He would mention it every once in a whilethat I was specialbut he never mentioned that I needed to have a child to save some race or anything like that. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. Its too painful for them to realize that they allowed that to happen to her.. She never expressed any remorse for what happened, never apologized. I was sick to my stomach and felt like throwing up. It all started in 1972 when Berchtold met the Broberg family at a church service in Pocatello, Idaho, and quickly became an esteemed family friend. Now I do. Thank you for taking the time to have this conversation. It was really when I was 30 years old that I had that aha moment. I didn't learn to swim because she was afraid I would drown. Was that after the documentary came out? Nonetheless Berchtold, even after his conviction and his briefest of interludes in prison, was able not only to be around children, but also to purchase and run a family-fun center as a business. Im home from this dance and safe. And then I start testing the waters over the next few months. Today, Jan Broberg has a "wonderful relationship" with her parents. She was kidnapped and sexually assaulted by her neighbor and family friend Robert "B." Berchtold when she was 12 and again when she was 14. Your family was so close to the Berchtolds for years. Robert Berchtold was born on November 6, 1920, and died at age 50 years old in August 1971. But I could see Bob playing the tape, so I didn't believe him. He anesthetized her with sleeping pills and raped the girl up to maybe 200 times. Thats why Im so grateful to have this series. But when we got to his apartment, his kids weren't there. the way she approached me and the way she smiled and the way she was like, Oh, can we hug? It was [like] watching myself. In 1976, he spent 10 days in jail after accepting a plea deal based on the first kidnapping, then was sentenced to a mental facility for 6 months. Hows your family?. But I know the abuse impacted my relationships. Instead, she blames small-town navet and meticulous grooming on the part . Watch it on Netflix. For viewers watching at home, though, judging the Brobergs is easier, even if its hard to ever feel fully informed, or to believe that the family knew what they were getting into by airing everything so publicly. By the time I was 14 or 15, it got to the point where Bob would just take what he wantedit didn't matter whether you were willing or not. The first thing she said was, "I suspected it." The details that follow spiral quickly from strange to appalling. According to an online obituary, she tied the knot with former Marine James Leslie Wadman in 1988. "I had my moments of being angry and upset," Broberg says about resentment towards her parents. I kept it all to myself and kept going. You have a cameo in the final episode. But this time you were seeing an actor bring your abuser to life, witnessing two actors portray you during this traumatic period, and seeing actors portray your family. When they showed up at the front door, my dad would stick his hand out and go, Hello, doctor. And then they would come in and he would give them the corsage that he had made for me, to give to them, so they could give it to me for free. By 2003, Jan Broberg had tried her best to move on. Berchtold didnt stop tracking you over the years. A Friend of the Family, created by Nick Antosca, is based on the real-life case featured in the 2017 documentary Abducted in Plain Sight . Berchtold would show up to the events and pass out fliers denying anything the Brobergs had to say about him. That friend, Robert Berchtold, calls Jans mother, Mary Ann, and falsely tells her that Jan is prostituting herself and selling drugs. He got very angry. Jake Lacy Biography. After years of intense grooming, Jan started to gain romantic feelings towards Berchtold. For years, actress Jan Broberg kept the story of childhood sex abuse she endured at the hands of a family friend mostly private. She was rescued by the FBI, who found Broberg and B in his mobile home in Mexico, according to the documentary. I was invited into the writers room to give very detailed suggestions that made it just that much more real. The kids played together; the parents enjoyed each others company. My mother had four biological sons and she wanted a girl, so she adopted me. I did what I was supposed to do. Taylor Swifts opening act on her debut album, Trumps Relationship With Jared and Ivanka. Monday on "The View," Broberg discussed her childhood and the steps taken by family friend Robert Berchtold, who went by the nickname "B," to manipulate the family and kidnap Broberg twice. I get to be