rages circulated. Neighbors recalled seeing him scream and break things. There were also tales about how his own family was afraid of him and fought for protective orders. Popular opinions seemed to support Williams' narrative of self-defense. In interviews, Williams described Hansford as severely disturbed. He claimed he bailed Hansford out of jail nine times in the past 10 months, and that he attempted suicide twice via drug overdose. Though Williams never fully explained their relationship, only referring to Hansford as a part-time employee, several people who knew Hansford were aware about his sexual relationship with Williams and his continued work as a male hustler. But the elite of Savannah were pretty much completely unaware of him. Williams was formally indicted for first-degree murder on June 17, 1981. This charge meant that Williams killed Hansford with foresight and malice. Many Savannians felt the charge was excessive and believed involuntary manslaughter would have been more appropriate, given all that was known about the case thus far. Nonetheless, Williams' trial was set to begin in January 1982. In the meantime, he went back to Europe once more, hosted his annual Christmas party, and resumed his old routines. He showed little remorse, insisting publicly that he did nothing wrong.
Remi:So he was just kind of going about his life, despite all this mounting legal pressure all around him.
Ashley:A few days after the indictment, Hansford's mom, 39-year-old Emily Bannister, filed a civil suit against Williams, seeking $10 million in damages plus funeral expenses. This civil case would be put on hold until the criminal proceedings were done. Williams assembled a formidable legal team, led by John Wright Jones, one of Savannah's better known criminal defense lawyers. Joining him was Bobby Lee Cook, a renowned attorney from Somerville. Cook had defended over 250 people accused of murder with a remarkable success rate. He was known for taking cases most lawyers wanted nothing to do with. People magazine once wrote, If the devil ever needed a defense, Bobby Lee Cook would take the case. Tests revealed no gunpowder residue on Hansford's hands, and the location of the bullet wounds raised questions. While one did enter his chest, the position of the body suggested that the other two were fired while he was face down on the floor. Lastly, the gun found near Hansford's body had no fingerprints, indicating it may have been white clean. None of this looked good for Williams. His attorneys met with the coroner of Catham County, Dr. James Metz, wanting to know if there was any possible scenario in which Hansford could have been standing upright when all three bullets were fired. Dr. Metz couldn't know for certain if Hansford was standing up or laying down, but he offered a possible explanation. The force of the first bullet, which hit Hansford in the chest, could have caused him to spin, resulting in the last two shots hitting him from behind before he fell. Other details hinted at a possibly staged crime scene. Although Hansford's hand was resting on top of the gun, there was no blood transfer or fingerprints on it. This led investigators to speculate that Williams moved Hansford's hand, perhaps to better align with his story.
Remi:So his fingerprints weren't on the trigger?
Ashley:There was no fingerprints or blood or anything on that gun.
Remi:So his hand was just lightly resting on top of it.
Ashley:On top of it or by it, but his hand did have blood on it, probably because he clutched his chest when he was shot, but there was no No blood on the gun. Additionally, there was blood smear near Hansford's body, like his hand had been dragged from out underneath him. Perhaps Williams checked his pulse after he shot him, panicked, and tried to cover up his tracks? Even small objects in the room seemed out of place. A chair leg was found on top of Hanford's pant leg, suggesting a hurried rearrangement after the shooting.
Remi:I have a quick question.
Ashley:They were both Williams' guns. He had several pistols kind of stashed around the house because he had reportedly been robbed a few times, so he had them for protection. Adding context to the atmosphere in Savannah at the time, in early 1981, the city witnessed another high-profile case. A 33-year-old man visiting to judge a beauty pageant was stomped to death in a parking garage by four Army Rangers. The men claimed the victim, a married man with two children, made a homosexual advance, leading them to brutalize him beyond all recognition. It is disgusting to me that this used to be an acceptable defense. A few days before Hansford's murder, the defendants were found not guilty of murder, but instead of misdemeanor simple battery. They were sentenced to one year in jail with the chance of release after just six months, sparking public outrage.
Remi:That is a fucking travesty of justice right there. That's horrendous.
Ashley:This case was prosecuted by the newly elected district attorney, 37-year-old Spencer Lawton Jr. Sidebar, his great-great-grandfather was one of the founders of the American Bar Association. And since this was Spencer Lawton Jr.'s first case and it ended so controversially, he desperately needed and wanted a better outcome.
