A Million Dollar Murder

Mossler proved to be a tough sell. Candy had him penciled in as a $350 opera donor. He sprung for just $25. But, he apparently was sold on Candy.

Mossler, then 52, was not an unattractive man, with a shock of wavy hair, heavy arched eyebrows and well-proportioned facial features. But Candy, 28, was in another league. Some years later, Paul Holmes described her in the Chicago Tribune: She was piquant, vivacious, friendly, and with a flashing smile that lighted up her mobile features. Her hair was blonde, more white than yellow... Her clothing was expensive but worn both casually and tastefully. She was not a petite woman but she was on the smallish side and slender as a girl. She was a woman who could be equally at home in a drawing room, a cocktail lounge or a board room.

On May 24, 1949, six months after they met, Mossler and Candy were married. They set up house in a 28-room mansion in the exclusive River Oaks section of Houston, where Mosslers business had its headquarters. The newlyweds needed the space, with six children between them, along with a small squadron of live-in cooks, maids, gardeners and chauffeurs.

Jacques Mossler lavished jewels and designer clothing on his new wife. The couple kept a fleet of the latest models of luxury automobiles - Jaguars, Cadillacs, Thunderbirds. They maintained a busy social schedule, both in Houston and Miami, where they bought an apartment on Key Biscayne.

The Houston Chronicle reported that Candy "became known as a charming hostess, entertaining visiting opera stars and other celebrities, and taking active part in civic, cultural and charitable causes." The couple donated to the Texas Childrens Hospital, Houston Grand Opera, Houston Boys Club and the citys United Fund.

Mossler gave his wife a monthly allowance of $5,700 to manage the house, and he would add bonuses of $5,000 for her birthday, their wedding anniversary and other special occasions.

Mossler, a pragmatic businessman, had had a vasectomy after the birth of his fourth daughter. He apparently enjoyed an occasional fling, but was paranoid about being blackmailed over an unwanted pregnancy by a gold digger. The vasectomy became a contentious issue with the couple because Candy wanted more children.

During a business trip to Chicago in 1957, Mossler read a newspaper story about a horrible murder. A mother of five young children was shot and killed by her war veteran husband during a bout of psychosis. The man, who was institutionalized, also killed the youngest of the children.

Mossler children

Mossler pulled strings in Illinois government and adopted the four surviving kids, a girl of 6 and three boys, 5, 3 and 2. They joined the crowd at the Houston mansion.