Just saying “Marilyn,” or even the word “Monroe,” has always been enough to invoke this star’s beauty, glamour and essence. Monroe was, after all, perhaps the greatest sex symbol of all time and she’ll always remain with us in one way or another.
On Saturday, August 4, 1962, sometime during the late evening hours, Marilyn Monroe expired, and the coroner’s report stated it was suicide. Monroe had been discovered dead by her physician who’d been called in the early Sunday morning hours by her housekeeper at the time.
A 1949 pose Marilyn did for “Playboy” magazine, a calendar fave!
A few months after the Feb. 1952 calendar appeared, Marilyn’s first “Life” spread came!
What really happened the previous night, August 4, 1962? Only Marilyn Monroe herself knows the truth. Innumerable theories abound, many claiming to be based on rigid scientific principles, or so-called eyewitness accounts and most are likely just hearsay.
w/husband Joe DiMaggio, baseball starA later husband, playwright, Arthur Miller
People were clearly aware that Marilyn was unstable. The star reportedly had a bizarre upbringing by a schizophrenic mother and was in and out of foster homes and orphanages as a child. Her intense beauty and sexuality often attracted the unwelcome attentions of predatory men, which does not lead to later adult stability.
Marilyn’s roller coaster ride of emotional highs and lows, extreme melancholy and previous attempts at self-harm laid the groundwork for what followed. It surprised no one, then, when the news came out about the suicide. NBC, CBS and ABC were all over the Monroe debacle. It was big.
From Canadian (Montreal, Quebec) magazine “Biographies”
The public initially accepted the suicide story but years later came those peddling tabloid fodder. They all cried murder, yet not one has offered definitive proof to date.
So, Marilyn Monroe, who died by whatever manner on August 4, 1962, became the larger-than-life legend that she has. Marilyn will likely be remembered as the most important sex symbol of our day.
From hit film “The Seven Year Itch”From April 7, 1952 “Life”
Photographer Philippe Halsman shot celebs jumping in 11/9/1959 “Life” edition
Before Mae West came along in the early sound era, sex symbol Mae Murray sashayed onto the silent screen in the late 1910s. Starting as a talented dancer, the beauty and the sensuality she projected to audiences drew the attention of dancer Vernon Castle, with whom she first appeared and later, Florenz Ziegfeld, who featured her in his legendary Ziegfeld Follies.
Mae Murray was born Marie Adrienne Koenig on May 10, 1885, in New York City, and not the city of Portsmouth, Virginia as she often stated. She died in Los Angeles on March 23, 1965.
Mae Murray, early in her career, came under the tutelage of director Robert Z. Leonard, whom she eventually married. Third husband Leonard carefully crafted the sensuous persona she projected. It has been written that the close-up photographed through a layer of gauze was created specifically for Mae Murray by Robert Z. Leonard. That same technique was later used by French Impressionist directors like Abel Gance, Germaine Dulac and Marcel L’Herbier.
“Princess Virtue,” “A Mormon Maid,” “The Delicious Little Devil,” “Mademoiselle Midnight,” and “Circe the Enchantress” are but a few of the Leonard films that starred Mae Murray in which she was able to showcase her many charms, and for which theatre goers had an eager appetite. Eventually Murray and Leonard divorced.
Early studio stillWW1 pose w/husband Robert Z. Leonard
During the silent film era, some publicity-seeking stars, notably Pola Negri and Gloria Swanson, opted to marry European royalty, and thus gain a title. Not to be outdone, in 1926, Mae Murray married one of the questionable Mdivanis of Georgia – the country of Georgia that is, not the U.S. state.
Regrettably, Prince David Mdivani of Georgia became the manager of his Princess, thus signaling the beginning of the end of her career. He persuaded her to leave MGM Studios, thus offending the powerful Louis B. Mayer, who had her blacklisted. Mdivani also managed to squander the millions of dollars Mae had earned through her successful starring roles. An attempt at transitioning to sound roles with her 1930 remake of “Peacock Alley” proved futile.
Mae’s “Royal Wedding” featuring Matron of Honor, Pola Negri & Best Man, Valentino
Mae Murray did not go down in defeat, however. Before this dramatic fall from grace, she had been cast in the leading role of Erich von Stroheim’s 1925 film, “The Merry Widow.” The film turned out to be the jewel in her crown. Yet it was no longer 1925, it was now 1930 and sound was here to stay! Mae Murray had lost favor with the Hollywood moguls, with the public at large, and thus began Mae’s retreat into her own world of make-believe.
1925: Mae Murray (1889 – 1965) stars as dancer Sally O’Hara in the film ‘The Merry Widow’, directed by Erich Von Stroheim for MGM.
w/von Stroheim & John GilbertMae toured far & wide doing the Merry Widow waltz made famous with Gilbert
Mae Murray’s penchant for living in a fairytale world only grew worse with age, and she eventually morphed into a Norma Desmond-like character. Many believe the inspiration for Billy Wilder’s famous 1950 film “Sunset Boulevard” was Mae Murray’s overly extravagant sense of self-worth and her steadfast refusal to accept that she was no longer a star.
