Delmont was never actually called to the stand because prosecutors knew her testimony would never hold up in court due to her ever-changing stories. His chief accuser, Bambina Maude Delmont, was a convicted criminal who had admitted plotting to extort money from him. However, some jurors interpreted the refusal to let Arbuckle testify as a sign of guilt. [citation needed], Before his death in 1997, comedian Chris Farley expressed interest in starring as Arbuckle in a biography film. With no concern for prejudicing the trial, the sensationalist "yellow journalism" Press churned out lurid stories of Tinseltown's depravity alongside coverage of the case. On April 18, 1922, Will Hays, the president of the new organization, banned Arbuckle from filmmaking. After three trials Arbuckle was finally acquitted on April 12, 1922 but not until his reputation was destroyed and his movies were banned. The third trial began March 13, 1922, and this time the defense took no chances. I'm not. [49], Many of Arbuckle's films, including the feature Life of the Party (1920), survive only as worn prints with foreign-language inter-titles. "Illinois, Cook County Birth Registers, 1871-1915," database, FamilySearch (, Last edited on 22 February 2023, at 02:12, https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:N7WC-F8M, "The Fourteenth Census of the United States: 1920", "Sausalito News 12 November 1921 California Digital Newspaper Collection", "Fatty Arbuckle and the Death of Virginia Rappe", Crime Library Article on the Rappe/Arbuckle case, Film researcher discusses the Fatty Arbuckle trial, Allan Ellenberger blog entry on Virginia Rappe, 'Fatty' Arbuckle and Hollywood's first scandal, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Virginia_Rappe&oldid=1140848504, This page was last edited on 22 February 2023, at 02:12. Tuesday, August 20, 2019. After being called, Arthur Beardslee, the hotel doctor, concluded that her condition was a result of intoxication. With others looking after Rappe, Arbuckle left for the sight-seeing tour and then drove back to Los Angeles. Roscoe Arbuckle in FATTY'S WILD RIDE TUESDAY Geo. [54], In Ken Russell's 1977 biopic Valentino, Rudolph Nureyev as a pre-movie star Rudolph Valentino dances in a nightclub before a grossly overweight, obnoxious, and hedonistic celebrity called "Mr. Fatty" (played by William Hootkins), a caricature of Arbuckle rooted in the public view of him created in popular press coverage of the Rappe rape trial. After over two weeks of testimony with sixty prosecution and defense witnesses, including eighteen doctors who testified about Rappe's illness, the defense rested. "[41], Eventually, Arbuckle worked as a director under the pseudonym "William Goodrich". It was to star Chris Kattan and Preston Lacy. Posters for his movies billed the 266-pound comedian as worth his weight in laughs. But before the year was out, he was accused of a crime so monstrous that he would never appear onscreen again. The audience went wild, and he won the competition and began a career in vaudeville. On September 5, 1921, Roscoe Conkling Arbuckle, known as "Fatty", a known comedian, actor, director and screen writer, and two others rented three rooms in the St. Francis Hotel. [36] They had been separated since 1921, though Durfee always claimed he was the nicest man in the world and they were still friends. One report had stated that while raping her, Arbuckles weight had caused Rappes bladder to rupture. The papers went wild with thestory. In 1913, at the age of 26, Arbuckle hit the big time when he signed with Mack Sennett's Keystone Film Company and became one of the Keystone Kops. Funnyman FATTY ARBUCKLE was the biggest thing in Hollywood literally but when he was accused of the heinous rape and murder of a notorious party girl his adoring public wanted him strung up! Arbuckle, whose real name was Roscoe, had allegedly locked Rappe in a room and crushed her with his 19 stone body weight and raped her. Dr. Beardslee admitted that Rappe had never mentioned being assaulted while he was treating her. Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Now that illusion was shattered and studio bosses were terrified it would destroy Hollywood itself.". The first two trials resulted in hung juries, but Keaton testified for the defense in the third trial,[citation needed] which acquitted Arbuckle. Elizabeth Fischer . [53] In this film, James Coco portrays a heavy-set silent film comedian named Jolly Grimm whose career is on the skids, but who is desperately planning a comeback. But the greatest moment is . During the second week of September 1921, like Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle, motion picture executives placed a ban on any motion pictures in which Rappe appeared. Arbuckle researcher Joan Myers describes the political climate and the media attention to the presence of women on juries (which had only been legal for four years at the time) and how Arbuckle's defense immediately singled out Hubbard as a villain; Myers also records Hubbard's account of the jury foreman August Fritze's attempts to bully her into changing her vote to 'not guilty'. Photo: File photo. Mack Sennett, when recounting his first meeting with Arbuckle, noted that he "skipped up the stairs as lightly as Fred Astaire" and that he "without warning went into a feather light step, clapped his hands and did a backward somersault as graceful as a girl tumbler". The scandal that followed her death had nothing to do with the fame, or lack of it, of the pretty actress - it was her link to the man who was known as "America's Funnyman . 's office,[31] and expressed surprise that she was not challenged when selected for the jury pool. Eventually, the hotel staff was contacted and Rappe was taken to another room to rest. Delmont claims that Rappe managed to gasp Arbuckle did it before she was taken away into a different hotel room. [citation needed], During the whole trial, the prosecution presented medical descriptions of Rappe's bladder as evidence that she had an illness. He didn't like his nickname and asked friends to call him "Roscoe." Like many comedians, he came out of a. in the United Kingdom, the British Board of Film Censors cited the ten-year-old scandal and refused to grant an exhibition certificate. As Los Angeles Times film critic Kenneth Turan says: "Stars still get into trouble and they still need help managing crises. The charge was later reduced to manslaughter. At the time of his acquittal, he owed over $700,000 (equivalent to approximately $11,300,000 in 2021 dollars[15]) in legal fees to his attorneys for the three criminal trials, and he was forced to sell his house and all of his cars to pay some of the debt. She refused to look at the exhibits or read the trial transcripts, having made up her mind in the courtroom. The Vitaphone shorts were very successful in America,[46] although when Warner Bros. attempted to release the first one (Hey, Pop!) Author David Yallop cites Arbuckle's father's full name as William Goodrich Arbuckle as the inspiration behind the alias. At least Arbuckle didn't have to deal with Twitter.". Search instead in Creative? The jury began deliberations April 12 and took only six minutes to return with a unanimous not-guilty verdict; five of those minutes were spent writing a formal statement of apology to Arbuckle for putting him through the ordeal, a dramatic move in American justice. The Fatty Arbuckle trial was marked by little strong evidence and dominated by unpre dictable testimony. He had merely carried her to the bed and she had fallen off, insisted Arbuckle. Today we continue with the ruination of Roscoe Conkling Arbuckle, circa 1921. Public feeling was so negative that Durfee was later shot at while entering the courthouse. A medical examination found no evidence of sexual assault. ", "Arbuckle case first true scandal in Hollywood", "Interesting facts about Roscoe Arbuckle", "When the Five O'Clock Whistle Blows in Hollywood", "Testify Regarding Early Life of Virginia Rappe", "Miss Rappe's Manager Tells Worst He Knows of Arbuckle", "Excerpts of Interview with Minta Durfee Arbuckle by Don Schneider and Stephen Normand", "Arbuckle, Star Film Comedian, Dies in Sleep", "More on Fatty Arbuckle: His Films and His Legacy", "Valentino. Another hole in the prosecution's case was opened because Prevon, a key witness, was out of the country after fleeing police custody and unable to testify. Paramount had just signed a giant $1 million ($13 million in today's money) deal with Fatty,. His highest-profile project was arguably The Red Mill, also released in 1927, a Marion Davies vehicle. Arbuckle greeted visitors in his pajamas and though this was during Prohibition, large quantities of liquor werebeing drunk. The doctor examined Rappe but found no evidence of rape. The same evidence was presented, but this time one of the witnesses, Zey Prevon, testified that Brady had forced her to lie. The resulting film, The Frozen North, was released in 1922, almost a year after the scandal first emerged. 