Uncover the chilling story of Rodney Alcala, the "Dating Game Killer." From his troubled childhood to his reign of terror in the 1970s, we delve into the life and crimes of one of America's most notorious serial killers. Learn about his shocking appearance on "The Dating Game" and the long road to justice that followed.
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00:00Number one, would you say hello to Cheryl please? We're gonna have a great time together, Cheryl.
00:05Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're going over everything we know about one of America's
00:09most notorious serial killers, Rodney Alcala, also known as the Dating Game Killer.
00:15The whole thing was crazy. They showed me on stage, the lights went on, and here we go.
00:23Early life. Rodney Alcala was born in San Antonio, Texas on August 23rd, 1943,
00:30and was the third of four siblings. Rodney Alcala was born Rodrigo Jacques Alcala Bucure
00:37on August 23rd, 1943, in San Antonio, Texas. He spent his early years in Mexico until his family
00:44relocated to Los Angeles when he was eight years old. Alcala's childhood was marked by instability
00:50and abandonment, particularly after his father left, creating a foundation for what would become
00:55a turbulent adolescence and young adulthood. And then he joined the army in the early 60s,
01:00and that's where the trouble really began for Rodney Alcala. At 17, Alcala joined the U.S. Army,
01:06where his commanding officer described him as, quote, manipulative, vindictive, and insubordinate.
01:12He was discharged following a reported, quote, nervous breakdown, as well as accusations of
01:18sexual misconduct. The military felt that he had had a nervous breakdown. That was their analysis
01:23of it. The psychiatrists at the hospital felt it was a lot more serious than that. After his ejection,
01:30Alcala enrolled in UCLA's School of Fine Arts and Architecture, later transferring to New York
01:35University. It's here that he attended a class with famed director Roman Polanski. No, he's a
01:41short guy who directed Repulsion and Rosemary's Baby. Are those movies or? What do you mean you're
01:47killing me? I'm trying to name drop you. Drop away, man. I'm not, no, because you don't know who I'm talking
01:51about, so it's not as impressive. In 1977, Polanski himself would go on to be arrested for multiple
01:58unlawful offenses against a youth. Crimes. Prosecutors say when he was young, Alcala was a
02:04master manipulator. Described by prosecutors as a cruel killer who toyed with his victims,
02:10Rodney Alcala's reign of terror began in the late 1960s and continued throughout the 1970s.
02:16Leaving an alarming trail of victims across multiple states, he has been conclusively linked
02:21to eight murders, but the actual number is said to be much higher, possibly reaching as many as 130.
02:29Investigators believe he may have actually killed up to 130 victims based on photos found on his
02:35property. Alcala's modus operandi typically involved luring young women with the promise
02:40of photographing them. Now look right into the lens right here and give me that look you just
02:45gave me. Come on. There she is. Look at you. One more. You know, Farrah Fawcett, she's got nothing on you.
02:56His crimes were not limited to a specific type of victim, however, as he targeted women of various
03:01ages and even young men. It's said that he used his charm and good looks to disarm his victims.
03:07It's this man who says, oh it's okay, I'm not a stranger, I know your parents, I'm friends with
03:11your parents. And she thought, hmm, well maybe I'll get in the car. Once he had them alone, Alcala
03:19would brutally assault, torture, and end their lives. Perhaps most chilling, it's said that he
03:25tormented his victims until they lost consciousness, only to revive them and repeat the process,
03:31prolonging their suffering.
03:39Crime spree. A smile shared by a tragic list of young women and girls who trusted a charming
03:45stranger, only to discover a dark secret that began back in the fall of 1968. Rodney Alcala's
03:52criminal acts began in 1968 when he lured young Tali Shapiro to his Hollywood apartment, escaping
03:57before police could apprehend him. To continue searching the house for her attacker. Moments
04:02later, when he walked back into the kitchen, he witnessed a miracle. She was gagging and trying
04:09to breathe and I thought, one for the good guys, she's going to make it. Later arrested for assault,
04:15Alcala assumed the alias John Berger and fled to New Hampshire. There was an entry that said she
04:21was meeting John Berger. It's here that he briefly worked at Blue Cross Blue Shield and shared an
04:29office with serial killer Richard Cottingham, though neither claimed to know of the other's
04:33identity. In 1971, Alcala strangled flight attendant Cornelia Crilly in her Manhattan apartment,
04:40a murder left unsolved until 2011. Added to the FBI's list of 10 most wanted fugitives,
04:46he was ultimately captured after two children recognized him from an FBI poster.
