On March 2nd 1981, a business reply envelope postmarked Cleveland, OH, bearing the press printed address "The Danbury Mint, Richards Avenue, P.O. Box 5260, Norwalk, Conn" was mailed with the message: "Please stop forced bussing or I will kill 3 more black boys in Atlanta in March". On March 8th 1981, the Atlanta letter arived, signed Zodiac and replete with crosshairs, intimating he was killing the black children of Atlanta. On March 18th 1981, the Washington Post received a letter addressed to "Editor of the Washington Post", claiming to have information on the Atlanta killings and requesting that the editor place an advertisement in the newspaper, stating "Daniel Please Call Home". Another letter, postmarked Williamsport PA 177 PM 23 APR 1981, bearing a pre-printed address was mailed with the accompanying handwritten note beginning "You shall die I'm going to..." The postage-paid envelope was used by a company to distribute literature to its prospective customers. The distribution was made from the New York office of the company.
On or about January 20th 1982, a Santa Claus card was mailed to the family home of missing 25-year-old Harvard graduate, Joan Webster, with the pre-printed address of 654 Grandview Avenue, Ridgewood, New York, mailed inside a business reply envelope for the Better Life Journal with the press-printed address of 7617-D Metro Drive, Austin, Texas. The Santa Claus card carried the message "Please, where can I write you,?" Three of these ominous/cryptic brief messages contained the polite request of "Please", either in the first or second word of the message. At least three of the communications had another thing in common - notably the use of pre-printed or business reply envelopes. There may be a geographical connection as well.
On or about January 20th 1982, a Santa Claus card was mailed to the family home of missing 25-year-old Harvard graduate, Joan Webster, with the pre-printed address of 654 Grandview Avenue, Ridgewood, New York, mailed inside a business reply envelope for the Better Life Journal with the press-printed address of 7617-D Metro Drive, Austin, Texas. The Santa Claus card carried the message "Please, where can I write you,?" Three of these ominous/cryptic brief messages contained the polite request of "Please", either in the first or second word of the message. At least three of the communications had another thing in common - notably the use of pre-printed or business reply envelopes. There may be a geographical connection as well.
If you look at the map above you will notice the close proximity relationship of the Santa Claus card (with the pre-printed address of 654 Grandview Avenue) to the Glen Ridge home of the Webster family, to where it was mailed. The author had glued a newspaper cutting around the envelope carrying the message "Offer 10G reward for missing coed". This was cut from the New York Daily News article of January 18th 1982. The Santa Claus card was almost certainly a response to a heartfelt appeal by the Webster family for any information pertaining to their missing daughter, which was broadcast throughout New England on Christmas Day of 1981, less than a month after her disappearance.on 28th November 1981.
The March 2nd 1981 business reply envelope, postmarked Cleveland, OH, bearing the press printed address "The Danbury Mint, Richards Avenue, P.O. Box 5260, Norwalk, Conn" was mailed with the handwritten note: "Please stop forced bussing or I will kill 3 more black boys in Atlanta in March". The Danbury Mint ran advertisements in eighteen newspapers through a mail order company, advertising miniature pewter models of classic automobiles. The Danbury Mint is a division of MBI, Inc. that markets a variety of collectibles. Danbury Mint historically marketed high quality medals and ingots produced by others exclusively for them. The company also sold numerous other collectible offering including plates, bells, sculptures, etc. Danbury Mint is well known for its 1:24 scale die-cast vehicles, including a now discontinued James Bond's DB5. These advertisements ran on March 1st 1981, the day before the press printed Danbury Mint envelope was mailed. These envelopes were inserted inside each newspaper. One prominent newspaper on the list was the Staten Island Advance in New York, which could very well be where the author of the "forced bussing" letter sourced the envelope. The Better Life Journal business printed envelope, used for the Joan Webster family Santa Claus card, may also have been sourced from the Staten Island Advance. The Better Life Journal advertised its literature through subscription advertisements in selected newspapers. Here is an image of the Better Life Journals, including 1981.
The March 2nd 1981 business reply envelope, postmarked Cleveland, OH, bearing the press printed address "The Danbury Mint, Richards Avenue, P.O. Box 5260, Norwalk, Conn" was mailed with the handwritten note: "Please stop forced bussing or I will kill 3 more black boys in Atlanta in March". The Danbury Mint ran advertisements in eighteen newspapers through a mail order company, advertising miniature pewter models of classic automobiles. The Danbury Mint is a division of MBI, Inc. that markets a variety of collectibles. Danbury Mint historically marketed high quality medals and ingots produced by others exclusively for them. The company also sold numerous other collectible offering including plates, bells, sculptures, etc. Danbury Mint is well known for its 1:24 scale die-cast vehicles, including a now discontinued James Bond's DB5. These advertisements ran on March 1st 1981, the day before the press printed Danbury Mint envelope was mailed. These envelopes were inserted inside each newspaper. One prominent newspaper on the list was the Staten Island Advance in New York, which could very well be where the author of the "forced bussing" letter sourced the envelope. The Better Life Journal business printed envelope, used for the Joan Webster family Santa Claus card, may also have been sourced from the Staten Island Advance. The Better Life Journal advertised its literature through subscription advertisements in selected newspapers. Here is an image of the Better Life Journals, including 1981.
There is good reason to believe the March 2nd 1981 "forced bussing" letter is connected to the March 8th 1981 "Zodiac" Atlanta letter. If this was the Zodiac Killer, then the Danbury Mint business reply envelope used in the March 2nd correspondence - possibly sourced from inside the Staten Island Advance newspaper - could place the Zodiac Killer in and around New York in 1981. The business reply envelope used for the Santa Claus card (addressed 654 Grandview Avenue, Ridgewood, New York), mailed to Glen Ridge, New Jersey and using a New York Daily News cutting, could easily be the same author. Whoever mailed these communications had a propensity to use pre-printed business reply envelopes, distributed free in the newspapers. And in both instances, readdressed them to their desired recipient. In the case of the Better Life Journal envelope, it was readdressed to the Webster family. In the case of the Danbury Mint envelope, it was directed to investigators in the Atlanta child murders. Gareth Penn believed the Santa Claus card was mailed to the Webster family by the Zodiac Killer in the aftermath of their daughter's disappearance. The links shown above may bolster his case - but only if the March 8th 1981 "Zodiac" Atlanta letter can be comprehensively proven to be the real Zodiac Killer.