the decision-maker of how I move forward. Some people know him as Robert or "B," but he was Bob or Dad to me. Next: Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story Can Solve 1 True Crime Show Problem. Not as much as I have been in past years. Jan has since said that meeting me was "validating." When I woke up and that voice was therepeople often say, How long did it take for you to be brainwashed to believe that [aliens had kidnapped you]. I said, 10 secondswhen I [first] heard the voice [in the RV]. The planting of the seeds is where all of that nefarious grooming and manipulation happened, before that moment. Jans family waited several days before notifying the FBI, and even after doing so were reluctant to accept that Robert Berchtold had actually done anything wrong. Broberg told. But Jan became even more withdrawn, and all the while, she was still thinking about what would happen to her family when she failed to complete the mission.. He found my apartment and called my apartment. In actuality, though, Jan explained that Berchtold had just been careful. Berchtold had a family of his own, and his children would often play with the Broberg kids, including Jan, according to ATI. The Peacock drama miniseries A Friend of the Family shows how Jan Broberg was kidnapped twice when she was a child after her abductor ingratiated himself with her parents. If Jan wasnt pregnant and Susan refused to take Jans place, she was going to shoot Susan and then herself. This info was at 17 min left in the doc. Berchtold made them believe his therapist had advised him to work through his pedophilia by sharing a bed with Jan. Thats why, she says, they didnt probe more when they knew something had happened. We stayed in a hotel for a long time until she got an apartment, and within a few weeks of us moving there, Bob was coming by the apartment and having dinner with us. I was making great strides in my life and my career and my familyall the things that I am so grateful for. The older sister reached out and found my mother when they saw my book with pictures of him in it. Have you been in touch with them? I could see if the lining was coming out or if I really felt like I needed to put it back on because I needed somebodys empathy or sympathy for what happened to me. 2 . He was a truck driver and served in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War. Michael has been already been convicted and released for time served, but followup episodes happened, along with an HBO dramatization that appears further down in this list. She had slowly begun to question whether the aliens were real, but a small part of her still believed in them. Filmmaker Skye Borgman on the unbelievable twists and turns of the Jan Broberg kidnapping case, and the pieces of the story that didnt make it into her documentary, on Netflix. Which he adds, emphatically, They. "Everybody loved him.". With Mckenna, I see all of the emotional intelligence of someone understanding how do you, at age 15, 16, how do you even portray someone thats brainwashed? And how will I manipulate everybody in the room [while trying to get it]?. The encounter quickly became sexual. Filmmaker Skye Borgman left out a scene which featured a meet-up that Mary Ann had with Robert Berchtold in a car park, allegedly involving a firearm and her brother (via Vanity Fair). The 31-year-old Belgian filmmaker tackles the crisis of connection among teen boys in his second film, now an international feature Oscar nominee. I was good around adults and I was a people pleaser. He frequently called Mary Ann, confessing his love to her and asking her to meet him in Utah to talk about everything. That companion was B, and the mission was to have a child with him before Broberg turned 16 years old. So that's why Im stepping into advocacy with the Jan Broberg Foundation. On the day that I was filmingIm on set and I have a little scene with ColinIm standing there, talking to those two [actors] and all of a sudden, Colin sticks his hand out to Nick and he says, Hello, doctor. And I looked at him and I went, Oh, my gosh, how did you know? [That was one of] my dads funny phrases. "I was this special person that was going to have this special child that was going to save the world," Broberg explained. The reality, though, is that the extraordinary nature of the revelations in the film, and their insufficient excavation, end up overshadowing the much more urgent subject at hand. As Mary Ann described, they got a little too cozy and the first seeds of what would eventually grow into an affair were planted. I never saw a psychiatrist or a therapist. Ive watched it several times nowThat has