David Marks is a name that may not ring a bell for many people, but he is the inspiration behind the 2010 movie “All Good Things”, starring Ryan Gosling and Kirsten Dunst. The movie is based on the life of Robert Durst, a real estate heir and murderer who was accused of killing his wife, his friend, and his neighbor. David Marks is the fictional name given to Durst in the movie, while his wife Kathie McCormack is renamed as Katie Marks.
Who is David Marks?
David Marks, or Robert Durst, was born in New York City in 1943 to a wealthy and influential family that owned several skyscrapers in Manhattan. He was the eldest son of Seymour Durst and Bernice Herstein, and had three younger siblings: Douglas, Tommy, and Wendy. When he was seven years old, his mother committed suicide by jumping from the roof of their home. He later claimed that his father made him watch her death from a window, but his brother Douglas denied this.
Durst attended Scarsdale High School, where he was a loner. He graduated from Lehigh University with a degree in economics in 1965, and enrolled in a doctoral program at UCLA, where he met Susan Berman, a journalist and daughter of a mobster. He dropped out of UCLA in 1969 and returned to New York, where he joined his family’s real estate business.
In 1973, he married Kathie McCormack, a dental hygienist who later became a medical student. They moved to a cottage in South Salem, New York, where they lived a simple life away from the city. However, their marriage was not happy. Durst was reportedly abusive and controlling towards Kathie, who wanted to divorce him. He also had affairs with other women, including Prudence Farrow, the sister of actress Mia Farrow.
What happened to Katie Marks?
Katie Marks, or Kathie McCormack, disappeared on January 31, 1982. She was 29 years old and three months away from graduating from medical school. Durst claimed that he dropped her off at a train station in South Salem that night, after they had an argument at their home. He said that she was going to their apartment in Manhattan, where she had classes the next day. He also said that he spoke to her on the phone later that night, when she called him from their apartment.
However, there is no evidence that Kathie ever made it to Manhattan. Her friends and family reported her missing several days later, after they failed to contact her. They also suspected that Durst was involved in her disappearance, as he had a history of violence towards her. They claimed that he had beaten her several times, and that she had confided in them about her fear of him.
The police investigated Kathie’s disappearance, but they did not find any conclusive proof of foul play. They also faced obstacles from Durst’s family and lawyers, who were powerful and influential in New York. Durst was never charged with Kathie’s disappearance or death. He later married another woman named Debrah Charatan in 2000.
Kathie’s body has never been found. She was declared legally dead in 2017 by a New York judge.
How did David Marks get away with murder?
David Marks, or Robert Durst, did not only escape justice for his wife’s disappearance. He also allegedly killed two other people: his friend Susan Berman and his neighbor Morris Black.
Susan Berman was a close friend of Durst since their UCLA days. She was also his unofficial spokesperson when Kathie disappeared in 1982. She defended him in the media and helped him deal with the police. She also knew some secrets about his past that could implicate him in Kathie’s case.
Berman was found dead in her Los Angeles home on December 24, 2000. She had been shot in the back of the head execution-style. The police discovered that she had been expecting a visit from Durst around that time. They also learned that she had received a letter from him shortly before her death.
The letter contained a $25,000 check from Durst and an envelope with his handwriting on it. The envelope had Berman’s address and the word “Beverley” misspelled as “Beverley”. This detail would later become crucial in linking Durst to Berman’s murder.
Durst was never arrested for Berman’s murder until 2015, when he became the subject of an HBO documentary series called “The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst”. The series revealed new evidence and interviews about Durst’s involvement in Kathie’s disappearance and Berman’s murder.
One of the most shocking moments of the series was when the filmmakers confronted Durst with another letter that he had sent to Berman in 1999. The letter had the same handwriting, address, and misspelling as the one found in Berman’s home. Durst denied that he had written the letter, but he could not explain the similarity.
The filmmakers also showed Durst a note that was sent to the Beverly Hills Police Department on December 23, 2000, the day before Berman’s body was found. The note had the word “cadaver” and Berman’s address on it, and was also written in the same handwriting and misspelling as the letters. The note was apparently meant to alert the police to Berman’s murder.
Durst admitted that the note could only have been written by someone who knew that Berman was dead. He then muttered to himself, “There it is. You’re caught.” He also said, “What the hell did I do? Killed them all, of course.”
Durst did not realize that he was still wearing a microphone and that his words were being recorded. The filmmakers later turned over the evidence to the authorities, who arrested Durst in New Orleans on March 14, 2015. He was charged with first-degree murder in Berman’s case.
Morris Black was an elderly man who lived in the same apartment building as Durst in Galveston, Texas. Durst had moved there in 2001, after he learned that he was under investigation for Berman’s murder. He disguised himself as a mute woman named Dorothy Ciner and rented a cheap apartment next to Black.
Black was found dead on September 30, 2001. His dismembered body parts were discovered in plastic bags floating in Galveston Bay. Durst was arrested for Black’s murder on October 9, 2001, after he was identified by a hardware store clerk who sold him a bow saw and trash bags.
Durst admitted that he had killed Black, but claimed that it was in self-defense. He said that Black had entered his apartment uninvited and had threatened him with a gun. He said that they had struggled over the weapon and that it had gone off accidentally, shooting Black in the face.
Durst said that he panicked and decided to cut up Black’s body and dispose of it in the bay. He also said that he fled to New Orleans and then to Pennsylvania, where he was caught shoplifting a sandwich from a supermarket.
Durst went on trial for Black’s murder in 2003. His defense team argued that he had acted in self-defense and that he had suffered from mental disorders due to his traumatic childhood and his wife’s disappearance. They also hired experts to testify that Durst’s handwriting did not match the cadaver note or the letters to Berman.
The prosecution argued that Durst had killed Black because he knew too much about his past and his identity. They also presented evidence that Durst had stalked his brother Douglas and other family members, and that he had a history of violence and lying.
The jury acquitted Durst of murder in 2003, but found him guilty of tampering with evidence and jumping bail. He was sentenced to five years in prison, but was released on parole in 2005. He later served more time in prison after violating his parole conditions.
Durst is currently serving a life sentence without parole for Berman’s murder. He was convicted of first-degree murder in 2021, after a long and delayed trial due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The jury found him guilty based on the evidence from “The Jinx”, including his own confession.
Durst was also charged with Kathie’s disappearance shortly after his sentencing, but he died in prison in 2022 before a trial could begin. He was 78 years old.
Is David Marks still alive?
David Marks, or Robert Durst, is no longer alive. He died in prison in 2022, after being convicted of Susan Berman’s murder and charged with Kathie McCormack’s disappearance.
He never admitted to killing his wife or his friend, but his own words betrayed him. He said, “Killed them all, of course.”
ncG1vNJzZmikmZh6rrHRnJ%2BapqRjsLC5jpuss7Jfma63tcNmpJqqm6h6p7jOq6CdmV2owaq4y2aYpaGmmnq1tMRmqZ6ZnGLAtbvRsmSbnZieu6V506GcZqWfq7amecClo2afn6SxbsDHoqWgq18%3D
