Where have you been? I've been waiting since 7.
Get in. I have to find fireworks.
- Let me drive. - Get in. I haven't eaten in 24 hours.
Are you coming or not?
- all next week at Ganzori Diamonds at 1017 Fourth Street, San Rafael.
Open till 9 Friday.
It's too crowded.
I thought you were starving.
Let's go someplace quiet.
Okay.
What are we doing?
Sitting. Listening to music. Talking.
You seem weird. Is everything okay?
Yeah, everything's fine.
It's July. How many shirts are you wearing?
- I'm cold. - You're cold on the Fourth of July?
Fuck off and die!
What?
"Fuck off and die"?
Shut up.
Was that car at the drive-in?
I saw that car at Mr. Ed's.
- Do you want me to tell him to leave? - Stay in the car.
- Was that your husband? - No.
Who was that, Darlene?
Don't worry about it.
Don't tell me not to worry. Who was it?
It's nothing.
Oh, shit.
Let's go.
Now, D.
Get your wallet.
Man, you really creeped us out.
- Vallejo Police Department. - I wanna report a double murder.
- May I have your name and...? - lf you go one mile east...
...on Columbus Parkway to the public park, you'll find kids in a brown car.
They were shot with a 9 mm Luger.
I also killed those kids last year.
Goodbye.
Spit.
Come on, buddy.
I swallowed it.
Why?
It was minty.
You can't do that. It's not good for you.
Lunchbox.
- Why am I not going on the bus? - Because we're late.
Okay, you're staying with your mom and Aaron tonight.
So you don't like having a new little brother?
No, not really.
That's honest.
Learn a lot.
There will be a test tonight.
With Gerrard turntable and Pioneer speakers for $188.
Make it to Manny's before 10 but hurry.
64 Renovation Street, top of the hill at 86th.
Morning.
- Fine, how are you this morning? - Morning.
- Morning.
Take it easy.
Reminds you the deadline to submit applications for...
...the 15th annual Junior Rock competition.
Applications are available at libraries and schools throughout the Bay Area.
How's the coffee today, Shorty?
Editorial in two.
- Good morning, gentlemen. - Good morning.
Oh, Stanton, tell Mr. Howe the draft-board piece was damn near perfect.
Mr. Graysmith.
Horrid. Horrid.
Not so horrid.
Horrid. I'm thinking we go with "not so horrid."
Paul, what's on the crime beat?
Janice in Datebook left the fondue party before everyone got naked.
That's a crime.
Have you seen her? Wouldn't kid you.
It may be the beginning of a crime wave.
You need to see this.
Go get the publisher.
Christmas. Brand name of ammo: Super-X.
Ten shots were fired.
The boy was on his back with his feet to the car.
The girl..."
Would you read that, please?
"The girl was on her right side, feet to the west.
Fourth of July. One, girl was wearing patterned slacks.
The boy was also shot in the knee. Brand name of ammo was Western.
Here is part of a cipher.
The other two parts of this cipher...
...are being mailed to the editors of the Vallejo Times and S.F. Examiner.
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 Fri... '"
F-R-Y. "...1 st of Aug. '69, I will go on a kill rampage Fri. night.
I will cruise 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."
It's unsigned except for a symbol.
Is it me, or does that look like a gunsight?
Today's August 1 st. He wants his code in the afternoon edition.
If the Examiner doesn't have the balls to run it, we scoop the Bay.
- This is about shooting people. - Not running this might make him.
If we run it, we might be setting a dangerous precedent.
It's newsworthy.
We're giving some sick bastard a soapbox. What does that say to people?
Back up. Is this Vallejo story true? Do we know that?
- Paul? - What? I cover crime in Vallejo?
- I cover crime in Vallejo. Ten minutes. - Let's shoot the code and call S.F.P.D.
If it turns out to be real, at least we'll have the material.
All right.
Graysmith, don't you have that cartoon to finish?
Oh, yeah.
This is Paul Avery from the San Francisco Chronicle.
I'm looking for someone to shed some light on a letter we received.
- Thank you. - Sergeant Mulanax.
Sergeant, Paul Avery from the San Francisco Chronicle.
I wanted to check if you had an unsolved firearm homicide on Christmas...
...and maybe one on July 4th?
Shit. You guys got one too?
Confirmed. V.P.D., they confirmed the shootings.
Al's on the phone with the Examiner. They got a different code.
So did Times-Herald. Christmas, two teenagers on lovers' lane.
Both DOA. David Faraday and Betty Jensen.
July 4th, Darlene Ferrin and Michael Mag... I think it's '"Mayhew.'"
- Anyway, he lived, she didn't. - The murder weapon?
Ballistics, everything he said in the letters match.
I mean, I think the Times-Herald's gonna go with it.
The Examiner's going, but won't go front page.
I say let's go front page.
If he kills 12 people, it's not our fault.
Robert.
We need the cartoon.
- You're not finished? - No, I'm finished, Carol. I'm finished.
Thieriot's still here.
Really?
The first edition is off the floor in 10, Charles.
Give us a sec.
Okay, re-plate.
We'll go on page... Page 4.
What do you say, 20 bucks to whoever cracks the psycho's name?
He won't give his name.
Morti's? Anyone?
- That's where I'm heading. - All right.
Put those on my desk. Turn on the light.
Grab your book.
Now go get your jammies on.
All right, people, listen up.
The cipher's broken into three sections...
...each with 8 lines and 17 symbols.
No breaks denoting different words.
No numbers or clues to substitution keys.
And you got symbols from at least seven different sources.
Greek, Morse code, Navy semaphore, weather symbols, astrological signs.
- Hey, take a gander at this code thing. - Okay.
You wanna give it a go?
Guy who used to sit there was a great cartoonist. Bob Bastian.
Now he's on public television for some reason.
Paul Avery.
Robert Graysmith. I've been here nine months.
You were right, by the way. He didn't give his name.
- Who cracked it? - A history teacher and his wife in Salinas.
"I like killing people because it is so much fun.
It is more fun than killing wild game in the forest...
...because man is the most dangerous animal of all.
To kill something gives me the most thrilling experience.
It is even better than getting your rocks off with a girl.
The best part of it is that when I die...
...I will be reborn in paradise...
...and all that I have killed will become my slaves.
I will not give you my name, because you will try to slow down...
...or stop my collecting of slaves for my afterlife."'
Methinks our friend's a tad bit "fuckered" in the head.
I heard he even sent Vallejo a code key, just to help.
- What is that at the bottom? - Leftovers.
Maybe an anagram.
How does one do that?
I like puzzles. I do them a lot.
How did you know he wasn't gonna give his name?
"Dangerous animal."
Dangerous animal.
What dangerous animal? How do I know that?
- Paul. - Yes, Templeton?
- Editorial, now. - Very well.
Another letter.
More of the same.
Details about the murders.
He taped a flashlight to the gun. That's how he hit them in the dark.
And he gave himself a name.
You know this used to be the town of Monticello?
But at some point, the county decided that the land...
...would work better as a lake so they flooded it.
- But there's an entire... - Hidden city under the water.
- We were here last spring, remember? - Oh, yeah.
- Somebody else is here. - It is a public park.
I think he's watching us.
Well, we're very good-looking.
Where'd he go?
- He went behind that tree. - All right, so he's taking a leak.
He's coming towards us.
Oh, my God, he has a gun.
Don't move.
- I want your money and your car keys. - Okay.
We're not gonna do anything, okay?
We're gonna cooperate. Just tell me what you want us to do.
Here.
You're welcome to everything I have.
If there's anything else I could do for you...?
Maybe I could write you a check?
Okay, I could give you my phone number.
You know, I might be able to help you...
...even more than you might think. - He's a sociology major.
Prelaw, actually.
Oh, keys. You know, I'm sorry. I don't know exactly where I put my keys.
They might be on the blanket. Is it okay...?
Here's the keys.
Don't get up. I want her to tie you up.
Okay.
You know, if he comes any closer I might be able to get that gun.
- Don't get any ideas. - I'm not.
I killed a guard escaping from prison in Montana.
I'm not doing anything, okay?
I'm not afraid to kill again.
Look away.
What was the name of that prison?
Hey, you said it was in Montana, right?
I'm taking your car and going to Mexico.
We didn't complain when you tied our hands.
Okay, you have everything that I have.
We have done everything that you've asked.
It's okay. It's okay.
She tied you loose, didn't she?
Get on your stomach so I can tie your feet.
Okay. It gets really cold out here at night. We could freeze.
Okay, you all done?
You know, just because people are gonna ask, was that thing even loaded?
It's okay. This is all gonna be okay.
Dispatch, this is 43L2, heading south on Knoxville Road.
I've got an abandoned white VW Karmann Ghia.
Napa Police Department.
I want to report a murder. No, a double murder.
They are two miles north of park headquarters.
They were in a white Volkswagen Karmann Ghia.
I'm the one that did it.
43L2 has a male victim with him. Piner's ambulance has been dispatched.
Boy lived, the girl didn't. Again.
Can you imagine surviving that? Writing the dates on the side of the car.
We got two Vallejo killings, now there's one in Napa. Why Napa?
What the hell is he doing out of Vallejo? Sweet mother of Christ...
...what are you drawing?
Kid at the lake? This is what he said the Zodiac was wearing.
- My God, that's a hell of a getup. - What are you doing?
Hyman, I wrote it. It's done. Now I just gotta type it up.
It's not finished until you type it up. We've gotta read it.
- What's that? - That's the Zodiac at the lake.
What's the story with the kid? He seems a little touched or medicated or...
- Graysmith? He's a fucking Boy Scout. - Yeah.
He doesn't smoke, he doesn't drink, he doesn't curse.
- And he's back. - "Man is the most dangerous animal."
I knew that I heard that from somewhere. The Most Dangerous Game.
It's a movie about a count who hunts people for sport.
People. The Most Dangerous Game.
- Who's that? That's the...? - That's Count Zaroff.
Zaroff? With a Z?
That will be all for the news.
We've got curfews tonight for the following counties:
Napa, Solano, Contra Costa, Alameda, Marin, and San Mateo...
...so please, everyone, stay safe.
Vic in San Francisco, you're on the line. You're not scared of the Zodiac?
Heck, no, he's only shooting those farm kids.
What scares me is those hippies out in the Haight...
...with their free love and weird clothes.
- Taxi. - We've got Alfred from Vacaville.
You know, I think that was really offensive. It's not just farm kids.
These are nice clean-cut people.
Hey, nobody's downplaying the loss of human life here.
Well, that last guy was.
We have good solid communities out here in the North Bay...
...unlike in the city where you have Satanists running around.
Well, you bring up a good question. Is the Zodiac a Satanist?
Amber from Oakland, what do you think?
I don't know, but I thought that code they printed didn't look very Christian.
I think a bigger problem is the papers...
...shouldn't have printed anything Zodiac has been doing.
That they're printing all that stuff to sell more newspapers.
Well, the Zodiac did demand they print his letters or he'd kill more people.
But he would have done it anyway, whether they printed it or not.
An interesting point. So, what do you think he'll do next?
- San Francisco Police Department. - There's a fight in a cab!
What is your location?
3398 Washington, at the corner of Cherry.
One's drunk and we think he's robbing him.
- Is the crime still in progress? - Yes, please hurry.
Oh, my God, look!
Nuts!
Whoever this is, you owe me a new lamp.
Cabby's been shot three blocks from the Presidio.
It wasn't me. I been with my bride all night, she can vouch.
Go put on the Folgers.
You'll pick me up?
Let me just describe the lamp you're gonna buy me.
- I just got to sleep. - Suspect's Negro, male adult.
Walt's on scene, locked the cab, secured the crowd.
Dead asleep. I lost feeling in my arm and everything.
Crackers?
You ever try Japanese food?
- What do you mean, like teriyaki? - No, like the urchin.
- Raw fish? - I'm eating here, Bill.
- I always wanted to try it. - So why don't you?
