Virginia Caroline Rappe ( / rpe /; July 7, 1891 - September 9, 1921) [2] was an American model and silent film actress. Working mostly in bit parts, Rappe died after attending a party with actor Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle, who was accused of manslaughter and rape in connection with her death, though he was ultimately acquitted of both charges. 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. Elizabeth Fischer . The first two cases ended in hung juries. In fact it is loosely based on the 1926 poem by Joseph Moncure March. Probably assuming Rappe would simply sleep it off, Arbuckle drove Taub into town. "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. The defense was so convinced of an acquittal that Arbuckle was not called to testify. The first two trials . Even so, the actor was tried three times. By . When Arbuckle portrayed a female, the character was named "Miss Fatty", as in the film Miss Fatty's Seaside Lovers. 237K views 1 year ago In 1921 Roscoe Fatty Arbuckle was charged with the murder of a young actress called Virginia Rappe. Los Angeles-based film historian Cari Beauchamp says: "This was the first scandal in Hollywood with box office implications. Are you sure Roscoe Arbuckle is getting one today? According to party guest Maude Delmont, after a few drinks, Arbuckle strong-armed Virginia Rappe into his room with the sinister utterance Ive waited for you five years, and now Ive got you. After 30 minutes or so, Delmont became concerned upon hearing screams from behind the closed door of Arbuckles room and started knocking. The public reaction to Arbuckle was fierce. For this trial, the jury deliberated for only a couple of minutes and came back with a verdict of not guilty. "[27] Buster Keaton reportedly did make one public statement in support of Arbuckle's innocence, a decision which earned him a mild reprimand from the studio where he worked. Some articles stated Arbuckle had crushed Rappe with his weight, while others said he had raped her with a foreign object (the papers went into graphic details). Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Although that ban was later lifted, the actor remained blacklisted unofficially. ThoughtCo. To celebrate just having finished three pictures at the same time and to celebrate his new contract with Paramount, Arbuckle and a couple of friends drove up from Los Angeles to San Francisco on Saturday, September 3, 1921, for some Labor Day weekend revelry. Then, one by one, the 12-person jury plus the two jury alternates walked up to Arbuckle's defense table, where they shook his hand and/or embraced and personally apologized to him. Perhaps even more than the specific charges of rape and murder, Arbuckle became a symbol of Hollywood's immorality. 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. At the hospital, Rappe's companion at the party, Bambina Maude Delmont, told a doctor that Arbuckle had raped her friend. The show consisted of the audience judging acts by clapping or jeering, with bad acts pulled off the stage by a shepherd's crook. On the day of Taylor's funeral, February 7, Arbuckle returned to Los Angeles . [18], By 1916, Arbuckle was experiencing serious health problems. The poor man was completely framed for the murder of Vriginia Rappe. [3] Virginia was then raised by her grandmother. Rappes detractors used this as evidence of her wild ways, while her defenders point out that she had a bladder condition that was exacerbated by alcohol and used to cause her such discomfort that she would drunkenly take off her clothes in an attempt to alleviate her condition. [13] Subsequent witnesses testified that Rappe had for some time suffered from cystitis, a condition which could have been aggravated by consuming alcohol. Arbuckle and Fischbach then took her to room 1227 and called the hotel manager and doctor. [34] With Arbuckle's films now banned, in March 1922 Keaton signed an agreement to give Arbuckle thirty-five percent of all future profits from his production company, Buster Keaton Comedies, in hopes of easing his financial situation. "[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. It also didnt help Delmonts credibility that shed sent telegrams to attorneys saying WE HAVE ROSCOE ARBUCKLE IN A HOLE HERE CHANCE TO MAKE SOME MONEY OUT OF HIM.. Ultimately, the judge found no evidence of rape. ", "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. Read about our approach to external linking. [60], Arbuckle is the subject of a 2004 novel titled I, Fatty by author Jerry Stahl. On Eve of his Comeback. The Fatty Arbuckle case Ocr ABBYY FineReader 9.0 Page-progression lr Pages 168 Ppi 350 Scandate 20150707143654 Scanner scribe6.nj.archive.org Scanningcenter nj Sponsor-mhdl University of South Carolina Libraries Year 1962 Year_end 1962. 