Killers Whove Appeared On Game Shows
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VOICE OVER: Rebecca Brayton
From quiz shows to dating games, these seemingly ordinary contestants harbored dark secrets. Join us as we explore the chilling cases of killers who appeared on popular game shows. These unsuspecting TV appearances mask horrifying crimes, proving that evil can lurk in the most unexpected places. Our list includes François Vérove on "Tout le monde veut prendre sa place," Paul Curry on "Jeopardy!," Lori Vallow on "Wheel of Fortune," Edward Edwards on "To Tell the Truth," John Cooper on "Bullseye," and Rodney Alcala on "The Dating Game." Each case reveals a disturbing contrast between their public personas and their heinous acts.
Killers Who’ve Appeared on Game Shows
Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re looking at various examples of known killers appearing on television game shows.
François Vérove[a]
In 2019, a respectable-looking man appeared on the French quiz show “Tout le monde veut prendre sa place,” meaning “Everyone Wants to Take Their Place.” With his suit, beard, and glasses, he looked well-put together, and in a terrific bit of irony, he appeared as a community guardian, talking about his time in the Republican Guard and the National Police. This is ironic, because Vérove had murdered no less than three people. His crime spree stretches back to 1986, when he killed a girl named Cécile Bloch as she was walking to school. Witnesses described a man covered in acne scars, leading to Vérove’s nickname “Le Grêlé,” meaning “The Pockmarked Man.” He murdered two more people eleven months later, with investigators finding that he had burned them with cigarettes before killing them. While his official body count is three, investigators believe that Vérove likely murdered nine. Police knew that the suspect was a lawman, and in 2021, a judge ordered that all police officers who worked in the area at the time of the murders submit to a DNA test. Vérove took his own life after receiving his summons and confessed in a note to have “committed unforgivable acts.”
Paul Curry
“Jeopardy!” is an American institution, and in 1989, it hosted a killer named Paul Curry. Curry appeared in three episodes that March, winning a combined total of $24,101 - about the equivalent of $63,000 today. Three years later he married his partner, Linda Kinkade. But it wasn’t long before suspicious cracks started to show in their marriage. Curry began controlling the couple’s finances, and he demanded that she take out a life insurance policy worth $1 million. And once, when Kinkade was in the hospital for an illness, nurses found a small puncture hole in her IV bag, indicating that it had been tampered with. Kinkade ultimately died of mysterious circumstances in June 1994 at the age of 49. An autopsy revealed that she had a high amount of Ambien and nicotine in her system, and the pathologist noted a small puncture wound behind her ear. Despite suspicions from Kinkade’s friends and family, Curry got away with everything and moved to Kansas. But it was here that he was arrested in 2010, with investigators having finally built a solid case against him. He was found guilty of poisoning Kinkade with a fatal dose of nicotine and was sentenced to life in prison.
Lori Vallow
Some may have heard about the Vallow–Daybell doomsday murders, which saw the deaths of four people. The perpetrators were Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell. But let’s go back to 2004, when Vallow appeared on “Wheel of Fortune.” At the time, she was working as a hairstylist in Austin, Texas, living on a large property with her husband Joseph and their two children, Colby and Tylee. Vallow seemed like a nice woman, and nothing appeared out of the ordinary. Fifteen years later, Tylee would be dead, likely killed by her own mother. Lori and Joseph divorced in 2005, shortly after her appearance on the show, and she eventually met a religious author and cult leader named Chad Daybell. The two soon fell into deep religious fanaticism, with Daybell speaking of visions and Vallow proclaiming that she was a Goddess who would lead the survivors of an upcoming apocalypse. They eventually conspired to murder four people - Tylee, Lori’s estranged husband Charles Vallow, their adopted son J.J., and Daybell’s wife Tammy. Prosecutors argue that the murders were committed to cover up their affair and that the couple used fringe apocalyptic beliefs as an excuse. Vallow was sentenced to life in prison, and Daybell was sentenced to death.
Edward Edwards
“To Tell the Truth” was a popular game show in the ‘60s and ‘70s, and often saw the participation of larger-than-life figures. That’s how Edward Edwards got on the show. Three people would appear, each claiming to be the same person - in this case, a reformed ex-convict named Ed Edwards, who was once on the FBI’s Most Wanted list. Four panelists would then ask the contestants questions and try to gauge who was telling the truth. Edwards appeared on the show in 1972, about fifteen years after escaping from jail and leading police on a wild manhunt while robbing gas stations. He was eventually captured in 1962 and spent five years in prison. He got out, reformed, became a motivational speaker, and appeared on the show. A happy ending. But that’s not the end of the story. Five years later, in 1977, Edwards murdered young Ohio couple Billy Lavaco and Judith Straub[b]. He committed another double homicide in 1980, this time in Wisconsin, and in 1996 he murdered his foster son, Dannie Gloeckner, for insurance money. He was finally apprehended in 2009 and confessed to all five murders. He died in prison at the age of 77.
