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For many years, American criminals on death row could request anything they wanted as their last meal before they were executed. Many online blog sites such as Buzzfeed have researched these last meals, and have had participants make a game out of trying the last meals of heinous criminals. Today, I’m going to review the top five most interesting last meals of inmates over the last few decades. Some are massive feasts, others are just peculiar.

5. John Wayne Gacy- An Avid Lover of KFC

Arrested in 1978 and sentenced to death in 1980, John Wayne Gacy was convicted of thirty-three murders, more than any criminal in the US up until that point. Known far and wide as the “Clown Killer”, Gacy was a narcissistic sexual deviant who tricked young boys into a pair of handcuffs and then raped and murdered them. Gacy’s last meal was as dramatic as he was, with a dozen deep-fried shrimp, a bucket of KFC fried chicken, french fries, a pound of fresh strawberries, and a bottle of Diet Coke- because you need to count calories hours before you’re strapped into the electric chair.

4. Gary Carl Simmons Jr.- A College Student’s Diet

A murderer and fervent drug trafficker, Gary Carl Simmons Jr. had one of the largest last meal requests of all time. His crimes included rape, assault, murder, and continuous reports of drug trafficking across the US. He was executed in 2012 for murdering a man who owed him a drug debt upwards of twelve thousand dollars. He requested a huge last meal. All in all, it was 29,000 calories. His last meal included:

• Ten Eight oz packs of Parmesan cheese
• One Pizza Hut supreme deep dish pizza, double portion, including bell peppers, mushrooms, tomato, garlic, three cheeses, and sausage
• One large bag of nacho Doritos 
• Two cherry Cokes
• Two large strawberry milkshakes
• One supersize Mcdonald’s fries (with ketchup and mayonnaise)
• Two pints of strawberry ice cream

3. Victor Feuger, A Lover of Martinis

Murderer Victor Feuger was executed in 1963 by hanging. He was executed for robbing, kidnapping, and murdering a doctor by the name of Edward Roy. He was one of very few people executed under the federal death penalty. His last meal consisted of only a single olive. After he was executed, they found the olive pit in his pocket.

2. Ronnie Lee Gardener- An Unlikely JRR Tolkien Fan

Ronnie Lee Gardener was a criminal who was executed in 2010 by the state of Utah. He was killed by a firing squad, which is as dramatic and brutal as Gardener himself. Smiling in his infamous mugshot, Gardener was arrested and convicted in 1984 for killing a man while trying to escape a courtroom in 1984. However, the most interesting thing about Gardener was his last meal request. His meal included:

• Steak
• Lobster
• Apple pie
• 7-Up
• Vanilla ice cream

This meal sounds pretty simple, right? Though the meal wasn’t complicated, Gardener stood out because he asked to eat his last meal while watching JRR Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings trilogy. There are definitely worse requests. He then fasted for 48 hours before his execution. Personally, I would have done it the night before so I could extend my time alive. (Get it? Because it’s over 8 hours long altogether?)

1. Peter J. Miniel

Miniel, executed in 2004, was a violent criminal who was convicted and sentenced to death for beating and stabbing another man to death. He was executed in Texas by lethal injection. However, he had one of the largest last meal requests ever. His last meal is one of the reasons why most states no longer honor the last meal tradition today. Miniel’s last meal consisted of:

• Twenty beef tacos
• Twenty beef enchiladas
• Two double cheeseburgers
• A pizza with jalapeños
• Fried chicken
• Spaghetti with salt
• Half of a chocolate cake
• Half of a vanilla cake
• Cookies and cream ice cream
• Caramel pecan fudge ice cream
• Fruit cake
• Two Cokes
• Two Pepsis
• Two Root Beers
• Two orange juices

These criminals all chose extravagant or bizarre feasts for their last meals on Earth. The real question, however, still stands: what would you have for your last meal?