Found Strangled Under Her Bed | Murdered by her Stepfather

Found Strangled Under Her Bed | Murdered by her Stepfather

Westwood Memorial Park in Los Angeles stands, in terms of real estate, as perhaps the most exclusive and expensive cemetery in the city. Its size is remarkably small, yet the concentration of star power resting within its grounds is truly off the charts. Tucked away inside this cemetery is a crypt that holds the distinction of being one of the most frequently visited final resting places in the world. It is a fair and widely accepted assumption that this site belongs to the legendary Marilyn Monroe. She was laid to rest there in August of 1962. Every single time I have visited that cemetery—and I have been there hundreds of times—there is invariably someone paying their respects to Marilyn. I do not believe I have ever visited, even on the bleakest, rainiest winter days, without seeing someone there to honor her. There are always fresh flowers adorning her marker.

Recently, however, there has been some truly unfortunate and disrespectful graffiti. It is heartbreaking to witness what sometimes occurs in cemeteries. I must mention, as a point of practical advice, that one should never kiss gravestones while wearing lipstick. The wax and grease found in cosmetic products cause irreparable damage to the stone. Permanent marker is equally destructive and should never be used. Regardless, when you visit Marilyn Monroe, there is a very famous story involving a man who is entombed directly above her. But to his right lies a young woman by the name of Darby Winters. You might walk right past her without noticing the marker, but I had heard a story about her years ago that compelled me to investigate further. After delving into the archives and the history of that plot, I discovered that Darby Winters was a devout fan of Marilyn Monroe. She was incredibly young, and according to her mother, she possessed a burning ambition to become a successful actress just like her idol. She did manage to appear in a few minor roles, but unfortunately for her, her life was cut tragically short. She was murdered by her stepfather a little over two months after Marilyn’s funeral, strangled in a senseless act of violence.

Darby Winters was born under the name Terrell Lee Anderson in South Dakota in 1946. Her father was Dewey Anderson, and her mother was Jacqueline Craft. When Terrell was approximately six years old, her parents went through a divorce, and shortly thereafter, Jacqueline married a man named Amos Yee. Around 1957, the family decided to relocate to the bustling environment of Los Angeles. It is important to note for the historical record that Amos never legally adopted Terrell. Because I have become so familiar with her through the name inscribed on her grave—Darby Winters—it may become slightly confusing if I switch between calling her Terrell or Darby, so I offer my sincerest apologies in advance for any lack of clarity.

Amos later made various claims that it was Jacqueline, Darby’s mother, who was the driving force behind pushing the young girl into the grueling world of show business. This perspective might serve as a potential explanation for why they chose to move to Los Angeles in the first place. Once in the city, Darby—or Terrell, as she was known then—attended the Hollywood Professional School, the same institution where Judy Garland had been educated as a child. Darby was a multi-talented performer; she was a skilled dancer, a singer, and an aspiring actress. She made appearances at the Toluca Lake Playhouse, and I have read accounts indicating she was a member of the Meglin Kiddies, a troupe featured in various movies and television programs. This group consisted of talented children who could sing and act, remaining active in the troop until they turned sixteen, at which point they were required to leave.

Darby eventually adopted her professional name. In her personal life, she was a vibrant girl who loved surfing, skiing, water skiing, horseback riding, and attending car races. Her friends, impressed by her adventurous spirit, gave her the fitting nickname of “Darby the Daredevil.” Her agent later recalled that she rarely had a moment of spare time. She diligently completed her homework while simultaneously studying and preparing for the demands of her burgeoning career. He described her as a young lady with a brilliant future, possessing a natural talent for dialects and a sharp, intuitive flair for comedy. She appeared in a few shows, such as The Pinky Lee Show, and made a brief appearance in an exercise program similar to the Jack LaLanne style, hosted by Mickey Hargitay.

In May of 1962, the three of them moved into a two-bedroom apartment in a building known as the El Morocco, located in Sherman Oaks. They were renting one-bedroom apartments for about $130 a month, which is the approximate equivalent of $1,400 in today’s money. The El Morocco building was demolished around 2012 to make way for new construction. Neighbors often described Darby as sweet, adorable, gorgeous, and humble. In fact, her neighbors affectionately nicknamed her “the starlet.” If you examine the photographs of Darby from that time, she appeared far more mature than her sixteen years. Her stepfather, Amos Yee, operated a nightclub for teenagers called the Peppermint Twist, located in Pismo Beach, roughly 175 miles north of Los Angeles. Because of this, he would frequently commute to the nightclub from their home in Sherman Oaks.