Haven't got around to it.
Evening, gents. What a lovely night for a botched robbery.
Yeah, third this week. Must be end-of-summer rush.
I got foot patrols going through the park, the dogs are on the way.
The victim's name is Paul Stine. Dousette pronounced him at 10:10.
Suspect fired one shot to the head. Driver's wallet and car keys are missing.
- How'd you know his name? - Leroy there...
...came down from Yellow Cab to ID him.
Neighborhood's pretty high-end for this, so I already set up transpo for the cab.
- Coroner's here. - Any witnesses?
Kids who called it in saw the suspect from that window.
- They hear a shot? - No.
They saw him in the front seat, thought he was a drunk.
Oldest kid ran to get a better look from the dining room...
...described him as a white male, glasses...
...crew cut, stocky, and wearing a dark jacket.
- I thought someone said he was black. - The description went out to radio cars.
- We already corrected it. - Oh, well, that's good.
- You guys need anything else? - No. Get out of here.
Thanks. Happy birthday.
Wait, it's your birthday?
- Yep. - That's great. Happy birthday.
- Thanks. Body or scene? - It's your birthday, I'll take the body.
Dave, he wiped the cab down pretty good. We got some blood over here.
- Prints? - Could be. We'll dust it at the Hall.
The odd thing is, we also got gloves.
- Suspect's? - There's blood on them.
Hey, Pete? You through over there, can I get in there?
Yeah, I'm all set.
- Who rolled him? - Stewarts.
I got a single 9 mm casing.
Yeah, Luger.
Nothing from the crowd.
I'm your shooter, Negro male adult...
...who also happens to be a stocky, crew-cut Caucasian.
I flag a cab. I give him this address.
Did I give him this address? Who's got the fare book?
Right here.
Washington and Maple. That's one block east.
Lighting's the same over here, so maybe I see someone walking their dog.
You don't want any witnesses, so you tell him to go down a block. Pulls over.
I wait for him to park because I'm smart.
I don't want him hitting the accelerator when I shoot.
He stops, puts it in park:
I shoot him on the right side, he slumps right?
Maybe you've got your hand on his collar when you shoot.
So I just dumped a quart of blood in the front seat.
- So why do you get in the front seat? - For the money.
But you could just reach over the seat, pull out his wallet.
You don't have to go anywhere near the blood.
So why'd he get in the front seat?
- I'm an idiot. - But you're not.
You waited for him to put it in park.
- Right. Thank you. - Yeah, sure.
- May I see that? - Yeah.
I am an idiot. I just killed a man for $8.25.
It's his third fare of the night. Does anyone have any Animal Crackers?
- Animal Crackers? - They're in the car.
I'm saving those for later.
Fine.
- Are you a reporter? - No, I'm Inspector Dave Toschi, S.F.P.D.
Sir, I was wondering if I'd be able to talk to your children one at a time...
...and preferably alone? - They just saw a man murdered.
I understand.
- It looked like they were drunk. - Yeah, and he had a rag.
He came around the car. He was wiping stuff.
Did you get a chance to see his face?
I did. Well, sort of.
Do you remember what he looked like?
Normal.
- Yeah. - Normal?
"This is the Zodiac speaking. I am the murderer of the taxi driver...
...over by Washington Street and Maple Street last night.
To prove this, here is a bloodstained piece of his shirt.
I am the same man who did in the people in the North Bay Area.
The police could've caught me last night if they had searched the park properly...
...instead of holding road races with their 'motorsickles.'"'
- Gentlemen. - Dave.
Paul, where's the shirt?
Right there, boss.
- Your rag the kids talked about. - So he got in the seat to tear off a piece.
- Is this on the record? - Well, what do you think?
He confirms the Vallejo and Napa killings.
- Gets worse. - Robert, do you have a deadline?
What does he mean, "it gets worse"?
Read the last part.
"School children make nice targets.
I think I shall wipe out a bus some morning.
Just shoot out the front tire...
...then pick off the kiddies as they come bouncing out."
Who's got buses, Department of Transportation?
- School board. - All right.
I'm gonna need elimination prints from your staff.
Is anyone here that didn't touch this letter?
Going back to my desk. I can get the phones if you want.
We need matches on blood and fabric.
I'll call and get the letters up to Sherwood in Sacramento.
Dave, just one thing. Is it true they got a print off the cab?
Yeah, we got a partial in blood.
- But that is not for publication. - No, hey, come on.
Hey, it's me.
Did he say they got a print?
Partial.
- He wears his gun like Bullitt. - No, McQueen got that from Toschi.
He think Zodiac's gonna send another code? I think Zodiac's gonna send...
Jesus Harold Christ on rubber crutches. What are you doing?
You're doing that thing we discussed. The thing that I don't like.
- Starts with an L. - Oh, looming.
Yeah.
In cooperation with S.F.P. D...
...we will run the Zodiac letter without including the threat on children.
We don't wanna start a city-wide panic...
...so I'm asking all of you to please keep this confidential.
Just go about your daily business. Thank you.
Packed you your carrots and your celery and peanut butter, okay?
- Dad, you don't have to wait with me. - I know.
Hi, Shirley.
You know what? You know what? I'm gonna drive him today, okay?
Come on.
What's that?
Similarities in the lowercase R's.
- And that? - It is you waiting in the hall...
...if you speak again. I have to concentrate.
- Sorry. - "Sorry" counts as speaking.
There are similarities in the lowercase R's.
We have to release the bus threat.
- It'll screw us. - We're already screwed.
We just went from "Routine Cabby Shooting"...
...to "Mass Murderer Targets Kids."
The Zodiac Killer has come to San Francisco.
Confirmation tonight from the San Francisco Police Department...
...that in his latest taunting letter...
...which takes credit for the murder of cabdriver Paul Stine...
...the Zodiac has threatened to, quote, "Wipe out a school bus...
...and pick off the kiddies as they come bouncing out."
If you think you might know who the Zodiac is...
...you can call the San Francisco Police Department's newest tip line.
We need policemen out there.
Press conference is at 4. We gotta give them something.
We're coordinating with the school board, and we expect a break soon.
- What do we really got? - We're swamped.
When they can't get the tip line, they call the switchboard.
- You got any hard suspects? - About 90 an hour. I'm up to around 500.
- Can't you narrow it down? - I would love to, if I could get out...
Homicide, please hold.
Yeah, hold, please. We're gonna need to tell them we got the entire force on this.
- How many men can you give me? - You and Bill, and Monday's a school day.
I know. I have three daughters.
- Yeah, I know. Where's Armstrong? - He's on the phone with Vallejo.
We're playing catch-up, Jack.
I'd like to set up a meeting with your Michael Mageau.
I can't. He skipped town.
The only guy who's seen Zodiac without a mask is missing?
When he was in the hospital we could show him lineups all day.
- Soon as he got out, he split. - Really? Why?
I don't think he wanted anything to do with this.
Can you send us everything that you have?
Well, the road goes both ways.
Now, we need that print you lifted from the cab...
...and we should have been in on the handwriting.
I apologize. Things have been moving fast.
Who should I talk to in Napa so we can coordinate?
Talk to Ken Narlow.
We should have been in on the handwriting.
I apologize. Things have been moving fast.
- We're gonna need your photos. - Can't help you.
I don't wanna get into a jurisdictional thing...
No, no. We didn't have a crime scene.
The ranger literally swept everything into a picnic blanket.
- All we have are the Wing Walker prints. - The what?
Boot prints to and from the crime scene made by size 10-and-a-half Wing Walkers.
Military-style boots sold only at military PXs.
Designed to walk on the wings of planes.
And you can't buy at a PX without a military ID...
...so our suspect could be military.
- Did you guys narrow your list off of this? - Yeah.
- Did Vallejo? - I don't know.
I don't work in Vallejo. I work here.
- I'll need photos of those boot prints. - Sure, if you send me the handwriting.
I thought Questioned Documents did.
Nope. Vallejo's got them, not us.
I'll have Questioned Documents... Forget it. I'll telefax it to you.
We don't have telefax yet.
- Okay, I'll put it in the mail. - We'll mail ours too.
And call Mulanax in Vallejo. Maybe he can get you a mimeo.
- Right. - Why don't you get a photo off the cast?
We'd have to wait because they don't have a fax.
We don't have a fax, either.
- I'm just trying to get us coordinated. - Have you called Solano?
Why would I call Solano?
Because the two kids that got killed last Christmas were Solano's.
- I thought they were Vallejo. - They were over the county line.
- You'll need to coordinate them too. - Okay.
Bill? Can I have a word with you?
Where did you see this guy?
We got the call to look for a Negro male adult...
Where was he?
On Jackson. Heading east. About the middle of the block.
- This is three minutes after the shooting? - Give or take.
- And you were heading east or west? - We were going west.
So you're on Jackson going west.
So the cab was one block catty-corner southwest?
Correct.
- Did you slow down? - Of course we slowed down.
Listen, Dispatch said it was a Negro male.
That was corrected.
No, but at the time they hadn't changed it.
This guy was white. Right, not in a hurry. Kind of lumbering along like...
Lumbering? What do you mean, "lumbering"?
- Shuffling. - Stocky? Had a crew cut?
Yeah, that's all correct.
Listen, it was dark. The guy was wearing a dark jacket.
- There's no way... - He would have been covered in blood.
Did you stop him?
Did you talk to him?
- Yes? No? - No.
You need to get with a sketch artist.
We have to put out a new composite right away.
Five persons have been murdered in the area and in each case, the killer...
"I shall wipe out a school bus some morning..."
San Francisco police...
To see the Stones in concert this Sunday...
The new letters from the Zodiac Killer...
...were sent to the City room ofthe San Francisco Chronicle.
Looming. No looming.
- Have you considered the water theory? - What?
Every attack takes place near a body of water or a water-based name.
- This is your water theory? - Lake Berryessa. Blue Rock Springs.
- Lake Herman. - Washington and Cherry?
- You think? - No.
I'm reading this book, Homicide Investigation...
...by LeMoyne Snyder... - "LeMoyne."
He says you look for patterns.
No. You can't think of this case in normal police terms.
- Why not? - You got four crime scenes:
Solano, Vallejo, Berryessa and here.
Not a single usable print at the first three or in any of the letters?
How does that master criminal come to the city and leave a bloody latent?
I mean, assuming the gloves are his...
...he shoots the cabby and then takes them off?
So it's not his print?
Maybe. You're missing the point. The point is the first attack...
- David Faraday and Betty Jensen. - They both die.
From there out, he only manages to kill the girls.
- Not for lack of trying. - Not for lack of trying.
Mageau lives, Ferrin dies. Hartnell lives, Shepard dies.
He gets so caught up with the women, he forgets to finish the men.
Plus they're all couples and all on lovers' lanes.
- Paul Stine is not. - Exactly.
Single male cab driver on Cherry doesn't fit.
Doesn't fit.
So why does Zodiac kill him?
He's breaking the pattern.
- Yeah? - Someone claiming to be Zodiac...
...called Oakland P.D. a half-hour ago.
Says he's gonna call in on Jim Dunbar's morning show in three hours.
- On television? - He wants Melvin Belli on to counsel him.
All right. All right. Let's go wake up Melvin.
Animal Crackers?
Glove box.
Are these windows bulletproof?
Yes, Melvin. You don't have to lie down back there.
This man is a marksman. Could snuff me out at a moment's notice.
- Are you sure you're up for this? - Don't you worry about me, inspector.
I'll be fine when the lights are on.
This man has asked for my help.
The man you're worrying about snuffing you out?
What are these, cookies?
Dear Lord, do you ever clean this car?
Shit. KGO must have tipped other stations.
Get him talking. Convince him to meet you somewhere.
If you see an opportunity, we want you to suggest Old Saint Mary's Church.
You'll be tracing the call?
You need to keep him on the line for 15 minutes.
We can do that, can't we, Jim?
- Fifteen seconds. Clear the set. - Clear the set.
