fake scenes in dahmer

Glenda Cleveland wasn’t Jeffrey Dahmer’s next door neighbour – she’s based on two people

Glenda Cleveland in the show is very different to her in real life


It’s the most watched series on Netflix right now – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story. For the most parts, the show has stuck completely to the real life events in the horrific case, but one main character has been changed slightly. During a lot of the show, the point of view is from Glenda Cleveland, who is said to be the next door neighbour of serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer.

She is said to have lived next door to him and complained to him, police, and building managers about the smell from his apartment, hearing strange noises and screams, and general complaints about what she thought Jeffrey Dahmer was getting up to. She wasn’t listened to until it was far too late. But, Glenda Cleveland was actually very different in real life – she wasn’t the killer’s next door neighbour, and her character in the show is more of a hybrid of herself, and another who knew Dahmer.

Glenda Cleveland in Monster The Jeffrey Dahmer Story on Netflix

via Netflix

The character of Glenda Cleveland we see in the Jeffrey Dahmer series on Netflix is actually based on two people in real life

According to The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Glenda’s character is one of the biggest differences between the real life story and what happened in the Netflix series. Glenda is shown as living next door to Jeffrey Dahmer, when according to the site, she in fact lived in a completely different building to him. Glenda is said to have lived in the building next door, not the apartment.

Jeffrey Dahmer in real life had a neighbour called Pamela Bass, who had a lot of run-ins with the killer. She went on The Jeffrey Dahmer Files and recalled one particular moment with Dahmer, which we see in the Netflix show, of him offering her a “meat” sandwich.

Despite living in the adjacent building, it’s true that Glenda was the person who got in contact with police a lot regarding her concerns with Dahmer’s behaviour. She struggled to get anyone to take her seriously. The phone call we see between Glenda and the police in the show is true – it was her who called police after seeing Dahmer with 14-year-old victim, Konerak Sinthasomphone.

After Jeffrey Dahmer was imprisoned, Glenda continued to live in the area and was labelled a heroine in her local community. She received multiple awards from women’s groups and the Milwaukee Police Department for her role in the Dahmer case. Glenda Cleveland passed away on December 24th 2010, at 56-years-old.

Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story is available now on Netflix. For all the latest Netflix news, drops, quizzes and memes like The Holy Church of Netflix on Facebook. 

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