The 1959 biography of Mae Murray called “The Self Enchanted,” written by Jane Ardmore, is the source for many of the photographs featured here. Unfortunately, a lot of the material Miss Ardmore cites was provided by Mae Murray. There is no mention of her childhood growing up in New York City, the daughter of an alcoholic father. Additionally, the book simply leaves blank a 20-year period from the 1930s through 1959, when the book was released. A much better source of information is from her second biographer, Michael Ankerich, who authored “Mae Murray: the Girl with the Bee-Stung Lips.”
w/Jason Robards Sr. in “Love at First Sight”w/Brian Donlevy in stage play “Milky Way”
Mae posed for a magazine, having designed a fashion line to be named for her
I urge you to search out on YouTube the 1950 video “Mae Murray Speaks on Heart Throbs of Yesterday” as well as one of the many Mae Murray films that are posted. If you can find a copy of “The Merry Widow,” it is a must-see film. Currently, TGZ Classic Movies has this film posted on YouTube. There is also a 3-part radio interview with Mae Murray from 1960, which is worth listening to. I am listing a Wikipedia link to a February 24, 1964 Ottowa Citizen newspaper article, which reported that the former star was found wandering in a state of confusion in St. Louis, Missouri, mistakenly believing she was on her way to New York.
Yes, Mae Murray had hit rock bottom, wandering hither and yon in a state of delusion.
The dancing, frolicking sex symbol who danced with Vernon Castle, starred in the Ziegfeld Follies, went on to be a major silent screen idol, Mae Murray…who had all the right curves in all the right places…the girl with the bee-stung lips…Once at the top of the world, her millions had been squandered, and Mae Murray died in obscurity.
Young ingenue, Mae MurrayMae in “The French Doll”
From the 1931 sound offering, “Bachelor Apartment.” Mae’s star had waned by now.
The life of John Gilbert ended tragically on January 9, 1936 at the young age of 38. Gilbert’s final performance involved no acting at all. It was that of a dying man clutching at his chest, writhing in pain, and falling to the floor for his last gasps of air. What must those last moments have been like for someone who had been at the top of the world, only to become one of the casualties of the nemesis feared most by silent actors…THE MICROPHONE!
John Gilbert’s complete biography can be found on Wikipedia, an excellent source of information. Informative as well as convenient, Wikipedia always has the most up-to-date information on a variety of subjects. I wouldn’t be without it when researching the old Hollywood stars.
John Gilbert was a longtime friend of comedienne Marion Davies who is probably best remembered as the decades-long love interest of newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst. In Davies’ posthumous memoir, “The Times We Had,” she spoke of Gilbert’s feelings for Lillian Gish with whom he’d been paired for the 1926 MGM film, La Bohème.”
w/Renée Adorée in “The Big Parade”w/Lillian Gish in “La Bohème”
Davies said, “Jack Gilbert would stay downstairs with a bunch of violets in his hand. He might as well have waited for the sun to come out at night, because she was dodging him. They were making ‘La Bohème’ and he was madly in love with her. Jack Gilbert was the sort of person who took the movies seriously. When he played in a love scene with somebody, he fell in love with her. So he’d be down there, standing with a bunch of violets, waiting for Lillian. But she was only there for the one picture. She only did that one picture, and she paid no attention to Jack Gilbert with his violets – none whatsoever.”
Later in her memoir, she references Greta Garbo, who co-starred with John Gilbert in several films, notably 1926’s “Flesh and the Devil,” where the two created a romantic sensation. Davies wrote, “I felt awfully sorry for Jack Gilbert. He was in love with Greta Garbo, and she would have no part of him at all. That was why he was blue. He was very much the artist type, with flashing black eyes and nervous, emotional moods. Those writers didn’t understand it. They were just watching and pushing him. And imagine the emotions going on inside him.”
w/Greta Garbo in “Flesh and the Devil”
Those emotions must have eventually overwhelmed him, for gossip columnist Louella Parsons wrote in her 1944 memoir “The Gay Illiterate” that, “John Gilbert landed in jail on a charge of disturbing the peace after Greta Garbo got as far as the courthouse – and then refused to marry him.”
Parsons reported exactly how Gilbert’s career was ruined by sound pictures. “John Gilbert and Greta Garbo, in such silent pictures as ‘Flesh and the Devil,’ had become the great lovers of the movies. In one fell swoop – to be exact, a dreadful movie called ‘His Glorious Night’ – Jack was ruined. It has been said, and is now accepted almost as legend, that the great Gilbert had a falsetto voice that ill became his manly physique and that audiences tittered when he spoke.”