Remi:I mean, he's gotta live up to his family's legacy. They did invent the bar, after all.
Ashley:Williams's first trial began on January 25th, 1982. The courtroom was filled to capacity, though Miss Bannister, Hansford's mother, was noticeably absent. Turns out, defense attorney Bobby Lee Cook feared she might create a scene and prejudice the jury. To prevent this, he listed her as a defense witness to bar her from the courtroom, even though he had no intention of ever calling her.
Remi:That is very underhanded.
Ashley:It's really despicable. This is her son. The prosecution opened by calling the police dispatcher, who testified that they received the call reporting the shooting at 2.58 a.m. Joe Goodman also testified that Williams called him around 2.20 to report that he shot Hansford, leaving a gap of more than 30 minutes between those calls. Other prosecution witnesses reconstructed the shooting to support their theory. Williams allegedly fired once across his desk at an unarmed Hansford, circled the desk, and fired twice more at point blank range. Then, he supposedly picked up a second gun, fired three times towards where he would have been sitting behind the desk, wiped his fingerprints off the weapon, and repositioned Hansford's hand over the gun. During that 30-minute break between phone calls, he allegedly smashed objects in the house to stage the scene before calling 911. To support this theory, the prosecution highlighted several inconsistencies. Tracing of the bullet trajectory suggested Williams was standing near Hansford's head when he fired at the desk, not where his feet would have been. There was also a bullet fragment on his chair, which couldn't have been there if Williams was seated when it was fired. Officers also found an unfired bullet in the middle of the floor. The prosecution also pointed out a dejected bullet from Danny's gun in the middle of the floor, the smeared blood from his hand, and the chair leg resting on Hanford's pantcuff. They also pointed out the lack of gunshot residue on his hands. They concluded their case with testimony from Dr. Larry Howard of the State Crime Lab, who described the scene as contrived. The defense countered with their own team of witnesses. The star expert witness was Dr. Joseph Burton, a medical examiner from Miami and Atlanta who performed over 7,000 autopsies, including nine victims of the infamous Atlanta child murders. Do you know that case, Remy?
Remi:I am not familiar with that one, no.
Ashley:So this case references 30 people, mostly teenagers, young adults, and some children, that were murdered in Atlanta between 1979 and 1981. There was someone who was convicted of it, Wayne Williams. He's thought to be a serial killer. He was sentenced to life in prison. He was only convicted of two of the murders, but he's suspected to have committed them all. And there might be some questions as to whether this man is responsible.
Remi:Is this the one where they caught him like returning to the crime scene that was like at a bridge or something like that?
Ashley:Yes.
Remi:Okay, I do remember this one now.
Ashley:Dr. Barton cast doubt on the accuracy of the tests the crime lab used to analyze Hansford's hands for gunshot residue.
Remi:There is a scene in the film where Jim's attorney is discussing the fact that they have an expert on the prosecution side that's gonna say that there was no gun residue on the victim's hands. And Jim's attorney's response is, well, we'll just find our own expert.
Ashley:Well, according to Dr. Burton, the atomic absorption method that the crime lab used was unreliable and widely disregarded in the field of forensic pathology. He cited a research study that he actually conducted out of Atlanta, in which the test yielded negative results 60% of the time in his sample of persons who were known to have committed suicide with a firearm. So to him, the results of this test were of little to no significance. Dr. Burton also visited Mercer House multiple times to reenact the shooting, concluding that all shots likely came from behind the desk. He testified that it would have been physically impossible for Williams to have fired the shots from anywhere else based on where the bullets entered and exited Hansford's body.
Remi:Impossible, okay.
Ashley:Yeah, that's a big conclusive statement there. He argued that the angles of the bullet wounds, bone fragments, hair found in the corner of the room, and blood spatter all aligned with the rapid sequence of shots fired from behind the desk, with the first causing Hansford's body to spin before falling. As for the smeared blood, Dr. Burton explained that it might have been the result of Hansford dropping the gun and clutching his chest before falling to the floor. And then basically his hand just kind of moved or fell out from under him.
Remi:Very convenient.
