ZODIAC CIPHERS
Richard Grinell, Coventry, England
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THE MURDERS THAT SHAPED BERRYESSA

8/18/2020

 
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The Zodiac Killer murdered David Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen in Benicia on December 20th 1968, before moving into Vallejo on July 4th 1969 with the attack at Blue Rock Springs on Darlene Ferrin and Michael Mageau. He had successfully committed two late night attacks on two young couples - and by the time he had mailed his July 31st 1969 letters and cryptograms to the San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco Examiner and Vallejo Times-Herald newspapers - the police were no nearer to catching him. By all accounts, this seemed a rather 'successful' opening to his serial killer career, evolving from the murderer of three into the ominous Zodiac Killer by August 4th 1969. This being the case, why did the Zodiac Killer rip up this template of murder and embark on a whole new path on September 27th 1969, leaving many observers to this day questioning the Lake Berryessa stabbings as a Zodiac crime? Rather than constantly examining the modus operandi between the three crimes and questioning their incompatibility with one another, it may be more productive to discover the reasons why the Zodiac Killer dropped an approach that had worked on December 20th 1968 and July 4th 1969, to now adopt a brazen attack with a knife in daylight hours. Something happened externally or internally to provoke this switch in attack style.

The Zodiac Killer by August 4th 1969 had murdered three people, severely injured one, mailed three cryptograms and written four letters. From the outset he placed importance on receiving front page coverage. On July 31st 1969, his trinity of communications demanded that he received front page coverage, stating "I want you to print this cipher on the front page of your paper. In this cipher is my idenity. If you do not print this cipher by the afternoon of Fry.1st of Aug 69, I will go on a kill ram-Page Fry. night. I will cruse around all weekend killing lone people in the night then move on to kill again, until I end up with a dozen people over the weekend". Imagine his horror and dismay, that the highest circulation newspapers in the Bay Area ignored his demands and relegated the cryptic murderer of three into relative anonymity on their inner pages. The San Francisco Chronicle published his cryptogram on page four, while the San Francisco Examiner (had in his eyes), literally spat in his face, by placing their portion of the cryptogram on a lowly page nine. This wouldn't go unnoticed by the killer of three on August 4th 1969, who hastily composed a fourth letter with an imposing pseudonym and uttered his displeasure by stating "I was not happy to see that I did not get front page coverage". We have come to understand the Zodiac Killer as a narcissistic braggart, whose primary objective wasn't the murders, but the publicity they generated. This publicity, to him, meant front page coverage in the major newspapers of the day - not page four and certainly not page nine. 

Just when the Zodiac Killer didn't think it could get any worse, the San Francisco Chronicle ran a front page article on August 6th 1969, entitled The Frenzy of San Jose Girls' Slayer, detailing the brutal stabbing murders of two young teenagers in San Jose on August 3rd 1969. This article arrived just two days after his dismay at not receiving front page coverage. The San Francisco Chronicle article read as follows:


The two young girls, found dead Sunday on a sun-parched San Jose hillside, appear to have been victims of a sexual psychopath, whose blood frenzy led him to "overkill."  Dr. John E. Hauser, Santa Clara county's chief medical examiner and coroner, said yesterday that the girls, Deborah Gay Furlong, 14, and Kathy Snoozy, 15, died in a "frenzied flurry of knife-wounds" inflicted so swiftly that neither gave any evidence of having struggled against the attack. Dr. Hauser, so shaken by the brutality of the crime he could scarcely find words, said the Snoozy youngster had 150 wounds on her back, 50 on the front and a "storm" of punctures on her neck. Deborah's body had about 100 wounds on her back and upper front and a dozen on her neck.

PUZZLE: Dr. Hauser said he was "puzzled" by many aspects of the brutal slaying. He said neither girl had been sexually molested; neither had suffered any wounds below her waist, neither gave evidence of having struggled to escape. Only the Snoozy girl, he said, had one small mark on her hand, suggesting she may have tried vainly to deflect the plunging knife. The coroner said both girls must have died very quickly and he is investigating the possibility they may have been drugged before the stabbing began. Blood and skin samples as well as stomach contents have been sent for further examination to area laboratories, he said. The results should be known in a few days. It is Dr. Hauser's opinion that the multiple puncture wounds were inflicted by one or two small knives, the largest wound the size of a pocket knife with a half-inch blade. "I've never seen a case with this many stab wounds," Dr. Hauser said. "You know, I've been in this profession a long time and sometimes I think I'm rather callous, but when I saw these girls, believe me it was terrifying. "The Nazi sex mutilations during World War II were nothing compared to what was done to these young girls.

INVESTIGATION: So far, according to Chief of San Jose Detectives Barton Collins, his investigators have uncovered no solid clues to the slaying. He said police and sheriff's deputies are looking for a "light colored van—a Volkswagen, a Dodge, a Chevrolet or a Ford" in which the girls may have been killed and then rolled, carried or dragged down the hillside to a grove of snarled, dusty oaks where their bodies were found. Both he and the coroner emphasized that at the scene there was almost no blood, suggesting they had been slain elsewhere. Collins said he and his men have talked to at least 200 people so far, searching for some information that might draw them closer to the killer. Asked if he were looking for a "mad man," Collins, pale and exhausted, snapped: "I'm looking for a killer and it doesn't matter whether he was under drugs or what." Collins did not mention this, but the Chronicle learned that wedged in between the two bodies of the dead girls police found a "new," but empty beer can. There was speculation the killer may have rolled or carried one girl down, then finished off a can of beer, and then disposed of the second body without noticing the can. The scene, not more than six blocks from where the two girls lived with their families in a neat, prosperous subdivision in San Jose's Almaden area, was utterly desolate yesterday. A few small boys on bicycles paused to look up at the tanned knoll, swathed with wide paths used for scrambles by neighborhood motorcyclists, and scurried off. Normally scores of children play in that area, because, in the words of Deborah's father, Glen Furlong, "It's the only open area close by where kids can go to." Housewives living in the immediate area, across the street and around the corner, conceded they were suddenly "very frightened." One mother said that since the murder she had seen some children poking around the scene, and added, "We were shocked. "Maybe their parents don't care. But I wouldn't let mine go up there . . . "

PUBLICITY: Although very close to tears, Furlong said yesterday that he was allowing interviews in the hope that more and more publicity "would trigger something in someone's mind and we can solve this crime." The 40-year old father works at the big International Business Machines plant only about a mile away from the family home. He is a senior associate engineer in the logic design section of IBM and he tried to bring objectivity to the disaster that has befallen his family. "The individual or individuals who did this either had to be deranged or high on dope or something of that nature," he said. "They didn't know what they were doing. It was such a senseless killing." He said his neighborhood has never had any problems, although mahy complain about the noise made by the weekend cyclists. He noted parenthetically that the riders are not of the Hell's Angel variety, but use lighter motorcycles. He said his neighbors were "very sympathetic," but complained he found some of his phone calls "very disconcerting."

CALLERS: "On several occasions people have called and as soon as we answer, they hang up," he said in bewilderment. Furlong tried to control his emotions as he spoke of his eldest daughter — one of his four children. "She was only a freshman in high school," he said, "and this was the first year we allowed her to date. We talked to her about it, and I sort of teased her. She went out with a boy friend a few times — a very nice boy who came over yesterday morning to extend his condolences — but most of her social activities were confined to her school. She was never any trouble." School mates and neighborhood friends of Deborah said the girl, very slim and looking more like a 10-year-old than a 14-year-old, was "just an ordinary nice girl who baby set and had a boy friend and talked about becoming an airline stewardess."

