by Greg Merritt
Voir dire proved more difficult… “Woman, 11 Men in New Rappe Trial,” San Francisco Examiner, January 12, 1922.
The very definition of a reluctant witness … Blake testimony via “Miss Rappe’s Friend Is a Poor Witness,” San Francisco Chronicle, January 19, 1922.
A photo of her appeared… “Her Memory Gone,” photo, Providence News, January 26, 1922.
On cross-examination, McNab focused… “Attorneys for Film Star Confuse State’s Witnesses,” Pittsburgh Press, January 19, 1922.
Prevost was even less of an asset… Prevost testimony via “Arbuckle Girl ‘Hostile Witness,’” San Francisco Call and Post, January 19, 1922.
“The case against Roscoe … “ “Arbuckle Witness Fails Prosecutor,” New York Times, January 20, 1922.
Rumors that Brady would drop the case … “Lack of Memory Is Owned by Witness,” Evening Herald, January 20, 1922.
“The Roscoe Arbuckle manslaughter trial… “ “Second Arbuckle Show Falls Flat; Not So with Actor,” Milwaukee Journal, January 22, 1922.
When Heinrich returned… “Identifies Fingerprints as Made by Arbuckle and Girl,” Bakersfield Californian, January 23, 1922.
Warden Woolard, the Los Angeles Times reporter … “New Arbuckle Testimony,” Los Angeles Times, January 24, 1922.
the defense brought forth two experts … “Finger Prints Were ‘Faked’ Says Expert,” San Francisco Examiner, January 26, 1922.
she grew embroiled in a new legal subplot … “Refuses to Bar Story of Woman,” Bakersfield Californian, January 26, 1922.
New witnesses spoke of Rappe’s … “Arbuckle Case Defense May Close Today,” San Francisco Chronicle, January 27, 1922.
“That Roscoe (Fatty) Arbuckle will be acquitted… “ “Arbuckle’s Acquittal Is Freely Predicted,” Pittsburgh Press, January 27, 1922.
“excellence of health” … “Rappe Girl’s Health Stirs Controversy,” San Francisco Examiner, January 29, 1922.
a large story appeared … “Nero’s Orgies Rivaled on Coast Folk,” Border Cities Star (Windsor, Ontario), January 28, 1922.
U’Ren began the state’s closing argument… “Arbuckle Case to Jury Late Today,” Bakersfield Californian, February 1, 1922.
“Whatever you do is all right”… “Jury Quits for Night, 11 to 1 for Arbuckle,” Chicago Tribune, February 2, 1922.
“If the court please …” Ibid.
“This is the end…” Ibid.
William Desmond Taylor lay on his back … Body discovery and aftermath via Ed. C. King, “I Know Who Killed Desmond Taylor,” True Detective Mysteries, October and November 1930; Rick Geary, Famous Players: The Mysterious Death of William Desmond Taylor (New York: ComicsLit, 2009).
“nervous breakdown” … “Mabel Normand Better,” Variety, November 11, 1920.
running the banner headline … “Women Feature Film Murder,” San Francisco Chronicle, February 3, 1922; “Arbuckle Jury Still Out, 10 for Aquittal,” San Francisco Chronicle, February 3, 1922.
“Taylor was the best fellow …” “Taylor Best Man on Lot, Says Arbuckle,” San Francisco Bulletin, February 2, 1922.
a statement attributed to Arbuckle… “Fatty Philosophizes on Taylor Case,” Los Angeles Record, February 15, 1922.
In its front-page story … “Arbuckle Abandons Hope,” Los Angeles Times, February 3, 1922.
Deliberation was cut short … “Arbuckle Jury Still Debates,” St. Petersburg Times, February 3, 1922.
engaged to marry a vaudeville actor… “Arbuckle Witness Will Wed Thespian,” Telegraph-Herald (Dubuque, IA), February 3, 1922.
A buzz of shocked mutterings … “Comedian Will Be Tried Again, Brady Asserts,” San Francisco Chronicle, February 4, 1922.
“The jurors believed that the defense’s failure … “ “Arbuckle’s Story Not Believed: Jurors Tell Why They Decided,” San Francisco Examiner, February 4, 1922.
“The defense presented a very weak case …” Ibid.
“From the reading of Arbuckle’s testimony …” Ibid.
some creative accounting… “Comedian Will Be Tried Again.”
“Had the majority of the jury …” Ibid.
”In this life you’ve got to take a punch … “ “Will Retry Arbuckle,” Los Angeles Times, February 4, 1922.
17. Third Trial
a deposition from a “surprise witness” … “Arbuckle to Los Angeles,” Aurora Daily Star, February 8, 1922.