Ashley:Several witnesses also testified about Hansford's history of violence. For example, a psychiatrist from Georgia Regional Hospital recounted instances of property damage, threats, and his need for seclusion and restraint for the safety of himself and others. And this is when he was a child. So I think it's pretty fucked up that the judge allowed evidence of his mental state when he was not an adult into the trial.
Remi:Well, how old was he when he was shot? He was still very young.
Ashley:21.
Remi:So he was only legally an adult for three years at that point. So I guess they needed to include additional material.
Ashley:Many upstanding citizens of Savannah were also called to vouch for Williams' character. The last witness was someone everyone was waiting to hear from, Jim Williams. On direct, he came across as confident and composed. He recounted meeting Danny in the April 3rd incident before telling his recollection of the shooting in detail. But he became cold and evasive during cross, especially during questions about the nature of his relationship with Danny Hansford. On rebuttal, the prosecution called two young men to challenge Williams' narrative. Both men knew Hansford well and Williams peripherally. They were well aware of the sexual relationship between the two, something the defense was clearly trying to keep from the jury. In closing arguments, the prosecution attempted to frame the April 3rd incident as a prelude or a setup for murder. You see, during prior testimony, the officer who arrested Hansford that night testified that he couldn't determine if the bullet hole in the floor was fresh or pre-existing. And DA Lawton ran with that remark in closing, suggesting that it was made before the April 3rd incident and that Williams used Hansford's arrest to lay the groundwork for committing murder and claiming self-defense. So he's basically arguing that there was an argument on April 3rd, but the bullet hole that was found in the ground could have been from a prior incident and this was all some sort of big setup for Williams to be able to kill him later. It does seem like a stretch to me. On February 2nd, 1982, after just three hours of deliberation, Williams was found guilty. He was immediately sentenced to life in prison, as mandated by Georgia law. However, just two days later, he was released on a $200,000 bond pending appeal. He returned to his antiques business and, with the court's permission, traveled to New York to attend a party at a museum. While he still received invitations to dine and socialize, his status in Savannah society was slowly eroding. Privately, he expressed deep bitterness. He resented the indignity of being charged with murder in the first place, convinced from the outset that his version of events would be accepted and the case would just resolve quickly and quietly. He later told author John Barrent that he had been particularly frustrated by the police investigation, accusing officers of wandering through Mercer House like they were on a tour of Versailles, staying for four hours and enjoying themselves in the house. Which this is kind of true. Police arrived around 3:30 and he wasn't taken out of the home until 7, and there was a lot of police officers on the scene. This was not a well-secured crime scene in the least.
Remi:That is also depicted in the film.
Ashley:He even joked that if Hansford's mother won her lawsuit, he would blow up the house to ensure she could never get possession of it.
Remi:That's a little extreme.
Ashley:Williams' appeal of his conviction made it all the way to the Georgia Supreme Court. They focused their attention on the hole in the bedroom floor upstairs. Remember, in closing arguments, the prosecution argued that the bullet hole was older than when Hansford was arrested, further claiming it was staged to support Williams' self-defense narrative. In their appellate petition, Bobby Lee Cook cited an envelope he was mailed by an anonymous source in the DA's office a few weeks after Williams was convicted. Inside was a copy of the April 3rd police report written by the arresting officer, which explicitly stated, we did find a fresh bullet hole in the floor, contradicting the testimony he gave at trial. Prior to the trial, the defense had obtained an edited version of this report, but this critical line had been whited out. In January 1983, the Georgia Supreme Court overturned Williams' conviction on the grounds of prosecutorial misconduct. You can't just edit out parts of evidence that you think hurts your narrative. So this was a good call by the Supreme Court here. The prosecution announced right away that they would be retrying the case. Bobby Lee Cook had to withdraw due to a scheduling conflict. Replacing him was Frank Sonny Seller, a prominent Savannah attorney representing Williams on the civil case. In Seller's view, the biggest flaw from the first trial was the defense not addressing Williams and Hanford's sexual relationship directly. Williams was reluctant to talk about it in court, but agreed to do so once Seller assured him he would make sure his mom was ushered out of the room when it came to that point. Seller also developed extensive questions to make sure anyone with homophobic biases were weeded out during jury selection. The defense commissioned independent forensic testing on the guns and Hanford's clothing. They hired Dr. Irving Stone of the Forensic Science Institute in Dallas, the man who analyzed the clothing of President Kennedy and Governor Collony for the Congressional Committee that re-examined the assassination. During reenactment, Dr. Stone determined that Hansford's gun had an unusually heavy trigger pull, 20 pounds compared to the standard four to six. This required him to exert extra effort and for the gun to jerk when it was fired, which he said could explain why Hansford missed Williams when he shot at him three times.