04:50I get a phone call and it's the FBI in New Hampshire. Say, hey, we've got your guy in
04:55custody, Rodney James Alcala. I said, you've got him in custody. Fantastic. Alcala was convicted
05:02of violating youths, but was paroled after serving a short sentence. After his release,
05:07he assaulted a minor and was re-arrested. He was able to read people very well and stay a step or
05:13two or three ahead of them. Following this second release, after serving two years in prison,
05:19it's believed Alcala killed Ellen Jane Hover, the 23-year-old daughter of nightclub owner Herman
05:24Hover and goddaughter of famous crooners Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr. She had long, dark hair
05:30and long, slender arms and legs and carried herself like a dancer. Her remains were found
05:37on the historic Rockefeller estate. Alcala later worked for the Los Angeles Times daily newspaper,
05:42where he persuaded young men and women to pose for him as a fashion photographer.
05:47His time in Los Angeles during the late 1970s saw a succession of gruesome killings and assaults,
05:52all leading to his eventual final arrest. Appearance on The Dating Game. Bachelor number
05:59one, I am serving you for dinner. What are you called and what do you look like? In 1978,
06:12Rodney Alcala appeared as a bachelor on the popular television show The Dating Game,
06:16hosted by Jim Lange. The game show featured three out-of-view contestants vying for a date
06:21with a member of the opposite sex. Producers chose Alcala for his, quote, tall, handsome,
06:27and charming persona, unaware of his dark past. This was because no background check was done.
06:38At the time of his appearance, Alcala had already taken the lives of at least two women in Southern
06:43California. Introduced as a successful photographer, Alcala managed to charm the
06:48audience and the bachelorette Cheryl Bradshaw. The ABC program was heavy on innuendo,
06:57and throughout the episode, he enthusiastically responded to the bachelorette's suggestive
07:02questions. Thanks to his witty responses and boyish good looks, Alcala won the competition
07:07and ultimately secured a date with Bradshaw. However, in a turn of fate that may have saved
07:13her life, Bradshaw decided not to go on the date. Later explaining she found Alcala, quote,
07:18creepy and sensed, quote, something was off. The footage of his appearance offers a haunting look
07:24into Alcala's unnerving ability to mask his true nature and manipulate those around him with ease.
07:30The appearance was adapted into a feature film titled Woman of the Hour,
07:34directed by and starring Anna Kendrick.
07:36The question beneath the question remains the same.
07:41All right, what's the question? Which one of you will hurt me?
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08:02Trials and Convictions
08:04The long arm of the law finally caught up with Rodney Alcala in 1979 when he was arrested for
08:09the murder of Robin Samsoe in California. Following Samsoe's death, detectives circulated
08:15a sketch of the suspect and an officer recognized him. Tried in 1980, Alcala ultimately received
08:21a death sentence. However, in 1984, the California Supreme Court overturned his conviction due to the
08:28jury's exposure to his past crimes. Both verdicts were later overturned.
08:32After a second trial in 1986, he was again convicted and sentenced to death. However,
08:38this too was overturned in 2001 following an appeal regarding questionable witness testimony.
08:44During preparations for a third trial in 2003, Alcala's DNA linked him to four additional
08:50murder cases, resulting in his indictment for those murders. In 2010, he stood trial again,
08:56acting as his own attorney, and was convicted on five counts of first-degree murder.
09:01This conviction led to a third death sentence. In 2011, a New York grand jury indicted Alcala
09:08for two additional murders from the 1970s. After being extradited in 2012, he pled guilty,
09:14citing a desire to return to California to pursue appeals of his death penalty conviction.
09:19He received a sentence of 25 years to life, as the death penalty was no longer an option
09:25in New York State. Alcala died on death row in 2021 at age 77 of natural causes.
09:31President officials say Rodney Alcala passed away from natural causes at a Kings County hospital.
09:37Have you watched the Netflix film depicting Rodney Alcala's appearance on the dating game
09:41Woman of the Hour? Share your thoughts on the film in the comments below.
09:44Whether it's for a minute or for an hour, I'd like to sit relatively close to a special girl
09:52whenever I get the chance.