17 Facts About The Real Rodney Alcala, AKA "The Dating Game" Killer, That You Probably Don't Know

This post contains mentions of sexual assault.

If you've been on Netflix recently, you've probably noticed there is a new popular movie called Woman of the Hour.

Written by Ian McDonald and directed by and starring Anna Kendrick, Woman of the Hour tells the story of serial killer Rodney Alcala, who appeared as a contestant on The Dating Game in 1978 amidst his murder spree in the US.

So because Woman of the Hour is based on real people and a real case, here are 17 facts about Alcala, his victims, and what exactly happened when he appeared on The Dating Game:

There are obviously major spoilers ahead for Woman of the Hour on Netflix.

1. First, in 1968 — 10 years before his infamous The Dating Game appearance — Rodney Alcala lured 8-year-old Tali Shapiro into his car and took her to his home. He reportedly beat and sexually assaulted her. According to court documents, a witness testified that he stopped Tali, "who was walking to school," and offered her a ride. The witness noticed, followed Alcala, and proceeded to call the police.

In an interview with CBS News for 48 Hours, former LAPD officer Chris Camacho recalled knocking on Alcala's door. He eventually kicked in the door and found Tali. He recalled, "The image will be with me forever. We could see in the kitchen that there was a body on the floor, lot of blood."

Camacho added, "There was no breathing. ... We all thought she was dead."

Orange County Deputy DA Matt Murphy recalled, "Had it not been for that police officer, Tali Shapiro would have died on Rodney Alcala's kitchen floor."

2. Alcala fled his home, left Los Angeles, and moved to NYC to escape his conviction. He reportedly enrolled as a student at NYU, where he took film classes. Former LAPD detective Steve Hodel recalled to CBS News, "We kept coming up empty. Back then, you know, we didn't have a lot of the forensics you have today."

According to court documents, in 1972, Alcala returned to California and was "convicted of violating Penal Code section 288 (child molesting)."

He was paroled in August 1974. 

3. While living in NYC, Alcala killed Cornelia Crilley, a 23-year-old flight attendant, in 1971. While the NYPD investigated her murder, they reportedly could never close the case at the time. According to CBS News, Alcala fled NYC, changed his name, and began working at a New Hampshire summer camp. It was there that two girls reportedly recognized him from an FBI Most Wanted poster.

4. He was hired by the Los Angeles Times as a typesetter, which is depicted in Woman of the Hour. He was also a wedding photographer. Orange County Deputy DA Matt Murphy told CBS News, "He was a registered sex offender during all of that, and nobody ever checked."

Despite his conviction, Alcala was permitted to travel to NYC. In 1977, he murdered 23-year-old musician Ellen Hover. According to CBS News, Ellen was from a high-profile family who owned NYC nightclubs. After she wasn't returning her mother's calls, a missing person's investigation took place. 

Dental records eventually identified Ellen when her body was discovered a year later "buried on the grounds of the Phelps Memorial Hospital in Westchester, near the Rockefeller Estate."

5. On Sept. 13, 1978, Alcala appeared on an episode of The Dating Game. He was introduced as a "successful photographer." Cheryl Bradshaw was the contestant competing, and she and Alcala engaged in a lot of banter. At the time of his appearance, Alcala had reportedly already murdered at least five women.

According to ABC News, one conversation went as follows between Alcala and Cheryl:

Cheryl: "I am serving you for dinner. What are you called, and what do you look like?"

Alcala: "I'm called 'the banana,' and I look good. Peel me."

6. The Dating Game executive producer Mike Metzger and his wife, contestant coordinator Ellen Metzger, told ABC News that a system for conducting background checks wasn't readily available to them. Nobody who worked on the show knew about Alcala. Ellen recalled thinking "he was attractive and all the women were going to love him," however Mike felt like he had a "strange personality."

"He had a mystique about him that I found uncomfortable," Mike told ABC News.

Jed Mills, who competed alongside Alcala as Bachelor No. 2, recalled that Alcala told him, "I always get my girl." He also described Alcala as "creepy."

Alcala eventually became known as "The Dating Game Killer."

7. As depicted in Woman of the Hour, Cheryl ultimately chose Alcala as the winner of her episode of The Dating Game. The duo won tennis lessons and a trip to an amusement park.

Unlike in the film, Alcala and Cheryl reportedly never went on a date following the episode. 

The day after the episode, Cheryl called contestant coordinator Ellen Metzger. Ellen recalled to ABC News, "She said, 'Ellen, I can’t go out with this guy. There's weird vibes that are coming off of him. He's very strange. I am not comfortable. Is that going to be a problem?' And, of course, I said, 'No.'"

