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Joseph Cates' Who Killed Teddy Bear? was an astonishing piece of cinema in the 1960s, and has lost little of its impact in the four decades since it was released. Its extensive use of actual New York locations -- midtown's theater district, the sleazy clubs surrounding it, and the Central Park Children's Zoo all play big roles in the plot -- give the movie a piercingly realistic edge. The very frank dialogue and visuals as the stalker torments his victim with phone calls, and the depiction (though flashbacks) of how he was abused as a teenager, make this a difficult movie to watch, but also an extremely rewarding one. For starters, one does get a close and gritty look at the nasty underside of '60s popular culture -- not just loud music and dancing, but the sleazy sexual ethos of the era. The characters are a pathetic, damaged lot, even Nora (Juliet Prowse) before her attack seems annoying in her silliness and naïve nature; and the most damaged of all is the stalker Larry (Sal Mineo), who was himself a victim of abuse by a neighbor (depicted in very disturbing flashback sequences). Some of the details are confusing, such as the identity of Larry's abuser (was it his mother, as some audience members seem to believe, or a neighbor, as seems more likely?), but overall Who Killed Teddy Bear? is a compelling and intimate drama on a very difficult and disturbing subject, populated by characters who are dazzling in their corrupt natures.