'Fatty' Arbuckle in silent film The Waiters' Ball, from 1916. "Rappe was definitely in the wrong place at the wrong time because she wound up dead. [citation needed], The 2021 French graphic novel Fatty: le premier roi d'Hollywood, by Nadar and Julien Frey, portrays the period from Arbuckle's early days in Hollywood to his death. [3], The scandal and trials had greatly damaged Arbuckle's popularity among the general public. "A grave injustice has been done.". The media had a field day with the story . The charge was later reduced to manslaughter. Fatty Arbuckle's suite. Farley's film was signed with Vince Vaughn as his co-star. According to Buster Keaton, Hearst boasted that Arbuckle's story sold more papers than thesinking of the Lusitania. Arbuckle was later acquitted by. However, since many of Lehrman's films are lost, the exact number of roles she performed for him cannot be determined. 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. The 30-year-old former host of "Cheaters" was laid to rest Saturday in Provo, Utah during a private ceremony. But nine decades on, the mystery remains: why did Virginia Rappe die? His highest-profile project was arguably The Red Mill, also released in 1927, a Marion Davies vehicle. She, along with Maude Delmont and Al Semnacher went to a party thrown by Arbuckle on Labor Day 1921. These six short films constitute the only recordings of Arbuckle's voice. Fatty Arbuckles night club in Coventry 3rd December 20011 of 4. There was a focus on large portions served on 13-inch plates. On December 4, 1921, the jury returned five days later deadlocked after nearly forty-four hours of deliberation with a 102 not guilty verdict, and a mistrial was declared. He would appear in several more Selig shorts before signing with Universal Studios in 1913. The Vitaphone shorts were very successful in America,[46] although when Warner Bros. attempted to release the first one (Hey, Pop!) Arbuckle answered the door wearing his foolish screen smile and Virginia Rappe was on the bed, naked and moaning in pain. What happened in the following ten minutes is disputed. By 1916, at the age of 21, she was earning $4,000 a year ($66,000 today) from her dress designs. Delmont was touring the country giving one-woman shows as, "The woman who signed the murder charge against Arbuckle", and lecturing on the evils of Hollywood. I'm not. [3], On September 17, 1921, Arbuckle was arrested and arraigned on charges of manslaughter. In his testimony, Arbuckle denied he had any knowledge of Rappe's illness. [citation needed], Fatty Arbuckle's was an American-themed restaurant chain in the UK named after Arbuckle. Arbuckle discouraged anyone from addressing him as "Fatty" off-screen, and when they did so his usual response was, "I've got a name, you know. The Day the Laughter Stopped by David Yallop and Frame-Up! He directed most of his output from 1914 and onwards. Arbuckle was charged with first-degree murder, eventually reduced to manslaughter. [citation needed], This article is about the actor Roscoe Arbuckle. He arranged bail after nearly three weeks in jail. In one of the first major Hollywood scandals, the beloved and overweight film star "Fatty" Arbuckle is accused of raping and murdering Virginia Rappe. The shocking legacy of the Dutch 'Hunger Winter', Why Alex Murdaugh was spared the death penalty, 'Trump or bust' - grassroots Republicans are still loyal. The public was angry and they were using Arbuckle as a target. Web. He stood trial 3 times and it destroyed his reputation and also his. When he was a teenager, Arbuckle traveled the West Coast on the vaudeville circuit. No one seems to remember the comedic genius of Fatty Arbuckle. 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. At a raucous, three-day party in September 1921, a young starlet became severely ill and died four days later. Author David Yallop cites Arbuckle's father's full name as William Goodrich Arbuckle as the inspiration behind the alias. Arbuckle's lawyers found physicians in San Francisco for authority and physicians in Chicago who would state for the record that they treated or may have treated Virginia Rappe between 1908 and 1914. Arbuckle seemed to give up on his passion and took odd jobs to get by. The funeral of Earl Hamilton Frye, of whose death at St. Paul, Jan. 18, we reported last week, was held last Thurs She was 97. Norgard said he refused to give him the key. Rappe was not taken to the hospital on that day. But it was such an amazing thing for me to come in to make this broken-down picture, and to find my director was the great Roscoe Arbuckle. (2021, September 2). Evidence can be lost, witnesses change their stories, and criminals can lie, making cases very difficult to decide. Skully after being charged with the murder of Virginia Rappe, San Francisco, 1921. The third jury took the unusual step of giving Arbuckle a written statement of apology for his treatment by the justice system. 