CHILDREN: The other Furlong children are Glen, 16; Floyd, 12, and Pamela, 11. Furlong said he did not know and had not yet talked to Kathy's parents, Mr. and Mrs. Wilfred Snoozy. Both Snoozy, a carpet layer, and Mrs. Snoozy reportedly are in a state of collapse. Her funeral has been scheduled Friday at 11 a.m. at the Place Funeral Home in Los Gatos. Burial will be at Oak Wood Cemetery in Santa Cruz. Funeral services for Kathy will be held tomorrow (Thursday) at 2 p.m. at the Oak Hill Memorial Park Mortuary in San Jose. Burial will be at Oak Hill Memorial Park.  

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The Zodiac Killer, avidly scanning the newspapers for progress on his cryptograms and latest letter, must have been bitterly disappointed that these murders committed in San Jose featured front and center of the San Francisco Chronicle, while his three murders, allied to his cryptic ciphers, were relegated to page four and nine of the two San Francisco newspapers. He needed to switch his approach to murder and hit San Francisco hard.

The phrases of "The Nazi sex mutilations during World War II were nothing compared to what was done to these young girls", the title of "The Frenzy of San Jose Girls' Slayer" and "Dr. Hauser, so shaken by the brutality of the crime he could scarcely find words", must have resonated with the Bay Area murderer. He knew that to generate the front page coverage he so badly craved, he needed to switch from gun to knife in a savage close-quarter attack. However, he needed to elevate the fear by dressing up in a costume with his moniker emblazoned on his chest, akin to the fear the Nazi swastika instilled in its victims. He would also ramp up the terror by using a bayonet-style knife, rather than the pocket knife used in the Snoozy and Furlong murders. This article alone was the driver behind the Lake Berryessa stabbings, and effectively sealed Bryan Hartnell and Cecelia Shepard's fate, seven weeks in advance of the crime. The Zodiac Killer, dressed in ordinary clothes, gazed into the mirror and effectively saw the costumed Lake Berryessa murderer staring back at him. His fantasy was taking shape.         
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Three girls from Pacific Union College may have been the initial target of the Zodiac Killer as he scoured the hillsides of Lake Berryessa, but circumstances unknown would ultimately change what transpired. Two hours later, an ominous figure stepped out from behind a tree at Twin Oak Ridge and bore down on Bryan Hartnell and Cecelia Shepard. The Zodiac Killer's fantasy, driven by the August 6th 1969 San Francisco Chronicle article, had emerged into reality. The Snoozy and Furlong murders on August 3rd 1969 were about to be replicated in the mind of a killer. The costume specifically designed and crafted with care, by a man who fed into his own narcissism and who was now on the verge of securing the recognition he felt he so richly deserved. Whether the couple survived the upcoming attack and reported what they saw was incidental - the Zodiac Killer had now satiated his desire to become the embodiment of fear, he viewed as being denied from him and his accomplishments after the trinity of cryptic communications on July 31st 1969.

After the attack on the couple, he made his way up the hillside to the Volkswagen Karmann Ghia of Bryan Hartnell and defiantly listed his accomplishments on the door of the vehicle, but specifically added the words "by knife" at the foot of the message. He was effectively making a statement to the San Francisco Chronicle (and to a lesser extent, The Examiner), "do I get front page coverage now". The Snoozy and Furlong murders, in his mind, had overshadowed his accomplishments at Lake Herman Road and Blue Rock Springs, despite the cryptic offerings he had so painstakingly crafted. So he crafted a costume instead and attempted to ramp the fear factor to a new level. The fact that Bryan Hartnell survived the Lake Berryessa attack, inadvertently played right into his hands. The evil, fear-inducing costume he had carefully crafted and labored over, was now the focus and feeding frenzy of a media gripped by this new revelation. The second coming of Zodiac was now complete - and his requirement to converse with the newspapers strangely deflated, because Bryan Hartnell had successfully recounted the details of Lake Berryessa with astonishing clarity and vividness. The Zodiac Killer had now been reborn and resurrected from gun-toting lunatic into the embodiment of evil. This crime also had one added benefit with respect to the identity of the killer of Snoozy and Furlong - and I doubt this possibility escaped the attention of the Zodiac Killer when he arrived at Lake Berryessa on September 27th 1969.    

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In an article entitled Another Grim Message by Paul Avery, a link between the Lake Berryessa stabbings and the murder of the two San Jose teenagers was pondered by both investigators and newspapers alike. The Zodiac Killer had deliberately emphasized "by knife" on the car door at Twin Oak Ridge, and included "Aug" in his victim months on the Dripping Pen card for this very reason. When he mailed the November 8th 1969 Dripping Pen card, he requested "I though you would nead a good laugh before you hear the bad news. You won't get the news for a while yet. PS could you print this new cipher in your frunt page? I get aufully lonely when I am ignored, so lonely I could do my Thing !!!!!!  Des July Aug Sept Oct = 7". The Zodiac Killer didn't need to demand front page coverage anymore, he knew he would get it. By committing the Lake Berryessa stabbings and including "Aug" in his chronology of months, he had effectively planted the seed in investigators minds that he could have been responsible for the Snoozy and Furlong murders in August. He had essentially bought himself front page coverage by piggybacking off a crime he already knew had achieved this status on August 6th 1969.
Just like the threat to pick off schoolchildren and blow up a school bus, the savagery of these two close-quarter attacks demanded he be taken seriously. Whatever we say about the Zodiac Killer, his marketing skills were second to none. He knew how to turn page four and page nine into page one, placing
Another Grim Message proudly on the news stands of San Francisco.    
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The importance of the San Francisco Chronicle article from August 6th 1969 cannot be underestimated with respect to Lake Berryessa and future Zodiac communications. Who would remember the burial location of one of the victims from San Jose, if not the killer who was so influenced by this very article? Who then shifted from impersonal double shootings at Lake Herman Road and Blue Rock Springs, to intimate stabbings at Lake Berryessa. Only somebody invested in murder during the time  period this article was released, would have reason to remember where the two San Jose teenagers were laid to rest. Under CHILDREN in the August 6th 1969 Chronicle article, it stated "The other Furlong children are Glen, 16; Floyd, 12, and Pamela, 11. Furlong said he did not know and had not yet talked to Kathy's parents, Mr. and Mrs. Wilfred Snoozy. Both Snoozy, a carpet layer, and Mrs. Snoozy reportedly are in a state of collapse. Her funeral has been scheduled Friday at 11 a.m. at the Place Funeral Home in Los Gatos. Burial will be at Oak Wood Cemetery in Santa Cruz. Funeral services for Kathy will be held tomorrow (Thursday) at 2 p.m. at the Oak Hill Memorial Park Mortuary in San Jose. Burial will be at Oak Hill Memorial Park".

The Oak Hill Memorial Park & Cemetery in San Jose lies in the Monticello neighborhood, just nine miles east of the Villa Montalvo woods, where Kathy Bilek was brutally stabbed on April 11th 1971 - and who the Zodiac Killer referenced in his July 13th 1971 communication, stating "Near Monticello Shought Victims 21 ...... In The Woods Dies April". There are a multitude of places in San Jose the author of this card could have chosen, but he chose Monticello. The exact place Kathie Snoozy was buried - and the teenager whose murder he insinuated his involvement in on November 8th 1969. When Karl Francis Werner was attributed with the murders of Debra Furlong, Kathie Snoozy and Kathy Bilek, the Zodiac Killer had the option to recuse himself of all involvement in the two San Jose murders. But that wasn't his style. The attack at Lake Berryessa, the Dripping Pen card, and a whole host of communications involving San Jose had locked him into a lie he was unwilling to relinquish. He would effectively try to reclaim the Snoozy and Furlong murders, by also claiming the Kathy Bilek murder in Saratoga via the Monticello card, as well as calling Werner a phony in another Zodiac communication mailed in May 1971 (shown below). The Zodiac Killer had simply invested too much time and effort into this elaborate facade, that was encapsulated by his theatrical performance at Lake Berryessa. Two years he had lived in a house of illusion - and Karl Francis Werner was not going to tear it down. 
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The deciphered code: "T(h)is (is) the Zodiac Speacking. Why can't you stop me. I can't stop killing. Stop listening t(o) phonys. If this is not on the front page in a week I will skin 3 little kids and make a suit from the skin".
Rubislaw 32 link
8/18/2020 08:39:11 am

I had not realised , Richard , that Paul Avery had written up a column entitled '' San Jose Girls May be Victims '' right beside an illustration of the Dripping Pen Card .