John Cooper
In May of 1989, a man named John Cooper appeared on the British game show “Bullseye,” which combined darts and trivia. During the program, host Jim Bowen asked Cooper about his “unusual hobby,” and you can almost see Cooper’s heart stop for a second. That’s because Cooper did have an unusual hobby, and it certainly wasn’t scuba diving. By 1985, Cooper had committed a number of robberies and at least two murders. Years earlier he had won £90,000 in a newspaper competition, and a friend claimed that the winnings had resulted in “a huge drink and gambling habit.” Cooper resorted to robbery once the money started disappearing, and on December 22, 1985, he murdered Richard and Helen Thomas while burgling their Scoveston Park farmhouse. And on June 29, 1989 - just one month after his appearance on the show - Cooper shot and killed Peter and Gwenda Dixon as they were vacationing in Pembrokeshire[c], robbing Dixon of £300. He committed even more robberies, sexual assaults, and possible murders before he was finally nailed for the double homicides in 2009 thanks to advancements in DNA testing. He was clinically diagnosed as a psychopath and sentenced to life in prison.
Rodney Alcala[d]
The ‘70s were a different time - one where a convicted sex offender could go on national TV using his real name. In 1971 Alcala was placed on the FBI’s Most Wanted list, having evaded arrest for sexually assaulting Tali Shapiro. He had beaten Shapiro with a steel bar, and she remained in a coma for over a month. Alcala was quickly caught and spent several years in prison, after which he was paroled and appeared on the popular game show “The Dating Game.” He successfully wooed a woman named Cheryl Bradshaw, but she refused the date after finding him “creepy.” Her instincts were correct. Not only was Alcala a known sex offender - he was also a murderer. By the time he appeared on “The Dating Game” in 1978, he had already murdered at least four people, and he killed his fifth victim in June of that same year. By the time Alcala was apprehended in 1979, he had conclusively murdered eight people, but possibly as many as 130. If that number is true, it would make him one of the most prolific serial killers in American history.
Does this footage creep you out? Let us know in the comments below.
[a]veh-RUVV https://youtu.be/g_HVm1-90xk
https://translate.google.ca/?sl=fr&tl=ar&text=Tout%20le%20monde%20veut%20prendre%20sa%20place&op=translate
SAY-sill block https://youtu.be/2avRlg8MKEs?si=U0cdA_QvOSIxBqhS&t=65
grayLAY https://youtu.be/U3H61rmMlJ0?t=43
[b]LAWVA-coh https://youtu.be/1eA81KPSagA?si=HCWHJaDD9ua2kjUU&t=58
STRAO-b
gleckner???
[c]https://forvo.com/search/Pembrokeshire/
pounds
[d]al-CAL-uh https://youtu.be/V4G1FNFGHXA?si=YKxSIzzleXLvVBP5&t=334
tawlly https://youtu.be/V4G1FNFGHXA?si=se893CHvhrCGAIw-&t=6
Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re looking at various examples of known killers appearing on television game shows.
François Vérove[a]
In 2019, a respectable-looking man appeared on the French quiz show “Tout le monde veut prendre sa place,” meaning “Everyone Wants to Take Their Place.” With his suit, beard, and glasses, he looked well-put together, and in a terrific bit of irony, he appeared as a community guardian, talking about his time in the Republican Guard and the National Police. This is ironic, because Vérove had murdered no less than three people. His crime spree stretches back to 1986, when he killed a girl named Cécile Bloch as she was walking to school. Witnesses described a man covered in acne scars, leading to Vérove’s nickname “Le Grêlé,” meaning “The Pockmarked Man.” He murdered two more people eleven months later, with investigators finding that he had burned them with cigarettes before killing them. While his official body count is three, investigators believe that Vérove likely murdered nine. Police knew that the suspect was a lawman, and in 2021, a judge ordered that all police officers who worked in the area at the time of the murders submit to a DNA test. Vérove took his own life after receiving his summons and confessed in a note to have “committed unforgivable acts.”
Paul Curry
“Jeopardy!” is an American institution, and in 1989, it hosted a killer named Paul Curry. Curry appeared in three episodes that March, winning a combined total of $24,101 - about the equivalent of $63,000 today. Three years later he married his partner, Linda Kinkade. But it wasn’t long before suspicious cracks started to show in their marriage. Curry began controlling the couple’s finances, and he demanded that she take out a life insurance policy worth $1 million. And once, when Kinkade was in the hospital for an illness, nurses found a small puncture hole in her IV bag, indicating that it had been tampered with. Kinkade ultimately died of mysterious circumstances in June 1994 at the age of 49. An autopsy revealed that she had a high amount of Ambien and nicotine in her system, and the pathologist noted a small puncture wound behind her ear. Despite suspicions from Kinkade’s friends and family, Curry got away with everything and moved to Kansas. But it was here that he was arrested in 2010, with investigators having finally built a solid case against him. He was found guilty of poisoning Kinkade with a fatal dose of nicotine and was sentenced to life in prison.