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. Seventeen people in cast. Although Comique produced some of the best short pictures of the silent era, Arbuckle transferred his controlling interest in the company to Buster Keaton in 1918 and accepted Paramount's $3million offer to make up to 18 feature films over three years. Dr. Beardslee admitted that Rappe had never mentioned being assaulted while he was treating her. On April 18, 1922, six days after Arbuckle's acquittal, Hays banned him from ever working in U.S. movies again. The role: Fatty Arbuckle In 1997, Chris Farley began planning his first dramatic film, a biopic about silent film star Fatty Arbuckle, a heavyset actor who was falsely accused of. Photo: File photo. 1921. He moved gracefully, threw pies, and humorously tumbled. Hollywoods highest-paid star was now box office poison: his movies were pulled from cinemas and he never worked onscreen again. Dear Mick: You state, regarding the Fatty Arbuckle alleged rape-murder incident, "That crime never happened." However, since you were not there, you can't truthfully say it "never happened." The first two trials ended in hung juries, indicating that the evidence was not open and shut. Arbuckle hated the nickname "Fatty" and insisted that his friends and acquaintances always address him by his real first name, Roscoe. But as it turned out, she had peritonitis resulting from a ruptured bladder likely caused by her pre-existing condition. 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. [29], In November 1923, Minta Durfee filed for divorce from Arbuckle, charging grounds of desertion. Although Arbuckle was never tried for sexual assault, this notion has endured, largely because of how the trial was reported at the time. But then Rappe uttered the words that would damn the star: "He did this to me.". [3], Most exhibitors still declined to show Arbuckle's films, several of which now have no copies known to have survived intact. Hubbard's husband was a lawyer who did business with the D.A. [61] The 1963 novel Scandal in Eden by Garet Rogers[62] is a fictionalized version of the Arbuckle scandal. After Arbuckle was arrested, the San Francisco D.A., one Matthew Brady, a man who wanted to be governor of California, pursued the case with a vengeance. After a third trial in 1922, the jury took just a few minutes to unanimously acquit Arbuckle - he was found guilty only of drinking bootleg alcohol. He retreated into alcoholism. Public safetyLast week a 34-year-old mother was killed in North Rhine-Westphalia when a German-born man with Serbian roots pushed her into the path of an oncoming train. One of the films (How've You Bean?) He was 46 years old. [6], In 1904, Sid Grauman invited Arbuckle to sing in his new Unique Theater in San Francisco, beginning a long friendship between the two. A second Fatty Arbuckle's restaurant was opened in Bournemouth in 1985. One of Arbuckle's feature-length films known to survive is Leap Year, which Paramount declined to release in the U.S. owing to the scandal. 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. Why Alex The Parrot May Have Been The World's Smartest Bird [VIDEO], Bill Gates Funds Diabolical Plot To Eliminate Malaria Using Genetically Modified Mosquitoes, What Stephen Hawking Thinks Threatens Humankind The Most, 27 Raw Images Of When Punk Ruled New York, Join The All That's Interesting Weekly Dispatch. Around 3 o'clock, Arbuckle retired from the party in order to get dressed to go sight-seeing with a friend. Keaton attempted to help Arbuckle by giving him work on his films. Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle had long been a performer. The case led to the establishing of a Hollywood censorship board, which ruled that Arbuckle should never work in the industry again. Between 1924 and 1932, Arbuckle directed a number of comedy shorts under the pseudonym for Educational Pictures, which featured lesser-known comics of the day. After this news was released, the public went wild with rumors about how Arbuckle was involved.
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