Anna Kendrick is making her directorial debut with the new Netflix movie, “Woman Of The Hour.” She stars in this true crime thriller as Cheryl Bradshaw, the bachelorette from the 1978 game show The Dating Game. Bradshaw unknowingly matches with serial killer Rodney Alcala. Before appearing on the show, Rodney Alcala brutally raped and strangled women unconscious. He was also previously convicted of beating and raping an 8-year-old girl in Los Angeles, California. Since the show did not run a background check, his criminal past was left concealed.
‘The Dating Game’ Serial Killer
Rodney Alcala was an American serial killer and sex offender. He was born in 1943 in San Antonio, Texas. When he was eight years old, his family relocated to Mexico, where his father ultimately abandoned them. After that, they moved to Los Angeles, where Rodney lived for the rest of his adolescence. When he turned 17, he enlisted in the Army. In 1964, he was discharged due to suffering from antisocial personality disorder. He went on to receive a bachelor’s degree in fine arts before fleeing the state of California in 1968.
Alcala committed his first known crime in 1968. He was seen driving to an apartment with a little girl. The responding officer caught Alcala fleeing the scene after finding the 8-year-old girl beaten and raped. He moved to the East Coast, where he went by the alias “John Berger.” He was placed on the FBI’s Most Wanted List and finally arrested in New Hampshire. He only served less than three years after pleading to a lesser charge of child molestation. It was not until 1978 that he reappeared in the public’s eyes as a game show contestant.
Alcala was considered attractive and very persuasive towards the ladies. You might not believe he was a serial killer at first. He would pass himself off to women as a fashion photographer trying to win a contest. He lured these women with his charm before senselessly murdering them. His victims’ autopsies revealed he raped, beat, and then strangled them until they were knocked out.
Sometimes, he would wait for them to regain consciousness before finally killing them. His exact victim count is unknown but is assumed to be quite high. From 1971 to 1979, he murdered eight women across several states, confirming him a serial killer. Alcala was sentenced several times to life in prison before finally being sentenced to death in 2010.
‘Woman of The Hour’
Anna Kendrick’s film ‘Woman of The Hour’ recreates the 1978 dating game show where serial killer Rodney Alcala wins a date with the bachelorette. There are small differentiations of events from the real-life episode. For example, Alcala is contestant number three in the film, whereas he is contestant number one in real life. His answers in the film are also fairly different. In real life, his responses to Cheryl Bradshaw are particularly creepy. The film goes beyond the real-life events after the show ends. Kendrick fleshes out Bradshaw’s character to show her triumphantly uncovering the true Rodney Alcala. The film is set to be released on Netflix on October 10, 2024.
Final Thoughts
Little is known about the real Cheryl Bradshaw. After Alcala won the date with her, she felt uncomfortable. She reportedly told Ellen Metzgar, wife of ABC’s 20/20 executive producer, “Ellen, I can’t go out with this guy. There’s weird vibes that are coming off of him. He’s very strange. I am not comfortable.” Bradshaw’s instincts were on cue with this serial killer. After the show, he went on to rape and murder several more women which he was convicted for. Rodney Alcala was 77 years old when he died in prison. He was awaiting execution for the gruesome murders he committed throughout his lifetime. Authorities have confirmed eight of his victims thus far, but there may be more.
