That house, she thought. In California Valley Girls, for instance, he had one scene. I didnt know what was going to happen, but I knew what might, she says. It is debatable about $3,000. Its time, Holmes said, and then he smiled and raised his fist. John eased into the tub. In time, Jeanas father went back to Miami and took Terry with him, and Jeana moved in with Johns half brother and his wife, David and Karen. Even Near The Hollywood Sign, Authorities ID Man Arrested In Killing Of LA Auxiliary Bishop David O'Connell As Husband Of Housekeeper, Another Missing Hiker Has Been Found Dead In San Gabriels As Search For Actor Julian Sands Continues. After a while, the news. ', In time, John and Laurie moved in together at Amersons. The Sixties, the pill, free love, communes, wife swapping, the perverse creativity of mixed-media artists who were pushing the limit, trying to shock all of these things created an atmosphere in which porn could blossom. We played our favorite songs, walked, talked. The next day, while Holmes was at work, a delegation of residents came to see Jeana. When he became established as a porn star, Holmes said, he had a half dozen agents pulling in work for him. What now? she thought. Susan Launius, 25, Ron Launiuss wife. We went to a motel, had a nice reunion. Sharon looked at him. When I come home at night, the tools stay on the job., You are having sex with other women, said Sharon. He refused anyway. Ron Launius had an extensive criminal history before coming to a bloody end. . The 100 Greatest TV Shows of All Time Police sources said Vlick, who is charged with plssessing drugs and stolen property, is a 'fringe guy' in organized crime circles. Now it was December 4th, and she hadnt seen Holmes in two weeks. She was scheduled to appear in court this month on drug charges. Bring me their eyeballs! It was a simple ceremony. There were backhands, lectures, drunken rages. Nash hadnt slept in ten days. During the day, she worked in a nursing home. Sharon stood with arms crossed. John C. Holmes, the worlds premier pornographic film star, sobbed as he sat in a steaming bathtub early one morning in July, 1981. At 98 and facing cancer, Bob Dole reckons with legacy of Trump and ponders future of GOP. Now, home early from her office, Sharon left her purse in the foyer, squeaked down the hall on white rubber soles to the bathroom of their one-bedroom apartment in Glendale. Main Menu. What's your favorite movie(s) or TV show(s) that are based in LA? This story has not been verified. When you met with Eddie, you met at his place, on his terms. John was really sick by this point, says Laurie. Her husband watched from the closet. He treated me very special. John was thirty-one, she was fifteen. On the afternoon of Wednesday, July 1st, 1981, Eddie Nash was again consuming drugs at an alarming rate. There was "a lot of screaming going. Christ, she thought, John. Usually, they smoked freebase and had sex. They were married in August 1965 at Fort Ord, California. They were stupid. After that I was his.. Launius' wife, Susan Launius, survived the attack. He knew he was dying. At trial, his lawyer argued that the $1 million worth of coke was not for dealing, that it was strictly for personal use. Take care of him, Sharon said. Copyright 2023 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. (Wikipedia article on Wonderland Murders). A naturalized American, Nash came to California from Palestine in the early Fifties. The cast of characters would go from two or three to ten or more. John said he felt like he was chosen to get AIDS because of who he was, how he lived. According to the law, he had to talk. Neighbors in the canyon, where a conversation at night can be overheard blocks away, said they were used to rowdy, all-night parties in the house. . Another victim, William DeVerell, 44, who lived at the house, had an arrest record in the 1950s, mostly for narcotics but had not been arrested in the recent case. With Holmes, it was like he was center stage and the lights and the camera were on, says a detective who was present. Her left leg is paralyzed because of the head injuries. Holmess parents separated when he was three, and Mary moved the family into a housing project in Columbus. John Holmes recounted how he led three thugs to the tightly secured drug house on Wonderland Avenue, escorted them in, and stood by as they bludgeoned the five people inside, spattering Holmes with blood. A doctor of dubious practice prescribed a salad of different drugs to aid the weight loss. Holmes buzzed an outside intercom box and asked someone inside to let him in. At Christmas, they decorated it with