Wonderland massacre: 1980s porn star John Holmes took secrets to his grave about infamous killing spree
The case of the Wonderland massacre on Laurel Canyon is being explored in a new true-crime docuseries available for streaming by crime writer Michael Connelly.
It’s been 43 years since the Wonderland murders took place in California, and one author believes adult film star John Holmes knew the truth.
"The short answer is yes – he took a lot of secrets to his grave," crime author Michael Connelly told Fox News Digital.
"He was so involved … and this was about one drug rip-off," Connelly shared. "But to think that he was the only one involved — or he was the only one who knew [what happened] — I don’t believe that. I think he knew a lot of stuff and left with it."
The 1981 case that’s still unsolved is the subject of a new true-crime docuseries on MGM+, "The Wonderland Murders & The Secret History of Hollywood." It’s based on Connelly’s Audible podcast of the same name.
The show features new interviews with surviving key players, including the original detectives involved with the case, prosecutors and undercover cops. It also includes a final sit-down with Scott Thorson, Liberace’s lover and a prominent figure in the trial.
Thorson died Aug. 16 in Los Angeles. He was 65.
"There’s been movies, other documentaries and books … [but] I don’t think there’s ever been anything that got the whole story," said Connelly. "I think we do that. We are presenting some interesting character studies from relentless detectives who, for the most part, have never really told their stories. … And then I think we take a deeper dive into who our main villain was — Eddie Nash — than anyone’s ever done before.
"It’s a very complex case … and I think it’s a fresh take on it."
On July 1, 1981, the bodies of Ron Launius, William "Billy" Deverell, Joy Miller and Barbara Richardson were found inside a Laurel Canyon home on Wonderland Avenue.
Police believed the victims were beaten with hammers and metal pipes. The LAPD compared the killings to the Tate-LaBianca murders committed by the Manson family just 12 years earlier.
Launius’ wife, Susan Launius, was the sole survivor of the attack. Her cries were heard by movers who were working at a house next door, the U.S. Sun reported. They called the police.
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Susan suffered severe head injuries. A part of her skull was removed during emergency surgery. She later testified that she could only recall seeing "shadowy figures."
A palm print was discovered at the crime scene. It belonged to Holmes.
Executive producer Alison Ellwood pointed out to Fox News Digital that before the slayings took place, Laurel Canyon was best known as a haven for musicians in the ‘60s and ‘70s. Artists like Joni Mitchell, Frank Zappa, Mama Cass and James Taylor were among those who once called it home.
"This story was the negative image of what had once been this bucolic place with beautiful music," said Ellwood. "It had turned into dens of drug thieves. It was a very different vibe. And LA had changed."
When the murders occurred, Holmes was crowned "The King" of X-rated films. By the early ‘80s, he had appeared in over 1,000 films, the Los Angeles Times reported. It’s rumored he slept with over 14,000 women during his two-decade career and was paid $1,000 a scene.
After earning fame and fortune, it would all come crashing down when Holmes developed a crippling addiction to cocaine.
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"What went wrong for John Holmes? Drugs, his addiction," said Connelly. "A big part of this project is the social history of it. It is an individual story of how drugs destroy people.
"You can look at Holmes … but it’s also about the changes, the dramatic changes, that happened in the … late ‘70s and into the ‘80s when drugs that were inspirational and opened up minds … evolved into drugs that were purposely made to addict. And then you move into the crack epidemic. That history is told in this documentary.
"But the other thing that was going on is how the drug business evolved and changed," said Connelly. "Very much like this crime, it was a very brutal … a very bloody business."
According to the U.S. Sun, the Ohio-born actor began freebasing home-cooked crack cocaine, which made him impotent and unable to work. He soon turned to petty robbery to feed his addiction.
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According to the docuseries, Holmes became entangled in the Wonderland Gang, a group of drug dealers who were known as one of the most feared cocaine distributors in Los Angeles. Launius, Deverell and Miller were members. Richardson was dating David Lind, a member of the gang.
Embroiled in the story is Eddie Nash, a one-time actor turned nightclub owner and drug dealer.
Two days before the murders, his home was robbed, and a bodyguard was shot. He ordered associates to question Holmes about the theft, Variety reported. Trial testimony revealed four men entered Nash’s house through a sliding door that had been reportedly left open by Holmes.
According to the outlet, Thorson testified that he was at Nash’s house making a drug purchase when he witnessed Holmes being beaten and threatened while tied to a chair. He claimed Holmes, fearing for his life, revealed the identities of the thieves. The outlet noted that Launius, Deverell and Miller were part of the robbery.
While Thorson’s claims have been questioned over the years, Ellwood said she believes him.
"His story is at times so outrageous," she acknowledged. "It’s hard to imagine that it’s true or that he’s embellishing. … But you see Michael really working with him to get the details and corroborating things with the detectives and the prosecutors. And his story does hold up. Michael tried to poke a lot of holes in it and couldn’t really find any."
"It’s hard to believe everything," said Connelly. "But we always found a backup for it. … We found the detective who took him to witness protection, so we did our best to confirm his stories because some of them are so over the top."
In court, Thorson accused Nash of orchestrating the murders as retaliation, the outlet reported. However, Nash’s trial ended in a hung jury. He was never convicted.
Holmes was tried for and acquitted of the Wonderland murders. In 1984, he and his wife divorced. A year later, he tested positive for AIDS.
According to multiple reports, Holmes refused to offer any additional details to detectives about the murders on his deathbed. He died in 1988 at age 43.
After his death, Sharon claimed Holmes confessed to her in 1981 that he had played a central role in the murders, the Los Angeles Times reported. Holmes claimed that he led several individuals to the home and stood by as they bludgeoned the five people inside, splattering him with blood. Investigators suspected that Holmes may have been acting on Nash’s orders.
Holmes never told his wife the names of the assailants, and he never offered a public account of what happened. He was also adamant about never hurting anyone.
Nash died in 2014. He was 85.
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"[Holmes] was a victim because of drugs," said Connelly. "The addiction to drugs … makes people do awful things. … Was John Holmes a cold-blooded murderer? A jury said no. The jury said that if he did anything, he was probably forced into it. … There are different levels of guilt. The viewers can decide all that."
