Hollywood is famous for its movie stars, glamour and shopping (hello, Rodeo drive!) But Los Angeles has a rich history of unsolved crimes and murders as well. In a city known for its gritty crime dramas, it seems likely that art imitates life, after a review of some of the most famous murders in the city.

  1. The Black Dahlia, or Elizabeth Short, was found murdered in a Los Angeles neighborhood. On January 15, 1947, her half-naked body was found on a vacant lot – severed into two pieces. Her body had been drained of all its blood, washed by the killer. She had cuts across her face, thighs, and breasts, and her corpse appeared to be posed. Given the grisly nature of the crime, it’s no wonder that it became an instant media circus. Shortly after the discovery of the body, a mysterious letter containing some of Short’s personal affairs were sent to the police – and the letters continued. In spite of all the attention and police efforts, the murderer has never been found.

 

  1. Robert F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1968 at the Ambassador Hotel, where he had been celebrating his recent successful campaigns in the California primary elections for a Presidential nomination. Sirhan Sirhan, a Palestinian immigrant, was convicted of the crime and remains in prison to this day. His motivation for the assassination? Kennedy’s connection with sending fighter planes to Israel – with the perceived intent to inflict harm on the Palestinians.

 

  1. Rapper, Biggie Smalls, was murdered in his car after a party in 1997. The case remains officially unsolved, and no one has ever been formally charged with his murder, despite multiple witnesses. There is some speculation that the head of Death Row Records, Suge Knight, hired a fellow gang member to murder Biggie.

 

  1. Not much needs to be said about the murder of Nicole Brown and Ron Goldman. Her ex-husband, OJ Simpson was eventually arrested, tried and ultimately acquitted of the murders. This is perhaps one of the most widely-publicized and controversial murder trials of the country, at least in recent history.

 

  1. Phil Hartman, the much-loved actor best known for his role on Saturday Night Live. His wife, Brynn Omdahl, shot and killed him while he slept, and then killed herself several hours later. His wife had struggled with drugs and alcohol and had entered rehab several times. That night, after a heated argument about her drug use, Phil went to bed. Around 3 am, Brynn entered his bedroom and shot him twice in the head, killing him instantly. She had been drinking and had cocaine in her system.

 

Several unsolved murders in California have made their marks on the nation’s psyche, from the Black Dahlia, to the Zodiac Killer, to the headline-making Golden State Killer. But the last might finally be solved. Seventy-two-year-old Joseph James DeAngelo was arrested last year in connection with these crimes when his DNA was uploaded to an online DNA site that matched him with multiple relatives in the area. His next court appearance is scheduled for April of 2019.