Debunking Hollywood Babylon Part 1

Forever ago when I lived in Florida I had stopped to buy a concert ticket at Downtown Disney. Having braved the tourists that far (if you've ever done it you'll know what I mean) I decided to check out the massive Virgin Megastore there. I still think Virgin Megastores are pretty cool, and they usually have a massive selection of entertainment books. Unfortunately many of them aren't really that good (The Hollywood Book of Death would be one...it claims June Mathis died in a fire. In fairness the author promised me if they ever did another run of it he'd correct that). And when it gets down to silent stars things are just usually wrong.

Of course this was years ago, and I had only seen one Silent film and didn't have my thirst for it yet. I spotted Kenneth Anger's "Hollywood Babylon" and it was cheap and looked vaguely interesting, so I bought it. It was a breezy interesting read. Like a gossipy little behind the scenes book. It took until I started researching things for me to learn this damn little book is responsible for most of the myths out there...the hard to shake ones (such as Valentino's two lesbian marriages).

One night at a Carmen Miranda screening Anger showed up at the Silent Movie Theatre. I thought about telling him off, or doing something unlady like, but since I hadn't read the book in years and couldn't remember how bad he had insulted Valentino (not too bad compared to others) I didn't. I have several opinions on the man and they aren't very high, attention whore would be the main one. But I'm not about to spread junk about him like he has about long dead people who deserve better. So...I'll do my best to right the wrongs.

This is part 1 from the beginning/Olive Thomas to Valentino. For part 2 (Erich von Stroheim to Ramon Navarro/the end) click here. For a debunking of Hollywood Babylon 2 click here. For a debunking of Hollywood Babylon 3 click here.
Unfortunately since Anger tackles some meaty topics (with such abandon) this is going to at least be a two parter...for the first book alone. So here we go part 1!

Debunking Hollywood Babylon Part 1

*D.W. Griffith and Intolerance

Most of this isn't too complaint worthy and the pictures are nice. One correction though: Intolerance didn't fail as the book states. In fact Griffith is probably the source of this one...for years he claimed to have spent a huge amount and that it did him. Actually in reality it had a modest budget, made okay enough profits, and didnt bankrupt him or cause him finacial failure. It just wasnt a 'Birth'. Also of note: Griffith never was in dire straights...his profits had been invested well enough and though not Pickford wealthy he lived comfortable until the end of his life.

*Lillian and Dorothy Gish

Anger insinuates they were lovers. Seriously this is possibly the most outrageous thing he has put in any of his books.




*Olive Thomas' Death

We love Olive. But as usual the whole story isn't here. For starters I have never heard that Olive was nude and covered in an opera cape. Seems an embellishment. Also the insinuation is that a valet (sounds more like a room service guy to me) found Olive lying dead on the floor in that state. A bottle of mercury pills still clutched in her hands.

From the accounts I've read Jack claimed to have been awake (or awoken) when Olive took the dose and she was still conscious. It WASNT pills. Please if you take one thing away from this article (other than Fatty was innocent) take the fact that OLIVE THOMAS SWALLOWED A LIQUID SOLUTION NOT PILLS. This backs up the 'searching for water' claim and also makes sense as to why she couldnt speak the last day of her life (likely it burned her vocal chords clean off). According to reports she drank a third of the bottle before realizing what it was.
He ran and got egg whites to try and make her vomit up the poison. He then called for a doctor who after pumping her stomach took her to the American Hospital in Paris where she remained alive for about a day and died in the hospital. Owen Moore and Jack were at her side. So that whole account Anger just made up.

His assessment of her career isn't too far off, though I think the listed films aren't the ones she was known for. Also she married Jack in 1916, not 1920. She didn't publicize the fact at first, but by at the latest 1917 the marriage was known about so 1920 makes no sense. He also says she was 20 when she died, but Olive was 25.

Anger also makes it out like Jack was not with Olive in Paris when she died, though he obviously was. He's half right: Olive was doing naughty naughty things and partying hard and playing hard. But JACK WAS WITH HER. As for 'the roughest, meanest dives' I don't think that can fully be agreed on as the locations they played at haven't been recorded. He also claims she was playing with the French Underworld power figures...seems made up once again.

As with every story Anger was the source of one main myth that stuck around. In Olive's case it's the 'dope fiend' story. Anger claims Olive's motivation for the Paris trip was to score cocaine. This was a popular rumor of the day and he just respouts it as fact. He also mentions the Captain Spaulding story, something that again was completely proven as yellow journalism long before this book was written.

Anger also reports that Olive committed suicide and for surely this was with mercury bichloride tablets. These two ''facts'' have never (and probably never will) been proven. Olive ODd on mercury bichloride but in liquid form thus making an accident super likely. As for if it was an accident or suicide no one has ever proven one way or the other. Jack's account makes it sound like an accident, and if it was suicide it was an odd (and painful) way to go. Several reports from doctors and visitors at the hospital state that Olive smiled and nodded while Jack gave his report, and that she held his hand and kissed his hand during her last hours. If she was upset with him that would be an odd gesture. Also if she was poisoned or tried to kill herself it would be odd for her to just sit and nod during Jack's story.

