The Strange Double Life of Larry Bader

In May 1957, Larry Bader, a 30-year-old cookware salesman from Akron, Ohio, vanished during a fishing trip to Lake Erie. He was presumed to be dead until 1965, when a fingerprint analysis revealed Larry was living under the name Fritz Johnson.

This man had no recollection of his former life, leading experts to conclude that he was suffering from amnesia.

But not everyone was convinced by this explanation, which made this case even more intriguing.

Background

Lawrence Joseph Bader, also known as Larry, was born on December 2nd, 1926, in Akron, Ohio. His father was a successful dentist, so the Bader family was enjoying a comfortable lifestyle. According to Larry’s friends, he was incredibly charismatic and fun to be around.

In 1944, while still in high school, Larry enlisted in the Navy. He served for two years and graduated as soon as he returned home. Afterward, Larry enrolled at the University of Akron.

However, it quickly became clear he wasn’t interested in studying. Instead of spending time in the library, Larry was partying and socializing every night. His family wasn’t surprised when he dropped out after completing just one semester.

During this period, Larry met Mary Lou Knapp, a fellow student, and the two fell madly in love. The couple got married in April 1952 and welcomed three children in the years that followed. Larry worked as a cookware salesman for the Reynolds Metals Corporation and earned a high salary. Despite this, he was still in debt.

He was paying the mortgage on the family house, but failed to pay taxes for five years. By 1957, he owed approximately $20,000 to the IRS and was avoiding paying bills.

Mary Lou, who was pregnant with their fourth child at the time, was aware that her husband was bad with money, but was reassured by him that everything would work out.

The fishing trip

On May 15th, 1957, Larry planned a business trip to Cleveland and told his wife, Mary Lou, that he would go fishing on Lake Erie once he finished with work.

**Archival image of Fritz Johnson, later revealed to be missing Akron salesman Larry Bader.**

He arrived at Rocky River, Ohio, a town near Lake Erie, where he rented a 14-foot boat. Since it was already afternoon, Larry paid extra for the boat lights.

The man at the boat rental warned Larry about an approaching storm, but he brushed it off and got inside the boat, carrying a briefcase. The weather forecast proved to be accurate, and the storm hit Lake Erie three hours after Larry went fishing.

The next day, the Coast Guard found Larry’s boat stranded on Perkins Beach, but there was no sign of him. The vessel suffered minimal damage, and none of the life jackets had been used.

Additionally, Larry’s briefcase was missing from the boat. Authorities searched Lake Erie, hoping to locate Larry, who was known to be a good swimmer. Unfortunately, their efforts were unsuccessful.

The storm was so severe that the Coast Guard determined the chances of Larry Bader’s survival were minimal. He was initially listed as missing and was later declared dead in 1960.

His wife received $39,500 from Larry’s life insurance policy, as well as monthly Social Security payments. Mary Lou Bader had no reason to believe her husband was still alive.

The incredible life of Fritz Johnson

On May 18th, 1957, just four days after Larry Bader disappeared on Lake Erie, John Johnson, better known as Fritz, appeared 800 miles away, in Omaha, Nebraska. He walked into the Roundtable Bar and engaged in casual conversation with the guests.

When asked about his nickname, Fritz explained he had grown up in an orphanage in New England, where the boys had started calling him that.

Soon, the word spread about the charismatic newcomer who was both clever and incredibly funny, making it easy for him to find a job as a bartender.

He often shared stories from his time in the Navy with people at the bar. Fritz didn’t try to stay out of the limelight for a single second. Instead, he decided to sit on a flagpole for a whole month as a part of a polio fundraiser.

Fritz was hard to miss around Omaha because he drove a hearse, which he customized and created a small lounge area in the back of the vehicle.

In his spare time, he practiced archery, a hobby he shared with Larry Bader, and even competed in tournaments across Nebraska.

One day, a friend of his who worked at the local radio station invited Fritz to hang out at work. Fritz went on air as a joke and was surprisingly good. This stunt led him to become a radio announcer, which resulted in him being a minor celebrity in the area.

