” The Murder Of Gianni Versace ” – Bizarre Buffet Podcast
On this episode of Bizarre Buffet the gang sits down to discuss the murder of Gianni Versace. World famous fashion designer, Gianni Versace. Spree killer Andrew Cunanan, and the assassination of Gianni Versace, made world wide news headlines. Media swarmed the Versace Mansion in Miami, Florida, as the news broke that Versace was shot in front of his home on Ocean Drive.
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Bizarre Buffet Episode Credits
” The Murder Of Gianni Versace “
S2E35
Bizarre Buffet – A Podcast Of All You Can Eat Weird
Released On June 21st, 2021
Original Episode Art By Mark Tauriello
Video Art & Production By Marc Bluestein
The Murder Of Gianni Versace – Show Notes
About Versace
- An Italian fashion designer and founder of VERSACE, an international fashion house that produces accessories, fragrances, make-up, home furnishings, and clothes.
- Versace is known for ready to made wear clothing, leather accessories, flashy prints, and bright colors.
- In popular culture, two of Versace’s well-known designs are, The infamous J-Lo Grammy dress, and Elizbaeth Hurley’s “THAT dress” that was held together by safety pins that she wore to the “Four Weddings and a Funeral” movie premiere.
- He was good friends with Eric Clapton, Princess Diana, Naomi Campbell, Kate Moss, Madonna, Elton John, and Tupac Shakur. He is known for being one of the first fashion designers to link fashion to the music world.
- Gianni Versace was shot in the head and killed outside of his Miami Beach mansion in 1997 by Andrew Cunanan.
Who Was Andrew Cunanan?
- A spree killer known to have killed five people in a 3 month period mid 1997. One of them being business tycoon Lee Miglin.
- He was known to be a pathological liar given to tell tall tales about his personal and family life. Cunanan began to befriend wealthy older men and created violent pornography. He was known to socialize in wealthy neighborhoods of San Diego apparently “living off the largesse of one wealthy patron or another”.
- He was also at this time believed to be selling opioids, cocaine, and marijuana.
Andrew Cunanan & Norman Blachford
- In September 1996, Cunanan broke up with Norman Blachford, a wealthy older man who had been hosting and financially supporting him.] He soon maxed out his credit cards.
- He had a few aliases “Lt. Cmdr. Andy Cummings, Drew Cunningham, and Curt Matthew
When Did The Killings Begin / Jeffrey Trail
- Cunanan’s killings began in Minneapolis on April 27, 1997, with the murder of his close friend, 28-year-old Jeffrey Trail. After an argument in Trail’s apartment, Cunanan stole Trail’s gun and brought it to second victim David Madson’s apartment. Cunanan rang Trail from Madson’s apartment to come and retrieve his gun. On arrival Cunanan beat Trail to death with a hammer in front of Madson.On April 29, one of Madson’s coworkers, concerned about his absence from work, visited his apartment to check on him. They discovered Trail’s body rolled in a rug and placed behind a sofa. Trail’s watch had stopped at 9:55 p.m., believed by authorities to be the time of the killing.
David Madson (Victim)
- In December 1995, Cunanan met David Madson, a Minneapolis architect, in a San Francisco bar. They began a long-distance relationship shortly after, but Madson ended the relationship in the spring of 1996, telling friends he sensed something “shady” about Cunanan.Cunanan told friends that Madson was the “love of my life.
- Authorities believe Madson remained in his apartment with Cunanan two days after Trail’s murder, as one neighbor witnessed both men in the apartment elevator on April 28, and another neighbor witnessed the pair walking Madson’s dog on April 29.
- Investigators initially treated Madson as a suspect in Trail’s murder, but Madson’s family insisted he was held hostage by Cunanan. On May 2, Madson and Cunanan were seen north of Minneapolis, driving in Madson’s Jeep and eating lunch together in a bar The following morning, Madson’s body was found on the east shore of Rush Lake near Rush City, Minnesota, with gunshot wounds to the head and back from a .40-caliber Taurus PT100 semi-automatic pistol Cunanan had taken from Trail’s home
Lee Miglin (Victim)
- On May 4, Cunanan drove to Chicago, Illinois, and killed 72-year-old Lee Miglin, a prominent real estate developer. He bound Miglin’s hands and feet and wrapped his head with duct tape, then stabbed Miglin more than twenty times with a screwdriver, slit his throat with a hacksaw, and stole his car. Miglin’s family maintain that the killing was random, but former FBI agent Gregg McCrary argues it is unlikely that Cunanan would have bound and tortured Miglin without some motive.