Personally I'm a fan of accident as the evidence points to it. However this whole affair started after the couple returned from partying at 3am. She could have been drunk or high and most accounts state she was at least drunk and seeking water. If it was suicide it would be random, since she and Jack were ''on'' again and her career was going well. She had been writing a letter to her mother shortly before taking the dose and in the letter she talked excitedly of her return to the States and things they would do. Just seems odd for a suicide. But once again we can't prove it one way or another.

Summary: Olive wasn't found dead in her room by a valet. Olive may or may not have committed suicide it’s never been proven. Olive died a day later in a hospital with Jack and Owen Moore by her side. Olive wasn't alone in Paris, and was not playing with the French Mob. Olive took a liquid dose, not pills.



*Fatty Arbuckle Scandal

Oh lord where do we begin? Kenneth Anger is almost single handedly responsible for keeping this Hearst fueled piece of crap going through the decades. Most people don't realize just how amazing Roscoe was. He single handedly mentored Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplin, and Mabel Normand. He WAS the first really talented film comedian (John Bunny would be the first but he really wasn't just comedy). He and Mabel created the pie in the face thing. He was amazing. And he was very VERY WRONGED. Before I say anything further: Fatty was innocent.

Now to this particular chapter. Anger gets it wrong from the start. According to Minta Durfee (Fatty's first wife, who was married to him before his movie fame) one day Roscoe hopped on a trolley to what is now Culver City seeking some film work. He went into Mack Sennett's studio and waited for an audition. Roscoe sat waiting and started singing to himself. Sennet overheard him and came out and asked his name. Fatty told him and Mack told him to be back there next Monday. Fatty thought this guy was a loon (since the theatre world was much more formal) and sat waiting for the REAL guy to come out. Mack came out again and restated his intentions. Thus Fatty became part of Keystone.

According to Anger, Fatty was Sennet's PLUMBER. Fatty was in Vaudeville before films...I don't know where the hell the plumber thing came from...I've never heard that one before. Anger also makes it out like Fatty 'worked his way up' TO WORKING WITH Chaplin and Keaton and the like. Other way around people. Fatty was there the night Sennett first seen Chaplin's act. Fatty didn't have to work his way up to working with that no named Chaplin kid.

Anger gives a 'first party' story where Fatty apparently became too rowdy when he signed with Paramount. Again I've never heard or read this story anywhere else, so I have serious doubts as to it being anything more then made up gossip...like the rest of this book. Mainly because (as would be the case years later with the infamous San Francisco party) Fatty just didn't party much. He worked hard, he was happily married, and he was a quiet, sweet man by all accounts. Not some wild party animal.

Anger is also responsible for some unfair Virginia Rappe claims. First she wasn't some lovely sweet thing fresh off the train to Hollywood. She was 30 when she died, and she had lived a rough life. Whether Anger's claims that she had given Sennett's crew crabs are true or not I doubt it. She reportedly (obviously this is hard to verify) did have VD at points, and possibly worked as a prostitute, but such a story about a WHOLE crew getting crabs from her seems exaggerated. Anger also claims Virginia was becoming quite successful, which just doesn't add up with her history. She had never attained more then C rate status, and she didn't seem to be coming out of it any day soon.

The next paragraph gets wild. Anger claims Fatty had a 'roving' eye loved ladies and liquor. True he did have a liquor problem (it ran in his family) but the ladies one goes against most accounts. It also says Maude Delmont was Fatty's friend, but most accounts say Fatty was worried upon seeing both women as they both had bad reputations. Doubtful she was a friend of his.

It also says Fatty was celebrating his new contract for $3 million. It was actually $1 million. But that's beyond the point, the reason for the party was some much needed relief from filming 3 features back to back.

Anger claims after a day or so of wild partying Fatty grabbed Virginia, and steered the quote 'tipsy model' into a bedroom while giving everyone else a 'famous wink' insinuating he was gonna have some fun. In reality this never happened. After speaking with some visiting friends (ironically evangelists) Fatty went to change clothes. What happened after that is up for debate.

Likely Fatty entered and found Virginia passed out on the bathroom floor. Fatty placed her on the bed and gave her water as requested. He went and got a bucket of ice and tried to test if she was faking or not by putting it on her thigh. Maude entered the room and the two discussed what might be wrong. Both thought she was just drunk.

Virginia started screaming and tearing at her clothes, other party goers came in to see what was the matter. Fatty said, "Shut her up! Get her out of here! She makes too much noise!" But according to Anger none of this happened. He goes off Maude's testimony (we'll get there in a minute) saying Fatty raped Virginia, which caused her to scream and amused Fatty. Anger also says the torn clothes were Fatty's fault, and his comment was sinister, not an innocent complaint (as he thought Rappe was faking).

According to Anger Maude and another friend went to gather Virginia and found her nude and writhing on a bed saying she dying and 'he did this to me!' Anger skips over the part where several people were in the room as Virginia clothed (minus what she had torn off in front of people) and writhing around telling people and Fatty to get away from her. An ice bath was prepared and she was placed in it, this seemed to calm her and the party continued.