8. In 1979, Robin Samsoe, a 12-year-old girl, was murdered after she and her friend, Bridget Wilvurt, ran into Alcala at Huntington Beach in California. Robin's body was found 12 days later by a fire crew conducting routine fire prevention maintenance. According to CBS News, her body was found "40 miles from where she was last seen."

Bridget's description of Alcala ultimately helped the LAPD create a composite sketch, which was released to the media in Southern California. 

Orange County Deputy DA Matt Murphy told CBS News, "[Alcala's] parole officer saw [the sketch] and — and called the detectives and said, 'Look, there's a guy that used to be on my caseload. You really need to take a look at him. His name is Rodney Alcala.'"

9. On July 24, 1979, Alcala was arrested and charged with the kidnapping and murder of Robin Samsoe. At the time, investigators uncovered a storage locker in Seattle that belonged to Alcala. Inside, there were "hundreds if not thousands" of photographs, according to CBS News. Also, there was a pair of earrings that belonged to Robin.

Per ABC News, the photographs depicted unidentified women, girls, and boys, some in sexually explicit poses. 

There was also more jewelry, including Robin's earrings. 

10. In 1980, a jury found Alcala guilty of first-degree murder for the murder of Robin Samsoe. At the time, the Los Angeles Times reported that the jury "could determine that" Alcala "should receive the death sentence because it specifically found that he killed her in the hills near Sierra Madre after kidnaping her from Huntington Beach."

Friends of Robin testified that Alcala attempted to take her picture at the beach the day she went missing. 

Inmates who shared quarters with Alcala at the Orange County Jail also testified that Alcala "acknowledged luring Robin into his car by offering to take her to afternoon dance lessons."

11. Four years later, the California State Supreme Court ruled that Alcala didn't receive a fair trial because the jury was reportedly "improperly told about Alcala's prior sex crimes," which included the assault of Tali Shapiro. He was later convicted a second time and received a second death sentence, per CBS News.

Robin Samsoe's mother, Marianne Connelly, reportedly said, "He killed my child, my child," at the time of the second murder trial.

In 2001, a Federal Appeals Court overturned Alcala's sentence for a third time "based on evidence he didn't get to present," per CBS News. A new trial took place again.

12. In 2010, Alcala was finally connected to the murders of both Cornelia Crilley and Ellen Hover, 39 and 33 years after they were killed, respectively. According to Manhattan Prosecutor Melissa Mourges, a letter that was found alongside Cornelia's body had fingerprints on it, and they were ultimately matched to Alcala. Also, a bite mark on the body was reportedly linked back to Alcala's dental records.

At the same time Alcala was linked to Cornelia and Ellen's murders, DNA also connected him to four other Los Angeles area murders.

Tali Shapiro testified at Alcala's 2010 murder trial.

13. In 2010, Alcala was ultimately convicted of five counts of first-degree murder and sentenced to death for the murders of Robin Samsoe, Jill Barcomb, Georgia Wixted, Charlotte Lamb, and Jill Parenteau. Two years later, he was extradited to NYC and was indicted for the murders of Cornelia Crilley and Ellen Hover.

He received an additional 25 years to life and pled guilty for the murders of Cornelia and Ellen. 

14. In 2016, Alcala was charged again after DNA evidence connected him to the death of Christine Thornton in Wyoming in 1977. Her remains were found in a remote area, where he allegedly dumped her body.

According to People, Christine's body was discovered in 1982, but in 2014, DNA finally linked her to her sister, who was in the CODIS (Combined DNA Index System) database. 

"If it wasn’t for Christine’s family continuing to look for her…we wouldn’t be here," Sweetwater County and Prosecuting Attorney Danny Erramouspe told People.

15. After the Huntington Beach Police released more than 100 photos found within Alcala's storage locker, CBS News published the photos, which ultimately led Christine Thornton's sister, Kathy Thornton, to submit her DNA to the missing persons' database.

Per CBS News, after watching a special on Alcala by 48 Hours, Kathy and her son looked up photos published online by CBS News. They spotted Christine amongst the pictures taken by Alcala.

16. According to the Associated Press, it's believed that Alcala may have killed "up to 130 people" across the United States. During his trial, Orange County prosecutor Matt Murphy said, "You're talking about a guy who is hunting through Southern California looking for people to kill because he enjoys it."

Investigators say Alcala's true victim count may never be known, per AP.

17. And finally, Alcala died of natural causes in 2021 while still on California's death row. According to the New York Times, at the time of his death, Tali Shapiro said, "The planet is a better place without him, that's for sure."

You can watch Woman of the Hour on Netflix now.

If you or someone you know has experienced sexual assault, you can call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE, which routes the caller to their nearest sexual assault service provider. You can also search for your local center here.