Unpacking the stranger-than-fiction true story of Rodney Alcala, a.k.a “The Dating Game Killer.”

What isWoman of the Hourabout?

IsWoman of the Hourbased on a true story?

Woman of the Hour. (L-R) Tony Hale as Ed and Anna Kendrick as Sheryl

Credit:Leah Gallo/Netflix

Yes, for the most part.

Footage of his appearance would later be presented in one of his trials.

While many of the characters names are unchanged from their real-life counterparts, there are two notable exceptions.

Woman of the Hour. (L-R) Tony Hale as Ed, Anna Kendrick as Sheryl and Daniel Zovatto as Rodney

Leah Gallo/Netflix

Who was Rodney Alcala?

Digital First Media/Orange County Register via Getty; Leah Gallo/Netflix

Rodrigo Jacques Alcala Buquor, a.k.a.

Rodney Alcala, was born on Aug. 23, 1943, in San Antonio, Tex.

Woman of the Hour. (L-R) Matt Visser as Bachelor #1 (Josh), Jedidiah Goodacre as Bachelor #2 (Arnie) and Daniel Zovatto as Rodney

Leah Gallo/Netflix

He spent part of his childhood in Mexico before his family moved to Los Angeles.

Alcala joined the army at age 17 but wasdischarged in 1964following allegations of sexual misconduct and a nervous breakdown.

What crimes did Rodney Alcala commit?

Rodney James Alcala who was handed the death penalty for the slaying of 12 year-old Robin Samsoe in 1979, Daniel Zovatto as Rodney in Woman of the Hour

Digital First Media/Orange County Register via Getty; Leah Gallo/Netflix

That same year,Alcala was addedto the FBIs 10 Wanted list for his involvement in Shapiros assault.

Did Cheryl Bradshaw go on a date with Rodney Alcala after he wonThe Dating Game?

Luckily, she did not.

Woman of the Hour. (L-R) Anna Kendrick as Sheryl and Daniel Zovatto as Rodney in Woman of the Hour. Cr. 2024.

Leah Gallo/Netflix

“I started to feel ill, she said in a 2012 interview,per Newsweek.

He was acting really creepy.

I didn’t want to see him again,” Bradshaw said.

Rodney Alcala during the penalty phase of the People vs. Alcala trial begins at a Santa Ana, CA courtroom

Ted Soqui/Corbis via Getty

As it turns out, other people onThe Dating Games set had been similarly unsettled by his presence.

“She said, ‘Ellen, I cant go out with this guy,'” Metzger told20/20.

“‘Theres weird vibes that are coming off of him.

I am not comfortable.

Is that going to be a problem?

And of course, I said, ‘No.'”

He had a mystique about him that I found uncomfortable."

What led to Rodney Alcala’s final arrest?

What happened at Rodney Alcala’s trial?

Alcala was retried in 1986 andonce again found guiltyand sentenced to death.

Alcalas third trial began in 2003, at which point forensic science had advanced exponentially.

Prosecutors joined Samsoe’s case with the four new murder charges for Alcalas third trial in February 2010.

Alcala was convicted on all five counts in March 2010 andsentenced to death for a third time.

Where is Rodney Alcala now?

Alcala served the remainder of his sentence in Corcoran, Calif.

While on death row, Alcaladied of natural causeson July 24, 2021, at age 77.

Where is Cheryl Bradshaw today?

Woman of the Hourhits Netflix on Friday.