Identified! MA - Provincetown, Race Point, 'Lady in the Dunes' WhtFem 27-49, UP11840, Jul'74 - Ruth Marie Terry

[madamx]

That is pretty wild if it is her. So they were filming Jaws in Martha's Vineyard in July 1974? Or before that?

 

[dotr]

That is pretty wild if it is her. So they were filming Jaws in Martha's Vineyard in July 1974? Or before that?

May 2 1974
rbbm.
Jaws in Retrospect
"In the words of the movies, Jaws has “wrapped,” struck its sets and stolen away in mammoth trucks. Filming of Peter Benchley’s best-selling novel, Jaws, was started by Universal Studios on the Island May 2, and for the rest of the summer caravans of trucks moved about the Island like nomads, shooting here or there - mostly there - and out at sea where no one could really get a good look at what was happening"

 

[dotr]

https://splinternews.com/was-this-jaws-extra-also-the-mysterious-victim-of-an-in-1793850506
"Over the years, several attempts at figuring out what the victim looked like and theories of her identity and killer have emerged. The mystery of the Lady of the Dunes, and the murder victim's identity, have become one of crime's most investigated and most frustrating cold cases."
Sandra Lee, one of the teens who found the body, has since grown up and become a crime writer. She's pretty sure that mobster Whitey Bulger is involved since the modus operandi closely matches the way he dispatched several victims. Early in the investigation, a serial killer in the region named Tony Costa was suspected, but the timeline didn't sync up—he had been dead for two months. The investigation eventually went cold."

 

[madamx]

'Jaws' may solve decades-old cold case of 'Lady of the Dunes' murder, Stephen King's son says

Joe Hill, the son of horror novelist Stephen King, said he believes a woman who appeared briefly in “Jaws” resembles the “Lady of the Dunes,” an unidentified murder victim from 1974.

Hill, who called “Jaws” his favorite movie, wrote in his blog he was watching the horror classic in 2015 when he saw something that made him “lunge” out of his seat "prickling with gooseflesh."

A woman who appeared as an extra in the Steven Spielberg classic resembled the unidentified “Lady of the Dunes” victim, Hill wrote.


View attachment 140426

I don't know. But she has a Latina or Native American feel to her. That is what I am feeling by looking at her JAWS photo.

 

[cvaldez1975]

New York University School of Dentistry, has a clinic where the students getting ready to graduate work on your teeth. You are assigned to one student, usually go weekly, become part of the class until your dental work is finished. The Professors are high end "Park Avenue" dentists, they finish off your teeth. A lot of New Yorkers go there, It's probably less than 1/4 of the price you would pay a private dentist. In addition it is the latest innovation in dental science, artistry and cosmetic work available. When I was single I did it. I had root canal, a cap and a bridge put in, the few fillings I had that were silver were replaced with fillings that matched my teeth color. It was the first I knew they could even do that. It was amazing. For all of the topnotch work I had done, the fee was only $600.00. When my teeth were finished, my student asked me if I knew anyone one with bad teeth, he would do their dental work for free for his final exams.

I suppose if anyone saw my teeth at the time, especially my beautiful fillings it would be referred to as NY Style work, perhaps because the most modern work comes out of the learning clinics at the NYU Dental School. I ended up going there because my boss highly recommended it at the time, he said he went there growing up, he is now 75 years old. It was a great experience and I walked away with several thousand dollars worth of dental work for a mere $600.00.

About See last tab "Patients" on top of page for clinic info.

I paid 1000 cash for my sons braces at a dental school. 50 a month.

 

[dotr]

rbbm
Stephen Kings son may have solved mystery identity The Lady of the Dunes cold case was Jaws extra | Daily Mail Online

"Several other sketches of 'The Lady of the Dunes' through the years show some look like the woman in the scene, while and others appear to be less of a match"
"Hill's adds that 'we know the Lady of the Dunes was alive in June.'

'Lots of folks turned up to try and get a peek at the stars, or the shark, or to see if they could sneak into a shot.