So ,it appears that the '' 7 '' victim claim , by the Zodiac was pretty much recognised by all agencies , from the start , as referring to Snoozy and Furlong , as additions to the already recognised '' 5 '' murder victims attributed to the Zodiac , to date .

I note that recently , Zodiac contributor Tom Voigt , has claimed that he was privy to viewing the Monticello Card , in 1998 . I have seen no further effort from Mr.Voigt to assist the Zodiac community , by divulging what he remembered was on view to him ( ? ) .

Disappointing , and one must assume that his claim remains simply that - a claim . Similarly , at one time a long-touted claim of '' two interviews '' with William Grant . The content of these '' two interviews '' predictably never surfaced . If Mr.Voigt's claim had had substance , it would have been the curiosity of every local pressman who followed the case .

Richard
8/18/2020 09:09:25 am

Yes, it's fairly obvious that the additional 2 victims, in alliance with August on the Dripping Pen card was Snoozy and Furlong, to which law enforcement had already concluded from the offset. Many like to think of the police as bumbling idiots throughout the Zodiac crimes - and while they did make some mistakes - they also did an extensive investigation that rolled on for decades. The list of months on the Dripping Pen card matched the months (in figures) on the car door, with the exception of "Aug". He was saving this for November 8th, letting the investigators make the connection for him. By surreptitiously planting it in the mind of law enforcement, he is not making it too obvious. The "by knife" reference on the car door was good enough.

Tom Voigt has claimed he has seen the Monticello card. If I had seen it, I certainly wouldn't have forgotten the imagery present on the card. It would depend how much credence you placed on the card when viewing it. I know he doesn't believe it's genuine, but I have absolutely no doubt it's genuine. I sincerely doubt a hoaxer would have invested enough time in the Zodiac communications and claimed murders, specifically the San Jose murders, to know exactly where Kathy Snoozy was buried. Unless we claim Monticello was just a lucky guess. The Monticello card was a well designed card - and everything on it meant something in relation to Werner's murders. A casual hoaxer simply doesn't invest this degree of subtlety into a communication, that spanned nearly two years. The San Francisco Police Department DNA report didn't include the Fairfield letters, but it certainly included the Monticello card, and didn't place "not authentic Zodiac letter" in the extreme right hand column. I would place this communication as 100% Zodiac, above the Los Angeles, Exorcist and 1978 letter. It is the sister card to the Pines card, and effectively validates the communication as well. Tom's entitled to his opinion, but I don't agree with him.

Shawn
8/18/2020 09:43:00 am

We must also realize that SKs do not always publicize or admit to their first murders. They are tipping their toe in the water to see how it feels to kill. The first murders usually do not go as plan leaving clues behind and are more spontaneous as fantasy becomes reality.

If Lake Herman was not the first murders. Then maybe he does not want to elaborate on the first two murders because it could cause his capture.

Richard
8/18/2020 04:01:51 pm

I agree. I doubt the Lake Herman Road murders were the Zodiac's first crimes, but I couldn't say for certain if he had committed murder before. Many of these serial killers start with less serious crimes and escalate, so in theory these could have been his first murders. Killing a couple by forcing them out of their vehicle and shooting them in a remote area doesn't require any major preparation and should only leave casings and bullets behind. Then destroy or dump the gun. Little to no chance of ever getting caught in 1968/9.

The problem with Zodiac, is if he had murdered earlier, was he the sort of person who could resist publicizing his murders. This is the claim regarding the Ray Davis taxicab murder, that Zodiac may have been bragging about and ringing police in 1962. OK, it's a tenuous Zodiac connection, but if by some miracle it was Zodiac, then the Lake Herman Road murders could have been long into his journey of murder. My tendency Shawn, is to believe the Lake Herman Road murders were his first killings. Possibly the seven month gap to his second crime, then his letters, was the buffer time period he employed as a safety aspect. Then grew in confidence, reducing to 3 months, then 2 weeks. But who knows.

Rubislaw 32 link
8/18/2020 03:55:02 pm

When the Zodiac wrote about the Exorcist film being the best '' satirical '' comedy that he had ever seen , I believe that he made the wrong choice of word .

The word that he was really looking for , was '' surrealistic '' . the word '' satirical '' would better serve the purpose of describing a film , such as '' Dr.Strangelove '' . I just don't see any political underpinnings nor consequences , with the film '' The Exorcist '' .

I believe further that the purpose of selecting the title '' The Exorcist '' was the Zodiac's messaging that he wished to relieve himself , by admission , for a secret that he had been keeping . The secret was that he had assumed the letter-writing name '' D B Cooper '' , in the belief that Dan Cooper had not survived his jump from a jet airliner .

The '' surrealistic humour '' is then illustrated , by the Zodiac , in his postscript doodle , which imagines he himself , the Zodiac , jumping out of an aircraft over San Francisco Bay (...hence submarine , tugboats , pontoon etc ....) .

This idea of the Zodiac temporarily suspending real belief , and placing himself in a parallel universe , for the sake of telegraphing a false perception is , I believe on view elsewhere .

The ''meat '' of the Desk Top poem , I would suggest and controversially so , refers to a woman having a Caesarean operation - probably a reference to the Zodiac's own birth . The poem could be termed '' surrealistic '' , but certainly isn't a comedy . Nevertheless , the poet Zodiac , elects to into a parallel universe of expression of thought .

The Benicia High School Note , I would suggest , is surreality employed again , in an effort to convey ( falsely ) that the Zodiac was operating in partnership with someone else , referred to as '' Byson ''.

And , perhaps the greatest kick of all with the Benicia High School Note , for the Zodiac was , that he employed a '' surrealistic '' physical medium , for the note . The note was in the form of a mural . Yes , he painted and etched it on a wall , at Benicia High School . Certainly one reason , anyway , why Lyndon Lafferty was only allowed a '' photocopy of a copy of a photograph '' ....of the school wall , in question .

And , the list does not end there . The 13 Hole Postcard requires '' dots '' that are actually the 13 holes , to join up , as in '' join up the dots '' . And , when one has actually joined up the dots - what emerges ?

The symbol for a radio wave .

Surrealism was the reality of the Zodiac's inclinations , as I put forward .

'' Finches on Radians '' ?

That's also known as '' Bunting '' - which is mere '' decoration '' , and superfluous to real facts and matters .

No end , it would seem , to the Zodiac's '' surreal world '' - a place that he clearly found , of comfort .

Richard
8/18/2020 04:07:45 pm

This was my thoughts on the word saterical. Quote:

"There is a strange dichotomy evidenced in the letter, where the author begins by referencing "The Exorcist" movie (1973) and immediately follows it up by paraphrasing 'Tit-Willow' from 'The Mikado' (1885). 'The Mikado' is often described as the best in British satire, as well as a comedy opera - and therefore the word usage of the author describing it as a 'satirical comedy' is unlikely to be accidental. However, the attempted blending of these vastly different productions into one correspondence seems forced, as though chosen for a specific purpose".

Rubislaw 32 link
8/18/2020 04:17:36 pm

Those are very pertinent words , Richard , and I think we should celebrate expanding the debate , in this instance ( ? ) .

As it would happen , the most admired exponent of the art of surrealism , at the time of the Zodiac's reign of terror , was Salvador Dali .

So , perhaps there is more to it , with this whole subject of '' Dali Days '' ( ? ) .

Cue BB , or anyone else that would wish to chip in .

I can't speak for anyone else , but I am '' all ears '' now .

