That simply cannot be true” is the reaction many will have to the narrative centerpiece of Anna Kendrick’s directorial debut, “Woman of the Hour.” And yet: On a 1978 episode of “The Dating Game,” one of the “eligible bachelors” was a serial killer in the midst of a murder spree.

Rodrigo Jacques Alcala Buquor, a.k.a. Rodney Alcala, was born on Aug. 23, 1943, in San Antonio, Tex. He spent part of his childhood in Mexico before his family moved to Los Angeles. Alcala joined the army at age 17 but was discharged in 1964 following allegations of sexual misconduct and a nervous breakdown.