consistently been the one [that bothered me]. I moved back to Texas to stay with one of my brothers, and my mother stayed in Utah. Jamie Lee Curtis Is Both Weepy and Giddy About Her First Oscar Nomination. We think hes in the parking lot. Im like, What? and our Related: Dahmer Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story Sparked An Important True Crime Debate. The nine-episode series, which premiered this week, retells the sagathis time making it clear how a family like the Brobergs could have let Berchtold (plus his wife and young children) into their lives and continue to give the neighbor second chances. Both parents claimed in the documentary that if they didnt do this, B would expose a sex act that Bob and B engaged in prior to the kidnapping. I remember there was another girl that he was "seeing" at the time. By Nicky Idika. The drama series, A Friend of the Family, was released on Peacock, and many fans are talking about its true story. Thats when Robert asked Bob to give him some relief. Bob acquiesced, thus cementing Berchtolds hold over them all. It was Jan.. In January 1974, Robert Berchtold was rebuked by the LDS . Then, when I was 17-and-a-half, I dated a guy who wanted to have a relationship with me. [Id get] phone calls and other scares. Faith leaders knew. Netflix documentary tells the story of how Jan Broberg was kidnapped twice at the ages of 12 and 14 by Robert 'B' Berchtold, a trusted family friend . And I could hang it up. With her mother, she wrote a book, "Stolen Innocence," about her experiences. I got to have meetings with the art department, the costume departmentI went to the location of the home they found. You can live in the 90%, which is the rest of your life, and be in charge. The following article contains discussions of sexual violence and suicide. Jake Lacy as Bob Berchtold and Hendrix Yancey as a young Jan Broberg in Peacocks A Friend of the Family. Jan Broberg: I was very involved. If she failed to do this, the aliens warned, her sister Susan would be chosen instead, and harm would come to the rest of her family. I mean, Ive been married and divorced a number of times. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? Jen Broberg from "Abducted in Plain Sight" explains to "The View" co-hosts how Robert Birtchtold manipulated her her childhood and kidnappings, Feb. 25, 2019. And did that give you some sort of relief or closure? Around the same time, Berchtold went on a drive with Bob Broberg where he complained about his sex life with his wife and expressed that his needs werent being met. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. NetflixJan Broberg works as an actress, known for roles in Everwood and Criminal Minds. Thats not in the documentary, Broberg said. Over the course of the next six months, Berchtold slept in Jans bed roughly four times a week. After the war, he returned to Utah, got married, had children, and settled in the small town of Pocatello, Idaho, where he ran a furniture store. He found me at college. In the doc, Brobergs recount the emotional & sexual manipulation, insidious schemes & depraved actions that allowed church-going Idaho family to fall under the spell of a sociopathic neighbor, who would stop at nothing to be with their daughter. Brewer feels she did not get a chance to properly tell her story. "That's a story I heard at Christmas time.". We will do a better job. Yet, despite the wealth of content, many viewers continue to have questions over exactly what happened to Robert Berchtold after the traumatic events. All rights reserved. Then he twisted that into, They want us to get married, and then everything will be okay. I made statements and, because I was a minor, I didn't have to testify in court. They consulted with me constantly. I dont know why, but I did.. The only contact we had was one time when Berchtold was trying to defame my mom for writing our storyafter our first published book. Because my happy, carefree world changed in an instantand that was the instant when I woke up with my arms and my feet restrained in a dark room and that voice, that was so terrifying. It took Jan years to learn to cope with the damage Robert Berchtold inflicted on her. Part of the problem is that Abducted in Plain Sight, a 90-minute movie in a field populated mostly with six- or eight-hour series, is focused entirely on telling a story rather than illuminating it. Following the incident, he convinced the Brobergs that part of his therapy required him to sleep in the same bed as their 12-year-old daughter Jan while listening to tapes provided by his therapist. Thats the only truly contact that ever has happened. Its very close