Jose and Kitty Menendez
On the warm summer night of August 20, 1989, Mom and Pop Menendez were relaxing in the living room of their $3.5 Million home on Elm Drive, in Beverly Hills. Their house was number 722 N. Elm Drive. Jose' was wearing a white shirt and blue shorts, Kitty was wearing lavender sweatshirt and white jogging pants. They were watching a video of "The Spy Who Loved Me," while lying on the couch. Kitty went into the kitchen and made a couple of cups of blueberries and cream, returned to her husband, and dozed off. Their two sons, Erik and Lyle, were out for the evening.
The sons drove a small white hatchback up to the house, got their weapons from the trunk and entered the house, via the French doors. What happened next is pretty gruesome, so I'll try to keep it brief.
The first shot from a .12 gauge shotgun hit Jose in the back of the head. That killed him immediately. Did they stop? No. Two more shots, tearing open both arms. Kitty had it much, much worse. She got up and tried to flee. One shot hit her calf, and one fractured her arm. She hit the floor. Got up again to be greeted with another and another. Left thigh, right arm, left breast. So many shots were fired that they ran out of ammunition, but Kitty wasn't dead yet. Back to the car for more cartridges. This time they used birdshot. One of them went back in, put the gun up to Mom's cheek, and fired. A total of 10 wounds ripped through her.
A few of the neighbors heard the shots, but didn't think much of it. They say that George Burns, who had a home VERY close by, heard them too. But it was Beverly Hills. Things like that just didn't happen there.
The boys took off, and ditched the clothing and guns. They tried to get tickets for the film, "License to Kill." I couldn't make that up. They returned to the house and at 11:47, and Lyle made the famous 911 call. When the cops arrived, the two came running out the front door, side by side, in step. They got just outside the gates, and hit the parkway, collapsing in tears. A grieving Erik got up and rammed his head in the tree. Nice touch. Of course they weren't suspects. The boys told the cops that it must have been a mob hit, due to some of Jose's questionable business deals. Of course.
Legend has it, that Jose was so despised by his co-workers, everyone was scrambling for an alibi when the story hit the news.
November 2006 NEW! Jose and Kitty's bodies were found by authorities and removed.
Fearing it was a mob hit, Jose's employer, Carolco on Sunset at Holloway (they made the "Rambo" films), put the boys up at the Bel Air Hotel, in a $1300.00 a night suite. By the time of their parents funeral, they had rung up over $2000.00 in room service. In the weeks ahead, those poor grieving boys bought a restaurant in New Jersey, a Porsche, and a Caribbean Holiday.
A memorial service was held at the Directors Guild, in Hollywood, on Friday, August 25th. Several Hollywood bigwigs attended, including Sylvester Stallone (whom Jose' really hated). The service was scheduled for 11a.m. The boys kept the 200 guests waiting for over an hour, so Lyle could get his toupee fixed. Now that IS funny. Lyle then gave an hour-long eulogy. Ugh.
The bodies were flown back to New Jersey, where the family lived before gracing 90210 with
their illustrious presence. The funeral
was held at the (appropriately decorated) Princeton University Chapel
(Thank you Nancy),
officiated by Father Brendan Scott. Jose and Kitty are buried in Princeton, New Jersey, in
the Princeton Cemetery.
Now, this is where you think, how stupid can you be? Eric confessed to a friend that they had committed the murders. The entire story. Duh. Then he told his therapist, Dr. Jerome Oziel, who secretly taped their conversations, for his own protection. The jerk then bragged to his mistress about it. So much for ethics. They had a fight, and she stole the tapes and went to the cops.
Lyle was arrested as he pulled out of the driveway on Elm. Eric turned himself in shortly thereafter. In 1993, their trial began, and the "abuse excuse" was invented. They tried turning Jose and Kitty from victims, into villains. They claimed years of sexual abuse from their parents, and that the sons feared for their own lives. The verdict? Hung Jury. Jerks. They were given a new trial in 1995, and on March 20, 1996, they were found guilty. Life. Both of 'em. No hope of parole. HA ha. When they were trying to raise money for Eric's defense, I wrote them, offering money in exchange for autographs. This is the reply I received.
Trivia: The sheet music for "American Pie" was on the music stand in the living room. Bye bye.
Both Elton John and Prince lived in the house previously. Funnily enough, some gay porn magazines were found on the premises, and naughty Eric said they were Elton Johns! Like Elton is going to leave his dirty books behind!
Lyle claimed that Jose' used to force him to perform oral sex on him. Lyle said that he put cinnamon in Jose's coffee, so it wouldn't taste as bad. This was broadcast on CourtTV, and you could not find cinnamon on any shelf of any store in LA after that revelation!
Photo's of the house are courtesy of Terri Rios and Justin Mercer.
UPDATE DECEMBER 2002
Major construction being done at the Menendez house. I'm surprised they don't just tear down the sucker, but they've gutted the house, and leveled the grounds. Here are some snaps. Front window 1, and 2. Back yard 1 and 2, and the front of the house. Enjoy.
October 2006 - the house with very interesting and appropriate Halloween Decorations.
