Paul Snider

Early Life and Background in Vancouver

Paul Snider was born on April 15, 1951, in Vancouver, British Columbia. By the mid-1970s, he worked as a promoter for various clubs in the city's nightlife scene. Snider was also involved in prostitution, operating as a pimp. This dual life formed the backdrop of his character and his approach to relationships. His activities in Vancouver during this period painted a picture of a man skilled at manipulation.

Meeting Dorothy Stratten and Managing Her Ascent

In 1977, Snider met Dorothy Ruth Hoogstraten, a teenager working part-time at a Dairy Queen in Coquitlam while attending Centennial High School. Snider, then 26, began dating her and assumed a managerial role. In the summer of 1978, he arranged for professional nude photographs of Stratten to be taken and sent to Playboy magazine. As Stratten was under 19, the age of majority in British Columbia, Snider forged her mother’s signature on the model release form. This led to Stratten being selected as a finalist for Playboy's 25th Anniversary Great Playmate Hunt and her move to Los Angeles in August 1978. Stratten was born on February 28, 1960, at Grace Maternity Hospital in Vancouver to Simon and Nelly Hoogstraten, who had emigrated from the Netherlands.

Life in Los Angeles and a Deteriorating Marriage

Snider joined Stratten in Los Angeles in October 1978. The couple married in Las Vegas on June 1, 1979, shortly before Stratten's debut as Playboy's Miss August 1979. Stratten worked as a bunny at the Century City Playboy Club and began landing small roles in television and film, including episodes of Buck Rogers and Fantasy Island in 1979. She also had roles in the films Americathon, Skatetown, U.S.A., and Autumn Born, all released in 1979. Snider struggled to find his own success, dabbling in failed ventures. He inserted himself as Stratten's unofficial manager and acting coach, creating significant tension. Friends and colleagues, including Playboy founder Hugh Hefner and model Rosanne Katon, warned Stratten about Snider's behaviour. The relationship grew strained through early 1980. In March 1980, Stratten flew to New York to film They All Laughed, directed by Peter Bogdanovich. She convinced Snider to stay in Los Angeles, which allowed her to begin a romantic affair with Bogdanovich and marked the effective end of her marriage.

The Descent Towards Violence

In April 1980, Stratten was named the 1980 Playmate of the Year, an honour that came with $200,000 in cash and gifts. She was presented at a luncheon at the Playboy Mansion on April 30. During a promotional tour in Canada, Stratten wrote to Snider asking for more freedom. Snider responded with a furious phone call. In late June, Snider received a letter from Stratten formally announcing their physical and financial separation. He emptied their joint bank account, briefly rekindled a relationship with an old girlfriend, and hired a private detective to gather evidence. Financially dependent on Stratten's income and with no green card to work legally in the U.S., Snider began selling her Playmate of the Year prizes at a loss for quick cash. This included a Jaguar sports car valued at $26,000. By late July, Stratten had returned to Los Angeles from New York and England with Bogdanovich and had moved into his Bel Air mansion. Snider hid outside the estate on July 31 with a borrowed handgun, intending to shoot anyone at the entrance, but left after several hours. The couple met for the last time on August 8 at Snider's rented West Los Angeles house. Stratten told him she was in love with Bogdanovich and wanted to finalize their separation. Snider agreed to meet again the following week to discuss a financial settlement.

Key Dates in the Lead-Up to the Crime

The final week of Paul Snider's life was marked by attempts to acquire a weapon. On August 8, 1980, he returned a borrowed handgun to its owner. On August 9, he and a private detective went to a gun store, but Snider could not buy a firearm due to his Canadian citizenship. On August 10, Snider asked the private detective to buy him a machine gun for home protection but was talked out of it. On August 11, he drove to the San Fernando Valley to look at a gun for sale but got lost and gave up. On August 13, he successfully bought a used 12-gauge pump-action shotgun from a private seller.

• July 31, 1980: Snider hid outside Peter Bogdanovich's Bel Air estate with a borrowed handgun but left after several hours.
• August 8, 1980: Snider and Stratten met for the last time at his West Los Angeles house, where she confirmed she was in love with Bogdanovich.
• August 9, 1980: Snider attempted to buy a firearm with his private detective but was refused due to his Canadian citizenship.
• August 10, 1980: Snider asked the private detective to buy him a machine gun for home protection but was talked out of it.
• August 11, 1980: Snider drove to the San Fernando Valley to look at a gun for sale but got lost and returned home.
• August 13, 1980: Snider successfully purchased a used 12-gauge pump-action shotgun from a private seller via a classified ad.
• August 14, 1980: Dorothy Stratten arrived at Snider's house around noon. She was murdered within an hour, and Snider died by suicide approximately an hour later.

The Murder-Suicide

On August 13, Snider purchased a used 12-gauge pump-action shotgun from a private seller found through a classified ad. That evening, he told friends he had bought a gun to take up hunting and made morbid remarks about the deaths of other Playmates, specifically mentioning former Playmate of the Year Claudia Jennings, who died in a 1979 car accident. Stratten arrived at Snider's house around noon on August 14. She had spent the morning conferring with her business manager and had brought $1,100 in cash as a proposed down payment on a settlement. Snider's two roommates were out, leaving the couple alone. According to the Los Angeles Police Department's forensic timeline, within approximately an hour of her arrival, Snider shot and killed Stratten with the shotgun in his bedroom. He then waited about an hour before turning the gun on himself. The roommates discovered the nude bodies shortly after 11:00 p.m. that night after being alerted by the concerned private detective. Hugh Hefner was notified at the Playboy Mansion in the early hours of August 15, and he then called Peter Bogdanovich, who collapsed upon hearing the news. Stratten's mother was informed of her daughter's death later that morning by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

Aftermath and Burial

Dorothy Stratten's body was cremated, and her remains were interred at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles. The epitaph on her grave marker includes a passage from Ernest Hemingway's novel A Farewell to Arms, chosen by Bogdanovich. Paul Snider's remains were returned to British Columbia. He is buried at the Schara Tzedeck Cemetery in New Westminster. The crime was investigated by the Los Angeles Police Department. The murder-suicide ended Stratten's promising career at age 20. In August 1981, her final film, They All Laughed, had its U.S. release.