The night passed and the next day a Dr. Beardslee was brought in and gave Virginia a shot of morphine. The next day she got morphine and a catheter. Later that day Maude called a Doctor she was close to and called 'Rummy', Dr. Melville Rumwel, and this is where she first spouted the story that appeared in Anger's book. Rumwel found no evidence of rape but treated Virginia for the same things Beardslee had (trouble urinating and pain).

On Tuesday Fatty checked out. A couple days later a feverish Virginia was taken to a hospital where she finally died of a ruptured bladder. According to Anger she told the nurse that Fatty had done it to her and to see that he paid for it. According to Anger Fatty had indeed raped her and he had an incredible cover up story to go with it (Virginia's female parts were almost incinerated before some brave investigator stopped it just in time!)

According to Anger then the bottle rape rumors started up, though those were false (well duh). But according to Anger it was Fatty's GIRTH that killed her. Never mind this is still scientifically impossible and Fatty's wife whom he had been with for years (and was of normal size) never suffered like that. According to Anger Fatty took the stand and wasn't even REMORSEFUL for the dead girl. Then Anger claims his lawyers were bad for portraying Rappe as 'loose' having slept around all around the world. Umm...she had no less then 6 abortions by age 16 and a botched abortion is likely what killed her. She wasn't the virginal saint Hearst made her out to be.

Meanwhile the woman on who Anger based the whole story (as did all Fatty accusers), Maude Delmont, was unreliable. She was a con artist who barely knew Rappe, and had kept Rappe away from the hospital too long. She also couldn't keep her story straight and didn't even testify during the first trial. She then went on a country wide tour preaching the evils of Hollywood. In short she was an attention seeking fame whore who wanted any money she could get for her lies.

Two trials later Fatty was given an apology and a cleared name...well not in the papers but by the court of law. Anger's book states it like he got away with something (forgiven but not forgotten) and quotes Virginia's boyfriend to again make her look saint like. Only problem is Virginia's boyfriend had a long standing feud with Fatty long before her death...not like he was gonna be on his side all of a sudden.

Anger also states Fatty was 'banned' from acting. He wasn't 'banned' but he was unofficially blacklisted. Anger also says Fatty's pseudonym "William B. Goodrich" was originally "Will B. Good" but that was too obvious. Actually his father's name was William Goodrich Arbuckle...likely the inspiration for the name. Anger also goes on to make several distasteful 'bottles seemed to haunt him' jokes though he didn't play that angle up earlier. He even insinuates Fatty threw a bloody bottle out the window. Umm does it even need to be said? There was no rape, there was no bottle, and even if there was (which there wasn't) neither would have killed someone...no matter how heavy or violent the offender. But no rape or assault occurred anyways. Hell Virginia probably would have done it for free if it was wanted...but I doubt it.

Anger also fails to mention how Fatty signed with Warner Brothers to do features right before his death, and they got the day wrong: he died on June 29 not June 28. Of course Anger said Virginia died at 25...not 30. And again she was on the brink of stardom apparently.

For more information on what REALLY happened click here to read an excellent well researched article.

Summary: Virginia was not a sweet young virginal innocent actress on the brink of stardom. FATTY DID NOT KILL OR RAPE HER and she likely died from a botched abortion. THERE WAS NO EVIDENCE THAT FATTY EVER DID KILL OR RAPE HER and the whole trial was brought on by fame seeking Maude Delmont and moralizers who wanted to clean up Hollywood. Fatty wasn't a womanizing party animal who was up to no good. And Fatty DID get another chance from Hollywood, but he died the next day.


The Murder of William Desmond Taylor

Now unlike Fatty and Olive I'm not super knowledgeable on William. However even brief research just to debunk this book is enough to show that any amateur knows more than Anger.

Anger starts his tale out claiming William was discovered dead on the floor by his manservant Henry Peavey. He then claims "robbery couldn't have been the motive as Taylor was still wearing the 'lucky' diamond ring he had worn since the success of his first film The Diamond from the Sky". Ironically a Lottie film! BUT that whole statement is not true. First off "The Diamond from the Sky" was not 'a film', it was a serial. Also IMDB tells us that Taylor had worked as both an actor and a director from 1913 onward...and Diamond was from 1915. His first film as director was 1913's "Mrs. Carter's Campaign". And in fact he had serial successes (including "The Awakening") by 1914. So...once again another made up Anger fact. Whether the ring was from that serial or not I do not know BUT it wasn't the only thing left on Taylor. He was also found with $78, a silver cigarette case, a Waltham pocket watch and an ivory toothpick. BUT a large sum of cash (how much has never been disclosed) was missing from the day before. In addition to that Taylor had been robbed a few times by his former employee con man Edward Sands.

As for Peavey finding the body, turning it over to find the gun wound, and the next details in Anger's book (people coming to clean up the crime scene including Zukor) this is the reported version but never proven. This site suspects that the murder was discovered the night before and the studio had planned to clean up anything of ill repute before calling police. Hard to prove, but not hard to believe.

