Earle Leonard Nelson (né Ferral; May 12, 1897 – January 13, 1928), also known in the media as the "Gorilla Man," the "Gorilla Killer," and the "Dark Strangler,"^[2] was an American serial killer, rapist, and necrophile. He was the first known American serial sex murderer of the twentieth century.^[3] Born and raised in San Francisco, California by his devoutly Pentecostal grandmother, Nelson exhibited bizarre behavior as a child, which was compounded by head injuries he sustained in a bicycling accident at age ten. After committing various minor offenses in early adulthood, he was institutionalized in Napa for a time.