Lee Miglin Investigation
- Investigators noted Miglin’s 1994 green Lexus LS sedan was missing from his garage and found Madson’s red Jeep parked on the street near Miglin’s house. Miglin’s Lexus was equipped with a car phone, which, according to Ameritech Cellular records, was activated on May 4 in Union County, Pennsylvania. Authorities began monitoring this phone’s activity and found it was also activated on May 8 in Philadelphia and on May 9 near Penns Grove and Carneys Point Township, New Jersey
Murder Of William Reese
- On May 9, in Pennsville Township, New Jersey, at Finn’s Point National Cemetery, Cunanan shot and killed 45-year-old caretaker William Reese. Later that day, when Reese did not return home for dinner, his wife visited the cemetery to check on him and found the caretaker’s office door ajar with the radio playing inside. She then called the police, who found Reese shot in the head by the same Taurus pistol Cunanan used to murder Madson.[29] Unlike Cunanan’s other victims, whom he killed for seemingly personal reasons, authorities believe Cunanan murdered Reese simply for his 1995 red Chevrolet pickup truck. Cunanan used this truck to drive to Florida.
Andrew Cunanan In Florida
- On May 12, Cunanan began staying at the Normandy Plaza Hotel in Miami Beach, Florida, where he paid $29 per night in cash.[31] On June 12, he was listed on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list.[32]While the manhunt unsuccessfully focused on Reese’s stolen truck that Cunanan was using, the killer “hid in plain sight” for two months.[16] Cunanan used his own name to pawn a stolen item on July 7, despite knowing that police routinely reviewed pawn shop records.[33] On July 14, seemingly out of money, Cunanan checked out of his hotel without paying for his last night there.[31]
Gianni Versace
Around 8:45 a.m. on July 15, Cunanan murdered 50-year-old Gianni Versace on the front steps of Casa Casuarina, his mansion in Miami Beach. Versace was returning from a visit to the News Cafe, where he picked up magazines, when he was shot once in the back of the head and once in the left cheek[35] with the same Taurus pistol Cunanan used to murder Madson and Reese. A witness pursued Cunanan but was unable to catch him as he fled into a nearby parking garage.[3][13] Versace was pronounced dead at Jackson Memorial Hospital at 9:21 a.m.[36]
Responding police found Reese’s stolen vehicle in a nearby parking garage. It contained Cunanan’s clothes and clippings of newspaper reports about the earlier murders.[14]
How Andrew Cunanan & Gianni Versace Met ( Allegedly)
- He allegedly met Gianni Versace in San Francisco in 1990 when Versace was in town to be fitting costumes he had designed for the San Francisco opera “Capriccio”. Versace’s family denies that the two ever met.
The designer walked in with an entourage, including [Versace’s boyfriend] Antonio D’Amico and [Capriccio choreographer] Val Caniparoli, who quickly introduced him to a few people.
After about fifteen minutes of chitchat and waves of young men eager to meet him, Versace began to survey the room. He noticed Andrew standing with Eli, cocked his head, and walked in their direction. “I know you,” he said to Andrew. “Lago di Como, no?” Versace was referring to the house he owned on Lake Como near the Swiss border. Reportedly he would often use the Lago di Como line when he wanted to strike up a conversation with someone.
Andrew was thrilled and Eli couldn’t believe it. “That’s right,” Andrew answered. “Thank you for remembering, Signore Versace.” Then Andrew introduced Eli to Versace, who made polite talk about whether they had seen the opera. (They hadn’t.) Eli and Andrew then drifted back down to the dance floor.
Andrew Cunanans Death & Motives
Cunanan’s motivation remains unknown; at the time of the murders there was extensive public and press speculation linking the crimes to Cunanan’s alleged discovery that he was HIV positive,[41]although an autopsy revealed he was HIV negative.[42][43]
Although police searched the houseboat where Cunanan died, he left no suicide note and few personal belongings.[44] Investigators noted Cunanan’s reputation for acquiring money and expensive possessions from wealthy older men.[44] Police considered few of the findings to be of note, except multiple tubes of hydrocortisone cream and a fairly extensive collection of fiction by C. S. Lewis.[44][45][46]
In 1988, when Cunanan was 19, his father deserted his family and moved to the Philippines to evade arrest for embezzlement.[13] That same year, Cunanan had begun frequenting local gay clubs and restaurants, and his mother, who was deeply religious, learned about his sexual orientation. During an argument, Cunanan threw his mother against a wall, dislocating her shoulder. Later examination of his behavior indicates that he may have suffered from antisocial personality disorder, characterized by a lack of remorse and empathy
