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Subject: "Globe story on Santa this week" Archived thread - Read only
 
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Rmod
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Sep-12-02, 08:25 PM (EST)
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"Globe story on Santa this week"
 
  

Headline: JonBenet: Evil Lies Killed Santa - and Bill McReynolds’ widow blames the Ramseys for his torment

Quotes in article:

Janey McReynolds: “He never got over the pain of being targeted as a suspect by the Ramseys. First there was the shock …(of how she died), then, he found out her parents…were targeting him… and later, Ramsey supporters spread malicious lies over the Internet."

Linda Hoffmann-Pugh: “There’s no doubt in my mind that these false accusations hastened Bill’s death. He had a weak heart to begin with and that kind of endless stress didn’t help.”

Detective Steve Thomas: “We investigated the hell out of this old man. He didn’t do it.”


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Mikiemoderator
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Sep-13-02, 10:29 AM (EST)
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1. "RE: Globe story on Santa this week"
In response to message #0
 
   I feel not the slightest regret that I posted facts that incriminate Santa. I am not a Ramsey supporter, just not against them, because the evidence does not point to them. If people follow the evidence, it leads to Santa, and others, (in my opinion)...and Steve Thomas is not a person that I would believe...about anything.


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Lilac
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Sep-13-02, 12:05 PM (EST)
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2. "Vewwwwwwy Interesting --as Elmer Fudd s"
In response to message #1
 
   LAST EDITED ON Sep-13-02 AT 12:05 PM (EST)
 
My title is cut off. "as Elmer Fudd says".

Linda Hoffmann-Pugh: “There’s no doubt in my mind that these false accusations hastened Bill’s death. He had a weak heart to begin with and that kind of endless stress didn’t help.”

Just how close WAS Linda to Bill? How did she know he had a weak heart? Because of his surgery (mentioned in the media) or because she knew him?

One last thing...of all the people to get a quote from concerning false accusations, how ironic that Linda would be one of those being quoted. (Queen of the Falsies).


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jamesonadmin
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Sep-13-02, 04:33 PM (EST)
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3. "ST said"
In response to message #2
 
   LAST EDITED ON Sep-13-02 AT 06:42 PM (EST)
 
ST hardback, p. 113

"Then came the final undoing of Santa Bill. McReynolds loved appearing on television, and someone recognized him as a regular customer at a local adult bookstore. He came in again for an interview that cleared him of suspicion, but at a personal price.

McReynolds was distraught by the discovery of something he thought was buried so deep in his private life that his wife of thirty-five years was unaware of it until we called him. He emphasized that his sexual fantasies never involved children or child pornography."

Thomas went on to say that Santa was cleared via his handwriting - - but I have never heard anyone else say that. In fact, months AFTER this event, Santa was still very much part of the investigation according to my sources. I don't believe for a moment that Thomas was not aware of that.

Steve Thomas didn't tell the whole truth here - - but I think it may come out soon - - it is all there in the depositions and police reports - - and I don't see how those can remain sealed forever.


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Mikiemoderator
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4. "Information Coming Out Soon?"
In response to message #3
 
   Wouldn't it be nice?

http://www2.dailycamera.com/bdc/city_news/article/0,1713,BDC_2422_1414188,00.html


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Rmod
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Sep-13-02, 09:16 PM (EST)
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5. "McReynolds on TV"
In response to message #4
 
   The Today Show - Friday, January 31, 1997

Bill McReynolds on Today

NBC News Transcripts
January 31, 1997

NBC's Today Show

MATT LAUER, co-host:

And we're back on a Friday morning, the 31st day of January, 1997. And we decided to come out and say hello to some people who've gathered
outside our studio, instead of being shut-ins that we have been for the past hour and a half. We're outside with people now. I'm Matt Lauer,
along with Katie Couric and Al Roker. We have some people we want to talk to.

KATIE COURIC, co-host:

Actually, we do. Mr. Bill McReynolds. Mr. McReynolds, hi, good morning.

Mr. BILL McREYNOLDS: Hi, Katie.

COURIC: Nice to see you. I know Al spoke with you...

Mr. McREYNOLDS: Can I have a little hug?

COURIC: Oh, well, thank you very much. I know that Al spoke with you earlier, but we discovered some information about you that we weren't
aware of earlier in the program, and that is that you're from Boulder, Colorado...

Mr. McREYNOLDS: Right.

COURIC: ...and that you are Santa Claus, as--as you mentioned...

Mr. McREYNOLDS: Right.

COURIC: ...and that for the last three years you were the Santa at the Ramseys' home...

Mr. McREYNOLDS: Right.

COURIC: ...in Boulder, Colorado. So you got to know JonBenet Ramsey. Tell us a little bit about the family.

Mr. McREYNOLDS: Well, what upsets me about this whole thing is that the family is not being celebrated enough, and were very, very
generous. For example, Patsy gave me this for this last Christmas, and how many people do you think give Santa Claus presents?