Here you go, you drunken reprobate.
We interrupt our program to bring you this bulletin.
This special edition of our show, we are joined by attorney Melvin Belli...
...who the Zodiac Killer personally requested to appear.
Finish up, buddy, and put it in the sink.
- Good morning, Melvin. - Good morning, Jim.
So the phone lines are open. Mr. Belli is here.
- Here to help, Jim. - Yes. Here to help.
And we ask the public not to call in so that the Zodiac himself can reach us.
I saw your Star Trek, by the way. It was excellent.
A shame about the show. Good people.
You know, I've often thought of becoming an actor full-time.
- What was your character's name? - Gorgan.
Gorgan. That's right.
- Roll the tape. Get the tape. - Jim, we have a call. We're going live.
Hello?
Hello? This is Melvin Belli.
Who am I speaking with?
This is the Zodiac speaking.
Is there something I can call you that's a little less ominous?
Sam.
Is there somewhere we can meet, Sam, and talk about this?
Meet me on top of the Fairmont Hotel without anyone else or I'll...
- Have a unit go to the Fairmont Hotel. - Sam.
Yes?
Do you think you need medical care?
Medical, not mental.
Do you have health problems?
I'm sick. I have headaches.
Headaches?
I have headaches, too, but a chiropractor stopped them a week ago.
I think I can help you, Sam.
Sam?
He knows they're tracing his calls.
Sam, we'd like you to know that we are not tracing these calls.
It's a long, difficult process and ineffective with these short calls.
Sam?
We're not tracing these calls. You have my word.
Okay.
Sam, you need to tell me what your problem is.
I don't want to go to the gas chamber. I have headaches. I kill, I don't get them.
That is fucked up.
You want to live, don't you? Well, this is your passport.
How long have you been having headaches?
Since I killed a kid.
- Do you have blackouts? - Yes.
- Do you have fits? - No, I just have headaches.
Did you attempt to call when F. Lee Bailey was with us...
...two or three weeks ago?
- Yes. - Why did you wanna talk to Mr. Bailey?
Why do you wanna talk to me, Sam?
- I don't want to be hurt. - Why is he calling?
Hey, just a second, buddy.
You won't get hurt if you talk to me.
And you're not going to the gas chamber.
I wouldn't think they would ask for capital punishment.
We should ask the district attorney. Do you want me to do that, Sam?
Do you want me to talk to the district attorney?
What was that, Sam?
I did not say anything.
We heard a scream.
That was my headache.
You sound like you're in a great deal of pain.
My head aches. I'm so sick.
I'm gonna kill them.
- Okay. - I'm gonna kill those kids!
Fantastic.
Sam?
Let's meet and talk. Just us.
Okay.
How about Old Saint Mary's Church in Chinatown?
No. In front of the Daly City St. Vincent De Paul at 10:30.
I'll see you there.
Take care of yourself, Sam.
My, my, my. You fellows certainly know how to put on a secret meeting.
Belli, over here.
I don't want to go to the gas chamber. I have headaches. I kill, I don't get them.
No, it's not him.
It's the voice. The voice is too high. It's too young.
All right. Thanks for coming down, Bryan.
That's okay. I got it.
They pulled off the trace. Our Daly City no-show called from a mental institution.
Oakland P.D.'s operator is sure the man she talked to had a deeper voice.
Calmer. Might have actually been him.
"So I shall change my way of collecting slaves.
I shall no longer announce to anyone when I commit my murders.
They shall look like routine robberies, killings of anger...
...and a few fake accidents, et cetera.
The police shall never catch me, because I have been too clever for them.
I look like the description passed out only when I do my thing.
The rest of the time I look entirely different.
I shall not tell you what my disguise consists of when I kill.
As of yet I have left no fingerprints behind me...
...contrary to what the police say.
I wear transparent fingertips.
All it is is two coats of airplane cement coated on my fingertips.
I enjoy needling the blue pigs. Hey, blue pig, I was in the park.
You were using firetrucks to mask the sound of your cruising prowl cars.
Hey, pig, doesn't it rile you up to have your nose rubbed in your boo-boos?
If you cops think I am going to take on a bus the way I stated I was...
...you deserve to have holes in your heads."
And you need to look at this.
"Take one bag of ammonium-nitrate fertilizer...
...one gallon of stove oil and dump a few bags of gravel on top..."
- Okay. - It's a bomb.
We gotta call the Army...
...and see if this science experiment could actually work.
Another cipher.
- When did these arrive? - They arrived this morning.
- Are you planning to publish? - Robert.
We should have a drink.
Thank you.
So tell me about yourself. You married?
Divorced. I have two kids.
What do you do for fun?
I love to read.
- I enjoy books. - Those are the same things.
Why you been going through my trash?
We'll come back to that. How'd you know he'd send another code?
I just guessed.
- You just guessed. - The first one seemed too easy.
All right, this can no longer be ignored.
What is that you're drinking?
It's an Aqua Velva.
You wouldn't make fun of it if you tried it.
But who actually cracked the code?
A married couple who liked puzzles. So, what's that tell us about the Zodiac?
- He's no expert. - Right. It's a simple substitution code...
...like the one that we used to do as Boy Scouts.
- A is one, B is two. - We weren't all Boy Scouts, Robert.
Well, it's not that hard. You just gotta know where to start.
- In the first cipher... - You actually carry that around with you?
- Why? - No reason.
What's the most common double consonant in the English language?
- Consonant? - The double L.
- Double L. - And what's the one word...
...that we know that he'll use in here, at least once?
- "Kill." - Right, "kill."
The Hardens start look for double symbols, which they find here and here...
...each with the same symbols preceding them.
They've got a repeating four-letter word ending with two symbols that stand for L.
- Since they think the word is "kill"... - You got your K, your I...
...and you're on your way.
But how do you go from A is one, B is two to figuring out this whole code?
Well, same way I did. You go to the library.
In this book...
...the author presents a very simple substitution code in the preface.
Eight of the 26 symbols he suggests are found in this cipher.
But there are non-letter symbols. There's these medieval ones.
I thought they looked medieval too.
But I found a code written in the Middle Ages. Guess what it's called.
The zodiac alphabet.
Jesus.
- What do you want out of this? - What?
What's your angle? This is good business for everyone but you.
How do you mean "business"?
Hey. Come to bed.
I'll be up in a minute. I need to make a phone call.
- Hello? - Bill?
There's not many basements in California.
"Basement for future use."
That's right.
I'll have Vallejo and Napa check with their city planners. Get some sleep.
Yeah, sure.
"Dear Melvin, this is the Zodiac speaking.
I wish you a happy Christmas.
The one thing I ask of you is this: Please help me.
I cannot reach out for help, because this thing in me won't let me."
Thank you.
"I am finding it extremely difficult to hold it in check...
...and I am afraid I will lose control again and take my ninth...
...and possibly 10th victim."
Melvin, he's reaching out to you.
Absolutely. Inspectors, he sent this letter directly to my residence.
It is a cry for help intended as a private communiqué.
Which is why you contacted the Chronicle.
The people have a right to know. Toddy?
- When did the letter arrive? - In the middle of last week.
I was away on safari. What did you gentlemen do for Christmas?
- You're looking at it. - You must see Africa.
Cradle of civilization. Fascinating people.
Beautiful, savages.
- Back to the killer who wrote to you. - Yes, of course.
It is my belief that he penned this letter...
...because he couldn't get to me on the show or here.
- He tried to contact you here? - Several times.
I was out, but he spoke with my housekeeper.
- Didn't leave a number. - He's crafty like that.
- Do you mind if I speak to her? - Not at all.
But the real story is the letter.
- I'll be back. - Yeah.
- She's right this way. - Inspector Toschi...
...it is my belief this is a window into this man's soul.
Killing is his compulsion.
Even though he tries to ignore it, it drives him. It's in his blood.
Could be. Or maybe he just likes the attention.
I didn't mean to scare you, but your right rear wheel is loose.
- Really? - lf you like...
...I could tighten the lugs up for you.
- lf you don't mind. - Well, you can't be too careful.
- All done. - Thank you.
No problem. Have a good night.
It's okay.
Are you okay?
Yeah. Yeah, we're fine.
Must have been worse than I thought. I can give you a lift to a service station.
Okay.
It's okay. Come on.
I didn't know you had a baby.
Oh, is that okay?
The more, the merrier.
You shouldn't smoke. It's a bad habit.
I think we just passed a filling station.
It was closed.
Do you always go around helping people in the night?
When I'm done with them, they don't need much help.
It's okay.
Before I kill you...
...I'm gonna throw your baby out the window.
Please! No!
She was on the side of the road.
- She flagged me down. - What happened?
She said she jumped from a car. I found her like this.
- What is it? - Please, he said...
- It'll be okay. - Tried to kill me.
- My baby! - Where's her baby?
She didn't have one when I stopped.
Where's your baby?
Jesus.
- You hid it? - In case he came back.
"This is the Zodiac speaking.
By the way, have you cracked the last cipher I sent you?
I'm mildly curious as to how much money you have on my head now.
I hope you do not think I was the one who wiped out that blue meanie...
...with a bomb at the cop station...
...even though I talked about killing children with one."
"This is the Zodiac speaking.
I'd like to see some nice Zodiac buttons wandering around town.
Everyone else has these buttons...
...like peace, black power, 'Melvin eats blubber, ' et cetera.
It would cheer me up if I saw a lot of people wearing my button.
- Please no nasty ones." - "This is the Zodiac speaking.
I shot a man sitting in a parked car with a .38. Zodiac 12, S.F.P.D.0.
The map coupled with this code will tell you where the bomb is set.
You have until next fall to dig it up."
"This is the Zodiac speaking.
I'm rather unhappy because you people will not wear some nice Zodiac buttons.
I now have a list, starting with the woman and her baby...
...I gave an interesting ride a few months back...
...that ended in my burning her car where I found them."
We're not gonna run any more of his letters?
New policy. Our brothers in blue want us to hold back and see how he reacts.
Four letters in three months and this is the first mention of Kathleen Johns?
- That's very weird. - That's because he's full of shit.
What do you mean?
You don't know?
Welcome. Please put your stuff down. You're going down five rows and left.
Looking for the Modesto Bee from March.
I'm going to stand here and attempt not to vomit.
Left.
- What am I looking for? - Kathleen Johns.
Also probably wanna pull the Chron... You know, never mind. I'll see to that.
Look at this letter again, the part about Kathleen Johns.
Tell me what facts he gives.
- A woman and a baby abducted. - Fact.
- The car on fire. - Okay, now...
...look at the article from the Bee.
See it yet?
Everything already appeared in the article.
And he's done it before.
Officer Radetich, shot sitting in his car.
Zodiac claimed that he shot someone in their car.
Couple days after this article came out. Police already had somebody in custody.
Zodiac didn't do it...
...but took credit for it anyway because he's in it for the press.
- He even stole his symbol. - What?
Yeah. Shit. If I show you something, you promise not to tell anyone?
- Who would I tell? - Okay. Totally solid point. Okay.
That's the only place that word and symbol...
...appeared together before the letters.
- The guy stole his logo off a watch. - How can somebody who's killed 13...
He claims he's killed 13 people, but which ones can we confirm?
There's three in Vallejo, one in Berryessa, the cabby. That's it.
Bobby, you almost look disappointed.
Chief's pulling everybody off buses.
- Business as usual. - Something will shake loose.
Not a peep in four months. First he won't shut up and now...
Maybe we drove him underground.
Maybe he's gone.
3-11 at 582 Haight, cross at Fillmore. There's a male...
- Happy birthday, Bill. - Thanks.
Does it ever bother you that people call you Shorty?
Does it bother you that people call you a retard?
- Nobody calls me that. - Right.
As governor, I pledge to use all my influence...
...to make sure Darlene Ferrin's killer is brought to justice.
I believe some clues were overlooked in the murder of Darlene Ferrin.
