The voice to text didn’t exactly inspire confidence, but I’ll bite.

The problem as I see it is that there is nothing to suggest that one should check the newspaper to begin with. The clues are only useful once you know to look in the paper. That’s pretty obscure if his intent was to claim a murder.

Also newspapers have an enormous amount of text and content, so finding a phrase like "why spoil the game" doesn’t seem that improbable, although I accept that you checked a database of newspapers for occurrences, still why would anyone think to check page 53 in the first place?

To me the most compelling part of this, and I use the word "compelling" generously, is that the letter was mailed the same day as the newpaper article and if you turn to page 14 in that days paper you get a story about Nancy. Thats the bit that almost has a whiff of "maybe" about it. But then it would be a lot more compelling if the story appeared on page 14 of that days Chronicle. Or if there was really any clue to suggest one aught to look in the newspaper.

This is almost certainly just a series of coincidence. But it could be the clues for the last steps of a puzzle. Like if there was an intermediate clue suggesting one should check the newspaper, or that 14 was a reference to a page in a newspaper, or that 14 was a reference to a page at all, that would make all the other clues that follow a lot more plausible.

The problem as I see it is that there is nothing to suggest that one should check the newspaper to begin with. The clues are only useful once you know to look in the paper. That’s pretty obscure if his intent was to claim a murder.

The Tahoe card and Pace card mailed to the Chronicle had several cutouts from the Examiner and The Tahoe card was mailed to Paul Averly at the Chronicle. The zodiac was very vague after the Nov. 9th letter and said he would not give details anymore.

Also newspapers have an enormous amount of text and content, so finding a phrase like "why spoil the game" doesn’t seem that improbable, although I accept that you checked a database of newspapers for occurrences, still why would anyone think to check page 53 in the first place?

I probably should have emphasize more how rare the term “why spoil the game” is. It is extremely rare to find it in a newspaper. The rare times I did find it were almost all reprints from the same article in the early 1900’s. Finding this rare term the same day Zodiac mailed the Halloween card in the Examiner, the same paper Zodiac had already mailed twice before would be one of the rarest coincidences I have ever seen.

Averly – Twombly ly = Lee who quoted “Lee” Trevino as saying “why spoil the game”. There is a suspect named Leigh/Lee. Det. Poyser favorite reported in May 2018 newspapers.

Twombly who wrote the article at the Examiner with the rare phrase “why spoil the game” on the 27th would probably remember that line from his article. The Halloween card was Only published 4 days later. The Examiner and the Chronicle were both owned by Hearst and had a joint operating agreement. So there was probably cross talk amongst writers.

To me the most compelling part of this, and I use the word "compelling" generously, is that the letter was mailed the same day as the newpaper article and if you turn to page 14 in that days paper you get a story about Nancy. Thats the bit that almost has a whiff of "maybe" about it. But then it would be a lot more compelling if the story appeared on page 14 of that days Chronicle. Or if there was really any clue to suggest one aught to look in the newspaper.

The other Paul Averly card, the Tahoe card had the most important cutouts from the Examiner.

The Oct. 5th 1970 pace card also had many cut outs from the Examiner. The number “13” was cutout from the Examiner just 22 days before the Halloween card. So the Zodiac prepared the police to look for victim “14” in the Examiner.

None of Pace cards cutouts were from the Chronicle yet it was mailed to the Chronicle.

Nancy murder was not reported in the Chronicle till the next day. Zodiac was itching to needle Averly and get the card out imo.

Excellent find Shawn and extremely noteworthy because of the timing. A valuable addition to the inspiration behind the Halloween card, whether or not it can be proven to be the answer.

Very interesting. It bears repeating that the Bennallack case could be the key to identifying Zodiac. The killer accidentally cut himself and left plentiful DNA (his blood) at the crime scene.

He’d have to have purchased the card specifically because it coincided with what was written in the paper. That is… wasn’t "but why spoil the game" part of the card already?

EDIT: If he were alluding to what Twombly had written, he’d have to have run out and purchased the card that same day, since that’s when it was mailed. One which happened to have that same phrase on it.

EDIT: If he were alluding to what Twombly had written, he’d have to have run out and purchased the card that same day, since that’s when it was mailed. One which happened to have that same phrase on it.

Hello,

If the card already had “why spoil the game” on it and he did not write it. I’m basing my conclusion of what the original card looked like on very limited information to deconstruct.

Los Angeles times article claimed it was constructed from multiple cards.

The back of a greeting card always shows the manufacturer. The back of this card has Paradice Slaves. Gibson is not on the back but the information I have seen suggest it is a Gibson card.