COURIC: This--this whole incident seems to be shrouded in a lot of mystery and people are wondering about the family itself, even the
Ramseys have been called into question in terms of their possible involvement. When you've heard all the speculation, what do you think?

Mr. McREYNOLDS: Well, it grieves me enormously, because I adore the family. They adopted me as a member of the family, actually,
which--which they did at the memorial service, they--they recognized us. It's a very, very hard thing for me.

COURIC: And what about little JonBenet...

Mr. McREYNOLDS: Wonderful.

COURIC: ...I know you have a cute story about--you used to put glitter in your beard.

Mr. McREYNOLDS: Well, yes. I tell the story about going out as Santa Claus and--for a--for a rehearsal, and the--we run into stars, and I put
stardust on my beard, and so I put glitter on it, and so JonBenet especially like that, so she gave me a little vial of stardust, or glitter, and I
took it with me to the hospital this year because I had a major operation, near-death experience and all of that. And then after I got well, I came
to the party this year, it's one of my favorite parties, she gave me another one. So I gave one of the vials to the family for their celebration. We
don't celebrate children enough, Katie.

COURIC: And tragically you were there two days before she was murdered.

Mr. McREYNOLDS: Two days before, right. Yeah, it was very, very difficult. Kind of like a thunderbolt or a lightning bolt, or whatever it is.

COURIC: Well, Mr. McReynolds, thanks very much for talking with us.

Mr. McREYNOLDS: You're so welcome.

COURIC: And since you know the family, it must be very difficult for you, so we appreciate it.

Mr. McREYNOLDS: Right. You're welcome. And I'm going to be on the Geraldo show, if I should say that.

COURIC: OK. Well, that's all right, you can mention that. Thanks for talking with us.

Anyway, Matt, you are telling us what's coming up.

LAUER: We have a couple of interesting segments in this half hour. We're going to take a look at a profession we don't see very much of
anymore, we're going to talk about milkmen. And then also we are going to take a look at some unusual foods you'll probably see on your
supermarket shelves in the months ahead. They come courtesy from the Fancy Foods Show in San Francisco. But before we get to that, let's go
inside one more time to Ann Curry on this Friday morning. Ann:

ANN CURRY, anchor:

Thanks a lot, Matt.


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Rmod
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6. "RE: McReynolds on TV"
In response to message #5
 
   Geraldo Rivera - Thursday, February 27, 1997

Bill and Janet McReynolds, guest


February 27, 1997

THE GERALDO RIVERA SHOW

JONBENET RAMSEY: LIVE FROM BOULDER, COLORADO--A TOWN MEETING;
COMMUNITY MEMBERS TALK ABOUT HOW THIS CASE HAS AFFECTED
THEIR LIVES AND THAT OF THE COMMUNITY

GERALDO RIVERA: Hi, everybody, and welcome back to The Alps Boulder Canyon Inn in Boulder, Colorado. This city is a sublime place to
live and raise children but it is also a place that witnessed a monstrous crime committed against an innocent and beautiful child. Yesterday
right here we debated the facts and circumstances surrounding the JonBenet Ramsey murder investigation. It was an emotional and
passionate encounter. Take a look....

RIVERA: Today's focus is somewhat different. Today we will be hearing from the people who live in the Boulder area about how this terrible
crime has affected their lives. You'll hear also from Ramsey family friends, get their feelings about the progress of the investigation, but first
meet an old friend of ours--it seems as if he's an old friend of ours--Bill McReynolds, known to the Ramsey family as Santa. He entertained the
Ramseys for several of their holidays, got to know JonBenet quite well. McReynolds, as you all know undoubtedly by now, was recently
questioned by the police. His wife Janet also joins us.

I wonder, Janet, if there wasn't a moment after Santa was called by the cops to give hair, blood and handwriting analysis, that you wondered, in
your heart, My God, could Bill have been the man who did this monstrous crime?'

Ms. JANET McREYNOLDS (Husband Played Santa For JonBenet For Three Years): Never. Never for a moment. I knew it could not have been
Bill.

RIVERA: How did you react then when he was summoned by the authorities to, you know, give up his hair, his blood, his...

Ms. McREYNOLDS: He had been in the house on December the 23rd, as I had also. It seemed to me to be a logical procedure to exclude him.

RIVERA: Why did you folks go to Spain after the homicide?

Ms. McREYNOLDS: That pla--that trip was planned as far back as June.

RIVERA: Did you have to console him twice--number one, for the loss of this lovely child he came to know so well, and, number two, for the fact
that he was in some small way snared by this process?

Ms. McREYNOLDS: I don't think he was snared. I think that--we eventually--I think we consoled each other, because we were both shattered,
devastated, and I don't feel that there was any--any entrapment at all in--in the way the police treated him.