Jacqueline and Amos had a tumultuous and rocky marriage, undoubtedly exacerbated by his heavy drinking habits, which made him susceptible to severe alcohol-induced blackouts. I will provide more descriptive details as we proceed, but in October of 1962, a shift occurred. Darby’s mother had begun seeing, or had perhaps fallen in love with, another man. Darby eventually told her stepfather that her mother was planning to file for a divorce and that she and her mother intended to move from Sherman Oaks into Hollywood. According to the information I have been able to uncover, this was the first time Amos had ever heard even a whisper of a divorce, and he completely lost control.

This is how the tragic sequence of events unfolded. On Wednesday, October 17, 1962, Darby’s mother, Jacqueline, returned home from work to the Morocco apartments at approximately 5:30 in the afternoon. Her husband, Amos, told her that Darby had left the apartment earlier that afternoon, claiming she was going on a date. He stated that around 3:30 that afternoon, he had picked up the phone and realized Darby was on the other extension talking to her boyfriend. When interviewed by authorities later, that boyfriend—19-year-old hairdresser Frank Catania from Tarzana—said that he distinctly heard his girlfriend’s stepfather, Amos, pick up the phone. He recalled Darby saying, “Get off the telephone, Daddy.” This was, in all likelihood, just minutes before her murder.

Amos then left the apartment, telling his wife he was heading to his nightclub in Pismo Beach. Jacqueline did not think much of his departure until later that night, when Darby still had not returned home. She became increasingly, then desperately, worried, making numerous calls to the local police department to inquire about any reports relating to a young woman matching Darby’s description. For reasons that remain unclear to me, Amos had told his wife that Darby was wearing blue capri pants at the time she left the house. By late the following day, enough time had passed that Jacqueline was able to file a formal missing person’s report. When she returned to the El Morocco, she began searching through Terrell’s bedroom, desperate for any clue as to what could have happened to her daughter. She checked the closet and found the blue capri pants that Darby was supposedly wearing when she disappeared. Nothing in the room appeared disorderly at first glance, but when she got down on her hands and knees to look under the four-poster canopied bed, she discovered her daughter’s body stuffed underneath.

She ran from the apartment screaming, “My daughter’s been killed!” The apartment building manager stated that he rushed to the unit and found everything seemingly in order. He later recounted, “I looked in one room and then another. Then someone shouted, ‘Look under the bed.'” Because there was no light in the room, he struck his cigarette lighter, lifted the bedspread, and found Darby’s body beneath the bed. He noted that she looked as still as a statue, but he knew instantly that she was dead. Police investigators later determined that the bed’s box spring and mattress had been completely removed to force the girl’s body beneath the narrow ten-inch frame and had then been replaced to carefully conceal the evidence. There were no signs of a struggle in the room. There were, however, stuffed animals propped up around the walls, and cases of books stood near the bed. Reports claim that school books were left strewn on top of the bed, suggesting she had been studying. If they had to lift up the mattress to find her body, it remains a point of confusion for me as to how the books could still have been resting on top of the bed, but that is what the official accounts state.

Amos Yee never returned, and the police, needing him for questioning, issued an all-points bulletin. Since Terrell was found barefoot and wearing a colorful red muumuu, police were determined to understand why Amos had told Jacqueline that Terrell was wearing blue capri pants—the very pants found in the bedroom—and why he had fled without returning home. Amos was described as a curly-haired, six-foot-two-inch man weighing 190 pounds. He was last seen wearing beige slacks, a brown and yellow sport shirt, and a brown jacket, driving a 1959 Volkswagen.

Terrell’s autopsy was performed shortly thereafter. Because she was found wearing her undergarments, it was initially assumed, and later confirmed by the autopsy, that she had not been sexually assaulted. Her cause of death was officially listed as asphyxia. Two distinct marks on her neck made it clear that she had been strangled. Investigators estimated that the time of her death was around 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday the 17th. Unbeknownst to her, Darby’s mother had slept in the very same room for an entire night, just a few feet from where her sixteen-year-old daughter’s corpse lay hidden.

Meanwhile, Amos, the stepfather, had gone into hiding. A wanted man, he sequestered himself in the Hollywood Hastings Hotel at 6162 Hollywood Boulevard—a building that was demolished around 1994, likely as a result of the Northridge earthquake. Several days later, at 8:00 a.m. on Monday, October 22nd, he phoned the Van Nuys Detective Bureau and informed them that he wished to surrender. He claimed he was confused and could not remember the act of murder. After his arrest, he tearfully stated, “It must have been me that did it.” He explained that Darby had told him his wife—her mother—was intending to leave him for another man. He said, “I just went to pieces. I must have done it. Don’t ask me how or why because I can’t tell you.” He told the detectives, “But I know I must have done it because I was there, and she was there, and nobody else was there.”