“A young woman thought by police … “ “Waited for Zeh Prevost,” New York Times, February 14, 1922.
after the questioning of fifty-one citizens … “12 in Jury Box for Retrial of Arbuckle,” San Francisco Examiner, March 16, 1922.
juror Edward Brown … “Juror Sworn to Try Fatty Under Fire,” San Francisco Examiner, March 21, 1922.
they delved into the health … Nat Schmulowitz, closing statement of third Arbuckle trial, in Classics of the Bar: Stories of the World’s Great Legal Trials and a Compilation of Forensic Masterpieces, vol. 8, ed. Alvin V. Sellers (Washington, DC: Washington Law Book, 1942), 56—58.
Blake couldn’t recall seeing… “Breaks Down on Stand,” Los Angeles Times, March 23, 1922.
Her telegram to Brady … San Francisco court records, People v. Arbuckle, quoted in Eric Dean Budnick, “Directed Verdict: The Roscoe ‘Fatty’ Arbuckle Trial Discourse” (PhD dissertation, Harvard University, 2000), 58.
Arbuckle hung his head … “Miss Rappe’s Death Fills Trial Record,” San Francisco Examiner, March 23, 1922.
“I don’t think I’ll answer … “ “Actor’s Trial Continues,” Los Angeles Times, March 25, 1922.
“I don’t see why … “ “Arbuckle Broke Now, He Declares,” Boston Daily Globe, March 26, 1922.
applying the word “shyster”… “Arbuckle Judge Roused,” Los Angeles Times, March 27, 1922.
Brady had a surprise final witness … Breig’s testimony via “Surprise Witness
Heard,” Los Angeles Times, March 28, 1922. It came to thirty-four dollars … Leo Friedman, closing statement of third Arbuckle trial, in Classics of the Bar, 119.
“trying to blacken …” “Declares Past of Arbuckle Demands Probe,” Vancouver Sun, March 27, 1922.
Chicago nurse Virginia Warren … “Past of Rappe Girl Bared by Chicago Nurse,” San Francisco Chronicle, March 31, 1922.
“I first saw Virginia Rappe …” “Arbuckle Defense Built in Chicago,” Milwaukee Sentinel, November 1, 1921.
Friedman treated her very name … Friedman, closing statement, 131.
“according to her own testimony …” Ibid., 109—10, 131.
he could speak to Norgaard’s morals … “Fresh Problem in Fatty Case,” Los Angeles Times, March 31, 1922.
a woman named Helen Whitehurst testified… “Virginia Rappe Tore Clothing Say Witnesses,” San Francisco Chronicle, April 1, 1922.
Fred Fishback could no longer recall… “Fishbach [sic] Loses Memory on Stand,” Telegraph-Herald (Dubuque, IA), April 2, 1922.
described as “less enthusiastic”… “Arbuckle Takes Stand,” Los Angeles Times, April 6, 1922.
Arbuckle retold the tale … Ibid; “Arbuckle on Stand, Fights Wordy Battle,” San Francisco Chronicle, April 6, 1922.
In its rebuttal, the state … “Deny Miss Rappe Ill,” Los Angeles Times, April 8, 1922.
In surrebuttal, the defense … “Fatty’s Case Near End,” Los Angeles Times, April 11, 1922.
“And that night Belshazzar … “ Milton U’Ren, closing statement of third Arbuckle trial, in Classics of the Bar, 13-33.
First, Nat Schmulowitz reiterated… Nat Schmulowitz, closing statement of third Arbuckle trial, in Classics of the Bar, 33-62.
the emotional speech … Gavin McNab, closing statement of third Arbuckle trial, in Classics of the Bar, 62-98.
Countering for the state… Leo Friedman, closing statement of third Arbuckle trial, in Classics of the Bar, 98-135.
The third jury left the courtroom … Details of Arbuckle’s acquittal via “Ju
ry Sets Film Artist Free in 2 ½ Minutes,” San Francisco Chronicle, April 13, 1922.
“Acquittal is not enough for Roscoe Arbuckle …” “Jurors Write Exoneration,” San Francisco Examiner, April 13, 1922.
“I am an American citizen …” “Jury Sets Film Artist Free.”
“This is the most solemn moment… “ Ibid.
“I am going to take a good rest…” “Remaining Arbuckle Charge Dismissed as Star Acquitted of Manslaughter by Jurors,” Bakersfield Californian, April 13, 1922.
“Our contract with Arbuckle … “ “To Release Fatty Film,” Los Angeles Times, April 13, 1922.
He pleaded guilty … “Drops Second Charge Against Arbuckle,” New York Times, April 13, 1922.
It was reported that his defense … “Arbuckle Expense Costly,” New York Times, April 15, 1922.
“I do not wish to capitalize …” Ibid.
effectively banned from American theaters … “Ban Put on Arbuckle,” Los Angeles Times, April 19, 1922.