RIVERA: Can you tell us how you were shattered by this terrible deed?

Ms. McREYNOLDS: I think that JonBenet was a--a very special child to both of us. She was incredibly beautiful, not only in her physical
appearance, but she seemed to have an inner light that we both responded to. He as Santa Claus, and I only saw her the one time, on December
the 23rd, but I was instantly struck with this beautiful inner light that I felt was in her.

RIVERA: Will you be forever haunted by what happened?

Ms. McREYNOLDS: Oh--oh, no doubt. No doubt. We'll carry this with us all our lives.

RIVERA: Bill, you brought the magic dust there.

Mr. BILL McREYNOLDS (Played Santa For JonBenet For The Past Three Years): Yeah.

RIVERA: Tell us the story.

Mr. McREYNOLDS: OK. Well, I always put stardust in my beard and I shake it on the children's hair like this or on their hands, and I tell
them they should hold onto it very tightly because if they don't, it'll go back to the star, and it's a very special present for them. And so when
they open up their hands after going through the mall or whatever, then, of course, the stardust is usually gone. And so I told this to JonBenet,
as amongst other children, and--then I would do this for her. She'd sit on my lap, and--and then at Christmastime in 1995, she gave me a little
vial of glitter--stardust she called it--this was a very wealthy family, I suppose it cost maybe about $ 2. And she s--wanted Santa never to be
without stardust just because we always talked about Christmas being every day.

And so this last year she gave me another vial after I had been in the hospital with this operation that was very complex, and so at the memorial
service in Boulder, I gave a--a jar of this--the first one--to Patsy so that she would have it in the family treasure forever, and I kept this one for
myself.

Now it's sitting on my mantel up in the beloved Rockies, you know, quite a bit higher than here in Boulder, and I surround it with plaster
Santa Clauses, next to a manger, and I pretend that it is stardust from the star of Bethlehem.

RIVERA: You know, Bill, all I can say is I have a two-year-old daughter and I have a four-year-old daughter, I would be proud if you would play
Santa for my girls.

Mr. McREYNOLDS: Well, I'd like to.

End of McReynolds' Interview


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Rmod
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7. "RE: McReynolds on TV"
In response to message #6
 
   Larry King Live - Tuesday, March 4, 1997


Bill and Janet McReynolds

March 4 1997

CNN Larry King Live

The Latest on the JonBenet Ramsey Case in Boulder, Colorado


Now, sitting in for Larry King, Wolf Blitzer.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to "LARRY KING LIVE."

Tonight we examine the latest developments in the JonBenet Ramsey case in Boulder, Colorado.

The Ramsey family spokesman says JonBenet's mother Patsy Ramsey gave police a third handwriting sample last Friday, and police have
re-interviewed Bill McReynolds, the man who played Santa Clause at the Ramsey's Christmas party two nights before the murder.

Bill McReynolds and his wife Janet, join us now from Boulder, Colorado, and later we'll be joined by two journalists covering the case and
Adams County District Attorney Bob Grant.

First of all to the McReynolds, both of you thank you so much for joining us tonight on "LARRY KING LIVE."

Mr. McReynolds, first of all, you and your wife have both been questioned by the police in connection with the murder of JonBenet. Tell us why
the police questioned you and Janet McReyolds.

BILL MCREYNOLDS: Well, I'd like to say that the Boulder police have been very kind and considerate of us. I know there's been some
criticism but -- I'm sure that they have reinterviewed us or interviewed us simply because they want to be as thorough as possible and I have no
criticism of the police.

I would like to say also, that I am sure that they are interviewing us because they want to exonerate us. They want to eliminate us along with
120 other people or fewer, that have been interviewed. We just happen to be the only ones that have said that we have been interviewed. And I
don't think we are serious suspects, I think that the Boulder police have said as much today.

BLITZER: Tell us, Mr. McReynolds, what your relationship with the Ramsey family was and how far back does it go?

BILL MCREYNOLDS: It goes back three years. I have been the Santa Claus at their home for three years -- from 1994, 1995 and 1996 -- and
they have always been very festive parties. And that means that was three years that I've been their Santa Claus and that was half of
JonBenet's life.

BLITZER: And you got to know JonBenet during those three years when you came over to their house to play Santa Claus for which you were
paid a fee, right?

BILL MCREYNOLDS: Oh yes, yeah, I do private parties and that is a private party.

BLITZER: And tell us about JonBenet a little bit and then I want to get to your wife and ask her some questions as well.

BILL MCREYNOLDS: Okay, I'd be glad to. I love to talk about JonBenet. She was an extremely unusual child, all children are special to
Santa. She just happened to be extra special to me for specific reasons.