Rubislaw 32 link
8/18/2020 06:38:15 pm

Small details , sometimes overlooked ?

Snoozy and Furlong acquired their fatal wounds , through a frenzied attack , with a penknife .

And yet , Bryan and Cecelia were subjected to thrusts from ( probably ) a sword bayonet .

If the Zodiac was to be believed , as a knife man , then it would not have escaped his notice that , at least inferring his capabilities with different types of knifes , would be to his advantage in credulity of culpability . Hence , both the Dripping Pen card , and the second Fairfield letter .

In addition , it is my personal belief that the 1965 film '' The Sword of Ali Baba '' had a telling influence on his '' My name is ----'' cipher .

'' Son of the Mighty Caliph '' , which was Ali Baba's '' Hollywood '' alias . (...perhaps the '' 40 Thieves '' bit , not on view , accounted for the '' figgure '' inference ( ? )...).

Rubislaw 32 link
8/18/2020 06:46:44 pm

One wonders if the Zodiac realised that Jack the Ripper committed all his known murders , by method of strangulation ( ? ) .

The '' Ripper '' part was desecration '' By knife '' .

Richard
8/19/2020 01:42:52 am

The savagery of the San Jose murders compounded by a small knife with a half inch blade. Ubfortunately, it appears the cumulative effects of many smaller wounds inevitably took their toll. The Zodiac Killer didn't appear to show this sadistic tendency of overkill, opting for separation with his gun attacks. He could easily have slit Paul Stine's throat at Presidio Heights (which would seem to make more sense in a built-up area), but he still chose to use a gun. The Berryeassa crimes, I feel, appeared a necessity to Zodiac if he was to achieve the attention he craved. After the Berryessa crime he returned to a clinical one shot kill, not further escalation. The Berryessa crime and taking his murders into San Francisco was all that was required to get the undivided attention of law enforcement and newspapers. Once they realized the Zodiac was not to be messed with, he ramped up the threats by suggesting he was to target school buses and plant bombs. His 5 murders had effectively bought him credit as a credible threat. His credibility and lack of murders throughout 1970 and 1971 was mirrored by the lack or reduction of news coverage. The Zodiac seemed to want to gain notoriety, as Jack the Ripper did for a few short months and then bask in the mystique we have all created. Some killers just keep killing because it's a compulsion to do so. The compulsion for Zodiac was newspaper and TV coverage, and apparent by his compulsion to write and effectively advertise himself. This separates him from killers like Ted Bundy. Dennis Rader fed of press attention and wrote to police, albeit to a slightly lesser extent.

The Zodiac's use of a knife once is a telling departure, seemingly done for purpose - and it worked. I could be wrong, but I believe the Berryessa attack wasn't wilfully chosen, but driven by the attention he felt he deserved and exacerbated by the "better" coverage on page one of the San Francisco Chronicle regarding the San Jose murders. This attack was a one time deal beyond his comfort zone, but nevertheless a necessity to get the attention he so craved.

Rubislaw 32 link
8/18/2020 07:53:19 pm

Titbits on Salvador Dali .

Hometown was Figueres , in Spain .

Dali was named after his predeceased brother , Salvador who , had only lived to 22 months old . His parents told Dali , as a child , that he was his brother re-incarnated , and believed this for the rest of his life . (...why '' might '' have the Zodiac's mother , had a Caesarean operation ? Was she carrying a dead twin of the Zodiac ? Did this contribute to his pain inside ? ...).

Dali always paid for meals , with a check . And , always left a doodle on the check . His checks were rarely cashed , and therefore largely dined out for free . Indeed , he was a compulsive doodler .

Rubislaw 32 link
8/19/2020 06:08:50 am

Dali , visiting his friend Pablo Picasso , in Paris who , was ruing his unpopularity :

Picasso : '' Of course , I am a Spaniard and therefore an outsider .''

Dali : '' So am I .''

Picasso : '' And , I'm '' just '' an artist .''

Dali : '' Me too . ''

Picasso : '' Also , I am a communist .''

Dali : '' Well , neither am I ! ''

Rubislaw 32 link
8/18/2020 10:38:28 pm

Robert Louis Stevenson's novella '' Strange Case of Dr.Jekyll and Mr.Hyde '' was published in 1886 .

Soon there were demands for this story to be adapted to the theatre , and a play of the same name opened in Boston MA , one year later .
On August 29th 1888 , the play debuted in London .

On August 31st 1888 , Mary Anne Nichols was murdered in the back streets of Whitechapel and , subject to some opinions , became the first known victim of Jack the Ripper .

Leading actor , Richard Mansfield , who played Dr,Jekyll and Mr.Hyde , to critical acclaim , was , at one time considered a suspect in the Ripper case .

Rubislaw 32 link
8/19/2020 05:32:11 am

Inconsequential internet news ?

Yesterday , I was contacted by a Reddit member , called ChemicalDeparture558 who , was criticising Mike Butterfield .

And , then his account was suspended .

Was this strange message a '' Chemical departure '' from normal toxicity ?

Has Portland , Oregon , been clocked in Cyberspace ?

Richard
8/19/2020 01:29:42 pm

I doubt it has anything to do with Michael Butterfield - he doesn't visit Reddit does he?

Rubislaw 32 link
8/19/2020 02:35:58 pm

He has done Richard , but very rarely .

There was a time that he hung around '' Tom Voigt Cucked '' , for about a week , and informed everyone that he thought that Mr.Voigt was , quote : '' Very sick '' .

But I think it depressed him , to '' get down and dirty '' , as it were .

He felt it important to let people know things about Mr.Voigt , that many so far were unaware . Occasions of Mr.Voigt being caught for theft , but not prosecuted , and Mr.Voigt's dishonourable discharge from the Navy .

It ought to be pointed out that those accusations , by Mr. Butterfield , have yet to be confirmed . In fairness to Mr.Voigt , naturally .

Shawn
8/19/2020 12:16:12 pm

“However, the attempted blending of these vastly different productions into one correspondence seems forced, as though chosen for a specific purpose".

I know a couple of people who think any movie (not based in solid reality) that is sci fi based or supernatural as simply ridiculous movies like the “Exorcist”.

On the other hand they enjoy comedy movies (base on somewhat firm reality) as the Mikado is.

Maybe the Zodiac could be that type of person, to blend two vastly different type of movies. Especially with the “Exorcist” being the Satirical rage, released December 26th, 1973.

Rubislaw 32 link
8/19/2020 03:20:34 pm

Interesting date , December 26th 1973 , Shawn , with respect to its close proximity to the Zodiac's Exorcist Letter ( ...just over one month later...) .

As many are now aware , the Exorcist film , on release , caused mass fainting and vomiting episodes at movie theatres .

This '' phenomenon '' never witnessed before , on such a large scale , must have tickled the Zodiac's sense of humour ...one might think ( ? ) .

Slightly different from the first coming of The Beatles , in 1964 when , adolescent girls were want to faint and urinate themselves .

Judith
8/19/2020 01:55:18 pm

Lake Berryessa is on fire

Richard
8/20/2020 03:51:16 am

You get a mention in the new Drew Beeson video Rubislaw, featuring the Canaan letters.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElM58aFIqs8

Rubislaw 32 link
8/20/2020 06:30:16 am

Thanks Richard , and '' vive la difference '' on the letters and their contents .

Good to see Drew Beeson give them an airing , and takes an understandably cautious approach .

What I find most frustrating is , that the Cryptanalysis Unit could just step in , once in a while , with further information ( ? ) .

Anyway , I solved the riddle , and gave it to them , and its solution can be viewed at '' ZKM '' , in the ciphers section .

If the FBI spent less time playing and toying with the '' interested '' public , and more time trying to actually catch criminals , like the Zodiac ...then they might succeed , once in a while .