Louella Parsons went on to say, “While Jack’s voice wasn’t so deep as the ocean, it was a thoroughly normal speaking voice. But in those days there was little ‘mixing’ or regulation of sound. If the microphone was pitched along the leading lady’s favorite key the hero sounded ‘way up there’ with her, too.”
w/Mae Murray in “The Merry Widow”Eric von Stroheim’s 1925 masterpiece, “The Merry Widow”
One part of the Marion Davies memoir really showed how troubled John Gilbert really was. Davies wrote of Gilbert’s frequent mood swings and stated, “One night at the beach we had gotten tired of sitting around the swimming pool and had gone out on the sand. There were thirty or forty of us. There was a group of writers around Jack, and I could hear an argument. I heard Jack say, ‘I’m going to commit suicide.’ And they said, ‘Dare you to.’ Well, that was not the thing to say to a man who was in that mood, but they were teasing him. They said, ‘Prove it. You’ve talked about suicide so much, prove it to us. If you’ve got the guts to do it, show us.’ And Jack said, ‘All right, I will.’”
w/Norma Shearer & Lon Chaney, Sr.
“While everyone was chattering away, he went out and walked into the waves. And he kept on walking until I thought, This is not funny. I said, ‘Somebody stop him.’ But they said, ‘Let him alone. He’ll stop himself. Just watch him. He won’t do it.’ They thought it was a big joke. Maybe their voices carried across. Whatever, he suddenly threw himself down, and then he came wading in and went down on the sand. He burst into sobs and beat the sand and cried his heart out. He couldn’t do it; he had been challenged and he couldn’t do it.”
Ultimately, John Gilbert got his wish. On January 9, 1936 after a massive heart attack, aggravated by chronic alcoholism, he took a final curtain call.
March, 1960 “Modern Screen” article by columnist, Earl Wilson
In her 1962 memoir, “The Whole Truth and Nothing But,” Hollywood gossip columnist, Hedda Hopper, wrote of Liz Taylor’s “BUtterfield 8” Oscar in the following manner, “She won her Academy Award not for Butterfield 8 but for nearly dying. And her studio joined in by putting on a terrific public relations campaign against Debbie – with planted stories in fan magazines and loaded interviews for the newspapers – to clinch sympathy for Liz.”
Eddie Fisher and Elizabeth Taylor
The aging columnist, who loved judging all Hollywood, was of course referring to the love triangle concerning Elizabeth Taylor, actress Debbie Reynolds and Reynolds’ onetime husband, baritone Eddie Fisher. In 1958, Taylor began a love affair with Fisher, at the time married to actress Reynolds, during the filming of “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.” Eddie Fisher later left Debbie Reynolds to wed Liz.
Hedda Hopper, chief competition for Hearst columnist, Louella Parsons
The public became either decidedly for or against Taylor – either content to accept that all’s fair in love and war, or the opposite view of Liz as predatory homewrecker.
Elizabeth Taylor had originally catapulted to stardom at the young age of 12 in the 1944 film, “National Velvet.” Taylor blossomed into a lovely, sensual young woman as the world watched and was often publicized as the most beautiful woman in the world. When her third husband, director Michael Todd, was suddenly killed in a plane crash on March 22, 1958, there was an outpouring of public sympathy for Liz.
w/Mike Todd & Lizaw/one of Michael Wilding’s sons
Then came the Reynolds-Fisher-Taylor romance scandal, turning many sharply against her. All ill feelings were quickly forgotten though, after Liz’s near date with death from pneumonia two years later, just prior to the Academy Awards. Nominated for best actress in the 1960 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film “BUtterfield 8,” Liz garnered the coveted award many felt was undeserved. It certainly hadn’t hurt Taylor (or M-G-M) that she’d languished for weeks in an intensive care unit close to death just before the Oscars that year.
Still frail from her recent illness, Elizabeth Taylor was helped to the stage by Eddie Fisher, who’d co-starred with her in “BUtterfield 8.” He’d recently divorced Debbie Reynolds to be at Liz’s side, making him Taylor’s fourth husband to date.
As Helen of Troy in “Doctor Faustus”
To decide for yourself if Elizabeth Taylor’s 1961 Oscar was really a “sympathy award,” check out her competition that year: Shirley MacLaine for “The Apartment” – a satirical look at office politics; Melina Mercouri for “Never on Sunday,” the story of a Greek prostitute; Greer Garson for “Sunrise at Campobello,” a dramatization of former president Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s battle with polio; and Deborah Kerr for “The Sundowners,” a film about life in the Australian outback.
Jayne Mansfield was amply suited for promo during the 1950s
Jayne Mansfield, popular sex symbol of the 50s met future husband, Mickey Hargitay, a bodybuilder on stage one evening at Mae West’s popular Las Vegas revue featuring musclemen. Mansfield and Hargitay enjoyed a whirlwind romance, married, then later divorced yet the couple remained close friends throughout the remainder of Mansfield’s short life, which ended on a lonely Louisiana highway the night of June 29, 1967.
Mickey Hargitay, Hungarian bodybuilder, with Jayne Mansfield
In video footage posted on YouTube, Mickey Hargitay wistfully recalled his visit to a mortuary containing the remains of his ex-wife, Jayne Mansfield, shortly after her tragic automobile accident which killed three people. Hargitay was visibly disturbed when reliving the moment, was overcome with emotion, and struggling for the words to explain what he’d found, “I saw her the last time…it wasn’t really her anymore, you know, soul was gone, spirit was gone…it was just a machine, it wasn’t her…”
Hargitay had met Jayne Mansfield while performing at Mae West’s renowned 1950’s nightclub revue which broke Las Vegas box office records. In Mae’s typical Westian style, a collection of musclemen would cavort about the sexagenarian star, while flexing their biceps and chest muscles. It was all carefully orchestrated by the aging West to create the illusion that she was just as luscious and desirable as ever, as the men dutifully paid her homage by lustfully ogling her. West would then sing a few songs, knock off a few of her double-entendre one-liners and sashay about the stage, looking as voluptuous as a sex symbol in her mid-60s could.