colored lights. Hey, its cool, said John Holmes, 36, the man with the plan. Nash reciprocated with a quarter ounce of coke. In a career that would span twenty years, Holmes made 2274 hard-core pornographic films, had sex with 14,000 women. Which memorial do you think is a duplicate of Ronnie Launius (29045828)? Though, she didn't survive unscathed. to tell them who it was, Sharon Holmes said. Along the way, in Colorado, Mr. Addled synapses played him a picture: Eddie Nash. -, Press J to jump to the feed. I used to be a Web Developer in the Newsroom, now I spend my time in coffee shops researching murder. They threw brown bags of dope off the balcony. I think they call it a taxi cab. Its business.. That first time, we didnt get to work together, says Laurie, but we were attracted. He did not testify at his trial, and his later secret testimony before the Los Angeles County Grand Jury remains sealed. For the first few months, while she was in Oregon with her mother, Jeana had refused to take Holmess calls. . This would lead, in the mid-Seventies, to Holmess most successful role, as Johnny Wadd, the hard-boiled detective, porns parody of Sam Spade. Theyd sold a pound of baking soda for a quarter of a million dollars. One day, Jeana was visiting a neighbor when Holmes came by to deliver a bag of pot. The Wonderland case was still open. . It was a strange and violent time and men wore double-breasted suits and snap-brim Fedoras. More from Medium For years, a Boy Hung a Photo on his Bedroom. He was involved in one murder and a suspect in at least one more. He was freebasing one hit of coke every ten or fifteen minutes, swallowing forty to fifty Valium a day to cut the edge. In a recent interview with The Times, Sharon Holmes, who divorced the late actor in 1984, described for the first time the story her husband told her less than three weeks after the July 1 killings. Its like being a carpenter. Blood and brains splattered everywhere, even on the ceilings. 1947 was a pivotal year in L.A.'s history. Recently, Holmes had been drifting from job to job, trying to find a niche. He cooked coke all night long. You sound close., Well, I, I, ah, came with a friend. Chris didnt have a drivers license. Only Launius' wife Susan survived the attack, allegedly masterminded by organized crime figure and nightclub owner Eddie Nash. Things started to click. At the same time, Holmes was acting as an informant on matters of porn and prostitution for Sergeant Tom Blake, an L.A. vice detective. Holmes slept fitfully for a few hours, Sharon Holmes said, and moaned about blood and pain. Drawings of the dog, of me. The guest bedroom. John tried to make a deal with the cops. She is the sole survivor of the brutal Wonderland attack the night of July 1, 1981; she suffered severe head injuries, amnesia, and a severed finger following the attack. The Seven Seas was a bus-stop joint across Hollywood Boulevard from Manns Chinese Theaters. Schuyler said that Ed loved her son exceedingly and that he offered to fix it up for you to take him to a top brain surgeon. Then she ran into a woman preaching fire and brimstone on a corner. Jewelry, wads of money. Then Holmes hit on a more direct way to make money. March 3 (UPI) -- A 7-year-old Louisiana boy with a firm grasp of baseball rules is seeking a Guinness World Record as the world's youngest umpire. He felt like he was an example.. When he did coke, says Jeana, hed do it until it was all gone, and then hed scrape the pipe and smoke all the resin he could find, and then hed take a bunch of Valium. The final victim was Barbara Richardson, 22, Sacramento, Calif. Court records revealed that a codefendant in Miss Miller's narcotics case was John 'Ricco' Vlick, 53, who lives in a wood-shingled house only two blocks from the scene of the killings. Nash knew the Wonderland people. Class 1A. So Holmes summoned his wife into the bathroom, drew steaming water into the tub, slipped in, and began to talk. Detectives said they had talked to Susan Murphy Launius, 29, at Cedars Sinai Medical Center, where she is in critical condition with gashes in her head and neck. He was very possessive. Ill pick you up.. They used cans of spray paint. Help me. A fifth victim was carried out alive. McCourt drove up the hill on Laurel Canyon Boulevard, across Mulholland Drive, over the crest of the Santa Monica Mountains, down into the Valley. Who talks about this person. Jeana sat in the front seat, Thor in her arms. He had made a name for himself during the Vietnam War when he was dishonorably discharged from the army for smuggling drugs back to the United States in the bodies of dead servicemen. He boiled it