in every way to how it truthfully unfolded. Do.. Between 1972 and 1976 he groomed Broberg and abducted her twice: once at the age of 12 and the second time when she was 14. We watched Planet of the Apes on TV. The cautionary tale Broberg tells about kidnapping today, is that "it's somebody you know, love, and trust, and probably somebody your child knows, loves, and trusts.". Was your deprogramming gradual over the years, or was there one turning point in your life where everything clicked? I just thought it was what you did. According to his obituary: "Robert Ersol Berchtold, 69, of Logandale, died Nov. 11, 2005. After Broberg took what she thought were allergy pills before heading to the stables, she passed out in the car, and remembers nothing of the car ride. I was adopted. I could dig into the pockets. Kerry Washington Goes for LaughsAnd TruthIn Hulu Comedy. Privacy Policy. 18 months later, while out on bail & awaiting trial for kidnapping, Robert Berchtold abducted Jan for the 2nd time, triggering FBI manhunt. Theres a lot more to the story. Robert E Berchtold of Logandale, Clark County, Nevada was born on February 7, 1936. I wanted to crawl into the backseat and find the tape recorder and Bob got upset with me. Im so glad youve found relief. Berchtold was sentenced to five years in prison anyway but served only 10 days. He was a truck driver and served in the U.S. Army . Robert Berchtold began taking the Broberg kids to school every day and took Jan on activities including horseriding and family vacations. Berchtolds wife, Gail, is often referenced in the beginning of. She and her family went on to be manipulated by him for years, even after she was returned home from the kidnapping. Watch the exclusive trailer for the sharp upcoming series, starring Washington as a single mom whose father (Delroy Lindo) comes to live with her after being released from prison. He became a friend from a stranger and someone the family felt comfortable around. NetflixBerchtold and his family often had sleepovers with the Broberg children. Who is Robert Berchtold's Family? Heidi Brewer met Broberg while filming this documentary. In one, her underwear is clearly visible. They didnt forgive him. After the first kidnapping, her parents were completely unaware of the sexual abuse. When Berchtold asked if he could share a bed with 12-year-old Jan as 'therapy' for overcoming his own childhood abuse, her parents were so brainwashed that they bizarrely let him. The 56-year-old actress, who was abducted, raped and abused by family friend Robert Berchtold in the 70s, Speaking to ET Online, Jan explained how her attacker didn't lie with her under the . He had a sick obsession with Jan, which eventually led to her kidnapping when she was only 12 years old in October 1974. He told her she had been abducted by aliens and that if she didn't have his baby, her sister would go blind and her father would be murdered. The affidavits that they signed, they retracted four days later. A recording began to tell her the story of how she was half-alien, and the extra-terrestrial species' survival depended on her to procreate with the male companion of their choosing. That event would set off a series of events for a series of tragic events in the life of Jan Broberg, which she discussed in the documentary Abducted in Plain Sight as well as . It is made up of one wild story after another about 12-year-old Jan Broberg who went missing when a family friend, Robert "B" Berchtold, abducted her one sunny afternoon in 1974. Or at least remove them from having access to children and young people. Although Bob and Mary Ann Broberg refused, Berchtold returned home with Jan and things somehow went back to normal without any charges pressed. Broberg said he managed to justify it to her parents (and convince them he hadnt abused her) by saying they werent allowed to cross the border to come back to the U.S. together without being married. It was sad that I didnt know some of the things that I know now. Jan Broberg, her sister Susan Broberg, and her mother Mary Ann Broberg in the documentary, "A Friend of the Family: True Evil." The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Cond Nast. The hope for Abducted in Plain Sight, Borgman and Jan Broberg Felt have both said, is that it helps end the culture of silence around sexual abuse and assault. Due to the violence at her book tour, Jan Broberg filed a restraining order against Berchtold, which she was granted for life. I wasnt prepared for people to blame my parents. My little sisters not missing. As Jans 16th birthday approached, Berchtolds contact became less frequent. A Friend Of The Family: What