One is that she was a very thoughtful, a very caring little girl, and she actually gave Santa a present. You can imagine how rare that is. For
example, I have a little stardust that she gave me because she didn't want me to ever be without stardust. It's glitter obviously but we can be
fanciful. And so when I had a massive operation, a near-death experience this summer, I took this little vial of stardust with me to the hospital
for good luck and I guess since I'm sitting here today, it provided some of that.

And, she did this for me another year too, in 1995 and 1996, she did that. And so at the memorial service in Boulder, I gave Patsy Ramsey, one
of the vials for their family heirlooms and I kept one for myself.

Now, you know, this was a very wealthy family and this little vial of stardust, which I think is priceless, probably cost about $2.00 maybe, the
most.

BLITZER: So, obviously, she was a very special little kid in your opinion.

Mrs. McReynolds, let's get to you. You joined your husband at that last Christmas party two nights before JonBenet Ramsey was murdered,
you joined your husband at that party. Tell us what you were doing there.

MRS. JANET MCREYNOLDS: Well, the reason that I went, I had been Mrs. Claus on occasion, and on this particular occasion Santa was still
rather wobbly from his surgery and hadn't fully recovered. And I went along to help him carry in the presents, basically. He was not allowed to
lift that much and he needed assistance in passing out the presents and I went along to be his porter and then to be Mrs. Claus, and assist him
with handing out the presents, reading the scroll and all the other things that Santa does at parties.

BLITZER: And you got to know JonBenet a little bit -- let me just finish with Mrs. McReynolds, Mr. McReynolds, just for a second. You got to
know JonBenet a little bit that night as well? That was the first time you met her right?

JANET: That was the first time I had ever seen her, I had never seen her before.

Of course, anyone who sees her for the first time would have been struck by her beauty. She was incredibly beautiful and she was very quiet
that night. She was sitting with a circle of her friends on the floor in front of Santa's chair and watching everything but not really saying very
much. She seemed to be a very pensive child, and very sensitive.

BLITZER: And like your husband, the police questioned you as well in connection with her murder.

JANET: For some strange reason, they seemed to feel that there were parallels in our lives that they had discovered that our daughter had
been kidnapped in 1974.

They discovered that I had written a play called "Hey Rube," which was produced -- first produced -- in 1976. And when these parallels were
called to their attention they questioned me, and I think it was mainly because they did not want to be caught by surprise by anything that the
media might print, and they wanted to have the facts from my mouth basically.

BLITZER: Right, and your daughter, 22 years to the day, on December 26, 1974, was involved in an incident in which one of her friends was
kidnapped and molested, is that correct?

JANET MCREYNOLDS: That is true. We were really rather startled when we discovered that our daughter's kidnapping had happened on the
anniversary of JonBenet's death because we weren't aware of it until it was called to our attention.

We had, of course, rather buried the incident in our own minds and certainly would not have been observing the anniversary. And we had
simply forgotten the date. We didn't know it until they called our attention to it.

BLITZER: Mrs. McReynolds, we're going to have to take a quick break but, did anyone ever -- was anyone ever arrested in connection with
that incident 22 years to the day from the murder of JonBenet Ramsey?

JANET: No, it's still an open case.

BLITZER: And there are so many other eerie parallels between what you've gone through and this particular case. We're going to get to
them, but we have to take a quick break. And we'll return with Bill and Janet McReynolds in a moment.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back to "LARRY KING LIVE."

We're discussing the latest developments in the JonBenet Ramsey murder case with Bill McReynolds, the man who played Santa Claus at the
Ramsey's house two nights before the murder, and his wife Janet.

They join us from Boulder, Colorado.

Mr. McReynolds, I want to get to some of these eerie parallels that your wife raised between your -- some of the experiences in your family's
life -- and what happened to the Ramseys.

Just to let our audience know, you are a retired university professor. Is that correct?

W. MCREYNOLDS: That's right. I've been a practitioner and I've never been on this side of the aisle.

BLITZER: You taught journalism at the University of Colorado. Is that right?

W. MCREYNOLDS: Right, one of the places.

BLITZER: All right.

W. MCREYNOLDS: I taught at the University of Texas, too.

BLITZER: And I'm sure a lot of people are asking: What's with the beard? You played Santa Claus every year, but you -- you've grown the --
this is the real thing. This is not a fake beard, right?

W. MCREYNOLDS: That's right, Wolf -- as real as it can be.

BLITZER: What made you decide that you wanted to really grow a real Santa Claus-like beard? You're speaking to someone who has a beard
as well, but a little bit more trimmed.

W. MCREYNOLDS: Well, I will tell you that -- I won't tell you about what happened to me as a child because that's not relevant. But I was in a
play at the University -- excuse me, at our church, which is the Unity of Boulder -- and I was in "Les Miserables." And I was just a
tavern-owner, sort of, and I decided that I would, you know, grow a beard for my characterization. And it turned out that the play was held over
at our church, and then I -- everybody started calling me Santa Claus.

