Happy Face Killer: Daughter Shares Memories of Father’s Crimes

Melissa G. Moore, the daughter of convicted serial killer Keith Jesperson, is sharing her story. Her life is now the focus of Happy Face, a new Paramount+ series about the Happy Face Killer. Jesperson, also known as the “Happy Face Killer,” is serving a life sentence for the murders of eight women between 1990 and 1995. He got his nickname by sending letters with smiley faces to the media and police. He has claimed responsibility for as many as 160 murders. But one chilling moment in Moore’s life still haunts her. Before his arrest, her father nearly confessed to her. She now believes that if he had, she might not have survived the conversation.

A Normal Lunch Turned Terrifying

Moore was in high school when she had a conversation with her father, the Happy Face Killer, that she will never forget. She was about to get her driver’s license and was having lunch with Jesperson at a diner. He was divorced from her mother and working as a truck driver at the time. The conversation began like any father-daughter moment. He offered to pay for her first car, and she was thrilled about her upcoming freedom. Then, the mood changed. Jesperson looked at her and said, “I have something I need to tell you, but you’ll tell the authorities.” He never said more, but Moore now realizes that he was struggling with keeping his dark secrets hidden. She suspects that if he had admitted the truth, she might not have made it home that day because of her father’s identity as the Happy Face Killer.

Fear of Becoming His Next Crime Victim

Looking back, Moore believes that her father was losing control over his double life. He had managed to keep up a facade for years, but that day, she saw cracks forming. “He was on the verge of telling me,” she recalls. “If he had, and I was alone with him, he would’ve had to drive me back to school. I don’t think he would have. I think he would have regretted telling me, and he would’ve needed to end my life.” She now believes that he was having a hard time keeping his two identities separate. His life as a father was blending with his life as the Happy Face Killer, and for a brief moment, he almost let it slip.

Learning the Truth About Her Father’s crime

Moore was living in Spokane, Washington, with her mother and siblings when she learned the truth. One day, her mother gathered the children and told them that their father had been arrested for murder as the Happy Face Killer. It was shocking news that changed everything. Later, Moore found out that Jesperson had written a letter to his children. To this day, she has never read it. She didn’t need to. She already knew what kind of man her father was as the Happy Face Killer.

Turning Pain into Advocacy

Moore refused to let her father’s crimes define her. She has spent years working to help the families of crime victims, as well as the families of criminals who also suffer the consequences. In 2009, she wrote a book about her experience with the Happy Face Killer. In 2018, she launched the podcast Happy Face, which has now inspired the upcoming Paramount+ series. The eight-episode show premieres on March 20. Annaleigh Ashford plays Moore, while Dennis Quaid portrays Jesperson.

Confronting the Past Through Television

Though Moore mostly stayed on the sidelines during production, she did help the show’s creators. She provided them with unopened letters from Jesperson, the Happy Face Killer, ones she had never had the courage to read. Watching the series has been an emotional experience for her. “It’s like watching my own story as an observer,” she says. “That’s a unique gift. Now that my kids are adults, it feels like my graduation and my report card.” Despite the pain of her past, she hopes the series will show how crime affects not only the victims but also the families left behind.

Her journey is proof that even in the darkest moments, there is still a chance to move forward.