Robert Graysmith

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Robert Graysmith (born September 17, 1942) is a true-crime author of the books Zodiac; Zodiac Unmasked: the Identity of America's Most Elusive Serial Killer; Unabomber: a Desire to Kill; The Murder of Bob Crane: Who Killed the Star of Hogan's Heroes?; The Bell Tower: The Case of Jack the Ripper Finally Solved ^[1] and Amerithrax: The Hunt for the Anthrax Killer.

Contents 1 Writing career 2 Personal life 3 Bibliography 4 References

[edit] Writing career

Graysmith is best-known for his writings on the Zodiac Killer case. He first became involved in that case when he was a cartoonist for the San Francisco Chronicle during the period in which the Zodiac Killer was active. Although his conclusions are controversial, he is considered one of the leading experts on the facts of the Zodiac case; for instance, the New York Post contacted him for his insights when a copycat shooter, Heriberto Seda, was active in New York in the early 1990s.^[2]

Two of his books have been made into films: Auto Focus and Zodiac. Graysmith is portrayed in the film Zodiac by Jake Gyllenhaal.

[edit] Personal life

Graysmith was born in Pensacola, Florida as "Robert Gray Smith." Before his divorce from his first wife, Margaret Ann, they had two sons together, David and Aaron. After the divorce, he changed his name to Graysmith in 1976. Graysmith met his second wife, Melanie, an artist at the Chronicle. They had a daughter together, named Margot Alexandra. They separated in 1980 and divorced in 1983.

[edit] Bibliography

• Zodiac (1986)
• The Sleeping Lady: The Trailside Murders Above the Golden Gate (1990)
• The Murder of Bob Crane (1993)
• Unabomber: a Desire to Kill (1997)
• The Bell Tower: The Case of Jack the Ripper Finally Solved (1999)
• Zodiac Unmasked: the Identity of America's Most Elusive Serial Killer (2002)
• Amerithrax: The Hunt for the Anthrax Killer (2003)

[edit] References