The screen life of a legendary killer
In 1968, two teenagers were shot and killed while sitting in a
car near Vallejo. It was the beginning of a murder spree by a
serial killer who called himself the Zodiac.
The Zodiac is known to be responsible for five killings, but
police believe he may have committed more than 20. He terrorized
the Bay Area with chilling letters to local newspapers that
detailed his crimes and gave hints to his identity. He even
threatened to kill kids as they got off the school bus.
The screen life of a legendary killer
In 1968, two teenagers were shot and killed while sitting in a car near Vallejo. It was the beginning of a murder spree by a serial killer who called himself the Zodiac.
The Zodiac is known to be responsible for five killings, but police believe he may have committed more than 20. He terrorized the Bay Area with chilling letters to local newspapers that detailed his crimes and gave hints to his identity. He even threatened to kill kids as they got off the school bus.
I was 11 when I first heard of the Zodiac while watching a documentary on unsolved murders on HBO. What scared me most about Zodiac was there was no pattern to his crimes. He struck at night and during the day. He didn’t rob people or do anything else to them. He just killed them and went on his way.
I’ve read several books on Zodiac and have seen all of the movies based on him. I live close to where his killings took place and near the main suspect’s house. When I see a man in his mid-to-late 60s I sometimes wonder – is that Zodiac? At night all I have to do is think about him and I scare myself silly.
Along with hints to his identity, Zodiac showed he was a film buff by quoting movie lines in his letters. He even took his name from an old movie. Below is a list of movies that both inspired and were inspired by the Zodiac. Maybe somewhere in these films is a clue to who he really was.
“The Most Dangerous Game” 1932: Fay Wray, Joel McCrea, Leslie Banks. A ship crashes on a deserted island where the survivors are hunted by evil Count Zaroff for sport.
This is the movie police believe inspired the Zodiac to start his killing spree. In a 1969 letter to the San Francisco Chronicle, Zodiac wrote he liked killing people because “man is the most dangerous animal of all to kill.” When he attacked Bryan Hartnell and Cecelia Shepherd at Lake Berryessa he was wearing a homemade executioner’s outfit resembling the one worn by the villain in this film.
“Charlie Chan at Treasure Island” 1939: Sidney Toler, Cesar Romero. The famous Chinese detective investigates a murder at the World’s Fair on Treasure Island.
The villain’s name in this movie is Zodiac. Many experts believe this is where the killer came up with his name. This is also considered to be one of the best Charlie Chan films.
“Dirty Harry” 1971: Clint Eastwood, Andy Robinson. A San Francisco cop hunts down a serial killer calling himself Scorpio.
The film’s killer was based on the real Zodiac. The letter he sends police looks like an authentic Zodiac letter, and at the conclusion of the film Scorpio hijacks a school bus, as Zodiac threatened to do.
Detectives went to this movie hoping to catch the real Zodiac, but it didn’t happen. This is Eastwood’s best movie and Robinson gives a chilling performance as
Scorpio.
“The Zodiac Killer” 1971: A serial killer stalks the city of San Francisco and commits a series of brutal murders.
This is an ultra-cheap exploitive movie. The acting is bad, but it does have a few scary scenes. The Zodiac Killer is a mailman who is angry with everyone and worships Satan. I’ve read that at the San Francisco premiere of this film the FBI held a fake raffle for a motorcycle. People had to fill out cards with their names and it was checked against the real Zodiac’s handwriting.
“The Exorcist” 1973: Jason Miller, Linda Blair. A teenage girl is possessed by the devil.
In his 1974 letter to the San Francisco Chronicle Zodiac calls this movie the “best satirical comedy that I have ever seen.” Anyone who has seen this movie knows it doesn’t contain many laughs. (Maybe that’s a way to spot a serial killer. Look for the guy laughing during a movie like this.)
“The Limbic Region” 1996: Edward James Olmos, George Dzundza. A terminally ill detective takes the main suspect in a series of killings to the various murder sites, hoping he will confess.
The killer’s name in the movie is the Scorekeeper, but he is clearly based on the Zodiac. Except for the name change, the re-creation of the murders is pretty accurate. This was a made-for-HBO movie and it’s not available on DVD. But it’s a good movie and worth seeking out.
“The Zodiac” 2005: Justin Chambers, Robin Tunney. A serial killer terrorizes the Bay Area and a son watches as his policeman father becomes obsessed with catching him.
The movie takes place in Vallejo and shows how the murders affected the town and the people. I was very surprised at how good this movie is. It is low budget, but it faithfully recreates the crimes. It even comes up with an identity for the Zodiac. I found the ending to be very upsetting.
“Zodiac” 2007: Robert Downey Jr., Jake Gyllenhaal. The serial killer Zodiac causes fear throughout the Bay Area.
Based on Robert Graysmith’s 1986 book “Zodiac,” this movie focuses on Inspector Dave Toschi and Chronicle cartoonist Graysmith as they search for the identity of the killer. I think this was one of the best movies of 2007 and was surprised it didn’t receive any Academy Award nominations.
It’s a long movie, but moves along at a fast clip. The opening scene is extremely brutal and the film doesn’t steer away from violence. The movie contains strong performances all around, especially by Downey Jr., who plays reporter Paul Avery. It’s both a police procedural and a newspaper movie. Once the killings are finished it concentrates on the men who are determined to catch the killer and the toll that it takes on their lives.
There have been numerous Zodiac suspects over the years, ranging from a prominent San Francisco businessman to the Unabomber. The main suspect, Arthur Leigh Allen, died in 1992. Allen was cleared in 2003 when his DNA wasn’t a match with DNA police had in evidence. Forty years later the police are still baffled by the case.
The legend of the Zodiac has taken on mythic proportions. He is a real-life boogeyman. There is a Web site, Zodiackiller.com, which has a complete list of the main suspects and the victims as well as a place to e-mail in any tips to law enforcement. There is actual news footage of the Zodiac murders available for viewing on YouTube.
When another famous serial killer, BTK, was caught, police discovered he was a husband and a father, had been a Boy Scout and was a church leader. He seemed like the typical guy next door. I think that’s the scariest part of the Zodiac – he could be the guy living down the street or the guy sitting next to you at the movies.
