Rodney Alcala | Dating Game Killer

[Music] hey you and welcome my name is Mike and in this old video we're going to talk about dating contestant Rodney Alcala and what a story it is we have for you today folks in 1978 Rodney appeared on ABC television series the dating game a very popular show ladies and gentlemen being introduced as a successful photographer who got his start when his father found him in the darkroom at the age of 13 fully developed between takes you might find him skydiving or maybe even motorcycling let's hear it for Rodney quite the catch and he actually won the date with the Bachelorette but unfortunately she refused she didn't go on the date with him because she said he was weird and she was right unfortunately folks he was up to no good yeah he was up like a lot every weird stuff like real bad so let's get into it [Music] [Music] Rodney Alcala was born on August 23rd 1940 tree in San Antonio Texas the dad would move the family down to Mexico in 1951 you know the good ol signs telltale signs of a serial killers the Macdonald triad linking cruelty to animals obsession with fire setting and persistent bedwetting past a certain age they are all linked to violent behaviors particularly homicidal behavior well those things they tend to gotta be giveaways hey if you see any kids doing those things like winter troll - oh no what you're gonna do it I'm well you should do something yeah Rodney showed none of those signs at all he actually seemed like a perfectly normal kid his dad would abandon the family at like age eight but that was like the only even slightly dysfunctional thing about Rodney Alcala because you think you show at least one of those signs because he goes on to do a nothing good nothing for the benefit of humanity he was popular at school had many girlfriends then in 1960 at age 17 Rodney joined the United States Army and served as a clerk in 1964 after what was described as a nervous breakdown he was diagnosed with antisocial personality disorder by a military psychiatrist and discharged on medical grounds and then much later in life after being imprisoned for being a serial killer he would also be diagnosed with borderline personality disorder on malignant narcissistic personality disorder with psychopathy and sexual sadism comorbid he's tragically the world would have to find us out the hard way Rodney enrolled at the UCLA School of Fine Arts where he earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1968 that's also the same year where he kidnapped and assaulted and tried to kill his first victim Tali Shapiro in 1968 Tali Shapiro was eight years old and walking to school in Hollywood a man driving a beige car approached and asked if she needed a ride she told the man that she didn't talk to strangers he convinced her that he knew her family and that he was safe how he got into the strangers car against her better judgment that stranger was Rodney Alcala no [ __ ] no a neighbor saw this interaction and he ended up following Rodney's car to Rodney's apartment where he saw you know them both go in and he was like that's no good he called the police upon arrival the LAPD found the child lying face down in a large pool of blood on his kitchen floor when they saw her they thought she was dead thankfully she wasn't and while the police were giving her medical attention Rodney managed to escape but now Rodney's on the run he fled to New York and enrolled in the NYU film school from 1968 to 1971 even though he was listed on the FBI's most wanted list he lived undetected and in full view using the name John Berger apparently the guy who taught Rodney to use a film camera and auto ship was none other than Roman Polanski who well let's move on then in June 1971 Rodney commits his first murder that we know of just before he was to move to New Hampshire for the summer to work as a summer camp counselor Rodney offered to help flight attendant Cornelia Crilley move into her Manhattan apartment that didn't end well for her though Rodney wouldn't be a suspect until almost four decades later when they mushed a bite mark on her body so after helping helping her move into her apartment Rodney then went off to that summer camp where he was recognized by two girls who saw his wanted poster in the post office and the police arrived and arrested John burger Rodney Alcala in August 1971 rodney was back in LA you know facing charges for what he did to Tali Shapiro but prosecutors they had a pretty big problem Teli shapiro and her family had gone to Mexico once she had made a full recovery and they weren't really interested in coming back so with our main witness a decision was made to offer a plea deal Rodney Alcala was charged with rape kidnapping assault and attempted murder and he accepted a deal to plead guilty to child molestation the other charges were dropped he was sentenced to one year to life and was paroled after 34 months under the indeterminate sentencing program the program allowed a parole board not a judge to decide on when offenders