Cultural Depictions and Lasting Notoriety

The story of Paul Snider and Dorothy Stratten has been adapted for the screen multiple times. Her death inspired the television movie Death of a Centerfold: The Dorothy Stratten Story in 1981. It also inspired the theatrical motion picture Star 80 in 1983. These works have helped ensure the case remains in public memory.

• Death of a Centerfold: The Dorothy Stratten Story (1981): This television film starred Bruce Weitz as Paul Snider and Jamie Lee Curtis as Dorothy Stratten.
• Star 80 (1983): Director Bob Fosse's theatrical motion picture provided a dramatization, with Eric Roberts portraying Snider and Mariel Hemingway as Stratten.
• The Killing of the Unicorn (1984): Peter Bogdanovich published this book, which is part biography of Stratten, part memoir of their affair, and a critique of Hugh Hefner and the Playboy philosophy.
• One Day Since Yesterday (2014): This documentary about the making of They All Laughed includes Bogdanovich's remembrances of Stratten.
• Killer Psyche Podcast: Retired FBI agent Candice DeLong has analyzed the case, examining the psychological dynamics of Snider's possessive behaviour.

In December 1988, Peter Bogdanovich married Stratten's sister, Louise, who was 20. Bogdanovich had paid for Louise's private schooling and modeling classes following Stratten's death. They divorced in 2001 after being married for 13 years. The case has also been referenced in music, including the songs "The Best Was Yet to Come" by Bryan Adams and "Dead Meat" by Bush.

Impact on Peter Bogdanovich and Stratten's Final Film

The aftermath of the crime had a long-term impact on director Peter Bogdanovich. Determined that Stratten's final screen performance in They All Laughed be seen, he bought the theatrical rights to the film after its disappointing limited U.S. release in August 1981. Despite generally favourable reviews, the endeavour failed financially. Bogdanovich sank more than five million dollars, his entire net worth at the time, into promoting and distributing the movie. He declared bankruptcy in 1985, losing his Bel Air mansion where Stratten had lived at the end of her life. In the years since, They All Laughed has been reassessed by critics and filmmakers as one of Bogdanovich's best works. Following his death in 2022, Bogdanovich was interred next to Stratten's remains at Westwood Village Memorial Park.

Legacy and Other References

Stratten's murder has had a lasting cultural impact. Film critic Vincent Canby wrote in 1983 that Stratten possessed a charming screen presence and might have become a first-rate comedienne. The Red Hot Chili Peppers song "Californication" makes reference to her. Actress Nicola Peltz portrays Stratten in the 2022 Hulu miniseries Welcome to Chippendales. In 2022, Stefan Tetenbaum, Hefner's valet between 1978 and 1981, alleged on the A&E documentary series Secrets of Playboy that he witnessed Hefner raping Stratten in the mansion grotto. Hefner had previously denied forcing himself on Stratten, admitting only to a nude soak in a Jacuzzi with her weeks after she arrived in Los Angeles.

Questions about Paul Snider

How did Paul Snider meet Dorothy Stratten?

Paul Snider met Dorothy Stratten in 1977 in Coquitlam, British Columbia. Stratten was a 17-year-old high school student working part-time at a Dairy Queen. Snider, then 26 and working as a club promoter and pimp, began dating her. He later arranged for professional nude photos to be taken and sent to Playboy magazine, forging her mother's signature on the release form as Stratten was under the age of majority.

What happened on the day Dorothy Stratten was murdered?

On August 14, 1980, Dorothy Stratten arrived at Paul Snider's rented house in West Los Angeles around noon to discuss their separation. She had brought $1,100 in cash as a down payment. Forensic evidence indicates Snider shot and killed her with a 12-gauge shotgun within an hour of her arrival. He then waited approximately an hour before shooting himself. Their bodies were discovered by Snider's roommates shortly after 11:00 p.m. that night.

What movies have been made about Paul Snider and Dorothy Stratten?

Two major films have dramatized the story of Paul Snider and Dorothy Stratten. The first was the 1981 television movie Death of a Centerfold: The Dorothy Stratten Story, starring Bruce Weitz as Snider and Jamie Lee Curtis as Stratten. The second was director Bob Fosse's 1983 theatrical film Star 80, which featured Eric Roberts as Paul Snider and Mariel Hemingway as Stratten. Stratten's murder also inspired a book by Peter Bogdanovich titled The Killing of the Unicorn, published in 1984.

What was Paul Snider's motive for the murder?

Analysts point to Snider's inability to accept the loss of control and rejection. As Stratten's career soared and she began a relationship with director Peter Bogdanovich, Snider's financial dependence and status diminished. His background as a pimp suggested a pattern of exploiting women. The murder is viewed as the final, violent act of a possessive partner who could not cope with his wife's independence.

Where are Paul Snider and Dorothy Stratten buried?

Dorothy Stratten's remains are interred at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles. Paul Snider is buried at the Schara Tzedeck Cemetery in New Westminster, British Columbia. Following his death in 2022, film director Peter Bogdanovich was interred next to Stratten's remains at the Westwood cemetery. Stratten's grave marker includes a passage from Ernest Hemingway's novel A Farewell to Arms, chosen by Bogdanovich.

Sources: Wikipedia and current public reporting, checked by the Nosy Mag desk. Last updated 2026-10-20.