Did Gordon Northcott sing 'Silent Night' before he was executed in real life?

According to: River of Blood: Serial Killers and Their Victims by Amanda Howard, Martin Smith – 2004 – Social Science – 372 pages

“Northcott began his last day on earth screaming, he was terrified of the hangman’s noose and kept asking if it will hurt. He had to be dragged up the stairs to the gallows. His last words were, “A prayer-please say a prayer for me”. Then the trap door opened.”

I’m guessing the answer to your question is NO

Hmm, I wonder why he did it in the movie though. Because the writer spent a whole year researching the events before writing. But thanks!

Makes a better movie?

If you get a moment, Google “Larry Harnisch” and “Daily Mirror” and you’ll get Larry’s Daily Mirror Blog at the L.A. Times, which features extensive history of the events upon which the film Changeling was based. There was no mention in the L.A. Times coverage of Northcott singing “Silent Night.” That, of course, doesn’t necessarily mean he did not sing it. It just means the L.A. Times didn’t mention it in its coverage of his execution.

No he was just asking repeatedly “Will it hurt?” and said a prayer.