clean in a pot on Sharons stove. He spent his early life in Tennessee and Georgia, and graduated from Spalding High School in Griffin, Ga. There are other suspects that we feel are involved. Hed been with three governors, two of their wives and one senator, who was really a freak., Holmes said he owned ten different businesses, that he was a gourmet cook, that he had written twenty-nine books, including a how-to manual combining cooking and sex. John was terrified that I was going to confront her. One regular trick had him barge into her bedroom while she was watching TV, then tie her up and rape her. Holmes was telling people that doctors had removed sixteen feet of his large intestine. It's been many, many years since we saw this much snow in our mountains. I said, Please, just let me get my clothes and my dog and well leave.'. Ten inches long! Tom Mix and Harry Houdini once lived there among the quail and scrub pine and coyotes. He introduced him to all his guests. He knew we wouldnt have a life together.. In the late Seventies, Los Angeles police averaged twenty-five drug busts a month at the Starwood. U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-current. Men asked him to autograph their wives breasts. Latinx Files: In praise of Jenna Ortega, Aubrey Plaza and moody, deadpan Latinas, Arizona governor wont proceed with execution set by court, Civilians flee embattled town of Bakhmut as Ukrainian pullout looms. Why did you choose to publish the book on Lulu.com. Room service. Hed been ripped for eight pounds of cocaine, but the Wonderland Gang hadnt found his private stash, and now he was bubbling his glass pipe furiously. Edit your search. An argument ensued. The man who owned the house was named Adel Nasrallah. Court records and pllice statements indicated two of the four victims were under prosecution for dealing in cocaine, heroin and Quaaludes. Here, this back bedroom, thats Diless room, he said. Hed sent two of his minions out to score more drugs, but they hadnt yet returned. They picked up a six-pack, went to a park, sat by a pond. Then, when Eddie Nash got out of jail, John was very, very worried. It was owned by the pediatrician she worked for; she and Holmes lived rent-free in an adjacent house. Nash was found guilty of possessing two pounds of cocaine for sale. You cannot merge a memorial into itself. He had set it up with the other people, the people that lived at Wonderland. COOPER: (Reading) And when the new year's sunshine . They mix poorly, and yet they're inexorably linked. Dismiss. After his release, Nash told a friend that jail had saved his life. Blood! Replies analysing and speculating over the mystery and possible explanations are encouraged. He greeted reporters, had dinner with his lawyer, then called Sharon. I marketed him. Considering employee opinions. March 3 (UPI) -- A New Brunswick couple who initially thought a burglar had broken into their home discovered the invader was actually a panicked deer. He wanted witness protection, a new name, money, a home. Are you afraid its withering and dying? she said, laughing. How could you do this thing! Eddie Nash screamed. (John) was so much of a liar . I really dont recall. Thorson was the live-in lover of the entertainer Liberace. Lets talk about your latest book, Long Time Money and Lots of Cocaine. Why did you package the transcript of John Holmes preliminary hearing in the Wonderland murders? When Detectives Bob Souza and Tom Lange entered the home, nestled in the hip L.A. enclave of Laurel Canyon, they found pills and pipes scattered all over the flooralong with four dead bodies whose. They came from across the countryalthough the Washington, D.C. area was noticeably over-representedas well as from Canada and England, and, in at least one case, all the way from Nazi Germany. In time, Holmes became known as the Errol Flynn of porn. DeVerell, Launius and McCourt, all heroin addicts, were out cold. Porn star John Holmes in 1981, shortly after four people were bludgeoned to death in what came to be known as the Wonderland Murders. He wanted me to view his body and make sure that all the parts were there, says Laurie. We cut him loose.. She survives and is questioned by Nico and Cruz in her hospital bed. They called it Louise. Holmess half brother and his wife lived there; this little community was the personal fiefdom of John Holmes. Everyone there was on some kind of slide. I will kill your whole family! She was later unable to identify her attackers. Diles got seven years on charges stemming from the drug raids. Its another thing to testify to it in court.. Hed been turned on to the drug on a movie set in Las Vegas and had been smoking ever since. He walked through the door, flopped on the bed, passed out. Teenage Cowgirls, Liquid Lips, China Cat and Tapestry of Passion. Now it was December 4th, 1981. March 2 (UPI) -- A Minnesota police officer came to the rescue of a raccoon he spotted running around with a jar stuck over its head. We will review the memorials and decide if they should be merged. For the latest national news from NPR and our live radio broadcast, visit LAist.com/radio. The letters "IC" pronounced properly can say "icy" meaning very cold. Are you an introvert or an extrovert? 