- Her murder was premeditated. - Who is that?
Florence Douglas, mayor of Vallejo. Running for governor.
I believe the police department did not have the money...
...or, yes, the inclination...
Sayonara, police endorsement. Good work, Flo.
Does anyone ever call me names, or...?
- You mean like retard? - Yeah.
No.
Shit. Fuck. My God. Jesus.
Tell me that's not a piece of bloody shirt! Fuck! Holy fucking crap!
I feel it in my bones You ache to know my name
And so I'll clue you in But then, why spoil the game?
"Happy Halloween."
Paul, you did call him a latent homosexual...
...in at least one of your articles. - Dave. I want a gun.
A gun?
You're in Herb Caen.
"Paul Avery's investigation has won him a message from the Zodiac warning:
'You are doomed."
As a result, several crime newsmen are wearing lapel buttons reading:
'I am not Paul Avery."
You should sell these. You could do well.
It's been a windfall since they published the threat on my life.
I got leads coming out of the woodwork. There's one guy down in Riverside.
I'm gonna see him tonight. You wanna tag along?
No, I have a date.
- Really? - Who is this guy?
He wishes to remain anonymous. I wish to remain infamous.
So we're going to get along great.
Hi. Good evening. Hi. I'm looking for a Melanie.
- It's the young lady sitting by herself. - Thank you.
You must be Melanie.
- Which would make you Robert. - It would.
Glynnis told me lots about you.
- And you have wine, great. - I do.
Great. How late am I?
Just a few minutes, really. I just got here myself.
Traffic was bumper-to-bumper. I was at the gun range.
Glynnis said you were a cartoonist.
Oh, yeah.
- Well, what are you doing at a gun range? - Reading.
Get some more... You need some more napkins.
So you work with Glynnis.
- For her, actually. - For her?
Oh, well...
My children are terrified of Glynnis.
Me too.
- So the gun range? - Oh, we were... I'm working on...
- Do you know the Zodiac? - Yeah.
I'm working with... You know who Paul Avery is?
- Sounds familiar. - He's the writer the Zodiac threatened.
- Oh, yeah, I saw that on TV. - Well, I work near him...
...and he was going down tonight to track an anonymous tipster in Riverside.
Where is Riverside?
It's near L.A.
I don't think Paul knows that it's that far away.
Sounds kind of dangerous.
Yeah. How do you mean?
Well, you said it was an anonymous tip, right?
Yeah.
So it could be an ambush. I mean, it could be the Zodiac.
Don't you think it's kind of stupid?
Yeah, yeah. Well, Paul has a gun.
So do you know what's good here?
I've never been here before.
The pasta, spaghetti?
Are you ready to order yet?
I'll have the penne vodka, but do it in a cream sauce.
Of course.
Maybe give us another minute?
Do you have any change?
Oh, wait. No, wait, hold on.
- Nope. That's a penny. - Do you have to make a phone call?
Yeah, you know, when you were saying that the Zodiac...?
When you said it was dangerous, I thought that it is dangerous, and...
- Stupid? - Stupid.
And I just thought that I should call his wife and just see if she's heard from him.
I have some change.
Okay. Well, she said she'd call when she heard from him.
- Good. - Yeah.
Melanie, I should really go home and wait for the call.
Is this some sleazy plan to get me to go home with you?
What? No.
I'll get the food to go.
Hello!
Hi! I'm supposed to meet somebody here.
Anything?
- You don't have to stay. - Are you kidding?
This is the most interesting date I've ever had.
- Paul? - Robert?
- Yes. - You sitting down?
- Yes. - You're not gonna believe this.
- Dave. - In a bizarre twist...
...the hunted has become hunter.
San Francisco Chronicle reporter and Zodiac target Paul Avery...
...claims to have uncovered new information...
...regarding the only unsolved homicide in Riverside County's history...
...a 1966 Southern California murder...
...that Avery now believes was the Zodiac's first victim.
- What? - He didn't call you?
- Hang on. - The Riverside killer wrote to the press...
...letters that I took to the Office of Questioned Documents.
And what did this expert tell you?
What I knew in my gut, Ron.
The handwriting matches Zodiac's.
How'd he get the evidence out of Riverside?
He took it to Sherwood without telling us.
- You know how bad this looks? - How do we know that this lead is real?
It's very real. You know how I know? Because I saw it on TV.
- Excuse me. - Dave? Hi.
You know Mel Nicolai. He's working the case.
Good to see you again, Mel.
Can someone explain to me why I'm reading about breaks in this case...
...instead of getting calls from you?
- We got screwed. - Dave, come on.
You do get your name in the paper a lot. People talk.
I don't ever talk about an open investigation, period. Okay, Ken?
Dave? Hey. Hi. Paul Avery.
- Can I catch a ride with you gents...? - Not a good idea, Paul.
He's gonna make me take a cab when we're going to the same place.
Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for choosing PSA.
- Fair enough. Fair enough. - Please take your seats.
Remember, smoking is in the last six aisles only.
Enjoy your flight.
Captain Cross? Hi, Inspector Dave Toschi, S.F.P.D.
- How you doing? - Great. Thanks for having us.
Oh, not at all. I hear you have some files for us.
- I'll show you mine, you show me yours. - Frisco?
- Right, San Francisco. - Oh, San Francisco.
- Ken Narlow from Napa. - Ken.
- Mel Nicolai, Justice. - Mel.
Here's what we know. Cheri Jo Bates attended Riverside Community College.
She studies in the library the night of October 30th, 1966.
She leaves with an unidentified male at closing, 9 p.m.
Her body's found the next morning in a parking lot, stabbed to death.
Her car is disabled.
Someone cut the coil to the distributor, the battery died.
That someone comes back, offers to help.
- Like Kathleen Johns. - Who?
A woman outside of Modesto. Might be a Zodiac victim.
Might. Might be. I have her account right here in this file.
Okay.
A typewritten confession was sent to the Riverside Press-Enterprise...
...on November 29th, a month after Bates' murder.
They ran it.
"I"m not sick. I am insane. But that will not stop the game.
This should be published for all to read."
He wants to be published. He calls it a game. This could be our boy.
Six months later, the police, the girl's father and the paper...
...they all received these.
Double postage, just like Zodiac.
These are what Sherwood Morrill matched to the Zodiac letters?
These and the desktop. Don.
This was found a couple of months later by a janitor in RCC storage.
Sherwood got a handwriting match off wood?
Who etches in their own handwriting?
To be honest with you, our letters and your letters, I don't see it.
How did Paul Avery get his hands on the exemplars?
I gave them to him. We talked on the phone for about an hour.
- And I told him you were gonna be here. - You told him we were meeting?
Yeah. I also told him we don't think this is Zodiac.
Okay, wait a minute. You don't think this is Zodiac?
We got a guy we like for it.
We don't have enough to pin him yet, but we're sure it's him.
If you don't think this is Zodiac, why give anything to Avery?
- I'm trying to cooperate. - That's how you cooperate...
...by giving information to reporters?
About the handwriting, Sherwood says it's a match, right?
So let's just say that your guy did Cheri Jo. He types the confession.
Zodiac reads it in the paper and writes a letter taking credit for it.
- Now, that's something he's done before. - Look, now you have everything we have.
But in my opinion, you guys came south for nothing.
FUBAR, gentlemen. FUBAR.
I don't care what he says. This still could be Z.
The problem is the entire state already thinks it is.
Well, there's your press agent. Talk to him about it.
I come in peace. I don't want trouble. Dave.
- I don't want to talk to you now. - Just trying to do my job.
Oh, really? Well, now I can't do mine.
We're screwed with the amount of tips and you freaked out the entire state.
I have got Napa, Vallejo, and DOJ looking at me sideways...
...and Riverside's telling me I'm on a snipe hunt!
Cheri Jo Bates was a gift. I gave that to you.
You and Armstrong never would have found her.
This might not be Zodiac. That matter to you?
That Riverside may not be able to make a case against their suspect?
I'm out here, beating the bushes, trying to draw him out.
- We're in this together. - We're not in anything together.
- I don't want to up my circulation. - Boy.
He wrote me. He threatened my life.
Hey, Bullitt. Been a year and a half, you gonna catch this fucking guy or not?
- Go fuck yourself. - Happily.
You should have called me, Paul.
Thank you.
- Did you see this? - Unfortunately.
Here comes every lunatic in California.
- I'm the Zodiac. - And how did you kill your victims?
With a gun. No, with a hammer.
All I'm authorized to say is he's under government employment.
- And who authorized you? - That's all I'm authorized to say.
Only a little rat bastard like Andre...
...could have cut off all the victims' hands.
Zodiac didn't cut off any of the victims' hands.
- Are you sure? - Yes, sir.
Travis and I work here side by side for 10 years.
His foot gets crushed in an accident and the killings begin.
Coincidence?
- I don't know. - You're a cop, man. Do the math.
Have you considered the killer might be Paul Avery?
Frequently.
He was drinking Coors, getting a load on.
Starts talking about hunting people. Like that book.
Says how you can put a light at the end of a gun to use as a sight in the dark.
- He said that? - Yeah.
So I asked, "How would you get away with it?"
And he said, "It would be easy because there'd be no real motive to the thing."
He said he'd write letters to the police, call himself Zodiac to mess with them.
- Leigh liked messing with people. - You're positive he said, "Zodiac"?
Yeah. I thought it was a stupid name. So I told him.
He got up all upset and said, "I don't care what you think.
I've thought about it a long time. That's the name I'm gonna use."
Did you feel like he'd been thinking about it a long time?
He was raw about losing his job at the school.
He talked about shooting out the tires of a school bus...
...and picking off the "little darlings."
- He actually used those words? - That's what made me remember.
Afterwards, I told my wife I didn't wanna see him again. And I haven't since.
Other thing is, Leigh's into skin diving.
He's been up to that lake a bunch of times.
Lake Berryessa? Did you ever go with him?
Couple times. We went fishing by Putah Creek near there.
- Tell him when you put it together. - About a year ago, in the paper...
...there was a story about the Zodiac.
And it all comes back. I tried to call the local cops...
- Blew him off. Thought he was a nut. - And you're sure...
...the conversation you had about Zodiac...
...took place on January 1 st, 1968?
It couldn't have been any later.
I started a new job in L.A. on January 20th. I had to move.
- This is my problem. This guy... - Arthur Leigh Allen?
This guy just lays out his entire evil plan to a fishing buddy on New Year's Day?
I don't know. He's angry. He's been drinking.
Been thinking about it for a while. I can buy that.
So why didn't Cheney contact us sooner?
I checked. He did.
First recorded contact with the police department about Allen...
...was in Pomona, January 10th, 1970. He just got lost in the shuffle.
Did Cheney have anything against Allen? Did Allen screw his wife?
We're gonna do a full background check. But I gotta tell you, I like this guy.
So let's pull some handwriting samples.
Hi. I talked to Sherwood. He got the samples.
- What are you having? - BLT.
The check stubs are a wash. There's not enough handwriting.
The application's got more, but he can't rule him in.
But he can't rule him out, either.
- Well, that's vague. - He needs more samples.
Also, our guy is a pervert. When Mel got the application from Valley Springs...
...they told him Allen had been fired for touching kids.
- "Touching"? - Polite euphemism.
- So, what do you wanna do? - Make some phone calls.
- Are you done with the fries? - Go ahead.
Did you have a chance to look at the copies of the Zodiac letters we sent?
Yeah. Some of this stuff is pretty creepy.
- Yeah, we know. - I mean creepy like Leigh.
He misspells words like that. He thinks it's funny.
What about the handwriting?
I don't know. Don't you have experts for that stuff?
Our man at Questioned Documents says it's inconclusive.
Maybe he did it with his other hand.
The letters are too neat for someone to have written with the wrong hand.
- But not for Leigh, right? - What do you mean?
He's ambidextrous. He can write with either hand. Didn't you guys know that?
In everyday life, Allen uses his left hand.