As for the portrait of conspiracy chaos Anger paints (Mabel came to search for some letters, Zukor removed traces of sexual hanky panky, Charles Eyton removed the booze, Mary Miles Minter could not be reached, etc, etc) that doesn't really sink up with any of the other factual accounts given. According to Taylorolgy (the know it all source on this case) Peavey made such a scene that the neighbors called the police, and a Lieutenant Tom Ziegler arrived. No one had moved the body yet. A crowd gathered and Ziegler sent them away, and an unidentified self proclaimed doctor made an examination, but still had not moved the body. Unknown doctor guessed it was natural causes, a heart attack (since the gun wound had yet to be discovered). It was then Eyton showed up, and gathered up a bunch of papers and documents which may have been evidence. Zukor, Normand, etc were not there yet. After collecting the papers Eyton talked with the Doc, and not satisfied with what he had been told he turned the body over, and found the bullet wound. None of this appears in Anger's book.

The homicide squad was called and along with them came the coroner. The squad searched the home and found framed photos of Mary Pickford and Mary Miles Minter (both with innocent inscriptions), the items on his body, and his accounting papers which without going into great detail showed he may have been blackmailed. Anger mentions none of this, according to him a bunch of porn and scandalous material was found, and that some naughty things from both Marys' appeared in the house. None of that is true of course.

As the detectives looked around Mary Miles Minter, and then Mabel Normand showed up. MMM claimed she had not been there for a long time, but was devastated. Mabel Normand was rumored to have been engaged to Taylor but she denied it. However she had seen him the night before he was murdered...yet left right before the fatal shot. Anger still mentions her taking letters, something I don’t see at all in any other account. He claims a book of erotica by Aleister Crowley was found and contained the naughty love notes from MMM. No such book was found, but love letters and a silk nightie were found and their inscriptions led to MMM as their owner. Not found in a book of pornography, they were actually found in a riding boot in the closet with the other letters. In fact a lot of what Anger is repeating is rumors trickled down through the years, but long debunked by the police and investigators.

Anger goes into a description of the funeral, much of it seems made up. Anger then goes on to mention Sands, but makes it out as if Taylor was hiding him from the law or something. He fails to mention how Sands robbed Taylor and Taylor had a warrant out for his arrest. Anger seems to skip the next part. An anonymous letter in a woman's handwriting said if the detectives went to Mabel Normand's home they'd find a .38 revolver in the basement, the one used in the murder. The police went as well as a journalist...and no such gun was found ( 2 .25 revolvers were found in her bedroom, but neither would have been used in the murder).

Mabel Normand was the last person to see Taylor alive. She had gone shopping and then went to visit him on a whim for a quick moment. Anger claims she was given a volume of Freud. I’m not sure that’s what it was but the official account gives it as 'a book of German philosophy'. Mabel was always trying to better herself and she read constantly. She was also studying French, something Taylor spoke. Mabel visited Taylor for all of 35 minutes, before she left, escorted by Taylor to her car. Mabel suggested they visit an ill friend, and Taylor said she was tired and they'd do it some other time. Mabel blew him a kiss, drove off, and that was that. Taylor went back inside, sat down, and was shot by whoever.

A neighbor heard the shot as she sat down to dinner and wondered what it was. She looked out the window and seen what looked like a man coming out the door...leisurely. The man even stopped and looked at her. But when she reflected on it she said the man looked funny, as if someone dressed up in a picture. She said they (her and her husband) had seen actors and actresses in costume come and go before and she was sure this person looked familiar but wasn’t sure who it was.

Another man, Arthur Hoyt, had also seen Taylor the night of his murder. Hoyt said Taylor was upset and confessed it was because the sweetest girl in the world, a girl young enough to be his daughter, was madly in love with him. The girl was Mary Miles Minter, who was almost 30 years younger then Taylor. Taylor told Hoyt she had showed up at his home the night before at 3am, and refused to leave. When he tried to boot her out she threatened to scream so loud and cause a scene.

MMM claimed to have not been there the night of the murder but indeed she was at some point. She also claimed later that they were to be married when she was 18, much to her mother's disapproval. Her mother Charlotte Shelby was suspected of the murder as well, to either protect her daughter or her meal ticket (MMM later sued her for the money she made in pictures, something fought until MMM opened up to the papers about Taylor). When the detectives came up with this theory they placed a fake story about a spiritualist giving them a tip about 'the mother of a beautiful daughter committed the murder'. The only person to question them about the source or story was a lawyer...who secretly worked for Shelby.

Anger claims that Taylor was having simultaneous affairs with Normand, MMM, and Shelby. This seems unlikely given all the evidence. Mabel denied being engaged to him, MMM claimed to be but she was obsessed with him by his own words (and her own letters) so that makes her claim questionable, and Shelby seemed to not care for him making that unlikely as well. As for Anger's claim Taylor was rumored to be the cause of a Follies girl's suicide I have found nothing on it. Anger claims that panty trophies from various actresses were found by the police, yet the only dainties found were MMM's. Anger mentions the dope angle, all of which was reported by suspicious people according to investigators. The investigators never found those claims even remotely likely. However Mabel likely did have a drug problem (and she did have an alcohol problem), which didn’t help her TB. Whether Taylor had any link to this is doubtful. The scandal certainly didn’t help her career, but Anger's claim that she quit films over it isn’t fully true. She had TB and had been sick as early as the filming of Mickey in 1918...she grew sicker over the years, and her ill health likely was a major factor in the slowing of her film career.