Mae West’s 1950s Las Vegas act w/entourage of bodybuilders
While the bodybuilders were little more than props for West’s increasingly inflated ego, Mae’s exaggerated sense-of-self unwisely entertained the notion that Mickey Hargitay was perhaps interested in something more, namely the incomparable Mae West. Yet Hargitay happened to be looking in another direction that evening, and the object of his attention was Miss Jayne Mansfield.
In West’s inimitable egomaniacal and narcissistic manner, Mae quickly turned the page by arranging publicity about a few musclemen in her show that were battling for the elderly star’s affections, reportedly coming to blows in the process.
Mae West circa 1933 in her younger years
West was then left with her successful show minus Mickey Hargitay, and had only to reap the enormous financial rewards, not to mention several choice musclemen, in particular a bodybuilder named Chester Rybinski (aka Paul Novak). Novak, smitten with Mae West, doted on the aging star for over 26 years until her death in 1980.
Sex symbol Jayne Mansfield, some 40 years younger than West, and Hungarian bodybuilder Mickey Hargitay were soon christened “couple of the hour” by the American press, quickly married, and left the aging Mae West far, far behind. The two likely never looked back…
What motivated Carole Landis, a lovely and successful young actress, to end her life with an overdose of sleeping pills on the evening of July 4, 1948?
June 7, 1940 “Life” magazine feature, “Carole Landis Does Not Want to be ‘Ping Girl'”
CAROLE’S EARLY LIFE
Carole Landis was born Frances Ridste on January 2, 1919, in Fairchild, Wisconsin. She often reported her birthdate as January 1st because she was obsessed with holidays and tried to align important dates in her life with them, as one notes from the date of her suicide.
At the age of four, her family moved to San Bernardino, California, where her twice-divorced mother attempted to raise Carole and her siblings alone. Their family suffered a travesty on July 15, 1925, when Carole’s brother, 11-year-old Lewis was killed by an accidental gunshot wound. It was the family’s second tragedy since another son had died in 1917 by drowning, in a freak home accident where he had fallen into a laundry tub containing scalding water.
Stage-struck Carole eventually dropped out of high school at 15 to embark on a show business career. Considered “precocious” for her age, a euphemism at the time for being exceptionally well-developed, Landis set out for San Francisco, where she performed at the Royal Hawaiian nightclub, dancing the hula. After a few years Landis moved south and appeared briefly at the Rio del Mar Country Club in Santa Cruz, before heading to Hollywood in 1937. There, the natural brunette became a blonde, adopted the first name of actress, Carole Lombard, and reportedly chose the surname Landis from a phone directory. She waited for her big chance…and it eventually came.
June 7, 1940 “Life” magazineJune 7, 1940 “Life” magazine
“Screenland” magazine, September, 1943 edition with Carole on the cover
CAROLE MAKES IT BIG IN HOLLYWOOD
After three discouraging years of mediocre parts, Carole Landis got her big break in 1940 at the Hal Roach Studios when she was cast as the female lead in “One Million Years B.C.” She dominated the screen at every turn in a risqué cave-girl outfit, with co-star, male heartthrob, Victor Mature. The film was a hit and Carole was finally a star.
Carole Landis was promoted as the “Ping Girl,” hearkening back to the 1920s when Clara Bow was billed as the “It Girl,” “It” being the equivalent of “sex appeal.” Why the term, “ping?” The answer can be found in the June 17, 1940, edition of “Life” magazine where we read that Carole Landis was “the Ping Girl of America – because she makes you purr.”
Landis biographer Eric Gans wrote that “ping” was the inside Hollywood reference to the excited male member, namely, an erection, something not generally known to readers of “Life.” Landis disapproved of her studio’s “Ping Girl” marketing approach, but was clearly ignored, for the February 1, 1943, edition of “Life,” has only more of the same. Their feature “‘Ping Girl’ Weds Eagle,” celebrated Carole Landis’ third marriage to Air Force Captain Thomas Wallace with numerous lavish photographs.
By the mid-forties, Carole Landis was firmly entrenched in the 20th Century Fox roster of reliable and sexy “B actresses” but never quite seemed to make the transition to “A films,” surely a source of frustration for her. She enjoyed a not-so-flattering status in the Hollywood hierarchy at the time and an associate of Darryl F. Zanuck’s at 20th Century Fox, Milton Sperling, disparagingly referred to Carole Landis simply as their “studio hooker.”
Probably the critical event resulting in her demise occurred during the summer of 1947, when Landis had the misfortune to meet and fall in love with British actor Rex Harrison, at that time married to German actress Lilli Palmer. At some point, their romance went sour when Harrison repeatedly ignored Landis’ attempts to get him to leave his wife, so he could marry her.
