ZDF Enterprises has partnered with Story House Productions on a new series that delves deep into some of history’s most notorious deaths. From the brutal murder of Pharaoh Ramses III to the mysterious death of Marilyn Monroe, “Cold Case: History” reinvestigates cold cases using state-of-the-art forensics and archaeological methods.
Ralf Rueckauer, vice-president ZDFE.unscripted, said: “Developing this series has been an exciting journey with each episode unravelling a mystery. It’s been fascinating to see modern day forensics at work dispelling age old theories, particularly in the case of Marilyn Monroe, where we have unearthed new evidence and testimony.”
Featuring some of the highest profile murders in the history of mankind, the six-part series transports viewers into the past with expertly rendered recreations of the crime. “Cold Case: History” includes the Medici Case, where two sons are slain in a struggle for power, and going back even further in time, 3,000 years ago, when Ramses III was violently killed by his own kin. Did Vincent Van Gogh really commit suicide or did someone shoot him, and were the two bodies in the Tower of London the young princes, killed by Richard III, or can DNA prove otherwise?
The series also looks at the death of prostitute Rosemarie Nitribitt in 1957, found hanged in her luxury apartment. Was it suicide or a murder linked to German high society? Marilyn Monroe’s death in 1962 still puzzles journalists and criminologists today. A post mortem stating “probably suicide by taking an overdose” has bred a number of theories. This final episode discovers new evidence, narrowing the circle of possible perpetrators.
ZDF Enterprises is the global distributor for “Cold Case: History,” which will go into production with Story House this autumn.