Remi:From the recoil.
Ashley:Stone also found no gunshot residue on Hanford's clothing, meaning that Williams had to have been at least four feet away, as that is how far his gun ejected debris. The defense also uncovered troubling issues with the initial handling of evidence. The prosecution had introduced about 20 photographs, but the police photographer testified that she used five rolls of film, meaning there were over 100 images the defense never saw. Of these newly obtained photos, one showed a chair behind the desk with a leather pouch against the leg. In another, that same pouch was several inches away. Other photographs revealed that objects on the desk had even shifted. It was clear that the crime scene had not been properly secured, as no one is supposed to touch anything until photography and evidence collection is completed. These inconsistencies provided additional grounds to challenge the prosecution's narrative. Although Williams treated his appeal win as total vindication, he wasn't ready to leave the retrial up to chance. Enter Voodoo Master Minerva from Beaufort, South Carolina. Minerva was known as the last great voodoo practitioner in Beaufort County. She took over her husband's practice after he died a few years ago. Prior to his death, Dr. Buzzard had built a reputation helping clients with legal troubles. He would sit quietly in court and glare at witnesses while chewing a root, channeling his energy toward judges and juries. Some paid him to curse their enemies, others came to have curses removed. One night, Williams, author John Barrent, and Minerva visited a graveyard at deadtime, which lasts from 11:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. The first 30 minutes is for good curses, and the last 30 is for evil ones. Hence the title, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.
Remi:Oh, they didn't really explain that part of it. So you have 30 minutes of good and 30 minutes of evil. That's a nice even split, I guess.
Ashley:Minerva and Williams performed a series of symbolic acts with dimes, roots, and rainwater, all meant to counteract Danny Hansford's supposed negative influence on Williams and his trial. Minerva then switched to curses against D.A. Lawton. She instructed Williams on a series of rituals to strengthen the curses, which he did admit were a little kooky, but could have some therapeutic value. Nonetheless, the whole ordeal illustrated his flair for the dramatic and eccentric length he would go to feel in control of his fate.
Remi:So he's like, I did some voodoo, I've got all of my bases covered.
Ashley:The retrial of Jim Williams began in September 1983 and ran until October 8th. Anticipating the intense publicity, the defense asked for the jury to be sequestered, and their reaction was dramatic. Four women burst into tears, one man openly declared he would become hostile to the case, and another attempted to flee.
Remi:This is all very extreme reactions.
Ashley:Right? It's not even a long trial, it's like two weeks. Hanford's mother was once again added to the defense witness list to prevent her from being in the courtroom, this time less concerned about an outburst than about the sympathetic effect her waif-like appearance could have on jurors. Among those in the courtroom was Minerva. She positioned herself so she could make direct eye contact with the judge, jury, and DA while she attempted to channel her influence during the proceedings. At one point, she gathered materials to cast a spell using a Bible and an open flame, claiming Danny Hansford's spirit was angry.
Remi:Wait, was this in court?
Ashley:No, it was outside.
Remi:Okay.