They are not very good liars , and their perception of the range of humour , is remarkably limited . As I keep reminding LE , at every possible opportunity . And , what chance did they ever have ( ? ) , of catching the Zodiac , if he was continually being put down the pecking order , on priorities . Until the D B Copper case was officially closed down , four years ago , the FBI had at least one person working on the case , from the start . Simply no evidence that the Zodiac case warranted the same attention .

And , Dan Cooper probably never killed anyone - except for himself .

To the FBI : '' That's five murders ,that the Zodiac committed - and , at the very least . ''

Richard
8/20/2020 06:46:57 am

That is what happens when you jump out of a plane in pitch darkness and land in a very cold river. At least he was rich for a minute or two, something we'll never be in a lifetime.

Rubislaw 32 link
8/20/2020 07:24:23 am

Yes , only someone like ALA ,in his prime , could have survived such a self-inflicted ordeal . But ALA wouldn't have been daft enough to throw himself out of an aircraft , in the first place .

On a more serious note , perhaps , when Dan Cooper felt ready to go , he sent his one remaining companion , Tina the air stewardess , to join her crew colleagues in the cockpit section where , the crew remained sealed , until the aircraft was landed .

From the pilot's opinion , it is possible that Cooper jumped , when the aircraft was only at 7,000 ft , as opposed 10,000 ft that Cooper had requested . This means that Cooper may have only had 15 seconds to ensure that the fall did not kill him , regardless , as opposed to the 22 seconds that he had probably factored into his thoughts on the jump .

It does seem that his chances were slim - or none .

Shawn
8/20/2020 09:52:53 am

Hi Richard,

You think you might expand this site to the DB Cooper case since you claim to be running low on Zodiac material?

Richard
8/20/2020 10:51:15 am

I do find the DB Cooper, JonBenet Ramsey and Madeline McCann cases the most interesting, and have thought of covering the DB Cooper case before, but I wouldn't make wholesale articles on DB Cooper because it would remove the identity of the site somewhat. There have been many excellent Youtube videos on the subject and unless I felt I could add anything Shawn, I don't see the point of regurgitating what we already know. The fact of the matter, I don't think I could add anything, other than a Zodiac angle which I don't think exists as of today.

Richard
8/20/2020 10:58:45 am

And I'm getting old and tired, which doesn't help.

BB
8/20/2020 11:29:34 am

Richard

Officer Steve Baldino lied about hearing a tape of the Zodiac killer.

People are quick to come to his defense and say it was just for money.

Why?

It does not make sense to throw away your career and credibility for money.

And for chump change.

No - There had to be big time money involved.

Money from where?

Richard
8/20/2020 12:16:51 pm

Yes he did lie and achieved nothing. The stupidest thing is that it's obvious he would be found out. However, he isn't alone in Zodiac world. Don Cheney lied every time he opened his mouth, William Crow is being less than truthful with his Hollywood second statement. Officer Donald Fouke has the Zodiac Killer last walking up Maple Street, last walking up stairs to 3712 Jackson Street and even near 3636 Jackson Street. His entire story in the 2007 documentary is a mish-mash. I can understand problems with recalling details after such a long time, but say I don't remember, not make up bullshit about a house at 3712 Jackson Street that he effectively didn't follow through with. The Zodiac case is so high profile now, there is a tendency to want to blow up your own importance and sensationalize events that were not anywhere near as dramatic. William Crow's is the perfect example of "The subjects were both Caucasians and there is no further identification on the car or the subjects" to "I could not see the passenger seat, but the driver was a man with short hair and glasses. I did not see his specific facial features" - after he knew it was Zodiac of course. Then the car seemingly changed make and colour.

Do you know what BB, I think I'm turning American. Even in comments I'm having to change the American spellings back to English, because I've got so use to adopting the American spellings. Should I stick with American spellings in the articles, or don't you really care.

Rubislaw 32 link
8/20/2020 12:34:11 pm

Although referring to cipher solutions , I tend not to promote them since it can cause unnecessary arguments , that veer off course from the main focus , which should be about the phenomenon of the Zodiac , given circumstances of his visitations - then to assess '' whats behind the mask ? '' .

But , and given Drew Beeson;s applauded efforts to make less mysterious , the 1988 New Canaan Letter , I should just like to recommend , as a mathematician , the probable best and highest probability method of solving the ciphers riddle :

You will have to marry up the correct subject matter , anyway , But it does seem that , and as Drew Beeson has pointed out , the incomplete nature of the grid system , that the ( presumed ) Zodiac has left behind , is '' key ''.

Z263 is 20 rows of an adopted 13-column grid system....plus 3 characters extra .

The only realistic way , I found , to present a solution is :

Complete , and '' square up '' the grid .

And , in the case of '' Z263 '' - turn it into a '' Z273 ''

i.e. A grid comprising of 21 rows of 13 columns ( 21 X 13 = 273 )

Then use the characters that were in the original '' Z263 '' to make up the extra 10 cipher text , and extra 10 plain text characters .

The riddle solution is of the form of two '' 10-character '' statements or expressions...or even simply nouns , that display equivalence .

Good Luck . Then you shall have the Zodiac .

Rubislaw 32 link
8/20/2020 12:47:38 pm

'' My '' subject matter , for the cipher riddle solution , in the 1988 New Canaan Letters , is the TV Film , '' I dream of Jeannie , 15 years on '' .

So that is claimed by me , as it were .

But the '' rest of the world '' is there , to choose from ( lol ) .

Rubislaw 32 link
8/20/2020 01:47:03 pm

I see that you have contributed to the topic on the '' Birthday Caller '' to intended Melvin Belli , Richard , at Reddit (...that's Mr.Voigt who is FrancescoAmic1 , by the way....I'm not sure that he ever appreciates the irony of attempting to solve a mystery of identity....when he is forever wearing '' different hats '' himself ....) .

But , to the point...I had just wondered if you ( ...or anyone else ?...) knows the birth place of Eric Weill .

Is it Oakland , CA ?

Also , I think that Eric may have had a twin sister .

Is that true ?

Richard
8/20/2020 02:00:35 pm

Sorry Rubislaw, don't know the answer to your two questions.

Richard
8/20/2020 02:12:26 pm

ERIC PHILIPS WEILL
DOB: January 10, 1940.
DOD: Sept. 9, 2006 Oakland, CA
SSN: 549-56-8558
Parents: Sam Weill (born in NY) and Mercedes Fannie Weill (born Aug. 2, 1914 New Orleans, died June 13, 1992 in California... earned a degree in Social Welfare from UC Berkeley)
Siblings: Rita Phillips Weill (born January 10, 1940... Eric's twin. She married Michael Leo Byxbe in California June 15, 1973).
Spouse: Mary K. Long (married Aug. 7, 1970)
Children: None

The records I have seen say Eric was born in NY and his twin sister was born in Missouri. I think Eric may have been born in Missouri as well since the family lived there and then moved to Berkeley.

https://zodiackiller.forumotion.com/t44-eric-weill-x

BB
8/20/2020 03:09:34 pm

Didn't Wheel speak with a southern dialect?

As a photographer - did he ever do any crime scene photos for the newspapers?

Did he have a press pass?

Rubislaw 32 link
8/20/2020 02:28:16 pm

Thanks very much . So, the Weill family were emigres , as such , to the area . And Eric was a twin .

They sound quite arty/academic ( ? ) . And , quintessential middle-class . And . it does seem as if Eric was over his mental issues , later in life .

Quite a harmless and sweet man , by all accounts...on perception , at least .

Rubislaw 32 link
8/20/2020 03:58:53 pm

Yes , I think you are right about the '' press pass '' bit , with Eric Weill , BB . But , I don't know about '' crime scene '' work .

From what I looked into , quite recently , was his '' abilities '' with access to the rock community , and his penchant for stage photos at rock concerts . He seems to have had the gift for getting close-up to performing artists , without annoying them...thereby acquiring quality pictures that interested newspapers.

