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In recent debates about the real crime show “Woman of the Hour,” viewers have been enthralled by the way one of the most notorious characters on television is portrayed: the murderer from “The Dating Game.” The dark past of this case has garnered new attention because of this series, which has prompted a closer look at the actual facts as opposed to dramatizations. As viewers immerse themselves in this compelling story, it becomes crucial to distinguish reality from fantasy and comprehend the true tale behind the terrifying incidents.
The Infamous Dating Game Killer
“Woman of the Hour,” the directorial debut of Anna Kendrick, has an unrealistic plot that, regrettably, is lifted straight from the news. In the film, Kendrick plays Sheryl, a stunningly accurate portrayal of Cheryl Bradshaw, a 28-year-old who appeared on the popular television program “The Dating Game” in 1978.
The idea behind the show was straightforward: Three bachelors were hidden behind a big wall, and the bachelorette would ask them a few pre-planned questions before choosing one to take her on a paid mini-vacation. Bradshaw selected Rodney Alcala without knowing that he was a serial killer in addition to a convicted sexual offender who had already served time in jail.
“I can understand why it might be surprising to people that this would be something I would choose to do as my first time being a director,” said Kendrick. The chance to rewrite a well-worn police procedural drama that centered on men, however, was what drew her to the terrible story.
“On paper, this story was ready for Hollywood, with an emphasis on maybe a young detective who finally takes on this case, and a determined prosecutor who keeps the criminal behind bars,” she explains. “But while those things are facts in this case, it felt emotionally dishonest if I had included that in my film.” Instead, Kendrick decided to focus “Woman of the Hour” on the innumerable women who were harmed by Alcala.
Review of the facts of this true-crime drama:
Was ‘Woman of the Hour’ star Rodney Alcala a real serial killer?
Indeed, Texas native Rodney Alcala was apprehended in 1979 and found guilty of murder. Alcala is thought to have attacked hundreds of people over his ten-year rampage and may have killed over 100 of them. In July 1979, Alcala was taken into custody after police discovered one of his victims’ earrings in a storage locker he had rented in Seattle. Despite being given a death sentence, he passed away in 2021 at the age of 77 from natural causes.
Did Rodney Alcala study under Roman Polanski at NYU?
In “Woman of the Hour,” Alcala dazzles women by claiming to be a skilled photographer who recognizes potential in their beauty and mentioning that he was a student of Roman Polanski at New York University. Although he enrolled at NYU, the actual Alcala never finished his studies. He doesn’t appear to have met Polanski, who was by that time a well-known filmmaker of movies like “Rosemary’s Baby,” at the school.
What was the process by which Rodney Alcala joined ‘The Dating Game’ in 1978?
By applying to be one of the three bachelors featured in each episode of the Los Angeles-based TV show “The Dating Game,” Alcala was able to get on the air. As in “Woman of the Hour,” the host of the show (played by Tony Hale in the movie) presented Alcala, who has long hair and a gap-toothed smile, as a photographer “who between takes is skydiving and motorcycling.” Despite Bradshaw’s choice of Alcala, she felt something was off and decided not to go on a date with him, which probably saved her life. Following her refusal, it was believed that Alcala had murdered several more women.
In ‘The Dating Game,’ did the actual Cheryl Bradshaw select the questions she asked the bachelors?
No. Sheryl, Kendrick’s character, defies “Dating Game” convention by refusing to answer the bachelorettes’ clumsy, frequently sexist, and suggestive questions to the three men. With the exception of Alcala, her astute questions expose the men’s lack of intelligence.
According to Hale: “That was a great device Anna used to show how this was her character’s opportunity to turn the tables on that sexist culture, even if in the end it does bring her closer to that dangerous place because it leads her to pick Rodney.”
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