Episode 60: The Lady of the Dunes
An extra from a scene in the movie “Jaws” that is theorized to be the Lady of the Dunes
Provincetown, Massachusetts was a beautiful, bustling tourist town in 1974. The weather was nice, Cape Cod and Martha’s Vineyard were nearby, and people flocked to the gorgeous scenery.
On July 26th, 1974, a gruesome discovery was made that suddenly turned the beautiful town into a haunting nightmare.
12-year-old Leslie Metcalfe was walking with her parents, family friends, and their beagle when the dog suddenly veered off the path they were walking along Race Point Beach. Following the excited dog, Leslie came upon a horrifying sight: the decomposing body of a naked woman, lying facedown on a towel over the sand. Her head rested crudely on a folded pair of Wranglers and a blue bandana. Further investigation revealed that the woman had been struck over the head, nearly decapitated, and was missing her hands. She had also been sexually assaulted.
Despite the horrific details of the crime, the scene around her appeared to be serene and quiet. The sand was undisturbed, and there was only one footprint nearby to even indicate that someone had been there. Bike tire tracks were identified 15 feet away, but led nowhere. Immediately, police sought to identify the woman, who they called “The Lady of The Dunes.”
Many theories have come to light within the last almost 50 years, searching for the identity of this woman who had been brutally murdered. Some speculated that she was a victim of James “Whitey” Bulger; perhaps she was escaped convict Rory Gene Kesinger; or maybe she was filmed as an extra in the hit film Jaws. To this day, despite many DNA comparisons and thousands of tips to law enforcement, The Lady of The Dunes’ identity has never been unveiled.
Anyone with any information on this case is asked to please call Detective Meredith Lobur of the Provincetown Police Department at (508) 487-1212.
Image Sources:
wikipedia.org - “Lady of the Dunes”
The Boston Globe - “The Lady of the Dunes”
The Boston Globe - “Joe Hill, author and son of Stephen King, sees a link between Lady of the Dunes, ‘Jaws’
UPDATE:
On October 31st, 2022, the identity of the Lady of the Dunes was released. Ruth Marie Terry was a 37-year-old mother from Tennessee, who’s skeletal remains were processed and tested at Othram in Texas, leading to her identification.