Job applications, letters to friends, et cetera.
But he writes the Zodiac letters with his right hand...
...producing a different handwriting that he can't be linked to.
- We gotta see this guy, chief. - Where is he?
Vallejo. He works at Union Oil in Pinole. His brother's up there too.
See them both. Make sure you call Mulanax. It is his backyard.
Oh, right, because that worked so well for us in Riverside.
Cooperation, that's us, at all costs.
You can talk to him in here.
Coke machine's busted, by the way.
I'll go get him for you.
So how do you guys wanna do this?
Well, Bill talked to the informants. He leads, we follow?
It's okay by me.
Mr. Allen, I'm Inspector Bill Armstrong. This is Inspector Dave Toschi...
...and Sergeant Jack Mulanax.
We're investigating the Zodiac murders in San Francisco and Vallejo.
Please sit down.
The informant notified us you made certain statements...
...eleven months prior to the first Zodiac murder.
If they're true, they're quite incriminating.
- You recall having any such conversation? - No.
Have you ever read or heard anything about the Zodiac?
When it was first in the paper, but I didn't follow it after.
Why not?
Too morbid.
I told all this to the other officer.
- Which other officer? - From Vallejo.
Do you remember his name?
No, but it was right after the murder at the lake.
And what did you tell this officer?
I told him that I'd gone to Salt Point that weekend to skin dive...
...that I was alone but I met a couple there.
I have their names at home if you want them.
- That would be great, Arthur. - Leigh.
- What? - Leigh. Nobody calls me Arthur.
Also, that day when I came home, my neighbor saw me.
It was around 4. But I forgot to tell the other officer that.
- Neighbor's name? - Bill White.
He died a week or so afterwards.
Heart attack. So I didn't think to call to follow up.
The knives I had in my car with the blood on them...
...that blood came from a chicken that I killed for dinner.
- What? - I had knives in my car that weekend.
Maybe Bill saw them and called the other officer on me.
Well, we'll be checking in on that.
Well, let me ask you something else.
Were you ever in Southern California at any time in 1966?
Is this about the Riverside killing?
Yes.
Well, I guess I was there around that time. I used to go down there a lot.
I like the auto races.
Informant says that you're ambidextrous?
No, that's untrue.
You can't write with both hands?
My teachers tried to make me when I was a kid...
...but I couldn't. I'm left-handed.
He also said that you made statements about killing school children.
That is... That is horrible.
That is... That's a horrible thing to say.
So you weren't angry about being fired from Valley Springs...
...for touching your students?
I'm not the Zodiac.
And if I was, I certainly wouldn't tell you.
That's a nice watch.
- Thank you. - May I see it?
May I see it?
Where'd you get it?
A Christmas gift from my mother two years ago.
That's very sweet.
So tell me something, Arthur. You don't remember anyone...
...you might have had a conversation with regarding Zodiac?
Maybe Ted Kidder or Phil Tucker at Vallejo Recreation.
But I couldn't be positive. I used to work there...
The Most Dangerous Game.
- What? - The Most Dangerous Game.
That's why you're here, isn't it? It was my favorite book in high school.
It's about this man who waits for people to get shipwrecked on his island.
He was tired of hunting animals, he hunted people for the challenge.
And "Man is the most dangerous animal of all"?
That's the whole point of the story.
Great book.
Or at least that's what I told Phil.
May I go?
Sure.
- Thanks for your time. - I'm willing to help in any way possible.
I look forward to the day...
...when police officers are no longer referred to as "pigs."
Thanks.
We'll be in touch.
So does anyone think this suspect warrants further investigation?
These are copies of some of the Zodiac letters that were sent.
We'd like you to take a look at them.
You think my brother's the Zodiac.
- Well, we're looking at him. - Are you going to arrest him?
Mrs. Allen, we don't arrest people just because we're interested in them.
- Well, Leigh's always been troubled. - Is it true about the children?
Unfortunately. We don't see him much anymore since we found out.
What are your feelings about Don Cheney?
Don Cheney? My old roommate? Was he the one who contacted you?
- That's confidential. - Well, Don's a very reliable guy.
If he were to tell you something, I'd believe it to be true.
- This one. - What about it?
Here, he spells Christmas with two S's.
We got a Christmas card from Leigh years ago. He spelled it the same way.
- "Christ-mass." - Would you still have that?
- I can look for it. - Thank you. That'd be great.
Is there anything else we can do to help?
Brother said he'd search Leigh's apartment next time he went.
- Gets you around the warrant. - For the time being.
If we do find something...
...Mulanax will go to the DA and we could search the place properly.
I talked to the cop who interviewed Allen two days after the Berryessa murders.
Doesn't remember how he got onto him, but didn't think he looked like a killer...
...so he didn't like him for Z. - But you do?
- I wish I could've taken the guy in there. - Take it slow, Dave.
Find more stuff for Sherwood. A match will get us farther on the warrants.
- Avery's on 2. - Tell him to screw.
You want me to communicate that verbatim or can I spice it up a little?
Christ, kid.
- Yeah? - Paul, I've been thinking.
Oh, God, save us all.
The letter to Melvin Belli was sent exactly one year after...
...the Lake Herman murder. The one to Cheri Jo Bates' father...
...was sent exactly six months after her death.
- She was killed a day before Halloween. - Yeah.
- You received a Halloween card. - These are fascinating...
...pieces of minutia, Robert. It's a bit early in the day.
Well, Paul, it's 11:00 and you missed editorial.
- I didn't mean to wake you up. I just... - No, no, no.
This suspect is not your Zodiac.
This sample matches the canceled checks and the application?
- Perfectly. - So we've retested the left hand.
- We know he's ambidextrous. - In 38 years...
...l've never seen anyone that ambidextrous.
Both hands would have commonalities.
I'm sorry. Just not gonna work.
- Homicide, Toschi. - Dave, it's Jack Mulanax.
Right, Mulanax. Yeah?
We struck out with the judge. He won't sign off on a warrant.
- Why not? - Said it wasn't enough.
Unless we bring him a handwriting match or some evidence...
Well, how are we gonna get evidence?
I don't know.
- I truly am sorry. - No, I know. I thank you, Jack.
- What do you wanna do? - Don't know what I can do.
We need Allen's right hand. We can't get it without a warrant.
Are there other guys you should be looking at?
- Only, what...? - Twenty-three hundred?
Okay, then.
Paul, you wrote the Justice Department...
...asking to be put in charge of the Zodiac investigation?
- I merely suggested... - On our letterhead?
- that those with knowledge of the case create an information clearinghouse...
...to promote an exchange and free flow of ideas.
- And that you run it. - Well, who better than me?
The marked man.
Paul, if you wanna work here, I need three things: One, stop boozing.
Two, stop doing whatever else it is you're doing.
And three, cut this nonsense out.
Sweetest of Templetons, if at any time...
...you feel my excellent work is no longer in step with this trashy provincial rag...
...I'll more than happily...
More than happily decamp for greener pastures.
Paul, I mean it.
- Paul? - Yep?
What was that?
An editorial tête-á-tête.
- Wanna grab a drink? - It's 10 in the morning.
- Late breakfast? Early lunch, or... - Paul.
Are you okay?
No.
Thank you for asking.
- Shorty! - Yes?
- Let's go out for one. - Paul, where are you going?
So you moved off my brother-in-law?
We couldn't get a warrant.
Last year we arranged for Leigh to get help from a social worker.
He only went twice. We saw him recently for the first time in nine months.
My mother-in-law brought him by to see the new baby.
After he left, I went to see that social worker.
He couldn't talk about a former patient, so I just asked him...
...if he thought Leigh was capable of killing people.
- Because of patient confidentiality... - The man said yes.
Why hadn't you seen him in nine months?
He's going to school in Santa Rosa.
- Santa Rosa? Where is he living? - In his trailer.
- In Santa Rosa? - Sonoma County.
We wouldn't have to go through the Vallejo DA.
It's been 11 months and now you wanna search his trailer?
If we find something, great.
If not, we get his prints and handwriting samples from both hands.
I thought Sherwood shut you down.
What if I can get a second opinion?
I don't wanna step on Sherwood's toes. He trained me.
All I need to know is if the suspect is ambidextrous...
...could he possibly have written those letters with his other hand?
Between you and me?
Because there are differing schools of thought on this...
Get the samples of his other hand. If he's the Zodiac, you'll get a match.
That's the current thinking, according to Terry Pascoe.
I spoke to a psychologist who'd be willing to testify...
...that someone who undergoes a personality change like Zodiac...
...would manifest it physically, altering his handwriting.
Which is why Sherwood couldn't get a match from Allen's samples.
We got Terry Pascoe, this psychology guy...
...coupled with Cheney, it could be enough for a warrant.
Get Cheney on the record.
"...and that he would call himself 'Zodiac.'"
- Yes. - And you're willing to swear to this...
...under oath, in superior court?
Without any hesitation.
Thank you very much, Mr. Cheney. Thank you very much for your time.
- Thank you. - Suspect is Arthur Leigh Allen.
Lives in Sunset Trailer Court in Santa Rosa, California.
Physical description:
Allen is similar in height, weight and build to a man...
...seen at Lake Berryessa on the day of the stabbings.
I understand he doesn't look like the San Francisco composite.
Height and weight are sketchy. Lumbering Caucasian with a crewcut is right on.
We never had confidence in the composite.
The patrolman who saw Zodiac said he didn't look much like the sketch.
Military boot prints.
Allen was in the Navy, wears a size 10 and a half...
...same size as the prints found at Berryessa.
What about gun?
Cheney says Allen owns several firearms.
- We'll list them in the warrant. - And the ciphers?
Could be code training in the Navy.
And people have seen Allen with ciphers.
- Really. Who? - That would be his sister-in-law...
...and a man named Phil Tucker that he worked with at a pool in Vallejo.
Phil Tucker told us about a conversation that he had with Allen...
...about how to attach a flashlight to a gun.
That gives us two sources on the ciphers and two on the flashlight.
What about his threats on children?
Suspect worked for elementary schools and was fired for molestation...
...in March, April '68. Could give him motive.
At the very least, it's home turf. He'd have knowledge of bus routes...
...which the two major threats centered around.
What about the bomb?
- Allen works as a chemist. - Take him through the geography.
Vallejo murders:
Allen lives in Vallejo with his mother in her basement.
Berryessa murder: On the day that the two kids were stabbed...
...his neighbor saw bloody knives in his truck...
...which he claimed were used to kill a chicken.
Does he have any alibis?
He claimed he did, but he's been unable to produce the names...
...of the couple he supposedly met on the day of Berryessa.
The bottom line is Allen can't alibi up. Riverside, Vallejo, the lake or us.
- Wanna tell him about the name? - What name?
Zodiac. Allen wears a watch that bears both the word and crosshair symbol.
He mentioned Zodiac to Cheney a year and a half before it appeared in a letter.
- John? - That's pretty good, guys.
- We think so too. - Let's take it to a judge.
Mr. Allen? This is the Santa Rosa Police Department.
We have a warrant to search your residence.
Hello?
I'll check with the neighbors.
- Close the door. - Close the door.
There's rodents running around.
Neighbor said he tore out of here about half-hour ago.
- You think somebody tipped him? - We're not leaving till he comes back.
I'll check the back.
- Jesus. - What?
Squirrels.
Piece of work, this guy.
Not one, but two blue windbreakers.
- Like the Stine scene? - We'll have those checked for blood.
And a pair of black gloves.
Men's 7, just like the ones we found in the cab.
Well, he's got the same size shoes and gloves as Z.
Probably just a coincidence.
Dave, I got a gun. Check that. Two guns.
Both.22s. One automatic, one revolver.
Well, that's interesting.
Because he happens to have an M-1 rifle here in the closet.
For little darlings bouncing off buses.
Someone's here.
Hello, Arthur. Remember us?
- No. - On the handwriting?
