Rodney Alcala: The Dating Game Killer

Rodney Alcala (1943-2021) represents one of America’s most terrifying serial killers-a charismatic, handsome photographer who appeared on the popular TV show “The Dating Game” in 1978 while actively murdering young women across California and New York. He was convicted of murdering eight women and girls, but investigators believe he killed over 100 victims during a decade-long murder spree that exploited 70s culture, photography, and society’s inability to track interstate predators.

The Perfect Predator: Looks, Intelligence, Photography

Rodney Alcala possessed qualities that made him exceptionally dangerous: high IQ (estimated 160, genius level), a handsome appearance that attracted women, photography skills that lured victims, charm and manipulation abilities, fluency in multiple languages, and knowledge of law enforcement procedures that helped him evade capture.

Modus Operandi: The Photographer’s Ruse

Alcala approached young women and girls with a simple pitch: he was a professional photographer shooting for a magazine or building a portfolio, and they would be perfect models. In the 1970s, when modelling seemed glamorous and society was more trusting, many accepted.

He would photograph victims in isolated locations–deserted beaches, wooded areas, abandoned buildings. Once alone, Alcala would attack, strangle his victims to the point of unconsciousness, then revive them, prolonging their terror and his control. This sadistic pattern of strangling, reviving, and strangling again became his signature.

Investigators later found hundreds of photographs in Alcala’s possession–young women and girls in various poses, some clearly uncomfortable. Police released these images, hoping to identify additional victims, but many remain unknown.

1968-1971: First Crimes and Escape to New York

Alcala’s known criminal history began in 1968 when he kidnapped and raped 8-year-old Tali Shapiro in Los Angeles. A witness saw him luring the girl into his car and called the police. Officers found Tali alive but brutally beaten in Alcala’s apartment. However, Alcala had fled.

FBI Most Wanted and New Identity

Alcala appeared on the FBI’s Most Wanted list. He fled to New York, enrolling at NYU under the assumed name “John Berger.” For three years, he studied film, worked at a summer camp for children (horrifyingly), and likely continued killing in New York.

In 1971, children at the camp recognised Alcala from an FBI poster. Police arrested him and returned him to California. However, Tali Shapiro’s family had moved to Mexico and refused to return for trial, fearing retraumatization of their daughter. Without their key witness, prosecutors accepted a plea deal: Alcala pled guilty to child molestation and received just three years in prison.

1974-1977: Release and Resume Killing

Paroled in 1974 after serving just 17 months, Alcala immediately resumed predatory behaviour. Within months, he assaulted a 13-year-old girl and was sent back to prison. Astonishingly, he was released again in 1977 after psychiatrists deemed him “safe” and “no danger” to society.

Photography and Hunting

Alcala enrolled in UCLA’s film school and worked as a typesetter for the Los Angeles Times, giving him access to information and alibis. He used his photography to approach victims, photographing hundreds of young women under the guise of legitimate modelling work.

Between 1977 and 1979, Alcala is believed to have murdered at least eight women, though the true number is likely much higher. His confirmed victims during this period included Jill Barcomb (18), Georgia Wixted (27), Charlotte Lamb (32), and Jill Parenteau (21)-all strangled and sexually assaulted in Los Angeles.

1978: “The Dating Game” Appearance

In 1978, while actively murdering, Rodney Alcala appeared as Bachelor #1 on “The Dating Game,” a popular TV dating show where contestants answered questions to win a date. Alcala was selected by bachelorette Cheryl Bradshaw based on his charming, flirtatious answers.

The Winner She Refused

Backstage after the show, Bradshaw spoke with Alcala and felt immediately unsettled. She later told producers she found him “creepy” and refused the prize date. Her instincts likely saved her life.

The show’s episode featuring Alcala was broadcast nationally, but nobody connected the charming bachelor to the series of unsolved murders in Los Angeles. This appearance, while actively killing, made Alcala uniquely terrifying—he could present a completely normal, even attractive, public persona while being a sadistic predator.

1979: Robin Samsoe and Capture

On June 20, 1979, 12-year-old Robin Samsoe rode her bicycle to ballet class at Huntington Beach, California. A photographer had approached Robin and her friend, asking to take their pictures. Robin never made it to class.

Investigation and Arrest

Robin’s friend described the photographer to the police, who created a composite sketch. Huntington Beach parking receipts found in Alcala’s possession placed him at the scene. Robin’s earrings were found in a Seattle storage locker rented by Alcala.

Alcala was arrested, tried, and convicted of Robin’s murder in 1980. He received the death penalty. However, legal technicalities led to multiple appeals and retrials over decades.

DNA Reveals Full Extent: 2000s Convictions

DNA technology, unavailable during Alcala’s original trials, finally revealed the full scope of his crimes. In the 2000s, DNA from 1970s murder scenes matched Alcala’s genetic profile.

2010 Trial: Five Murders

In 2010, Alcala was tried for five murders: Robin Samsoe, Jill Barcomb, Georgia Wixted, Charlotte Lamb, and Jill Parenteau. Bizarrely, Alcala represented himself in court, cross-examining witnesses, including the mother of Robin Samsoe, a traumatic spectacle that demonstrated his narcissism and lack of empathy.

