Evelyn Nesbit: The Red Velvet Swing, the Stanford White Murder & Harry K. Thaw’s “Trial of the Century”

On June 25, 1906, New York City’s Gilded Age glitter cracked wide open on the Madison Square Garden rooftop theater—when millionaire heir Harry K. Thaw shot famed architect Stanford White during a performance of Mam’zelle Champagne. At the center of the scandal was Evelyn Nesbit, a teenage model and chorus girl whose fame, trauma, and private life were turned into public spectacle.

In this episode, we unpack the true story behind one of America’s earliest celebrity murder trials—often called the “Trial of the Century.” Who was Evelyn Nesbit beyond the headlines? What role did power, money, and reputation play in the world she entered? And how did Thaw’s obsession—framed as “protection” and “honor”—spiral into violence in front of hundreds of witnesses?

We break down the timeline from Nesbit’s rise in New York’s theater and modeling scene to the explosive night of the Stanford White murder, then follow the courtroom drama that reshaped true crime media forever: the “unwritten law” defense, the battle over the insanity plea, and why “not guilty” still meant confinement at Matteawan State Hospital for the Criminally Insane.

This isn’t just a story about a shooting. It’s a case study in how America learned to consume crime as entertainment—and how a woman became the battlefield for two men’s power war.

Content note: This episode discusses coercion/abuse and murder (non-graphic).

In this episode:

• Evelyn Nesbit’s rise to fame in early 1900s New York
• Stanford White’s influence and secrets in Gilded Age society
• Harry K. Thaw’s obsession, control, and motive claims
• The Madison Square Garden rooftop murder (June 25, 1906)
• Trial #1: media frenzy, the “unwritten law,” and a hung jury
• Trial #2: insanity strategy, Matteawan, and the aftermath

sources used for this podcast