Landis biographer Gans reported a confrontation between Carole Landis and Lilli Palmer at a July 1947 party given by director John Huston and wife, Evelyn Keyes. According to Keyes, Carole Landis reached into Lilli Palmer’s dress and pulled out her “falsies” which many women wore at the time to create the illusion that they were buxom. What motivated Landis to behave like that – too much alcohol, jealousy, or both? By all accounts, Carole Landis was a kind and caring person. Perhaps she was mean and vindictive underneath the Landis façade? The question may never be answered.
From June 29, 1943 “Look” magazine story on CaroleJuly, 1947 “Esquire” magazineJan. 3, 1948 British film publication
In 1945, Landis, who’d turned to the stage, befriended Jacqueline Susann, who later became a bestselling author. Jacqueline Susann’s biographer, Barbara Seaman, reported that the writer revealed that Carole “was in love with her” and that the two had a Lesbian relationship during the Broadway musical, “A Lady Says Yes.” Susann later based the suicidal Jennifer North character in her 1967 book, “Valley of the Dolls,” on her memory of Carole Landis.
Rex Harrison attended a July 4th dinner at Carole’s home but left early to meet a colleague. Landis, who’d been pressuring him to leave his wife, realized she’d failed. Overwhelmed and futile, Carole Landis took an overdose of sleeping pills that night. She’d penned a suicide note to her mother and allegedly, a second to Rex Harrison. There were also rumors of a Landis personal diary and cache of love letters, all of which mysteriously disappeared, along with Harrison’s note.
During a coroner’s investigation, Rex Harrison stated that Carole Landis had been nothing more than a friend to him. It was the era when a scandal could ruin a career and he was instinctively protecting himself.
Thus ended the life of young Carole Landis. Her choice of men had been deadly, so Carole Landis decided she’d had enough. She left our world, early morning, July 5, 1948, hours after making that fateful decision to take a fatal overdose.
Romance can take an ugly turn, and the results can be deadly. Just take a beautiful actress like Lana Turner, her sexy underworld boyfriend, Johnny Stompanato, toss in the actress’ teenage daughter…and it all adds up to a high-profile murder trial! What reallyhappened though that tragic evening of April 4th, 1958?
Ironically, the evening of April 4, 1958, was Good Friday, but it was not a very good one for Lana Turner, her 14-year-old daughter Cheryl, as well as a dubious character known as Johnny Stompanato who ended up stabbed to death. Stompanato was a notorious gigolo who loved spending the money of wealthy women and who also had shady connections with the underworld, like his former employer, gangster Mickey Cohen.
WITH MOTHER & FATHER, STEPHEN CRANELANA WITH YOUNG CHERYL CRANE
A brief background on Lana Turner – she was born Julia Jean Turner in Wallace, Idaho on February 8th either in 1920 or 21 depending on which source is used. At the age of six, her family relocated to San Francisco, after which her parents separated. Tragically, Lana’s father was found murdered in San Francisco on December 14, 1930, after a gambling match and his murder was never solved. In 1936, Lana and her mother moved to Los Angeles, where Lana’s voluptuous figure attracted the attention of a Hollywood talent scout, not at Schwab’s Drugstore as the often-told story goes, but at another popular spot.
Turner’s film career was then off to a start at the Warner Brothers studio, where director Mervyn LeRoy, her mentor, gave her the stage name, Lana Turner. LeRoy gave her a small part in his 1937 film called “They Won’t Forget,” and peopledidn’t forget because Lana wore the tight sweater which Mervyn LeRoy had wisely chosen for her in a truly unforgettable fashion. From that point on, she was known to moviegoers everywhere as “The Sweater Girl.” Both Turner and director LeRoy eventually moved to MGM, where Lana went on to become a top star – much to the surprise of Jack Warner who had foolishly let her slip away.
Lana Turner in “They Won’t Forget” – the Sweater Girl was born
Lana Turner, by most accounts, was an avid partier, as well as a passionate lover. Perhaps the culmination of Lana’s 7 husbands and many affairs, was her short-lived relationship from 1957 to 58 with the off-color character, Johnny Stompanato, who once worked for Mickey Cohen. Their relationship climaxed with Stompanato’s death on April 4, 1958, at the hands of Lana’s young daughter, Cheryl Crane, who later went on trial for murder.
In a court, it was established that Cheryl had witnessed Stompanato beating and threatening her mother on several occasions. During the last of the couple’s violent arguments, the 14-year-old had burst into their bedroom and then drove a kitchen knife directly into Johnny Stompanato’s gut, causing an almost instantaneous death. “I swear it was so fast,” Lana said on the witness stand, “I – I truthfully thought she had hit him in the stomach.”
Teenage Cheryl with Johnny Stompanato
The murder trial received extensive coverage, and Mickey Cohen himself had somehow acquired Lana’s lurid love letters to Stompanato and subsequently released them to the press. It was a made-to-order scandal, and the media relished every moment. The jury ultimately acquitted Cheryl on the grounds that it was a justifiable homicide. After all, it was noted, she was only protecting her mother’s life from a known thug with a well-documented history of violence.