18. Hays
there have been movie censors … Information on local and state censorship boards via Lee Grieveson, Policing Cinema: Movies and Censorship in Early-Twentieth-Century America (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2004), 23.
National Board of Censorship of Motion Pictures … Edward de Grazia and Roger K. Newman, Banned Films: Movies, Censors and the First Amendment (New York: R.R. Bowker, 1982), 10-11.
issued a unanimous decision … Mutual Film Corporation v. Industrial Commission of Ohio, 236 US 230 (February 23, 1915).
filmmaker Robert Goldstein … “The Unluckiest Man in Movie History,” Slate, June 13, 2000, www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/chatterbox/2000/06/the_unluckiest_man_in_movie_history.html.
an example of how draconian … “Humanizing the Movies,” New York Times, January 18, 1922.
National Association of the Motion Picture Industry … De Grazia and Newman, Banned Films, 21-23.
“it was the only way to remedy … “ “Movie Censor Law Signed by Miller,” New York Times, May 15, 1921.
“I have listened with amazement…” “‘Fatty’ Made Issue in Censorship Row,” Los Angeles Examiner, September 15, 1921.
“Censorship of motion pictures is a menace … “ William Taylor, “The Nonsense of Censorship,” September 14, 1921, reprinted in Taylorology 88 (April 2000): www.public.asu.edu/~bruce/Taylor88.txt.
William Harrison Hays was born … Details of Hays’s early life via Thomas J. Wolfe, ed., A History of Sullivan County, Indiana (New York: Lewis, 1909), 1-3.
reportedly too frail… “Will Hays: The Moses Who Hopes to Lead the G.O.P. Out of the Woods,” Current Opinion, September 1919, 156-57.
who suffered from “lifelong frailty”… Will Hays Jr., Come Home with Me Now: The Untold Story of Movie Czar Will Hays by His Son (Indianapolis: Guild Press of Indiana, 1993), 3.
First, it is no part of the primary business … “Executive Changes Outlined by Hays,” New York Times, April 29, 1921.
second-class mail status to a socialist magazine … “Hays Removes Ban on the Liberator,” New York Times, May 26, 1921.
“the Judge Landis of movies”… “Will Hays to Quit Cabinet for Films; Harding Consents,” New York Times, January 15, 1922.
“As to censorship …” “No Politics,” American Cinematographer, April 1, 1922, 14.
“The public is tired of seeing…” “Pungent Hint from Experience,” Continent, March 30, 1922, 382.
“use your authority to intervene …” “Alliance Asks Hays to Stop Arbuckle Films,” Milwaukee Sentinel, April 16, 1922.
“With hundreds of thousands … “ Will H. Hays, The Memoirs of Will H. Hays (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1955), 360-61.
“No, Will, let the Association …” Ibid., 361.
“Even that early in the game …” Ibid.
against a Massachusetts referendum … Gregory D. Black, Hollywood Censored: Morality Codes, Catholics, and the Movies (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1996) 32-33.
claimed to reject 125 proposed movies … Ibid., 33.
until divorcing his wife in 1929 … “Movie Czar Granted Divorce,” Chicago Tribune, June 22, 1929.
the Motion Picture Production Code … Information on the formation of the Code and its principles via de Grazia and Newman, Banned Films, 32-34.
19. Exile: 1922-25
“Suddenly we all realized…” Minta Durfee, unpublished manuscript, 81, Minta Durfee Arbuckle Collection, Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, Beverly Hills, CA.
He was deeply in debt… Inside Stuff on Pictures, Variety, May 28, 1922.
he owed his trial attorneys … “Fatty Arbuckle Broke, Is Report,” Star Journal (Sandusky, OH), June 12, 1922.
“The question of the release… “ “Arbuckle Bows to Ruling of Film Dictator,” Los Angeles Times, April 23, 1922.
California Congress of Women and Parents … “Mother Clubs After Fight Vote Down Films,” San Francisco Call and Post, April 26, 1922.
San Francisco Federation of Women’s Clubs … “Arbuckle Film Condemned as Women End Meet,” San Francisco Call and Post, April 29, 1922.
Doris Deane, a minor actress … Picture Personalities, Oakland Tribune, March 5, 1922.
Ed Roberts, a former editor … Introduction, Taylorology 30 (June 1995): www.public.asu.edu/~ialong/Taylor30.txt.
ruled “too scurrilous”… “Bars ‘Sins of Hollywood,’” New York Times, May 24, 1922.
“To the boys and girls … “ Ed Roberts (“A Hollywood Newspaper Man”), The Sins of Hollywood: An Expose of Movie Vice (Los Angeles: Hollywood Publishing, 1922), reprinted in Taylorology 30 (June 1995): www.public.asu.edu/~ialong /Taylor30.txt.
“Rostrand, a famous comedian …” Ibid.
“Fatty Arbuckle says he is broke …” Editorial, Chehalis Bee-Nugget, June 23, 1922.