Ashley:During cross-examination, the defense was successful in getting the police photographer to admit that items at the crime scene, including the leather pouch against the chair leg, had been moved. This time, when Williams took the stand, he provided additional information about his relationship with Hansford, calling their sexual relationship normal and natural. During Cross, the DA pressed on their age difference, causing a frustrated Williams to say, I was 52, but he had 52 years worth of mileage on him. It's so gross. Forensic testimony again played a central role. Dr. Stone presented his findings on the lack of gunshot residue on Hansford's shirt and the firearm mechanics. Additional witnesses included Vanessa Blatton, a waitress who saw a young man fire a pistol into trees near Williams' home a month before Hansford's death. The defense argued this lined up perfectly with the April 3rd incident. Additionally, Dina Smith, who was visiting Savannah the night of the murder, heard several gunshots all fired in rapid succession around 2 a.m., further reinforcing the defense's narrative. In closing, the defense further emphasized police clumsiness at Mercer House and the chaotic handling of the crime scene. In contrast, Lawton changed little about his view of the April 3rd incident and subsequent murder. He also put on a little demonstration for the jury, focusing on the alleged 20-pound trigger pull of Hansford's weapon, a resistance that was so strong it required Dr. Stone, a former FBI agent, to use two hands to fire. He handed the gun to his petite female assistant. She pulled the trigger with little effort or movement from her target, showing how improbable it was that Hansford would have missed Williams once, much less three times. After just three hours of deliberation, the jury once again returned a guilty verdict.
Remi:So he's lost two out of two so far.
Ashley:The day after his conviction, Williams' request for bond was denied. However, the judge decided he would be held in the Catham County Jail rather than being transported to prison while his lawyers worked on his appeal. Life at Mercer House continued in his absence. His mother moved in, cleaned meticulously, and baked a fresh caramel cake each week in anticipation of his return. Williams also managed to run his businesses from jail. Trusted shopkeeper Barry Thomas gave him Polaroids of new purchases and catalogs for him to pick out upcoming sales so he could decide what he wanted to buy or bid on. He spoke with clients through three-way phone calls through Mercer House and dictated letters for his mother to type on his personal stationery.
Remi:He is treating this entire imprisonment for murder thing like it's just a temporary inconvenience.
Ashley:I think it was important for him to continue doing this because his defense is not cheap. This man needed money. In June 1985, nearly two years after his second trial, the Georgia Supreme Court once again overturned his conviction. The court found significant errors in the trial that compromised the fairness of the proceedings. First, they determined the judge improperly allowed a police detective to testify as an expert on matters jurors were fully competent to assess themselves, like the smeared blood and chair resting on Hansford's pantcuff. Second, the court faulted DA Lawton for waiting until closing arguments to demonstrate the easiness of the gun's trigger pull. By introducing that evidence and closing arguments, the DA denied the defense a proper opportunity to respond. So they're basically saying that when Lawton had his assistant pull the gun during closing arguments, that was introducing new evidence. And you can't do that during closing. You have to do it in the bulk of the trial. Is that new evidence? Yes, because the defense was saying it was a strong trigger pull and the DA showed that it wasn't. So they should have done it earlier.
Remi:During the rebuttal?
Ashley:Yeah, they could have done it during cross or anything like that.
Remi:But saving it till the end gave the defense no time to really try and counteract it.
Ashley:Exactly. Well, shortly after this, Williams was released, estimating he spent close to a half a million dollars on his defense thus far. Upon returning home, Williams paid Minerva $25 a day to cast spells on anyone he suspected of wishing him ill will. His defense team, once again led by Sonny Seller, unsuccessfully tried to suppress evidence seized at Mercer House and moved the trial out of Savannah. He decided to not sequester the jury for fear of further backlash. The lack of gunpowder on Hansford's hands remained one of the most troublesome issues. At the second trial, Dr. Stone testified that the downward angle of the gun, plus a delay in swabs being taken, could have diminished residue by up to 70%, but no more than that, since police took proper procedure of taping paper bags to his hands before moving him. Williams invited author John Barrett to Mercer House for a meeting with his defense team. Before his attorneys arrived, Williams dropped a bombshell. He was considering altering his account of that night. His reasoning? He wanted to tell the truth about what happened, since it was probably the only way he could win at trial. His story of the night of the shooting remained the same until Danny pulled the trigger. He actually didn't fire any shots at all because the safety was on. He lowered it, turned the safety off, which resulted in an extra bullet being ejected onto the floor. This gave Williams enough time to take his own gun from his desk drawer. After he realized Danny was dead, he panicked. He picked up Danny's gun, fired three shots across the desk, and wiped his fingerprints away. For years he knew he was probably making things worse for himself by sticking to his fabricated story, but he didn't know what else to do. Now he realized that revealing the truth was his best chance at vindication, since this story accounted for all the unexplained evidence, especially the pesky lack of gunshot residue.
