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<v Speaker 1>Small town girl Bonnie Lee Bakeley always dreamed of marrying

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<v Speaker 1>a movie star. Her obsession with celebrities resulted in nine

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<v Speaker 1>divorces until Bonnie eventually married famous actor Robert Blake. However,

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<v Speaker 1>Bonnie learned being close to the spotlight comes with consequences.

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<v Speaker 1>Within a year of her marriage, her Hollywood dream came

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<v Speaker 1>to a tragic end when she was found fatally shot

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<v Speaker 1>outside of a diner in North Hollywood. Bonnie's troubling past

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<v Speaker 1>complicated detectives almost year long investigation into her murder, which

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<v Speaker 1>had the lapd raking through Hollywood's underbelly of gangsters, drug addicts,

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<v Speaker 1>and would be hitman. Her husband, Robert Blake, remained a

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<v Speaker 1>prime suspect in her murder, but the media pointed the

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<v Speaker 1>finger back at Bonnie, saying she had it coming from wondering.

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<v Speaker 1>The execution of Bonnie Lee Bakeley is a thrilling new

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<v Speaker 1>chapter in the hit Hollywood and crime podcast series. Robert

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<v Speaker 1>Blake knew Bonnie spent most of her life as a

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<v Speaker 1>con artist who dreamed of being famous. But when Robert

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<v Speaker 1>Blake reluctantly let Bonnie stay in his guesthouse, it began

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<v Speaker 1>the rule he become most famous for an accused murderer.

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<v Speaker 1>You're about to hear a preview of the execution of

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<v Speaker 1>Bonnie Lee Bakeley while you're listening. Follow the Execution of

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<v Speaker 1>Bonnie Lee Bakeley on Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Spotify, or

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<v Speaker 1>you can listen ad free by joining Wondery Plus in

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<v Speaker 1>the Wondery app.

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<v Speaker 2>It's a little after nine to thirty pm on May fourth,

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<v Speaker 2>two thousand and one. Fireworks flash across the sky in

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<v Speaker 2>Studio City, just over the Hollywood Hills. Cinco de Mayo

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<v Speaker 2>has come a day early this year. Inside a small

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<v Speaker 2>yellow house on a street sewn, Stanik sits at a

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<v Speaker 2>desk in his robe. He's spending Friday night hunched over

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<v Speaker 2>his keyboard writing a screenplay, hoping to become the next

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<v Speaker 2>Quentin Tarantino. But tonight Stanik won't write another word. Outside

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<v Speaker 2>his door is a man. He looks familiar, about sixty

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<v Speaker 2>something short. He's breathing hard. You have to help my wife.

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<v Speaker 2>She's bloody and she's been beaten. They beat her up.

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<v Speaker 2>Oh my god, call nine one one. Then it clicks, Jesus,

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<v Speaker 2>it's Robert Blake, the actor. Stanic seen him around the neighborhood.

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<v Speaker 2>Where is she? Blake points across the street to a

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<v Speaker 2>black Dodge parked in front of a dumpster. Stanik's confused.

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<v Speaker 2>How did Blake's wife get into the car if she

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<v Speaker 2>was beaten? Was there a domestic squabble? Stanic races to

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<v Speaker 2>his bedroom. Dials nine one one addressed emergency.

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<v Speaker 1>Okay, so crap, we need a woman.

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<v Speaker 2>How old is she? She's forty five years old. Is

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<v Speaker 2>she conscience, Robert, No, she's not cautio breathing? Is she breathing?

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<v Speaker 1>The other they're coming up snow.

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<v Speaker 2>The operator tells Stank to get a dry towel to

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<v Speaker 2>stop any bleeding. Shit. He's still in his robe. He

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<v Speaker 2>runs to the bedroom to change clothes, and here's Blake

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<v Speaker 2>yell from the other room. Go back to the restaurant.

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<v Speaker 1>What the hell?

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<v Speaker 2>Why isn't Blake going to the car to help his wife.

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<v Speaker 2>Outside there's a light fog, the street empty, it's dark

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<v Speaker 2>as soot. Then he sees the car next to the

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<v Speaker 2>dumpster and rushes over. He peers in through the driver's

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<v Speaker 2>window and spots the woman. Ma'am, oh my god, Okay,

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<v Speaker 2>she's breathing.

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<v Speaker 1>I don't know, are you okay, ma'am, are you okay?

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<v Speaker 2>Stanik opens the door. The woman's hair is matted with

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<v Speaker 2>blood and he can hear her taking ragged breaths. He

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<v Speaker 2>places a towel around her head and applies pressure, and

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<v Speaker 2>then he hears Blake calling from down the block.

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<v Speaker 1>What's wrong with her? What happened?

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<v Speaker 2>Stanik turns back to the injured woman. He tilts up

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<v Speaker 2>her face. His stomach jumps. There's a gaping hole in

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<v Speaker 2>the right side of her head. She's been shot. Minutes later,

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<v Speaker 2>paramedics arrive and transfer the woman into an ambulance. Stanik

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<v Speaker 2>finds Blake sitting on the curb. He sits next to

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<v Speaker 2>him and puts his arm around his shoulder. By now,

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<v Speaker 2>the street is teeming with squad cars. One of the

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<v Speaker 2>officers approaches and asks Blake if he's related to the victim.

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<v Speaker 2>Blake's voice is low, shaky. That's my wife. I knew

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<v Speaker 2>this was going to happen. I knew it. She was afraid,

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<v Speaker 2>you know. I carry my piece for protection. The officer

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<v Speaker 2>asks if he still has it on him. Blake pulls

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<v Speaker 2>the gun from his pocket. Stanik is suddenly all nerves.

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<v Speaker 2>He tries to piece together the clues. If he did

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<v Speaker 2>the scene as a director, he'd say the woman trusted

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<v Speaker 2>whoever did this. Maybe the killer walked up and said

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<v Speaker 2>something to her, then too late, the gun explodes. One

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<v Speaker 2>of the hazards of working in Hollywood. Everything feels like

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<v Speaker 2>a movie. Stanik won't be the first to speculate about

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<v Speaker 2>what happened tonight. In the next few hours, newspapers and

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<v Speaker 2>TV crews will swoop onto the scene hungry for headlines.

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<v Speaker 2>It's been a slow news cycle, and this story has

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<v Speaker 2>all the makings of a film noir thriller. A faded

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<v Speaker 2>Hollywood actor, his murdered wife, everyone wanting to know who

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<v Speaker 2>is this mysterious woman and who wanted her dead.

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<v Speaker 1>You just heard a preview of the execution of Bonnie

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<v Speaker 1>Lee Bakley. Listen to the rest of this episode wherever

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<v Speaker 1>you get your podcasts.