The case is still open and unsolved. Rumor has it that an actress named Margaret Gibson confessed on her deathbed to the killing, yet the people around her didn’t know what she was talking about and the news didn’t come forward for years. It was said that throughout the years whenever a TV show mentioned the murder she grew hysterical.


Interestingly enough I met someone once who said they had known a couple who collected everything about this case they could find circa the 70s.  The couple had a unpublished manuscript by Charlotte Shelby which was apparently poorly written and vaguely styled as a novel.  This person said it was basically a blazing confession poorly disguised.  Very OJ "If I did it".  Sadly where, when, who, what has happened to this manuscript I have no clue.  But even without it Shelby seems a solid case.  After all MMM was her meal ticket.

Summary: Mostly everything Anger says about the William Desmond Taylor case is wrong, including the tiniest details. Taylor wasn’t having super mega affairs, and didn’t have a bunch of porn and panties found in his home. Anger's description of Zukor and Normand's actions after Taylor's death is pretty much entirely false. Likely (but hard to prove) Mary Miles Minter or her mother killed Taylor and got away with it. Mabel Normand was innocent.


The Death of Wally Reid

Again much like Taylor I don’t know much on Reid. But again 5 minutes research is easy to debunk anything Anger says. I'm not even going to bother with the Hays chapter, but I have doubts towards a 'doom book' as I've never heard of it in any silent censorship research I've done (and I've done lots). Anger claims Wallace Reid topped this list. That's unlikely as he didn’t have a drug problem until 1919, 10 years into his film career (and he was already uber mega popular by then).

Pretty much everything in the first few paragraphs is wrong. Anger insinuates Wally was a 'hop head' and haha to him. A Paris Hilton who deserved it if you will. In truth his morphine addiction came after in injury from a train wreck while he was filming "The Valley of the Giants" in 1919. Morphine had been prescribed for his pain, which many people became addicted to during the teens and twenties when it was prescribed for them (Gloria Swanson always said she choose holistic medicine for fear of this).

Reid developed a huge addiction to morphine, and eventually his health deteriorated so badly that after he contacted the flu he fell into a coma from which he never recovered. This would be the reason for his stay in a sanatorium...yet according to Anger this stay was because he was hopelessly addicted and the studio and his quote 'unhappy wife' had signed commitment papers. Not true. The most telling sign Anger is just pulling stuff out of his ass? There was no cure for morphine addiction in the 20s...so putting him in a sanitarium wouldn’t be seen as such. It wasn’t 'rehab' ala Britney Spears.

As for his wife Dorothy, admitting he was a hopeless addict that is also not true. She may have been unhappy but she loved him and after his death she produced a picture titled "Human Wreckage" warning of the dangers of addiction, it was one of the first of its kind. She never remarried, and she lived until 1977!
Anger claims he was kept in a padded cell and lost his mind. I see no proof of this, again likely made up. Anger then goes on to claim Wally took his first morphine fix in 1920 during the filming of "Forever" (a film that actually came out in 21) to mask his exhaustion. No. He had been addicted from 1919 onward, and not to mask exhaustion but because HE WAS ADDICTED all from subpar medical treatment. Anger goes on to make Dorothy's actions look money hungry and misguided, just making himself look like an ass. He then ends the chapter with a quote supposedly from Mary Pickford, which I highly doubt. 

Summary: Wally Reid did not just 'become' addicted to morphine, he became addicted after being prescribed morphine for an injury from a train wreck in 1919. He didn’t die in a 'padded cell' or 'go crazy' over his morphine fix, he was in such ill health by the time he got to the sanitarium I doubt he was even out of the coma when he entered. There was no treatment for morphine addiction in the 20s as Anger claims, and everything else in the chapter is basically made up.



Heroin Heroines
Anger claims that some unknown dealer named 'The Count' hooked Mabel Normand, Juanita Hansen, Barbara La Marr, and Alma Rubens on morphine. This again is false...and since he goes into detail so will we.
Anger starts with Barbara. And within 2 sentences he gets it wrong. Yes she dabbled in a lot of drugs, but they didn’t directly kill her. She died of a mix of TB and Nephritis (inflamed kidney). Surely her weakened health came from drug use, but it wasn’t an OD as Anger claims. Whether she was big with cocaine or not I can not find, but Anger claims its was her big thing. Her actual deathly addiction was to heroin (which would more support his pain killer claim). He's right she never slept more then 2 hours (at least by her claim) but wrong in saying she had 6 husbands. She actually had 5.  Anger goes on to claim she committed suicide by OD-ing. In reality she was ill, as already mentioned. It was sudden, but not suicide.

