December 2010

Benjaman Kyle – Close Calls, Conclusion?

By |2010-12-30T13:26:11-08:00December 30th, 2010|

All anyone knew about him was that he was born Robert Lee King in March 1949. To find Jennie King's remaining son was going to be tough with so little information to go on. Benjaman Kyle claims his birthdate is August 29, 1948 because he remembers that he was born exactly ten years before Michael Jackson.  But memory is a funny thing. Carl Litel, Jennie's second known son, was adopted the day he was born, February 5, 1946. Jennie held him only once before he was taken away. Carl's adoptive parents Joseph and Cecelia Litel provided a wonderful home for Carl and his adopted brother James.  The couple also had two natural [...]

Benjaman Kyle – Close Calls, Part III

By |2010-12-23T01:34:52-08:00December 23rd, 2010|

From 1938 through 1953, Jennie Lee King gave birth to four boys, putting the older three up for adoption or in foster homes.  She was born Barnett Rudio in Louisville, KY on December 20, 1918 the daughter of Wallace Rudio and Lillian Barbara Winkler. Jennie may have been born out of wedlock as, soon after she was born, Lillian married Walter L. King who supposedly adopted her and renamed her Jennie Lee King. Jennie moved with her family to Indianapolis, IN in the 1920s.  Soon after graduating from Technical High School, she became pregnant and gave birth to her oldest son Michael Lee King on March 23, 1938 at St. [...]

Benjaman Kyle – Close Calls, Part II

By |2010-12-14T13:24:36-08:00December 14th, 2010|

Since I have been involved in trying to identify the amnesiac Benjaman Kyle, I've seen many leads come in, ranging from the casual to the very serious. Many people have contacted me that they are related to Powells or Davidsons (or both).  Many people have written to direct me to websites describing missing persons who they believe might be Benjaman.  Many others have sent in pictures of their relatives, friends and acquaintances who they believe resemble Benjaman, in a sincere desire to assist in his identification. One example of a Benjaman look-alike is this picture sent to me by Mary Beth Pierson who believed her former neighbor resembled him. I agreed, although the neighbor had been a pilot [...]

Benjaman Kyle – Close Calls, Part I

By |2010-12-12T02:00:05-08:00December 12th, 2010|

Hi Colleen:   I read the article about you in the June 2010 issue of More Magazine, and am curious about one thing. Are you the same person who competed on Wheel of Fortune in 1991? If so, I was one of your competitors. Just curious!   Margot Theresa Cox   In fact, I was on Wheel of Fortune in 1991.  (I lost.  I was the third contestant in line, and the other two women, including Margot, mopped up on the puzzles before I could get a letter in edgewise.)   When I wrote her back, identifying myself as her competitor, Margot answered: When I got your response I had to [...]

Benjaman's 23 and Me Matches

By |2010-12-09T22:36:13-08:00December 9th, 2010|

Benjaman Kyle is the adopted name of an amnesiac who was found near Savannah, GA in August 2004.  (See his Wikipedia page for more details.)  Since recovering from a severe beating that left him unconscious, he cannot remember who he is.  Benjaman took a 23andMe autosomal DNA test earlier this year, hoping to discover close relatives, or at least possible names in his family and the geographical locations where they could be found. As of December 9, 2010, Benjaman's list of 23andMe matches includes a total of 411 matches ranging from 3rd to 10th cousins.  Benjaman's top 23andMe match is a third cousin named Thomas Perry whose family has lived in the area around Saluda, [...]

November 2010

Special Projects

By |2010-11-26T22:40:13-08:00November 26th, 2010|

July 2010      Consultant, Elmer Crawford Murder Case, Melbourne, Victoria                               Police Department -    Assisted Melbourne law enforcement in locating a mitochondrial DNA reference in                 Ireland and Australia for fugitive killer Elmer Crawford who murdered his wife and               three children in 1970 in Australia, to establish whether or not a look-alike drifter in             Texas was Crawford. (He was not.)  See Identifinders Blog entries August 29-                       [...]

August 2010

23 and Me Male and Female Haplgroups

By |2010-08-10T22:34:31-07:00August 10th, 2010|

I just spent the evening reviewing the male and female haplogroups of Benjaman's 23 and Me matches that are predicted to be at the 3rd and 4th cousins levels.  I was hoping to find a geographical pattern that might indicate his origins.  Unfortunately, the haplogroups of his matches do not reveal too much information because of their variety.  His male haplogroups are mostly R1b1b2a and its downstream subclades, with one I1* [European], one Q1a3a [Native American], one E1b1a8a [African America], and one G2a [Turkey and the Mediterranean].  His female haplogroups are quite varied.  These include HV0 and various subclades of H1, H5, and H7, also subclade U2, various subclades of U5, one T1, two [...]

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