Arbuckle told them - it was a story he always stuck to - that he had gone to use the bathroom where he found Rappe in a drunken faint on the floor. Elizabeth Fischer . During the carousing, a 30-year-old aspiring actress named Virginia Rappe was found seriously ill in room 1219 and was examined by the hotel doctor, who concluded her symptoms were mostly caused by intoxication and gave her morphine to calm her. At some point, Arbuckle and Rappe ended up together in a bedroom from where, a few minutes later, her screams were heard. He later worked as a film director under the pseudonym William Goodrich. [57] However, the project was shelved. Because the first trial ended with a hung jury, Arbuckle was tried again. [46], In 1932, Arbuckle signed a contract with Warner Bros. to star under his own name in a series of six two-reel comedies, to be filmed at the Vitaphone studios in Brooklyn, New York. "And he paid for it for the rest of his life. And it emerged in court that the prosecution had used intimidation to force several witnesses to testify against Arbuckle. 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. Silent film star Fatty Arbuckle indicted - the Guardian The first Arbuckle trial began on November 1921 and charged Arbuckle with manslaughter. What happened in room 1219? "Scandal hits industry," blared a Sept. 16, 1921, Variety. Arbuckle and friends checked into the St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco. Video'Trump or bust' - grassroots Republicans are still loyal, Why Trudeau is facing calls for a public inquiry. We feel also that it was only our plain duty to give him this exoneration, under the evidence, for there was not the slightest proof adduced to connect him in any way with the commission of a crime. [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. https://www.thoughtco.com/fatty-arbuckle-scandal-1779625 (accessed March 4, 2023). Virginia Rappe - Wikipedia [3], By the time of Arbuckle's third trial, his films had been banned, and newspapers had been filled for the past seven months with stories of Hollywood orgies, murder, and sexual perversion. Addie McPhail, 97; Actress, Last Wife of 'Fatty' Arbuckle A day later Rappe died from peritonitis, caused by a ruptured bladder. On Monday, September 5, the party started early. "[21], On September 5, 1921, Arbuckle took a break from his hectic film schedule and, despite suffering from second-degree burns to both buttocks from an on-set accident, drove to San Francisco with two friends, Lowell Sherman and Fred Fishback. [6], Arbuckle was nearly two when his family moved to Santa Ana, California. Virginia Rappe And Fatty Arbuckle: The Facts Behind The Scandal Film Comedian, Central Figure in Coast Tragedy in 1921, Long Barred From Screen. Among the guests was Virginia Rappe, a 30-year-old struggling actress who suffered from chronic cystitis, a bladder inflammation. Roscoe "fatty" Arbuckle - Turner Classic Movies I'm not. This film was loosely based on the misconceptions surrounding the Arbuckle scandal, yet it bears almost no resemblance to the documented facts of the case. The main character in the story is Dashiell Hammett, a Pinkerton detective in San Francisco at the time of the trials. [56] In 2007, director Kevin Connor planned a film, The Life of the Party, based on Arbuckle's life. [35] The divorce was granted the following January. Charlie Chaplin, who was in Britain at the time, told reporters that he could not and would not believe Arbuckle had anything to do with Rappe's death; having known Arbuckle since they both worked at Keystone in 1914, Chaplin "knew Roscoe to be a genial, easy-going type who would not harm a fly. In Good Company While at Universal, Arbuckle worked under comedy pioneer Mack Sennett. Babylon: Was 1920s Hollywood Really as Decadent as in the Film? - Variety The couple eventually became engaged and lived together, but in the United States Census of 1920, the young actress is listed as a "Boarder" in Lehrman's home in Los Angeles. [32], The second trial began January 11, 1922, with a new jury, but with the same legal defense and prosecution as well as the same presiding judge. Despite Arbuckle's acquittal, the scandal has mostly overshadowed his legacy as a pioneering comedian. Director: Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle. William Randolph Hearst's nationwide newspaper chain exploited the situation with exaggerated and sensationalized stories. Virginia Caroline Rappe (/rpe/; July 7, 1891 September 9, 1921)[2] was an American model and silent film actress. Oh, I thought he was magnificent in films. Virginia Rappe was a 26-year old aspiring actress and model, originally from Chicago, who had a reputation as something of a party girl. Tuesday, August 20, 2019. Arbuckle appeared alongside Keaton, Harold Lloyd, Rudolph Valentino, Douglas Fairbanks, and Jackie Coogan. Video, 'Trump or bust' - grassroots Republicans are still loyal, Alex Murdaugh jailed for life for double murder, AOC under investigation for Met Gala dress, Mother who killed her five children euthanised, Ukraine repels 'numerous attacks' in Bakhmut, Zoom boss Greg Tomb fired without cause, The children left behind in Cuba's exodus, Biden had skin cancer lesion removed - White House, US sues Exxon over nooses found at Louisiana plant. He suffered a heart attack later that night and died in his sleep. Guests to San Francisco's Westin St Francis Hotel still ask to see the room where an infamous bootleg-booze-soused party took place 90 years ago. Although that ban was later lifted, the actor remained blacklisted unofficially. Rappe was not hospitalized until two days after the incident.