'It would be no surprise at all if a girl summering on the Cape decided to take a few days to explore the Vineyard… especially with the added bait of celebrity to draw her in.'

The dead woman was also found with a blue bandanna, just like the one the extra in the scene is sporting. "
"'I turn this possibility over to the greatest puzzle solving instrument humans have ever created: the Internet."
"One of the plausible theories is that the woman found dead was possibly from Ireland and was killed by Irish American gangster James 'Whitey' Bulger who was grooming her for sex slavery."
"He and his Winter Hill Gang were notorious for pulling out teeth and chopping off hands making it more difficult for authorities to identify them"

 

[ZaZara]

rbbm
Stephen Kings son may have solved mystery identity The Lady of the Dunes cold case was Jaws extra | Daily Mail Online

"Several other sketches of 'The Lady of the Dunes' through the years show some look like the woman in the scene, while and others appear to be less of a match"
"Hill's adds that 'we know the Lady of the Dunes was alive in June.'

'Lots of folks turned up to try and get a peek at the stars, or the shark, or to see if they could sneak into a shot.

'It would be no surprise at all if a girl summering on the Cape decided to take a few days to explore the Vineyard… especially with the added bait of celebrity to draw her in.'

The dead woman was also found with a blue bandanna, just like the one the extra in the scene is sporting. "
"'I turn this possibility over to the greatest puzzle solving instrument humans have ever created: the Internet."
"One of the plausible theories is that the woman found dead was possibly from Ireland and was killed by Irish American gangster James 'Whitey' Bulger who was grooming her for sex slavery."
"He and his Winter Hill Gang were notorious for pulling out teeth and chopping off hands making it more difficult for authorities to identify them"

I read about this, and that brought me to this thread. Shouldn't they ask this woman to come forward first? Just in case she is alive and kicking?
IMHO this is something you would never forget if you were part of that movie.

 

[The Farm]

This caught my attention this morning on the thread feed. I remember this case quite well and did know a couple from the island that were two of those people in the extra's on the beach. Once they got married they moved off island but would go back and forth often to visit friends and family, unfortunately both have passed away in the last few years. I would have liked to have them look at this thread and see if they remember anything about her picture/sketches.
Jaws has been on a lot lately because of Shark Week and whenever I do watch it I always look for them on the beach but have yet to pin them down, the scenes pan through so fast. My daughter was crazy over this movie when she was small and we went over island years ago to see where they filmed the scenes and I do remember the day after I saw the movie I was afraid to go in the water. Petrified actually because I was in the same water as Jaws. I never felt the same in the ocean again and this year there have been many sightings of great whites on the Cape.
I remember hearing about the mob factor but really did not think it had anything to do with her for some reason, like they wanted it to look mob related but it really wasn't. I do think trying to track down some of the islanders still there that would remember anything during the filming would be at least worth a shot.
When I have time later I am going to read up on this thread to refresh my memory.

 

[dotr]

Article from 2010 says the woman was red haired although many of the sketches seem to show a dark haired person.
Wondering if the hair had the appearance of being red because it was bleached/highlighted by the sun and water?
speculation, imo.
'Lady in the Dunes': New face on old P'town murder case

 

[madamx]

rbbm
Stephen Kings son may have solved mystery identity The Lady of the Dunes cold case was Jaws extra | Daily Mail Online

"Several other sketches of 'The Lady of the Dunes' through the years show some look like the woman in the scene, while and others appear to be less of a match"
"Hill's adds that 'we know the Lady of the Dunes was alive in June.'

'Lots of folks turned up to try and get a peek at the stars, or the shark, or to see if they could sneak into a shot.

'It would be no surprise at all if a girl summering on the Cape decided to take a few days to explore the Vineyard… especially with the added bait of celebrity to draw her in.'

The dead woman was also found with a blue bandanna, just like the one the extra in the scene is sporting. "
"'I turn this possibility over to the greatest puzzle solving instrument humans have ever created: the Internet."
"One of the plausible theories is that the woman found dead was possibly from Ireland and was killed by Irish American gangster James 'Whitey' Bulger who was grooming her for sex slavery."
"He and his Winter Hill Gang were notorious for pulling out teeth and chopping off hands making it more difficult for authorities to identify them"

This is soo interesting really it is.