168 Fatty Arbuckle Photos and Premium High Res Pictures - Getty Images All News Archival Browse 168 fatty arbuckle stock photos and images available, or start a new search to explore more stock photos and images. Arbuckle calmly maintained that he never physically hurt or sexually assaulted Rappe in any way during the party, and he also stated that he never made any inappropriate sexual advances against any woman in his life. Arbuckle was the defendant in three widely publicized trials between November 1921 and April 1922 for the rape and manslaughter of actress Virginia Rappe. Mississippi-based Arbuckle historian David Pearson says the star was the inspiration to many overweight comics, such as John Belushi, Benny Hill, John Candy and Chris Farley. Im a writer and a copy editor with experience in editing science and engineering articles. [29], In November 1923, Minta Durfee filed for divorce from Arbuckle, charging grounds of desertion. [47], On June 28, 1933, Arbuckle had finished filming the last of the two-reelers (four of which had already been released). What happened in room 1219? At the hospital, Rappe's companion at the party, Bambina Maude Delmont, told a doctor that Arbuckle had raped her friend. [4][5] He weighed in excess of 13 pounds (5.9kg) at birth and his father believed that he was illegitimate, as both parents had slim builds. Around 3 o'clock, Arbuckle retired from the party in order to get dressed to go sight-seeing with a friend. Some claimed that the overweight Arbuckle had damaged Rappes liver by crushing her while trying to have sex with her, while others offered up increasingly outrageous stories consisting of various depravities supposedly carried out by the actor. It is reported that the jurors voted in favour of the indictment by twelve votes to two. The case against the silent movies' king of slapstick would be Tinseltown's first major scandal. [12][13] They made a strange couple, as Minta was short and petite while Arbuckle tipped the scales at 300lbs. Arbuckle answered the door wearing his foolish screen smile and Virginia Rappe was on the bed, naked and moaning in pain. He was in the habit of singing while he worked, and a professional singer heard him and invited him to perform in an amateur talent show. But nine decades on, the mystery remains: why did Virginia Rappe die? [3], Arbuckle's attorneys later concentrated their attention on one woman named Helen Hubbard, who had told jurors that she would vote guilty "until hell freezes over". [11], The exact events of the party remain unclear, with witnesses relating numerous versions of what happened. The entire jury proudly posed with Arbuckle for photographers after the verdict and apology. Specializing in excellent craft cocktails with over 200 different Whiskeys and a large selection of. And it emerged in court that the prosecution had used intimidation to force several witnesses to testify against Arbuckle. Raquel Welch portrays his mistress, who ultimately goads him into shooting her. Miss Jessie Williams and the Chicken Ranch. Jury Nullification: Definition and Examples, Charles Manson and the Tate and LaBianca Murders, How Conservative Hollywood Became a Liberal Town, Profile of Death Row Inmate Brenda Andrew, Overview of the Jury Trial Stage of a Criminal Case, Profile of Husband Killer Kelly Gissendaner, Murder of Helen Jewett, Media Sensation of 1836, B.A., History, University of California at Davis. In Good Company While at Universal, Arbuckle worked under comedy pioneer Mack Sennett. Arbuckle's accuser, Bambina Maude Delmont, had accompanied Rappe to the party; she had first met Rappe only a few days earlier. When Arbuckle and a few of the guests re-entered the room, they found Rappe on the floor near the bed tearing at her clothing and going into violent convulsions. [18], By 1916, Arbuckle was experiencing serious health problems. On the heels of million-dollar comedian Fatty Arbuckle's manslaughter charge, and actor Wallace Reid's drug-related death, Taylor's murder spurred a newfound interest in Hollywood scandal. View our statement on digital primary resources. The third jury took the unusual step of giving Arbuckle a written statement of apology for his treatment by the justice system. One thing is clear: In Room 1219 that afternoon, an actress by the name of Virginia Rappe was screaming in agony on a bed.
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