The jury convicted him on all five counts, and he received the death penalty for a third time. He was also convicted of two New York murders from the 1970s and sentenced to additional life terms.

The Photographs: Unidentified Victims

Police found over 1,000 photographs in Alcala’s possession–young women and girls, some nude or in provocative poses, many looking uncomfortable or frightened. Investigators released hundreds of these images to the public, hoping to identify possible victims.

Some women came forward, saying they posed for Alcala and survived. Others were never identified. Investigators believe some of the photographed women were murdered by Alcala, but without identifications or remains, these potential crimes can’t be prosecuted.

Why So Many Victims? System Failures

Alcala’s decade-long killing spree was enabled by multiple criminal justice failures: lenient sentencing for child molestation (3 years for near-murder of 8-year-old), psychiatric evaluations declaring him “safe” despite re-offending, lack of sex offender registration or monitoring, poor communication between California and New York authorities, no DNA database to link crimes, and society’s failure to take violence against women and sex workers seriously.

The Parole System Failed

Alcala was paroled multiple times despite clear evidence he was dangerous: 1974: Paroled after 17 months for kidnapping and raping an 8-year-old; Months later: Re-arrested for assaulting a 13-year-old; 1977: Released again after psychiatrists said he was “safe“; 1977-1979: Murdered at least eight women. This pattern of release and re-offence represents catastrophic system failure.

Death and Unanswered Questions

Rodney Alcala died of natural causes on July 24, 2021, at age 77, while on California’s death row. He never revealed the full extent of his crimes. Estimates of his victim count range from 50 to over 100, based on photographs, travel patterns, and unsolved murders in areas where he lived or visited.

Unsolved Mysteries

Questions that died with Alcala: How many did he really kill? Who are the unidentified women in his photographs? Did he kill during the three years he was a fugitive in New York? What about unsolved murders in areas he travelled? Were there victims outside California and New York?

Watch “Dating Death” on Viasat True Crime 

This April, explore Rodney Alcala’s horrifying story through the three-part series “Dating Death,” which examines how he exploited 1970s culture to hunt victims across America.

Viewing Schedule

Dating Death Season 1, Episode 1

• Wednesday, April 1, 2026 at 21:00 (9:00 PM CET)
• Repeated: Wednesday, April 1, 2026 at 23:45 (11:45 PM CET)
• Episode 101: 1968 – Los Angeles police rescue a kidnapped girl, but their suspect escapes and reappears across the country using a new identity and preying upon women in New York City

FAQ: Rodney Alcala

Q: Why was Rodney Alcala called “The Dating Game Killer”?

A: Alcala appeared as a contestant on the TV show “The Dating Game” in 1978 while actively murdering young women in Los Angeles. He won the date with the bachelorette, but she refused to go out with him because she found him “creepy.” This TV appearance during his murder spree made the case particularly notorious.

Q: How did Alcala avoid capture for so long?

A: Multiple factors: charm and intelligence that deflected suspicion, a photography ruse that seemed legitimate, moving between California and New York, where police didn’t communicate, lack of DNA technology to link crimes, targeting vulnerable victims whose cases weren’t prioritised, and a criminal justice system that repeatedly released him despite violent offences.

Q: How many people did Rodney Alcala really kill?

A: Alcala was convicted of eight murders (five in California, two in New York, one in Wyoming). However, investigators believe he killed 50-130 victims based on hundreds of photographs of unidentified women, his travel patterns, and unsolved murders in areas where he lived. The true number will never be known.

Q: What happened to the photographs police found?

A: Police found over 1,000 photographs of young women and girls in Alcala’s possession. They released hundreds publicly, hoping to identify possible victims. Some women came forward as survivors, while others remain unidentified. The photos are evidence that Alcala photographed far more women than he was convicted of murdering.

Q: Why did the bachelorette refuse to date Alcala?

A: Cheryl Bradshaw, the bachelorette who selected Alcala, said she felt immediately uncomfortable when speaking with him backstage after the show. She described him as “creepy” and told producers she didn’t want to go on the prize date. Her instincts likely saved her life, as Alcala was actively murdering during this period.

Q: How was Alcala finally caught?

A: Alcala was captured after the 1979 murder of 12-year-old Robin Samsoe. A witness (Robin’s friend) described the photographer who approached them. Parking receipts and Robin’s earrings linked Alcala to the crime. He was arrested, tried, and convicted, though legal issues led to multiple retrials before DNA evidence in the 2000s confirmed his guilt in additional murders.

Q: Could Alcala have been stopped earlier?

A: Absolutely. Alcala should have been imprisoned for life after nearly murdering 8-year-old Tali Shapiro in 1968. Instead, he received a lenient plea deal and was paroled after just 17 months. He re-offended within months but was released again. Proper sentencing and parole supervision could have prevented dozens of murders.

Q: Was Alcala executed?

A: No. Alcala died of natural causes on California’s death row in 2021 at age 77. He had been sentenced to death three times, but appeals and California’s death penalty moratorium meant he was never executed. He died without revealing the full extent of his crimes or the identities of all his victims.