'When you're talking about the star witness in a case like this I think you can safely assume that we've got her pretty well guarded,' a pllice spokesman said. It was really nice. Soon after, the courtship of Jeana began. The poor girl was emaciated, Sharon says. What compels you to revisit the slayings and what does the story say about Los Angeles, in the 80s and now? Nine days later, Holmes was picked up in a Sherman Oaks motel in the company of Jeanna Sellers, a 20-year-old neighbor. . The 100 Best Albums of 2022. He was sweet. He cut Holmes off, canceled his insurance. Lulu Press offers a very affordable set-up with generous royalties. Before them were two pairs of handcuffs, a stolen police badge, several automatic pistols and a dogeared sheet of paper, a floor plan. Now, as McCourt turned right, off Laurel Canyon Boulevard onto Dona Pegita, he saw Holmes driving back toward them. Sharon always knew when he was lying. I was there., It was my fault, John said, his eyes welling with tears. While awaiting that trial, he was ordered by a judge to tell the grand jury what he knew about the Wonderland murders. . By 1978, Holmes was freebasing cocaine all the time. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. Youd walk into the house, there were various girls walking around in various states of undress. His family had owned several hotels before the creation of Israel in 1948. They sat around a glass table in the breakfast nook. He wouldnt even let me meet the people he worked with.. Based on my research, "Wonderland"arrives closest to the truth but in both films an apologist's tone creeps in with reference to Holmes. If you're enjoying this article, you'll love my daily morning newsletter, How To LA. here. The Wonderland Gang. He wanted to be in charge. Nash was leafing through a little black book that Diles had taken from Holmess pocket. Remarks by neighbors in the trendy, secluded area above the Sunset Strip and court records revealed the occupants of the stucco house on Wonderland Avenue lived in Southern California's 'fast lane' -- a lifestyle surrounded by drugs, flashy cars and trouble with police. About this time, Sharon says, Holmes began working as a courier for the Mob. A few months later, Jeana moved into the guest room of the house. Accident car um he stammered. Tell the cops what they want to know, cause otherwise Johns going to be dead in a few days. But its one thing to tell someone something, says Lange. His business empire totally atrophied as a result of the coke. . Eddie Nash was fifty-two years old, six feet tall, gray haired, strong and wiry. Arriving back at Wonderland just after dawn, Holmes announced the coast was clear. Sellers agreed to talk to The Times on the condition that the paper not reveal her true name. They lived in London, Paris, Michigan, Florida. Tossing and moaning, punching and kicking. He sounded a lot like Eddie Haskell on Leave It to Beaver and bore some resemblance to the actor who played him. And so the plan was fixed. Behind him was his partner, Mac McClain. Go back to that house! Sharon was a nurse at USC County General, working on a team that was pioneering open-heart surgery. But the new accounts cast doubt on the story Holmes told a biographer before his death March 13. Sellers picked up a hitchhiker who was going to Glendale to see his girlfriend. The motive is not suspected to be robbery as his diamond ring and watch were found on the body. The aunt sent him to fencing school, dancing school, a school of etiquette. jackson falls santa paula. . How could he rent a car? The floor plan before them showed a three-bedroom, high-end tract house on a cul-de-sac in the San Fernando Valley. I knew the whole picture, says Sharon. Police said Holmes was involved in an unreported robbery of cash and drugs at the Studio City home of nightclub owner Adel Nasrallah, also known as Eddie Nash, three days before the bludgeon slayings at a Laurel Canyon home. Jewelry stores, convenience stores, private homes they would try anything, as long as it meant money or