The true story of if Lyle Menendez lost his hair as shown in Monsters on Netflix

A shocking moment in the first episode of Monsters season two on Netflix is when the mother of Lyle and Erik Menendez, Mary Louise “Kitty” Menendez, takes off her son’s toupee at the dining table, and reveals his bald head. This may have left you wondering if this really happened in real life, and if Lyle Menendez really did lose his hair at such a young age.

The detail of the show is based on the true story, and Lyle Menendez losing his hair was actually a big talking point following the killings of the Menendez parents.

José and Mary Louise “Kitty” Menendez were killed in their Beverly Hills home on August 20th, 1989. In March 1990, the Menendez brothers were arrested for their parents’ murders and placed on trial. They were found guilty, and have been in prison ever since.

via Netflix

In real life, Lyle Menendez did lose his hair and the toupee moment was the catalyst to what would follow

At the time of the trial of Lyle Menendez and his brother Erik, the fact Lyle had lost his hair was a revelation in court. Just as was shown in the Netflix series, in real life Erik claimed he had no idea his brother Lyle was bald.

Lyle began losing his hair at a young age and began wearing toupees. According to Erik, Lyle Menendez’s hairpiece was actually the catalyst behind the brothers’ decision to murder their parents. In the Netflix doc, this revelation happened just before the brothers discussed their decision to kill their parents.

During his real life trial, Erik said that there was an argument at home that ended with his mother Kitty ripping Lyle’s toupee off. Erik said this brought a lot of shame to his brother, which then prompted him to share his alleged shame too – the claims his father was abusing him. It was five nights after the toupee incident that the brothers killed their parents.

via Netflix

According to Distractify, Lyle purchased his toupees from the Hair Replacement Center in Los Angeles, and he insisted they were made of 100 per cent human hair. The last model he purchased cost him $1,450, but he owned three more equally as nice toupees.

It’s been reported Lyle had been wearing hairpieces since the age of 16, and whilst the exact reason of his hair loss isn’t known, it’s been theorised it was due to stress and anxiety related to what he claimed was happening to him and his brother.

Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story is available on Netflix now. For all the latest Netflix news, drops and memes like The Holy Church of Netflix on Facebook.

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