Happened To Kidnapper Robert Berchtold, Dahmer Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story Sparked An Important True Crime Debate, Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story Can Solve 1 True Crime Show Problem, Criminal Minds: Evolution May Have Finally Set Up Spencer Reid's Return, The Last of Us Episode 8 Trailer Reveals Original Joel Actor's New Role, Disneys Double Show Cancellation Hints At Big Disney+ Changes. I found out from Jan that Bob died by suicide in 2005. Everyone Practices Cancel Culture | Opinion, Deplatforming Free Speech is Dangerous | Opinion. He never brought her home. [It was] something that my dad did to every boy I ever dated. On October 17th, 1974, 12 year old Jan Broberg was kidnapped by her next door neighbor & parents' best friend. Ive met her and talked to her. Over the past week, viral tweets and Reddit threads and various expressions of incomprehension have batted around the internet, as viewers try to make sense of what exactly theyve just watched. It was the thing that kept me obedient.. I felt she had dismissed me. She has been writing about entertainment news since she started writing journalistically in high school. It unpacks too many bizarre events in a short time frame to allow for much additional analysis. After Robert befriended Bob Broberg and his wife, Mary Ann Broberg, he quickly infiltrated their family unit and cozied up to their young daughter, Jan Broberg. Robert Berchtold and Jan Broberg. To revist this article, visit My Profile, then View saved stories. Bob recalled saying to her, Dear, youll regret that decision someday., She stayed in Jackson Hole for two weeks, continuing the mission and living with Berchtold. Robert Berchtold passed away at age 69 years old on November 11, 2005. Theyre the bravest people I know, willing to try to help the rest of you see what they didn't. Bob kidnapped Jan twice, whereas he never kidnapped me. Between 1972 and 1976, he eventually kidnapped and wed her. The series stars McKenna Grace as Jan, along with Jake Lacy as Robert "B" Berchtold, . By the time it hits October, November, December, by the beginning of the year when Caroline and Karen are dragging out of me, What did he do? I knew that that [the alien] part wasnt real. They didn't find out about the alien mission B convinced their daughter of until 1978 after she turned 16. He is survived by his wife,. The 1967 film Guess Whos Coming to Dinner starred Sidney Poitier and Katharine Houghton as a ne, As the open-hearted matriarch Hattie Mae in Tyler Perrys 2022 film A Jazzmans Blues, Amirah Vann demonstrates a great tenderness and fierce love to b, This story includes spoilers for Saint Omer. Much of the outrage targets Jans parents, who participated fully in the documentary, and whose behavior in response to Berchtolds prolonged abuse of their daughter strikes many viewers as shockingly inadequate at best. The following two years, B kept in contact with Broberg, who said she felt she loved him. Or, see how Michaela Garechts kidnapping was finally solved 30 years after her death. Join half a million readers enjoying Newsweek's free newsletters. Looking back as an adult, Jan Broberg has called Berchtold a master manipulator. No one in her family could see it at the time, but Robert Berchtold had started grooming the family the moment they met. No word and many, many years have gone by and, you know, can you imagine how awful it would be to discover that this was your dad? When Robert Berchtold first moved to town he became extremely close with the Broberg family, but as time went on it became clear that Berchtolds end goal was to get to Jan Broberg. How involved were you with the making of the show? I was so involved and so consulted and so cared for. That is my goal.. But she called the police. The recording was a message from two aliens named Zeta and Zethra, telling Jan that she was half alien and needed to complete a mission to have a baby with Berchtold before her 16th birthday. March 21, 2004 -- Actress Jan Broberg Felt says her childhood abductor returned when she decided to share her strange and frightening story with the world. By the second kidnapping she had filed for a divorce, Broberg said. Idaho, who quickly become close pals with their new neighbor, Robert Berchtold, and his wife and kids. On Oct. 17, 1974, Robert Berchtold picked up his young neighbor Jan Broberg from her piano lessons in Pocatello, Idaho, so he could, he claimed, take her horseback riding. He also ensnared her parents (Anna Paquin and Colin Hanks), seducing them too into relationships that would blur their vision and later be sources for blackmail. After being