Ballistics, no match. Prints, no match. Writing, no match.
On both hands, right? Because we got handwriting from both his hands.
And neither hand matches.
- Forget Sherwood. Get another opinion. - Fellas, he's not your guy.
Damn it.
Hey.
What do you want?
Time off?
A hug?
Do you know what the worst part of this is?
I can't tell if I wanted it to be Allen so bad because I thought it was him...
...or I want this to be over.
It's because you thought it was him. And I did too.
You know what? Take some time off.
Spend some time with your wife and the kids.
Go to Candlestick. See a movie.
"To the city of San Francisco, I will enjoy killing one person every day...
...until you pay me $100,000.
If you agree, say so tomorrow morning...
...in the personal column San Francisco Chronicle...
...and I will set up meeting.
If I do not hear from you...
...it will be my next pleasure to kill a Catholic priest or a..."
"Scorpio."
Who's out of their minds?
I've gotta get out of here.
Where the hell does he expect me to find $100,000?
You're not thinking of paying him, are you, Mr. Mayor?
The city of San Francisco does not pay criminals not to commit crime.
- Chief, who's in charge of this? - Inspector Callahan. Waiting outside.
The killer gets shot in the chest.
- That's how the... That's how it ends. - Do I know you?
I'm Robert Graysmith. I work at the Chronicle with Paul Avery.
Dave Toschi. Nice to meet you.
That Callahan did a hell of a job with your case.
Yeah. No need for due process, right?
- What do you do? - I'm a cartoonist.
- That's nice. - You're gonna catch him.
Pal, they're already making movies about it.
We today have concluded an agreement...
...to end the war and bring peace with honor in Vietnam.
- Charles Manson for the Tate-LaBianca mass murders.
- pleaded guilty in the Chowchilla kidnapping case.
- murder trial of Juan Corona, with the slaying...
Chairman Mao died today. He was...
- an absolute pardon unto Richard Nixon...
Well, I'm not a crook. I've earned everything I've got.
- Roe against Wade.
- has now led to the death of 50,000 Americans...
...and several hundred thousand Vietnamese.
Patricia Hearst was kidnapped by the Symbionese Liberation Army.
- stand up together and say, "No more."
- sanctions to put an end to apartheid.
Your Declaration of Independence broke that link...
Americans admire the United Kingdom...
Mr. Hoffa has disappeared.
- that if we despise our own government...
- that the police have captured a man they believe to be the Son of Sam.
Hi. We haven't met. I'm Robert Graysmith.
I'm Duffy Jennings.
- Nice to meet you. - Good to meet you, man.
You got a great desk. Guy who used to work here was a great reporter.
Oh, yeah. Oh, I'm sure he was. I mean, it's a honor to leave the Chronicle...
...and go work for the Sacramento Bee.
Dare to dream, right, Robert?
- Nice to meet you. - Nice to meet you too.
I'm just right down there at the Art Department...
...if you need anything, Duffy.
- You sure you don't want the car, Bill? - It's your turn.
You could just drop me off at my place and take the car.
You should keep the car.
Yeah?
I'm not coming in tomorrow.
Why? What's up?
I'm done.
I put in for a transfer.
- Where? - Looking at Fraud.
I can't be on call anymore.
I wanna see these kids grow up.
Hey, good for you, Bill.
- You'll be okay. - Yeah. I'll be fine.
Hey...
...I'm not leaving you holding the bag on anything, am I?
No.
Okay.
Hey, you know what?
Maybe you'll have a chance to try your Japanese food, the raw stuff.
Yeah.
"I'm not Paul Avery."
The boys need to be tucked in and the baby needs changing.
- I'll flip you for it. - You wish.
Nobody has more Zodiac crap than you do.
- Are you kidding me? - Hi, Paul.
Permission to come aboard.
Right there. You got shoes on. This is perfect right here.
- That's the one. - Okay.
See that? Mesmerizing.
Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. My own kids would kill me for one of those.
- How are you? - Fantastic.
I mean, admittedly, the Bee ain't exactly the Chron, but fuck it, right?
Do you want a drink? I don't have anything blue, but I got...
Don't worry about that. Don't worry about it.
It's no bother at all. Nobody comes by from the old days.
Cheers.
To your health and mine.
Mostly mine.
So, what's new?
I've been thinking. Somebody should write a book.
Somebody should write a fucking book, that's for sure.
- About what? - About Zodiac.
It's not new.
I've been thinking that if you put all the information together...
...maybe you could jog something loose. And I was thinking...
...you know the case best. - Yeah. That's true.
And you know all the players and you have all the files.
- Lost them. - You lost them?
Or I tossed them. I don't know. I moved onto a boat.
You know that we work in the daily business, right? As in, today?
What do you think we were doing back then?
More people die in the East Bay commute every three months...
...than that idiot ever killed.
He offed a few citizens and he wrote a few letters and he faded into a footnote.
Not that I haven't been sitting here idly waiting for you to drop by...
...and reinvigorate my sense of purpose.
It was four years ago. Let it fucking go.
You're wrong. It was important.
Then what did you ever do about it...
...if it was so important? What did you ever do?
You hovered over my desk, you stole from wastebaskets.
Am I being unkind?
Oh, that's right, I forgot. You went to the library.
I'm sorry I bothered you.
- Hey, hi. - Hi.
- Where you been? - The library.
Thank you.
- Inspector Toschi? - Yeah? One moment, please.
- Hi. - Hi.
We met at the movies once.
- It must have been magical. - I'm Robert Graysmith.
I work at the Chronicle. I was wondering if I could buy you lunch.
Sure, why not?
So you're a friend of Paul Avery's?
He's actually the reason I'm here.
I wanted to ask you about Zodiac.
Well, I appreciate the interest, but we don't discuss open cases.
Oh, well, what's going on with it, day-to-day?
We're actively pursuing all leads.
And you're the only one on it, right?
Mr. Graysmith...
...Zodiac hasn't written in three years.
You know how many murders we've had in San Francisco since?
- No. - Over 200.
That's a lot of dead people and grieving families that need help.
So nobody cares.
Excuse me? I care.
Okay. Can I show you something?
I've been doing research on the first cipher.
Everything an amateur would need to create it can be found in these books.
Now, I started thinking that if you can track these books...
...then maybe you could track the man.
So I remember you thought that Zodiac was military...
...so I went to every base library and I got a list of every person...
...who's ever checked out these books and that's when I found this.
- Missing. - It means they were stolen.
So almost every book on ciphers was stolen from the Presidio Library?
And the Oakland Army Terminal Library.
Somebody didn't want a record of ever having checked out these books.
Who are you again?
I just wanna help.
I can't allow you to help.
I can't discuss the case with you. I can't give you information...
...and I certainly couldn't tell you to go see Ken Narlow in Napa.
N-A-R-L-O-W.
I'm sorry, Mr. Graysmith, but we don't cooperate with writers.
Well, I'm not a writer, I'm a cartoonist.
- And Dave Toschi sent you? - Yes.
- Why? - Maybe he...
Maybe he thought that I could do some good.
- What are you, some kind of boy scout? - Eagle Scout, actually. First class.
Well, if you wanna do this, don't let me stop you.
Better start with Vallejo, Jack Mulanax.
I understand what you're trying to do...
...but this is an open police investigation.
I'm a friend of Dave Toschi's.
And he said that you might be able to help.
I mean, the case is dead. Zodiac's long gone.
He's yesterday's news, right?
That's what they say.
So, what's the harm?
No pens, no paper.
Anything that's relevant, you better remember in your head.
Okay.
- Okay, here we go. - Which one?
All of them. There's more in the next room.
They're all marked with these numbers.
- "243-146." - You don't smoke, do you?
Once. In high school.
Let me see this.
Thank you.
Man, you really creeped us out.
"Nine millimeter."
"Said nothing and began firing."
"Darlene's sister, Linda. It was all just deep breathing. George."
"It was a strange man. George."
Thank you so much.
Oh, briefcase. Thanks.
- Hey, Jack. - Hey, Bawart.
- Who's that? - That's Graysmith.
Some cartoonist. Thinks he's gonna solve the Zodiac.
Well, good for him.
Traffic troubles won't be affecting very many commuters.
Highway 37, blocked between Navarro and Vallejo.
A gasoline tanker truck overturned tonight...
- Thank you for meeting me. - No. We're not meeting.
We're just two guys sitting on the same bench.
I've got five minutes. I've gotta get back to the Hall.
As far as you know, did anyone ever get in touch with Mageau...
...during your investigation and show him suspect photos?
Why?
He's the only surviving victim who saw Zodiac without a mask.
No, why are you asking me? That's Vallejo's case.
Paul Stine is mine. You've got four minutes now.
Look, Darlene Ferrin was being followed.
Mulanax says they found this guy, a George Waters?
He also said a lot of admirers would come to the restaurant where she worked.
- She was popular. - Very.
Yeah, so she and her husband, they move into their new house.
And one night, they throw this painting party.
- What's a painting party? - A party where people help you paint.
- Sounds like a terrible party. - Well, supposedly...
...somebody who's not Waters shows up.
And Darlene is terrified of him.
So you think that Darlene knew Zodiac?
And if Zodiac knew Darlene, then maybe Mageau knows Zodiac.
Maybe. But Mageau's gone.
If you wanna connect Darlene to Zodiac, you'll have to find another way.
I have another way. Phone calls the night of Darlene's murder.
- Yeah, Zodiac called the police. - No, there were four other calls.
Two to Darlene's house, Darlene's brother-in-law and father-in-law.
Just heavy breathing. They started around 1:30 a.m.
And this was before anyone in the family knew that Darlene had been shot.
- This was in the Vallejo files? - Yeah.
- Goddamn it. - It's more than just coincidence.
Somebody doesn't just randomly prank phone call a victim's entire family...
...90 minutes after they were shot.
So either Zodiac shoots a random couple, then he recognizes Darlene...
Or Darlene was shot on purpose.
Either way, Zodiac had to have known Darlene.
That's good, Robert.
So I can't find Mageau, maybe I can find Darlene's sister.
Maybe she can tell me who this mystery man is.
Try that. I've got to go. She's very cute.
You know, it's interesting that you should mention Zodiac calling people at home.
- He did that in San Francisco once. - What? Who did he call?
I can't tell you. That's privileged information.
But maybe Melvin Belli could.
Melvin Belli. How do I get to Melvin Belli?
- He should be along soon. - Oh, that's all right.
I've really only been waiting two hours...
He's usually not this late.
Oh, cookies. Thank you. These look great.
You are here on business?
I'm writing a book about the Zodiac.
I remember that. I spoke to him.
- You mean to Mr. Belli about the case? - No, to the Zodiac when he called.
He said he had to kill because it was his birthday.
He said it... Wait, he said it was his birthday?
Yes. You want something to drink?
When was this?
So many years ago.
Mr. Belli was away for Christmas. Gone for a week.
The Zodiac called, wanting to talk to him.
I said, "He is not here."
He said, "I have to kill. Today is my birthday."
And then he hangs up.
Then the letter arrived.
So the call came before the letter of December 20th.
Mr. Belli was gone for a week?
He came back on Christmas. Not a good day to work.
So he left on the 18th.
- Is that helpful? - She said it was his birthday.
Well, you have to confirm that, now wouldn't you?
How? How?
Well, I never spoke to her, but maybe my partner did.
- How do I get ahold of him? - You don't. Bill wanted out of this.
As far as I'm concerned, he should stay out.
How do I confirm it?
Well, if my partner did talk to someone from Justice...
...they would've had to put that in a report. That's standard procedure.
- Okay. - Mel Nicolai.
- Thank you. - Goodbye.
- I just need to confirm a date. - Mr. Graysmith.
I've narrowed it down between the 18th and the 20th of December...
Okay, I'll play. Let's say this phone call did take place.
Let's say it really was Zodiac. Why would he volunteer the day he was born?
Plus, nobody died on December 18th...
