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Taylorology Issue 22
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* T A Y L O R O L O G Y *
* A Continuing Exploration of the Life and Death of William Desmond Taylor *
* *
* Issue 22 -- October 1994 Editor: Bruce Long bruce@asu.edu *
* TAYLOROLOGY may be freely distributed *
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CONTENTS OF THIS ISSUE:
The 1937 Grand Jury Investigation
Statements by Carl Stockdale
Where was Adolph Zukor on February 2, 1922?
Interviews with Julia Crawford Ivers
Who was the Drug-Addicted Scenario Writer?
What was the Real Name of Mary Miles Minter?
The Path of the Fatal Bullet
Wallace Smith: February 20, 1922
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What is TAYLOROLOGY?
TAYLOROLOGY is a newsletter focusing on the life and death of William Desmond
Taylor, a top Paramount film director in early Hollywood who was shot to
death on February 1, 1922. His unsolved murder was one of Hollywood's major
scandals. This newsletter will deal with: (a) The facts of Taylor's life;
(b) The facts and rumors of Taylor's murder; (c) The impact of the Taylor
murder on Hollywood and the nation. Primary emphasis will be given toward
reprinting, referencing and analyzing source material, and sifting it for
accuracy.
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The 1937 Grand Jury Investigation
In May 1937, the Los Angeles County Grand Jury investigated the Taylor
murder. No indictments were handed down, and all testimony was eventually
destroyed. (There is nothing conspiratorial here; it is standard procedure to
destroy all grand jury testimony if no indictments are handed down.) Despite
the fact that the official records are not extant, it is possible to
reconstruct some of the proceedings, based on newspaper reports, the Sanderson
letter, and public testimony presented elsewhere.
The spark that triggered the investigation was the April 3, 1937
testimony of Margaret Shelby Fillmore, given at a deposition for a civil
lawsuit she had filed against her mother, Charlotte Shelby. Margaret
testified that "I protected her [Charlotte] against the Taylor murder
case." [1] She also testified that Mary Miles Minter had "two diaries that
were so diabolical and so pathetic that they made Mary Astor's diaries look
like a postscript." (There had recently been a lot of publicity about actress
Mary Astor's diaries.)
Shortly after that testimony was given, the following letter was sent
from Charlotte Shelby's Attorney, Clyde Murphy, to Los Angeles County District
Attorney Buron Fitts:
"I am attorney of record for the defendant, Mrs. Charlotte Shelby, in a
certain civil action entitled 'Margaret Fillmore, also known as Alma M.
Fillmore, plaintiff vs. Pearl Miles Reilly, also known as Charlotte Shelby,
defendant' in the Superior Court.
"On Saturday, April 3, 1937, I took a deposition (which has not yet been
transcribed, corrected and signed) of Margaret Fillmore under the provisions
of Sections 2021 and 2055 of the Code of Civil Procedure. Mrs. Fillmore,
during the course of the deposition, testified in effect that her mother, in
the year 1923, agreed to give her all the proceeds of the sale of a certain
piece of real estate in Laughlin Park over and above the amount paid by Mrs.
Shelby for the property when she (Mrs. Shelby) purchased it. I asked Mrs.
Fillmore what she had given to her mother in return for this agreement on her
mother's part, and she testified as follows:
" 'I protected her against the Taylor murder case.'
"Further efforts on my part to get an explanation of this testimony were
met by objections from her attorney, Mr. Richard Cantillon, to whom,
I believe, the testimony was as surprising as it was to me. This testimony in
my judgment is unusual enough to warrant an investigation on your part.
"My client, Mrs. Charlotte Shelby, was not present when the deposition
was taken. When I advised her of the testimony given by her daughter, she
instructed me instantly to lay the matter before you and request an immediate
investigation if you deem an investigation advisable. This request I most
respectfully make of you.
"If there is any assistance which either Mrs. Shelby or I may render your
office, please feel perfectly free in requesting it of us.
"Yours very truly,
"Clyde F. Murphy"
"I have requested my attorney, Clyde F. Murphy, to write the foregoing
letter, and I join most heartily in the request made by him.
"Charlotte Shelby" [2]
On May 6, 1937, District Attorney Buron Fitts made the following
statement:
"I have ordered Mrs. Shelby and her two daughters, Miss Minter and
Mrs. Fillmore, to be before the grand jury today. Subpenas were served on them
last night. Two diaries, believed at first to contain highly important facts
and so-called 'clues' in respect to the Taylor murder, were seized by my
officers and have been examined.
"It had been previously reported to my office that these diaries held
the secret of the Taylor killing. On perusal, we find them to be of utterly
no value in this case. They contain no information of any sort that would aid
the officers in this inquiry. Both diaries were filled with routine, intimate
details of a day-to-day life, and I do not feel free to allow their contents
to be made public at this time. However, I feel it is my duty to present such
information to the grand jury, and therefore I am doing so." [3]
MARGARET SHELBY FILLMORE
The first witness to testify before the grand jury was Margaret
Fillmore. She made no statements to reporters concerning the specific details
of her testimony. However, on May 5 she made a statement to the official
investigators in the district attorney's office, and that statement was
summarized in Sanderson's 1941 letter. [4] It is reasonable to assume that
Margaret's grand jury testimony was essentially similar to her statement made
on the previous day. Margaret stated:
1. On the night of the murder Charlotte Shelby was not at home and she
feared that Mary was going to run away with Taylor.
2. On the day of the murder Mary Miles Minter left early in the evening
and return later in tears.
3. Mary stated to her that she thought her mother killed Taylor or was
present when he was killed.
4. During August 1922, Julia Miles (Charlotte Shelby's mother) took
Shelby's gun to Louisiana and disposed of it.
5. For many years after the murder, Charlotte Shelby was afraid that Mary
would implicate her in the Taylor murder.
6. In 1916, Mary's director, James Kirkwood, took Mary into the woods and
performed a "mock marriage ceremony", declaring that they were married in the
eyes of God. Sexual relations followed, Mary became pregnant, and Charlotte
Shelby arranged for an abortion.
7. Letters written from Kirkwood to Mary were intercepted by Charlotte
Shelby and held for many years.
MARY MILES MINTER
The second witness to testify before the grand jury was Mary Miles
Minter. It was reported:
"In her appearance before the grand jury Thursday Miss Minter read into
the record a letter written by her attorney, Eugene Marcus, and sent to
Fitts, declaring she considered the diaries seized from 'her own personal
property.' She warned the District Attorney that any use of them for
'purposes other than that of a legitimate investigation' would be considered
by her an invasion of her personal rights." [5]
Mary talked a great deal with reporters before entering the grand jury
room, but not afterwards. She was undoubtedly asked details of her romance
with Kirkwood and the abortion. "When Miss Minter left the grand jury room
she was asked by reporters if she told the jurors about the romance with
Kirkwood. Her reply, also dramatic, was: 'Wouldn't you like to know.' " [6]
(In the newspaper reports of the time, there was no mention whatsoever of the
abortion.)
