and you just 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!
Jesus. Hey, Cheri Jo Bates was a gift. I gave that to you.
You and Armstrong never would have found her.
This may not be Zodiac. Does that matter to you?
- What if it is? - Does it matter that Riverside may not
be able to make a case against their suspect because of you?
Tell it to Sherwood. I'm out here, beating the bushes,
trying to draw him out. We're in this together.
No, we're not in anything together, PauI,
because I'm not interested in upping my circulation.
Oh, 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, PauI.
Thank you.
- Did you see this? - Unfortunately, yes.
Here comes every lunatic in California.
I'm the Zodiac.
And how did you kill your victims?
With a gun. No, with a hammer.
AII I'm authorized to tell you
is that he's still under government employment.
- And who authorized you to tell me this? - That's all I'm authorized to say.
Only a little rat bastard like Andre
could have done something like cut off all the victims' hands.
Zodiac didn't cut off any of the victims' hands.
- Are you sure? - Yes, sir.
Travis and I worked 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 PauI 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 him, "How would you get away with it?"
And he said, "It would be easy
"'cause there'd be no reaI motive to the thing. "
Then he said he'd write letters to the police
and 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 and that's the name I'm gonna use. "
Did you feeI like he'd been thinking about it a long time?
He was raw about losing his job at the schooI.
He talked about shooting out the tires of a schooI 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.
I know 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 locaI cops.
They blew him off. Thought he was a nut.
And you're sure the conversation you had about Zodiac
took place on January 1st, 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, Leigh, just lays out his entire eviI 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 or anything?
We're gonna do a full background check.
But I got to 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.
So, the check stubs are a wash. There's not enough handwriting.
The application's got more, but it doesn't look like Z's,
so 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 MeI got the application from Valley Springs,
they told him that Allen had been fired for touching kids.
- Touching? - Polite euphemism.
- So what do you want to do? - Make some phone calls.
- Are you done with the fries? - Go ahead.
Did you and Mr. Cheney have a chance
to look at the copies of the Zodiac letters we sent you?
Yeah. Some of this stuff is pretty creepy.
- Yeah, we know that. - 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 a little 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 got to see this guy, Chief.
- Where is he? - Vallejo.
He works at Union OiI 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 that you made certain statements
11 months prior to the first Zodiac murder.
If they're true, they're quite incriminating.
Do 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 those first reports.
- Why not? - Too morbid. I...
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 4:00. 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 schooI 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?
Where'd you get it?
It was 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 the Zodiac?
Maybe Ted Kidder or PhiI Tucker at Vallejo Recreation.
But I couldn't be positive.
I used to work there when...
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 schooI.
It's about this man who waits for people to get shipwrecked on this island.
Because he was tired of hunting animals,
he hunted the people for the challenge.
And man is the most dangerous animaI of all?
That's the whole point of the story.
Great book.
Or, at least, that's what I told PhiI.
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 confidentiaI.
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, where he spells "Christmas" with two "S's. "
We got a Christmas card from Leigh a couple years ago.
He spelled it the exact 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?
The brother said he would search Leigh's apartment
next time he went out of town.
- That gets you around a warrant. - For the time being.
If we do find something, Mulanax will go to the DA in Vallejo,
and we could search the place properly.
Now I got a chance to talk to the cop
who interviewed Leigh 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. Try and find more stuff for Sherwood.
A match'll get us farther on the warrants.
- Avery's on two. - Tell him to screw.
You want me to communicate that verbatim or can I spice it up a little?
This suspect is not your Zodiac.
This sample matches the canceled checks and the application?
Perfectly.
So we've just retested the left hand. I mean, we know he's ambidextrous.
In 38 years, I'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.
Hey. Mulanax. Yeah.
We struck out with the judge.
He won't sign off on a warrant for Allen's house.
- Why not? - Said it wasn't enough.
Now, unless we bring him a handwriting match or some evidence that...
How are we gonna get evidence if we can't toss the house?