 

[The Farm]

I read back some in the thread and I was thinking $5000.00 of dental work which they estimated she had in her mouth was a lot of money for that in 1974. Maybe that extensive dental work may one day be what solves this someday.
Hoping someone that was there sees the picture of that girl which Joe Hill posted, they look alike to a degree.
They need to post that in the Vineyard Gazette or The Martha's Vineyard Times and even papers along Cape Cod.
Sometimes a picture evokes a memory.

 

[dotr]

Considering that some have thought Whitey Bulgar may have a connection with this murder, it would be interesting if Lady of the Dunes with her expensive, well cared for teeth, may have encountered his girlfriend at some point.
imo, speculation, fwiw.
rbbm.
Tip on Clean-Tooth Galpal Led to Whitey
"The FBI had honed in on Greig for more than a year in its relentless pursuit of Bulger, focusing on her fondness for getting work done and having her teeth cleaned.

The bureau ran ads last May asking "Have you treated this woman?" with full-page photos of her in Plastic Surgery News, mentioning Greig's numerous procedures in the hopes of finding someone who remembered her from a medical office. She'd had breast implants, a nose job and a facelift, the ads said.
Ads also ran in the American Dental Association's newsletter because Greig, a dental hygienist, is known to have her teeth cleaned at least once a month."

 

[folieadeuxnola]

Considering that some have thought Whitey Bulgar may have a connection with this murder, it would be interesting if Lady of the Dunes with her expensive, well cared for teeth, may have encountered his girlfriend at some point.
imo, speculation, fwiw.
rbbm.
Tip on Clean-Tooth Galpal Led to Whitey
"The FBI had honed in on Greig for more than a year in its relentless pursuit of Bulger, focusing on her fondness for getting work done and having her teeth cleaned.

The bureau ran ads last May asking "Have you treated this woman?" with full-page photos of her in Plastic Surgery News, mentioning Greig's numerous procedures in the hopes of finding someone who remembered her from a medical office. She'd had breast implants, a nose job and a facelift, the ads said.
Ads also ran in the American Dental Association's newsletter because Greig, a dental hygienist, is known to have her teeth cleaned at least once a month."

Believe yall are on to something here.... also need to read up on this guy too

 

[dotr]

"Published on Aug 3, 2018
Does the iconic movie “Jaws” hold the key to a murder mystery four decades old? The 1974 cold case is known as “The Lady of the Dunes.”' The Lady of the Dunes' body was discovered when a teenage girl was walking her dog. The body was badly decomposed and found lying face down on a beach towel. She's never been identified, but a blue bandana and a pair of jeans found at the scene folded up under her head are potential clues."

 

[The Farm]

Thanks for the visual dotr, I am hoping someone sees it on the web and either recognizes her or is her.
I always had a feeling too that she was not from the area at all, most likely out of state. As we know LE were much more limited to what they could do then to what they can do now. You never know what a lead can bring in.

 

[madamx]

I just wanted to bring her stats out again.

119UFMA

Date of Discovery: July 26, 1974
Location of Discovery: Race Point Dunes, Provincetown, Barnstable County, Massachusetts
Estimated Date of Death: 10 days to 3 weeks prior
State of Remains: Not recognizable - Decomposing/putrefaction
Cause of Death: Homicide by blunt-force trauma to the head.

Physical Description
Estimated Age: 20-49 years old
Race: White
Gender: Female
Height: 5'6" to 5'8"
Weight: 145 lbs.
Hair Color: Auburn
Eye Color: Unknown
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Athletic build. Toenails painted pink.


