ELLEN Jane Hover was murdered by Rodney Alcala in July 1977, just two years before his crime spree was brought to an end.
Rodney’s crime spree was dramatized in Netflix’s Woman of the Hour, which is set a year after Ellen’s murder when he earned the name: The Dating Game Killer.
A tragic murder
Ellen was the daughter of nightclub owner Herman Hover and was living in New York City when she crossed paths with Rodney Alcala.
She was just 23-years-old when she disappeared without a trace on July 15, 1977.
According to her cousin and future step-sister, Sheila Wellen, Ellen’s bones were found months later at the old Rockefeller estate in Westchester County.
Her disappearance was a complete mystery at first but NYPD cold case investigators now believe that she was murdered by Rodney during his first week of being back in NYC in 1977.
Sheila opened up to Variety about how she was told by Ellen’s friends that her cousin was being pressured into meeting a photographer for lunch.
When she did go for lunch with the photographer, she never returned.
A datebook belonging to Ellen revealed that she met with a man named “John Berger”, which was the alias used by Rodney when he murdered Cornelia Crilley.
Until he murdered Ellen, Rodney had been serving time in prison for his attack on an 8-year-old girl named Tali Shapiro and another unnamed 13-year-old girl.
Ellen was mourned by her godfathers Dean Martin, known for his hit eponymous show, and Sammy Davis Jr, known for his huge multi-media career.
Rodney AKA The Dating Game Killer
Rodney’s crime spree continued after he murdered Ellen in 1977.
He appeared on The Dating Game in 1978, where he tried to charm a teacher named Cheryl Bradshaw into picking him as her match.
Cheryl eventually did choose Rodney, but decided not to go on the date because of his sinister sense of humour, which included references to being “ready” for nighttime.
Eventually, Rodney was brought to justice after murdering a 12-year-old girl named Robin Samsoe.
The police circulated a sketch of the suspect which was recognised as Rodney by his old parole officer, who had been assigned to him after his attack on Tali.
This launched a search for Rodney, who was finally arrested in 1979 and sentenced to death in 1980.
However, the sentence was overturned in 1984 and he spent the rest of his life in prison, before dying in 2021.
Woman of the Hour
Rodney’s evil crime spree was dramatized in Netflix’s Woman of the Hour.
The film, which particularly focuses on Rodney’s appearance on the Dating Game, was directed by Anna Kendrick, who also stars in the movie as Cheryl Bradshaw.
Woman of the Hour made its Netflix debut on October 16, 2024, and is available for streaming.