"Concerning this romance, Attorney Eugene Marcus, representing
Miss Minter, said: 'It is true that there was an unfortunate affair with
Mr. Kirkwood when Mary Minter was only 14 or 15 years old. There was a motor
trip to Santa Barbara and a sort of marriage ceremony while she stood on a
rock in a field of wild flowers and he knelt at her feet." [7]
Minter was undoubtedly asked whether she thought her mother killed
Taylor, and she undoubtedly replied that in her opinion, Charlotte Shelby
was completely innocent of Taylor's murder and had nothing whatsoever to do
with it. (That is what she said to reporters at the time and later.)
CHARLOTTE SHELBY
Charlotte Shelby was the final witness called before the grand jury. Prior
to entering the grand jury room, she spoke with reporters and gave a prepared
statement:
"I am delighted that Mr. Fitts responded so quickly to my request to
reopen the investigation of the Taylor murder case. For the past fifteen years
there have been many rumors circulated, innumerable threats used against me
and now practically a formal charge by my own daughter, Mrs. Margaret Shelby
Fillmore, to the effect that I withheld important facts and she assisted me in
withholding them from the authorities.
"If she or any other person has any facts concerning the murder of
William Desmond Taylor I demand that they be disclosed immediately.
"Unfortunately, my daughter, Mrs. Fillmore, is very bitter toward me
because circumstances last summer forced me to take rather drastic steps for
my daughter's own good." [8] (A reference to Margaret's commitment to a
sanitarium for alcoholism.)
After her appearance before the grand jury, Charlotte Shelby spoke with
reporters, who wrote: "in answer to questions whether she had been asked if
she killed Taylor or knew who did: 'I said "No," to both questions. They
didn't even question me about what Margaret told them, whatever that was.' "
[9]
" 'They asked me if I had a gun in 1920 or thereabouts and I testified
that about that time Harry Eaves, a Santa Barbara jeweler, from whom I had
purchased many expensive gifts for Mary and others, gave me a pearl-handled
gun. I did not know whether it was an automatic or a revolver. I fired this
gun once out in the woods and do not know what became of it." [10]
"She said she had the gun when Taylor was slain and also said she once
had gone to his home in search of Miss Minter, whose return home from a film
studio was overdue." [11]
WRAP-UP
After the three women testified, grand jury foreman John Bauer made the
following statement: "The jury was satisfied with the demeanor of the
witnesses, all of whom appeared cooperative. The grand jury has no knowledge
of anyone to call for more data at this time. However, the investigation is
pending." [12] No further action was taken by the grand jury.
Several days later, Charlotte Shelby made public the following written
statement:
"For more than ten years malicious innuendoes and rumors against me have
been circulated in the William Desmond Taylor murder case.
"Even in the grand jury hearing last week, I was asked whether I knew
that these statements that I had killed William Desmond Taylor were being
made.
"Recently, my daughter, Margaret Shelby Fillmore, in a civil suit, which
she has filed against me, made a statement in a deposition to the effect that
she had 'protected' me in the Taylor murder case. When my attorney, Clyde F.
Murphy, advised me of this statement by my daughter, I notified District
Attorney Buron Fitts immediately and requested the investigation which is now
in progress.
"I have been questioned about my ownership of a gun. The person who gave
me the gun has been questioned. There is a story that I hired Sands,
Mr. Taylor's butler, to kill him. Another story is that I procured his murder
by hiring some professional murderer to do the job.
"I demand a complete exoneration in this case or an indictment for the
murder of William Desmond Taylor, which I will regard as an opportunity to
exonerate myself in the public mind.
"I did not kill William Desmond Taylor. I do not know the person who did
kill him. I do not know any person who would have the slightest reason or
motive to kill him. I know that no member of my family or anyone in close
relationship to me killed him or had a reason or motive to kill him.
"I have my own life to live. One of the worst tortures for any person,
particularly to a woman, to endure is, to go through life with a cloud of
malicious innuendo constantly hovering over her like a spectre.
"Why must William Desmond Taylor's murder follow me through the years?
I want to live the rest of my life in happiness and peace, if I may be
permitted to do so.
"Charlotte Shelby" [13]
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Statements by Carl Stockdale
June 10, 1937
LOS ANGELES NEWS
It was divulged that Carl Stockdale, veteran character actor and close
friend of Mrs. Charlotte Shelby, mother of Mary Miles Minter, screen star who
collapsed at news of Taylor's death, had admitted that he was in the company
of Mrs. Shelby at the time Taylor is believed to have been murdered.
Stockdale, interviewed at his home, 6325 Fountain Avenue, chuckled when
asked for his own conclusions on the long unsolved murder.
"So Fitts thinks I killed William Desmond Taylor," he remarked. "I'll
tell you this, I was never in Bill Taylor's home. I met him at a big party
thrown by Mrs. Shelby."
Pressed for his own suspicions of the killer's identity, Stockdale
promptly answered, "Sands." He referred to Taylor's one-time chauffeur [sic],
Edward Sands, whose mysterious disappearance immediately after the murder and
before authorities could question him, has caused his name to be listed among
those "wanted for questioning" by police.
The veteran actor, now 63, declared he was with Mrs. Charlotte Shelby at
her home the night Taylor was murdered February 1, 1922. He fixed the time of
his visit from 7 to 9 p.m. Police have set the hour of the shooting at
7:45 p.m.
"I told my brother, Frank," Stockdale said, "that I was droppin' in on
Mrs. Shelby that night."
Stockdale said he first met Mrs. Shelby in Santa Barbara at the time
when her daughter, Mary Miles Minter was working for the old American Film
Company.
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June 10, 1937
LOS ANGELES TIMES
While authorities deferred definite action yesterday in the
investigation into the fifteen-year-old murder of William Desmond Taylor, a
63-year-old film character actor stepped forward to make the most important
statement to be added recently to the mazes of California's most famous
murder mystery.
The new figure in the case is Carl Stockdale, for years well known as an
actor in Hollywood and who now lives at 6325 Fountain Avenue.
Disclosing that he had been a close friend of Mrs. Charlotte Shelby,
mother of Mary Miles Minter, the latter, who admitted she was in love with
Taylor at the time of his slaying, Stockdale had this to say yesterday:
"I have expected the authorities to question me for some time and have
made no effort to evade such interrogation despite the fact that no one
welcomes publicity of the sort.
"I was with Mrs. Shelby on the night that Taylor was murdered at about
the time fixed by the authorities that the fatal bullet was fired. That may
be considered of importance to the authorities and is information I am quite
willing to give."
Stockdale indicated that he is in complete sympathy with a statement
recently issued by Mrs. Shelby in which she declared that, sick of the
innuendoes which have followed in the wake of the Taylor murder, she wanted
action to clear up the case once and for all.
Although apparently unwilling to move at once, the District Attorney's
office yesterday stated that Stockdale is scheduled to be questioned before
the present investigation is concluded.
"I am willing to tell all I know to the District Attorney or anyone
else," commented the actor. "I have known Mrs. Shelby and her family for
approximately twenty years. I was living on Winona Boulevard with my brother
Frank, and my mother and father on the day of the shooting of Taylor.
"In the evening I left my home and went to pay a visit to Mrs. Shelby in
the new house she had purchased at Seventh street and New Hampshire avenue.
I arrived shortly before 7 o'clock in the evening and left about 9 o'clock."
