He lied his way into the hangman’s job. He botched executions. He smiled as men struggled for life at the end of a rope. At Nuremberg, John C. Woods became infamous for delivering slow and agonizing deaths to Nazi war criminals. But who was he—and why did he take pleasure in killing?
Up Next in Season 1
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The Nazi Regime’s Executioner: Johann...
This episode uncovers the chilling life of Johann Reichhart, one of the most prolific executioners of the 20th century—a man who served both the Weimar Republic, the Nazi regime, and later even the U.S. military authorities in post-war Germany. From his beginnings in a family of executioners to h...
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Stalin’s Deadliest Executioner of 7,0...
Vasily Blokhin, Stalin’s chief executioner, personally killed over 7,000 Polish prisoners in 28 nights during the Katyn Massacre. He killed in silence, hidden from the public eye — yet Vasily Blokhin’s body count is unmatched. Armed with a pistol and total impunity, he executed thousands, setti...
