Others may have bigger body counts, but few murderers captured theminds of America as much as San Diego-area native Andrew Cunanan.
In one of the most dramatic (and arguably overblown) media eventsof the late-20th Century, Cunanan embarked on a nationwide killingspree in the spring and summer of 1997 that ultimately left him andfive others dead.
The bright (his I.Q. was tested at 147) and openly-gay Cunananflew out of the San Diego airport on April 25, 1997. His firstobjective was to visit an ex-lover, architect David Madson, inMinneapolis to “settle some unfinished business.” On April 29,Madson’s friend Jeffrey Trail was found dead in Madson’s apartment.Madson was the next to be found dead, four days later, on the edge ofa lake north of Minneapolis, the victim of multiple gunshot wounds.
Three more murders followed, including Cunanan’s most notoriousact, the mid-day execution of famed fashion designer Gianni Versaceon the streets of Miami, Fla.’s South Beach, on July 15. Cunanan’sown body was then found July 23 on a houseboat in Miami, the victimof a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Thereare a number of in-depth resources on Cunanan, most notably theexcellent book “Vulgar Favors” by Maureen Orth. Now, here’s The DailyAztec’s addition to the Cunanan library: The Andrew Cunanan Tour.It’s an excellent resource if you have the macabre interest to followin a serial killer’s footsteps, or if you just want to impress (orfrighten) friends and family with your expansive knowledge of thesubject.
When Cunanan was 4 years old, his family moved to 5777 WatercrestDrive, Bonita. It is in this house that Cunanan spent the tumultuousdays of his youth, the youngest of four children born to amentally-fragile mother and verbally abusive father.
Cunanan attended Sunnyside Elementary School, 5430 San MiguelRoad, Bonita, where fellow classmates recall that he dressed in suitsand impeccably preppy clothing, and regaled them with falsehoodsabout his wealthy family. He went to middle school at Bonita VistaSchool, 650 Otay Lakes Road, Chula Vista, where he continued to telltall tales, pretending to be something he was not.
As a young man, Cunanan often expressed his desire to become apriest and allegedly read the entire Bible at a very young age. Evenin later years he considered a religious career, possibly based onhis experiences as an altar boy at St. Rose of Lima Church, 278Alvarado St., Chula Vista.
Cunanan always wanted to rub elbows with the affluent crowd. Itwas for this reason that he applied, and was accepted to theprestigious Bishop’s School, 7607 La Jolla Blvd., La Jolla.
Bishop’s was primarily populated with the wealthy and privilegedthat Cunanan wanted so desperately to be like, and stratificationamong students from different social backgrounds was harsh. It wasduring these formative years that he allegedly began trading sexualfavors to wealthy, older men for fancy gifts. Most reports claim thatCunanan, despite his strange ways, was well-liked at Bishop’s and wasvoted “Least Likely to be Forgotten” by his senior class.
Over the next several years, Cunanan was a regular at gay bars andclubs all over the San Diego area, particularly in Hillcrest, whilehe worked his way through college at the University of California,San Diego.
Cunanan’s last residence in San Diego was an apartment at 1234Robinson Ave. On the night before he flew out of San Diego and intohistory, Cunanan hosted a farewell dinner for himself at one of hisfavorite restaurants, California Cuisine, 1027 University Ave.
When Cunanan left San Diego for Minneapolis and beyond, it was thelast time he’d see his hometown alive. However, he is now a permanentresident at the Holy Cross Cemetery, 4470 Hilltop Drive. The exactlocation of his burial site is in the Holy Cross Mausoleum in theHoly Rosary Chapel, six crypts up from the floor in the niche area.
