An Interview With Paul Avery About The Zodiac Killer

KRON-TV News footage from October 31st 1970 featuring an interview with journalist Paul Avery (1934-2000), who has just received a Halloween card from the Zodiac killer, mailed to the offices of the San Francisco Chronicle on October 27th. Even though this card included the phrase: "Peek a boo you are doomed" Avery states that: "I think that the Zodiac is just making an idle threat ... I think he wanted to get himself a little publicity." When the Ch.4 reporter asks: "What kind of a person do you think the Zodiac is?" Avery goes on to provide a basic character assessment of this already notorious murderer: "Well obviously [he's] a very sick person ... He's very cunning too. He's not a brilliant man but he's certainly, he certainly isn't dumb. I think he's got a kind of a shrewd, animal cunning to him. And of course there's a great sickness in there that prompts him to go out and kill." Note that according to the original Ch.5 KPIX-TV shot logs, they also interviewed Avery about this Zodiac correspondence on the same day but that 16mm newsfilm reel is currently missing. Opening graphic designed by Carrie Hawks.