Jodie Foster: A Teenage Star-Turn, a Deranged Stalker, and the Attempted Assassination of Ronald Reagan

After being nominated for an Academy Award for her role as a child prostitute in the 1976 film Taxi Driver, Jodi Foster gave up acting to go to college. It was there that her Oscar-nominated performance made her the target of a deranged stalker. That stalker, John Hinckley Jr., was obsessed with Jodie Foster. He wrote her letters and called her on the phone. He was convinced she needed to be saved and that he was the one to do it. And in 1981, in Washington, D.C., Jodie Foster was the unknowing inspiration for and motive behind Hinckley’s attempted assassination of a sitting American President.

This episode contains themes that may be disturbing to some listeners, including stalking and suicide. If you’re thinking about suicide, or are worried about a friend or loved one, call the Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255.

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