If you happened to Google Debbie Harry's name in the past 24 hours, you may have found a story in which the Blondie frontwoman claims to have been abducted by serial killer Ted Bundy. The story stems from a series of UK newspaper reports, which feature the singer describing the creepy encounter. It's unclear whether Harry's tale is accurate, however, as the urban legend website Snopes argues that her story doesn't entirely check out.
The singer claimed that the incident occurred in New York. She said, "It was in the early '70s and I was trying to get across town at two or three o'clock in the morning. This little car kept coming around and offering me a ride. I kept saying no but finally I took the ride because I couldn't get a cab."
She continued, "I got in the car and the windows were are rolled up, except for a tiny crack. This driver had an incredibly bad smell to him. I looked down and there were no door handles. The inside of the car was stripped. The hairs on the back of my neck just stood up. I wiggled my arm out of the window and pulled the door handle from the outside. I don't know how I did it, but I got out.
"He tried to stop me by spinning the car but it sort of helped me fling myself out. Afterwards I saw him on the news. Ted Bundy."
Harry has been telling this story for over two decades. Using a 1989 interview as reference, Snopes points out two main problems with Harry's story: first, there's no indication that Bundy was ever in New York, as the closest he ever came was a trip to Vermont in 1969. What's more, Bundy never had a car with the insides stripped. He reportedly drove a battered-looking Volkswagen, and the only modification he made was to occasionally remove the passenger seat.
It seems likely then, that the man Harry met in New York wasn't actually Ted Bundy, who Harry didn't see until years later when he appeared on the news. Of course, parts of the serial killer's life will forever remain shrouded in mystery, and it's possible that this New York encounter is one of them.
The singer claimed that the incident occurred in New York. She said, "It was in the early '70s and I was trying to get across town at two or three o'clock in the morning. This little car kept coming around and offering me a ride. I kept saying no but finally I took the ride because I couldn't get a cab."
She continued, "I got in the car and the windows were are rolled up, except for a tiny crack. This driver had an incredibly bad smell to him. I looked down and there were no door handles. The inside of the car was stripped. The hairs on the back of my neck just stood up. I wiggled my arm out of the window and pulled the door handle from the outside. I don't know how I did it, but I got out.
"He tried to stop me by spinning the car but it sort of helped me fling myself out. Afterwards I saw him on the news. Ted Bundy."
Harry has been telling this story for over two decades. Using a 1989 interview as reference, Snopes points out two main problems with Harry's story: first, there's no indication that Bundy was ever in New York, as the closest he ever came was a trip to Vermont in 1969. What's more, Bundy never had a car with the insides stripped. He reportedly drove a battered-looking Volkswagen, and the only modification he made was to occasionally remove the passenger seat.
It seems likely then, that the man Harry met in New York wasn't actually Ted Bundy, who Harry didn't see until years later when he appeared on the news. Of course, parts of the serial killer's life will forever remain shrouded in mystery, and it's possible that this New York encounter is one of them.
