"Letters to the Editor" in Vallejo.

I spent the day reading Letters to the editor in the 1974 Vallejo Times Herald. My thinking is that Z was a regular reader of that paper, and as he loved to write editors, he may have wrote to the Vallejo editors. I found some interesting letters. One guy mentions Needing to buy stamps to mail a "special letter". One guy mentions he misses the day when you didnt have to use zip codes (like Z always failed to do). One mentions "no address" like Z wrote on the Aug 69 letter. One guy's name continually comes up as he writes multiple letters to the editor thruout the year.

I will post these tomorrow, and would like opinions. Could any of these be from Z, why and why not? No way to prove any of these are Z, but I definitely think he would write to the editor, maybe even slip one in with his real name.

morf13 wrote:

I spent the day reading Letters to the editor in the 1974 Vallejo Times Herald. My thinking is that Z was a regular reader of that paper, and as he loved to write editors, he may have wrote to the Vallejo editors. I found some interesting letters. One guy mentions Needing to buy stamps to mail a "special letter". One guy mentions he misses the day when you didnt have to use zip codes (like Z always failed to do). One mentions "no address" like Z wrote on the Aug 69 letter. One guy's name continually comes up as he writes multiple letters to the editor thruout the year.

I will post these tomorrow, and would like opinions. Could any of these be from Z, why and why not? No way to prove any of these are Z, but I definitely think he would write to the editor, maybe even slip one in with his real name.

Thanks Morf, this sounds interesting. I also believe he liked writing letters, so I look forward to your findings.

Not a bad idea, morf. That is actually how Mr. X first came to attention. I think I would probably look at the same time period (1974) when Z was possibly more active yet no longer identified himself as Zodiac. The SF Chronicle, for whatever reason, seemed to be Z's newspaper of choice so that might be worth a look too if it's accessible. I think we probably want to be careful about reading too much into a simple phrase or idiosyncracy but it sounds like a worthy pursuit. Best of luck...

For whatever reason, the only Vallejo news articles available on online indexes like newspaperarchive.com, or Ancestry.com, are for the year 1974.

Okay, here is the first one from 3/13/74 Vallejo Times Herald. The writer complains about the post office, the fact he now needs to start using Zip codes (Z never used them) and uses the term "Address unknown", Z used the term "no address" on a letter. And finally he uses the term "Disgusted Citizen" (Citizen card from Z)


This next one is also a gripe about the postal service from 3/20/74. The writer states that he had to get stamps to mail a "special letter". This guy states he is a "Citizen of Vallejo". It is signed JOHN L. LEE. This guy John L. Lee sent multiple letters to the editor in 1974!


Here is one more from JOHN L. LEE, it is about Hank Aaron and it says "DO YOUR THING" (Z wrote "when I do my thing")-



This next one from 6/18/74, is about gun control (a hot button for Z perhaps). The writer signs the letter JACK PICKERING. I did a quick search for any residents in Vallejo named JACK PICKERING and did not find any records. But for all of you Arthur Leigh Allen fans out there, I found a famous english soccer, or football player named JACK PICKERING. His Date of birth....December 18.


Finally, here is one from7/15/74 that mentions Zodiac & The Exorcist in the same letter to the editor.

Decided tp give this thread a bump, as a couple people told me before that this would be an interesting project-looking thru various letters to the editor in the Vallejo newspaper, in the hopes that one of those letters sounded alot like Z, and may have even included his real name in the signature(obviously if he didnt intend for the cops to catch it as being a Z letter)

I recognize the name of Albert Cardwell in that last letter. He was for many, many years and still is a prolific letter to the editor writer in Napa. Most of his letters touch on civic issuses in the Napa area. He may have even been in local government for a time or at least run for local positions. It's been a while since I've even thought of the guy.

Goggle -Al Cardwell Napa- and you'll find a lot of letters to the Napa Register. There was a Cardwell Building Supply in Napa and I believe he was affiliated with that business.

Seagull wrote:

I recognize the name of Albert Cardwell in that last letter. He was for many, many years and still is a prolific letter to the editor writer in Napa. Most of his letters touch on civic issuses in the Napa area. He may have even been in local government for a time or at least run for local positions. It's been a while since I've even thought of the guy.