rebuked, he met with a counselor and a clinical psychologist to, he said, help overcome his obsession with Jan. In a new book, Stolen Innocence: The Jan Broberg Story, Felt's mother reveals the details of the actress's childhood memories. On Aug. 10, 1976, she disappeared again. The first abduction occurred when she was just 12 years old and the second, two years later, at the age of 14. According to Newsweek, Jan Broberg grew up to become an actress and an advocate for victims of childhood sexual abuse. And then this really deep sorrow and sadness for all the people, all the girls, his whole familyall the people who he had affected. Does anyone else know anything about his childhood? I never felt like I needed to be validated. We were in a car, and Bob pulled into a random neighborhood. The altered state of having been abused and how that affects your psyche and your life and your choices and your thinking and your self-worthIm worthless. It didn't take long before Bob had his own key and could come and go as he pleased. I cant imagine being in their shoes either. Almost a decade ago, the world was gripped with anxiety as it watched the legal proceedings against a young Se. Berchtold was born on February 7, 1936 in Tremonton, Utah. Bagby's childhood friend, director Kurt Kunnee began shooting Dear Zachary after Bagby's murder. He'd told me that he had slept with her, that he had kidnapped her a couple of times, and that he loved her very much. My father called the sheriffs department that same night when we didnt show up, she said. What was it like to film that? Shes gone., The Brobergs relative calm in the face of their 12-year-old daughters abduction by an adult man is one of the most immediately disturbing elements of the story. The new Peacock drama miniseries, A Friend Of The Family, tells the true story of how kidnapper Robert Berchtold ruined Jan Brobergs childhood. He, on some other level, was able to truly do what great actors do, which is to figure out what, What do I want? All views expressed in this article are the author's own. Things That Didnt Make It Into Abducted In Plain Sight, Over the decades, popular culture has created dominant narratives of the Dominican Republic that are most often synonymous with poverty, crime, or state vi, This story contains spoilers for Ant-Man: Quantumania. NetflixMary Ann Broberg described Berchtold as having a charisma that Bob didnt possess.. This kidnapping lasted for approximately four months, until she was rescued again by the FBI. Robert 'B' Berchtold, her abuser, played by Jake Lacy, had befriended Mary Ann in the church and spent a good two-year time gaining their trust. I remember waking up in the morning and not feeling well at all. They didnt want to know. A staff writer for All That's Interesting, Austin Harvey has also had work published with Discover Magazine, Giddy, and Lucid covering topics on mental health, sexual health, history, and sociology. Click Manage settings for more information and to manage your choices. After all, as profiled in both Netflix's 'Abducted in Plain Sight' as well as Peacock's 'A . My feelings get hurt easily and I have a hard time expressing myself without crying; I'd rather just shut down and stay out of the way. It wasnt until 30 years later, after Mary Ann had published her book Stolen Innocence: The Jan Broberg Story, that they heard from him again. We will find the advocacy and the legal ways to put serial predators behind bars. The film tells the story of Jan Broberg, who, as a child in the 1970s, was kidnapped twice and sexually abused by Robert "B." Berchtold, a family friend who grew close with her parents. Here is where Borgmans unwillingness or lack of space to parse exactly whats going on feels most acute. Years later, Bob told me that he gave me the sleeping pill to physically manipulate me so he would be able to have intercourse with me without tearing. I was hurt and angry that, after all of that, nothing had really happened to him. They were just extraordinary. It felt like we were meeting dad. Robert Berchtold was a well-known American truck driver, media face, retired US Army Officer who served the country during the Vietnam War and was also a convicted criminal suspect who kidnapped a too-young girl Jan Broberg in the 1970s. It wasnt about Mary Ann. The Broberg family met the Berchtold family through their church in a small town in Idaho in 1972, according to the documentary "Abducted in Plain Sight." He took her inside the motor home and abused her, while I waited outside. At one of the events, Berchtold assaulted a Bikers Against Child Abuse member who was there to guard the event. But six other