Remi:I'm smelling something fitchy here.
Ashley:This guy has had years to think this story up. Well that day, Sunny Seller arrived with his own news, insisting he share his first before Williams shared his. At the advice of Dr. Stone, he reinvestigated hospital records to see exactly how Hansford's body was handled before his hands were swabbed for residue, reasoning that the more the body was moved or touched, the more likely gunpowder traces could have been wiped away. The autopsy report Seller obtained directly from the hospital was identical to the one given to him by the DA's office, except this copy had a top admitting sheet that wasn't previously given to him. This form revealed that Hansford hands were bagged by a hospital worker at the emergency department, not by law enforcement at the scene as multiple officers had claimed. DA Lawton was obligated to give a copy of this top sheet with the original report to the defense, but failed to do so. When Seller asked Williams what he wanted to talk about, Williams merely shrugged and stated, never mind, it's not important. By the time the third trial began on May 26, 1987, nearly six years had passed since Danny Hansford's death. A detective once again testified that he bagged Hansford hands at the crime scene to preserve any potential residue. The defense countered with testimony from the hospital worker who is the actual one to have put bags on his hands, followed by Dr. Stone, who explained that Hansford's hands not being bagged before his body was moved meant any residue could have been easily wiped away. Dr. Stone added that despite her good intentions, the hospital worker error by using plastic instead of paper bags. Plastic bags could create static electricity that would pull away more particles from the hands, while condensation from refrigeration in the morgue could wash away any remaining traces of gunpowder. In the end, Dr. Stone would have been surprised if any gunpowder residue had been found. DA Launten remained focused on the evidence that did exist. One thing he explored was the items that Hansford supposedly destroyed glasses and the Atari game console. None of the valuable antiques are artwork or touched. There was a tipped over grandfather clock, but Williams quickly repaired it. Would someone in a violent rage take such care to not damage anything of actual value? After several days of deliberation, the jury sent word that they were split 11 to 1, with one juror refusing to change her mind. They were set to begin again the next morning, but the session was delayed because D.A. Lawton received a startling phone call. A paramedic reported that at 2:30 a.m. the night before, an anonymous woman called with questions about a shooting between an older and younger man. How long would it take for a person to die if shot in the aorta? How long would it take for blood to congeal on the hands? She refused to identify herself by name, but eventually admitted that she was a juror on the case and the sole holdout, believing in William's innocence.
Remi:That is very against the rules.
Ashley:It sure is. Lawton obviously demanded that the juror be replaced by an alternate because she discussed the case outside of the juror room. This would have all but guaranteed a guilty verdict. The defense pushed for a mistrial. The judge conducted individual questioning under oath, asking each juror if they contacted the paramedic. Each denied it, though the paramedic did recognize one voice. Despite this, no one was removed from the jury, and they were sent back to the deliberation room for a few more hours before a mistrial was ultimately declared.
Remi:What was the reasoning behind not removing the juror?
Ashley:I do not know. All trials, especially ones like this, have at least two alternates that are sitting there listening to everything and don't even know their alternates until deliberations start. So I don't know why the decision wasn't to get rid of the one who obviously made this call and just put in one of the alternates. I have no clue.
Remi:Yeah, the alternates are basically on standby and ready to hop in if any juror needs to be removed.
Ashley:Williams estimated that his third trial cost him another quarter of a million dollars. 130 miles away to Augusta, a city largely unfamiliar with the case. Once again, the defense focused on the incompetence and missteps of the police and prosecution. They meticulously highlighted the inconsistent statements from prosecution experts across the three trials, even presenting a memo from the state crime lab suggesting officials planned to conceal test results of the gunshot residue if findings didn't support their narrative. After just one hour, the jury returned their verdict. Not guilty. Ten years later, Williams was finally an exonerated man.
Remi:It took him a few tries, but he eventually got there. It's kind of surprising.
