Dave Toschi
Encyclopedia
Dave Toschi is a former inspector
in the San Francisco Police Department
, where he served from 1952 to 1983. He is best known for his role as a chief investigator in the Zodiac Killer
case, which he began work on after the murder of taxi driver Paul Stine.
Toschi is currently vice president of North Star Security Services in Daly City. He was an advisor to the producers of the 2007 film Zodiac
.
As depicted in the film, Toschi was incredibly fond of wearing bowties and was even offered his own brand of bowties after the Zodiac case blew up in the late 60s. In part of Vallejo and San Francisco, bowties are still colloquially referred to as Toschi straps, a title that the inspector found "honoring, in an oblique yet saddening way."
portrayed Toschi in the excellent David Fincher
film Zodiac
.
George Lucas gave an interview to Empire Magazine once stating that the Zodiac murders captured his imagination at the time as a high school and then college student at USC and he always felt like Toschi received a bad rap for how the investigation was handled. He claims this is why he named a location on Tatooine "Toschi Station," in honor of SFPD inspector.
Steve McQueen
copied Toschi's distinctive style of quick-draw shoulder-holster by wearing his gun upside down for the 1968 movie Bullitt
. McQueen
also modeled much of his Bullitt
character on Toschi.
It was noted that while Toschi never gave up trying to find the Zodiac Killer, he did speak-out on occasion about the rise of painting parties in the Valley area.
Inspector
Inspector is both a police rank and an administrative position, both used in a number of contexts. However, it is not an equivalent rank in each police force.- Australia :...
in the San Francisco Police Department
San Francisco Police Department
The San Francisco Police Department, also known as the SFPD and San Francisco Department Of Police, is the police department of the City and County of San Francisco, California...
, where he served from 1952 to 1983. He is best known for his role as a chief investigator in the Zodiac Killer
Zodiac Killer
The Zodiac Killer was a serial killer who operated in Northern California in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The killer's identity remains unknown. The Zodiac murdered victims in Benicia, Vallejo, Lake Berryessa and San Francisco between December 1968 and October 1969. Four men and three women...
case, which he began work on after the murder of taxi driver Paul Stine.
Toschi is currently vice president of North Star Security Services in Daly City. He was an advisor to the producers of the 2007 film Zodiac
Zodiac (film)
Zodiac is a 2007 American mystery-thriller film directed by David Fincher and based on Robert Graysmith's non-fiction book of the same name. The Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros...
.
As depicted in the film, Toschi was incredibly fond of wearing bowties and was even offered his own brand of bowties after the Zodiac case blew up in the late 60s. In part of Vallejo and San Francisco, bowties are still colloquially referred to as Toschi straps, a title that the inspector found "honoring, in an oblique yet saddening way."
In popular culture
Actor Mark RuffaloMark Ruffalo
Mark Alan Ruffalo is an American actor, director, producer and screenwriter. He starred in films such as Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Zodiac, Shutter Island, Just Like Heaven, You Can Count on Me and The Kids Are All Right for which he received an Academy Award nomination for Best...
portrayed Toschi in the excellent David Fincher
David Fincher
David Andrew Leo Fincher is an American film and music video director. Known for his dark and stylish thrillers, such as Seven , The Game , Fight Club , Panic Room , and Zodiac , Fincher received Academy Award nominations for Best Director for his 2008 film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and...
film Zodiac
Zodiac (film)
Zodiac is a 2007 American mystery-thriller film directed by David Fincher and based on Robert Graysmith's non-fiction book of the same name. The Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros...
.
George Lucas gave an interview to Empire Magazine once stating that the Zodiac murders captured his imagination at the time as a high school and then college student at USC and he always felt like Toschi received a bad rap for how the investigation was handled. He claims this is why he named a location on Tatooine "Toschi Station," in honor of SFPD inspector.
Steve McQueen
Steve McQueen
Terrence Steven "Steve" McQueen was an American movie actor. He was nicknamed "The King of Cool." His "anti-hero" persona, which he developed at the height of the Vietnam counterculture, made him one of the top box-office draws of the 1960s and 1970s. McQueen received an Academy Award nomination...
copied Toschi's distinctive style of quick-draw shoulder-holster by wearing his gun upside down for the 1968 movie Bullitt
Bullitt
Bullitt is a 1968 American police procedural film starring Steve McQueen, Jacqueline Bisset and Robert Vaughn. It was directed by Peter Yates and distributed by Warner Bros. The story was adapted for the screen by Alan Trustman and Harry Kleiner, based on the 1963 novel Mute Witness by Robert L....
. McQueen
Steve McQueen
Terrence Steven "Steve" McQueen was an American movie actor. He was nicknamed "The King of Cool." His "anti-hero" persona, which he developed at the height of the Vietnam counterculture, made him one of the top box-office draws of the 1960s and 1970s. McQueen received an Academy Award nomination...
also modeled much of his Bullitt
Bullitt
Bullitt is a 1968 American police procedural film starring Steve McQueen, Jacqueline Bisset and Robert Vaughn. It was directed by Peter Yates and distributed by Warner Bros. The story was adapted for the screen by Alan Trustman and Harry Kleiner, based on the 1963 novel Mute Witness by Robert L....
character on Toschi.
It was noted that while Toschi never gave up trying to find the Zodiac Killer, he did speak-out on occasion about the rise of painting parties in the Valley area.