Releuctant TV appearances

[seeahill]

35-40 years ago, I did some investigative journalism. For instance, I wrote a book on the serial killer John Wayne Gacy. Using over 60 hours of taped interviews, I tried to write it in his voice, from his point of view. I took me three years. Three years in which I tried to live inside the head of a serial killer. Needless to say, this was not psychologically good for me. While the book, Buried Dreams, was a best seller at the time, I consciously chose to give up dark subject matter and to concentrate on my sunnier outdoor stories. That choice cost me some money. Probably a lot of money. But I led a far happier and healthier life. I do not regret the decision

Now, TV documentarians are interested in killers and cults. I think the success of The Making of Murderer and Wild Wild Country seems to have inspired them. In consequence, that long ago period of my life is coming back to haunt me. Last night (March 17) I was on a two hour TV show about Gacy (Very Scary People on HLN). Fucking shit, I hate talking about that prick. And I broke up on camera describing the tortures he put his victims through before killing them. I tried not to watch it, but I did.

Also, I am on the Sundance channel talking about the disgraced pastor Tony Alamo, who recently died in prison serving a 770-year sentence for "marrying" a dozen underage girls, some as young as 9. (Ministry of Evil). It was a cult situation --- there were beatings and probably deaths --- and I joined Alamo's group on assignment for Rolling Stone. I hate talking about this evil shithead as well. But I have been in touch with some of his victims for 40 years and, when they asked me to appear, I felt obligated.

I just finished another Gacy interview for some damn TV show. The Gacy book I wrote is still selling, and I guess I need to promote it, but FUCK.

Now I'm getting inquiries about Jim Jones and Jonestown. I did a 12,000 word on the scene report for Rolling Stone. If you want to know what it's like to walk among nearly a 1000 dead bodies rotting in the jungle, I can tell you. That story is contained in an anthology, A Wolverine is Eating My Leg. Maybe an interview might help sell that book, which is still in print. But I'm tired of the shadows, the sudden darkness, and I will decline that invitation.

Instead, I think I'll just go up to my cabin and hide there until it burns down.

[Fat Cat]

ME
ME
ME

[seeahill]

Sorry. Adios.

[syaigh]

35-40 years ago, I did some investigative journalism. For instance, I wrote a book on the serial killer John Wayne Gacy. Using over 60 hours of taped interviews, I tried to write it in his voice, from his point of view. I took me three years. Three years in which I tried to live inside the head of a serial killer. Needless to say, this was not psychologically good for me. While the book, Buried Dreams, was a best seller at the time, I consciously chose to give up dark subject matter and to concentrate on my sunnier outdoor stories. That choice cost me some money. Probably a lot of money. But I led a far happier and healthier life. I do not regret the decision

Now, TV documentarians are interested in killers and cults. I think the success of The Making of Murderer and Wild Wild Country seems to have inspired them. In consequence, that long ago period of my life is coming back to haunt me. Last night (March 17) I was on a two hour TV show about Gacy (Very Scary People on HLN). Fucking shit, I hate talking about that prick. And I broke up on camera describing the tortures he put his victims through before killing them. I tried not to watch it, but I did.

Also, I am on the Sundance channel talking about the disgraced pastor Tony Alamo, who recently died in prison serving a 770-year sentence for "marrying" a dozen underage girls, some as young as 9. (Ministry of Evil). It was a cult situation --- there were beatings and probably deaths --- and I joined Alamo's group on assignment for Rolling Stone. I hate talking about this evil shithead as well. But I have been in touch with some of his victims for 40 years and, when they asked me to appear, I felt obligated.

I just finished another Gacy interview for some damn TV show. The Gacy book I wrote is still selling, and I guess I need to promote it, but FUCK.

Now I'm getting inquiries about Jim Jones and Jonestown. I did a 12,000 word on the scene report for Rolling Stone. If you want to know what it's like to walk among nearly a 1000 dead bodies rotting in the jungle, I can tell you. That story is contained in an anthology, A Wolverine is Eating My Leg. Maybe an interview might help sell that book, which is still in print. But I'm tired of the shadows, the sudden darkness, and I will decline that invitation.

Instead, I think I'll just go up to my cabin and hide there until it burns down.

Being around malignant narcissists will do that to you. Had more than my fair share the past few years, made me pretty much give up on coaching adults with very few exceptions (the individual strength sports draw a good number of them).

Seems like its easier when you are supporting the victims, but giving voice to those monsters is a bit much.

We all know they are monsters. I think the obsession with monsters is that we somehow think that if we understand them, we can avoid them. But, their ability to charm and blend in is part of their monstrosity. Our only insight is hindsight.

[Shapecharge]

Tim I thoroughly enjoy fucking with you but I can tell your post was maybe a bit cathartic so I'm just going to say that someone needed to write this stuff and whether you got paid handsomely or not the stories needed to be told. I've been curious to read the Gacy book but then when I think about it I don't need that darkside shit in my life either. We have watched that series "Mindhunter" on Netflix and that was just enough to satisfy that curiosity.

[johno]

...I will decline that invitation.

Good decision.

[seeahill]

Thanks all. I was a tad depressed when I wrote that post. I'm better now.

Fat Cat is a dandy psychologist but the rest of you actually helped.

[nafod]

Humanity has some seriously crooked timber in it.

“People follow nutcase to their doom. Again. Body count at 11.”

Somewhere out there right now are a bunch of folks ammo-ing up for their big show, or pulling in their followers, or casing out their lone victim. If your analysis of the old events helps stop the new ones...then you’ve saved lives. Maybe thousands? Thank you for that.

[Gene]

Now I'm getting inquiries about Jim Jones and Jonestown. I did a 12,000 word on the scene report for Rolling Stone. If you want to know what it's like to walk among nearly a 1000 dead bodies rotting in the jungle, I can tell you. That story is contained in an anthology, A Wolverine is Eating My Leg. Maybe an interview might help sell that book, which is still in print. But I'm tired of the shadows, the sudden darkness, and I will decline that invitation.

Someone found some cremains of a few of them back in November of 2018. The remains were buried in the cemetery in San Fransisco where the most of the rest were buried.

Shame you weren't allowed to visit the place before everything went to hell. They had a decent house band.

The singer's name was Diane Wilkerson. She was a diesel mechanic by day. She had a talent for singing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQOcRbORZM0

Hers was another young life discarded by that self centered drug addled piece of shit from Lynn Indiana.



Might be a good story in how hard life was for them down there. I read stories that their live stock was attacked by parasites and vampire bats. They had a rough time raising enough food. Jungle soil really sucks in a lot of places, most of the organic material is in the plants.

The Jonestown people did raise a bunch of Casava. They planted it along the road to the Temple When they'd dig it up they'd clean off most of the dirt, then chuck the roots into barrels of water that they set in a wagon. The drive back to the community washed the roots clean.

In spite of all of this they had a hefty food bill. I recall that the Temple was spending a good chunk of a million bucks a month to feed them. They mostly lived on rice with some meat gravy. Three meals a day. Jones used to whig out about the food bill. This in spite of keeping a bunch of older folks there to milk their Social Security Money.

After the people started getting killed off with Flavor-Aide punch laced with cyanide a few were sent to tote money to the Soviet embassy. Many hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash.

[seeahill]

Gene, Damn, that's spot on.

Here's the story I wrote, all those many years ago.

https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/cu ... re-242259/