[3]. The first two trials resulted in hung juries, but Keaton testified for the defense in the third trial,[citation needed] which acquitted Arbuckle. Los Angeles-based film historian Cari Beauchamp says: "This was the first scandal in Hollywood with box office implications. Few know he was eventually acquitted of his crimes (after three trials). During the party in question, witnesses recalled that an intoxicated Rappe complained she could not breathe and then started to tear off her clothes. And this was not the first instance of Virginia Rappe stripping while intoxicated. After the reading of the apology statement, the jury foreman personally handed the statement to Arbuckle, who kept it as a treasured memento for the rest of his life. The Skinny on the Fatty Arbuckle Trial - Smithsonian Magazine His stage name was Fatty Arbuckle, and he was a big, graceful actor with acrobatic ingenuity and a befuddled. He started at the Selig Polyscope Company and eventually moved to Keystone Studios, where he worked with Mabel Normand and Harold Lloyd as well as with his nephew, Al St. John. We wish him success and hope that the American people will take the judgment of fourteen men and woman who have sat listening for thirty-one days to evidence, that Roscoe Arbuckle is entirely innocent and free from all blame. 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. Fatty Arbuckle got his first break while working at the hotel. During the deliberations, some jurors joined Hubbard in voting to convict, but they all recanted except for Thomas Kilkenny. ", "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. He had been very nice and sweetly dead ever since the scandal that ruined his career. 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. Before Weinstein: Virginia Rappe and Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle Roscoe Conkling Arbuckle was born in Smith Center, Kansas, on March 24, 1887, weighing more than 13 pounds. 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. After over two weeks of testimony with sixty prosecution and defense witnesses, including eighteen doctors who testified about Rappe's illness, the defense rested. Virginia Rappe (1891-1921) - Find a Grave Memorial Despite his popularity, no future Arbuckle films were to be released, the letter stated. His first part was with the Webster-Brown stock company. [6] Arbuckle then joined the Morosco Burbank Stock vaudeville company and went on a tour of China and Japan, returning in early 1909. Arbuckle seemed to give up on his passion and took odd jobs to get by. Film actor William S. Hart, who had never met or worked with Arbuckle, made a number of damaging public statements in which he presumed that Arbuckle was guilty. Zukor was faced with the moral outrage of various groups such as the Lord's Day Alliance, the powerful Federation of Women's Clubs and even the Federal Trade Commission to curb what they perceived as Hollywood debauchery run amok and its effect on the morals of the general public. 1977. [18], By 1916, Arbuckle was experiencing serious health problems. [25], Arbuckle's trial was a major media event. Arbuckle was heavyhe weighed somewhere between 250 and 300 poundsand that was part of his comedy. Gina Dimuro is a New York-based writer and translator. [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. Although cleared, Arbuckle faced ruinous legal bills and a public still widely convinced of his guilt. The Fatty Arbuckle Trial: The Injustice of the Century had grocery-store gags reminiscent of Arbuckle's 1917 short The Butcher Boy, with vaudeville comic Fritz Hubert as his assistant, dressed like Buster Keaton. Norgard said he refused to give him the key. The poor man was completely framed for the murder of Vriginia Rappe. But by this time, the scandal had so devastated Arbuckles career that the jury who acquitted him felt obliged to read an apologetic statement that concluded with We wish him success and hope that the American people will take the judgment of fourteen men and women that Roscoe Arbuckle is entirely innocent and free from all blame.. Paramount had just signed a giant $1 million ($13 million in today's money) deal with Fatty,. He had recently signed a deal with Paramount Pictures for a whopping $1 million (about $13 million today), an unheard-of sum at the time. Virginia Rappe died the following day from peritonitis, caused by a ruptured bladder.