Taylor, as near as authorities could fix the time, was shot about
7:45 p.m. on February 1, 1922. Several persons in the neighborhood of his
bungalow at 404-B South Alvarado street reported hearing a shot at that time.
"I was the first person," went on Stockdale, "to inform Mrs. Shelby that
Taylor had been killed. That was about 9 o'clock the next morning. I had gone
to the studio where I was working on a picture with Mabel Normand and some
one told me that Taylor had been found dead. I telephoned Mrs. Shelby at once
because I knew that he had been Mary's director and that the whole family
knew him well."
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August 26, 1937
LOS ANGELES EXAMINER
When a bullet snuffed out the life of William Desmond Taylor, noted
picture director, in 1922, Mrs. Charlotte Shelby was at home.
Carl Stockdale, veteran actor and friend of Mrs. Shelby, so testified in
Superior Judge Parker Wood's court yesterday.
He appeared as a defense witness in trial of the civil suit by which
Margaret Shelby Fillmore, Mrs. Shelby's daughter, is seeking to regain
$48,750 in bonds, which she contends her mother removed from a joint safety
deposit box.
"I was with Mrs. Shelby from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. in her apartment at
Seventh street and New Hampshire avenue the night of the murder," Stockdale
stated.
"I did not know of the tragedy until the following morning when I
arrived for work at the Mack Sennett Studios.
"I immediately called Mrs. Shelby and told her to prepare herself for a
shock. Then I told her Mr. Taylor had been slain.
"She screamed: 'Impossible!' "
The actor's testimony, while perhaps not strictly pertinent to the
present suit, was introduced to answer certain pointed intimations made
during its trial, attorneys explained.
Mary Miles Minter and the late Mabel Normand frequently were mentioned
in gossip concerning the Taylor mystery, Stockdale said. But at no time had
he heard rumors that Mrs. Shelby might be involved as a suspect, he added.
The actor also testified that he had seen Mrs. Fillmore under the
influence of liquor four times between 1925 and 1931.
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August 26, 1937
LOS ANGELES NEWS
...Stockdale's testimony was in the nature of a reply to that of Mrs.
Fillmore two days ago when she said she did not know her mother's whereabouts
at the hour of the murder.
Cross-examined as to whether he had ever heard that Mrs. Shelby was a
suspect in the murder, the veteran actor replied, "I did not hear any such
rumors, but I did hear rumors that Mary (Miss Minter) and Mabel Normand were
suspected of the murder."
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Where was Adolph Zukor on February 2, 1922?
Adolph Zukor was the head of the Famous Players-Lasky Corporation
(Paramount Pictures). Some later recaps of the Taylor case stated that on
February 2, 1922, soon after Taylor's body was found, Adolph Zukor was at
Taylor's bungalow, destroying evidence and burning compromising papers in
Taylor's fireplace. In truth, Taylor's home had no fireplace.
But was Zukor even there that morning? There are no contemporary press
reports or official records which indicated his presence at the scene. Still,
could he possibly have been there?
No, it was not possible.
The executive headquarters of Famous Players-Lasky was in New York City;
that was where Zukor's office was located. Zukor was interviewed in New York
by Louella Parsons on February 1, 1922. [14] Two days later, on February 3,
Cecil B. DeMille returned from Europe and press reports indicated that he was
met at the New York pier by Adolph Zukor. [15]
So at the time of the Taylor murder, and on the morning the body was
discovered, Zukor was in New York. He was nowhere near the Los Angeles murder
scene.
The scandal caused by the Taylor murder did indeed bring Zukor to Los
Angeles, but he did not arrive until 11 days after the murder, as reported in
the LOS ANGELES EXAMINER on February 13, 1922:
"Adolph Zukor, president of Famous Players-Lasky Corporation, by whom
Taylor was employed, arrived in Los Angeles yesterday afternoon [February 12,
1922]. Zukor immediately went into seclusion and refused to be interviewed on
any subject yesterday."
Zukor was en route back to New York on February 24. [16]
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Interviews with Julia Crawford Ivers
Julia Crawford Ivers was closely associated with Taylor for over six years
and wrote the scenarios for most of his Paramount films. After Taylor's
murder, her career soon faded.
When Mary Miles Minter was interrogated by Deputy District Attorney
William Doran, on February 7, 1922, Minter recalled a conversation with
Marshall Neilan in which Minter stated that the only person she could think
of who might have killed Taylor was Julia Crawford Ivers. But Ivers was never
seriously considered a suspect.
Reticent and shy of personal publicity, she gave very few interviews
throughout her career. [17] The following are some isolated exceptions:
October 16, 1920
Giebler
MOVING PICTURE WORLD
I had the pleasure of making the acquaintance of Julia Crawford Ivers, of
the scenario department, a lady who occupies a large and closely written page
in the "Who's Who and Why, and What and When, and Where, and How Come" of
Filmland.
Miss Ivers says she has done almost everything around a studio but sweep
the floor. She was six years at the Morosco studio before coming to the Lasky
plant, where she held every position from film cutter and editor to
superintendent of the plant. [Ivers also directed several films.]
Miss Ivers has a large number of original stories and adaptations to her
credit, including Tom Sawyer, Huck and Tom, The Furnace, The Soul of Youth,
two stories as yet unnamed to be produced by Mary Miles Minter, and The
Witching Hour, now being made by William D. Taylor; and in addition to this,
she has published stories and articles in many of the leading magazines.
She is a person of decided opinions as to the writer and his relation to
the finished film.
"The writer is only a helper," she says, "and sometimes very poor help.
More stories have been spoiled than made by writers who tried to put them in
picture form, and if many of the writers who are yelping for credit on the
screen should be debited with the lack of imagination and lack of vision they
display, they would have no more to say."
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February 7, 1922
LOS ANGELES EXAMINER
Julia Crawford Ivers, scenarist for the late William D. Taylor, yesterday
gave out the following statement:
"Today the friends of William D. Taylor, and they are legion, will gather
to pay the last tribute to the man they love, to one who as man, director and
friend measured 100 per cent.
"I have worked side by side with this man for seven years. We have solved
many difficult problems together, sometimes pleasant, sometimes unpleasant:
always hard, trying nerve-wracking. And during all these years of close
association I have never known him to do one unkind, one ungenerous act, but I
have known hundreds of instances of open-handed generosity and in most cases
the beneficiary never knew whom to thank.
"This man whose loyalty and honor were without question, who takes with
him the undying gratitude of the thousands to whom he has lent a helping
hand--this man who stood for everything that was fine and clean in pictures,
who is known to have declared that if it were necessary to his success to
produce unclean pictures he would go back to the white, clean snows of Alaska
and dig his living out of the ground--this man was shot in the back by a
cowardly assassin. He was given no opportunity to defend himself and William
D. Taylor would have defended himself, for he did not know the meaning of the
word fear. And more cowardly than the assassin's bullet, lodged in the heart
of this dear man, is the tongue of scandal, which safely sheltered behind his
dead body, is striking at his reputation--more cowardly for he is powerless to
defend himself.
"His friends know that when it is all over the character of Mr. Taylor
will stand, as it always has stood, for everything that is fine and worth
while.