drugs. It was 8:30 Monday morning. Launius was Wonderland's king, and he was as cold as ice. March 3 (UPI) -- Firefighters in Britain responded to a home to rescue a horse that had fallen into its owner's swimming pool and was unable to get itself out. Susan Launius Remote Medical Transcriptionist for Cardiology Center Of Amarillo Altus, Oklahoma, United States 95 followers 96 connections Join to view profile Cardiology Center Of Amarillo Altus. This is an archival story that predates current editorial management. But Deputy District Attorney Ronald Coen said the prosecution would not attempt to prove Holmes actually killed the victims but was an accessory to the crime. She was thin, blond, foulmouthed, a heroin addict with seven arrests. His words to me were Friends can get you killed. We were very careful. There was a security system at the house. She was a teenager, and her parents had just divorced. Edmund Brown Jr. owns a house about a mile from the scene of the murders. During one special engagement, Thorson danced with the Rockettes. Oh, shit, she thought, but she didnt say anything. Some were quite attractive. [5] Barbara Richardson [ edit] But Detective Tom Lange of the Los Angeles Police Department, the lead investigator on the case, said, There is no mystery, because we know who is involved and we know why. The Interviews 25th Anniversary. They made him beg for his life. I said yes. A girl from the dorm recommended him. When Holmes was eight, his mother married Harold, a manic-depressive who worked for the telephone company. Eight years in prison, a $120,350 fine. YouTube: Susan Wojcicki, YouTube's chief executive and one of the most prominent women in Silicon Valley, is stepping down from her longtime role leading the internet's most popular video service. The couple ended up in Miami, at a small run-down hotel on Collins Avenue. This stuff makes me feel funny too. It is such a quintessential L.A. story of the 80s: drugs, sex, excess, night clubs, gangsters, and porn stars. I mean, come on: Ventura, Orange, San Bernardino - those are choices? By Steve Helling. The judge in the case was Everett E. Ricks Jr. He dunked his head, put a steaming washcloth over his face. $1 Million - $5 Million. Nash and Diles were well known on Sunset Strip. Miller, De Verell and Launius needed drugs every day. Lt. Ron Lewis discounted speculation that the slayings could be 'random killings' such as the Tate-LaBianca murders committed by the Manson Family in 1969. I know it sounds trite and predictable but "Chinatown" has to be the best L.A. movie ever made. Prioritizing employee development. In time, the surgery was completed, and Thorson was made into a young vision of Liberace. The school was a block away from Nashs place. For her sister Terry, who was fourteen and overweight, he brought what he called Terry food, pounds and pounds of candy. There wasnt any trouble. Lind and his girlfriend had come down three weeks earlier from Sacramento to stay at Wonderland. Hed come home from one of his movie premires, take off his boots, peel down his socks and take out a wad of large bills. One was abruptly interrupted on the morning of July 1, 1981, when a shaken John Holmes crawled into their Glendale bedroom, bleeding, and told his wife that he had been in an accident. We were real friendly. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click Most people find it hard to believe, but I'm an introvert. Hours passed, John woke. Are you awake? Holmess eyelids fluttered. Then one day Harold threw John down the stairs and came after him. Sharon had watched through the window as he picked them from the neighbors front yard. He wanted to be the Arab man in his tent. . He looked shocked. Following his arrest in Miami, Holmes was tried for the murder of the Wonderland Gang. On Mulholland Drive, silently watching as the city falls down and taking a naturalist's notes. Holmes was to run it. After she left him, according to a court affidavit, I took the children to Oklahoma to my aunt and uncles farm, together with my parents. Miss Miller's shiny white 1969 Mercedes 280 SL was used to deliver narcotics to her customers, detectives said. It was a big ordeal for him, says Laurie. The Sellers would stay there. ', Nash is said to have had political, police and crime connections. During the dispute, Sherrill shot and killed Moore and Launius helped Sherrill dispose of the body and conceal evidence. What really cracks me up is people believe he was a dope dealer. The man was a poster child for sociopathic behavior. In jail, Holmes went on a hunger strike. Now it was midnight in the parking lot at the Safeway in Glendale.