Documentary filmmaker Mark Laita did his best to help the Whittaker clan – aka ‘America’s most inbred family’, spending time getting to know them and assisting them in their hour of need. Then he learned he’d been cruelly deceived.
A documentary filmmaker who attempted to help America’s most inbred family claims he was cruelly deceived by the clan.
Mark Laita first made contact with the Whittakers back in 2004, and in the years since his first video, he has continued to provide regular updates via YouTube, uploading clips entitled ‘Christmas season with the Whittakers’, ‘The Whittaker family cemetery’, and ‘The Whittakers go to the state fair’. But it hasn’t all been smooth sailing.
The Whittakers, described by Laita as “the most popular inbred family in the United States”, live an unconventional life, marked by inbreeding which began when children of identical twin brothers Henry and John married each other. Generations of inbreeding followed, with many descendants suffering from serious disabilities.
Initially, the Whittakers, of Odd, West Virginia, were reluctant to engage with Laita, with one suspicious family member allegedly even pulling a gun on him during an early meeting.
READ MORE: ‘I discovered America’s most inbred family and one thing still haunts me from first meeting’
In a previous appearance on The Koncrete Klips podcast, Laita opened up about his first impressions of the Whittakers, comparing the sight that initially greeted him to a scene from the infamously disturbing film, Deliverance. Laita, who was accompanied by a police officer during his first trip to the Whittaker residence, recalled: “We came around to this road, which turns into a country road, which turns into a dirt road.. Then we come to this trailer, and then a little shack on the other side of the road. And there are these people walking around, and their eyes are going in different directions, and they are barking at us.”
He continued: “One bloke, you would look him in the eye or say anything and he would just scream and go running away, and his trousers would fall around his ankles, and he would go running off and go and kick a rubbish bin. And this would happen over and over. It was out of control – the maddest thing I have ever witnessed.”
Determined Laita slowly won them around, patiently learning about their curious way of life and earning their trust. But relations fractured when Laita accused the Whittakers of faking the death of family member Larry from a supposed heart attack. Wanting to show support, sympathetic Laita made a $1,000 (£770) donation to Larry’s funeral. It was only afterwards that he learned that Larry was still walking the earth.
In a YouTube clip entitled ‘The Death of Larry Whittaker’, Laita shared footage in which a live and kicking Larry could be heard discussing his faked demise while sitting outside his family home. When quizzed as to whether he was behind the plot, Larry insisted: “No, I just heard of it last night on a video.”
Laita went on to explain that he’d given his donation to Larry’s daughter, who goes by the name BJ, after she claimed she needed funds for her dad’s funeral. In the clip, BJ confessed to this shocking deception and apologised.
Although many may have been put off by this trickery, it would appear that this is now all water under the bridge. Laita has continued his filmed visits to see the Whittakers, and also generously chipped in when their mobile home went up in flames.
Do you have a story to share? Email me at [email protected]
READ MORE: The £799 star of John Lewis’ 2025 Christmas advert is on every music lovers’ gifting list