I’m thinking he already had the card or Multiple halloween cards to construct from. He was inspired to send it when reading the paper and seeing the phrase “why spoil the game” in the Twombly article.

looks like a "journey"

spy type

there’s stuff about dice in it, dice games, other than being a play on paradise, pair of dice, "paradice slaves" and whatever else you know…maybe there is something about the use of throwing dice in it– it wants you to figure out

The Oct. 5th 1970 pace card also had many cut outs from the Examiner. The number “13” was cutout from the Examiner just 22 days before the Halloween card. So the Zodiac prepared the police to look for victim “14” in the Examiner.

Ah, of course, I can see why people more familiar with the case were more impressed with your work. This is a critical piece of information, it establishes that the Zodiac was in the habit of cutting out little quotes from the newspaper. I feel a bit silly now. That really makes a big big difference.

I’m also not quick to dismiss letters as hoaxes. I think there is a certain contrarian glee to being the naysayer. Everyone else swallows the codswallop but you’re the only one clever enough to see that he was Canadian/two people/the letter was hoax/he was a she. I shouldn’t really lump thinking a letter is a hoax in with those other examples, but I think there is similar reasoning at work. It’s the tendency to think that the contrary is the most frugal explanation, and that skepticism is the same as Occams razor. In reality assuming the contrary is often the very opposite of applying Occam’s razor.

What I’m saying is that any given Zodiac letter starts with an inherit probability of being authentic that is at least greater than 50%, before it has been examined. And the problem I have is that a lot of people who argue for a letter being a hoax are starting from a baseline position of doubtfulness and skepticism. There are a few caveats, the letter aught to be from the correct time period, from a plausible geographical location and addressed to a plausible recipient. If those parameters are met, then the letter starts life with a more than 50% chance of being authentic regardless of it’s contents. I know the parameters are a little arbitrary, I mean what defines a "plausible geographic location" right? But I hope people get what I’m saying.

I think copycat theories are assigned a much greater degree of inherit plausibility than they deserve. It’s not that a copycat is implausible, or a rare event. But then again, it well could be a rare event. I’ve never seen any evidence that copycat letter writing is as common in these cases as people say it is. Lately I’ve spent a lot of time reading about other cases involving killer letter writing and I’ve come to two conclusions, letter writing is under reported by experts and hoax letters aren’t nearly as common as people believe. Hoax letters happen, but the rate at which some people believe they happened in the Zodiac case is anomalous. You’d have to believe that for every real letter there are almost as many hoax letters.

He’d have to have purchased the card specifically because it coincided with what was written in the paper. That is… wasn’t "but why spoil the game" part of the card already?

EDIT: If he were alluding to what Twombly had written, he’d have to have run out and purchased the card that same day, since that’s when it was mailed. One which happened to have that same phrase on it.

That is a damn good point. I knew I was missing something obvious. I still don’t like the idea of him finding a card with a phrase that references some seemly random page in a newpaper as way to get you to look in that location. It seems backwards. Like I said, you have to find it in the paper first, and then the card makes sense. It’s like the newspaper is pointing at the Halloween card, the breadcrumbs are going the wrong way, the Examiner is giving you clues to Halloween card, it’s all arse about. But having to run out and grab it on the same day, that renders the theory virtually impossible. I won’t throw the baby out with the bath water though, there still could be something to this page 14 stuff. I mean if we could find another clue pointing to the Examiner, then we would have something… hmmm Red Ryder Ranch… skeletons, pumpkins… Examiner… I got nothin.

hmmm Red Ryder Ranch… skeletons, pumpkins… Examiner… I got nothin.

On the sarcastic comic light side, this is the best I can do from one newspaper.

Picture 1) I think that is Paul Averly looking at the Halloween card in the 2007 Zodiac Movie
Picture 2) Beetle BaiLEE is obviously the reason Zodiac only used Z on the real card.
Picture 3) That is a Pumpkin

we all know who figured that out anyway

cows came up with it

moo-boo

theyre very intelligent

they know how to start rumors, where to put the letters and everything

maybe there is a treasure in it-I’m sure there is a treasure in it; there has to be some reward in it…no one would make it without some kind of reward.

what’s with the dice; That’s spy mission type stuff. Shawn is white and can probably come up with a rational reason for the dice theme in the Halloween card that they can’t, and there’s nothing for these people to do when we aren’t at war.

They need the dice theme I see—I think they do anyway. A secret treasure that…

what program did you use to make the voice over for that "work" that, "impresses" a few, whether it impresses them or not is key alright?

yo cows, I gotta go…

He’d have to have purchased the card specifically because it coincided with what was written in the paper. That is… wasn’t "but why spoil But having to run out and grab it on the same day, that renders the theory virtually impossible..

Zodiac probably had a cache of cards. He had already sent the dripping pen and dragon card.

The Halloween card was made from several Halloween cards he had.

Several newspapers ran the following on Oct 31 1970.