Ep 63 – What We’ll Never Know – Haunted Hospitality Podcast

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On Friday, June 13, 1980, Candy Montgomery dropped by her friend Betty Gore’s house in Wylie, Texas to ask if Betty’s daughter could go see The Empire Strikes Back that night with the Montgomery family. On the surface, it seemed that Candy and Betty were friends. They went to the same church; their children had sleepovers; Candy even threw Betty a surprise baby shower for her second child. But only Candy survived their encounter that morning.

Once the evidence grew overwhelming, Candy admitted to killing Betty. She always maintained it was in self defense, and gave a detailed account of her experience that day to back it up. But as is the case when there’s only one survivor, no recordings, and no witnesses — we’re left with only one side of the story.

But first, Zoey’s Something Southern explores the weirdest official state things.

I decided to cover this case after watching the new Hulu limited series, Candy, which was based off the crime. I left the show feeling pretty certain that we, as the viewers, were supposed to come away thinking Candy had killed Betty on purpose, even if it wasn’t premeditated.

I was surprised the next day when I listened to Vanity Fair’s “Still Watching” podcast episode about the series, where they interviewed EP and star Jessica Biel and EP Robin Veith about their intentions behind the scenes. They both revealed that the intention was never to sway the audience one way or another, and that they both went back and forth on what they believed happened during the whole filming process.

Hearing that, I knew I wanted to look up the details for myself to try to make up my own mind. I didn’t come away from from my research with any certainty; it’s a truly unknowable case.

If you want to do your own research, I highly recommend reading the first two articles listed below. They were both published in Texas Monthly just a few years after the crime, and are the product of extensive research and interviews. It is by far the best reporting on the case.

Sources:

“Love and Death in Silicon Prairie, Part I: Candy Montgomery’s Affair” by Jim Atkinson and John Bloom, Texas Monthly, January 1984.

“Love and Death in Silicon Prairie, Part II: The Killing of Betty Gore” by Jim Atkinson and John Bloom, Texas Monthly, February 1984.

“Candy True Story: Betty Gore’s Murder & What Happened Next” by Lindsay Kusiak, Screen Rant, May 11, 2022.

“The story behind Candy Montgomery and the 1980 ax killing, now on two TV shows” by Paul Livengood, WFAA, May 10, 2022.

“Texas woman declared innocent in hacking death of friend,” UPI Archives, Oct. 30, 1980.

“Murders still haunt some homeowners in North Texas,” WFAA, Oct. 16, 2009.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Candy_Montgomery

“Verdict of not guilty stuns ax murder trial” by Michelle Scott and Frank Trejo, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Oct. 30, 1980. Accessed via newspapers.com.

“Witnesses say intent to kill missing” by Frank Trejo, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Oct. 28, 1980. Accessed via newspapers.com.

“Accused murderer found innocent in ax killing,” El Paso Herald-Post, Oct. 30, 1980. Accessed via newspapers.com.

“Affair had ended, suspect says” by Jim Jones, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, June 30, 1980. Accessed via newspapers.com.