"The good book says, 'Let him who is without sin cast the first stone.'
And it is recorded that no stones were cast."
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April 29, 1922
HONOLULU ADVERTISER
Scenario Writer is Seeking Material from Old Hawaiian Legends
Hawaii may really find favor in the big motion picture studios and its
wealth of legendary lore form the subject of a play or two to be presented to
millions of movie fans under the name of Jesse Lasky, providing Miss Julia
Crawford Ivers, his foremost scenario writer, find the legends and myths
appropriate for filming.
Miss Ivers arrived on the Matsonia from Los Angeles, accompanied by her
secretary, Miss Aldrich, and although here but three days, she is already
delving deep into legends and also the history of Hawaii, particularly that
relating to old feudal Hawaii.
Whether her readings, her conversations with Island folk acquainted with
legends, and her observations, will lead her into the path that will
eventually open out into the appropriate theme, she does not know, but she has
hopes.
To further acquaint herself with the Islands and to absorb the atmosphere
of old and new Hawaii, she will visit Kauai next week, leaving here Monday or
Tuesday night and remaining a few days on the Garden Island.
The following week she will go to Hilo, taking her car, and will motor
over to Kalapana, all through Puna, thence to the Volcano, and then around to
Kona, where she will learn all she can of Kealakekua Bay, the scene of Captain
Cook's discovery and tragedy; the city of refuge at Honaunau and may possibly
go into Kohala, which abounds in historic wealth.
Miss Ivers says she has been a scenario writer with the Lasky interest
for about eight years and during seven years of that time was closely
associated in motion picture production with William D. Taylor, whose tragic
death caused a temporary suspension of much work planned.
"Mr. Taylor was a splendid picture director," said Miss Ivers. "He was a
man of fine attainments. He was sympathetic and those who worked with and
under his direction regarded him as one with whom it was a pleasure to be
associated.
"My own work as a scenario writer was pleasurable from the fact that
there was co-operation. He wanted the best and we desired to give him only the
best. He was a credit to the motion picture service and will be a loss to it,
for he was of a constructive type, doing the best with the highest class of
material."
It was partly because of his death that Miss Ivers dropped her own
activities for a time, superinduced by a cold, resulting in the end in a
determination to visit Hawaii, with Mr. Lasky's injunction that she delve into
Hawaiian legends and find whether any of them can be filmed.
Miss Ivers is at the Seaside hotel. She makes no promises, but is reading
much about Hawaii. She is dictating morning and afternoon. She is going here
and there where details of Hawaiian life may be learned.
If such a motion picture play is to be written it may not deal entirely
with legends, but legends may be woven into a modern type of play.
The story of the Goddess Pele, who dwells in Kilauea volcano, has
attracted much of her attention and her own visit to the volcano in a week or
so will have that much more interest for her. There is a dramatic, tragic,
firey element in Pele which may be converted to the screen, in her opinion.
Much of Miss Ivers' work at the studio in Los Angeles is associated
directly with literary folk, writers of books whose names are known throughout
the reading world--Sir Gilbert Parker, Sydney [sic] Maugham, Elinor Glyn and
many others. It is Miss Ivers who takes their books and prepares or directs
the preparation of scenarios for the director.
It is this contact between the scenario writer and the authors that
counts for success or failure in the motion picture product. If the scenario
writer is sympathetic and endeavors to get the soul of the author's intent,
there are exceptional possibilities. If not, there is more likely to be a
failure in the interpretation.
Many books to be screened must be ripped to pieces. As the story is
written it can seldom be filmed. The change is the task of the scenario
writer.
Life must have been lived by scenario writers to really interpret a story
for the screen for the eyes of the millions of theater patrons. Phases of life
that are near the raw edge of actuality and realism may not be interpreted by
the old maid who has not seen life and whose first impulse, and probably her
last, is to eliminate that particular phase. A man of sensual thought may
regard that particular phase as one to work into a maudlin interpretation
which would be offensive.
Between these two extremes there is the middle course and that path must
be taken by the writer who understands life and understands the multiplicity
of types and characters that patronize the theaters.
Miss Ivers is a hard worker. She maintains high ideals as to picture
production. Hers is a constant study of human nature. Philosophy and
psychology are tangible factors with her, for both play important parts in
decisions as to the worth of stories and the filmed product.
"I must necessarily write in dashes where authors employ sentences and
paragraphs," said Miss Ivers discussing her method of writing. "I cull and
cut, where book writers must enlarge and pad."
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October 3, 1922
HONOLULU STAR-BULLETIN
A dramatic love story with all the gripping beauty of the Hawaiian
islands as a background is what Mrs. Julia Crawford Ivers, scenario writer and
director for the Lasky corporation, has come to Honolulu to film.
The beaches, mountains, gardens and palm trees of Oahu and Hawaii are to
provide the setting for the story, which Mrs. Ivers says could be produced
nowhere else in the world. "I wrote the scenario here," she told a
representative of the Star-Bulletin at the Moana today, "and this is the only
spot in the universe where it can be filmed as it should be. It is imbued with
the breath of the islands. When I returned to Los Angeles after my visit here
last spring, at which time I gathered material for the scenario, Mr. Lasky
asked me if the picture could not be produced on the mainland. 'I'll read you
the story,' I replied, and I did. He had nothing more to say, and here we are
ready to work.
While the picture was not planned with the specific idea of giving
publicity to the islands, it still will be of tremendous benefit in portraying
to mainland people the marvels of this section of the globe. It will be a true
mirror in which those of the outer world may see life as it is lived in the
Paradise of the Pacific.
"I wrote the story," Mrs. Ivers said, "with a genuine love and affection
for the islands, and I will produce it in the same way. No 'roughneck' of a
director will have a chance to squeeze the fragrance out of the plot, for I am
going to direct the action myself. It is some time since I did that sort of
work, but I have chosen my cast and staff myself. I know something of the
atmosphere of Hawaii and I wrote the story myself. I am just sure that if we
can get things into film as we see them here the island will owe us a very
great deal of gratitude.
"One scene will be taken showing the departure of a steamer and including
that lovable custom of giving leis, which is to me most touching. When I left
Honolulu last spring returning to Los Angeles I cried as the boat pulled away
from the dock. I was not leaving a host of friends either, but there is
something about the strains of 'Aloha Oe' which brings the moisture to the
eyes and a catch to the throat. This atmosphere is what we hope to catch in
our picture, and we hope that when it comes back to Honolulu as a finished
product the people will think that we have done full justice to our theme."
Mrs. Ivers is a pioneer in the moving picture profession, having been
identified with it in every sort of a capacity for the last nine years. She
knows the game from A to Z. "I will have no one to blame if I fail to get a
good picture," she says. "Mr. Lasky permitted me to select my own cast and to
choose my technical force, camera man, art director and all. I am in full
charge and I have every confidence in my company. There is not a person in it
who will not go the limit to do as he or she is told. I know they will all
give their very best to make the picture a success."
Mrs. Ivers believes she is especially fortunate in her choice of her art
director, George Hopkins. "He is really very superior," she said, "and has
done some wonderful work on interiors. He has a weird touch which makes his
work stand out."
