Was this Murder Victim also a Serial Killer?

The story of Hollywood’s Wonderland Killings victim Ron Launius

In July 1981, four people died in a Laurel Canyon apartment near Los Angeles, the victims of bludgeoning. A fifth victim survived the attack, but suffered significant memory loss.

Looks like a perfectly nice home in the Hollywood Hills, but this apartment building was the scene of a gory 1981 mass murder.

Known as the Wonderland Murders, these horrific crimes are officially unsolved, although investigators believe they know who committed them. The killings inspired the 2003 film “Wonderland” (with Val Kilmer, Kate Bosworth, Lisa Kudrow and Dylan McDermott).

But what isn’t widely known is that one of the murder victims is suspected to have been a serial killer.

The Death of Susan Atkins

First, let’s do a quick recap of the murders:

In 1981, famed porn actor John C. Holmes (aka Johnny Wadd) was essentially homeless, living in various hotels with his 20-year old girlfriend Dawn, and heavily addicted to cocaine and crack. Estranged from his wife Sharon, a registered nurse, he and Dawn were on the skids of life.