A Secret Life
October 13, 2013 2:40 PM Subscribe
In 1994, the Tampa Bay Times published a riveting story about Kenneth Hardcastle. One of Tampa Bay's civic elites, Hardcastle also had a burgeoning crack addiction and a fondness for underage prostitutes.
Hardcastle died in 2002, just six weeks before his son was killed by police.
Hardcastle died in 2002, just six weeks before his son was killed by police.
Maybe this is terrible, but I just read it to see if he was a Republican. He was.
posted by dances_with_sneetches at 4:22 PM on October 13, 2013 [6 favorites]
posted by dances_with_sneetches at 4:22 PM on October 13, 2013 [6 favorites]
Maybe this is terrible, but I just read it to see if he was a Republican. He was.
Not terrible, typical. Typical that he got so many chances, so much slack. Money is the ultimate get out of jail free card.
posted by nevercalm at 4:39 PM on October 13, 2013 [7 favorites]
Not terrible, typical. Typical that he got so many chances, so much slack. Money is the ultimate get out of jail free card.
posted by nevercalm at 4:39 PM on October 13, 2013 [7 favorites]
I mean tragic, and whatever...but why are we revisiting this 20 years after it happened? Did I miss something, or is there a reason to bring this back into the light and reopen old wounds, or is it just prurient gandering?
posted by dejah420 at 5:23 PM on October 13, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by dejah420 at 5:23 PM on October 13, 2013 [1 favorite]
I read it this morning, and saw that it had never been posted before. It's a Pulitzer Prize nominated story, so I think it qualifies as being one of the best things on the Web.
posted by reenum at 5:51 PM on October 13, 2013 [6 favorites]
posted by reenum at 5:51 PM on October 13, 2013 [6 favorites]
This is definitely a good read. Well-written, getting beyond the tawdry summary to examine the various complexities underneath such a situation. A good read to satisfy my armchair psychologist/sociologist tendencies. And I can see the relevance vis-a-vis Rob Ford.
That said, I agree with dejah420: I feel a bit of the "oh look at this fall from grace" rubbernecking. Pipe dream for someone like me wanting to read this as a data point for US classism or humanity at large, rather than a data point for Tampa Bay or Hardcastles or even Reupblicans or what-have-you: could it be revised to read with names/key details redacted after a certain amount of time??
posted by Theophrastus Johnson at 6:50 PM on October 13, 2013
That said, I agree with dejah420: I feel a bit of the "oh look at this fall from grace" rubbernecking. Pipe dream for someone like me wanting to read this as a data point for US classism or humanity at large, rather than a data point for Tampa Bay or Hardcastles or even Reupblicans or what-have-you: could it be revised to read with names/key details redacted after a certain amount of time??
posted by Theophrastus Johnson at 6:50 PM on October 13, 2013
Apparently he died in 2002 from a combination of cocaine and heart failure. His son was shot by a cop two months later.
posted by Hactar at 6:58 PM on October 13, 2013
posted by Hactar at 6:58 PM on October 13, 2013
Apparently his son's wife had died of lung cancer recently, and it looks like the son committed "suicide by cop," waving a .357 around. The sins of the fathers.
posted by mecran01 at 8:57 PM on October 13, 2013
posted by mecran01 at 8:57 PM on October 13, 2013
Metafilter: just prurient gandering
posted by Meatbomb at 9:42 PM on October 13, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by Meatbomb at 9:42 PM on October 13, 2013 [2 favorites]
His name is Kendrick, not Kenneth.
posted by broken wheelchair at 11:31 AM on October 14, 2013
posted by broken wheelchair at 11:31 AM on October 14, 2013
I appreciate the post, it was an incredibly well-written article.
posted by the_royal_we at 7:02 PM on October 14, 2013
posted by the_royal_we at 7:02 PM on October 14, 2013
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posted by sevenyearlurk at 3:49 PM on October 13, 2013 [2 favorites]