The darkness
Last night was the first time I've been afraid of the dark since moving to Vegas. Victor and I watched Zodiac, David Finch's movie about San Francisco's serial killer of the same name. The killer, who was never caught, was active in the late 60s and early 70s.
The movie was as much about the lives of the Zodiac's pursuers as it was about the crimes themselves. A police detective, a reporter, a cartoonist (the latter two employees of the San Francisco Chronicle which received many letter from the killer)... all obsessed with identifying the Zodiac long after the case had turned cold.
I'm not sure about why the movie affected me as it did, but when it was over, I found myself rushing to turn on the lights.
I hadn't felt that kind of fear for a long time.
It got me thinking about the BTK strangler, the serial killer who had been active in Wichita, Kansas, when I was a child. I grew up about 40 miles from Wichita, but somehow I remained mercifully ignorant to his killings. The only time I remember talking about him was 1979. It was the 100th anniverary of Edison's invention of the light bulb, and my junior high science teacher had taken another student, Chris, and me to Wichita to attend the Centennial of Light, a wonderful two-day science extravaganza for students. To save money we had stayed with one of my teacher's friends, and playing in his basement, Chris and I had joked that we'd found evidence that this guy was the BTK strangler. Clearly BTK's reputation was vague to us... while I've no doubts that there was plenty about him in the newspaper and on television, it was still a more innocent time. We were kids, we hadn't yet learned to focus on the affairs of adults.
Not like today when seven-year-olds are already carrying purses, lol.
The BTK killer returned to the headlines in 2004 when he inexplicably began sending letters to the Wichita Eagle & Beacon again. Not long afterwards, he was caught. What struck me most about the case was that the man had been married throughout the period when he was killing, that he, in fact, remained married to this same woman until the day he was arrested.
I just couldn't imagine the feelings she must have experienced as she realized who she'd been sleeping next to for over 30 years.
I read more about the BTK Killer's story here, and I began to understand the obsession of the characters in Zodiac (who, of course, represented equally driven real people).
THINKING ABOUT ALL OF THIS reminded me of the nearest brush I myself had with this sort of violence. One beautiful September morning, I awoke and looked out my window to see four or five sheriff's cars parked in the street in front of our house. I lived on a quiet street, three homes to a block, on the edge of a town of 800. I am as surprised now as I was at the time: I had woken at my normal hour, oblivious to the commotion outside.
I went outside and talked to my father. Judd Durner, who ran the Burrton Bank, lived across the street with his wife Rosie. Early that morning, while I slept with my window open less than 50 yards away, three people rang their doorbell, kidnapped them, and tried to rob the bank. They nearly killed Judd with a shotgun when he tried to lock himself in the vault. Rosie leapt from one of the kidnapper's cars and flagged down a passing car.
It was a shocking experience. Judd had recently won a "Workhorse" award from a Wichita television station for his contributions to our community, and my friends and I had been caught in the background playing football while Judd was interviewed. This fresh footage was replayed repeatedly in the subsequent days, making the whole event even more surreal for me.
The kidnappers were caught. One died in prison, a second is serving a life sentence. The third may be out; this 2001 Newton Kansan story was the only reference to the crime I could find online.
Rosie wrote a book entitled Don't Open the Door. I don't think I've seen a copy for at least 20 years. And I've rarely thought of those events in the last ten.
Zodiac. BTK. The Night Stalker. Dan White. Judd and Rosie's kidnappers. These are the people whose crimes have intruded on my life in one way or another.
I don't believe the world is as dangerous a place as you'd think from watching the news on television. But last night for two and a half hours, Zodiac reminded me that there are times when Rosie's advice to not open the door is the smart way to go.
The movie was as much about the lives of the Zodiac's pursuers as it was about the crimes themselves. A police detective, a reporter, a cartoonist (the latter two employees of the San Francisco Chronicle which received many letter from the killer)... all obsessed with identifying the Zodiac long after the case had turned cold.
I'm not sure about why the movie affected me as it did, but when it was over, I found myself rushing to turn on the lights.
I hadn't felt that kind of fear for a long time.
It got me thinking about the BTK strangler, the serial killer who had been active in Wichita, Kansas, when I was a child. I grew up about 40 miles from Wichita, but somehow I remained mercifully ignorant to his killings. The only time I remember talking about him was 1979. It was the 100th anniverary of Edison's invention of the light bulb, and my junior high science teacher had taken another student, Chris, and me to Wichita to attend the Centennial of Light, a wonderful two-day science extravaganza for students. To save money we had stayed with one of my teacher's friends, and playing in his basement, Chris and I had joked that we'd found evidence that this guy was the BTK strangler. Clearly BTK's reputation was vague to us... while I've no doubts that there was plenty about him in the newspaper and on television, it was still a more innocent time. We were kids, we hadn't yet learned to focus on the affairs of adults.
Not like today when seven-year-olds are already carrying purses, lol.
The BTK killer returned to the headlines in 2004 when he inexplicably began sending letters to the Wichita Eagle & Beacon again. Not long afterwards, he was caught. What struck me most about the case was that the man had been married throughout the period when he was killing, that he, in fact, remained married to this same woman until the day he was arrested.
I just couldn't imagine the feelings she must have experienced as she realized who she'd been sleeping next to for over 30 years.
I read more about the BTK Killer's story here, and I began to understand the obsession of the characters in Zodiac (who, of course, represented equally driven real people).
THINKING ABOUT ALL OF THIS reminded me of the nearest brush I myself had with this sort of violence. One beautiful September morning, I awoke and looked out my window to see four or five sheriff's cars parked in the street in front of our house. I lived on a quiet street, three homes to a block, on the edge of a town of 800. I am as surprised now as I was at the time: I had woken at my normal hour, oblivious to the commotion outside.
I went outside and talked to my father. Judd Durner, who ran the Burrton Bank, lived across the street with his wife Rosie. Early that morning, while I slept with my window open less than 50 yards away, three people rang their doorbell, kidnapped them, and tried to rob the bank. They nearly killed Judd with a shotgun when he tried to lock himself in the vault. Rosie leapt from one of the kidnapper's cars and flagged down a passing car.
It was a shocking experience. Judd had recently won a "Workhorse" award from a Wichita television station for his contributions to our community, and my friends and I had been caught in the background playing football while Judd was interviewed. This fresh footage was replayed repeatedly in the subsequent days, making the whole event even more surreal for me.
The kidnappers were caught. One died in prison, a second is serving a life sentence. The third may be out; this 2001 Newton Kansan story was the only reference to the crime I could find online.
Rosie wrote a book entitled Don't Open the Door. I don't think I've seen a copy for at least 20 years. And I've rarely thought of those events in the last ten.
Zodiac. BTK. The Night Stalker. Dan White. Judd and Rosie's kidnappers. These are the people whose crimes have intruded on my life in one way or another.
I don't believe the world is as dangerous a place as you'd think from watching the news on television. But last night for two and a half hours, Zodiac reminded me that there are times when Rosie's advice to not open the door is the smart way to go.
posted by michael at 10:47 AM
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1 Comments:
I know Rosie and Judd personally. If you ever get a chance to read her book do. It's really hard to find, but occasionally one will pop up in a used book store.
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