Lori Vallow
Some may have heard about the Vallow–Daybell doomsday murders, which saw the deaths of four people. The perpetrators were Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell. But let’s go back to 2004, when Vallow appeared on “Wheel of Fortune.” At the time, she was working as a hairstylist in Austin, Texas, living on a large property with her husband Joseph and their two children, Colby and Tylee. Vallow seemed like a nice woman, and nothing appeared out of the ordinary. Fifteen years later, Tylee would be dead, likely killed by her own mother. Lori and Joseph divorced in 2005, shortly after her appearance on the show, and she eventually met a religious author and cult leader named Chad Daybell. The two soon fell into deep religious fanaticism, with Daybell speaking of visions and Vallow proclaiming that she was a Goddess who would lead the survivors of an upcoming apocalypse. They eventually conspired to murder four people - Tylee, Lori’s estranged husband Charles Vallow, their adopted son J.J., and Daybell’s wife Tammy. Prosecutors argue that the murders were committed to cover up their affair and that the couple used fringe apocalyptic beliefs as an excuse. Vallow was sentenced to life in prison, and Daybell was sentenced to death.
Edward Edwards
“To Tell the Truth” was a popular game show in the ‘60s and ‘70s, and often saw the participation of larger-than-life figures. That’s how Edward Edwards got on the show. Three people would appear, each claiming to be the same person - in this case, a reformed ex-convict named Ed Edwards, who was once on the FBI’s Most Wanted list. Four panelists would then ask the contestants questions and try to gauge who was telling the truth. Edwards appeared on the show in 1972, about fifteen years after escaping from jail and leading police on a wild manhunt while robbing gas stations. He was eventually captured in 1962 and spent five years in prison. He got out, reformed, became a motivational speaker, and appeared on the show. A happy ending. But that’s not the end of the story. Five years later, in 1977, Edwards murdered young Ohio couple Billy Lavaco and Judith Straub[b]. He committed another double homicide in 1980, this time in Wisconsin, and in 1996 he murdered his foster son, Dannie Gloeckner, for insurance money. He was finally apprehended in 2009 and confessed to all five murders. He died in prison at the age of 77.
John Cooper
In May of 1989, a man named John Cooper appeared on the British game show “Bullseye,” which combined darts and trivia. During the program, host Jim Bowen asked Cooper about his “unusual hobby,” and you can almost see Cooper’s heart stop for a second. That’s because Cooper did have an unusual hobby, and it certainly wasn’t scuba diving. By 1985, Cooper had committed a number of robberies and at least two murders. Years earlier he had won £90,000 in a newspaper competition, and a friend claimed that the winnings had resulted in “a huge drink and gambling habit.” Cooper resorted to robbery once the money started disappearing, and on December 22, 1985, he murdered Richard and Helen Thomas while burgling their Scoveston Park farmhouse. And on June 29, 1989 - just one month after his appearance on the show - Cooper shot and killed Peter and Gwenda Dixon as they were vacationing in Pembrokeshire[c], robbing Dixon of £300. He committed even more robberies, sexual assaults, and possible murders before he was finally nailed for the double homicides in 2009 thanks to advancements in DNA testing. He was clinically diagnosed as a psychopath and sentenced to life in prison.
Rodney Alcala[d]
The ‘70s were a different time - one where a convicted sex offender could go on national TV using his real name. In 1971 Alcala was placed on the FBI’s Most Wanted list, having evaded arrest for sexually assaulting Tali Shapiro. He had beaten Shapiro with a steel bar, and she remained in a coma for over a month. Alcala was quickly caught and spent several years in prison, after which he was paroled and appeared on the popular game show “The Dating Game.” He successfully wooed a woman named Cheryl Bradshaw, but she refused the date after finding him “creepy.” Her instincts were correct. Not only was Alcala a known sex offender - he was also a murderer. By the time he appeared on “The Dating Game” in 1978, he had already murdered at least four people, and he killed his fifth victim in June of that same year. By the time Alcala was apprehended in 1979, he had conclusively murdered eight people, but possibly as many as 130. If that number is true, it would make him one of the most prolific serial killers in American history.
Does this footage creep you out? Let us know in the comments below.
[a]veh-RUVV https://youtu.be/g_HVm1-90xk
https://translate.google.ca/?sl=fr&tl=ar&text=Tout%20le%20monde%20veut%20prendre%20sa%20place&op=translate
SAY-sill block https://youtu.be/2avRlg8MKEs?si=U0cdA_QvOSIxBqhS&t=65
grayLAY https://youtu.be/U3H61rmMlJ0?t=43
[b]LAWVA-coh https://youtu.be/1eA81KPSagA?si=HCWHJaDD9ua2kjUU&t=58
STRAO-b
gleckner???
[c]https://forvo.com/search/Pembrokeshire/
pounds
[d]al-CAL-uh https://youtu.be/V4G1FNFGHXA?si=YKxSIzzleXLvVBP5&t=334
tawlly https://youtu.be/V4G1FNFGHXA?si=se893CHvhrCGAIw-&t=6
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