American Horror Story featured some of the country's most sadistic killers in a special season 5 episode. While the majority of Ryan Murphy's anthology series is fictionalized, the series is known to take inspiration from true events. The method allows the show to feature real-life figures which became the case with season 5, Hotel.
American Horror Story: Hotel focused on the Hotel Cortez in Los Angeles, California. The building was the setting of mysterious events and paranormal encounters. The hotel caught the attention of Detective John Lowe, who quickly learned that it was the site of something much more sinister. Hotel Cortez took hold of John, including the ghosts that resided in the building, including James March, the Ten Commandments Killer. In time, John became Mr. March's successor but he wasn't the only killer that the man mentored.
"Devil's Night" served as American Horror Story's annual Halloween episode. Every October 30th, Devil's Night, Mr. March held an exclusive soirée with some of the most notable serial killers in the country. The ghosts of the killers have previously checked into the hotel, allowing them to attend each year. Not only does Mr. March bring them together to celebrate their past crimes, they usually prey on new victims during the party. Here's every serial killer featured in the Hotel episode.
Richard Ramirez
Richard Ramirez was the first killer shown in the episode, as he checked in with a standing reservation in order to attend Mr. March's annual soirée. Anthony Ruivivar portrayed the figured based on the Night Stalker, a man who terrorized parts of California in the mid-'80s. He was eventually convicted on 13 counts of murder, 11 counts of sexual assault, and 14 counts of burglary. The serial killer and rapist was also a prominent character in American Horror Story: 1984, where he was played by Zach Villa.
Aileen Wuornos
American Horror Story veteran Lily Rabe portrayed Aileen Wuornos in the Devil's Night episode. She first met John at the bar and tried to kill him before making her way to the party. Wuornos was a prostitute who killed seven men within a one-year span in Florida between 1989 and 1990. She was then sentenced to death by legal injection. Wuornos was the focus of the 2003 film, Monster, and was played by Charlize Theron, who won an Academy Award for her performance.
John Wayne Gacy
When John eventually made his way up to Mr. March's get-together, he encountered a few other guests, including John Wayne Gacy. Also known as the Killer Clown, Gacy was a serial killer and sex offender that murdered at least 33 males. The figure was played by John Carroll Lynch who notably played Twisty, another killer clown that appeared in Freak Show.
Jeffrey Dahmer
Seth Gabel played another Devil's Night attendee, Jeffrey Dahmer. The serial killer and sex offender was also referred to as the Milwaukee Cannibal. He ended up murdering 17 males from the late '70s to the early '90s and was additionally confirmed to be a cannibal. Though this was the only time the figure appeared in American Horror Story, Dahmer has been referenced a few times.
Zodiac Killer
After the rest of the group introduced themselves, John recognized a black-masked figure as the infamous Zodiac Killer. The serial killer that terrorized parts of California in the '60s and '70s was never identified. He claimed to have killed 37 people during his crime spree while leaving behind letters and cryptograms. Since the Zodiac Killer's face was never shown in American Horror Story, he was played by an unknown extra.