I don't know.
- I truly am sorry. - No, no. Thank you, Jack.
What do you wanna do?
Don't know what I can do without Vallejo.
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.
PauI, you wrote the Justice Department
asking to be put in charge of the Zodiac investigation?
I merely suggested...
On our letterhead?
...that those with intimate 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.
PauI, if you want to 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 feeI my excellent work is no longer in step with this trashy provinciaI rag,
I'll more than happily...
More than happily decamp for greener pastures.
PauI, I mean it!
- PauI? - Yep.
- What was that? - An editoriaI tête-à-tête.
- Wanna grab a drink? - It's 10:00 in the morning.
Late breakfast?
- Early lunch, or... - PauI.
Are you okay?
No.
Thank you for asking.
Shorty! Let's go out for one.
PauI, 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 sociaI 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 sociaI worker.
He couldn't talk about a former patient, so I just asked him straight out
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 schooI 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 since you talked to this guy,
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 at this.
Terry, 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.
Meanwhile, 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 shoot the kiddies as they came bouncing out.
"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.
Well, looks like you got your man.
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 a 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 seven, 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.
They're 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. Let's 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 actually thought it was him, or I just want all 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 got to 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 a crime.
The killer gets shot in the chest.
That's how it ends.
Do I know you?
I'm Robert Graysmith. I work at the Chronicle with PauI Avery.
Dave Toschi. Nice to meet you.
Dave! That Harry Callahan did a hell of a job with your case.
Yeah. No need for due process, right?
- What do you do at the Chronicle? - I'm a cartoonist.
That's nice.
You're gonna catch him.
PaI, they're already making movies about it.
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. - Yeah.
- 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 PauI Avery.
The boys need to be tucked in, please, 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, PauI.
- Permission to come aboard. - It's right there.
Anyway, 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. - Yeah.
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 then I was thinking that nobody knows the case better than you.
Yeah. That's true.
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?
Do you know that more people die in the East Bay commute
every three months than that idiot ever killed?
He offed a few citizens,
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 fucking 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 magicaI.
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 PauI 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 then?
- No. - Over 200.
That's a lot of dead people and grieving families that need our 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 can 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 TerminaI 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 you see that's relevant, you got to remember in your head.
Okay.
Okay, here we go.
- Which one? - All of them.
And 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 schooI.
What's this?
Thank you.
Man, you really creeped us out.
"Nine millimeter.
"Said nothing and began firing. "
"Most Dangerous Game.
"Do not eliminate this suspect because of handwriting.
"Not because of handwriting.
"Darlene's sister, Linda.
"It was all just deep breathing. George.
"It was a strange man. George. Strange man. "
Thank you so much.
Oh, briefcase. Oh, thanks.
- Hey, Jack. - Hey, Bawart.
- Who's that? - That's Graysmith.
Some cartoonist. Thinks he's gonna solve the Zodiac.
Well, good for him.
- Thank you for meeting me, Inspector. - No. We're not meeting, Robert.
We're just two guys who happen to be sitting
on the same bench at the same time.
I've got five minutes. I've got to get back to the Hall.
Okay. As far as you know, did anyone ever get in touch
with Mike Mageau during your investigation
- and show him suspect photos? - Why?
Well, he's the only surviving victim who ever saw Zodiac without a mask.
No, I mean, why are you asking me?
Mageau and Darlene, that's Vallejo's case.
PauI Stine is mine. You've got four minutes now.
Darlene Ferrin was being followed.
Now, I know Mulanax says that they already found this guy,
a George Waters?
But he also said that she had a lot of admirers
who 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.
And what's a painting party?
It's a party where people come and 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.
So if you wanna connect Darlene to Zodiac,
you're gonna have to find another way.
I have another way.
Phone calls the night of Darlene's murder.
- Yeah, Zodiac called the police. - No, Dave, there were four other calls.
There were two to Darlene's house, one to Darlene's brother-in-law,
and one to Darlene's 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.