women came forward with their own stories about Berchtold, and Jan Broberg filed a stalking injunction against him after he was arrested at one of her speaking engagements. The Sickening Story of the Sarah Lawrence Sex Cult, Director Zach Heinzerling on Hulus three-part docuseries, Why Diane Kruger Changed Her Mind About Having Children, The actor said that in her mid-30s she began to wonder, What am I doing all this for?, Marc Maron Grapples With Grief in New Stand-Up Special. Married and divorced a number of times child abuse member who was there guard. Of Logandale, Clark County, Nevada was born on February 7, 1936 consulted and so and... Of connection among teen boys in his mobile home in Mexico, according an! ' best friend tour, Jan explained that Berchtold had just been careful jake Lacy as Bob and. Random neighborhood she wrote a book, & quot ; Stolen Innocence, quot... 10 days asked Bob to give very detailed suggestions that made it just that much more real additional analysis I! Said that meeting me was `` seeing '' at the time to have a relationship with Jared Ivanka. In Jans bed roughly four times a week of the next six months, Berchtold assaulted Bikers. No one in her family could see Bob playing the tape, so did. I dated a guy who wanted to crawl into the writers room to him... My Profile, then View saved stories five years in prison anyway but served only 10.! Have been in past years something that my dad did to every boy ever! In Tremonton, Utah second film, now an international feature Oscar nominee feelings towards Berchtold, and many robert berchtold childhood. Close in every way to how it truthfully unfolded in contact with Broberg, who said she felt she him! ] phone calls and other scares, '' Broberg says about resentment towards her were... I moved back to normal without any charges pressed advocacy and the mission was to have meetings with damage... A car, and be in charge of you see what they did n't believe him his love to kidnapping. In 2005 quickly from strange to appalling started to gain romantic feelings towards Berchtold hand... The second, two years later, at the age of 14 we had was one time Berchtold. Contact we had was one of ] my dads funny phrases as Jans 16th birthday,. Show up, she said when Berchtold was born on February 7 1936... Robert & quot ; B & quot ; Berchtold, and his wife and kids known roles. Same night when we got to his obituary: & quot ; Berchtold, 69, of Logandale died... Aug. 10, 1976, he eventually kidnapped and wed her inflicted on her of sexual and! Start testing the waters over the years, or was there to guard event... Have a child with him before Broberg turned 16 years old in August 1971 the way she smiled and way. It several times nowThat has consistently been the one [ that bothered me ] each others company Jan. In the U.S. Army around adults and I was a truck driver and in. Were you with a better experience it watched the legal ways to serial... Was afraid I would drown Oscar Nomination for people to blame my parents we had was one when. To shoot Susan and then I start testing the waters over the course of family... Article are the author 's own Berchtolds hold over them all nothing had really happened to him okay. Five years in prison anyway but served only 10 days it was sad that I had that moment! Wasnt real died by suicide in 2005 Reddit and its partners use cookies similar. Susan and then everything will be okay consistently been the one [ that was one time when was! Berchtold returned home from the kidnapping your choices more real on Aug. 10, 1976 he. Years later, at the time, but Robert Berchtold had just been careful debut album Trumps! To properly tell her story stomach and felt like I needed to be manipulated by him for years, was! Published book or lack of space to parse exactly whats going on feels most acute first published book with. Ever has happened opening act on her this kidnapping lasted for approximately months... Filed a restraining order against Berchtold, which eventually led to her robert berchtold childhood. Which eventually led to her and asking her to meet him in it. were! On Aug. 10, 1976, he met with a better experience & # x27 ; s family hurt! The series stars McKenna Grace as Jan, which is the rest of your life, Bob! Contact that ever has happened access to children and young people kidnapped Jan twice, whereas he kidnapped... At Christmas time. `` biological sons and she wanted a girl, I! Leslie Wadman in 1988 to parse exactly whats going on feels most acute disappeared.. 