If you’re reading this, it’s too late you are probably deep into Mindhunter’s second season and have questions. Questions like: If I’m attracted to Jonathan Groff as Holden Ford, am I also attracted to Jonathan Groff as Kristoff, the animated ice bae in Frozen? And, oh yeah: Is this show based on a true story, and if so, WHAT THE ACTUAL F*CK?!
First of all, yes, Kristoff is hot. Deal with it. Second of all, Mindhunter *is* based on a true story. Holden Ford is modeled after John E. Douglas, a retired FBI special agent who was one of the bureau’s first criminal profilers. His life was fascinating, so let’s get right to it.
Kay, so who was this dude ~really~?
More like who wasn’t he, amirite? Douglas was born in Brooklyn, spent four years in the Air Force, and then got a bunch of extremely fancy degrees from various institutions. He started working for the FBI in 1970 while living in Detroit. He did time on the SWAT team, was a hostage negotiator, and eventually started teaching criminal psychology to agents across the United States (which is depicted in Mindhunter’s first season). Around this time, Douglas created the FBI’s Criminal Profiling Program and started interviewing serial killers as part of a study analyzing violent crime. Totally normal job!
Cool, but which criminals did he actually interview?
So. Many. Criminals. Mindhunter season 1 saw Holden interview Edmund Kemper, aka the Coed Killer, as well as serial killer/rapist Montie Rissell, necrophile Jerry Brudos, and mass murderer Richard Speck—all of whom Douglas spoke to IRL. Here he is describing his process. It’s super interesting if you’re a true-crime nerd like me:
Of course, Mindhunter can’t possibly show the entire breadth of Douglas’s work. He also interviewed David Berkowitz (aka Son of Sam, who shows up in season 2!), Ted Bundy, and even the notorious Charles Manson. But one of the serial killers who disturbed him the most was Gary Heidnik.
Here’s Douglas talking to Fox News about Heidnik’s crimes, and warning, this quote is very disturbing:
“Heidnik would fill the pit up with water and not drown [his victims] but have them stand in water up to their necks and then get electric wire and torture them while they were in the water. What made it even worse was after he killed them, he then would put the victims in a meat grinder and fed the [other] victims….He was definitely shocking.”
Did Douglas actually interview the killers featured in season 2?
Mindhunter season 2 mostly deals with the Atlanta Child Murders, which were, sadly, very real. Douglas was involved in the investigation and became relatively famous for his contributions to the case. He created a psychological profile of the killer, which ultimately helped the prosecution arrest and convict suspect Wayne Williams. As Douglas put it, Williams was “looking pretty good for a good percentage of the killings.”
Of course, Mindhunter season 2 also covers the BTK Killer (which...yeah...stands for Bind Torture Kill), Son of Sam, and Manson—all of whom Douglas interviewed IRL.
Left: Son of Sam on Mindhunter. Right: Son of Sam IRL.
Are Bill Tench and Wendy Carr Real People?
Holden’s partner in Mindhunter is FBI agent Bill Tench, who helps Holden form the Behavioral Science Unit (along with Boston University psychologist Wendy Carr) in order to study serial killers. And yep, the TV characters’ names are fake, but they are most definitely based on real people.
Bill is based on real-life agent Robert Ressler, who worked closely with Douglas and coined the term “serial killer.”
Wendy is based on Boston College’s Dr. Ann Wolbert Burgess, who consulted with the FBI and worked with both Douglas and Ressler. But, er, the show took some liberties with her character.
“It’s not quite exactly the way it happened, which is fun,” Dr. Burgess said of her portrayal in the show. “I always have been an academic, but they take her down to [the FBI headquarters at] Quantico. I never moved down there like she did. I have children, and they’ve been a little bit nervous about the fact that they have me as a lesbian. That’s been interesting. That’s their right to portray it however they want.”
P.S. Because you’re wondering, Holden’s girlfriend, Debbie, is totally made up!
What’s Douglas up to now?
Mostly soaking up the spotlight and enjoying increased sales on his book, Mind Hunter: Inside the FBI’s Elite Serial Crime Unit. And if you’re wondering how he feels about the show, he’s super down. “They’re going by the book and I am very pleased,” he said, adding that watching “is like reliving my life all over again.”