could be released based on if they appeared rehabilitated whit Rodney's ability to charm he was back out on the streets in less than three years within eight weeks he returned to prison for violating his parole for providing marijuana to a 13 year old girl she told police that Rodney kidnapped her but he wasn't charged with that Rodney spent another two years behind bars and was released in 1977 again under the indeterminate sentencing program he returned to Los Angeles and got a job as a typesetter for the LA Times Rodney then managed to get his parole officer to agree to let him visit family in New York in July 1977 where he would murder just straight-up another person Ellen Jane Hoover 11 months later her bones were found on the grounds of the Rockefeller estate in Westchester County a number of eyewitnesses said they'd seen Ellen talking to a man who matched Rodney's description outside her apartment in the days leading up to her disappearance as well as the day she disappeared he was also seen at the Rockefeller estate where she would be found so rodney was questioned by the police in her disappearance but they had jack-shit to go on he refused the polygraph and they didn't have a body so nobody no crime I heard that's the law in the meantime Rodney was back on his way to LA however while he was traveling to LA he would do something else now a quicker jump to the future in 1980 photos were found in Rodney's locker he had in Seattle a lot of photos were found in there in 2010 the NYPD on Huntington Beach PD released 120 of them to the public in hopes that people may come forward and identify the women or children in them in 2013 Kathy Thornton came across al kalos photo archive Kathy's sister Christine had gone missing in the spring of 1977 looking true to photos she spotted one of a woman on a motorbike upon closer inspection she had no doubt that the woman was Christine who was six months pregnant when she disappeared Christine's remains were found in Wyoming in 1982 investigators figured that Alcala had met Christine and she agreed to go for a ride with him and pose for pictures the photo appears to have been taken not far from where her remains were discovered now let's go back once in LA in 1977 Rodney Alcala went on a murderous rampage cutting just come from Wyoming in November 1977 he murdered 18-year old Jill Barkham a New York native who had recently moved to California now originally police believed her to be a victim of the hillside strangler an 18 year old jail bar comb this is the first major break in the case of 13 young women who've been strangled and dumped on Los angeles-area hillsides but that's a that's another story in December 1977 Alcala murdered 27 year old nurse georgia Wixted [Music] this is channel 5 KTLA Los Angeles [Music] [Applause] number 1 on September 13 1978 rodney was in between the murders on this day he made an appearance on the dating game as bachelor number 1 let's see back to number 1 is a successful photographer who got his start when his father found him in the darkroom at the age of 13 fully developed between tapes he might find him skydiving or motorcycling please welcome Rodney Alcala and we're gonna start by having them say hello to you and see how they sound number one would you say hello to Cheryl please we're gonna have a great time together Cheryl what's wrong with morning afternoon well they're okay but night times when it really gets good then you're really ready I'm a drama teacher and I'm going to audition each of you for my private class a bachelor number one and your red dirty old man take it come on over here I am serving you for dinner what are you called and what do you look like I'm called the banana the Bachelorette Cheryl Bradshaw picked Rodney as the winner however after spending time backstage Cheryl declined the date thankfully you know to her instincts she survived can't say the same about many more victims so let's talk for a minute about why he did that went on the telly and took so many pictures detailing his crimes for that matter Rodney loved camera video different forms of media it gave him a real trill when it came to doing his horrific work for one thing it helped him get close to victims without arousing suspicion just stuff photographer and he could also obsess over his victims in an acceptable way and for another he got pleasure out of detailing his victims and the aftermaths Rodney liked to prolong the suffering of his victims he would strangle them almost to death only to let him go before he'd start strangling them all over again then he would leave the bodies in grisly sexually suggestive positions to greet the authorities his taking pictures of them was just another way to enjoy their suffering Rodney going on a TV show is just another example of a serial killer getting the attention they love a lot of these people want to be found they want the recognition they want to be like celebrities and what could give someone like this more of a trill than appearing on a TV show - a