While a number of locations have been chosen, Mrs. Ivers said that they
may not be used. "You see," she said, "the art director, the camera man, and
electrician always inspect a location before we begin to 'shoot.' If any one
of them has a fault to find I simply give up the location and seek something
else that will be suitable. The art director and the camera man have to
produce the artistic part of the film. I have my company in the center of the
location and I am often called upon to move the actors to one side or another
in order that the camera may register striking features that may be at one
side or the other of those of the cast. It would never do to have the film
unbalanced."
The very newest in motion picture cameras will be used by the company
here. The "Mitchell," a machine which combines all of the good points of all
other cameras with none of their bad points, is included in the equipment
brought from the mainland. There also are two other older style cameras to be
used.
It is possible that work of filming may start before Friday, Mrs. Ivers
said.
*****************************************************************************
*****************************************************************************
Who was the Drug-Addicted Scenario Writer?
In the aftermath of the Taylor murder, there were several press reports
concerning an unnamed "drug-addicted scenario writer" who was wanted for
questioning in connection with the Taylor murder. Who was this individual?
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
February 13, 1922
LOS ANGELES RECORD
...Unavailing search was made Monday for a scenario writer and his wife,
wanted in connection with the Taylor murder...
Search of the studios failed to reveal the whereabouts of a scenarist, a
writer of "gags" for movie comedies.
This man, formerly a well-known song writer, is sought, together with
his wife, because they are believed to know the whereabouts of a certain dope
peddler who may be able to explain the slaying...
The husband and wife, who are both scenario writers, are known to most
of the prominent figures in the Los Angeles movie colony. Nobody, however,
was able to tell where they now live.
At the house where the couple was formerly made their home it was said
their present address was unknown.
The husband is a writer of "gags," as the funny situations in slapstick
comedies are called. He has worked for nearly all of the leading film
comedians, including Charlie Chaplin and "Fatty" Arbuckle.
Deputy Sheriff Frank Dewar, who dug up the clue involving the dope ring,
was systematically combing the studios Monday in search of someone who might
tell him where the scenarists might be found.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
February 13, 1922
LOS ANGELES EXPRESS
The angle on which Deputy Sheriff Dewar is working is considered one of
the most important since the probe was opened. The former song writer and
scenarist, whose name is known to the Express, but is withheld at the request
of the sheriff's office, is alleged to have been active in the operations of
the narcotic ring in question, and is asserted to have certain knowledge in
his possession which would prove of material value to the investigation.
This man is known to have been extremely friendly with a well known
actress whose name has already been mentioned in connection with the case.
Dewar expected today to interview the song writer, if his alleged hiding
place was located. An arrest may follow, it is said.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
February 13, 1922
SEATTLE-UNION RECORD
(Los Angeles)...The search for the couple was actuated by a belief that
they could give information concerning a gang of "dope" peddlers who, it was
suspected, may have plotted against the murdered director...
"The scenarist whom we have been watching was formerly a song writer in
New York," Deputy Sheriff Dewar said further. "Some time ago he went to
Hollywood where he obtained work as a writer of humorous movie sketches. We
believe he knows more about the sale of 'dope' to narcotic fiends than
possibly anyone outside of the peddlers themselves."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
February 14, 1922
SHREVEPORT TIMES
(Los Angeles)--...Deputy Sheriff Dewar is working on the drug ring
angle. He has positive information, he says, that the man he is seeking was
intimate with members of the film colony, and has acted as agent for the
narcotic ring. One person to whom he is alleged to have delivered a quantity
of a certain drug is said to be a star. Both the man and his wife are alleged
addicts to narcotics.
...The fact that Captain Adams reiterated his statement that an arrest
was imminent led to the belief that this man was the missing link in the
chain which will bind beyond doubt evidence warranting the arrest.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
February 14, 1922
LOS ANGELES RECORD
The scene of one phase of importance shifted to Santa Barbara today. The
prominent scenario writer and his wife, wanted because they are believed to
have known the identity of a missing dope peddler who may have slain Taylor,
are sought in the seaside city.
They are reported to have gone to Santa Barbara, where the husband
expected to work at some of the new studios opening there.
Tuesday's developments in the still unsolved murder drew a well-known
movie actress closer into the net being spread by county detectives.
"She is not telling all she knows about the murder," was the statement
of one deputy sheriff who has been active on this angle of the investigation.
"This actress is known to have been an intimate of the scenario writer
and his wife. The three would take long trips together."
Since the desired information is not forthcoming from the movie actress,
the sheriff's office hopes to get it if the scenarist and his wife can be
found.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
February 14, 1922
LOS ANGELES EXPRESS
Search for a missing former song writer well known in moving picture
circles extended north of Los Angeles today on a "tip" that the man wanted
for what he may known of the Taylor murder mystery has been seen passing
through Santa Barbara.
The sudden disappearance of the man has redoubled the interest of the
police in his story, and steps have been taken to have him picked up at the
earliest moment. The man's description and characteristics are such,
according to the police, that it will be impossible for him to conceal
himself for any length of time.
Strengthening the suspicion that the man has information vital to the
solution of the murder mystery, it was learned today that the man suddenly
dropped from sight, leaving no trace of his whereabouts.
Undersheriff Eugene Biscailuz and Deputy Sheriff Frank Dewar, working
under the personal direction of Sheriff William I. Traeger, have been buy for
several days attempting to trace this man. According to their report he has
changed his address several times during the past few months and it has been
impossible to locate him.
The last effort to find him was made by Biscailuz and Dewar on a secret
tip giving them a Hollywood address. On their arrival it was found that he
had disappeared some days previous.
As a result a widespread search was instituted by the sheriff's office
today. It is alleged that if the man is found the activities of a large
narcotic ring, alleged to have plotted Taylor's death, will come to light and
that eventually still another man suspected of the crime will be apprehended.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
February 15, 1922
NEW YORK JOURNAL
(Los Angeles) ...Search was continued today for the scenarist and his
wife, reported to be connected with a drug ring, who disappeared several days
ago. The man was in Los Angeles for two or three days following the murder,
and then left town. He has been traced to Santa Barbara. He was questioned
briefly before his departure, and it was assumed knew nothing about the case.
But a more recent inquiry into his life and habits has revealed that he
is a drug addict, and the suspicion is strong that he has connections with
dope peddlers. Although Taylor was not an addict, it was known that a number
of his close friends, including two or three very well known women, were
patrons of dope peddlers.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
February 24, 1922
ATLANTA CONSTITUTION
(Los Angeles) ...One of the most tangible proofs of the connection of
the drug peddlers with the crime is their almost complete desertion of Los
Angeles. Characters known to the police as dope peddling suspects, have
dropped out of sight, from the cheap "alley" peddlers to the pair, one an
actress formerly employed by the Lasky corporation and the other a song
writer, who are alleged to have made a small fortune from their opium den and
"snow" traffic.
They have fled this city like rats from a sinking ship. All of them
could not have been involved in the murder, the police know, but they all
knew of the crime and their disappearance is regarded as significant.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
April 1922
THE SINS OF HOLLYWOOD
A once noted song writer, now a movie scribbler, spends the greater part
of his income for drugs.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
So who was this individual? It is reasonable to conclude that he was Harry
Williams, who died just a few months after the murder.