Goggle -Al Cardwell Napa- and you'll find a lot of letters to the Napa Register. There was a Cardwell Building Supply in Napa and I believe he was affiliated with that business.

Interesting, thanks for sharing!

Morf,

Thank you for taking the time to research old Vallejo papers and for posting what you have thus far.

The, Jack Pickering and John L Lee letters, I find interesting.

As you have noted, there appears to be no listing for a Jack Pickering in Vallejo. There does appear to be a Wayne Jack Pickering living in San Francisco. Today, I can see subscribing to all sorts of publications from various parts of the country. But would that be the case then? How does a man living in San Francisco come to write a paper in Vallejo concerning gun control? Seems rather odd.

In regards to John L. Lee, it's interesting that he claims to be a citizen of Vallejo. I haven't noted any records in Vallejo for this man either. See all sorts of John L Lee notations in Los Angeles though. Are you able to find anything on him?

I do see your points regarding the post office letter and, to me, they do appear very Z like. What strikes a cord for me though is the Hank Aaron post. Hank Aaron scored his 717 home run on April 21, 1974. As the writer mentions, Hank Aaron was 40 years old during this accomplishment. The fact that this writer addresses Hank Aaron as a young man would imply that the writer is "some degree" older than Hank Aaron's age of 40. I am sure it is probably just me, but "right on", "fine mamma" and "do your thing" seem to be words a younger person of the time would say and not someone older than 40.

Soze

soze wrote:

Morf,

Thank you for taking the time to research old Vallejo papers and for posting what you have thus far.

The, Jack Pickering and John L Lee letters, I find interesting.

As you have noted, there appears to be no listing for a Jack Pickering in Vallejo. There does appear to be a Wayne Jack Pickering living in San Francisco. Today, I can see subscribing to all sorts of publications from various parts of the country. But would that be the case then? How does a man living in San Francisco come to write a paper in Vallejo concerning gun control? Seems rather odd.

In regards to John L. Lee, it's interesting that he claims to be a citizen of Vallejo. I haven't noted any records in Vallejo for this man either. See all sorts of John L Lee notations in Los Angeles though. Are you able to find anything on him?

I do see your points regarding the post office letter and, to me, they do appear very Z like. What strikes a cord for me though is the Hank Aaron post. Hank Aaron scored his 717 home run on April 21, 1974. As the writer mentions, Hank Aaron was 40 years old during this accomplishment. The fact that this writer addresses Hank Aaron as a young man would imply that the writer is "some degree" older than Hank Aaron's age of 40. I am sure it is probably just me, but "right on", "fine mamma" and "do your thing" seem to be words a younger person of the time would say and not someone older than 40.

Soze

I actually did find out who LEE was, and I believe him to be African-American...so we can most likely take him out of the Z equation. But yes, you are right, the fact that Pickering guy did not live in Vallejo, but chose to write their newspaper a letter about gun control, is interesting. Pickering died in 1979 by the way. The last possibility of a real Z letter was in 1978 or in 1990(if you believe they were real Z letters, not sure I do).

But I think it is very possible that Z wrote letter to the editor on a regular basis, even when he wasnt in his Z character. Unfortunately, the best online resource for old newspapers is newspaperarchive.com and the only Vallejo papers they have available to view are from 1974. Maybe one of our Vallejo area researchers could go to the library for us....hint,hint ZAM

Morf, Your wish is will come true very soon ! We Z girls will be going to the Vallejo library soon.
My thoughts about the Z writing to the news papers, is that I truly believe he has many times.
I have found a few myself.
They weren't to the Editor, but in the personals. In Nov 1994 there was one that was a copy of the note to Scorpio, in the movie Dirty Harry. I have a copy of that one, was in the S.F. Chron. (It was durring a news paper strike.)

