Saturday, January 15, 2011

Jan. 15, 1947: The Black Dahlia


It's the most famous, and gruesome, murder case in Los Angeles history. Perhaps even U.S. history. There are countless books on the subject, all claiming to know who took the life of 22-year-old Elizabeth "Betty" Short, but the case remains unsolved. It will most likely remain that way. Forever a question without an answer.

Her body was discovered on the morning of January 15, 1947, in Leimert Park, by a young mother out taking her daughter for a walk. She had last been seen alive on January 9. Between that time, she had suffered unspeakable torture. Her body, which had been severed in two at the waist, had been washed cleaned and posed for its discovery. Police investigation into the case was hampered by its notoriety as the press continued to get in their way at every turn. It was a reporter who nicknamed her "The Black Dahlia," since Short was fond of wearing black and a film called The Blue Dahlia had just come out a year earlier.

The killer called, and later mailed, several of Short's belongings to the Los Angeles Examiner, in attempts to gain more publicity for his crime. Sadly, with the limits of technology that existed then, it was impossible to trace the calls or packages back to their owner. Oddly enough, many of the authors who've written books on the case claim that the killer was a family member. Of the many unsolved cases, this one seems to speak something personal to any who study it.

READ MORE: The Black Dahlia Web Site

READ MORE: Heaven Is HERE! Larry Harnisch's Site on Elizabeth Short, The Black Dahlia

READ MORE: Wikipedia

ON FILM: The Black Dahlia (inspired by)

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