May 17, 1922
SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE
Telegrams of condolence from artists, actors and musicians in all parts
of the country poured in yesterday when funeral services were held at Oakland
for Harry H. Williams, perhaps America's best known writer of popular songs,
composer of "In the Shade of the Old Apple Tree," "I'm Afraid to Go Home in
the Dark, " "Mickey" and other numbers.
Williams died at Merritt hospital, Oakland, Monday, at the age of 46,
and was buried yesterday afternoon at a quiet ceremony attended by relatives
and the few friends he knew in this part of the state. He was taken ill with
influenza in New York, but appeared convalescent. On the way to the coast he
suffered a relapse and upon arrival in Oakland developed pneumonia, which
caused his death. [The obituary in the NEW YORK CLIPPER (May 24, 1922) stated
that Williams had been in ill health and suffering from tuberculosis for some
time.]
...Williams wrote 600 songs, in addition to many light operas and plays
which were highly successful. "The Broken Idol" ran six months in New York
and "The Belle of Avenue A" was a great musical comedy success.
Several years ago he moved to Los Angeles, where the motion pictures
engaged much of his attention. He directed comedies for Mack Sennett,
handling such stars as Buster Keaton, Fatty Arbuckle, Mack Swain and others.
However, he never abandoned the writing of songs.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
The following were some of the statements reportedly describing the "drug-
addicted scenario writer," followed by the applicability to Harry Williams:
* He was a noted song writer.
Williams wrote "In the Shade of the Old Apple Tree", "Mickey" and
several other popular songs.
* He was formerly from New York.
Williams was formerly from New York and was a member of the Lambs Club.
* He was a "gag" writer for movie comedies.
Williams was usually described as a comedy director. However he was
initially hired by Keystone as a "gag" writer and an item published in the
LOS ANGELES HERALD on September 1, 1919, indicates he was doing "gag" writing
for Arbuckle at that time.
* He wrote for Chaplin and Arbuckle.
Williams wrote for Keystone while Arbuckle was there (it is uncertain
whether Chaplin had departed Keystone prior to Williams' arrival), and
Williams also wrote for Arbuckle producing independently.
* He was friends with Mabel Normand.
Williams worked for Keystone at the same time as Mabel Normand, and
wrote the highly-popular song for her most successful film, "Mickey." So
they were certainly acquaintances, and probably friends.
* It was reported that "The man's description and characteristics are such,
according to the police, that it will be impossible for him to conceal
himself for any length of time."
Williams was reportedly suffering from tuberculosis; possibly this was a
reference to his physical symptoms and need for continuing medical treatment.
* He was married.
Williams was survived by his wife, Caroline.
* He was a drug addict.
Since Williams was reportedly suffering from tuberculosis, it is
possible that he had originally turned to drugs for pain relief. The fact
that Mabel Normand also had tuberculosis, and also had reportedly turned to
drugs for pain relief, would possibly be a common bond between them.
Conclusion: Harry Williams was the individual referred to by the press as
the "drug-addicted scenario writer."
Williams was also one of three Taylor case suspects or witnesses who were
dead within four months after the murder (the other two were Earl Tiffany and
Walter Kirby).
Note: The following item, published a few months earlier in the aftermath of
the Arbuckle scandal, may or may not pertain to Harry Williams, but is worth
mentioning in light of the material presented above. Certainly there were
several dozen other members of the Lambs Club who were in the Los Angeles
movie colony, so there is no confirmation of identity here:
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
September 23, 1921
VARIETY
The use of narcotics in the profession is the subject of an
investigation in Los Angeles at present...
There is a week-end [drug] orgy establishment in Beverly Hills, the most
exclusive residential section of Hollywood. The place is maintained by a
former well-known member of the Lambs in New York who married on the coast.
Here the parties last from Friday to Monday with usually all of the guests
"charged up" during that period...
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
(Other Hollywood members of the Lambs Club include Cecil B. and William
DeMille, Dustin and William Farnum, Douglas Fairbanks, William S. Hart, James
Kirkwood, Antonio Moreno, Fred Niblo, and Milton Sills. See LOS ANGELES
HERALD, March 26, 1919.)
*****************************************************************************
*****************************************************************************
What was the Real Name of Mary Miles Minter?
Mary Miles Minter. Juliet Shelby. Juliet Reilly. Mary M. Reilly. What
WAS her true name?
The actress known as Mary Miles Minter began using that name of a dead
relative in order to legally appear older than she was; several states had
laws prohibiting children under 16 from appearing on stage. She continued
using the name of Mary Miles Minter when she began her big silent movie
career.
The early fan magazine stories stated that Minter's real name was Juliet
Shelby, which she had initially used as her stage name when her stage career
began.
Most serious film historians have reported that her real name was Juliet
Reilly, and that she was born on April 1, 1902 in Shreveport, Louisiana. [18]
But in 1985, an article appeared stating that the birth certificate on
file with the State of Louisiana has her name as Mary M. Reilly, with the
date of birth listed as April 25, 1902. [19]
Sure enough, that is what the Louisiana birth certificate says: Mary M.
Reilly. So her real name, therefore, was Mary M. Reilly? After all, how could
the State birth certificate possibly be wrong?
The problem is, that the State of Louisiana did not begin maintaining
birth records until 1914. Prior to that time, the individual parishes
(counties) maintained their own birth records. The State birth certificate was
reconstructed at some later date from the parish records. Indeed, it is
stated on the upper right hand corner of the birth certificate: "Taken from
Caddo Records, Book A Page 97."
So the State birth certificate is only second-hand information. The real
question is: what do the Caddo Records state?
We have examined a photocopy of the offical Caddo Records. The page of
the Caddo parish records containing her birth entry indicates that originally
no first name was listed for the child and the last name was misspelled;
then the record was changed. Indeed, the word "corrected" has been written
in the margin and two items have been altered, as follows:
original entry: Name of Child: "J. H. Riley's Child"
"corrected" entry Name of Child: "Mary M. Reilly"
original entry: Name of Father: "J. H. Riley"
"corrected" entry Name of Father: "J. Homer Reilly"
When were these changes made? If they were made a few days after the
original entry, then the corrections are probably correct, and her name would
indeed be Mary M. Reilly.
But the changes were NOT made a few days, or months, or even a few years
after the original entry. It can be firmly proven that the record was still
uncorrected two decades after the original entry.
In August 1923 there was a public verbal battle between Mary Miles Minter
and Charlotte Shelby (see TAYLOROLOGY #11). During that time, a false report
surfaced regarding Minter's age. Reporters went looking for the original Caddo
parish birth record, and the following was reported:
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
August 16, 1923
SHREVEPORT TIMES
...According to the birth certificate, her father was J. H. Riley and her
mother was Pearl Miles Riley. The birth record shows no name for the girl,
merely stating the fact of the birth of a girl baby to the Riley family.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
August 17, 1923
LOS ANGELES HERALD
...The Shreveport birth record may add an element of mystery to the whole
question because of one notation on that document. According to advices from
the Louisiana city, in the blank reserved for the name of the baby is merely
the information, "J. H. Riley's child."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
So, clearly, 21 years after her birth the record was still uncorrected; no
first name had yet been entered and the last name was still misspelled as
"Riley."
