Something happened in Zodiac’s childhood which I believe was a contributing factor to the acclaimed infernal game.
In 1946 there was some rather interesting activity transpiring in and/or around Texarkana during the spring of that year. A man was killing people in Texas with the very same M.O as our subject Zodiac himself. The killer became known as the "Phantom Killer" for his uncanny ability to evade police (the phantom just like Zodiac was never caught) or even once being seen by his only three surviving victims.
Phantom attacked eight (killing five) and usually attacked in three week intervals. The killer was even once described by one of the three survivors as a man wearing a home-made hood over his head (sound familiar?).
The murders always took place on weekends (again, sound familiar?) between Feb, 22, 1946 through May, 1946. These so called Phantom murders were so notorious at this time that the police called in outside F.B.I help and the entire town was on complete lock down for months. During this scary lock down period people began going crazy buying guns for self defence, barring their homes windows and adding multiple locks to doors and windows. So scared were the town folk "and their children" that people even set up booby traps in their houses in case the dreaded Phantom entered their home. Now I can only imagine what it would be like being a young lad during these times in Texas (very close to California yes) and the fear one would experience. It is of my personal beliefs that the Zodiac was either;
1. Living in this area at this time and was profoundly effected by this activity or
2. Heard a lot about these murders and followed the constant news broadcasts upon the subject also thus effecting him as a youth.
So as you can see there are very strong similarities between the Phantom murders and those of the Zodiac so it is almost a certainty that the young Zodiac was effected profoundly by this case and himself set out to achieve the same notoriety as the Phantom attained. Also, lets not forget the Zodiac letter signed " The Red Phantom" red with rage.
Similarities :
1. Both killers where seen wearing a black hood over their heads and shoulders.
2. Both killers killed on the weekends in lovers lanes . (yes the Phantom hit lovers lanes also)
3. Both killers used similar guns and changed guns often.
4. Both killers never left any fingerprints or other evidence (the palm print does NOT belong to the Zodiac.)
5. Both killers attained much fame in the papers and news .
6. Both killers where never apprehended .
Coincidence ? Hardly. Both cases resemble each other in shocking ways that are impossible to explain away. I implore members to do their own research into this avenue as you will not regret doing so.
StylusReigns
I know some here are quite knowledgeable about this case. Hopefully they will chime in.
“…they may be dealing with one or more ersatz Zodiacs–other psychotics eager to get into the act, or perhaps even other murderers eager to lay their crimes at the real Zodiac’s doorstep.“ L.A. Times, 1969
It’s a real interesting case. The movie, ‘The Town That Dreaded Sundown’ is based on it(a favorite of mine). I can see a young kid being influenced by the case,then again some people think a young Zodiac was responsible for the murders, but if zodiac was the killer in the case, he would have been pretty young.
There is more than one way to lose your life to a killer
http://www.zodiackillersite.com/
http://zodiackillersite.blogspot.com/
https://twitter.com/Morf13ZKS
There has been A LOT of discussion about this via other message boards.
Search "Zodiac Texarkana"….and you will find some interesting discussion.
“…they may be dealing with one or more ersatz Zodiacs–other psychotics eager to get into the act, or perhaps even other murderers eager to lay their crimes at the real Zodiac’s doorstep.“ L.A. Times, 1969
I absolutely believe that the Zodiac was well-aware of the Texarkana Phantom and drew some inspiration from those crimes but I don’t necessarily take this to mean that Z was from Texas. It has always been my hunch that the Zodiac was a big reader of true detective magazines so he could very well have learned about the Phantom there. (Bryan Hartnell, who survived Lake Berryessa, described Z’s voice as flat and without a discernible accent, which would suggest he wasn’t a native Texan. I also suspect that it is precisely an immersion in true crime literature that inspired the oddly specific "Deer Lodge" prison detail he gave to Hartnell before stabbing him. That’s always been a red herring to me, the elaborations of a bad liar, to quote Hannibal Lecter.)
