‘Cotton Club Murder’ of Roy Radin on The 1980s: The Deadliest Decade

This week The 1980s: The Deadliest Decade looks at the ‘The Cotton Club Murder’ of larger-than-life promoter Roy Radin.

Roy Radin was a promoter of various vaudeville shows in the 1970s and 1980s but was murdered when his business dealings led him into some very unsavoury company.

Radin was in some financial trouble but saw an opportunity in making a movie about legendary New York City nightclub, the Cotton Club. He was introduced to film producer Rovert Evans by former drug dealer Karen Greenberger, who was dating him. Evans and Radin made a deal to take 45% of the movie each and split the other 10% with two other, Greenberger was offered a $50,000 finders fee.

However, in 1983 33-year-old Radin was found dead in Gorman, California, he’d been shot in the head and then dynamite had been used to try and confuse the scene and forensics.

It later transpired that 43-year-old Greenberger had arranged for Radin to be killed and together with her body guards had conspired to murder him either due to wrangles over the film deal or through drug related business.

Greenberger and Robert Lowe, 44,  were convicted of second-degree murder and kidnapping and William Mentzer and Alex Marti were convicted of first-degree murder.

Greenberger was given a life sentence without any possibility of parole.

The 1980s: The Deadliest Decade airs on Mondays at 9:00 PM on Investigation Discovery.