Next Anger goes on to Alma. He claims her drug addiction became public knowledge with a weird incident in 1929; which is true.  Anger then goes on to claim she had a certain type of stay and treatment, though he does not seem to have a full grasp on just how sad her addiction was .  In her autobiography (which is heart wrenching) Alma claimed a corrupt doctor at her facility had provided her with another fix.  Anger never mentions it.

Anger also (not surprisingly given the other actresses in this chapter that he did the same to) leaves out HOW she became addicted, other then this made up 'The Count'. Alma became addicted after becoming ill in 1923 (supposedly an onset accident), and her husband Dr. Daniel Carson Goodman prescribed morphine for her. Soon she was being prescribed morphine for 'anything real or imaginary'. Meaning her illness started long before 1929, and not because she was some dope fiend.  And once again Alma died of pneumonia, not an OD or drug related ailment (though once again her ill health likely didn’t help). Anger doesn’t go deeply into this part surprisingly enough for him.

Next Anger defiles Juanita Hansen. Anger claims 'The Count' started her addiction. Unlike the other 3 women Hansen is the only one to not have suffered serious ailments or injuries and being prescribed morphine. She became a heavy partier, and became addicted to cocaine (something Anger doesn’t elaborate on). Anger goes on with a fanciful story about The Count giving Juanita a free taste to hook her (yet he doesn’t even say WHICH drug). Likely she encountered coke out on the party scene, as it wasn’t exactly hidden back in those days.

Anger goes on to quote Juanita, but the quote seems to defy his Count story (it insinuates she bought her first hit from the same person on a street corner, not the set). Also Juanita's story was about heroin, not cocaine the addiction she formed early on. In fact Juanita's heroin addiction LIKE the other girls came again from a medical morphine thing. She was scalded and needed treatment in 1921...2 years after her cocaine addiction.

Anger claims Juanita's career was ended when her addiction was made known through some papers speaking of how she wanted to be clean, were made public. Yet that doesn’t sync up with the rest of the story. Juanita mostly ended her career after the scalding, effectively quitting 2 years later. She turned to Broadway and by the 30s back to films, but her addictions were too much. However after a failed suicide attempt she turned her life around, and spoke out and raised awareness about addiction. She lived until the 60s. Anger being tacky as hell compares her charity to syphilis awareness and leaves 30 years of hard work at that.

Ironically he never touched Mabel Normand in this chapter. But she wasn’t hooked by 'some count'. Mabel suffered two massive head injuries in the teens and both of these she was prescribed morphine. If she became addicted to it that was likely the cause. But morphine was the least of her worries, she suffered from depression and alcoholism as well as declining health. Anger doesn’t even bother with that. 

Summary: Everything Anger had to say about any of these ladies was wrong. All 4 women developed drug abuse problems from negligent morphine prescriptions.



Charlie Chaplin and his Ladies

Ugh. Poor Charlie. If he gets hell its over two topics: Communism and his taste in ladies. Whatever his political affiliations that never affected how brilliant a comedian he was, and whatever taste he had in ladies he dated plenty of women his own age, and remained married to Oona O Neil for almost 40 years. But nooo...people overlook that.

Anger starts with a tale about gold digging Peggy Hopkins Joyce vamping the Tramp. Anger claims they had a relationship and that "A Woman of Paris" was inspired by this relationship. Charlie himself admitted she was the inspiration in his photo book, but whether they were an item is unknown. Personally I find his time with Louise Brooks WAY more interesting!

Anger claims the first nymphet for Charlie was Mildred Harris. He kinda forgets Hetty Kelly and Edna Purviance. Anger also leaves out the likelihood that Mildred lied about being pregnant (whatever the truth she was indeed not pregnant when they became engaged) thus trapping him. Anger takes some low blows at their deformed son "The Little Mouse" and then turns that into bitchy gossip ('in reality he never smiled').

After this low blow Anger claims Mildred was only offered a contract and only became an actress AFTER marrying Charlie. In reality Mildred had been in pictures for 6 years, and had worked with D.W. Griffith and DeMille. Anger also makes it out like Mayer signed her right after the marriage. In reality she wasn’t signed with him until 1920. Anger's book is also the source of the 'Alla Nazimova seduced Mildred' rumor and 'Sadist Charlie' rumor. Anger is also the source for the 'Mayer Fisticuff' story...one I believe a little more than the other 2 rumors.

The book then goes into a new chapter, all about Lolita. Anger starts out with a fanciful story about Charlie meeting Lita Grey when she was 7 in 1915. However he then claims she worked as a 'child extra' in Charlie's films including "The Kid". Only problem is The Kid was done in 1921, making Lita 13. Anger makes it out like he was grooming Lita, when in reality Charlie never did anything with her until she was 16 (not saying it makes it more right but its not AS perverse especially considering the younger marriage age in those days. My own Great Great Grandmother married an older man at 15, which was not out of the ordinary. Her first child was born in 1918 making my point valid).

Anger gets the wedding date wrong (what was his thing with dates? He barely ever gets them right!): Charlie married Lita on November 26, 1925; not November 24. Most of the divorce stuff isn’t too wrong, but again numbers are Anger's downfall. Lita received $825,000 as a settlement...not $625,000. 