Even though Fritz frequently discussed the joys of bachelor life, he fell in love with Nancy Zimmer, a 20-year-old model who had a child from her previous marriage. The two got married in 1961, and Fritz officially adopted Nancy’s daughter. They soon welcomed a baby boy.

Eager for a new challenge, Fritz applied for a position at KETV-7, a television station affiliated with ABC, and was accepted.

He initially worked as an announcer before being promoted to the position of sports director. Since he was an avid archer, Fritz also had a side gig promoting the latest equipment at sporting goods shows.

In 1964, Fritz was diagnosed with a tumor behind his left eye. Unfortunately, the doctors were unable to save his eye during the operation, so Fritz began wearing an eyepatch, which made him even more interesting to people.

The real identity

On February 2nd, 1965, Fritz Johnson was in Chicago, Illinois, at a sporting goods show. He was demonstrating archery equipment when a man from Akron, who knew Larry Bader, recognized Fritz. Despite the fact that almost eight years had passed since Larry’s disappearance, he was convinced he was looking at his friend.

The man knew that Larry Bader’s 21-year-old niece lived in Chicago, so he contacted her. Suzanne Peika came to the sporting goods show, and as soon as she saw Fritz, she was sure he was her missing uncle.

The young woman directly asked Fritz: “Pardon me, but aren’t you my uncle Larry Bader, who disappeared seven years ago?”

Fritz thought it was a joke and politely told her that she had the wrong person. Suzanne had no idea what was going on, but she was certain Fritz was indeed her uncle. She reached out to Larry Bader’s brothers, who immediately traveled to Chicago.

**Fritz Johnson, later confirmed through fingerprints to be missing salesman Larry Bader, after his shocking rediscovery in 1965.**

Realizing the situation had gotten serious, Fritz offered to have his fingerprints taken and compared. Since Larry Bader had served in the Navy, his fingerprints were on file. Law enforcement compared the prints and confirmed that Fritz Johnson was, in fact, Larry Bader.

When he learned about the results, Fritz was genuinely shocked. He was quickly accused of faking his own death to evade the IRS, but Fritz seemed not to have any memories of his previous life. He also pointed out that he would never have given his fingerprints willingly if he were trying to hide from the IRS or his family.

Moreover, Fritz was well-known in Omaha due to his flamboyant personality and his job at the TV station, which is not something a person on the run would do.

Determined to prove his innocence, Fritz hired a lawyer who assembled a team of psychiatrists interested in the case.

They examined Fritz for ten days and used various techniques, including hypnosis, to determine if he was telling the truth or not. The psychiatrists concluded that Fritz Johnson wasn’t trying to deceive anyone, as he had no memories of his former life.

The aftermath

Mary Lou Bader was informed that her late husband was alive and well, which left her speechless. At the time, she was engaged to another man and had already received Larry’s life insurance money. Since Larry was alive, Mary Lou would be required to pay back all of that money.

Meanwhile, Fritz’s marriage to Nancy was annulled, and he lost his job at the TV station. A couple of months later, Mary Lou brought the children to Chicago to see Fritz, but he failed to recognize any of them. Even Mary Lou was convinced Fritz wasn’t faking amnesia.

However, as a Catholic, she didn’t want to file for divorce. So Fritz agreed to send her money every month while he remained at Omaha, where he once again worked in a bar.

A year later, Fritz was trying to put his life back together when he learned the cancer had returned. Unfortunately, it had metastasized to his liver, and he passed away on September 16th, 1966, at St. Joseph’s Medical Hospital in Omaha. He had two funerals under two different names, but was ultimately laid to rest in Akron, Ohio.

With Larry Bader, also known as Fritz Johnson, deceased, the mystery of his disappearance remains unsolved. Although there have been cases of long-term amnesia, those are very rare.

Some psychologists suggested that the tumor behind his eye could’ve caused his complete memory loss, but there was no way to prove this theory since Larry/Fritz was gone.