I think he worked free-lance for most of his working life .

I'm not sure about the southern accent , either , unless he was a good mimic .

BB
8/20/2020 05:06:06 pm

His quick use of his father's name for reference to a Sam.

Was the last Zodiac correspondence the Happy New Year card Jan. 10 a choice to forever point to his birthday?

He studied photography. Did he obsess over numbers like the
Zodiac? April 10, Oceanside 9x10 months later October 11.
Eric P Weill 10 letters, the tenth day of April to the tenth month of October to kill another 29 year old taxi driver. With the same birthday as ALA. Did Eric ever speak on the Mikado.

Rubislaw 32 link
8/20/2020 08:56:57 pm

That's an interesting coincidence on the January 10th date , BB .

Beyond doubt , it seems that Paul Avery and Randolph Apperson Hearst passing away , in the month before , had had motivation for the 2001 New Years Card . Possibly also , the '' coming of age '' of Kubrick's Space Odyssey , with the Zodiac undoubtedly a follower of the Space Race and probably an Astronomy buff .

But to pick Weill's birthday for the postmark ( ? ) . That could be something extra . I think that the Zodiac found empathy in some of either his influences , as a personal pick......or , others around him , who become influenced by him , the Zodiac .

I've carried this possibility of the Zodiac having a dead twin , in some form of circumstance , for a while . Dali believing he was his dead brother's re-incarnation , and now we are looking at Weill , as a twin .There maybe something going on in Zodiac's mind over a '' fraternal '' matter , that might , on occasion , bring out the emotional side in him , the Zodiac ( ? ) .

Rubislaw 32 link
8/20/2020 09:15:59 pm

An approximate guideline for the incidence of twins , in a western society :

Now : About one in 30 births .

100 years ago : About one in 50 births .

But , 100 years ago , infant mortality was much higher .

Rubislaw 32 link
8/20/2020 09:45:04 pm

Sign of the twins : Gemini - May 21st - June 21st .

Stage one , of the Space Race , for the USA .

( It happens to make perfect sense to me , but it could equally be mere coincidence since , Zodiac's actual interest in Astrology , was simply as a newspaper browser - just of novelty value to him .)

Rubislaw 32 link
8/21/2020 12:24:40 am

America's most famous Sam's :

i ) Samuel Wilson - a meat packer from New York , and supplier of food to the U.S.Army , during the 1812 War , against Great Britain . '' Uncle Sam '' who became the chief recruiting tool , for young American men , during WW1 .

ii) Sam Houston - soldier and politician , twice President of The Texas Republic . Leader of the Texas Revolution and military hero , to this day .

Rubislaw 32 link
8/21/2020 08:13:44 am

Extraordinary ?

There is a Zodiac contributor ( ? ) , who is begging for donations to fund a Zodiac doc. , offering '' Producing credits '' , in return for money .

This same contributor , only recently , happily boasted to the Reddit membership that , as a successful writer , he has no need to work again , and enjoys his evenings smoking Cuban cigars and drinking Jamaican rum , on the balcony of his home , which overlooks a Norwegian Fjord .

Seeing as this same contributor extols the virtues of a disgraced Zodiac internet pioneer , whom he believes is the second most important person in the history of the Zodiac case , the sheer naivety and w*nk factor , is beginning to make sense .

To '' only slightly '' misquote J.M.Barrie :

'' There are few more excruciating sights in the world than a Scotsman on the make .''

BB
8/21/2020 09:03:29 am

Samuel Adams was the Founding Fathers of the United States.
He was the leader the American Revolution.
Thomas Jefferson credits Samuel Adams as the progenitor.

Samuel Adams was behind the choice for George Washington to be in charge.
George Washington gets the credit but Samuel was the genius of everything.
The English demonized him as the devil while we defied him as Uncle Sam.
In literature of the place Uncle Sam is mentioned as early as 1775.
But now there is push for it to be some business guy named Sam Wilson from 1813.
That's a copycat that is co-opting to distort true history for his own Zodiac like aggrandizement..
Sam Adams was there in the beginning at the Green Dragon Tavern meetings.

BB
8/21/2020 09:45:41 am

opps - deified not defied

Rubislaw 32 link
8/21/2020 12:07:09 pm

Certainly interesting , on the '' Uncle Sam '' derivation , BB , which is probably bound to possess conflicting sources ( ? ) .

At present , this does seem to be a period of nothing much happening of perceived note , in the Zodiac case . A time , perhaps , one might refer to as '' The Silly Season ''. A vacuum emerging when , anything is possible to simply fill up a void of meaningful information , to sustain a barren period until something carrying the potential for real curiosity , turns up .

Although not to be taken as a given , this '' opinion by consensus '' that we now experience at Reddit , is nevertheless a refreshing angle to observe . I don't think that many of the more seasoned Zodiac followers saw the day of an internet interest on such a large scale .

Just a few have seen it as a possible '' cash cow '' to be milked , and have had to experience a rude awakening , for their misguided perception . There are a fair few newcomers that have arrived , with a determination to study and learn the case and , will not be deflected by those who merely loiter for financial benefit .

Rubislaw 32 link
8/21/2020 12:29:43 pm

A Silly Season example , today at Reddit :

Q : What could Pi possibly represent ?

A : Richard Gaikowski's birthday .

Rubislaw 32 link
8/21/2020 04:32:19 pm

Although there might be some truth , somewhere down the line , what makes Glasgow based The Daily Record's recent headline '' American serial killer suspect linked to infamous Templeton Woods murder in Dundee '' so tacky , is its '' Hollywood come and get us '' veneer .

One can't help feeling that this headline is just a smidgeon away from :

'' Infamous American serial killer suspect linked to Templeton Woods murders in Dundee ''

And , now we would really be into '' Zodiac '' territory ( ? ) .

The Daily Record is actually '' The Scottish Daily Mirror '' , and another of those often appalling Rupert Murdoch owned tabloids , more usually associated with Fleet Street's '' Street of Shame '' .

Indeed , such notable and genuine banner headlines emerging from '' Silly Seasons '' , in the past , as :

'' Hitler was a Woman ! ''

and :

'' London Bus found on the Moon ''

Judith
8/21/2020 10:45:58 pm

Lake Berryessa is on fire including the site of these zodiac killings I returned to the location where Peter took me over and over maybe 7 years ago and filmed it all looks like all the trees and everything will be burned to the ground there now after I first married Peter when I was 19 years old he announced we will be going to lick Berryessa Monday he drove me to the exact location of the zodiac killings unbeknownst to me we packed a picnic lunch and then ice chest parked in the parking lot and carried all of this down towards the water he selected a spot where we were to sit it took about an hour to drive there prom El Sobrante we sat down with our picnic and he got up and said he wanted to take a walk and went around the cove all of a sudden he came running back yelling get everything get everything we need to get the f*** out of here and we packed everything up and ran back to the car his mother's Pontiac Grand Prix pale yellow with a black interior bucket seats she had his handgun loaded on the console as we tore out of there with no explanation everything went dark his shirt was black the inside of the car was black the mud was black and it did not lift until we cross the carquinez bridge back to watch El Sobrante that was 1978 we would return to the same location over and over

Rubislaw 32 link
8/21/2020 11:47:56 pm

Yes , I hadn't realised that you meant it literally , when you said that Lake Berryessa was on fire , Judith .

We have really just got the news , in Britain , on account of Mr.Trump threatening to withhold Federal emergency funding to California , since he believes that California is not doing enough to manage their forestation .

On a brighter note , the Zodiac Reddit site includes a new topic called '' Related to the Zodiac Card '' . A contributor called '' Basturds_comic '' has spotted a reference , in a comic , called '' Luminous Astro-Navigation Map '' . This features the Polaris , or North Star which , when seen laid out , does resemble how the Zodiac was want to place a small '' cross-hairs '' symbol on some of his envelopes .