Summary: Anger really doesn’t know a lot about Charlie's love life, which I’m sure will come back during the DNA test trial later on in the book. He omitted some and created others. That being said this is probably the LEAST offensive chapter I've read so far.


William Randolph Hearst and the Murder of Thomas Ince

Admittedly Marion Davies and her captor can bore me. Her 'Co-ed' movie did nothing for me. In fact if anything she was a second rate Mary Pickford...and why do we need ANOTHER lesser Pickford? We already had 2! But she continues to fascinate...as does this well known mystery.

Anger, like the Charlie story, does okay to begin with. Thomas Ince was celebrating his 42nd birthday on the Oneida with a bunch of celebs who included William Hearst, Marion Davies, Charlie Chaplin, and a new gossip columnist Louella Parsons. However Ince missed the departure because he had a movie premiere and took a train to catch up. He either died on the boat (according to rumors) or at home (according to his family), with the official cause as a heart attack. Whatever really happened Hearst’s' papers made up stories of what happened to Ince (including him dying at home of indigestion). The Ince family was with him when he died, and they all believed there was no foul play. Anger mentions none of this.

It was said that Charlie's secretary seen a bullet in Ince's head...but Ince was cremated. Many believe Hearst shot Ince, but accidentally. Usually its said he was aiming for Chaplin, who was somehow caught with Marion either just kissing, just together, or more.

But this is where Anger gets fanciful again. He is likely responsible for the 'or more' rumor. He also claims Marion cried out quote 'in her famous stutter...m-m-m-murder!' Trouble is Marion didn’t have THAT bad of a stutter. Even if the above is to be believed, Anger goes on to fancify it with his imagination.

Another part of this story is that after this Louella got a lifetime contract with Hearst, supposedly for keeping her mouth shut. Anger mentions it as does this site. However its extremely unlikely. Parsons had been in print since 1915 (famously catching the end of Theda Bara's act at her first press conference). When Hearst bought her paper in 1918 she was out of a job. But in 1922 they renegotiated and she was given another gossip column. Ince was still alive. Her column became SYNDICATED nationwide in 1925 thus probably why this rumor.

Anger goes on to do fine, until he mentions the sell of Ince's mansion. He then claims it had peep holes above EVERY bed in the mansion. Another fanciful embellishment of Anger's. Anger also claims Hearst provided Ince's widow with a trust fund, but I've never read that anywhere else...so...I doubt it as well. 

Summary: Hearst did make some stories up, but whether he killed anyone is still up for debate. Whatever happened its unlikely Charlie was in the midst of passion with Marion at the time of the death/murder. And it is also likely Louella did NOT get her contract from all this.


Valentino and his Ladies

Obviously this is where I come out for blood. Valentino is dear to me and that’s probably obvious through this site. So a big reason for this article is I am tired of debunking the well placed Anger myths about Valentino and his wives. Anyone who tells you Valentino's wives were both lesbians likely got it from Anger. No one spread it before him, or at least not on a massive scale. This article details in depth just how that rumor came to be.  It's pretty easy to disprove too, but no one bothers it seems. So here we are. Let’s take on this pathetic chapter in this pathetic book.

The lesbian rumor isn’t THE ONLY rumor to come from this book about Valentino. In fact most Valentino rumors can be traced to it. Anger kicks the chapter off with the first one: the claim that Valentino died from a secret poisoning by an embittered lover. Considering the fact that Valentino wasn’t really that sex crazed Latin Lover in real life the absurdity comes through right there. It’s pretty easy to disprove, as Valentino was heartbroken over Natacha at the time of his death, and had spent the very few last months of his life trying to get over her. Anger's rumor also includes this revenge was for an affair during promotion for "Son of the Sheik" but he fails to take into account Valentino BARELY got to promote the film, he died weeks before its national release.

Just to go for broke on the crazy stuff Anger also claims it could have been syphilis. This started with Alberto Valentino in the 80s, though no hardcore proof has ever been given for it.  Could have been true, syphilis raged in the 1910s.  But again no proof for this specific claim.

Anger starts with a fact, and turns it into dribble. He says Valentino was constantly having his masculinity called into question at the end of his life, but then says it was over his promotion of 'Valvoline Face Cream'. Umm no. Valentino had always had his masculinity questioned as early as The Sheik due to his costumes being loose fitting (to men of the day this was effeminate). He also was teased over promoting Mineralava Beauty Products...in 1923-1924. Valentino died in 1926...thus making that whole sentence bunk.
Anger then goes on to publish the "Pink Powder Puff" article and get most of Valentino's outrage right. Then it hits. Anger's infamous line, "...when it became known he had married two lesbians". He then manages to mix the two women up so badly I have to literally laugh out loud.

Anger claims it was made public that Valentino and Natacha never consummated their marriage, and that she sought a divorce from him in 1926 (because she was a lesbian). In actuality Valentino and Natacha were rolling in the hay long before they were married, and before his marriage to Acker was over. Paul Ivano (his roommate) attests to this as do other people who were around them at the time. Natacha WAS NOT A LESBIAN. She dated a crazy Russian man before Valentino, she married Valentino, and she later married another man who looked like Valentino. If she was a lesbian she had a weiiiird way of showing it.  The rumor started with Valentino's divorce from Acker.  To save his own hide he had to lie and say they had not consummated their bigamy-tastic marriage.  Natacha remarried, a man, so divorcing Valentino due to lesbianism would indeed be an odd turn of events.

