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Dr. Hannibal Lecter is a fictional character in novels written by Thomas Harris and in the films made from the novels:
- Red Dragon - both 1986's Manhunter, which names him "Lecktor", as well as 2002's Red Dragon
- The Silence of the Lambs
- Hannibal
In Harris' novels and the films based upon them, Dr. Lecter is a brilliant, though insane, psychiatrist and psychopathic serial killer, who practices cannibalism upon his victims.
Hannibal Lecter's character represents the continuation of a long-line of homicidal psychopathic serial killers portrayed in film. Perhaps the earliest to portray a serial killer was Fritz Lang's 1931 film "M," which featured a young Peter Lorre as a child murderer. After a lengthy hiatus, Alfred Hitchcock revived the genre with his experimental 1960 blockbuster "Psycho" starring Anthony Perkins, which was based loosely on the murders committed by psychopath Ed Gein.
The film-going public continues to be morbidly fascinated with serial killers as arch-villains, and Hollywood and TV producers continue to milk the subject. Popular films within the genre include "Dirty Harry," "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre," the various "Halloween" and "Scream" films, "Copycat," and numerous others. Popular TV series such as Kolchak, The X-files, and Millennium often featured serial killers.
The following information deals with material in the books, and not the movies.
Hannibal Lecter was born in the year 1938 in Lithuania to wealthy parents. A younger sister, Mishca, would arrive three or four years later.
When Lecter was six a group of Nazis invaded the estate his family lived on. Lecter, along with his sister and a group of children, hid in a barn. Lecter survived, but Mischa was taken away and eaten by the group of Nazis. It is believed that this is the event that would shape the rest of Lecter's life.
His activities are largely unknown until the 1970s. During this time, he set up his psychiatric establishment and began to help those around Baltimore, Maryland. His wealth began to grow as his patients began to release funds and stocks to him.
Before Lecter was caught, it was believed that he had killed a total of seven, most of which were his patients. His signature was to cook and eat the parts of those he killed. There are only two known victims to survive.
Only two of the nine victims are known by name in the books: Mason Verger and Benjamin Raspail. Mason Verger went through psychiatric counseling with Lecter after being convicted of child molestion. Lecter fed Verger various drugs. Under Lecter's suggestions, Verger cut off large pieces of his own face and fed them to his dogs. Even though he was one of two to survive an attack by Lecter, he would forever be stuck on a life-support system.
Lecter's final and ninth victim before capture was Benjamin Raspail. Raspail was part of the Baltimore Philharmonic Orchestra and a patient of Lecter. His body would be discovered in a pew in Virginia with his thymus and pancreas removed. It is believed that Lecter served the organs at a dinner party for the Symphony Board of Directors.
FBI Agent Will Graham would question Lecter about Raspail. During questioning, Graham notices a set of textbooks in Lecter's office, one of which is open to a piece of Wound Man, an illustration used in medical textbooks. The Wound Man is similar to a murder Lecter had done years earlier. Before Graham could arrest Lecter, Lecter attacks him with a linolium knife. He is arrested by the Maryland State Police. Graham ends up spending months in the hospital before resigning from the FBI.
The courts find him insane and he is sent to the Baltimore State Forensic Hospital for nine life terms.
Lecter displays good behavior until June of 1976, when he complains of chest pains. During the check up, the staff removes his restraints. Lecter proceeds to attack a nurse, chewing out her tongue. From this day on, Lecter is handled by heavy restraints which includes being strapped in a straight-jacket to a hand-truck when outside of his cell and fitted with a hockey mask over his face.
The front of Lecter's cell is made up of bullet-proof plexiglass, with a few airholes. In front of this is a huge nylon rope. The inside of his cell consists of a bed, a sink, a moderate library, and various drawings of Florence, Italy.
Despite his infamous status, Lecter receives stacks of mail from those wanting to figure out how he works psychologically. Lecter allows the ocassional interview, but only because he likes to mentally toy with those that come to visit. He also likes to toy with Dr. Fredrick Chilton, the hospital director. Chilton would become Lecter's main enemy while at the hospital. Lecter shows respect only to those that show respect to him, and this includes his caretaker, Barney. It is later said that he only likes to "eat the rude".
During his stay in the hospital, Lecter would help out with two cases. Will Graham went to Lecter wanting help with the Red Dragon (aka Francis Dolarhyde) case, and FBI trainee Clarice Starling approached Lecter for help with the Buffalo Bill (Jame Gumb) case.
It is with his relationship with Clarice Starling that most of the books revolve around. While helping Clarice, Lecter claims he will tell Senator Ruth Martin the identity of Buffalo Bill, as her daughter was kidnapped by Bill. He is taken to Memphis, Tennessee and is held at the Shelby County Courthouse. After a visit from Starling, Lecter makes a bloody escape, killing two police officers during the ordeal.
Lecter would kill a few more times, in order to assume a new identity. In St. Louis, Missouri he would undergo plastic surgery. He would end up living in Florence, Italy under the name "Dr. Fell". As Dr. Fell he took a job as a museum curator.
His identity would be discovered by Florence detective Rinaldo Pazzi ten years after his escape from Memphis. Pazzi struck a deal with Mason Verger to get Lecter alive so that Verger could torture Lecter himself. Clarice Starling, now an FBI agent, would be tipped off too. Pazzi would be killed and Lecter would flee to the United States. Both Verger and Starling would hunt Lecter. Lecter ended up being captured by Verger's men. Lecter ended up escaping once again, but not before kidnapping Starling and pursueding Margot Verger (Mason's sister) to kill her brother. Lecter left a voice message claiming responsibility for Mason's death.
Lecter kept Starling in hiding, brainwashing her during the next few months. Starling would end up being Lecter's lover after these months of brainwashing and conditioning by various drugs and techniques. Their whereabouts are unknown, although there would be an eyewitness account in Buenos Aires, Argentina.