Wow. That symbol is kinda familiar…

Nice reading. I even got into the anthrax one beneath.
This kind of reminds me about Leigh Allen being into comics and true detective magazines. The cross-hair symbol when combined with the Dr Zodiac vs Batman inspiration, can support these sources as being potential influences into the creation of the Zodiac persona, whether it be Lee or not. (How many American boys of that era would have been enthralled by comics and detective magazines? I know as a kid comics for me were a much-needed asset, but as I grew into teenage years their influences became lesser when the curiosity of men’s top-shelf magazines began creeping in, during my ‘transition from boy to man’.)
I would say there is a lot of feasibility in this proposal, especially when it may be considered that, by taking inspiration from well-known and widespread sources, Zodiac’s butt would be covered in not being truly original in his inspirations. Therefore, he puts himself into the mainstream and becomes less unique. And, at the same time, he is learning detective and law-enforcement techniques through the detective magazines, and most likely already creating his villainous identity from a young age.
Also- I don’t know if this is relevant but one thing that stands out to me in the article is the word clue being spelt clew. I am English, so I have no idea if this was a common way of spelling the word back in 1941. Could small details like this also point to the communications persona of the killer/hunter/rapist/kidnapper? Should it also be considered that, with Zodiac’s occasional childish spats and the way he spoke being seen as disturbing in some contexts, it could be suggested that comics and detective stories continued to be influential into his adult life?
If Zodiac saw himself as the ‘anti-superhero’ or ‘super-villain’ element in his game, then his methods of communication seems to show someone who is quite easily able to slip between his super-villain mode and his normal identity. Note- it always seems to be the hero in the comics who has the identity clash of conscience whilst the villain doesn’t seem to care. How confident and socially adept at fitting in was Zodiac? How good was he at controlling his urges and keeping his super-villain under wraps whilst he walked around as Average Joe, and being capable and able enough to switch back when he had done his deed?
Well, for his game to still be existing 50 years later means he was pretty fking good at it, or was insanely crap and well protected. Or, maybe he was both?
I think that the comic/true detective influences are viable, as evidences seem to support these elements.

The spelling clew was fairly common back in the 40s and before. I have seen in other detective magazines as well as newspapers articles of that vintage.

Man, this is going to drive me crazy – reading the clipping, it mentions a phony wedding. There is a real-life murder of a woman (I think in the 70’s) where something similar happened if my memory serves correctly. I think I read about it in the ‘possible Zodiac victims’ section a few years ago. If so, then we have at least two items in this one story that showed up in real crime 20 years later (the crosshairs and the phony wedding).
I’m off to trawl the old posts and see what I come up with.

Turned out to be quite easy to find on this occasion, here’s the relevant text from the post:

24-year-old radiographer Nancy Patricia Gidley,[29] last seen at a Rodeway Inn motel on July 12, 1973, was found strangled behind the George Washington High School gymnasium three days later. The victim was unclothed except for a single fish-shaped gold earring and was determined to have died within the previous 24 hours. Gidley had served four years in the Air Force and told friends and family in Mountain Home, Idaho that she intended to become a freelance writer for the San Francisco Chronicle and was going to San Francisco to be the maid of honour at the wedding of a friend from Hamilton Air Force Base, all of which proved false.[30]

And the post in full :
http://www.zodiackillersite.com/viewtopic.php?f=37&t=2569&p=53900&hilit=wedding#p53900

Interesting that this could have links to SRHM, which has always had (albeit tenuous) links to Z.

I think there are a lot of "clews" pointing to someone who was a voracious consumer of fiction.

comics, books, movies, opera, etc.

and that person wanted to be a creator of it too…

symbolism, codes, correspondence, stories, reportage, collages, drawings, etc.
He wants to broadcast it.

The person has a rich inner life.

I never felt ALA was Z. his predelictions seemed to go unstifled. All the weird stuff he was up to was supported by whatever wealth his family had. When he abused someone, he was caught. (I’m only trying to suggest a pattern of NOT HIDING I think I see in him – he was clearly a reprehensible abuser)

For example, that whole thing about him going skin diving / scuba diving at the lake, cutting up chickens, strikes me as someone weird living a weird life. Z strikes me as someone weird who CANT live a life he wants…

Z prob had a more frustrated inner life and was used to hiding it. Therefore he was able to hide his crimes.