This article contains discussion of sexual violence

throwing the police off the Zodiac's scent back in 1969.

At that time, the had already sent letters and ciphers to the SAPD threatening further killings, when he approached picnicking couple Cecelia Ann Shepard and Bryan C. Hartnell at Lake Berryessa, Napa County on September 29th, 1969.

Bryan C. Hartnell Survived An Attack By The Zodiac Killer In 1969

Hartnell Attempted A Description Of His Attacker

According to zodiacciphers.com, 20-year-old Hartnell and 22-year-old Shepard were simply talking, reading, and watching the water when they noticed a man spying on them behind trees some 300 yards away. The stranger emerged, put on a black executioner hat and a waistline bib, and approached them, brandishing a weapon. Shepard warned Hartnell, "Oh my god, he's got a gun," and Hartnell attempted to strike up a conversation with the man, who told him he was an escaped convict and needed their money and car keys. He then ordered Shepard to tie up Hartnell, bound Shepard himself and then took out a knife.

Hartnell was stabbed six times in the back, while Shepard was knifed ten times in the back and abdomen. Hartnell feigned death and their would-be executioner eventually walked away. Hartnell was able to crawl to the roadside and alert the police. Shepard lived long enough to agree with Hartnell's description of their hooded attacker: "He had brown hair, 225-250 ibs in weight and 5'8" to 5'10" in height," and "his hair hung down across his forehead and was showing through the eye-holes." Before leaving the Zodiac had marked his crime scene, writing on Hartnell's Karmann Ghia door: "Vallejo 12-20-68, 7-4-69, Sept 27-69 - 6:30. by knife."

Bryan C. Hartnell's Role In David Fincher's Zodiac Explained

Hartnell Was A Consultant on Fincher's Movie

Bryan Hartnell survived his ordeal, but Cecelia Shepard succumbed to her injuries the next day. From his hospital bed, Hartnell gave press interviews and became something of a local celebrity. It wasn't until 2007 that David Fincher enlisted Hartnell's help in the making of his seminal movie about the Zodiac murders, Zodiac, which starred Jake Gyllenhaal as Robert Graysmith, Mark Ruffalo as Detective David Toschi, and Robert Downey Jr as Paul Avery. The film brought new attention and focus to the unsolved Zodiac case, and encouraged a new cohort of amateur sleuths to try and decipher the Zodiac ciphers.

Hartnell was a consultant on the movie but also managed to persuade Fincher to give him a role in the film, albeit a brief one. He can be seen at the one hour 36 minutes and 28-second mark in Zodiac when Detective David Toschi (Mark Ruffalo) has a heated conversation with Captain Marty Lee (Dermot Mulroney) on the SAPD stairs. Hartnell appeared as himself twice more on screen, in 1999's Case Reopened, 2016's Buzzfeed Unsolved: True Crime, and once in the Today In True-Crime podcast in 2019.

Where Is Bryan C. Hartnell Today?

Hartnell Is A Lawyer In Redlands, California

In the 55 years since his horrific attack, Hartnell has mostly kept his own counsel. Born on July 1st, 1949 in Walla Walla Washington, he now resides in Redlands, California with his wife Monica Hartnell, per cinemaholic.com. He has two children, Benjamin and Jonathan. His acting career was short-lived and may have been his way of dealing with the trauma of that September day in 1969. Once he'd taken part in Fincher's movie, he appears to have taken the opportunity to withdraw from public view. He currently runs his own law firm - Hartnell, Lister, and Moore - which specializes in civil matters.

Hartnell's description of the man who attacked him bears no resemblance at all to Arthur Leigh Allen

Bryan Hartnell is a central character in the Zodiac story, and remains its sole survivor. To some extent, his descriptions of the man who attacked him may have unwittingly contributed to the murderer escaping justice. In This Is The Zodiac Speaking there is a solid case made that Arthur Leigh Allen was the Zodiac killer, and yet Hartnell's description of the man who attacked him bears no resemblance at all to Allen, who was much taller and balding. The mystery remains unsolved.

SOURCES: imdb.com, zodiacciphers.com, cinemaholic.com