He wrote a short comedy script … “Arbuckle Writes Comedy for Buster,” Los Angeles Times, May 19, 1922.
Arbuckle was also set to direct … “Fatty Arbuckle Becomes Motion Picture Director,” Wichita Daily Times, June 3, 1922.
“You can be of real service …” “The Six ‘Fatty’ Arbuckle Vitaphones,” Griffithiana: Journal of Film History, October 1993, 55.
Senator Henry Lee Myers … Congressional Record 62, pt. 9 (June 14—29, 1922): 9657.
Minta Durfee left that colony … “Mrs. Arbuckle Leaves Again,” Los Angeles Times, July 1, 1922.
Al St. John later remembered … “Another Big ‘Speak’ Opens,” Youngstown Vindicator, December 15, 1932.
known as “Arbuckle parties”… Jefferson Williamson, The American Hotel: An Anecdotal History (New York: Knopf, 1930), 143.
“Once when we were both …” Screen Life in Hollywood, Sandusky Register, July 2, 1933.
“I need a rest… “ “Arbuckle Sets Sail From S.F. on World Tour,” Oakland Tribune, August 16, 1922.
after slipping down steps and cutting… “‘Fatty’ Arbuckle Has Infected Finger,” Oakland Tribune, September 2, 1922.
He said his time in the Orient… “‘Fatty’ Back from Trip to Orient,” Oakland Tribune, September 27, 1922.
“‘Fatty’ Arbuckle was a movie ‘goat’…” Editorial, Stevens Point Daily Journal, November 22, 1922.
reported that his index and middle fingers … “‘Fatty Loses Use of Finger After Injuries,” Oakland Tribune, October 31, 1922.
“handsome Walter”… Roberts, The Sins of Hollywood.
Hollywood’s worst-kept secret broke … “Wallace Reid Critically Ill, ‘Dope’ Blamed,” Chicago Tribune, December 16, 1922.
Will Hays visited Reid… “Hays Visits Sick Actor,” Los Angeles Times, December 20, 1922.
“Every man in the right way … “ “Storm Breaks on Arbuckle,” Los Angeles Times, December 21, 1922.
“It was not my wish …” Will H. Hays, The Memoirs of Will H. Hays (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1955), 360-61.
“cancelled all showings…”
“Ban Put on Arbuckle,” Los Angeles Times, April 19, 1922.
Hays later professed … Hays, Memoirs, 361.
“stammering so badly …” “Storm Breaks on Arbuckle.”
“Mr. Hays has made his decision …” Ibid.
“I cannot say …” Ibid.
Around the time Schenck said that … Initial reactions to Arbuckle’s reinstatement via ibid; “Storm of Protest at Hays Restoring Arbuckle to Films,” New York Times, December 22, 1922.
Illinois theater owners reversed it… “Arbuckle Will Get His Chance,” Los Angeles Times, December 22, 1922.
“that under no circumstance … “ “Directors Not for Arbuckle,” Los Angeles Times, December 23, 1922.
Hays responded with telegrams … “Hays Insists Stand Right,” Los Angeles Times, December 24, 1922.
“All I ask is the rights … “ “Appeal Made by Arbuckle,” Los Angeles Times, December 25, 1922.
“of those who brazenly violate …” “Club Women of S.F. Area Plead Ban on Arbuckle,” Oakland Tribune, December 28, 1922.
Arthur Hammerstein offered Paramount… Arthur Hammerstein, letter to Adolph Zukor, December 16, 1922, Adolph Zukor Collection, Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, Beverly Hills, CA.
“The crowd was so anxious … “ “Million Bid for Arbuckle Films,” Los Angeles Times, December 27, 1922.
McNab and financiers organized a company … “M’Nab Backing Arbuckle Film,” Los Angeles Times, December 30, 1922.
he disagreed with their resolution … “Hays’s Committee Opposes Release of Arbuckle Films,” Hartford Courant, January 5, 1923.
his “final statement”… “Hays Gives Final Word on Fatty,” Los Angeles Times, January 6, 1923.
“a little obscure cabin in Hollywood”… “Fatty Starts Upon $750,000 Comeback Film,” Ogden Standard-Examiner, January 10, 1923.
“I just want to work …” Ibid.
acting in Handy Andy … “No Pies in Arbuckle’s Comeback,” Eau Claire Leader, January 23, 1923.
“a chance to make good…” “‘Fatty’ Arbuckle to ‘Come Back’; New Role,” Joplin News Herald, January 31, 1923.
“He was very bitter …” “Fatty Arbuckle Is Starting Over,” Appleton Post-Crescent, July 5, 1924.
“It was a superbly forcible touch … “ Robert E. Sherwood, The Best Moving Pictures of 1922-23 (Boston: Small, Maynard, 1923), 78-85.