Certainly worth checking out , Richard et al .

BB
8/22/2020 03:28:21 pm

Is Robert the so called name of the eight year old witness?

Robert Graysmith
The Tempest by Robert W. Smith
Robert E Lee
Robert H Coon
Robert Salem
Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Emmitt the Hippie
Robert Hall Star supposedly for ALA
Robert Domingos
Robert Hale West.
Robert Connelly

Are these spelled correctly and is this all of the Roberts

Richard
8/22/2020 03:47:29 pm

Yes, Robert aged 8 in 1969.

BB
8/25/2020 11:17:31 am

Robert FKennedy died June 6th 1968 in CA.
RFK was staying at the Bates Ranch the night Monroe died.
The Bates ranch is near Gilroy, Ca.
I wonder if those Bates are related to CJB
I know it is a long shot - But if so it would explain things.
There is a revenge feeling to the CJB murder that needs to be explored.
CJB's father worked in Corona Ca - and - Sirhan Sirhan was there too.
Just a remote chance I know. But Nixon's security guard Thane Cesar
thought to be the man to fall backward in the crowd with Kennedy in a
headlock with his left arm and a hand gun to the back of the head
point blank with the other - as the stippling shows. And with the round
"lost" because nobody was allowed to dig-it-out of the ceiling. Why?
One thing is Hartnell said the killer spoke with a southern accent.
Thane Eugene Cesar died Sep 13, 2019 - in the Philippines 6 foot 210.
Spoke with a southern twang. Born on February 28th, 1942 in Missouri,

https://www.irishcentral.com/news/robert-f-kennedy-jr-thane-eugene-cesar

https://www.maryferrell.org/pages/Robert_Kennedy_Assassination.html

https://flagpole.com/news/2019/06/19/the-real-story-of-the-assassination-of-robert-f-kennedy/

BB
9/4/2020 04:15:36 pm

Richard - I never realized that the Zodiac said perhaps to someone listening on a radio;

" I'm getting nervous." Unless he was just thinking out-loud.

http://www.zodiackiller.com/LBReport24.html

Roger
9/16/2020 10:03:35 pm

There are just so many coincidences in this case and I must say as far as coincidences go, the Montana connection to Zodiac is a doozy. Something that is rarely touched on or mentioned is the fact that the Zodiac told Bryan Hartnell that he was an escaped prisoner from Deer Lodge, Montana. Then the Zodiac writes "By Knife" on the door of Hartnell's car door. Although we can be fairly certain he was probably referencing the Tim Holt comic book, it is clear to me that he was actually referencing a newspaper article from St. Joseph News-Press in Missouri, dated 18 Apr 1959. The article says: "The hostages, 16 from the prison staff and five "stool pigeons" from the cells, were threatened with death by rope or fire if authorities attempted to storm the gray stone walls of the 90-year-old penal institution". The article repeats the phrase "death by rope or fire" about half way down.

So could this mean the Zodiac came from Montana or Missouri (mid-West)? Or was this just the Zodiac up to his usual tricks and wanting us to make that connection as a clever ruse? I personally believe it was nothing more than a ruse. The Zodiac was well read and I think enjoyed these kinds of ruses and games. He may have also put on a Montana cowboy accent when talking to Hartnell in order to give that impression. He could be very consistent too in repeating, often further elaborating on or stylizing certain aspects of his earlier ruses in later communications.

Richard
9/17/2020 02:10:13 am

Covered Jerry's Riot before with respect to Donald Lee Bujok.
Quote "This started a twenty-four-plus hour standoff in which Myles railed openly to the media outside the walls;[127] Alton retired to his cell after an argument with Myles, convinced that no escape was forthcoming;[128] Jones was again allowed to leave the prison to negotiate with Powell and, under orders from the warden, did not return;[129] and the hostages survived repeated threats of death by fire, rope, or knife. The hostages were eventually crowded into three cells, and the frightened men planned to press the thin prison mattresses against the bars to ward off any attack, but they knew the shield would not hold long against fire or at all against the rifles".

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montana_State_Prison#Negotiations_and_a_new_escape_plan

Roger
9/17/2020 02:42:59 am

Thanks Richard, It is very interesting how those ideas could have got transferred to Berryessa, but of course they are not new ideas. I believe the by gun, knife, rope, fire thing started much earlier with the Mafia crime mobs, who seemed to popularize it, and for this reason it no doubt became popular among prison inmates.

BB
9/17/2020 01:28:21 pm

Excellent points!

Made me think of the voice of the Zodiac.

The Southern dialect may just be attributed to the fact that

in America we basically have two types of people.

In every state we have the Country folk and City dwellers.

I live in the city so my dialect is normal by most.

But, I have some relatives that live so far out in the boon's

that I can barely understand them when they speak.

Yet they are from the northwest - not the south.

Roger
9/18/2020 04:25:06 pm

I personally think that Zodiac was clever enough to fabricate his entire profile, a bit the way a script writer fabricates a character. He portrayed himself as the quintessential "every man". He was whatever we could imagine him to be and I think he wanted us to extrapolate from these fabrications. So he could be a mid-West cowboy with a drawl who frequented casinos, an escaped convict, or he could be a cartoonist, or an old fart who liked to write letters of complaint to the editors of newspapers, or an intellectual who loved opera. He could be a news reporter, an ex-soldier or Marine, a disgruntled school teacher who hated kids, a crossword puzzle enthusiast, a ranch hand, a seafarer, a cartographer, a meteorologist, a scout leader who enjoyed cross country orienteering, a forest worker, a hunter, a loner who lived "off the grid" in a basement etc. etc. etc. If we go by what he wrote about, he could be anyone and everyone, because that is exactly the way he sought to portray himself. It is pretty clear to me that all of this was an elaborate ruse, which he had probably planned from the outset of his communications. His desire was to create numerous rabbit holes that all lead to dead ends. And isn't that exactly what we find on internet forums when it comes to pet suspects? There is a common tendency to make the Zodiac fit a suspect. In all truth, the Zodiac could be made to fit ANY suspect we may choose, because he was the quintessential "every man". The surprising thing for me is that so many decades have gone by and people still do not get this simple fact. I guess it is just a flaw in our human nature to seek connections in the things he wrote about, but I am sure the Zodiac merely exploited that flaw in order to create subterfuge. The "ruse" was a significant part of his M.O. and this is all too frequently overlooked by amateur sleuths. Yours truly has also fell for the Zodiac's bullsh$t on a number of occasions.

BB
9/19/2020 10:13:49 am

YES!

A con man.

https://www.zodiackiller.com/DFR56.html

There is a man that fits all that.

Many honest people (amateurs) for many years have been saying he is the Zodiac.
But nobody listens. Because they are looking for the reason to say no.
James Phillip's brother Rick even excluded him by saying that Jim is just a bookworm.
But Rick killed his brother Paul with a 22 cal at the time Jim was in the Army.
And later Rick was at the Painting party and may have been mixed-up in the drug
scene there in Vallejo where he had a home.
But, Jim did have many those jobs. Albeit for as few as just a few days. But, some like the Army
were for as long as four years. The thing that clinches it for Jim being the Zodiac is the fact that
he was so angry at everything and everyone in life. He was the most vindictive man
in history. When he got out of the military in 1965 he was so mad at them that re-enlisted -
swearing the oath only it was a lie as he then went AWOL as a protest. And that's when
they threw him in the stockade in the Presidio. He sought revenge for their making him
feel powerless. So he hired the Quakers to represent him. To make the Army look bad.
The image he presented was the one where the Army is making peace loving people -
the conscientious objectors - into - violent evil war lovers. In the end Jim won his case
and was after 4 and a half months released with an honorable discharge. The next day
he says he "met the Kewpie doll" - that girl he met was Darlene. His lie of not being the
Unidentified Man is the most obvious thing in the world. But the guy Tom.V. believes him.
Because Tom wants it to be Gyke. For a short time Jim crossed paths with Gyke in Albany
though and possibly also in LakeTahoe. Jim even confessed to being the Zodiac to his roommate.
https://zodiackillersite.forummotion.com/t1144p60-i-was-once-a-roommate-of-the-zodiac-killer-roommate-was-jim-crabtree

Zodiac Me-37
M=13
E= 5
13+5=18
18X37=666

Roger
9/19/2020 03:44:44 pm

Maybe we should consult Honcho?