They do it all the time. They do it in summer as well. My belief is that Christmas is every day. I have a lot of little stories to tell, which I won't
bore you with tonight. But that's the reason that I'm Santa Claus.

One of my favorite experiences was in Portugal, when the children were in uniform and going down the street, and as they were passing by
they started singing "Jingle Bells." This was in February.

Wolf, I'd like to ask you, though, if you don't mind ...

BLITZER: Please.

W. MCREYNOLDS: ... if you would ask my wife her perspective on the meaning of all of this. She has a very unusual interpretation that I
think should be heard.

BLITZER: All right, I'd be happy to ask. I don't mind at all. I want to also ask her some other questions about these eerie parallels that have
developed.

But Mrs. McReynolds, tell us your perspective on all of this, before we get to some of these very strange and eerie parallels.

J. MCREYNOLDS: I was really startled when the "Rocky Mountain News" came out with this story, saying that there were strange
coincidences between my play "Hey, Rube" and the real-life murder of JonBenet.

BLITZER: This was ...

J. MCREYNOLDS: And then I began to thinking about it, and I realized that there was a very strange coincidence...

BLITZER: Tell, Mrs. --

J. MCREYNOLDS: ... in that the character...

BLITZER: I'm sorry to interrupt you.

J. MCREYNOLDS: I'm sorry.

BLITZER: Mrs. McReynolds, tell us about your play. You wrote it when?

J. MCREYNOLDS: I wrote it in 1976.

BLITZER: I see, you wrote it in 1976.

J. MCREYNOLDS: It was produced in Los Angeles and New York and in Denver.

BLITZER: And you...

J. MCREYNOLDS: and reproductions.

BLITZER: You wrote it two years after your own daughter witnessed this molestation of a friend. Is that correct?

J. MCREYNOLDS: That's true.

BLITZER: And --

J. MCREYNOLDS: That's true. Yes.

BLITZER: And the basic thrust of your play was what?

J. MCREYNOLDS: The basic thrust and the parallel that I am now seeing with the JonBenet case is that the victim, in my play, was a
scapegoat for the sins of the community. My play was loosely based on, or suggested by, a real-life murder, which occurred in Indianapolis in
1965, which another coincidence happens to be the year of my daughter's birth.

The victim, in the real life murder and in my play, is systematically tortured and eventually murdered over a period of months. And a large
number of people were involved, basically, an entire neighborhood. I think there were five people, eventually, indicted and brought to trial.

BLITZER: And this victim in the play was murdered where?

J. MCREYNOLDS: Indianapolis.

BLITZER: I know, but in a house -- in a basement. Is that correct?

J. MCREYNOLDS: No. No. She was -- she died in a hospital as a result of multiple injuries which were inflicted on her over a period of
months.

BLITZER: But where had she ...

J. MCREYNOLDS: She did not die in the basement.

BLITZER: ... but where had she been tortured and where had she been molested?

J. MCREYNOLDS: Well, she was tortured in the house, where she was living.

BLITZER: In the basement of the house?

J. MCREYNOLDS: I think in various rooms -- not necessarily the basement. I don't know exactly how many rooms were used as torture
chambers.

BLITZER: Well, you're talking about the real story. I'm talking about what happened --

J. MCREYNOLDS: The real case and my play.

BLITZER: I'm talking about -- your play was based on that.

We have to take another quick break, Mrs. McReynolds, and we're going to get -- continue all of that and discuss a little bit more with your
husband as well, and take some viewer phone calls.

But stay with us. We'll be back on "LARRY KING LIVE" in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: We're back with Bill and Janet McReynolds from Boulder, Colorado.

And Mrs. McReynolds, we were discussing some of these parallels between your book -- book you published in 1976 -- and the real-life
tragedy that involved the Ramsey family and the death of JonBenet Ramsey.

Mrs. McReynolds, why do you think, when the police discovered some of these parallels which were obviously extraordinary -- and an example
of an extraordinary coincidence, perhaps -- why do you think the police decided to question you and what kind of questions did they ask you?

J. MCREYNOLDS: Well, as I said before, I think that the main reason they wanted to ask me questions themselves was that they had probably
heard a rumor that the story was going to be printed in the media and they did not want to be surprised by anything that might be disclosed by
the media. And, of course, I'm not at liberty to say what they asked me. I would not do that at all.

BLITZER: Let me ask you this final question before you go back to your husband.

We'll take some viewer phone calls. Your play -- if someone wanted to go out and buy it right now, the book or the manuscript -- how do they
get a copy of that?

J. MCREYNOLDS: Well, I will tell you, it is copyrighted, but it's never been printed. If you can find me a publisher, I'll see that you get an
advanced copy.

BLITZER: So, it's not available, really, at book stores or any place right now.

J. MCREYNOLDS: It is not available whatsoever. It's my property and I will not release it to anyone unless, of course, there is a publisher who
wants to pick it up.