round of applause in the homes of millions of people presenting a facade which no doubt he got enjoyment out of all the wild knowing in his mind he was a depraved killer he definitely got off on this sure as [ __ ] doesn't it come on over here [Applause] in June 1979 Alcala murdered 33 year old legal secretary Charlotte Lam that same month also Jill Kanto on robbing Sam so 12 year old robbing Sam so loved to dance and it struck a deal with the ballet studio in town where she would work answering phones for a couple of errors in exchange for lessons on June 28 1979 she had arranged you know to go to the studio later on that day but before she did she was going to the beach to meet her friend Bridget so once Robyn and Bridget are there on the beach a man comes up some with dark hair asking me if he could take their photograph Robyn was like yeah sure but then a neighbor came he asked was like everything okay and the guy with the camera [ __ ] off later that day an employee at the ballet studio called Robyn's home telling her family she never showed and so her mother called 9-1-1 twelve days later Robyn's remains were found in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains on July 2nd 1979 around 40 miles north of where she was last seen investigators interviewed Bridget the friend Robyn was with when the man asked to take their picture and from her description a sketch of the man from the beach was produced and distributed throughout Southern California the sketch was a good portrayal of alcalá and when his parole officer in LA saw it he notified the Huntington Beach PD that they had to take a look Rodney on July 14 to 1979 police finally arrested Rodney Alcala before he vanished again police impounded his car and searched his residence they found a receipt for his storage unit law enforcement obtained a warrant to seize the storage locker in Seattle they used the key discovered in Rodney's car to open the padlock and inside they found a box upon box upon box of unnerving photos of women and children there was also a box of used earrings that Rodney kept as trophies Robinson saw his mother claimed a pair of gold earrings he had for her own Robyn wore them frequently and she had been unable to find them since she went missing on July 28 1979 Rodney Alcala was arraigned in Orange County for the murder of Robin Sam so by the way he pled to innocence to all charges because of course he did the Sam so hearing started in September and he was convicted Rodney was sentenced to die in California's gas chamber in 1980 however the California Supreme Court overturned the verdict because the prosecution showed jurors evidence regarding Rodney's previous sexual offenses he was tried a second time in 1986 past crimes omitted the judge again sentenced Rodney to death a decision the Supreme Court upheld unanimously in 2001 Rodney's death sentence was overturned a second time this time by a federal appellate court who thought significant evidence had been held back during the previous two trials as preparations were underway for a new trial investigators were busy sequencing Rodney's DNA so this was going on for like over 20 years Oh sentencing him and being back in court again again and again Rodney's DNA was matched to biological matter at the scene of four murders Jil parent Oh Charlotte lamb georgia Wixted Angie over comb Ocala was still to stand trial a third time for the murder of Robin Sam so the prosecution requested that alcohol is trial for Robins murder be combined with the murder trials for jail bark home Georgia WIC said Charlotte lamb and Jill Parenteau to which Ocala strongly protested I guess in his mind you know one was bad enough you didn't need another four victims in 2006 the California Supreme Court granted the request to combine the murder trials in 2010 66 year old Rodney Alcala stood trial for the five murders as Bundy did in his trial for the Florida sorority sister murders he opted to represent himself the trial it was a circus Rodney would question himself using different voices it would go on for like five errors really really weird Robin Sam so his mother had to ensure his questioning during the trial she actually brought a gun whither to the trial and planned on shooting him which he stopped later saying Robins hand on my arm stopped me Rodney Alcala insisted that on the day Robin samso went missing he was applying for a job at Knott's Berry Farm you roller coaster Murphy also questioned I'll call his alibi at the time of SAMHSA's abduction that he was at Knott's Berry Farm at the time there wasn't a single witness that puts Rodney Alcala at Nos after three o'clock except for Rodney Alcala and that the gold earrings Robin Sam saw his mother said were Robins it's like no they're my gold earrings come on I like to look snazzy there should be some earrings during a two-hour often rambling closing argument Monday afternoon a cue serial killer Rodney Alcala who is defending himself in the death penalty trial sat at the counsel table and spoke in a