Ashley:Williams had no intention of leaving Mercer House or Savannah. His insurance company settled the civil suit with Hansford's mother for an undisclosed amount. Despite his acquittal, he kept Minerva on staff to ward off Danny's intermittently angry spirit. On the morning of January 14, 1990, just eight months later, while going through his usual morning routine, he collapsed and died in a study. The same room where he shot Danny Hansford. He was 59 years old. Initially thought to have died from a heart attack, the coroner later revealed he died of pneumonia and heart failure. Friends and acquaintances were shocked. Just hours before he had attended a party, appearing in good spirits and seemingly perfect health. He was buried next to his mother, who surpassed him by seven years. At the time of his death, he was actively restoring a mansion today owned by the Savannah College of Arts. The property appears in the film as the venue for the Married Women's Card Club. Williams' sister inherited Mercer House and unsuccessfully tried to sell it for $9 million. Her daughter inherited it after she died just a few years ago. The home was a primary filming location for Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. It was also used for scenes with Matthew Broderick's character in the movie Glory. And that is the true story of Clint Eastwood's Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. What do you think, Remy?
Remi:I went into this with kind of no expectations. But after seeing the film, of course, my pessimistic mind began chiming in saying, There's no way that this is all gonna be accurate, but surprisingly, a lot of it is. It seems like most of the key aspects of the story were included, though a lot of it was streamlined, and a lot of colorful characters around Savannah were included, kinda needlessly.
Ashley:What do you think about Clint Eastwood's decision to really condense the trial aspect and only include one versus four?
Remi:It's weird. He streamlined the trial, but it seems like he did so in order to include more of the colorful flavor of Savannah and its many unique characters. And personally speaking, I think it would have been a much more interesting story if it was this guy sent to jail for this crime and you didn't really know what the truth was. He's getting out, he's going back in, he's getting out, he's going back in. I mean, it's kind of crazy that this all stretched on for 10 years, and literally he was just going out and in, still handling his business. It's way more interesting than a man at the diner with a bunch of bugs tied to strings.
Ashley:Yeah, I understand why he didn't include all four. People might have gotten lost, but I think he should have done at least two. I think there should have been one trial where he was convicted, is in jail for that two years. So this would be trial two, I guess, is in jail for that two years, successfully wins his appeal, and then just do the last one where he's exonerated.
Remi:I think it should have been three. It could have been two guilty verdicts and then him finally released in the end, and then, of course, closing on him passing away less than a year later after fighting this for a decade. That story, I think, is much more compelling and interesting than all of these random vignettes of guys walking invisible dogs in the park and stuff like that. I think the focus should have been on Jim Williams and the trials.
Ashley:Another thought I have isn't about the movie, it's about the handling of the case. I think the DA kind of shot himself in the foot a little bit by being so gung ho on getting this guy convicted of murder. I kind of agree that maybe an involuntary manslaughter or even a murder of a lesser degree would have been better. I don't think this went down as Williams described it, but I also don't think he had any plans of killing Danny before the murder actually happened. I don't know what happened in that house, but I think the true story is somewhere in the middle of what the defense and the prosecution were arguing.
Remi:Do you have any theories that you want to throw out there right now of what you think occurred that night?
Ashley:So one thing that I omitted was there was like a stubbed-out cigarette on Williams' desk. And so some speculated that they had an argument. Maybe Danny even did pick up that silver tankard and threatened to throw it, stubbed out his cigarette on William's desk. And I think William just got pissed and fed up with it and shot him. I don't really think Danny had a gun and was threatening him with it or tried to shoot him with it. I think Williams just snapped.
Remi:I believe something similar from everything you told me about Danny was that he was pretty erratic and could be violent sometimes. So I agree with you that I don't think he ever had a gun in there, and I think that they were having an argument. But I believe that Danny might have just scared Jim, and Jim grabbed a gun and opened fire. I'm not saying that makes him blameless at all, but I can see him maybe thinking that maybe things were going to escalate and leaping to a rash decision before anything had actually occurred, and then trying to cover his tracks as a result.
Ashley:Yeah, that's that's what I think happened too, which is just so surprising that the DA went through four trials trying to get a guilty verdict. It wasn't mentioned in the book if there was any sort of plea considerations or negotiations. I feel like it wasn't. I think the author would have put that in there because he stayed in touch with Jim Williams and his defense team throughout this entire ordeal, and nothing of that was ever mentioned.
Remi:Well, with that, let's get into our objection of the week.
Objection of the Week:Your Honor, I object! And why is that, Mr. Reed? Because it's devastating to my case! Overrule. Good call!