BLITZER: But you did give a copy of the play to the police?

J. MCREYNOLDS: They requested it, yes.

BLITZER: And you did give it to them?

J. MCREYNOLDS: Yes, of course.

BLITZER: Okay.

Mr. McReynolds, I want to take a phone call in a second, but very briefly, you got to know JonBenet Ramsey a little bit. Give us a thumb nail
sketch of what she was like in your mind.

W. MCREYNOLDS: Well, what she was like in my mind, Wolf, was not what is appearing on TV -- excessively, I must say. All the prancing
around of a beauty queen -- I'm not criticizing that -- but what she was to me was sort of a pensive child, who believed in Santa thoroughly and
completely. And we had some wonderful conversations.

I would ask her, for example, what she wanted for Christmas and she told me in 1995 that what she wanted was what Santa wanted. And I said,
"what is that, JonBenet?" And she would say, "of course, love, joy and peace."

She was not into material things as far as I know. In fact, Wolf, I thought she was a little bit older than she was. And when I first heard about
the murder and saw it was a 6-year-old girl, I thought quickly, that "oh, I've got three more years with her at least," and then, I realized that,
that was not true. That it was over. And I think that her spirit, in a way, has been diminished because it's not going to be able to continue in the
way that it should be.

And let me tell you something, Wolf, I've heard that when she gets on the school bus, she would tell the bus driver, "good morning," and then
pretty soon, everybody in the bus was saying "good morning" to the bus driver.

Now, that to me, is not only a child's beauty but also an adult's, and if we could remember from her -- that if there's anything positive we should
get out of this, is the great love and charm and civility that this little girl had. That's what she was like.

And one other thing, is that I would ask her, you know, if she wanted anything to let me know. And I would say, "you know, JonBenet, that
sometimes the present will fall out of the sleigh and fall into the arms of a child that doesn't have anything, and you wouldn't mind that, would
you?"

Other children do but she said, "No, I wouldn't mind that at all." She was, what I would say, she learned the greatest lesson that we can learn
in life, which is that, in the getting is in the giving and not the reverse.

In fact, I think I'm probably not a very good Santa Claus because I go against the grain.

BLITZER: OK, Mr...

W. MCREYNOLDS: And the little girl burst out of the house, leading the pack at the last party. She wanted to surprise Santa. She said, "ho,
ho, ho" and they caught us transferring our presents -- the presents that were provided by the Ramsey family -- from that trash bag into my
bag, so we carried them both in. It was a lovely experience and I will never forget that child.

BLITZER: OK, Mr. McReynolds...

W. MCREYNOLDS: She saved my soul.

BLITZER: Mr. McReynolds, I think you've touched a nerve with a lot of people who've seen her picture and got to know her, obviously, only
through the news media. We have to take another quick break. We have so much more to ask you and Mrs. McReynolds. We have some
callers who have questions.

Stay with us on "LARRY KING LIVE."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: One programming note: Larry King will be back, tomorrow, with the Senate majority leader Trent Lott. Friday night, I'll be back
with the new White House chief of staff Erskine Bowles.

But we're now talking with Bill and Janet McReynolds from Boulder, Colorado. And we have a caller calling from Greensboro, North
Carolina. Go ahead, caller.

CALLER: Hello, there. Mr. McReynolds, what is your relationship with the Ramseys now and will this television interview have a negative
effect on that relationship?

W. MCREYNOLDS: Well, my relationship with the Ramseys is limited. It's peripheral. I have not intruded on their grief. I know it's great.
What I have done is to send them a copy of the Christmas story that I felt compelled to write in 1995, and I gave it to them at that time and I've
re-done a tape of the -- of the Christmas story -- which is unpublished. And I have re-dedicated it to include JonBenet and I said that if they
want to contact me, I would be most happy to talk with them, but that's the only contact I have had. I'm respecting their grief and I would like
everybody else to do that too, if possible.

BLITZER: Have they contact you, Mr...

W. MCREYNOLDS: Including the media.

BLITZER: Mr. McReynolds, have they contacted you since that?

W. MCREYNOLDS: No, they have not and I don't expect them to necessarily.

BLITZER: Well, let's ask the same question to Mrs. McReynolds. What is your relationship with the Ramsey -- with the Ramsey family?
What are your impressions of them?

J. MCREYNOLDS: I have -- saw only the one time -- the Christmas party on December 23. I had never seen any member of the family before
and it was a typical Christmas party. They were playing host -- host and hostess and my contact was very limited.

BLITZER: OK.

J. MCREYNOLDS: The only other time I have ever seen them was at the memorial service to which we were invited -- the memorial service
that was held in Boulder. I saw them on that occasion and was absolutely appalled by their grief and -- but, my experience is extremely limited.

BLITZER: All right, let's take a caller from Fishgill, New York. Go ahead, caller.