dull monotone Alcala could not make his laptop computer project on the large courtroom screen and he often scrambled to find photos and other exhibits Alcala spent some of his argument attacking the credibility of Mary Ann Connolly 12 year old Robin samhsa's mother Alcala is accused of kidnapping and murdering Sam so in 1979 Alcala claimed Connolly who he refers to as Frasier Connolly's previous name made up a story about her daughter's earrings being the same earrings that were found in a Seattle storage locker rented in Alcala z-- name-o testimony from anyone other than mrs. Fraser that Robins ears were pierced none of her friends were aware of that they were unaware of her wearing earrings and mrs. Fraser had plenty of opportunity provide you the jury with a picture of Robin wearing here he stated on the stand that she had pictures of Robin and if Robin like she says were earrings all the time that was her habit then there should be some earrings some pictures worth hearing and there should be some person who isn't familial to testify that Rob for Harriet however no one testified other than mrs. Fraser that Robin Ward hairiness callow was more or less a hundred percent focused a callow was more or less 100% focused on convincing the jury he was not responsible for Robin samhsa's murder forgetting he was also on trial for four other victims and when asked about those he was like don't remember I've no idea don't remember but I didn't kill Robin I remember that on February 25th 2010 the jury found Alcala guilty of all five counts of capital murder one count of kidnapping on four counts of rape during the penalty phase Alcala attempted to sway the jury away from the death penalty by playing the song Alice's Restaurant by Arlo Guthrie that strategy I don't know why he thought it would work it's like a kind of a comedy Thanksgiving song I think so I don't know what was going through his noggin when he played it he was like yeah hey this will convince them not to kill me that didn't work the jury and the judge were like death penalty or that fate is death he's heard it again and again and again death in fact it was one of the quickest deliberations in a death penalty case in Orange County history it took this jury less than an hour to reach that verdict now Rodney Alcala earlier had told the jury in his closing arguments again he acted as his own attorney he had told the jury basically go ahead and give me the death penalty I dare you because all its gonna do is lead to another appeal then he also told them that if you give me the death you are just as guilty of murdering me as anyone else but apparently the jury did not buy it whatsoever the prosecution called Rodney Alcala quote a monster a monster who loves to kill women he killed Robin Sam so Jill paronto Charlotte lamb Georgia wicks it and Jill Barkham killed them brutalized them and absolutely torture them and the prosecutor let him know that Rodney Alcala is now in his 70s frail and allegedly in the Tros of deep dementia on a California holding facility I'm called the banana so honestly welcome let him Rock lock him up throw away the key good afternoon ladies and gentlemen we just came from court today where Rodney Alcala was sentenced to two concurrent 25 years to life prison terms for the murders of two beautiful young women who didn't live past the age of 23 Alcala himself is 69 years old and this sentence is please and the sentences ensures that he will risk that he will serve the remainder of his life in prison we're joined today as you can see by many many members of the victim's families I want to thank them for their courage and their perseverance over the years and for coming today to be here at this proceeding and this important proceeding clearly the young girls that were murdered by Rodney Alcala were not forgotten by their families or friends over the past decades and certainly they were not forgotten either by this office or by the New York City Police Department now at the outset of this case some questioned the utility in bringing an investigation and a case against a person already on death row and they asked why is this necessary the simple answer is you cannot get away with murder a lot of people believe that there are more victims of his out there somewhere 20 of the photos found in Rodney's locker have been released by various police departments in hopes that people may come forward and identify the people in them that these could be many more victims and many more missing people and that families get the closure they deserve [Music] thank you so much for watching I really really appreciate it I will see you as always real soon in the next video take care of yourselves Mike [Music] [Music]

Channel: That Chapter

Views: 1,142,292

Keywords: that chapter, rodney alcala, dating game killer, rodney alcala case, rodney alcala sketch, rodney alcala dating game

Id: igYlhMB1BTg

Length: 25min 16sec (1516 seconds)

Published: Fri Jul 10 2020

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