Most of Red John's past remains a mystery, but it is known that he was born with the name Thomas McAllister in the 1950s or 60s (as early as around 1959 and as late as 1968), possibly in California. No family members of his have ever been revealed or mentioned throughout the series, although in 2013, he told Sophie Miller that he had no living family at that time (whether this is true or not is still unknown). In 1988, when he was around thirty or younger, he was a member of Visualize and worked at a church farm in Elliston, where he drew the first known smiley face, the future insignia of Red John. He also committed his first two known murders there, killing his colleagues Martin Talbot and Allen Charney for an unknown reason. After another colleague, Gordon Bradovich, was killed by Holly Preston, the barn was abandoned and McAllister’s exact whereabouts were lost for a long 20 years, until 2008.
At some point during this period, he moved to Napa County and became the local sheriff. He might have also founded his criminal organization, the Blake Association, during this time.
In 1998, McAllister committed his third known murder and the first in his series of killings: an unnamed woman killed with the help of his first known accomplice, Orville Tanner. Although McAllister escaped, Tanner was apprehended by the police and during his trial, he claimed that he was just a lookout and accused McAllister of being the actual murderer, referring to him by the nickname "Red John" for the first time instead of his real name. However, no one believed him, and McAllister remained free while Tanner was imprisoned. Strangely, McAllister kept in touch with Tanner and continually informed him about his subsequent murders, while Tanner still considered him a "good friend" of his and his son, Dumar.
Over the next five years, McAllister became a serial killer and murdered at least eight more people, including Janet Peak in 2000, a murder that almost went wrong when the victim’s husband, Carter Peak, suddenly appeared and attacked McAllister. Although the killer overpowered and killed Carter, the man’s body still had his DNA on it, so he buried the corpse under concrete in the basement of a shopping mall to hide the evidence.
It is known that, at least in his early murders, some newspapers called the serial killer the "Smiley Face Killer" because he drew a smiley face in the victim's blood as his personal signature. However, the nickname "Red John" eventually prevailed, and McAllister began to be known by this name. Although it seems that McAllister himself created this nickname, its true meaning was never revealed.
In 2003, psychic and self-proclaimed "psychic" Patrick Jane, who was assisting the police with the Red John case, appeared on a talk show and mocked RJ, calling him "a small, ugly man, miserable. A lonely soul. Sad, very sad." This enraged McAllister, and that night he went to Jane's house and killed his wife and daughter (painting Jane’s wife’s toenails with her own blood as a "special gift" for Jane), leaving a note on the door explaining his motive:
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| Red John's letter to Jane pinned to the bedroom door where he killed Jane's family. |
Mr. Jane,
I do not like being slandered in the media, especially by greedy charlatans.
If you were a real psychic, instead of a little lying worm, you wouldn't need to open the door to see what I have done to your lovely wife and child.
Jane returned home and found the note along with the bodies of his wife and daughter. He then had a breakdown and was admitted to a mental facility, where he stayed for six months before joining the CBI to hunt and exact revenge on Red John, becoming his most persistent and fierce adversary ever since.
From 2003 to 2008, Red John murdered eight more unnamed women; his 13th-21st victims and probably the last ones killed without a specific reason (all subsequent victims were related to "internal matters," mocking or conflicting with Patrick Jane, rather than the actions of a true serial killer).
In 2004, a young alcoholic named Michael Kirkland joined Red John as one of his accomplices and later disappeared. Although never proven, his twin brother, Robert Kirkland, believed Red John had killed him and thus began hunting RJ for revenge, just as Jane did.
In 2007, McAllister met two sisters, Miranda and Lorelei Martins, introducing himself to them by the alias "Roy Tagliaferro." McAllister noted that Lorelei was emotionally unstable and wanted her to become his accomplice, but he needed a tragedy to happen to Lorelei so he could "rescue" her, just as he did with Michael and his alcohol issues, and with most of his known associates.
However, Lorelei's sister, Miranda, was always supportive of Lorelei, so McAllister kidnapped Miranda with the help of his followers, Julia Howard and Jason Lennon. He then raped her and left her to die in an abandoned warehouse. Lorelei subsequently became depressed, and McAllister took advantage of this to manipulate her into joining him. Before she died, Miranda carved the word "Roy" into the floor, accusing McAllister, but this detail was not disclosed by the police and was only discovered years later.
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