17 Facts About The Real Rodney Alcala, AKA “The Dating Game” Killer, That You Probably Don’t Know

This post contains mentions of sexual assault.

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

Roadshow Films / Netflix / Everett Collection

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

Roadshow Films / Netflix / Everett Collection

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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