He could not recall the act of stuffing her body under the bed. He explained to the detectives that there had been a “blowup” with Darby at the home. According to the officers, Yee told them, “I kept drinking whiskey with beer chasers,” and he likely passed out. He claimed he did not remember what happened. He said, “I kept thinking something terrible was wrong, and I kept looking under my bed. Then I finally went and looked under her bed and I saw her. I felt her wrist. I couldn’t feel any pulse. She felt dead.” He claimed that he then went to the bathroom and threw up, describing the entire experience as a “horrible nightmare.” He added, “I wouldn’t have wanted to kill that girl. I loved her like she was my own daughter.” After he was arrested, a devastated Jacqueline sobbed, “He has taken away the most precious thing in my life.”

The day after Amos’s arrest—five days after the murder—Darby’s funeral was held at Westwood Memorial Park. Her mother had specifically chosen Westwood because of Darby’s profound love for Marilyn Monroe. According to one source, when Marilyn died earlier that year, Darby had expressed a sincere wish to be buried near her. An Episcopalian priest oversaw the funeral, which was held at 3:00 p.m. at Westwood’s Chapel, the very same location where Marilyn’s services had been held. Darby’s birth father flew in to attend the service. The funeral was attended by about 25 people, including many of Darby’s young school friends. Darby’s father held his ex-wife’s hand throughout the service. Holding back their tears, they marched to Darby’s crypt, following the exact same path that the funeral procession for Marilyn Monroe had taken just weeks earlier. Both of them ended their journeys at the same final destination.

The pallbearers included actors Tommy Kirk, Steve Stevens, John Ireland Jr., Danny Hilton, and Nick Brandon. Darby was interred in a crypt with a marker bearing both her stage name and her birth name, Terrell Ann Anderson. At the time she was placed in the wall, there was not a significant amount of wall space available. If you look at the historical photographs of Marilyn Monroe’s funeral, you can clearly see the immense amount of building and expansion that has taken place since 1962. Amos, her stepfather and killer, later blamed Hollywood for the tragedy. He stated, “I blame Hollywood for 99% of her troubles. If an atom bomb was dropped, I hope it was dropped in the middle of Hollywood.”

The only reason I suspect he might have felt that way was because his wife, Darby’s mother, was actively pushing for a Hollywood career for her daughter. However, Darby’s own agent and representative stated that her stepfather—the man who would eventually kill her—never spoke ill of Hollywood in his presence. He noted that while Amos did not do anything to actively help her career, he did not do anything to obstruct it either. He insisted that Darby would have been a real star. Upon his arrest, Amos also remarked, “If I had Marilyn Monroe’s pill box, I wouldn’t be in the police station at all,” which sounded as though he believed he could have escaped his fate—a sentiment many people would likely have found unsettling.

There was a private pre-trial hearing held at the request of Amos’s attorney. Terrell’s mother attended the hearing, described as an attractive blonde who kept her grief hidden behind dark-lensed sunglasses. As he left the courtroom, Amos entered a plea of not guilty and claimed insanity. He told those around him that he had been on an extended drinking spree and could not recall the incident due to a probable alcohol-induced blackout. During the trial, however, a psychiatrist testified that he was, in fact, sane when he strangled Darby. On April 30th, after nine hours of deliberation, a jury of six men and six women found him guilty of second-degree murder. After the verdict was read, Amos turned to his attorney and said, “You did a good job.”

The 46-year-old Amos Yee was sentenced to five years in prison for the strangulation of his stepdaughter. The judge observed, “I don’t think he’s very remorseful. He’s not the type. There’s no doubt of his definite vicious tendencies.” Little is known about the life of Terrell’s mother, Jacqueline, following the murder. She eventually returned to using her maiden name, Kraft, and passed away in 1985. Amos Yee died on April 26, 1995, in Desert Hot Springs, California, at the age of 73. His obituary mentions a son, two sisters, and two grandchildren. He is buried in Mesa, Arizona.

The next time you visit Westwood Memorial Park and happen to stop by Marilyn’s crypt—which is quite difficult to miss—take a moment to look one space up and one space over. Give a thought to Terrell Anderson, also known as Darby Winters. Thank you for being curious enough to engage with this story. By saying their names, we ensure that they continue to live on in our collective memory. I truly appreciate your time and your undivided attention. Until next time.