It is uncertain when the "corrections" were later made. Possibly shortly
after those items were published, since the fact that no name was entered had
just been brought to the attention of the record keeper. Or possibly not until
the individual State birth certificate was reconstructed years later from the
parish records. If the change was indeed made at that time, the "correction"
may have been done by a clerk who needed a first name to put on the State
birth certificate and who remembered that she had become a famous actress
named Mary Miles Minter.
In any event, there is no contemporary indication that her name was truly
Mary M. Reilly.
On the other hand, Minter was involved in many legal battles. Her true
legal name was always given as Juliet Reilly (see, for example, TAYLOROLOGY
#9).
Based on all the information at hand, it is reasonable to conclude that
the birth certificate on file with the State of Louisiana indicating "Mary M.
Reilly" is incorrect. Mary Miles Minter's true and correct legal name was
Juliet Reilly.
*****************************************************************************
*****************************************************************************
The Path of the Fatal Bullet
The strange path of the bullet must be accounted for, somehow. (Neither
Kirkpatrick nor Giroux even attempt to account for it.) The fatal shot was
fired at close range; the powder burns on the coat indicated the gun was only
a few inches away when fired. The bullet entered Taylor's left side, about
where his elbow would be if he were standing naturally, and the bullet angled
steeply upward, ending up at the right side of the base of his neck. (The
bullet did not strike any bones, so it was not deflected.) The holes in his
jacket and vest would only align if his left arm was raised somewhat.
The following were mentioned in the press as possible explanations by
the detectives:
1. Taylor was sitting at his desk, working on his taxes, his left arm on the
desk, leaning forward slightly. The killer approached from behind, brought
the gun close to Taylor's left side, and fired.
Analysis: By this scenario, the killer must have been left-handed. But why
bring the gun around to Taylor's left side and fire upward? Why not simply
fire directly into the center of his back, or his head? Although this
scenario is possible, it is awkward. And when the body was found, why was
the chair--which was not the chair he was sitting on--astride his leg?
2. The killer was crouched low behind Taylor's door. When Taylor walked in,
the killer stuck the gun in his side and fired upwards.
Analysis: By this scenario, the killer was probably right-handed. In support
of this scenario is the fact that the chair found astride his leg is the
chair which was next to the door--not the chair at the desk. This seems to be
the most probable scenario (it was favored by Detective Cline), but if true
it would virtually eliminate Shelby as the suspect--would she have crouched
down like that? She doesn't appear to have been that agile.
3. The killer was embracing Taylor in a "kiss of death," brought the gun
close to Taylor's side and fired upward, aiming toward Taylor's heart.
Analysis: By this scenario, the killer must have been right-handed. The
path of the bullet and Taylor's raised arm (in the embrace) would seem very
natural in this position. Indeed, it is the only scenario which does not
require the killer to be in an awkward position. It could also account for
the blonde hairs reportedly found on Taylor's collar.
In addition to these theories, I would suggest the following possibility:
4. The killer hid himself until Taylor returned. Then the killer revealed
himself and ordered Taylor to stand still. Perhaps the killer walked over
to the door and closed it. (Taylor's door was normally open. Would the
killer have wanted to fire with the door open? Wouldn't it be better to
close the door so the sound of the shot would not travel so far? Yet under
scenarios #1 and #2 above, Taylor's door was certainly open.) Then the
killer told Taylor to turn around so that Taylor's back was towards the
killer. The killer was now standing close to Taylor's back. Perhaps there
were some words spoken at this point. Suddenly Taylor half-turned to his
left and grabbed at the gun with his left hand. The gun discharged upward
into Taylor's side.
Any other plausible scenarios would be welcome!
*****************************************************************************
*****************************************************************************
Wallace Smith: February 20, 1922
The following is another of Wallace Smith's sensationalizing dispatches on
the Taylor case.
February 20, 1922
Wallace Smith
CHICAGO AMERICAN
In the dusty back room of a jewelry shop this afternoon an expert
watchmaker bent over the frail mechanism of a fine-jeweled timepiece.
At his side detectives stood anxiously waiting the words that would come
from the man who hummed a tuneless little song as he peered through his
microscope into the delicate workings of the watch.
For upon his words depended the fate and fortune of one of screenland's
reigning queens, confessedly the "very dear friend" of William Desmond Taylor,
who was named as his murderess by Henry Peavey, houseman for the slain film
director.
The watch -- it was the one Taylor carried when he was shot to death --
was seized by detectives and rushed to the jeweler's as Peavey's sensational
charge became public through the dispatches of the Chicago Evening American.
At the same time, Under Sheriff Eugene Biscailuz announced that the
watchmaker's verdict, if it bore out this theory, would result in the
immediate arrest of the woman named by Peavey, the one person beside Taylor
himself who knew best the life lived in the house in Alvarado St.
Under Sheriff Biscailuz declared her arrest would make petty incidents of
the scandals which already have developed in the mysterious slaying.
Much depended on the mute testimony of the watch.
It was the thin modeled one that Taylor carried in his breast pocked. At
the other end of the platinum chain was the golden locket bearing the picture
of Mabel Normand and the inscription "to my dearest."
Taylor always carried this watch, although he had a wrist watch as well.
The watch was not running when his body was found. It had stopped at a
fateful hour. It might be unfair to the actress to reveal this hour but it is
known, and has been since the start, that she was in Taylor's study at this
time.
The theory of Under Sheriff Biscailuz, who has always clung to the theory
that a woman did the crime and that jealousy pressed the trigger that wiped
out Taylor's eccentric life, is that the watch was stopped by the impact when
Taylor's body fell.
That was what the expert watchmaker was called upon to decide.
That was the secret for which he probed the superfine anatomy of the
watch. It was of such delicate construction it was stated that the hit of
Taylor's fall certainly must have stopped it.
The defensive theory advanced by some of the officials -- and many of
them surprisingly enough, seem to
be acting on the defensive in this amazing
case, is that the watch ran down.
To them the reply was made that it was not likely a man of Taylor's
methodical habits would allow a watch of such value, both intrinsically and
sentimentally to go without attention. Also that the watch, if it did run
down, chose a remarkably significant hour for the purpose.
And the investigation awaited the verdict of the expert in the jeweler's
back room, the man who hummed a tuneless little song and saw before him only a
very fine watch -- and not the tremendous mystery that has tangled a dozen
lives in tragedy.
The name of the actress involved by Henry Peavey's story may not be made
public. It would be more unfair perhaps than revealing the time the watch
stopped.
But it may be conservatively stated that her name is familiar wherever
the projecting machine throws its flickering shaft of light and that she has
been under suspicion by the sheriff's office since Peavey found the body of
his employer.
The detailed story told by Peavey, as it was told first to the police,
then to the prosecutor and again to the sheriff, has been hidden under the
screen of mystery that has been thrown about the investigation by Los Angeles
officials.
But it must be recalled that for six months Peavey had been about
Taylor's house daily, and had been the sort of petted servant who was
permitted to exchange pleasantries with guests. He was the custodian of the
Taylor cellar, too, and mixed drinks for his "boss" and the frequent women
visitors.