CALLER: Hi, does Mr. Ramsey know why the Ramseys -- does Mr. McReynolds know why the Ramseys refuse to be interviewed by police?

W. MCREYNOLDS: Well, no. I think they have the right to do whatever they want to do with -- that's legal. And I have no objection to them
doing what they're doing.

BLITZER: A lot of people, though, think that's a little bit strange, given the fact that the police are investigating; the D.A.'s investigating. And
that they're, so far, they refused -- what they would call this formal interview that the police and the district attorneys in Boulder have been
seeking.

W. MCREYNOLDS: That's all right -- what other people think. I don't care. I don't feel that -- that they're necessarily evading. They have
cooperated as far as I know with the police. I don't know whether it's formal or not, but I will not criticize the Ramseys for what they're doing. I
think they have every right to do what they're doing.

BLITZER: We -- we, of course, asked the Ramseys through their spokesman -- their public relations adviser here in Washington -- Pat
Courtan (ph) to appear on our show. We asked Pat Courtan to appear on our show tonight. We asked their lawyers to appear, but for the time
being, they -- they're declining all these invitations.

Obviously, they're not anxious to go on television to discuss this at this time, but maybe they will at another time. And we have to take another
quick break --

to both of the McReynolds, we're going to coming right back with both of you in a minute, but stay with us on "LARRY KING LIVE."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back to "LARRY KING LIVE."

I'm Wolf Blitzer, sitting in for Larry King.

We're speaking with Bill and Janet McReynolds, who join us from Boulder, Colorado.

Mr. McReynolds, you were interviewed three times on three separate occasions by the police. And your wife was interviewed once, I take it,
last Tuesday. But in those three interviews, how long did they go on for? Just give us a flavor, a little bit, of what that is like. Take us behind
the scenes, if you can, and share with us the process to be interviewed by the police in connection with this case?

W. MCREYNOLDS: Well, I don't know whether I have any particular answer to that, Wolf. I have told them from the very beginning I would be
as cooperative as possible, no matter what happens. And I've done that. They will tell you that.

I'd like to say, though, Wolf, if I can have an opportunity, that we are talking to you tonight for the last time that we're going to be talking to
the media. We want them to back away from us, stop hounding us in our mountain cabin, leave us alone, and when maybe there's an arrest or
charges are filed or something like that, we might be willing to continue our talking. But we want the media to leave us alone.

I've been a newspaper person. I've been a professor all my life. I think I understand how the media operates. And I would like to say that I
admire and appreciate a lot of what they are doing. But we absolutely do not want anybody else to contact us. This, I think, is an exclusive with
you, and that's going to be the last time we're going to talk.

BLITZER: Well, we...

J. MCREYNOLDS: Also, Wolf, I want to say something that is sort of another parallel. The media has been hounding us, and I feel deep in my
heart that the media, particularly the tabloids, and the talk shows who are exploiting those beauty pageant videos, are murdering this little --
this sweet little girl again and again and again. Every time I see one of those videos of her prancing across the stage in her adorable costume, I
cringe.

And I feel that the message that I am getting -- the under- current of all of this -- is that the media is saying to this collective community -- to
our global village -- in some way she deserved to die.

That, at least, is a message that I am getting: She deserved to die because she was too beautiful. She deserved to die because she was from an
affluent family.

She deserved to die because she lived an up scale community. She deserved to die because her family taught her gestures which might be
interpreted as sexually suggestive. She deserved to die because she was in beauty pageants.

There's even an implication on some of the talk shows she deserved to die because sometimes she wore lipstick. And to me, that is a
crucification of an innocent victim, and I would really, really like to see it stopped.

BLITZER: Is that, though, one of those eerie parallels with your own book, and with the actual true-life story? The fact that the community, as
you said it yourself in your book, the community was out to get the victim in your play?

J. MCREYNOLDS: I feel that she has been made a scapegoat. Exactly, that she is being punished for the sins of the global village, that people
are heaping on her the sins that perhaps they themselves feel. And she's being made a scapegoat.

She is being murdered again and again every time they put some of those videos on the talk shows. They talk endlessly about the priority or
the impriority of having these beauty pageants.

To me, that is ...

W. MCREYNOLDS: Obscene.

J. MCREYNOLDS: ... yes, it is obscene -- the way that they're exploiting this innocent victim.

BLITZER: I want to discuss this a little bit more -- the media -- with both you and your husband.

But, Mrs. McReynolds, did either one of you think it was necessary to hire a defense attorney before you were questioned by the police?

J. MCREYNOLDS: No, we do not have an offense attorney. We can't afford an attorney, and we see no reason to have one. We have nothing to
hide...

BLITZER: All right.

J. MCREYNOLDS: ... or nothing to -- we have, if we are -- we're defenseless, let us say. We are defenseless.

BLITZER: So both of you just went into those interviews with the police, without any advice from a legal...

