Horrorwood: True Crime in Tinseltown
The Murder, the Wine & the 'Daddy Dear' Letter
Jun 29, 2026 · 1 hr 6 min · 14 segments
When a deceased cameraman was found slumped in his car outside the Hollywood post office, police were certain jealousy was the motive. Or was it robbery? Either way, the killer must have been a man…
When a deceased cameraman was found slumped in his car outside the Hollywood post office, police were certain jealousy was the motive. Or was it robbery? Either way, the killer must have been a man. Or maybe a woman? Yeah, police didn't have a clue, despite, well, all the clues. Episode Sources: “King D. Gray — Little Close-Ups of the A. S. C. (1922)” King’s Death Certificate “Film Cameraman Found Murdered” Bradford Evening Star and The Bradford Daily Record (Bradford, Pennsylvania) · Wed, Jul 6, 1938 “Jealousy Seen Behind Killing of Cameraman” Daily News (New York, New York) · Sat, Jul 2, 1938 “Question Two More Women in Mystery Hollywood Slaying” Daily News (New York, New York) · Sun, Jul 3, 1938 “Find Woman’s Prints On Gray Murder Pistol” Daily News (New York, New York) · Sat, Jul 9, 1938 “Woman Seen in Mystery Movie Death” Enterprise-Record (Chico, California) · Sat, Jul 9, 1938 “Think Jealousy Murder Motive” Latrobe Bulletin (Latrobe, Pennsylvania) · Sat, Jul 2, 1938 “Mystery Shrouds Hollywood Death” LNP Lancaster Online (Lancaster, Pennsylvania) · Sun, Jul 3, 1938 “Police Quiz Companions on Fatal Night as Author of ‘Dear Daddy’ Note Discovered” Los Angeles Evening Citizen News (Hollywood, California) · Sat, Jul 2, 1938 “Holdup Murder in Gray Case?” Nevada State Journal (Reno, Nevada) · Wed, Jul 6, 1938 “Murder Suspect Offers Alibi” Oakland Tribune (Oakland, California) · Wed, Sep 14, 1938 “Slain Movie Cameraman Party Guest” Redlands Daily Facts (Redlands, California) · Sat, Jul 2, 1938 “Convict’s Past Being Studied” Reno Gazette-Journal (Reno, Nevada) · Thu, Jul 21, 1938 “Film-Story Murder Leaves Hollywood Cameraman Dead” The Atlanta Journal (Atlanta, Georgia) · Fri, Jul 1, 1938 “Shoeprint Makes Police Believe Man Killed Gray” The State (Columbia, South Carolina) · Mon, Jul 4, 1938 “Quiz Persons in Slaying of King D. Gray” The Times (La Salle, Illinois) · Sat, Jul 2, 1938 “Jealousy May Be Found Motive in Hollywood Killing, Prober Says” The Times-Picayune (New Orleans, Louisiana) · Sat, Jul 2, 1938 “Break Looms in Hollywood Murder Case” Wilkes-Barre Times Leader, the Evening News (Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania) · Wed, Jul 6, 1938 “Police Believe Woman Killed King D. Gray” Wilkes-Barre Times Leader, the Evening News (Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania) · Thu, Jul 7, 1938 “Police Recover Pistol Used in Gray Killing” Wisconsin State Journal (Madison, Wisconsin) · Fri, Jul 8, 1938 “Hollywood Film Cameraman Found Slain in Automobile” The Los Angeles Times (Los Angeles, California) · Fri, Jul 1, 1938 “Pistol Clue Fails in Hollywood Death” Pasadena Star-News (Pasadena, California) · Mon, Jul 11, 1938 “Berkeley Suspect to Face Slaying Questioning” Pasadena Star-News (Pasadena, California) · Tue, Sep 13, 1938 “Clue Discovered in Gray Murder” The Los Angeles Times (Los Angeles, California) · Mon, Jul 4, 1938 “Sister Turns to Bible for Courage at News of Film Cameraman’s Death” The Indianapolis Star (Indianapolis, Indiana) · Sat, Jul 2, 1938 “Triangle Theory Advanced in Killing of Cameraman as ‘Dear Daddy’ Letter Revealed” Los Angeles Evening Citizen News (Hollywood, California) · Fri, Jul 1, 1938 “Death of Film Cameraman Puzzles Police” The Daily Breeze (Torrance, California) · Sat, Jul 2, 1938 Creeptastic theme music by: Nicholas Davio - nicholasdavio.com, @mr.nick.davio, @huron\_coast
When a deceased cameraman was found slumped in his car outside the Hollywood post office, police were certain jealousy was the motive. Or was it robbery? Either way, the killer must have been a man…