God damn it.
It's got to be more than just a coincidence, right?
I mean, 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, so maybe I can find Darlene's sister.
And 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... I've only been waiting two hours, so...
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? - Oh, 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 helpfuI?
She said it was his birthday.
Well, you'd have to confirm that, now wouldn't you?
How?
Well, I never spoke to her, but maybe my partner did.
- How do I get a hold 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,
then 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, and I just need...
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,
just like nobody died over the weekend when he was gonna kill a dozen people,
or when he was gonna shoot schooI kids or blow up buses.
He's a liar, Mr. Graysmith.
What if he made a mistake?
What if he wasn't Iying? What if it was him on the phone?
He didn't expect to pick it up, 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 whole thing's about.
Stick to the evidence.
Hi.
- Hey. How was your day? - Long.
Who's Sherwood Morrill?
He's a handwriting expert in Sacramento.
He called.
He said he can meet you tomorrow morning at 7:00.
Oh, great.
- So you're taking off work? - Just an hour.
Sacramento's two hours away.
- Really? - Yes.
What's this?
Oh, that's 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 so sure that's something we want people to know about.
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 is storing some film canisters for him.
In these canisters is the evidence.
Okay, yeah, friend? Who is this 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've got to 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.
His name was Wallace Penny.
He said he knew who the Zodiac was.
Gave me a name.
Rick. Rick somebody.
- Rick Marshall? - Yeah.
I think that the man who 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 the 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 stops 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, then, 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 with him,
how the hell'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, boom, false print.
Yeah, but that print disqualified 2,500 suspects.
Which is why we also used handwriting.
But not for Rick Marshall.
SFPD saw a handwritten sign in the window of his house.
Decided it looked nothing like the Z letters, so they just 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.
Well, then, how do I get copies of Rick 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.
Okay, what about the guy who came to see 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 Rick Marshall's handwriting.
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 to see more samples. - Yeah, but is it...
It's as close as I've ever seen. We have to 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.
In a way, 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 animaI crackers in there, would you?
Unit Five. 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 and you need to see it right now.
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, 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 controI of all things. "
These guys are from InternaI Affairs.
We need to talk.
Good evening. Our top story tonight,
the San Francisco Police Department has confirmed
that the man who calls himself the 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 and times would make the best movie script yet.
These carrots are perfect.
The terse 66 word message also manages...
Just go.
...to mention San Francisco Chronicle columnist Herb Caen
and the Department's own David Toschi by name.
- May I be excused? - Are they targets?
Fine, but you have to come back
and finish at least half of what's on that plate.
More team coverage on the cipher slayer's return
begins as Alan Freeman has more.
Thank you, Eric.
San Francisco Chronicle columnist Armistead Maupin says
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 so he 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. And I'm sure that this will all blow over.
Blow over?
They kicked him out of Homicide.
They made him give his handwriting like some common criminaI.
- May I talk to him? - No.
Okay, 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 girI, she wants music lessons?
Dave! Dave!
I'll catch up to you.
You stop calling my house. Do you understand me?
I just 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 PauI Avery now?
- 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 Rick Marshall. - No, Robert.
No, I know you don't think it's him.
I mean, no, I am not having this conversation.
But I think that Marshall knew Darlene, and I can't talk to Mageau or Linda,
so I'm gonna talk to Bob Vaughn.
- Robert. Robert, stop it! - What?
Okay, 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.
He was just gonna do them.
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 for a living? - You know what I do for a living.
- 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, Dave. - No, Robert. I am through with this.
I am through with you.
What about September 26, 1970?
- Okay, which one was that? - The Lake Tahoe nurse goes missing.
One day before the vernaI equinox.
- Dad? - Yeah. Mark that.
Got another one. June 19th, 1971.
That's got to be near the summer solstice.
Oh, guys.
Don't tell Mom about our speciaI project, okay?
How come you and Mom don't sleep in the same bed anymore?
