Last Podcast On The Left
Last Podcast On The Left
"This is not a dungeon. This is way more. This is a room. This is a fun, rump room." — Henry Zabrowski (discussing the distinction between a 'sex dungeon' and a 'sex basement')
"Joseph Fretzel is a notoriously monstrous sexual deviant from Austria who imprisoned his daughter in a windalous underground dungeon of his own making for 24 years. He did this with the explicit purpose of creating a second family for himself and underground family through incestuous rape." — Marcus Parks (defining the core of Fretzel's crimes)
"He was a Nazi. So while Fritzel was doing his 18 month stretch in prison for rape he'd come up with an idea on how to never return. Instead of changing his aberrant behavior, he decided to build a dungeon underground where he could imprison a woman who would bear the brunt of Joseph's evil side so he could remain a so-called good man upstairs." — Ed Larson (explaining Fretzel's motivation for building the dungeon)
This episode of "Last Podcast on the Left" delves into the early life of Joseph Fretzel, laying the foundation for his eventual horrific crimes. The discussion begins by distinguishing between a "sex dungeon" and a "sex basement," before transitioning to Fretzel's background, characterized by a difficult childhood involving a verbally and physically abusive mother and a distant father. His upbringing in Austria during the rise of Nazism exposed him to the ideology of control and dehumanization, with his mother being an ardent Nazi who encouraged his involvement in the Hitler Youth. The podcast highlights Fretzel's early fascination with the Mauthausen concentration camp and his exposure to the horrific actions of Nazi doctors like Dr. Mengele. His developing sexual deviancy is traced through increasingly risky behaviors, including exposing himself to women, which he rationalized as an "internal volcano." The narrative also touches upon his early legal troubles, including arrests for sexual offenses, and his subsequent career in construction, which provided him with the skills to build the subterranean structure that would become his daughter's prison.
The conversation further explores Fretzel's personal life, including his marriage to Rosemary and their children. The hosts emphasize Fretzel's cruel and controlling nature as a father, comparing him to a "little Hitler." His obsession with his daughter, Elizabeth, is presented as a disturbing precursor to his ultimate act of imprisonment. The podcast details Fretzel's construction of the underground dungeon, which was meticulously planned and even received state funding under the guise of a nuclear shelter. The episode underscores Fretzel's calculated intent to create a controlled, incestuous family unit, detailing the construction of the soundproofed, locked structure. The narrative then moves to Fretzel's initial sexual abuse of Elizabeth and her eventual imprisonment in the dungeon in 1984, where she endured unspeakable horrors for 24 years, giving birth to multiple children within the confines of her subterranean prison.
The latter part of the episode focuses on the methods Fretzel employed to maintain his secret, including fabricating a story of Elizabeth's disappearance and mailing letters to deceive authorities and the public. The hosts discuss the profound psychological impact on Elizabeth and her children, who were born and raised in the dungeon, never seeing sunlight. The episode concludes by setting the stage for the next part, promising to delve deeper into the underground family and Fretzel's eventual capture, while also touching upon the historical context of similar crimes occurring concurrently.