A quick look at some press from that era – from the July 1958 edition of the Canadian magazine, “Liberty.” In an article entitled “Tragic lives and loves of Lana Turner,” Bob Willett told of an unexpected outburst at the coroner’s hearing. Willett wrote, “But as in a movie melodrama, a man in the courtroom leaped up to scream: ‘This whole thing’s a pack of lies. Johnny Stompanato was my friend. The daughter was in love with him, and he was killed because of jealousy between mother and daughter! Johnny Stompanato was a gentleman!’” With those words, the unnamed man fled from the courtroom.
Young Cheryl Crane in custody after the Good Friday murder
The knife in question is held up while Lana nervously looks on
And from the March 1960 “Modern Screen” magazine, gossip queen Louella Parsons, darling of the Hearst newspaper chain, made it perfectly clear that Lana Turner had moved on from the Stompanato affair, when she quoted Turner saying, “You know perhaps better than anyone that I used to live as well as work in a make-believe world. I didn’t particularly want to face reality. My trouble was that I existed in a sort of fairyland, believing that everything and everyone was good and never realizing that this beautiful dream world was surrounded by a deep and dreadful jungle.”
Eventually, a large amount of positive upbeat press drowned out all the negative publicity that Lana Turner had received, and she went on to even greater film success, as with 1959’s “Imitation of Life.” Sadly, she passed away on June 29, 1995, due to complications from cancer.
The love letters that were not easy to explain (as well as the photograph, saying “For Juanito, my love and my life- Lanita”
Who was the real Joan Crawford – larger than life superstar actress, evil witch of a mother, or maybe just a fascinating study in human psychology?
I located a rare copy of “Redbook” magazine from October 1960, featuring “The Revolt of Joan Crawford’s Daughter.” Reporter Morton Golding thoroughly documents the strained relationship of mother and eldest adopted daughter through interviews with Joan and Christina Crawford, as well as the people closest to them.
From July 1931 “Screenland” magazine“Our Dancing Daughters” MGM 1928
From November 1937 “Movie Mirror” magazine
Communication at the dysfunctional Crawford home had broken down to the point that Joan and Christina, as well as adopted son Christopher, were barely speaking, and the actress had disinherited the two older children, leaving her estate to younger adopted twins Cathy and Cynthia. Christina Crawford ultimately had the last word when she retaliated with her vindictive memoir “Mommie Dearest,” published after Joan Crawford’s death on May 10th, 1977, when the actress was no longer able to defend herself.
In 1981, the Paramount film of the same name as the book was released and the Joan Crawford brouhaha increased exponentially. After all, Paramount had just weighed in on the matter, so people assumed the book’s allegations must be true! “Mommie Dearest,” that horrible phrase which Crawford purportedly insisted her children use to address her, became the basis for an endless series of jokes. Wire coat hanger references began popping up everywhere, inspired by the account in the book where Joan screamed at frightened little Christina to never use such hangers for her frilly dresses. Everyone jumped onto the “Mommie Dearest” bandwagon and there was even a cocktail lounge in my hometown of Indianapolis that offered the “Joan Crawford Cocktail” which sported a wire coat hanger swizzle stick.
Schafer pix “They All Kissed the Bride” Columbia ’42Hurrell pix from Jan. ’33 “Photoplay” magazine Adrian design from Jan. 1937 “Photoplay” magazine
From January 1937 “Photoplay” magazine (designer Adrian did Crawford’s wardrobe)
Author Morton Golding asks at the beginning of his 1960 article “Where did their relationship go wrong?” He continues “For the conflict between Joan Crawford and Christina has reached such intensity that when interviewed, mother and daughter often give completely contradictory versions of the same events.” The writer goes on to cite some examples, such as when daughter Christina recalled the family’s three-month trip through Europe after Joan’s marriage to businessman Alfred Steele as a “wonderful experience.” Golding then quotes Joan Crawford describing the same period as a “miserable time.” He writes on, “Christina, she felt, intruded on her privacy with her new husband and allowed them no time together. Mr. Steele too, the actress says, was not enchanted by the continual presence of a 16-year-old girl.”
Morton Golding goes on to relate the unfortunate experience the family had at Chadwick School, south of Los Angeles in Rolling Hills, California where the children of many celebrities attended. Christina recalled that she was thriving at the school, adored Joseph and Margaret Chadwick, the couple that ran the school, and that she was abruptly withdrawn by her mother and sent to the Flintridge Sacred Heart Catholic Academy with no warning.
Joan Crawford, Golding writes, maintained that Christina had been expelled from Chadwick School for a reason she could not disclose, that the Chadwicks had nothing but trouble with her daughter, and that no other school would accept her, save the Flintridge Sacred Heart Catholic Academy.
Strangely, when Morton Golding attempted to verify with the Chadwicks what had really happened, he received a telegram which read “From experience with Christina’s mother, we consider it unwise to involve Chadwick by making any public comment. Very sorry. Margaret Lee Chadwick.”
