The Black Dahlia Case

The Black Dahlia was the name given to aspiring actress Elizabeth Short, who came to Hollywood hoping to break into the movie business. She was born on July 29, 1924, and grew up in Medford, Mass. Her death would become L.A.'s most famous unsolved murder.

On Jan. 15, 1947, a mysterious black car was seen around dawn, in the area where Short's body was found. It was a car very similar to one owned by Dr. George Hodel, who ran a clinic in Los Angeles.

George Hodel lived in an exotic house on Franklin Avenue in Los Angeles, that resembled a Mayan temple. It was a house of secrets where artists and celebrities such as Man Ray and John Huston attended flamboyant parties.

Steve Hodel, sitting in his father's lap, was one of 11 children that George Hodel had with five different women. Steve was 5 years old when Short was murdered.

Steve Hodel became a police officer, working the same Hollywood streets Short once knew. He investigated 300 murders for more than 17 years. But after he retired, the case that led to the biggest manhunt in L.A. history, would come back to haunt him.

Nearly 60 years after the murder, Steve Hodel would follow his suspicions, leading him to a chilling possibility: Was his father the Black Dahlia killer? His father, George Hodel, died in 1999 at 91 in his high-rise apartment in San Francisco.

After his father's death, Steve Hodel says he came across two pictures (including this photo of a mystery woman) while going through his father's favorite photo album.

Steve Hodel was convinced the photos in his father's album (including this second photo) were of the Black Dahlia.