J. MCREYNOLDS: Of course, we had nothing to hide. We had no reason to not cooperate.

BLITZER: All right, at least ...

W. MCREYNOLDS: The police have been very --

BLITZER: Yeah, go ahead, Mr. McReynolds.

W. MCREYNOLDS: Excuse me.

BLITZER: Go ahead, please.

J. MCREYNOLDS: Well, can I say something?

BLITZER: Please. I said go ahead.

W. MCREYNOLDS: OK, well.

BLITZER: Mr. McReynolds --

W. MCREYNOLDS: I'd like to say that we really have nothing to keep from the police. I think the police have been very, very considerate of us.
And I think they're compassionate people. They have families of their own. They're not robots that are mean and hateful and all of that -- that
sometimes they're depicted as being. They're compassionate people, and we'd like to support them.

I think my problem is mostly with the media. They should back off a little bit and let the police get on with their work. I think the greatest sin
that could be committed in this particular thing is for whoever did this terrible deed to be escape, and this become an unsolved mystery.

That's the one thing that I fear is that this will not be solved.

BLITZER: OK, Tallahassee -- we have a caller from Tallahassee -- go ahead.

CALLER: Yes, first of all, JonBenet did not deserve to die. I can't say the same thing about her killer. But I would like to know how the
McReynolds compare the beautiful public image of JonBenet as an outgoing, assertive beauty contestant to the pensive, introverted child they
saw just two days before she was murdered. And do they have any idea what the reason might be for the apparent change in her behavior?

J. MCREYNOLDS: I think that when she was on stage, she was playing a role, and she was doing things that she had been taught. She had
dance classes. She had singing lessons. She, I think, loved to dress up, as most little girls do in those gorgeous costumes. When she was on
stage, she was a little actress. And I think you can see that in the videos. When she was in her home, in her private life, she was this sweet,
sensitive, rather quiet child.

BLITZER: We have another call.

W. MCREYNOLDS: (OFF-MIKE)

BLITZER: Go ahead, Mr. McReynolds -- finish up your thought.

W. MCREYNOLDS: Well, I'd also like to agree with what Janet said. I don't believe that when I say she was pensive that that was a change of
what she was on the stage. She was a very sweet, smiling child. But as I said, she believed in me so completely as Santa that we had a different
kind of relationship than we might have had otherwise. But I agree with my wife completely.

What you're seeing on the video, to me, is not JonBenet. I see right through that into some other kind of a precocious child, a loving child, a
wonderful child. And we're going to be all to the worse for her not being here with us anymore.

She told me once that she wanted to be a model or an ice skating star. What's wrong with that? I mean, we honor that. We really need to look
more at ourselves, rather than criticizing this little girl or the Ramseys or the police or anybody else.

Let's start seeking the angel in ourselves. Every time we abuse a child in any way, every child is special, we are abusing ourselves -- and the
child in ourselves. And that is the theme of my unpublished Christmas story.

BLITZER: Well, maybe you'll publish it and we'll all have a chance to read it.

We have ...

W. MCREYNOLDS: I have no idea.

BLITZER: It may be ...

W. MCREYNOLDS: I'm sorry?

BLITZER: I said maybe you'll publish it, and we'll all have a chance ...

W. MCREYNOLDS: Oh, I don't care.

BLITZER: ... to read that.

W. MCREYNOLDS: It would be nice.

BLITZER: We have another caller from Philadelphia -- but before we take that call, one of the loose ends I just want to tie up: When you were
interviewed by the police, did they also ask you for hair samples or blood samples or anything like that?

W. MCREYNOLDS: Oh, sure, that's standard.


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8. "RE: McReynolds on TV"
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   BLITZER: What kind of samples did they ask you to provide them with?

W. MCREYNOLDS: Well, they ask for hair, fingerprints, printing of words. And did I say blood?

J. MCREYNOLDS: Uh-huh.

W. MCREYNOLDS: Yeah, blood.

BLITZER: And your handwriting samples as well?

W. MCREYNOLDS: Sure.

BLITZER: OK. I --

W. MCREYNOLDS: And don't ask me what they were. I don't know what the words are.

BLITZER: All right.

W. MCREYNOLDS: I deliberately wrote them very quickly.

BLITZER: I think we are all out of time for this segment, and I apologize to our caller from Philadelphia, but maybe you can stay with us on
our next segment, because we're going to try to tie up some of these loose ends and get to an update from some people who've been covering
this story on a day-to-day basis.

But let me thank both of the McReynolds for spending some time with us on "LARRY KING LIVE." I know this must have been difficult for
both of you, but we want to thank you for answering all of our questions very candidly and frankly. And we hope that this case will be solved, of
course, like, just as much as you do.

W. MCREYNOLDS: Thank you, Wolf. We enjoyed being with you.

BLITZER: Thank you very much.


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