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The Tragic Story Of Evelyn McHale And “The Most Beautiful Suicide”

By Katie Serena | Edited By John Kuroski

Published December 1, 2021

Updated October 20, 2022

As her last wish, Evelyn McHale didn't want anyone to see her body, but the photo of her death has lived on for decades as "the most beautiful suicide."

Evelyn McHale’s dying wish was that no one sees her body. She wanted her family to remember her body the way it was before she jumped off the 86th-floor Observation Deck of the Empire State Building.

Evelyn McHale never got her wish.

Four minutes after her body landed on a United Nations limousine, parked at the curb, a photography student named Robert Wiles ran across the street and snapped a photo that would become world-famous

The Photos That Captivated The World

The photo that the student snapped shows Evelyn McHale looking almost peaceful, like she could be sleeping, lying cradled in a mess of crumpled steel. Her feet are crossed at the ankles, and her gloved left hand rests on her chest, clutching her pearl necklace. Looking at the image without context, it looks like it could be staged. But the truth is much darker than that, but the photo became famous around the world.

Since being taken on May 1, 1947, the photo has become infamous, with Time magazine calling it “the most beautiful suicide.” Even Andy Warhol used it in one of his prints, Suicide (Fallen Body).

But Who Is Evelyn McHale?

Though her death is infamous, not much is known about Evelyn McHale’s life.

Evelyn McHale was born on September 20, 1923, in Berkeley, California, to Helen and Vincent McHale as one of eight brothers and sisters. Sometime after 1930, her parents divorced, and the children all moved to New York to live with their dad, Vincent.

In high school, Evelyn was part of the Women’s Army Corps and was stationed in Jefferson City, Missouri. Later, she relocated to Baldwin, New York, to live with her brother and sister-in-law. And that’s where she lived until her death.

She worked as a bookkeeper at the Kitab Engraving Company on Pearl Street in Manhattan. That’s where she met her fiance, Barry Rhodes, who was a college student discharged from the United States Army Air Force. According to reports, Evelyn McHale and Barry Rhodes intended to get married at Barry’s brother’s house in Troy, New York in June 1947. But their wedding never came.

“The Most Beautiful Suicide”

As far as the events leading up to Evelyn McHale’s suicide, even less is known.