"There are such devils."
-The Pledge
A really good site about the Texarkana Phantom here-
http://www.txkphantom.site11.com/index2.html
There is more than one way to lose your life to a killer
http://www.zodiackillersite.com/
http://zodiackillersite.blogspot.com/
https://twitter.com/Morf13ZKS
Zodiac clearly took inspiration from the Texarkana Phantom, yes. Some go so far as to suggest they were the same person, although this doesn’t strike me as being likely.
4. Both killers never left any fingerprints or other evidence (the palm print does NOT belong to the Zodiac.)
That’s a rather bold claim.
The phantom could have been a good inspiration source for Z. I think a 1939 source would also qualify as inspiration source:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXnJl3Z … e=youtu.be
The phantom could have been a good inspiration source for Z. I think a 1939 source would also qualify as inspiration source:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXnJl3Z … e=youtu.be
Great comparison’s, something to think about, that’s for sure!
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If Zodiac ever joined a Z forum, I’m sure he would have been banned for not following forum rules. Zam’s/Quote
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MODERATOR
also you have the weird lights in Gurdon Ark. nearby and wasn’t Texarkana area a a place the bigfoot was sighted . Yeah it was a movie too ,The Legend of Boggy Creek …I would move
For me, and again this is simply personal opinion & Perception, I just don’t see Zodiac having multiple ‘killing career’s’ all over the place and if he did start killing in, lets say, Fresno after he left San Fran, then he’d be easy to spot because his method and the specific details would be similar. By that I mean, the bragging to authorities after each successful murder etc. The person responsible created ‘Zodiac’ as his personal ID, and he himself said after the bombing of a police station that he hoped they did not think he had anything to do with that and that it just wouldn’t do to move in on someone else’s territory.
Having said that though and in trying to be objective, the flip side to that argument is that for me, considering how absolutely determined he seemed to take credit for, and brag about, his crimes to the police and public, I would have though that should someone try and move in on his territory by using his acclaimed fame and name when committing a series of murders in New York that this would have outraged the San Fran Zodiac into communicating to inform his public that the New York murderer calling himself ‘Zodiac’ is an imposter who is just riding the crest of his own famous wave but is, in reality, nothing to do with the original San Fran Zodiac.
Again, this is all personal opinion and how you perceive the Zodiac but for me, I tend to think he was active in the Bar Area in late 68 and throughout 69 and that is it as far as his crime spree goes. Contrary to popular belief, serial killers can and have stopped.
"So it’s sorta social. Demented and sad, but social, right?" Judd Nelson.
WC, over a long period of time, I have come round to the same thinking… The "canonical attacks" from LB to Paul Stine to Kathy Johns does not suggest a "serial" killer. I’m not certain regarding the evidence for the capacity for such predators "stopping" or not [within, or especially without the U.S.], but many of the well known aspects of a serial killer (extremely high body count, the frequent luring of unsuspecting victims [indeed, the Johns attack would seem to underscore this notion, if the Zodiac attacker had been a Bundy or Gacy it’s very unclear, however chilling it sounds, whether the pregnant Ms. Johns and/or her child would’ve survived], especially the documented "behavioral" patterns, specific preying grounds, and most especially, the general lack of affect. By contrast, the attacks of the Zodiac, there is a definite lack of such pattern. This does not mean the attacker cannot, with varying degrees of care, plan to carry out attacks, and be still driven by irrational, and all too manifested rage. Yes, I do agree, a spree, but a very, very strange one.
There is a new book that is due to be released mid November 2014 about the Texarkana/Phantom Killer who killed couples in lover’s lanes after WWII. It can be preordered now for a reduced price at Amazon.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/160598 … UTF8&psc=1
I do not have any idea whether or not the Zodiac Killer will addressed in the book. The author James Presley is a seasoned author, Pegasus is a known publisher and Presley lives in Texarkana TX so hopefully this all means the book has been well researched and presented without the usual annoyances of a self published book!
