Woman Of The Hour: How Serial Killer Rodney Alcala Was Caught (2024)

Warning: this article discusses murder and sexual violence.

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Contains SPOILERS for Woman of the Hour.Netflix's Woman of the Hour marks Anna Kendrick's directorial debut and explores the astonishing story of serial killer Rodney Alcala. Kendrick additionally stars as Cheryl Bradshaw in Woman of the Hour, a struggling actress in 1977 Los Angeles who is booked for an appearance on The Dating Game, a show made popular by actress Sally Field. Unbeknownst to her at the time, Alcala (Daniel Zovatto) is one of her potential bachelors, and he is looking for his next victim. While Rodney is not caught during this television appearance, he is apprehended by the police two years later, in 1979.

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Woman of the Hour is based on a true story. In the end, Rodney lures a young teenage runaway named Amy (Autumn Best) into the desert with promises of launching her modeling career in 1979, only to instead assault and rape her. Instead of immediately fighting back, she assures him that everything is fine, and asks that he keep their encounter a secret to save her from embarrassment. She then gets back in his car, and makes her escape when he parks at a gas station, running to a diner and calling the police, resulting in his arrest. However, Alcala's story does not end where the movie ends.

Rodney Alcala Was Arrested Multiple Times Before Police Figured Out He Was A Serial Killer

Alcala Was Not Apprehended As The Killer In His First Arrest

In reality, Rodney Alcala was arrested a number of times before he was ultimately convicted of the serial killings. The film includes several real details from Rodney Alcala's life, including his time spent studying under Roman Polanski at New York University following his graduation from UCLA's School of the Arts. While the film depicts Alcala's brief interaction with police while he works at The Los Angeles Times, the film does not depict the number of arrests leading up to Alacala's ultimate apprehension.

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Woman Of The Hour Fact Check: Did Rodney Alcala Really Have 130 Victims?

Woman of the Hour's epilogue reveals Rodney Alcala had close to 130 victims, making it hard not to wonder if the real number was actually that high.

The real Alcala narrowly escaped arrest in the 1968 beating and sexual assault of 8-year-old Tali Shapiro. Shapiro only survived because a neighbor called the police to the scene upon seeing Alcala luring the child into his home (via ABC 2020). After fleeing the scene for New York City, where he enrolled in New York University to study film, he committed several murders, notably that of 23-year-old flight attendant Cornelia Crilley. As Woman of the Hour mentions, Alcala moved on to New Hampshire, where he obtained a job at a girl's arts camp as a counselor under the name John Berger.

Two campers recognized his face from a poster, and called the authorities. Here, Alcala was arrested, and ultimately pleaded guilty to child molestation, agreeing to register as a sex offender in 1971. As Shaprio's family relocated to Mexico following her attack, they refused to permit their daughter to testify. Without her testimony, Alcala was unable to be charged with attempted murder (via PEOPLE). Alcala served three years in prison for child molestation, and was released on parole in 1974. He then assaulted another 13-year-old girl and was arrested and imprisoned for another two years until 1976 (via OC Weekly).

How Robin Samsoe's Murder Led To Rodney Alcala Finally Getting Caught

Alcala Committed A Series Of Murders After Serving Time In Prison On Molestation Charges

Woman Of The Hour: How Serial Killer Rodney Alcala Was Caught (2)

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Following his consecutive prison sentences in the 1970s, Alcala moved back to New York City, where he committed a string of murders ahead of his return to Los Angeles. He then worked as a typesetter at The Los Angeles Times, and made his now notorious appearance on The Dating Game. In reality, Amy's story in Woman of the Hour was not the final time that Alcala was arrested. The killer picked up 15-year-old hitchhiker Monique Hoyt in California, where he photographed and raped her. When Hoyt did escape to a diner and call the authorities, Alcala's mother later posted his bail (via KABC).

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The murder that actually resulted in Alcala's final arrest was the 1979 killing of 12-year-old Robin Samsoe. Samsoe was kidnapped, beaten, raped, and stabbed, and discarded on the side of Santa Anita Canyon Road in Huntington Beach, California. After Samsoe's friends identified a sketch of Alcala as the man who asked to take their photograph, Alcala's parole officer put two and two together, and Alcala was arrested for the final time. He was tried and convicted of her murder in 1980 (via The Los Angeles Times).

Rodney Alcala's Appeals & Convictions Explained

Alcala Ultimately Died In Prison in 2021

Woman Of The Hour: How Serial Killer Rodney Alcala Was Caught (3)

Following Alcala's first conviction, he was initially sentenced to death. In 1984, his conviction was overturned after jurors revealed they were not informed of his prior sex crimes. The second trial yielded a guilty verdict and death sentence yet again, but was later overturned after Alcala filed a habeas corpus petition. In preparing for a third prosecution in 2003, with updated technology, authorities placed Alcala at the scene of more crimes than initially anticipated. He was indicted in five further California murders, and attempted to defend himself in court in 2010, resulting in a third death sentence (via CBS News).

The killer later filed two lawsuits regarding a prison injury and the lack of low-fat food in prison (via The New York Times). In 2012, Alcala was extradited to New York to answer for his crimes, a state that outlawed the death penalty in 2007. As a result, he was instead sentenced to 25 years to life in prison when he returned to imprisonment in California. Alcala died of natural causes at a hospital in Kings County in 2021.

...the film focuses primarily on his appearance on The Dating Game and surrounding murder sprees, but the brief epilogue outlines Alcala's death and conviction.

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Despite the eight convictions, authorities are still working to identify countless unidentified photographs of Alcala's victims, with the potential number of victims standing at around 130 (via AP). The trials and convictions are not seen in Woman of the Hour, as the film focuses primarily on his appearance on The Dating Game and surrounding murder sprees, but the brief epilogue outlines Alcala's death and conviction. The crimes depicted in Woman of the Hour are based on Alcala's real murders, but the film instead opted to showcase how one woman's intuition allowed her to narrowly escape a gruesome fate.

Sources: ABC 2020, PEOPLE, OC Weekly, KABC, The Los Angeles Times, CBS News, The New York Times, AP

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Woman of the Hour

Crime

Drama

Mystery

Thriller

Woman of the Hour is a biographical thriller directed by Anna Kendrick, who also stars in the film. The movie chronicles the infamous real-life story of Cheryl Bradshaw's appearance on the 1978 edition of The Dating Game, where one of the contestants, Rodney Alcala, would later be revealed as a notorious serial killer. The film delves into the chilling intersection of entertainment and true crime.

Director
Anna Kendrick

Release Date
September 26, 2023

Studio(s)
AGC Studios , Vertigo Entertainment , BoulderLight Pictures

Distributor(s)
Netflix

Writers
Ian MacAllister McDonald
Cast
Anna Kendrick , Daniel Zovatto , Autumn Best , Andy Thompson , David Beairsto , Tighe Gill , Bonnie Hay , Thomas Strumpski , Nicolette Robinson , Kathryn Gallagher , Kelley Jakle , Tony Hale

Character(s)
Cheryl Bradshaw , Rodney Alcala , Amy , Bob , Rodney's Boss , Bachelor , Bartender , Laundromat Owner

Runtime
94 Minutes
Main Genre
Crime
Woman Of The Hour: How Serial Killer Rodney Alcala Was Caught (2024)
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