ON THIS DAY IN WEIRD

On This Day in Weird, January 15...

1947: The premier unsolved murder mystery of Los Angeles begins with discovery of the corpse of would-be actress Elizabeth Short—nicknamed "The Black Dahlia"—bisected and otherwise mutilated, lying in a vacant lot. Soon afterward, some of her belongings are mailed to a local newspaper, with a note signed by "The Black Dahlia Avenger." Seventy years later, despite several books naming possible suspects (including one coauthored by Yours Truly), the case remains officially unsolved, but also "open," despite LAPD's admission that most of the files and evidence have been "lost" from police custody.