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WHO IS THAT MASKED MAN?

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San Francisco’s Zodiac killer--still on the loose--will see his most sinister wishes come true in early 1987 when a mass-market book (from Berkeley) hits the stands and a Hollywood theatrical film, tentatively titled “Zodiac,” goes into production for Atlantic Releasing.

Berkeley will ship a quarter-million copies of Robert Graysmith’s “Zodiac,” which includes an account of the writer’s eight-year pursuit of the serial killer. And Graysmith is a major character in writer-director Chip Proser’s screenplay.

Zodiac was linked officially to six murders from 1966 to 1969, but Graysmith’s account has him active for a decade and racking up 50 killings. The killer was fond of taunting detectives by phone with his wish to “read about myself in a paperback book and see myself on the screen in a major film.” Said Graysmith, police long ago identified a strong suspect but lack enough evidence to bring him to trial.

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Two partners behind the film expressed fear of the killer and asked that their names not be used. Said one, “There’s a very real concern for my family’s safety.” His partner added--apparently seriously--that the killer “might want part of the action.”

Graysmith scoffed: “Zodiac is so identified and now so well-watched that there is virtually no danger.”

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