July 1931 “Screenland” perfume adJanuary 1934 “Photoplay”
From July 1935 “Photoplay” magazine
After Christina left Chadwick School, her mother forbade her to contact Joseph and Margaret Chadwick, however Christina did not heed the warning and in February 1956 went to visit the couple. Unfortunately for her, Joan Crawford found out and this resulted in Christina’s “punishment.” Not one member of her family was present at her high school graduation from the Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy in June 1956. “I was the only person in my entire graduating class with no relative at the graduation,” Christina stated. Joan Crawford’s response to this was, “She wanted to be on her own, so I let her.”
Ultimately, one line from “The Revolt of Joan Crawford’s Daughter” stood out in my mind. Morton Golding quotes Joan Crawford as saying of her relationship with eldest adopted daughter, Christina, “It has been 18 years of disappointment.”
What kind of a mother says that about a child? Is it no wonder that same child opted to strike back after her mother died, when she thought it could do the most damage?
Everyone must form their own opinion from this article, as I certainly have. I personally feel that Joan Crawford didn’t have to be the perfectparent, though, because she was the perfect actress, who was not only a great silent star, but also hit the top in the world of talkies. That’s no easy task!
“Sudden Fear” RKO 1952“Humoresque” Warner Bros. 1946
Photo by Engstead from “Straight-Jacket” Columbia 1964
On June 7, 1937, at the young age of 26, 1930’s sex symbol Jean Harlow died suddenly. There’s an often-heard version of the story blaming Harlow’s mother, whose Christian Science religion it’s said prevented daughter Jean from seeking the medical treatment which might have saved her.
Christian Science, the religion developed by spiritualist & medium Mary Baker Eddy, discourages the use of medicine, physicians, and hospitals. Its followers believe that Eddy’s 1875 book called “Science and Health,” provides the necessary information to treat all sicknesses including the uremic poisoning which took the life of lovely young Jean Harlow.
Yet Christian Science apparently played no part in what happened, for Jean Harlow was under a doctor’s care when she died at Los Angeles Good Samaritan Hospital, just before noon, June 7, 1937. It’s much more likely that catching scarlet fever at age fifteen as well as frequent bouts with influenza were responsible for Harlow’s tragic, untimely death.
In 1930, just seven years before, Jean Harlow with her famous platinum blonde locks had burst onto the Hollywood scene in the Howard Hughes film “Hell’s Angels.” The 1930 film can be seen in its entirety on YouTube and is where Harlow made famous her sultry blonde bombshell persona, that wisecracking, sassy “bad girl” next door.
There was another 1930’s blonde bombshell on the horizon, namely Mae West, but Jean Harlow had a different style. Mae West was clearly an exaggeration of sex, bombastically sashaying about the screen, hurling out sexy dialogue. Jean Harlow, by comparison, was a more subtle understatement, a sexual poetry in motion, undulating from scene to scene in slinky, revealing gowns which showed off her copious assets. Filmgoers’ eyes were invariably glued to the screen, watching breathlessly as Harlow masterfully fashioned every scene to fit her signature titillating style.
with actors Clark Gable and Richard Barthelmess
With her lush platinum hair, Jean Harlow was radiantly beautiful, her acting stellar, her comedic timing impeccable! An adoring public eagerly lapped up the bad girl image she created, and Harlow was featured in a succession of starring roles with actors like Clark Gable, William Powell, and Spencer Tracy.
Sometime during 1930, Jean Harlow met German-born director & producer Paul Bern, who became instrumental in guiding her career. They announced their engagement in June 1932 and on July 2nd that same year, they were married. Soon after, on September 5th, Paul Bern unexpectedly committed suicide. He left a note, though its authenticity is debated by some.
The suicide note said – “Dearest Dear, Unfortuately [sic] this is the only way to make good the frightful wrong I have done to you and to wipe out my abject humiliation, I Love [sic] you. Paul You understand that last night was only a comedy”
HARLOW WITH HUSBAND PAUL BERN
WITH JAMES CAGNEYWITH HARPO MARX
With the scandal-ridden decade of the 1920s still fresh in everyone’s mind, although the investigative authorities accepted that Harlow’s husband had killed himself, other theories quickly emerged. Paul Bern’s studio, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, it was suggested, covered up what was really a murder, wanting to avoid the ruin of leading star Jean Harlow’s successful career. Some thought that the possible assailant was none other than Paul Bern’s common-law wife, Dorothy Millette, who just happened to be found dead a few days after Bern, also from suicide. Hollywood folklore has it that Paul Bern suffered from impotence, and it was to this unfortunate malady the suicide note pointed with his phrase ‘my abject humiliation.’
HARLOW’S HAIR WAS THE RESULT OF BLEACH, AMMONIA & LUX SOAP FLAKES!!!
A coroner’s inquest was held, and friends of the deceased claimed that he often talked of suicide. According to an SF GATE article by reporter Katie Dowd, Paul Bern’s physician, Dr. Howard P. Jones, testified that he knew the reason for his suicide but would not divulge it to the public. This naturally led some to speculate that perhaps there was an illness involved and that his suicide had been planned. After all, that might explain why Jean Harlow had spent that very night with her mother.
