If you walked past an elderly couple in a Queens diner back in the early 2000s, you might have seen a woman in oversized dark sunglasses and a man with the boisterous, fast-talking energy of an old-school ambulance chaser. They looked like any other long-married pair bickering over coffee. But the story of Linda Riss and Burt Pugach isn't a normal romance. It’s a tabloid fever dream that involves private planes, fake divorce papers, hired thugs, and a bottle of lye.
Most people who hear the name "Burt Pugach" think of the 2007 documentary Crazy Love. It’s a fitting title. Honestly, it’s the only title that fits a man who ruined a woman’s life and then convinced her to spend the next 40 years with him.
The Whirlwind and the Lie
In 1957, Linda Riss was a 20-year-old beauty from the Bronx with everything going for her. She met Burt, a 30-year-old personal injury lawyer who was making serious money in an era when the average salary was peanuts. Burt didn't just date Linda; he overwhelmed her. He had the powder-blue Cadillac. He had a nightclub. He even had a plane.
But Burt had a secret. He was already married.
When Linda found out about his wife, Francine, and their daughter, she tried to walk away. Burt wasn't having it. He was obsessive. He produced divorce papers to prove he was free, but Linda’s mother, Bertha, had them checked out. They were fakes. Burt was a lawyer who knew how to forge a life, and when Linda finally moved on and got engaged to a man named Larry Schwartz, Burt’s obsession turned into something much darker.
The Morning Everything Changed
On the morning of June 15, 1959, a man knocked on Linda’s door. He said he had an engagement gift. When she opened the door, he didn't hand her a present. He threw a bottle of lye directly into her face.
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The attack was calculated and horrific. It left Linda permanently scarred, blinded in one eye, and with only 10 percent vision in the other. Burt’s logic was chillingly simple: "If I can't have you, no one else will."
The NYPD didn't have much trouble tracing the hit back to Burt. He had hired three men—Al Smith Newkirk, Heard Harden, and Walter McMillian—to carry out the attack. The trial was a circus. Burt tried every legal trick in the book to stay out of jail, including a three-month sanity hearing. Eventually, the judge called his actions a "mockery of justice" and sentenced him to 15 to 30 years.
14 Years of Letters from Attica
Burt went to prison, but he didn't stop pursuing Linda. For 14 years, he wrote her. He told her she would never find anyone who loved her more than he did.
Linda, meanwhile, was struggling. She was "damaged merchandise" in her own eyes. Her fiancé, Larry, had left her shortly after seeing her injuries. Other suitors came and went, but they usually flinched when she took off her glasses. By the time Burt was paroled in 1974, Linda was living in a small Manhattan apartment, feeling isolated and fearful of the future.
Then came the moment that made the world stop. Burt proposed to her on live television.
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And she said yes.
Why Linda Riss Actually Married Him
People always ask "Why?" Was it Stockholm Syndrome? Was it a long-game revenge plot?
In Crazy Love, Linda is pretty blunt about it. She was tired of being alone. She was tired of being the "blind girl." Burt was the only person who didn't look at her with pity, probably because he was the one who caused the damage. There’s a psychological complexity here that defies a simple "happily ever after."
Their marriage lasted nearly 39 years. It was filled with bickering and, surprisingly, more scandal. In 1997, Burt was accused of threatening a mistress—yes, he was still cheating—with the same "1959" treatment. Linda stood by him in court. She called him a "naughty boy" but insisted he wasn't a criminal anymore.
The Ending Nobody Expected
Linda Riss died of heart failure in 2013 at age 75. Burt was devastated. He told reporters he didn't know how he would go on without her.
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But even his final chapter was messy. Burt died in 2020 at the age of 93, amidst allegations of elder abuse involving a woman who had allegedly coerced him into changing his will to leave her his $15 million estate. The man who spent his life manipulating others seemingly ended up being the one manipulated at the very end.
Lessons from the Pugach Saga
If you're looking into this case for the first time, there are a few things to keep in mind regarding how obsession and the legal system intersect:
- The Failure of Protection: Linda actually went to the police multiple times before the attack. In 1959, the law didn't really recognize "stalking" the way it does now. It’s a stark reminder of how far victim advocacy has come.
- The Power of Narrative: Burt was a master at reframing his violence as "obsessive love." Even in his 70s, he spoke about the attack with a detached, almost proud tone.
- The Illusion of Choice: Linda’s decision to marry Burt wasn't made in a vacuum. It was the result of a woman being systematically broken down by a man, a crime, and a society that didn't know how to support her.
To truly understand this story, you should watch the documentary Crazy Love and read their co-written book, A Very Different Love Story. Just don't expect a feel-good ending. It’s a story about the messy, dark, and often incomprehensible parts of the human heart.
Next Steps for Research:
You might want to look into the Riss v. New York lawsuit. It was a landmark case where Linda sued the city for failing to protect her after she reported Burt's threats. While she eventually lost on the grounds of "sovereign immunity," it changed the conversation about police responsibility in domestic violence and harassment cases forever.