The one that really got to me, was one in the VTH Aug 1969. It was signed Anonymous. I still can not believe that I am the only person that read it ? The writer mentions that the stars were smiling on Dec. 20th and again on July 4th . They will smile again on Labor day.
That is not an exact quote, because the writer also mentions Aquarius and Leo the Lyon talking too much, something about a loud roar. ( I am a Leo, LOL )
The machines at that library are the worst I have ever used !
I must have been having a lot of problems with it, the day I found that article. Because I wasn't able to get a copy of it. I have looked for it many times sense then , but have not found it. It takes me the whole day to search for Z stuff. Not many people other than Ricardo ,can sit all day looking for that diamond in a hay stack.
I looked for ant Z like victims for that Labor day, but didn't find any. That next Labor day there was one, Donna Lass !

sandy betts wrote:

Morf, Your wish is will come true very soon ! We Z girls will be going to the Vallejo library soon.
My thoughts about the Z writing to the news papers, is that I truly believe he has many times.
I have found a few myself.
They weren't to the Editor, but in the personals. In Nov 1994 there was one that was a copy of the note to Scorpio, in the movie Dirty Harry. I have a copy of that one, was in the S.F. Chron. (It was durring a news paper strike.)

The one that really got to me, was one in the VTH Aug 1969. It was signed Anonymous. I still can not believe that I am the only person that read it ? The writer mentions that the stars were smiling on Dec. 20th and again on July 4th . They will smile again on Labor day.
That is not an exact quote, because the writer also mentions Aquarius and Leo the Lyon talking too much, something about a loud roar. ( I am a Leo, LOL )
The machines at that library are the worst I have ever used !
I must have been having a lot of problems with it, the day I found that article. Because I wasn't able to get a copy of it. I have looked for it many times sense then , but have not found it. It takes me the whole day to search for Z stuff. Not many people other than Ricardo ,can sit all day looking for that diamond in a hay stack.
I looked for ant Z like victims for that Labor day, but didn't find any. That next Labor day there was one, Donna Lass !

Sounds good, hope you find something good. My bet would be that Z wrote multiple letters to the editor of Vallejo papers using his real name, before he started sending in Z letters, so likely in 1968-mid 69, and possibly after also.

Morf,

I havent seen a race for any of the Lee's, course, I didnt dig deep either. Thanks for the info.

I did stumble across this thread. Hadn't really noticed whether there is a separate section for say, letters to the editor in San Francisco or Napa. Would there be? What about places like Oakland or Berkeley? Communities within close proximity to known murder sites. Not that this is entirely within topic, but has there been any mention of Z possibly writing within publications aside from Gaik? Of particular interest to me would be the publication Kaliflower. Its my understanding that one of the San Francisco libraries has a complete set for this publication.

Soze

morf13 wrote:

sandy betts wrote:

Morf, Your wish is will come true very soon ! We Z girls will be going to the Vallejo library soon.
My thoughts about the Z writing to the news papers, is that I truly believe he has many times.
I have found a few myself.
They weren't to the Editor, but in the personals. In Nov 1994 there was one that was a copy of the note to Scorpio, in the movie Dirty Harry. I have a copy of that one, was in the S.F. Chron. (It was durring a news paper strike.)

The one that really got to me, was one in the VTH Aug 1969. It was signed Anonymous. I still can not believe that I am the only person that read it ? The writer mentions that the stars were smiling on Dec. 20th and again on July 4th . They will smile again on Labor day.
That is not an exact quote, because the writer also mentions Aquarius and Leo the Lyon talking too much, something about a loud roar. ( I am a Leo, LOL )
The machines at that library are the worst I have ever used !
I must have been having a lot of problems with it, the day I found that article. Because I wasn't able to get a copy of it. I have looked for it many times sense then , but have not found it. It takes me the whole day to search for Z stuff. Not many people other than Ricardo ,can sit all day looking for that diamond in a hay stack.
I looked for an,t Z like victims for that Labor day, but didn't find any. That next Labor day there was one, Donna Lass !

Sounds good, hope you find something good. My bet would be that Z wrote multiple letters to the editor of Vallejo papers using his real name, before he started sending in Z letters, so likely in 1968-mid 69, and possibly after also.

I will check out those other papers, Oakland should be a good one, because of the Zodiac's possible phone call to Oakland PD on 10-22-69. I know that the police felt it was someone other than the Zodiac, that made the call, and the other calls on the Dunbar TV show.
My thought on that is that it was the Zodiac who made all of those calls , and set up the guy they found, who the police believed made all of those calls.
They made plenty of mistakes in the Z case, why not another one ? Z was smart enough to set up some mental patient by giving him phone change, and asking him to make a phone call or two.