As someone wrote on a forum regarding the very subject of Jim Phillips: "As you dig in to this stuff its hard to separate the bullsh$t from the truth."

Never a truer word spoken!

My understanding has always been that the cops ruled Jim out long ago and not for only one reason, yet people still persist in re-introducing him as a viable suspect. I have trouble believing all of the folklore that has been written about Jim Phillips and his shady connections with Gyke and all and sundry. All just Chinese whispers leading down rabbit holes leading to dead ends. Gyke can be ruled out because he was not even in the country during some of the Zodiac activity, so any involvement he had with Phillips falls flat right there. Numerous witnesses saw Crabtree working as a cook Ferrin's husband Dean was initially a suspect in the murder, however was ruled out once it was established he was working as a cook at Caesar's Restaurant at the same time of the murder. So did Jim have a body double, or an accomplice? Gyke? The elusive "Honcho"? This one is a dead end. It goes nowhere and everywhere. Also are we to believe the cops were so disinterested in him as a suspect that they did not have Crabtree's prints on file to compare with the partials of Zodiac? People just need to face the fact that he was ruled out and for very good reasons.

Numerology always fails to impress me. You can add together selective numbers to make whatever you like. It proves nothing except that you looked for numbers from a whole stack of variables to fit that sum. Ironically that is exactly the same logic that leads you to suspect Phillips. It all smacks of extremely poor reasoning and deductive skills. Sandy Betts has tutored you well.

Roger
9/19/2020 04:01:13 pm

My message got truncated strangely. Dean was ruled out because witnesses saw him working as a cook at Cesar's Restaurant. As for Crabtree, his wife and others saw him at the hippy encampment they visited, so he was many miles from the scene of Darlene's murder. Prints and handwriting examples were taken from Crabtree. All were negative for Zodiac. Cased can be closed on Jim Phillips right there. Anything else is just Chinese whispers and internet rumor-mongering, i.e. no proof!

https://www.flickr.com/photos/112412867@N06/sets/72157651741000997/

BB
9/19/2020 05:35:58 pm

I am suggesting that the reason for Tom all these years thinking Gyke is the Zodiac. Has to do with his proximity to James Phillips. Also the lies he tells and the rage he exhibits are off the charts. And as for proof. I realize it is all circumstantial. All these years all we have to go on are whispers and clues. Which are faint leads and impressions. However, that is not my fault. I've never said, any of this is anything other than mere speculation. Moreover the point is that they never investigated Jim and he even admits that. That was because he split town - to Oregon where he is living today. The mystique of the Zodiac was such a strong notion that it pulled their focus away from the best lead they had. Being, the ex-husband of the woman killed.
Also, I realize numerology is hog wash. But the Zodiac was wild about beliefs of all kinds - perhaps that was mostly the times. And, also his connecting to the religious themes and devils is obvious too. I don't know if he actually believed in any of it or he just wanted us to think he did. It seems as though he studied the many aspects of magic and the occult. As we know in science. As the ancients studied. Alchemy -
which we on our perch scoff at. Although it was quite thought out. Spells being words. Words being ideas. Ideas being thoughts. Thoughts being actual chemical bodies formed in reality. Therefor if all things in the universe including thoughts are in reality taking-on tangible form. In the form of chemicals albeit. Then these words/spells are literally true and real. Thus when the word is spoken it transmutes and manifests itself in reality. Thus the Egyptian wrote on the walls - so let it be written. And it was made real. That was their magic the Zodiac found this believable. That was the good spell - his gospel. That is why he said the things he said. There are tons of examples. Starting with his symbol. It is the mondola. The many things he pulls together from many aspects of witchcraft are impressive. Apotheosis is the goal of all people according to psychology. And that is what the Zodiac accomplished. Self deification.

Roger
9/19/2020 08:13:11 pm

Thanks BB, and apologies for before. I guess I'm just getting a bit tired of all the rehashed bullsh$t relating to the Crabtrees and Sandys and Honchos and Blaines and Gykes and other spurious White Rabbit entities with cottony tails bounding about the place, all possessing alleged intrigue. I would suggest that Jim was more of a hippy wanderer who often seemed completely adrift and "out of it". He seems to have quickly forgotten all about Darlene as he just drifted off to seek random love and dope with other hippies. He just doesn't seem intelligent or focused enough to be the Zodiac, and an organized hit on his ex just seems totally out of character. They married in Jan 1 1966, both too young and restless. Darlene was still out for a good time and Jim was a bit of a drifter by nature. They split around about Feb 22 1967 and only maintained sporadic contact. They got divorced in June 2nd 1967 and lived separate lives. I don't see why he would suddenly get himself whipped into a frenzy of rage and revenge over her on July 4th 1969, so many years after. I am sure Jim may have got off on the notoriety that he was once a Zodiac suspect, which is possibly why we find him latching on to the persona in that zany postcard to Blackwells Occult bookshop. Jim apparently denies he authored the card, and he may well be telling the truth. In any case he flips the bird at Zodiac here. The handwriting matches nothing Zodiac. Could have been written by one of his hippy jokers for all we know, and anything from Sandy Betts has to be taken with a huge grain of salt. As we so often find from things Crabtree-Sandy-Honcho related, it is all designed to tempt us in, lead us on, “Curiouser and curiouser!” Cried Alice, builds up our interest and excitement, but ultimately provides proof of nothing.

BB
9/20/2020 11:54:23 am

Roger - Thanks for that response.

I agree it may be a case of not guilty by association type circumstance.

But, his IQ in 1961 at age 17 according to the Army was 138.

And, IQ increases from age 16 by a minimum of 3 and as much a 18

points by 20-21 years of age. And then stabilizes 21-22 years of age.

IQ standard for genius is 140 for a person forewarned to the testing.

His testing was a spur of the moment thing with no preparation.

As you say these things can be seen in almost any way there can be.

Though, that does not mean we should throw the baby out with the bath water.

He was in the Army Airborne Regiment. And was sent to code training school.

Jim and Don Porter were the only people ever arrested for this case.

The pistol he had on him at the time of arrest was a 9mm owned by David Ott.

He then changed his name to Crabtree and split the state.

Jim's father was the famous CHP officer Diamond Bell Phillips. He died a couple weeks after Jim's 24th B-day in April 1968.

His brother Rick lived in Vallejo. Together they could have been a Zodiac duo.
One doing the killing. The other designing the codes.

Jim provides too many alibis for July 5. One - he says he met his next wife on July 5th. Another he says he is spotted hiking by a family that did not know him.
Another he says he was driving an old flat bed truck.

Is any of this stuff true? I don't know. But, it's all here on the this internet thing.
And, I just thought it was an interesting enough possibility to talk about. The Zodiac was a creation by some guy for attention. Or it was way to cover for some guy's crimes by causing misdirection.

BB
9/21/2020 10:18:51 am

Officer Eric Zelms was executed January 1, 1970 - Over 50 years ago.

https://cdnc.ucr.edu/?a=d&d=DS19700102.2.20&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN--------1

Zelms was struck in the heart and the arm. As the suspects fled, witnesses said the man with a gun paused over Zelms’ crumpled body and fired again.

Who stands over a dying man? That poses no threat to them, and issues the Coup de gras?
Except a hit man!

James married Darlene on January 1. Did Jim associate with Vincent Fuller, 30 year old hair stylist?


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