WITH LIONEL BARRYMOREW/GLORIA SWANSON, MARION DAVIES & CONSTANCE BENNETT
In her 1944 book, “The Gay Illiterate,” columnist Louella Parsons likely provided the answer. She was one of the original gossip queens of Hollywood even pre-dating darling Hedda Hopper of hideous hat fame. Parsons knew Jean Harlow well and wrote of her intense love for actor William Powell, whom she wished to marry. Husband Paul Bern might have found out about it and became even more depressed. To further complicate matters, though not commonly known at the time, Bern had never divorced his first wife, Dorothy Millette. It all might have become just too much for him to bear!
ACTOR WILLIAM POWELL, WITH WHOM JEAN HARLOW WAS IN LOVE
Harlow wisely kept quiet during the inquest affair. Her acting career did not fall victim to any scandal and from Bern’s death on July 5, 1932, until her own on June 7, 1937, she achieved her greatest popularity. Following Jean Harlow’s death, Louis B. Mayer toyed with the idea of recasting a different actress to finish her final film, “Saratoga.” Loyal fans felt otherwise, and a flood of letters directed to Mayer at MGM changed his mind. Ultimately, through the clever use of doubles and rewriting of scenes, the remaining footage was shot, the film released, and 1937’s “Saratoga” became the highest grossing film of 1930s sex symbol Jean Harlow’s career.
WITH CLARK GABLE
SYLVIA WAS A BEAUTY CONSULTANT IN HOLLYWOOD DURING THAT ERA
Precious little has generated the intense scrutiny like the murder of silent screen director William Desmond Taylor over one century ago in Hollywood, on February 1st, 1922. Fate reared its ugly head that evening and delivered a lethal blow to director Taylor by an “unknown assailant,” so we are told.
What many people don’t realize is that in 1964 there was a deathbed confession to Taylor’s murder by silent screen actress Margaret Gibson, who also went by the stage name of Patricia Palmer. She had worked closely with Taylor during the early silent era.
Margaret Gibson, aka Patricia Palmer
William Desmond Taylor
Clearly, the two were romantically entangled at one point, as had Taylor been with countless other young starlets. His reputation as a lothario was cemented in stone, as was his proclivity for dumping said actresses after tiring of them or should they end up “with child,” as was said back in the day. Taylor was infamous for such antics and had previously deserted his wife and young daughter in favor of greener pastures, showing little remorse. Oh, the wonderful world of men!
Margaret Gibson & Wm. Desmond Taylor in “The Kiss” 1914 Vitagraph
Yet some people never forget treachery, and Margaret Gibson was one such individual. She extracted her revenge on William Desmond Taylor February 1st, 1922, shooting and fatally wounding him. Decades later, on her deathbed, Margaret Gibson, recently converted to Roman Catholicism, felt contrition, and confessed. Her admission should not be taken lightly.
Miss Gibson suffered a fatal heart attack on October 21, 1964 and made the deathbed confession to a neighbor, after it was clear that there was not time for a Roman Catholic priest to get there to give the last rites. She freely admitted she was responsible for Taylor’s murder in 1922.
Gibson’s conscience, apparently clear, allowed the former actress to move on to the next world, however her neighbor felt compelled to relate what had transpired between them. Thus, the mystery that had weighed so heavily on people’s minds for decades was finally solved.
Charlotte ShelbyMary Miles Minter
The name often brought up in connection with this “unsolved” murder is everyone’s favorite punching bag, Charlotte Shelby, mother of actress Mary Miles Minter. Mrs. Shelby is frequently portrayed as the quintessentially evil stage mother who was so incredibly protective of her daughter that she would commit something as heinous as murder, knowing full well that it would lead to scandal and the ostracization of her daughter in Hollywood.
Unlikely at best, this writer says. Charlotte Shelby was much too savvy to fall victim to that ruse. She had just lived through the September 1921 Fatty Arbuckle scandal and knew exactly what would happen to her daughter should she rock the publicity boat with any off-color shenanigans. Incidentally, that is exactly what ensued – Mary Miles Minter’s career never rebounded and she died decades later in obscurity.
Mabel Normand
Occasionally, comedienne Mabel Normand, whose career was also ruined by the Taylor affair is brought up as a possible suspect since she was one of the last people to see the director alive the evening of January 31st. Normand’s connection with Taylor was ultimately determined to be nothing more than an innocuous friendship.
William Desmond Taylor’s cook and valet, Henry Peavey, is sometimes named as the person responsible for the murder, as is the man who held that same position in the Taylor household prior to Peavey, Edward F. Sands (aka Edward Fitzgerald Snyder, aka Edward Fitzwilliam Strathmore). Neither of these two men were ever found to be connected beyond a reasonable doubt to the Taylor’s death.
In my opinion, the William Desmond Taylor murder case has been solved. Not only was there a deathbed confession by Margaret Gibson, also known as Patricia Palmer, such confessions carry a great deal of weight in legal circles – ask any lawyer or judge.
