Ted Bundy is one of the most well-known and well-documented serial killers of all time. Bundy murdered at least 30 women and committed heinous crimes on their bodies over a four-year period in the 1970s.

Despite a rough background, Bundy matured into an attractive, gregarious, and popular law student. His first known killing occurred in 1974, when he began terrorizing female students in Washington. Authorities believe Bundy began killing as a youngster, and he has confirmed victims in seven states.

Bundy seduced several of his victims before kidnapping and raping and killing them in secluded areas. He would occasionally return to the area afterwards to execute sexual actions on the bodies.

A traffic officer who noticed Bundy acting suspiciously and recognized his distinctive Volkswagen Beetle from a description provided by a surviving victim apprehended him in 1975. A murder kit was discovered in his car, and authorities linked him to a slew of murders.

Bundy escaped from jail twice during his trial! Bundy vanished for nearly six weeks after his second escape. He was apprehended again in Florida after attempting to flee after assaulting and killing six more women. Bundy was executed by electric chair in 1989, following a high-profile trial and years of futile appeals.

Ted Bundy referred to himself as "the coldest-hearted son of a b**** you'll ever meet." That assertion is undoubtedly supported by his actions.

Childhood:

Ted Bundy was born in Vermont, far from the Pacific Northwest villages he would later torment. Eleanor Louise Cowell was his mother, while his father was unknown. His grandparents raised him as their own child because they were ashamed of their daughter's out-of-wedlock pregnancy. For virtually his entire youth, he mistook his mother for his sister.

When Bundy was five years old, his grandfather would often abuse both Ted and his mother, leading her to flee with her son to live with cousins in Tacoma, Washington. Eleanor met and married hospital chef Johnnie Bundy, who formally adopted and named the young Ted Bundy.

Bundy despised his stepfather and subsequently described him disparagingly to a lover, stating he wasn't very bright and didn't make much money.

Little more is known for certain about Bundy's youth, as he presented contradictory tales of his early years to several biographers. In general, he recounted an average life punctured by dark fantasies that deeply impacted him — but the extent to which he acted on them is unknown.

Others' reports are similarly perplexing. Though Bundy depicted himself as a loner who would walk the dirty streets at night to spy on women, several of his high school classmates recall him as well-known and well-liked.