Identifiers
Dentals: Available.Extensive dental work. She had gold crowns on her teeth worth $5000 up to $10,000 at that time. The dental work was done in what dentists call "the New York style" of dental work. Several teeth were removed by her killer.
Fingerprints: Not available.
DNA: Available

Clothing & Personal Items
Clothing: Wrangler jeans and a blue bandana were placed under the victim's head.
Jewelry: Unknown
Additional Personal Items: Elastic hair-tie with gold-colored flecks. The body was laid on top of a light green, heavy cotton beach blanket.



Circumstances of Discovery
The victim was discovered in the dunes about a mile east of the Race Point ranger station in the summer of 1974.

The woman's hands were missing, presumably removed by the killer so she could not be identified through fingerprints - and her head was nearly severed from her body with an instrument similar to a military entrenching tool. The reasoning behind this may suggest she had been fingerprinted before, possibly due to a criminal past. Several of her teeth had been removed as well.

The left side of her skull had been crushed and this was ruled as the cause of death. She had nearly been decapitated, possibly from strangulation. She also appeared to have been sexually assaulted with a block of wood. No weapon was found at the site.

Her nude body was discovered lying on a beach towel with her head resting on her folded jeans. There was no sign of a struggle, and the woman lay on half the towel, as if she'd been sharing it with a companion. Authorities surmised that she may have known her killer or had been asleep at the time of death.

 

[madamx]

I don't know if she has been mentioned on this thread before

Name: Margie Ada Snead
Case Classification: Endangered Missing
Missing Since: January 1, 1974
Location Last Seen: Hot Springs, Garland County, Arkansas

Physical Description
Date of Birth: circa 1955
Age: 19 years old
Race: White
Gender: Female
Height: 5'4"-5'5"
Weight: 150 lbs.
Hair Color: Dark brown/black (based on photograph)
Eye Color: Unknown, most likely brown (based on photograph)
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Unknown

Identifiers
Dentals: Not Available
Fingerprints: Not Available
DNA: Available

Clothing & Personal Items
Clothing: Unknown
Jewelry: Unknown
Additional Personal Items: Unknown

Circumstances of Disappearance
She was last heard from at an unknown address in Hot Springs, Arkansas in 1974. There is little information about Margie's case available.


3666DFAR - Margie Ada Snead

 

[The Farm]

This just brought my attention another reason I do not think she was from the area. NO ONE wore Wrangler jeans around here, we either wore Levi's or Lee and we called them dungarees at the time. Now everyone seems to call them jeans. I do not remember anyone ever wearing Wranglers.
Also they guessed her age at between 20-49 years old. Well there is a big difference to a woman's body in a 25 year bracket so I always found that odd too. There is a picture of her laying there, not a good one but you can see it is a body with feet and if decomposition was that bad I do not think you would even see that, it was not like is was just bones and now they could get a better idea as the last time they exhumed her I believe was 2013. Are they still saying between 20-49 years old? Such a big gap and since the exhumation have they narrowed that down, I could not find anything but will keep looking.

 

[CCJD]

This just brought my attention another reason I do not think she was from the area. NO ONE wore Wrangler jeans around here, we either wore Levi's or Lee and we called them dungarees at the time. Now everyone seems to call them jeans. I do not remember anyone ever wearing Wranglers.

While I can't speak directly to the Cape, I lived in Providence, RI at the time, working at the Speidel factory and I, along with many of my coworkers, wore Wranglers. If I wasn't in cords (also popular at the time), I was in Wranglers. I actually wore mens (even though I'm female) because they fit better. Pretty sure I used to get mine at the old Ann & Hope store on Post Road in Warwick.

 

[The Farm]

I know Ann&Hope!!! And I remember Speidel, had a friend that worked there.
There is still Ann&Hope but not the kind of store they used to be. Mostly home goods, nice things but no clothes.
That is weird because I was very close to Providence and yes cords (my favorites were hunter green) but no one that I knew ever wore Wranglers ever. So I will have to retract what I said, there must have been a pocket of Wrangler wearers and I just never saw them! I also remember wearing men's but don't remember why.
So what you wrote in just changed my train of thought after all these years that there were Wrangler wearing people in the area.....lol I guess we were just die hard Levi & Lee people.