He served them as he served Taylor and Mabel Normand when she called at
Taylor's home the night of the murder. Gin and orange juice and vermouth it
was that night.
He knew to whom Taylor telephoned and from whom calls were received. He
may not have eavesdropped intentionally, but it is rather difficult in the
ordinary tiny Los Angeles bungalow to avoid a whisper in the next room.
Taylor may have been no hero to his valet, Edward F. Sands, but to Peavey he
was quite a fellow.
He permitted Peavey to use his guest room upstairs as a sewing room. Oh,
yes, Henry Peavey does the neatest crochet work and embroidery. They do say
his Irish crochet --
But to get on. It must be remembered, too, that Henry Peavey was the man
who told the police where to find the dainty night gown of peach-hued silk --
the night dress that since has disappeared. He told the police, too, about
how Taylor took from a hiding place a woman's handkerchief and pressed it to
his lips.
Quite a good deal Henry Peavey knows about what was going on in Taylor's
home in Alvarado St. for six months before the tragedy that shocked the
nation.
It was Peavey who would come to work just before 8 a.m. to arouse Taylor
as he came the morning he found Taylor's body and ran gibbering into the
street. There were mornings, it was said, when he found Taylor not alone.
There were mornings when strange, nocturnal visitors had glided swiftly
through the shadows of graceful palms in Alvarado St.
Peavey was a good servant. He went right along with his work and his
sewing.
When they first questioned this man there was an inclination to belittle
his testimony. At the inquest, where Henry became quite hysterical, they were
satisfied merely to ask about details of finding the body and pass on to
witnesses whose names were known -- Miss Normand among them.
Not until Peavey had been called in for a second time did the discreet
detectives fling a real question at him and get in reply a swift answer -- the
name of the woman Peavey is certain murdered Taylor.
The name was one mentioned form the beginning -- from the time the
finding of the body led to the exposure of Taylor's mysterious past, a past he
had himself draped with fanciful yarns.
But the officials did not even breathe a suspicion. It is known that she
was questioned secretly. She is a woman who wields considerable power and who
has many mighty friends.
That is, no official permitted the falling of a suspicious shadow until
the sheriff began his investigation. It went straight to the one target in
sight, one that must be convincing to the unbiased layman's eye in reviewing
what little is known of the killing itself. [20]
Extra strength was given to the theory of the sheriff's office and the
accusation of Peavey when District Attorney Woolwine, generally accepted as
chief of the campaign of investigation, declared that he was not convinced
that the man seen slipping from Taylor's home was any one but Taylor's
chauffeur.
That chauffeur, Howard Fellows, had stated to the district attorney that
he called shortly after 8 o'clock that night to see if Taylor wanted him to
drive any more. Taylor did not answer his knock, and he left, he has stated.
Mrs. Douglas MacLean, wife of a screen actor, was the witness who told of
seeing the mysterious exit from the premises after hearing what she thought
was a shot. But she admitted that her view of the man was most brief and her
impression quite vague.
It was known, too, that Peavey had been ordered to remain in the
jurisdiction of the Los Angeles County authorities. The houseman, carrying
his knitting and apparently quite broken by the tragic end of his employer,
had asked permission to go elsewhere.
Undersheriff Biscailuz, in announcing the vital test to be made today,
left no doubt of the importance he placed in it.
"But it can't go wrong," he stated. "If it discloses what I expect, we
will have a clue that will be as near perfect as we could expect. It will at
once involve the woman we have been watching for some time and she will be
arrested at once.
"It will bring about a scandal that will make all the other stories
growing out of this murder appear tame by comparison. It will take only a
step or two more, once we have the result of this scientific test, to bring
out the motives of jealousy.
"What I expect it to show is that there was a woman in the house when
the shot was fired. Either she fired the shot herself or she knows who did
it and perhaps helped that person in the killing. [21]
"Waiting for some such clue as we now believe may be in our hands in a
few hours, we have checked up this actress' career and we will be ready to
handle her."
The woman known to be under suspicion is one who has carried on one of
the wildest careers that ever streaked across the firmament of filmland. They
talk about these escapades even in the gayer set of Hollywood, where such
distinction is not lightly won.
It was considered probable that William Davis, chauffeur for Miss
Normand, would be brought into the district attorney's office for questioning.
Several times he has been questioned and each time, it was reported, he had
corroborated Miss Normand's story of the ride to Taylor's home, and her
departure after the director had escorted her to her car.
Davis, it was reported, was at Miss Normand's place of seclusion in
Altadena, near Pasadena. It was said that he drove Miss Normand to the place
when she fled from Hollywood and the scandals that have been revealed since
Taylor's slaying. She was suffering, too, her manager announced, from the
shock of Taylor's death and a very serious case of grippe.
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NOTES:
[1] See Taylorology #17.
[2] This letter was reprinted in LOS ANGELES EXAMINER (May 7, 1937).
[3] LOS ANGELES HERALD-EXPRESS (May 6, 1937).
[4] See WDT:DOSSIER, p. 324-5.
[5] LOS ANGELES EXAMINER (May 9, 1937).
[6] LOS ANGELES TIMES (May 7, 1937).
[7] LOS ANGELES HERALD-EXPRESS (May 7, 1937).
[8] LOS ANGELES TIMES (May 7, 1937).
[9] LOS ANGELES EXAMINER (May 7, 1937).
[10] LOS ANGELES EXAMINER (May 8, 1937).
[11] LOS ANGELES EXAMINER (May 7, 1937).
[12] LOS ANGELES EXAMINER (May 7, 1937).
[13] LOS ANGELES EXAMINER (May 11, 1937).
[14] See NEW YORK TELEGRAPH (February 5, 1922). Although the interview was
published on the 5th (in the Sunday paper), she reports that the interview
took place on the previous Wednesday, which was the 1st.
[15] See NEW YORK TELEGRAPH (February 4, 1922).
[16] See DESERET NEWS (February 24, 1922).
[17]See WDT:DOSSIER, pp. 73-75, 257-258, for two other interviews with Julia
Crawford Ivers.
[18]See, for example, Aydelott Ames, "Mary Miles Minter," in FILMS IN REVIEW
(October 1969), pp. 473+.
[19]See Ken DuMain, "Correcting Mis-Information about Miss Mary Miles Minter,"
in FILMS IN REVIEW (May 1985), pp. 271+.
[20]The woman suspected by Peavey is Mabel Normand. See TAYLOROLOGY #6.
Peavey's suspicions became public after his abduction by Hearst reporters.
[21]Taylor's watch stopped at 7:20. If it could be shown that the watch
stopped due to impact (when Taylor fell after being shot) then it would
indicate that Mabel Normand must have been present at the time, since she was
admittedly present between 7:05-7:45. However, the tests on the watch
reportedly did not indicate it had stopped due to impact.
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For more information about Taylor, see
WILLIAM DESMOND TAYLOR: A DOSSIER (Scarecrow Press, 1991)
Back issues of Taylorology are available via Gopher or FTP at
etext.archive.umich.edu
in the directory pub/Zines/Taylorology
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