Anger then says a similar charge was lobbed during his marriage to Jean Acker who quote 'slighted her in the sexual department and slugged her'. Umm...no. Jean Acker WAS a lesbian. And she married Valentino to get out of her lesbian love triangle between Nazimova, Grace Darmond, and herself without ruining her career. Valentino was none the wiser and couldn’t understand why she locked him out of their bedroom on their wedding night. Valentino begged her for months to 'forgive him' (he thought he had done something wrong) and that he loved her and wanted to be with her. She ignored him and refused to tell him WHY she did what she did. One day so upset was he at her that he hit her after begging her to tell him what was going on. He had never done anything like it before or after but she had frustrated him that badly. He apologized profusely and they were later friends towards the end of his life.

Anger then claims his 'lesbian marriages overlapped before the divorce decree was finale'. Actually the divorce was final; the year waiting period which was law at the time was not. And again Natacha was not a lesbian.

Anger gets the part about Nazimova right, but then proceeds to make up things about Salome. He started the 'only homosexuals worked on the film' rumor (unproven and likely untrue) and failed to take note of the fact that the lesbian Alla had a few male affairs during her lifetime. Anger then claims Nazimova hooked Valentino up with both his wives, again untrue. Why would she hook her girlfriend up with a man?  She did however, introduce him to both wives for work purposes.

Anger then goes on to claim Valentino was attracted to 'butch' ladies. Acker never lived with Valentino so that’s irrelevant. Natacha wasn’t 'butch' (go look at her pics and get back to me on that one) but she was strong and yes he did like strong women...but most of the women in his life weren’t lesbians (the only exceptions are Acker and Nazimova). Anger claims Valentino called Natacha "The Boss" though I've never heard or read this anywhere so I doubt it. He did rely on her though. How can Anger get things so horribly wrong? Seriously what was this guy smoking?

Want proof? Hehe Anger goes on to claim Zucker had to ban Natacha off Paramount's sets because she was too controlling. And then apparently as retaliation Natacha ordered Rudy to leave Paramount. Umm...wrong. Valentino fought with Lasky at Famous Players-Lasky (later Paramount but not at the time) in 1922-1923. And he did it on his own free will. And then he on his own free will went on his 'strike'. Natacha was banned from his UNITED ARTISTS set, and not by just one person...it was likely several because of her reputation by then. But it had nothing to do with Zucker or 'Paramount'.

Anger goes on to say Natacha then wrote "The Hooded Falcon" (again no input from Rudy) as revenge and it was so bad it was unproducable. Actually Rudy was excited to do "The Hooded Falcon" and asked June Mathis to go off what Natacha wrote. What June wrote was deemed unacceptable by Natacha and what other writers and Natacha came up with was dubbed unproducable. The fiasco wasn’t FULLY her fault though.

Anger is also the source for the "Valentino Fan Suicide" stories. He claims 2 women and an overdramatic boy tried to kill themselves (or succeeded) after Valentino died. None of these have ever been proven. Anger then goes on to say Jean Acker caused a scene at his funeral something she wouldn’t have done if she had known 'he'd left her a dollar in his will'. Bravo Anger you managed to mix 3 WOMEN together for one rumor. POLA NEGRI made the scene, but was not in his will. JEAN ACKER was at his funeral but didn’t make a scene and was not in his will. NATACHA RAMBOVA was NOT at the funeral yet SHE was bequeathed $1 in his will, because he was upset with her over the divorce. Oddly Anger goes on to mention Pola...so he really was cracked up on something.

Anger goes on to mess up the memorial song for Valentino which is "There's a new star in heaven tonight" not "There's a New Star in Heaven tonight *spell out Valentino's name*". Anger then goes out with one more big blast, another hard to shake rumor HE CREATED but was never true. Anger claims Valentino gave an embossed black dildo with his signature on it to Ramon Navarro. Sometimes this rumor expands to Navarro's murders stuffing it down his throat (and causing his death). Everything just typed there is NOT true (Madam Valentino was the first to debunk it).

For starters there was no black dildo. Second, Valentino didn’t know Navarro and they likely only met once or twice, briefly. They were not close or lovers as this would insinuate (and I’m sure Anger fantasizes). Valentino was NOT gay, but Ramon was. He fought it all his life and was sadly murdered by two men he paid to come have sex with him. He choked to death on his own blood, not a dildo, let alone one signed by Valentino.  Biographer Andre Soares interviewed both murderers, both of whom said not a word of the story was true.

Summary: Everything Anger had to say about Valentino was untrue. Valentino was not gay, and he only married one lesbian (Jean Acker). Natacha Rambova was not a lesbian. There was no black dildo, and Valentino barely knew Ramon Navarro.

Christ that was exhausting. Click here for the final part 2.