I am like you. I believe the Zodiac made the call to the police. From there, I really do not know what to think. Could he have desired to call the Dunbar show and someone beat him to the punch? Could it have been like you said and he got this mental patient to make the call? Or could it have been that he simply wanted to watch himself being talked about on television and the events just played out the way they did? Dont know.

I would need to go back and look to be certain of the date, but, there was a story in the Oakland Tribune concerning Melvin Belli and a client of his (Ruth something or another). She was known as the trunk murderess. Apparently she had already been convicted and sent to a mental institution and this was her 6th escape. She apparently had been found living as live in help in San Francisco. If memory serves me correctly, I believe the write up was during the month of this call, maybe, the month before. I just wonder if the Dunbar call and the letter plea for help sprang up from this particular story.

Soze

My mistake. Apparently it was just under 4 months earlier and not the month or month before. The article was in the June 30th 1969 edition of the Oakland Tribune.

Soze

Looking back at this one letter to the Vallejo editor:


This one caught my eye, and actually, Soze and I exchanges some PM's about this guy. He may make for a very interesting Z suspect.

* Although he did NOT live in Vallejo(that I can verify, but lived in the SF area)he felt the need to write a letter to the editor about 'GUN CONTROL'

*He felt the need to mention the SLA (Z mentioned the SLA)

*At the time of the Stine murder, this man had a relative living on WASHINGTON in SF. He also had another one not far away from there living on FUNSTON. If you look in Darlene's address book, she knew a guy that lived over on FUNSTON. You can see it here, 2nd from the bottom:
http://www.zodiackiller.com/DeeBook17.html

*The guy that lived on FUNSTON supposedly had worked with Darlene for the utility company, but went onto become a SFPD cop at some point. The guy that wrote the letter to the editor in Vallejo was a SFPD cop.(Personally, although many people have suspected for a long time that Z was a cop, or involved in LE, I have had a hard time accepting that) But perhaps Darlene and.or her Friend that lived on Funston knew this guy. Some have said that Darlene had a thing for cops, so perhaps she may have known this guy?

*At the age of aprox 17-19, this man was robbed at gunpoint while he worked at a service station(perhaps had some damaging effect on him mentally??)

*This man fought SFPD to be paid for disability pay for an injury he suffered while playing in a mandatory inter-department football game. He was refused the disability pay(I dont know exactly what year this happened, but could give him a beef against SFPD)

* This man would have been in his late 20's at the time of the Johns attack, which gels with the aprox age of her attacker. She said there was kids clothes in her attackers car. This guy had young kids at the time. His age is also right for the mysterious man seen watching the girls at Lake Berryessa on that day.

The last confirmed Z letter was in 1974. This man moved to another county north of the bay area in aprox 1974. In 1979, he was killed in a 'motorcicle' accident.

A couple questions.....Does anyone know if Melvin Belli handled divorces, or would handle a case of a cop trying to get money from the SFPD? If anyone would like to know more about this guy, feel free to PM me. At some point, if i get more, I may add this guy to the SUSPECTS list.

Looks like Wayne was married three times and divorced twice. First marriage was in 61' and lasted 5 years. Second one was in 68' and only lasted 1 year. Can't imagine the problems the latter must have had.

Don't really see Melvin Belli handling divorce cases. Sometime between 65' and 69', he was clearly handling high profile cases. To name a couple, one was Port Chicago and another, the trunk murderess. Considering this, I am not sure I see Belli handling what would or could be considered today a workmans comp issue. Could certainly be wrong though.

Soze

morf13 wrote:

*This man fought SFPD to be paid for disability pay for an injury he suffered while playing in a mandatory inter-department football game. He was refused the disability pay(I dont know exactly what year this happened, but could give him a beef against SFPD)

Any specifics on this injury? Something that may have resulted in a limp possibly?

-tbz

thebigZ wrote:

morf13 wrote:

*This man fought SFPD to be paid for disability pay for an injury he suffered while playing in a mandatory inter-department football game. He was refused the disability pay(I dont know exactly what year this happened, but could give him a beef against SFPD)

Any specifics on this injury? Something that may have resulted in a limp possibly?

-tbz

I will check and let you know.

EDIT/UPDATE: The injury mentioned is an ELBOW INJURY. The article mentions that the board was hearing a plea by this Officer, and it appears it was in late 72 to early 1973...no limp!