Ruth Ann Steinhagen

From Find-a-Grave.

Born December 23, 1929, in Cicero, Illinois.     Died December 29, 2012, in Chicago.

Lived in obscurity after she shot Eddie Waitkus.

Burial Unknown

From Wikipedia.

Died of a subdural hematoma suffered in an accidental fall in her home.

Her death was unreported for three months.  A Chicago Tribune researcher was looking into another death when he came across her death.

There were no immediate survivors.

--Cooter

Death of Ruth Ann Steinhagen in 2012-- Part 4: Her Original Plans

She used to go to all of the Chicago Cubs home games while Eddie Waitkus was with them.  But, when he was traded to the Phillies, she didn't get to see him as much.  This led to a mental breakdown.

She moved into a small apartment and turned it into a shrine to Eddie Waitkus.

Her original plan for after killing him was to commit suicide.

Eddie Waitkus fought in the Pacific Theater during World War II and saw especially heavy action in the Philippines.  For three years he braved Japanese bullets without a scratch.  he then came home and was almost killed by Ruth Ann's bullet as a civilian.

--DaCoot

Death of Ruth Ann Steinhagen-- Part 3: Became a Recluse Afterwards

In 1970, she moved into a small house in Chicago and lived with her parents and sister and became a recluse.  She died December 29, 2012, at the age of 83.  Her death was not noted despite of her notoriety.  It wasn't until a reporter for the Chicago Tribune was researching another death that her death was discovered by the newspapers on March 15, 20143.

She was born in Chicago on December 23, 1929 and had a penchant for falling in love with unattainable men.  She had crushes on actor Alan Ladd

--Cooter

Death of Ruth Ann Steinhagen in 2012-- Part 2: "Now You're Going to Die"

Ruth Ann Steinhagen was a 19-year-old typist for an insurance agency.  She had planned to stab Eddie Waitkus, but he came in quickly and sat down.  She went to the closet and got a .22 rifle.

She told him, "I have a surprise for you."  She trained the gun on him and told him to stand up and move to the window.  "For two years you've been bothering me, and now you're going to die."

Then she shot him.

She was arrested and charged with assault with intent to murder.

Less than three weeks afterwards, a judge declared her insane and committed her to a psychiatric hospital where she spend three years and was released.

--Cooter

The Death of Eddie Waitkus' Shooter, Ruth Ann Steinhagen-- Part 1: Planning the Trap

From the March 23, 2013, New York  Times  "Ruth Ann Steinhagen Is Dead at 83; Shot a Ballplayer" by Bruce Weber.

On June 14, 1949, a huge tip back then of $5 was given to a bellhop at the Edgewater Beach Hotel in Chicago to deliver a note to another guest.  Even though the two people had never met, the note said that she needed to see him right away.  She called herself Ruth Anne Burus.

She then ordered two whiskey sours and a daiquiri from room service and sipped them while waiting for the guest to arrive.  Eddie Waitkus received the note and knocked on her door at 11 p.m..  She told him that she had already gone to bed and needed to dress and asked if he'd come back in a half hour.

Only, her name was Ruth Ann Steinhagen and she was planning on killing Eddie Waitkus.

And They Had Never Met.  --DaCoot

MLB's Eddie Waitkus, Shot By His Stalker in 1949-- Part 3: Was Basis of the Book "The Natural"

Eddie Waitkus returned to the baseball diamond that same year, on August 19, 1949, and finished the season with a .306 batting average.  He was the leadoff hitter for the Phillies' "Whiz Kids" that won the 1950  National league Pennant.  He led the team with 102 runs scored.

Author Bernard Malamud was not a big baseball fan, but he used basic elements of Waitkus' story and other baseball legends (notably Chicago White Sox's Shoeless Joe Jackson for his 1952 book "The Natural."  In 1984, it was made into a movie starring Robert Redford and Glenn Close.

--Cooter

Eddie Waitkus, Philadelphia Phillies, Shot in 1949-- Shot At Chicago's Edgewater Beach Hotel

Eddie Waitkus quickly became a popular media figure.  He was well-educated and could speak fluently in Lithuanian, Polish, German and French.

The ladies especially loved him.  One of them, Ruth Ann Steinhagen, became an obsessed fan who shot him at Chicago's Edgewater Beach Hotel on June 14, 1949, in what became one of the earliest recognized cases of criminal stalking.

She had been infatuated with him while he was with the Cubs, but got to see him during all home games.  But now that he was with the Phillies, that was a rare instance.  So, while he was in town, she checked into the Edgewater under the name of one of Eddie Waitkus' former classmates.  She sent word to him that they needed to meet.

When he arrived at the room, she shot him with a .22 caliber rifle, just missing his heart.  She immediately called the front desk to tell them there had been a shooting.  When help arrived, they found her cradling his head in her lap.

Eddie Waitkus nearly died several times on the operating table before the bullet was removed.

Steinhagen was never tried but was in a mental institution for a short time.

--DaCootBang