When visiting a new city or state, I like to read a biography about a famous resident. During a trip to Seattle, I picked two books about serial killer Ted Bundy: The Stranger Beside Me by Ann Rule and The Phantom Prince by Elizabeth Kendall (referred to by her actual last name of "Kloepfer" in the documentary.) Both authors had close relationships with Bundy, and their books painted an intimate and searing portrait of the man and monster. Because Bundy formed a friendship with Ann Rule long before she became a published author, he may be the serial killer whose personal life we know the most about.
Bundy was a student at the University of Seattle and killed many young women who lived on campus. Bundy's victims were all physically similar: young, brunette women with long hair parted in the middle. The serial killer's murder spree would continue in Utah, Colorado, and Florida before he was eventually captured and executed. Bundy's crimes happened a generation ago, and he has gone from a boogeyman haunting newspaper headlines to a legitimate part of American history. He was one of the first serial killers to give authorities proper insight into the mind of a violent sociopath.
I've read several other books about Bundy, watched various documentaries, listened to podcasts, and even visited Ted's favorite watering hole. I didn't think there was much about the serial killer I had yet to learn, but Conversations with the Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes offers new information to even the most diehard Bundy devotee.
Joe Berlinger, the director behind the Paradise Lost Films, has access to a vast collection of archival footage (some I've never seen before and all shown in pristine broadcast quality.) Berlinger's amazing dedication to this documentary just might render the upcoming feature film about Bundy rather superfluous.
The tapes that form the backbone of Conversations with a Killer have been available to the public for years, but only as low-quality YouTube files; you can also find the entire video of Bundy's Florida court case online.
I highly recommended this documentary to any Bundy devotee, true crime buff, or researcher of deviant psychology.
Bundy was a student at the University of Seattle and killed many young women who lived on campus. Bundy's victims were all physically similar: young, brunette women with long hair parted in the middle. The serial killer's murder spree would continue in Utah, Colorado, and Florida before he was eventually captured and executed. Bundy's crimes happened a generation ago, and he has gone from a boogeyman haunting newspaper headlines to a legitimate part of American history. He was one of the first serial killers to give authorities proper insight into the mind of a violent sociopath.
I've read several other books about Bundy, watched various documentaries, listened to podcasts, and even visited Ted's favorite watering hole. I didn't think there was much about the serial killer I had yet to learn, but Conversations with the Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes offers new information to even the most diehard Bundy devotee.
Joe Berlinger, the director behind the Paradise Lost Films, has access to a vast collection of archival footage (some I've never seen before and all shown in pristine broadcast quality.) Berlinger's amazing dedication to this documentary just might render the upcoming feature film about Bundy rather superfluous.
The tapes that form the backbone of Conversations with a Killer have been available to the public for years, but only as low-quality YouTube files; you can also find the entire video of Bundy's Florida court case online.
I highly recommended this documentary to any Bundy devotee, true crime buff, or researcher of deviant psychology.