It is based on the true story of Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb, the so-called "thrill killers" who murdered a young boy in 1924 in order to commit "the perfect crime."

In 2024, writer/composer Stephen Dolginoff’s memoir Thrill Maker, which recounts the entire thirty year history of the show (which he first began writing in 1994), was published.

[2] It was then staged for a limited run off-Broadway by the not-for-profit York Theatre Company (James Morgan, Producing Artistic Director) and Jim Kierstead, opening on May 16, 2005 and extended through August 21.

Internationally, the musical has been produced in Seoul, South Korea (in Korean),[5] Athens, Greece (in Greek), Melbourne, Australia, Tokyo, Japan (in Japanese),[6] Madrid, Spain (in Spanish), Datteln, Germany (in German) Belgium (in Dutch),[7] England, Scotland, Austria, Canada, Argentina, China, the Czech Republic, and Poland.

The production featured Benjamin Giraud as Leopold, Blake Erickson as Loeb as well as the voices of Jason Langley, Jennifer Vuletic, and Barry Crocker.

[13] A revival at the Greenwich Theatre took place in April, 2015 prior to a UK Tour; followed by a production in 2017 which played London and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

The show was nominated for Best Set Design at the Off West End Awards and both Bart Lambert[15] (Nathan) and Jack Reitman (Richard) won Best Male Performance in a Musical.

In his memory, he goes back to 1924 Chicago, where, as a nineteen-year-old boy, he anxiously meets up with Richard Loeb, a classmate with whom he has shared friendship, sex and participation in minor crimes.

Richard explains that he is bored with the misdemeanors and wants to commit a "superior" crime: the murder of a young boy ("The Plan") and a phony ransom scheme after the killing.

Back in 1958 at Joliet before the Parole Board, Nathan explains his feelings ("Way Too Far") as he recalls how Richard prepared the murder weapons and supplies: rope, a crowbar and a bottle of acid.

Behind bars, Nathan finally reveals his own shocking plan: fearing the loss of Richard, he went along with the murder but stayed one step ahead the entire time, even deliberately planting his glasses, knowing that all this would ensure his desire to be together forever, or at least for "Life Plus 99 Years".

"[18] The New York Times wrote, "The story is familiar, the script and lyrics are not especially innovative, but somehow... Dolginoff's pocket musical about the Leopold and Loeb murder case lands like a well-placed punch, arresting and a bit breathtaking.... Credit [the] lean approach to the storytelling.... Others have told the tale in plays and films, but there is something brazenly satisfying about Mr. Dolginoff's rendition.... [It]'s a reminder that evil often looks and sounds beautiful.

"[19] The Hollywood Reporter said "Stephen Dolginoff has created a dark little entertainment told in flashbacks that combines the extravagant emotions and ensemble couplings of verismo opera (complete with feverish kisses and embraces) with musical sounds and styles drawn from Broadway and the bittersweet ballads of Franz Schubert and Kurt Weill".

[20] The Los Angeles Times wrote "A hit off-Broadway, Stephen Dolginoff's two-character musical Thrill Me delves into the distinctive pathology of the youths' relationship, a homosexual attraction that devolved into a master-slave dynamic of deadly proportions.