Hello.
Mr. Graysmith, it's Ken Narlow from Napa.
Oh, Captain Narlow. Thank you for calling me back.
Yeah. How can I help?
I called you 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?
Oh, just a lot of books from the library, and I love puzzles, so I just...
Yeah. The fucking library.
I believe that 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 jaiI. Isn't that great?
Why'd you do it?
Because she'll be able to identify Rick...
- What are you talking about? - You went on TV.
You put yourself out there for him to see.
Oh, hon, you're being paranoid.
Then who's been calling our house in the middle of the night
at least once a week?
Nobody.
What's it gonna take for you to be done with this?
I can't talk about this now. I have to go see Bob Vaughn.
Well, that's too bad, because we're gonna talk about this.
And 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. - Oh. Okay.
Watch your step.
Come in.
- 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?
Oh, it's a classic. RKO. 1932.
Fay Wray, JoeI 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 symboI?
Hold on.
The Zodiac symboI on film. It's on the countdown.
It's trimmed off each reeI 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.
A 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.
You coming, Mr. Graysmith?
The originaI studio one-sheets, I always kept for myself.
The cheapo knock-offs 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!
Two killers. Got to be two killers. One has the...
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.
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.
And a couple of 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 a long time 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.
No, you need to come back tomorrow morning.
- One file, just for one second. -8:00 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. - Oh, 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...
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.
I'm calling SFPD. 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 that he gave something away!
- Robert, I am 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?
2,500 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.
"Dear Dave, 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 PauI Avery now?
Yes, you have Sherwood Morrill in writing saying,
"I'm sorry, this just won't work. "
- But you also have Terry Pascoe... - His protégé.
Yeah, fine, it's his protégé,
but he's a handwriting expert nonetheless, and he's saying,
"Do not disqualify this suspect on the basis of handwriting. "
- So the two canceI each other out. - No, they don't.
It was Sherwood's case.
He was the head of Questioned Documents.
If it went to triaI,
all the defense would have to do is call Sherwood to the stand.
And there was no way of getting Allen into court in the first place,
because there was no evidence, Robert.
What do you mean, there's no evidence?
You have him seen with the ciphers.
The military boot prints. The same size shoes and gloves.
The Most Dangerous Game. The Zodiac watch.
The background with schooI children.
The misspellings of Christ-mass. The bloody knives.
All circumstantiaI.
PauI Stine's shirt, his wallet, his keys.
We should have found one of those things in that trailer.
- We didn't. - That's...
Okay. 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 at the refinery on August 4th.
- Yeah. - 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 that, Allen is fired for molesting his students
and his family discovers that he's a pedophile.
- Now, when do the letters begin? - July, '69.
After the murder of Darlene Ferrin.
And they continue untiI you go to see him at work.
Now, after that, do any of the letters contain swatches of PauI Stine's shirt?
No. Because he dumped them, because he got scared.
Because he knew that you were on to him.
- So, when's the next letter from Zodiac? - Not untiI January of 1974.
He is silent for three years.
Then, in '74, he feels comfortable again
because everybody's moved off Allen as a suspect.
And 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 from Zodiac 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, because of 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 Allen is the Leigh from this file?
Now, Vallejo is a small town, but it's not that small.
How do you put the two of them together?
This is a case that's covered both Northern and Southern California,
with victims and suspects spread over hundreds of miles.
- Would you agree? - Yes.
Darlene Ferrin 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 PD. I took over for Jack Mulanax.
It's been 22 years. I don't know how I can help you.
Well, this is just a formality.
I'm gonna show you a group of photographs.
Now, the person that shot you may or may not be
among these photographs.
You don't have to pick anybody out
just because I'm showing you these pictures, you 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?
Yeah, I'm pretty sure.
He had a round face like this guy.
Wait. Am I to understand
that you're now identifying the 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.
The last time I saw this face was July 4th, 1969.
I am very sure that's the man who shot me.