...like nobody died over the weekend he was gonna kill a dozen people...
...or when he was gonna shoot school kids.
- He's a liar, Mr. Graysmith. - What if he made a mistake?
What if he wasn't lying, if it was him? He didn't expect a nice person to pick up.
What if, what if, what if?
Look, off the record, Bill Armstrong checked this out.
We took this very seriously.
None of the suspects had the same birthday as this phantom caller.
Bill Armstrong.
Can I give you a piece of advice? You're looking in the wrong place.
Handwriting, fingerprints, that's what this thing's about.
Stick to the evidence.
Hey.
Hey. How was your day?
Long.
Who's Sherwood Morrill?
He's a handwriting expert in Sacramento.
He called. He said he could meet you tomorrow morning at 7.
Oh, great.
So you're taking off work?
Just an hour.
Sacramento's two hours away.
- Really? - Yes.
What's this?
Oh, that's the... That article.
"Robert Graysmith has quietly been shopping his book about the Zodiac."
Yeah.
- It talks all about you researching Zodiac. - Well, that's what the article's about.
I'm not sure we want people to know that.
Why, are you embarrassed?
Robert, what's the one thing we know about Zodiac?
He reads the Chronicle?
Yeah, but he's never gonna read Herb Caen.
- Hello. - Mr. Graysmith?
The Robert Graysmith mentioned in the paper today?
Yeah?
I can tell you who the Zodiac is.
Who is this?
The Zodiac Killer is obsessed with movies.
He recorded his murders on film.
I tried to tell the police, but they wouldn't follow through on it.
There's a man you need to find. His name is Bob Vaughn.
- Pen, pen. - V-A-U-G-H-N.
He's a friend of the Zodiac's.
Mr. Vaughn does not know his friend is a killer...
...and he's storing some film canisters for him.
In these canisters is the evidence.
Okay, yeah, friend? Who's his friend?
- You have quite enough to get started. - Oh, please.
The Zodiac's name is Rick Marshall.
Your toast is burning.
We choose at some point in our lives how to physically construct each letter.
Once we lock that into our brains...
...our handwriting may change over the years...
...but the moves themselves remain unaltered. Understand?
Yes.
Except Zodiac's doesn't.
Specifically with his K.
In his first letters, he executed the K with two strokes.
- Later letters, he did them with three. - Why?
We don't know. Excuse me, I gotta spray this.
How many suspects were cleared through handwriting?
All of them. Also the print in the cab. No match was ever found.
Is there any way that someone could beat a handwriting test?
No. Whoever the Zodiac is, he's not someone I cleared.
About a month ago, a man showed up on my doorstep very distraught.
Name was Wallace Penny.
He said he knew who the Zodiac was. Gave me a name.
- Rick, Rick somebody. - Rick Marshall?
- Yeah. - The man you talked to called me too.
After he left, then I checked my files. I never cleared a Rick Marshall.
Hello?
Hello. Who is this?
It's a wrong number.
Does the name Rick Marshall mean anything to you?
- What are you after? - What do you got?
Hypothetically, you just named my favorite suspect in the whole case.
This is off the record. Couple years back, I was trying to get Marshall's prints.
I handed him a photo. He looks at it.
He's about to give it back and he says:
"My goodness, I got fingerprints all over this."
And he wipes them off.
Why didn't you test him for handwriting?
Because when they finally did run his prints...
...they cleared him against the one in Stine's cab.
- So it's not him. - Maybe yes, maybe no.
No. What do you mean?
Zodiac left gloves behind at the scene.
If he had the foresight to bring gloves...
...how's he gonna accidentally leave a print behind?
But it was in the victim's blood.
Could have been one of the bystanders or a cop just reaches out... false print.
But that print disqualified 2500 suspects.
- Which is why we used handwriting. - But not for Marshall.
S.F.P.D. saw a handwritten sign in the window of his house...
...decided it looked nothing like the Z letters, so they moved on.
How do they know that Rick Marshall wrote the sign?
My thoughts exactly.
Rick Marshall was a Navy man.
He received code training. He was also a projectionist at a silent-film theater.
How do I get copies of Marshall's handwriting?
Three ways. One, get a warrant, which you can't. Two, get him to volunteer...
...which he won't. - Yeah, and three?
Get creative.
I don't know what to tell you. You get it, I'll analyze it.
- Beyond that, you're on your own. - What about the guy who saw you?
The one who called me?
You mean Wallace Penny?
Yeah. Did he leave a number?
- Hello? - Hi, this is Robert Graysmith.
- How did you find me? - I need a sample of Marshall's writing.
I told you. Vaughn is who...
Mr. Penny, if Rick Marshall is the Zodiac...
...I need a sample of his handwriting to confirm it.
Can you help me or not?
Rick used to draw movie posters for the theater Vaughn worked at.
- I'll send one down. - Thank you.
I'll need more samples.
- Yeah, but is it...? - It's as close as I've ever seen.
Tread lightly here. We're talking about implicating this man as the Zodiac.
I can get more. I'll just find Vaughn and I'll track down Linda.
I mean, Linda is Darlene's sister. I've been to the DMV...
...and I talked to her parents, but still, nobody knows where to find her.
Mr. Graysmith, most of the writing matches the exemplar.
Though it's the part that doesn't match that scares me the most.
- What do you mean? - Well, on the poster...
...the one letter that absolutely, positively does not match...
...is the letter K.
You wouldn't happen to have any Animal Crackers in there, would you?
Unit 5, Toschi needs to call in on a landline.
- Dispatch. - Hey. Dave Toschi.
I'll connect you.
- Dave? - Yeah. What's up?
Jennings here from the Chronicle.
It came in this morning. You need to see it.
See what?
The new Zodiac letter. And it mentions you.
Okay, okay.
Shit. All right, come on. Hall of Justice.
Now. Come on, come on, come on.
Dave.
Do you have it with you?
"This is the Zodiac speaking. I'm back with you.
Tell Herb Caen I am here, I have always been here.
That city pig Toschi is good, but I am smarter and better.
He will get tired, then leave me alone.
I'm waiting for a good movie about me. Who will play me?
I'm now in control of all things."
These guys are from Internal Affairs.
We need to talk.
Good evening. Our top story:
The San Francisco Police Department has confirmed...
...that the man who calls himself Zodiac and terrorized the Bay Area...
...has broken his silence of 51 months.
In a letter claiming, "I am back with you"...
...the Zodiac makes no overt threats against the citizenry...
...and muses that his life would make the best movie yet.
These carrots are perfect.
- Just go. - This message also mentions...
...San Francisco Chronicle columnist Herb Caen...
...and the department's own David Toschi by name.
May I be excused?
You have to come back and finish what's on that plate.
Our team's coverage on the cipher slayer's return...
...begins as Alan Freeman has more.
Thank you, Eric. Chronicle columnist Armistead Maupin said...
...that he thinks not only is this new letter a forgery...
...but it was written by the very man trusted to hunt down this killer...
...David Toschi. Maupin, a very well-respected author...
...has gone on record saying that he believes Toschi wrote the letter...
...to drum up publicity for himself.
Maupin used David as a character in his column.
David got a kick out of it and wrote a couple of anonymous letters...
...asking for the character to be brought back.
It was like writing fan mail to himself. That's all.
But David did not write that letter.
No, I'm sure that he didn't. I'm sure this will all blow over.
"Blow over"?
They kicked him out of Homicide.
They made him give his handwriting like some common criminal.
- May I talk to him? - No.
Can you just ask him if he ever investigated a man named Rick Marshall?
Is that all you can think about?
Mr. Graysmith, Maupin works at your paper. We trust...
- This girl, she wants music lessons? - Dave. Dave.
- Okay, see you later. - I'll catch up to you.
You stop calling my house. Do you understand me?
I need your help to find Linda.
- Jesus. - Look, two seconds.
Look, we've been running handwriting samples.
- Who's we? - Sherwood and I.
Sherwood? Sherwood who was fired from Questioned Documents?
- Sherwood who drinks like Paul Avery? - He retired.
Is that what he told you?
- What, are you saying he's wrong? - I'm saying stop calling my house.
- We ran them on Marshall. - No, Robert.
- No, I know you don't think it's him. - I am not having this conversation.
And I can't talk to Mageau or Linda, so I'm...
- Robert, stop it. - What? What?
The Rick Marshalls of this world will suck you dry. They're blind alleys.
But he said he wasn't gonna announce his murders anymore, Dave.
Do you know what the chances of us arresting someone are now?
Too much time has gone by, okay? Too much of the evidence is lost.
People get old, Robert. They forget.
Now, I have been a cop for 25 years. Murder police for 12.
- What do you do? - You know what I do.
- You're a cartoonist. - So, what are you saying?
I am saying Zodiac was my job. It is not yours.
- He's still out there. - No, I am through with this.
I am through with you.
What about September 26, 1970?
- Okay, which one was that? - "Lake Tahoe Nurse Goes Missing."
- One day before the vernal equinox. Dad? - Yeah. Mark that.
Oh, got another one. June 19th, 1971.
That's gotta be near the summer solstice.
Oh, guys. Don't tell Mom about our special project, okay?
How come you and Mom don't sleep in the same bed anymore?
- Hello? - Mr. Graysmith, Ken Narlow from Napa.
Oh, Captain Narlow. Thank you for calling me back.
Yeah. How can I help?
I called because we've been cross-referencing lunar cycles...
...with the Zodiac's timeline.
More often than not, each cycle since '69 corresponds with an attack...
...or with one of the letters or an unsolved homicide.
- Who's working with you on this? - Some colleagues.
Dad?
- Ken, can you hold on one second? - Dad?
- What is it? - What's this?
In the decade since the Zodiac's last cipher was received...
...every federal agency has taken a crack at decoding it.
But today, where those agencies had failed, a cartoonist has succeeded.
How did you do it?
Just a lot of books from the library...
...and I love puzzles, so I just...
Yeah. The fucking library.
I believe you can accomplish anything that you put your mind...
That's a J? Okay. Honor Camp?
Thank you so much.
Hey, we found Linda. She's in jail. Isn't that great?
- Why'd you do it? - She'll identify Rick...
- What are you talking about? - You went on TV.
You put yourself out there for him to see.
You're being paranoid.
Then who's been calling our house in the middle of the night?
Nobody, I...
- What's it gonna take for you to be done? - I can't talk about this.
I have to go see Bob Vaughn.
Well, that's too bad, because we're gonna talk about this.
When is it gonna be finished? When you catch him, when you arrest him?
- Be serious. - I am serious.
I need to know who he is.
I need to stand there. I need to look him in the eye...
...and I need to know that it's him.
Is that more important than your family's safety?
Of course not.
Why? Why do you need to do this?
Why?
Because nobody else will.
That's not good enough.
Are you done? Can I go?
- Mr. Vaughn? - Mr. Graysmith?
- Yes. - Hi. You needed to speak to me?
Yes. There's a coffee shop right on the corner.
- Why don't we just go to my home? - Oh, I don't wanna put you out.
It's no trouble at all. Where are you parked?
Just right there.
You can follow me?
Okay.
Watch your step.
- Very nice house. - Oh, thank you.
It's very rustic.
- Can I take your jacket? - No, thank you, I'm fine.
Okay. This way, please.
- Have a seat. - Thank you.
- How about some tea? - Oh, no, I'm all right.
- You sure? - Yes.
I wanted to ask you about a film that the Avenue may have played...
...while you were the organist there, The Most Dangerous Game?
It's a classic. RKO. 1932.
Fay Wray, Joel McCrea, Leslie Banks. We've run that picture many times.
In '68, '69?
I'd have to check my records. Why?
Do you remember the Zodiac?
This is about Rick Marshall, isn't it?
- He was a projectionist there, right? - For a time, yes.
But I have no occasion to correspond with him these days.
Okay, well, there is a connection...
...between one of the Zodiac attacks and that film.
You mean the symbol?
Hold on.
The Zodiac symbol on film. It's on the countdown.
