To me, hands down, The Zodiac. I read a book about the case after seeing an episode of “Case Reopened” on The Learning Channel. This episode was one of the most compelling hours of TV i’ve ever watched. The most interesting aspect was how convincing the case was against ALL the suspects. It is probably the best argument against capital punishment ever, because if you put any of these guys on trial, the circumstantial evidence that any of them were the killer would, to most people, be beyond a reasonable doubt.
I’d go with the classics, Jack the Ripper. Five murders and then he stopped. Why ? Was he caught and people didn’t realize it was him ? Did he have an accident and died ? Was it a cover-up ? We’ll never know and that’s what makes it so fascinating for me.
Oh, I think it’d have to have been God’s murder. The police should have questioned Nietzsche more closely about what he knew about the case.
Jack the Ripper? Everyone knows that he was a force of evil that moved through the universe and eventually took over the body of Scotty on “Star Trek”. Fortunately, Captain Kirk had the entity of evil beamed out into space.
Whew. That was a load off of my mind.
But seriously, from my perspective of working in a public library, there are more people interested in the JFK assassination than any other case.
Whether or not you consider it unsolved is your decision.
The Princes in the Tower, sons of King Edward III, disappeared 1485.
The Black Dahlia.
A woman named Elizabeth Short, an apiring actress, found brutally (literally cut in two) murdered in a vacant lot. This happened in 1947 and was a very big case for a while. So far, it remains unsolved.
And IMHO, the murder of Kurt Cobain. Yes, I know the police ruled it a suicide. However, he managed to shoot himself with a triple overdose of heroin in his bloodstream and not leave any fingerprints on the gun or bullets. There were two (according to handwriting experts) different types of writing on the note-Kurt’s and somebody else’s. The part of the letter in Kurt’s handwriting sounds like a retirement letter. The other parts are more in the style of a suicide note.
Feel free to flame me but I believe he was murdered.
Lizzie Borden
Did she do it? Of course not…women just didn’t do that kind of thing…heh
Absolute nonsense. Haven’t you read any Robert Bloch or Harlan Ellison? He was time-transported into the future.
Jeez, even the SDMB staff can’t get it right. Jack the Ripper was kidnapped by the Vorlons. For centuries, he was used to test people to see if they are “the One,” until he came up against Captain Sheridan and couldn’t break him.
Edward IV, actually. (Edward III was their – thinks: Edward IV was the son of Richard of York, whose father was executed by Henry V, and his father was Edmund, son of Edward… – great-great-great grandfather…I think.)
Good choice, though.
hardygrrl Black Dahlia is second for me. The interesting thing is both Black Dahlia and Lizzie Borden had an episode of “Case Reopened” that was on that night.
Dear God the Zodiac Killer creeps me out!
What about (I’m not sure if this is his “name”) the Green River Killer? He raped and murdered some insane number of girls–towards the 100s, I think, and was never caught.
But the most awesome unsolved crime of all time, just for its bizarreness, and celebrity, and its pure “damn-the-man-ness”–D.B. Cooper.
With H.G. Wells, don’t forget.
Total agreement.
If the famous Scotland Yard couldn’t do it…
Oooh, others I forgot:
King Boris III of Bulgaria-they still don’t know how exactly he died.
Hitler’s niece, Geli-did he have her killed?
All of the ones mentioned, plus the murder of Bob Crane, the murder of novelist James Ellroy’s mother, the “accidental” drowning of James Whale, the death of Charles Dekker (believe that was his name), found tied with a homophobic note/epithet stuffed in his mouth or something brutal and cruel like that.
Most “Hollywood” mysteries fascinate me.
The death of the Czar and his family.
Sir Rhosis
Hijack:
elfkin, I thought Nietsche was just acting as coroner.
And since I mentioned the Czar, I’ve always wanted to do this, and since my post follows hers:
“Guinastasia, please come home, your daddy the Czar is on the telephone.”
Sorry.
End of hijack.
Sir Rhosis
When I saw the thread title I immediately thought of “The Black Dahlia”, it’s one of those stories that just grabs you…
Keith
Several authorities think that there were actually at least 3 serial killers operating in the Green River area simeultaneously, based on crime scene differences. I think the total number of victims was in the mid-40’s.
The Clevelan Torso Murders are another odd case.
Oh, Sir Rhosis , it was Albert Dekker, and from what I recall reading, it was an auterotic accidental death/suicide. I could be mistaken, but I don’t recall hearing about the possibility of foul play.
–tygre
Heh. Actually, they’ve pretty much got that one done-they know who the murderers were-and it’s unlikely anyone survived-my bet is that the missing bodies are Alexei and Maria, not Anastasia as everyone thinks. I still wish, however, that someone would try and find Nicky’s brother, Grand Duke Mikhail, who is buried somewhere in the woods in Perm. He should be reinterred with his wife and his son-who could be exhumed from France and brought to Russia. Also, Nicholas’s mother, Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna is still buried in Denmark-but it was her wish that if it ever became possible, she wanted to be reinterred with her husband, Tsar Alexander III-I wish that could happen.