American reality TV has never exactly been subtle, but one horrific incident saw a prolific serial killer who had taken the lives of up to 100 victims fly under the radar to meet his match.
Now that incident – dubbed ‘The Dating Game Killer’ – is being turned into a movie directed by Anna Kendrick.
In 1978, The Dating Game was at its peak, and singleton Cheryl Bradshaw was looking for love with a series of eligible bachelors.
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Seated on one side of the partition, she was faced with three suitors and able to quiz them on what it would be like to romance them – but Cheryl would soon regret her choice to appear on the programme.
Host Jim Lange introduced Bachelor Number One as “a successful photographer who got his start when his father found him in the dark room at the age of 13 fully developed!
(Image: ABC)
“Between takes you might find him skydiving or motorbiking. Please welcome… Rodney Alcala!”
It was a name that would haunt the masses for decades to come.
Though show producers – and the cops – had no idea, it turns out Alcala was secretly a serial killer and had embarked on gruesome killing sprees in New York, California and Wyoming.
Eventually found to be responsible for a string of sexual assaults – including one in which he had raped eight-year-old Tali Shapiro and beaten her into a coma with a steel bar – Rodney would go on to murder at least eight people.
(Image: MediaNews Group via Getty Images)
Between 1971 and 1977, he carried out a truly horrific crime spree – and authorities determined the actual number of his victims was closer to 130.
While studying under acclaimed film director Roman Polanski, Alcala raped and murdered flight attendant Cornelia Crilley, and despite being on the FBI’s 10 Most Wanted List, was paroled after being arrested and allowed to flee the state of California.
He murdered 23-year-old nightclub heiress Ellen Hoover, 18-year-old Jill Barcomb, and 12-year-old Robin Samsoe. But that’s only scraping the surface of his list of horrific crimes.
He was known for luring women and men into his home, offering to photograph them before brutally killing and often raping them.
(Image: Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
He was eventually found guilty for five murders and pleaded guilty to two further homicides.
In a horrific twist of fate, Cheryl opted for Bachelor Number One – Alcala – and prepared to head on a date with him.
Though Cheryl thankfully escaped the fate of countless others, Alcala’s interactions with her on the show are truly haunting. In one innuendo-filled question, Cheryl asked him: “I’m serving you for dinner. What are you called and what do you look like?”
Alcala responded: “I’m called the banana and I look good. Peel me.”
But after the show, she refused to go out with him as he was “creepy” – which some criminal profilers suggest led to him killing at least three other women after the show aired.
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Pat Brown claimed: “One wonders what that did in his mind. That is something he would not take too well. [Psychopaths] don’t understand the rejection. They think that something is wrong with that girl: ‘She played me. She played hard to get.’”
Now Alcala’s foray into reality TV is being turned into a new movie, directed by and starring Pitch Perfect alum Anna Kendrick.
Woman of the Hour premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival this week, and brings the cult crime to life once more.
Though Alcala was eventually sentenced to death and would spend the rest of his years behind bars, he died of natural causes in 2021 while serving time in a California prison.
If you have been affected by this story, contact Rape Crisis England & Wales for free confidential support and information on 08088029999 or their website or 08088010302 if you’re calling from Scotland.
You can contact the Domestic and Sexual Abuse helpline on 0808 802 1414 if you are in Ireland.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