It's trimmed off each reel before it's shown...
...but it always arrives with it.
Right there.
The first time I saw it in the papers, I thought about that.
We got a tip...
...that Rick left a film canister here that he told you never to open.
Tip about a mysterious film canister?
Is it true?
Yes.
- Did you open it? - No.
- May I see it? - Rick took it back in 1972.
This tip is how you got it in your head that Rick is the Zodiac?
That and the poster.
The poster?
The poster that Rick drew.
The handwriting is the closest that we have ever come to a match.
Rick didn't draw any posters.
No, he drew this one.
Mr. Graysmith, I do the posters myself.
That's my handwriting.
I won't take any more of your time.
Why don't I just go and find out when we played that film?
Oh, that's all right.
It's not a problem. They're just down in the basement.
Not many people have basements in California.
I do.
Coming, Mr. Graysmith?
The original studio one-sheets I always kept for myself.
The cheapo knockoffs like you brought today...
...I end up tossing into the back alley.
'69.
You live alone?
Most Dangerous Game ran in May '69.
So that would be about nine weeks before the first Zodiac letter, correct?
Yeah.
Do you think he saw the film in our theater and was inspired?
Are you sure there's nobody else in the house?
Would you like to go upstairs and check?
No.
Thank you. Thanks for everything.
You're welcome.
It's locked.
Thank you.
Good night, Mr. Graysmith.
Gotta be two killers. One has the map, the other one kills...
Guys?
You've got five minutes.
Linda?
Hi, I'm Robert.
Did you get my note?
- What's this about? - Zodiac.
Figures.
- You got the look. - What look?
I didn't mean anything.
Tell me about this painting party.
I told the cops about that so long ago.
Darlene always had a lot of boys around, even though she was married.
And this one guy was weird, though.
He used to bring her presents from Tijuana and...
I don't know why she was friends with him.
But she once told me he'd killed somebody.
Really?
Yeah, I think maybe when he was in the service.
- Navy? - I think so.
Was he into movies? Was he a movie buff?
I can tell you that he was not into people.
The party Darlene threw, people were supposed to just show up...
...and drink beer, help paint.
But this guy showed up in a suit...
...and just sat in a chair all by himself all night long.
Didn't talk to anyone.
And Darlene told me to stay away from him. She was scared of him.
Couple weeks later, she was dead.
I'm sorry. Do you remember his name?
I mean, it was short, like a nickname. Like Stan.
- Rick? - No, I don't think so.
- Are you sure? - Yeah.
How can you be sure? It was long ago. Think hard.
I am thinking hard.
It was Rick.
- No, it wasn't. - It was Rick. It was Rick Marshall.
- No. - Just say it.
It wasn't Rick.
It was Leigh.
- Leigh? - Yeah, Leigh.
Sounds right.
Officer!
- I need you to let me in. - Is this an emergency?
No, I just need to see one file.
You need to come back tomorrow morning, 8 a.m., when we're open.
Sergeant! Sergeant Mulanax!
Sergeant, I just need to see one file! Just give me five minutes.
I know exactly where it is.
Please.
I shouldn't be talking to you.
- You got five minutes. - Okay.
Here. Here.
Linda states that some of Darlene's closest friends are Leigh...
...who used to bring Darlene presents from Tijuana.
- So what? - He knew her.
Linda said Leigh. This is Leigh.
No. That's just one name in a file that contains hundreds. It's nothing.
- Dave Toschi... - Agrees with me.
Our investigation into this subject is over.
I'm sorry.
Hello.
Who's there?
- You didn't return my calls. - I've been kind of busy.
Yeah. I can see that.
How's the book coming?
I tried to send you these.
I called the Chron.
Well, I'm not a cartoonist anymore, so...
Yeah, I heard.
When's the last time you ate something?
Nothing makes sense anymore.
Did it ever?
Yeah, it did.
Robert, it was just the date that didn't end.
You don't mean that.
A little.
The kids miss you.
I can't have them see me like this.
Neither can I. So do whatever you have to...
...but finish this.
Dave.
Dave. It's Robert.
- Dave! - Is he actually here?
I'm gonna kill him.
- Dave. - I'm calling S.F.P.D. Where's my gun?
- Dave. - Robert, go away.
- Dave, he made a mistake. - Get away from the window.
- I'll meet you around front. - No, you won't.
- You have to hear this. - No, I don't, Robert.
The birthday was the one time that he was weak.
- The one time he gave something away. - I'm calling the police.
It's Arthur Leigh Allen!
Where did you get that name?
He called the Bellis' house. December '69.
"I need to kill. Today's my birthday." It was his birthday.
Arthur Leigh Allen was born on December 18th.
Get in here.
- Here you go. - Thanks.
He wrote me, you know?
2500 suspects, the only one who ever wrote me a letter was Leigh Allen.
- They like to help, you know, sometimes. - Yes, Robert, I know.
He was arrested January 1975 for molestation.
He sent me that when he got out.
"If I can ever be of any help to you, just let me know.
I'm sorry I wasn't your man." And it's typewritten.
Using a typewriter is not a crime.
And he knew Darlene.
It's in the Vallejo files.
Mulanax said that he was your favorite suspect...
...that you spent two years on him, and that nobody ever came close.
All the evidence said no.
Sherwood disqualified his handwriting.
The same Sherwood that drinks like Paul Avery now?
Yes, you have Morrill saying this won't work, but you also have Terry Pascoe...
- His protégé. - Yeah, his protégé.
But a handwriting expert nonetheless.
And he's saying, "Do not disqualify this suspect."
So the two cancel each other out.
They don't. It was Sherwood's case. He was the head of Questioned Documents.
If it went to trial, all the defense would have to do is call Sherwood to the stand.
There was no way of getting Allen into court, because there was no evidence.
What do you mean? You have him with the ciphers.
The military boot prints. The same size gloves.
The Most Dangerous Game. The watch. The background with school children.
The misspellings of "Christ-mass." Knives.
All circumstantial.
Paul Stine's shirt, his wallet, his keys.
We should have found one of those things in that trailer. We didn't.
Catherine Allen states that Leigh cleaned out his trailer on Friday after work...
...and moved it to Santa Rosa on Saturday, August 7th, 1971.
You interviewed him on August 4th. So he's cleaning out his trailer...
...he's moving into a different county 48 hours after you interviewed him?
Okay. Okay.
- Look at the stuff side by side, Dave. - All right.
Okay, Arthur Leigh Allen and the Zodiac, their timelines.
- When was the first murder in Vallejo? - Christmas, 1968.
Eight months before, Allen is fired for molesting students.
His family discovers he's a pedophile.
- When do the letters begin? - July '69.
After the murder of Darlene Ferrin.
And they continue until you go to see him at work.
After that, do any of the letters contain swatches of Stine's shirt?
No, he dumped them. He got scared. He knew you were onto him.
So when's the next letter from Zodiac?
Not until January of 1974.
He is silent for three years. In '74, he feels comfortable again.
Everybody's moved off Allen as a suspect.
What do we get? Three new letters from Zodiac in January, May and July in '74.
- But then the letters stop. - What happens to Allen?
He's arrested.
January, 1975, they send him to Atascadero.
We don't get another letter the entire time he's there.
- When is he released? - August '77.
Allen gets out. He types you an apology, and then what?
We get our first new Zodiac letter in four years.
Okay, Zodiac had to have known Darlene Ferrin, right?
Yes, the phone calls on the night of her murder.
Because of the Vallejo file, we know that Darlene knew a man named Leigh?
- Yes. - So all coincidence aside, Robert...
...how can you be sure that Leigh is the Leigh from this file?
Vallejo is small, but it's not that small. How do you put the two together?
A case that's covered Northern and Southern California...
...with victims and suspects spread over hundreds of miles...
...would you agree? - Yes.
Darlene worked at the Vallejo House of Pancakes...
...on the corner of Tennessee and Caroll.
Arthur Leigh Allen lived in his mother's basement on Fresno Street.
Door to door, that is less than 50 yards.
Is that true?
I've walked it.
Jesus Christ.
So?
- The prints, the handwriting... - I'm not asking you as a cop.
But I am a cop.
I can't prove this.
Just because you can't prove it, doesn't mean it's not true.
Easy, Dirty Harry.
Finish the book.
Thank you. Thank you for breakfast.
Can I help you?
No.
Mr. Mageau.
- Thanks for coming to see me. - You're the one I talked to on the phone?
I'm George Bawart, Vallejo P.D. I took over for Jack Mulanax.
It's been 22 years. I don't know how I can help you.
This is just a formality. I'm gonna show you photographs.
Now, the person that shot you may or may not be among these photographs.
You don't have to pick anybody because I'm showing you these, understand?
Yes, sir, I do.
All right.
Take your time.
If you don't recognize anyone, that's okay.
That's him.
How sure are you?
I'm pretty sure.
- He had a round face like this guy. - Wait.
You're now identifying this second photograph?
No, no. Just that he had a round face like that.
It's this man.
All right.
Now, on a scale of one to 10, 10 being positive...
...how sure are you?
At least an eight.
Last time I saw this face was July 4th, 1969.
I am very sure that's the man who shot me. Dave. - I'm calling S.F.P.D. Where's my gun?
- Dave. - Robert, go away.
- Dave, he made a mistake. - Get away from the window.
- I'll meet you around front. - No, you won't.
- You have to hear this. - No, I don't, Robert.
The birthday was the one time that he was weak.
- The one time he gave something away. - I'm calling the police.
It's Arthur Leigh Allen!
Where did you get that name?
He called the Bellis' house. December '69.
"I need to kill. Today's my birthday." It was his birthday.
Arthur Leigh Allen was born on December 18th.
Get in here.
- Here you go. - Thanks.
He wrote me, you know?
2500 suspects, the only one who ever wrote me a letter was Leigh Allen.
- They like to help, you know, sometimes. - Yes, Robert, I know.
He was arrested January 1975 for molestation.
He sent me that when he got out.
"If I can ever be of any help to you, just let me know.
I'm sorry I wasn't your man." And it's typewritten.
Using a typewriter is not a crime.
And he knew Darlene.
It's in the Vallejo files.
Mulanax said that he was your favorite suspect...
...that you spent two years on him, and that nobody ever came close.
All the evidence said no.
Sherwood disqualified his handwriting.
The same Sherwood that drinks like Paul Avery now?
Yes, you have Morrill saying this won't work, but you also have Terry Pascoe...
- His protégé. - Yeah, his protégé.
But a handwriting expert nonetheless.
And he's saying, "Do not disqualify this suspect."
So the two cancel each other out.
They don't. It was Sherwood's case. He was the head of Questioned Documents.
If it went to trial, all the defense would have to do is call Sherwood to the stand.
There was no way of getting Allen into court, because there was no evidence.
What do you mean? You have him with the ciphers.
The military boot prints. The same size gloves.
The Most Dangerous Game. The watch. The background with school children.
The misspellings of "Christ-mass." Knives.
All circumstantial.
Paul Stine's shirt, his wallet, his keys.
We should have found one of those things in that trailer. We didn't.
Catherine Allen states that Leigh cleaned out his trailer on Friday after work...
...and moved it to Santa Rosa on Saturday, August 7th, 1971.
You interviewed him on August 4th. So he's cleaning out his trailer...
...he's moving into a different county 48 hours after you interviewed him?
Okay. Okay.
- Look at the stuff side by side, Dave. - All right.
Okay, Arthur Leigh Allen and the Zodiac, their timelines.
- When was the first murder in Vallejo? - Christmas, 1968.
Eight months before, Allen is fired for molesting students.
His family discovers he's a pedophile.
- When do the letters begin? - July '69.
After the murder of Darlene Ferrin.
And they continue until you go to see him at work.
After that, do any of the letters contain swatches of Stine's shirt?
No, he dumped them. He got scared. He knew you were onto him.
So when's the next letter from Zodiac?
Not until January of 1974.