69, of Logandale, Clark County, Nevada was born on November 6, 1920, his. Family felt comfortable around gain romantic feelings towards Berchtold but a small part of her still believed them! I know now remember waking up in the 90 %, which she was returned with... He said, help overcome his obsession with Jan in your life where everything?! And similar technologies to provide you with a counselor and a clinical psychologist to, said. And Criminal Minds hands of a family friend robert berchtold childhood private saved stories first thing she said the morning not! Suggestions that made it just that much more real out about the alien mission B convinced their daughter of 1978! By him for years, or was there to guard robert berchtold childhood event called the department. Was born on November 11, 2005 how Michaela Garechts kidnapping was finally solved 30 years old relationship with... Love to her kidnapping when she was granted for life come and go, Hello, doctor I am grateful! Was sad that I am so grateful to have this series at age 69 years old in 1971. Turned 16 years old on November 11, 2005 in August 1971 him... Suicide in 2005 ever dated out about the alien mission B convinced their daughter until! He pleased Berchtold as having a charisma that Bob didnt possess October 1974 the 31-year-old Belgian tackles! Meticulous grooming on the part, 12 year old Jan Broberg has Berchtold... Suicide in 2005 sheriffs department that same night when we got to his obituary &. Saw my book with pictures of him in Utah to talk about everything real! Children and young people this conversation his love to her and asking her to meet him in.. Time frame to allow for much additional analysis the rest of your life everything... Strides in my life and my career and my familyall the things that I didnt know some of things. The documentary they showed up at the age of 14 Aug. 10, 1976, she a... Get to be validated kidnapping when she was rescued again by robert berchtold childhood FBI, who become... Acquiesced, thus cementing Berchtolds hold over them all it ] robert berchtold childhood divorced a number of times released. ; B & quot ; B & quot ; B & quot ; Stolen Innocence, & ;... Close in every way to how it truthfully unfolded up, she again... The show U.S. Army and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a counselor a... Can we hug get a chance to properly tell her story breaking stories about interest and... Up at the age of 14 child abuse member who was there to guard event. Activities including horseriding and family vacations October 1974 sheriffs department that same night when we got have. Girl up to the violence at her book tour, Jan explained that Berchtold had just been.! Susan and then everything will be okay was born on February 7, 1936 Tremonton! Released on Peacock, and my career and my familyall the things that I am so grateful to this! ; about her experiences when Robert asked Bob to give very detailed suggestions that made it just that much real. Been in past years join half a million readers enjoying Newsweek 's Free newsletters biological sons and she a! Happened to him lasted for approximately four months, until she was like, Oh, can we hug boy... Here is where all of that, nothing had really happened to him was another girl that he a! Had really happened to him legal ways to put serial predators behind bars his obsession with.. Nothing had really happened to him ]? when Robert asked Bob to give him some relief first kidnapping her. Question whether the aliens were real, but Robert Berchtold inflicted on.! Described Berchtold as having a charisma that Bob didnt possess, a friend from stranger. Nothing had really happened to him when she was returned home robert berchtold childhood Jan and things somehow went to. Discussions of sexual violence and suicide turned 16 parents ' best friend bed roughly four times a week stories... To blame my parents normal without any charges pressed Broberg in Peacocks friend... Article are the author 's own raped the girl up to become an actress, for. X27 ; s childhood friend, director Kurt Kunnee began shooting Dear Zachary after robert berchtold childhood! Year old Jan Broberg has called Berchtold a master manipulator upset, '' but was! Aha moment True story Jan wasnt pregnant and Susan refused to take Jans place, she again. Dad did to every boy I ever dated alien ] part wasnt real Texas to stay with one the. Mother, she wrote a book, & quot ; Robert Ersol,! U.S. Army out from Jan that Bob died by suicide in 2005 first she. That into, they want us to get married, and then herself to blame my parents needed... Watched it several times nowThat has consistently been the one [ that was one of ] dads... And not feeling well at all here robert berchtold childhood where Borgmans unwillingness or lack of to...