Remi:I will start things off this week, and I actually had kind of a tough time finding one. So the best thing that I could come up with was the guy who had the sweater covered in bugs attached to strings. He was on the jury in the film, and he was never on the jury or any of the juries in real life. So that is my superfluous, unnecessary change from reality to film.
Ashley:That's a pretty good one. I can get behind that one. Mine is that John Kelso, who is obviously author John Barrent, was in town working on a story for Town and Country magazine, when in reality, the author was a writer for Esquire and the New York Times.
Remi:In the film, he is brought in because Jim Williams specifically hired him to write a story on him. Jim Williams had read one of his books and he was a fan, so he called Town and Country magazine and requested that John write a story on him, which clearly is not how things actually unfolded. But I think mine might be a little bit more unnecessary than yours.
Ashley:We'll go with the B one.
Remi:I'll take the win this week.
Ashley:Well, let's see if Clint Eastwood will also get a win for our verdict.
Objection of the Week:At the conclusion of each episode, our hosts will deliver a verdict based on the film's accuracy. If the film is an honest portrayal of the events, then it will earn a not guilty verdict. If the adaptation is mostly factual, but creative liberties were taken for the sake of entertainment, the film will be declared a mistrial. But if the film ultimately strays too far from the truth, then it will be condemned as guilty and sentenced to a life behind bars.
Ashley:I'll take the lead on this one. This was pretty easy for me. It's a mistrial. I do think even if Clint Eastwood would have included one more trial, I would have overlooked the omission of all the other trials, and it would have been a not guilty verdict for me. But I don't see how, even with all the similarities that are between the story and film, and there are a lot, I would say there's arguably more similarities than differences, that's for sure. But omitting three trials of the four and just depicting this as a simple each side pled their case and Jim Williams was acquitted in an hour, that does not do the true story of this justice in my mind. Not a big enough transgression to come out guilty for me by any means, but it just means that there's really no other choice in my mind but to say mistrial.
Remi:And I wholeheartedly agree with that as well. I'm gonna go mistrial two, based on what you just said about the three trials being condensed into the one in the film, as well as Lady Shablis, who was completely absent from your story. She did not testify, she was not a roommate of Billy slash Danny, and was really not involved hardly at all. I believe you told me when we were not recording that she was just a colorful character around town, that again had nothing to do with anything, but Eastwood liked her, they met, and she lobbied to have a role in the film, and he clearly chose to include her more than she actually had been in real life. So the trials and Lady Shabley give this the mistrial for me, because also a lot of the stuff was on point. The confession and then deciding to not come out with it, a lot of the evidence with the bagged hands and the too many people being at the murder scene, all of that really lined up, but those huge changes made is enough to keep this firmly in the mistrial zone. But not getting a guilty verdict, at least, just a mistrial, so that's not too shabby, I guess, Mr. Eastwood.
Ashley:And that marks the end of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. What do we have on the docket for two weeks from today?
Remi:Two weeks from today, it will be 2026, and we will be covering a little movie starring Mr. Tom Hardy called Bronson. Have you seen this movie? Have you heard of this man? Charles Bronson, not the actor, the criminal.
Ashley:I had not heard about either until you actually told me about this movie. And for those of you at home, a little taste of what's to come. Charles Bronson is known as England's most notorious criminal, serving life in prison, not because he committed a murder, but because of how violent he was when he was incarcerated for two other crimes.
Remi:I have seen this film a couple times before, and I am a fan. I think it's really weird and artfully done. It is a film by Nicholas Reffen, who did Drive, starring Ryan Gosling. And this is really the first movie that I remember Tom Hardy from. And when he was casted in The Dark Knight Rises as Bane, this was the movie that I thought of and immediately was like, yeah, that's great casting. He is a big burly brute, and it is a wild, wild movie. So we hope you can join us two weeks from now for that.
Ashley:And stick around for a little taste of what's to come.
Remi:And until next time, everybody, happy holidays, happy new year, and court is adjourned.
Bronson Trailer:My name is Charles Brunson. Nothing wonky about my upbringings, but most kids are going to travel. It wasn't bad. It wasn't bad, bad. And all my life I've wanted to be famous. This is the post office already over. This is what I got away with. This is what they gave me.
