Alex Carson
Sometimes, the best mysteries that come out of Hollywood aren’t in the films themselves. To this day, there are old Hollywood deaths that remain unsolved. And some of these deaths seem to have sinister theories that hover over them…
While you may have known about George Reeves from his role as Superman. His death by gunshot was ruled a suicide, though opinions on what happened that harrowing night still linger through the air…
What about Virginia Rappe? She was a rising starlet who died tragically young. In the wake of her death, the public and the media were eager to take down a huge star. The bizarre death of actor Albert Dekker was declared accidental, but was it?
And even Marilyn Monroe’s death seems to have many untold mysteries behind it…
Let’s delve into a few old Hollywood deaths that remain unsolved to this day…
GEORGE REEVES
George Keefer Brewer was born on the fifth of January, 1914, in Woolstock, Iowa. He began his acting career during his teenage years, acting in high school productions of popular plays. When he decided to pursue acting as a full-time career, he adopted the stage name George Reeves.
While the name George Reeves may sound ordinary, he became famous for playing one of the most extraordinary characters of all time.
George Reeves worked in film and television throughout his career. But he became best-known for his role as Clark Kent aka Superman on Adventures of Superman. The show ran from 1952 to 1958 and lasted for 104 episodes.
This was the role that would define George Reeves and his short, but remarkable career. He became so associated with his portrayal of Superman, that it almost seemed that he was invincible!
But sadly, this wasn’t the case…
On June 16th, 1959, George Reeves went out to dinner with his fiancée Lenore Lemmon and their friend Robert Condon. After dinner, the three of them went back to the home where George Reeves and Lenore Lemmon lived together.
It seemed that George felt too tired from the dinner and decided to go to bed, leaving Lenore and Robert in the living room. Lenore then planned a spontaneous party – inviting more guests over. This awoke George and he seemed annoyed by the constant ruckus.
He stormed into the living room to complain about the commotion. However, he soon calmed down and decided to join the guests for a drink.
That’s all that seems to be clear for now. A gunshot was heard and one of George’s neighbors, William Bliss stormed downstairs to see what was up. George Reeves was lying dead, with a gun near his body.
But there were conflicting testaments about what actually happened that night. The witnesses were all drunk and couldn’t give accurate statements of what happened. In fact, most of them could barely recollect anything that had happened.
There’s a mystery of whether George Reeves killed himself or was shot. There doesn’t seem to be a reason as to why he’d kill himself. But there also doesn’t seem to be much information on why someone else would want to kill him…
There were no fingerprints found on the pistol that killed George Reeves…
Are you enjoying this video so far? What do you think about George Reeves’ death? Before we tell you more about a few mysterious old Hollywood deaths that remain unsolved to this day, why not “like” this video and subscribe to FactsVerse for more current news and interesting stories. Now, let’s learn about the curious case of Virginia Rappe…
VIRGINIA RAPPE
Imagine being a beautiful rising starlet during the Silent Era. Imagine coming across one of the biggest stars at the time. What could possibly go wrong?
Unfortunately, the legacy of Virginia Rappe and Roscoe ‘Fatty’ Arbuckle is one of the most tragic events in old Hollywood history. While we’ve become used to scandals and lurid headlines in tabloids, this was one of the first scandals in tinsel town that everyone was gossiping about.
Virginia Rappe was a rising starlet who made her name in modeling and acting in silent films. Her natural beauty helped her achieve fame at an early age and become one of Hollywood’s most famous leading ladies.
Her growing celebrity lead her to become one of the guests at a party hosted by the silent film comedian Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle. Fatty Arbuckle was arguably one of the biggest stars of the silent film era – only Charlie Chaplin earned more than he did. While few of his films exist today, his celebrity status was the envy of others.
If circumstances had been different, his name would be as well-known as any other iconic Old Hollywood star.
On September 5, 1921, the 26-year-old Virginia Rappe attended a party hosted by Fatty Arbuckle at his hotel room – room 1219 at the St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco.
Legend has it, that it was a wild party and a few gossip queens and hack journalists would describe the party as an ‘orgy.’
No one knows exactly what happened between Fatty Arbuckle and Virginia Rappe. What we do know is that the day after the party, Virginia Rappe was lying on a bed in Room 1219 and was suffering from a ruptured bladder as well as an inflamed peritoneum. Many of her close friends stated that she suffered from cystitis and that her pain was due to excessive alcohol consumption.
Virginia Rappe’s public image slandered because of rumors that her illness was caused due to abortions in the past. There were rumors that Fatty Arbuckle tried to use his stardom to take advantage of her.
Virginia Rappe died on September 9, 1921, from her illnesses. But the troubles continued for Fatty Arbuckle. The rumors of him raping Virginia Rappe led to a trial. The scandal destroy his reputation even when he found not guilty. He managed to revamp his acting career, but he never attained the same amount of stardom he previously had.
His reputation destroyed due to lies and face trial when there was no strong evidence against him. Virginia Rappe’s deserved stardom never came to fruition and Fatty Arbuckle never managed to rise from his fall.
What happened in Room 1219 remains a mystery to this day…
ALBERT DEKKER
While we might be used to bizarre deaths today, there’s a scandal that have caused back in 1968 when an actor’s cause of death was accidental autoerotic asphyxiation!
Albert Dekker was renowned for his roles in films and on the stage, as one of Broadway’s most prolific actors. He had a few bit parts on television as well during TV’s Golden Age. He even had a brief career as a state assemblyman.
Perhaps it’s the latter role that got him in trouble. He was an outspoken critic of Senator Joseph McCarthy, who was adamant about ridding Hollywood of far-left influences. Albert Dekker received harsh criticism for his derision of the notorious Senator.
He continued to work regularly in films, though he clearly made a few enemies. However, it seemed that these setbacks were temporary, and the show certainly went on for Albert Dekke until his death.
His fiancée, Jeraldine Saunders found him naked in the bathtub, kneeling, with a noose tied around his neck. His death declared as an accidental suicide due to autoerotic asphyxiation with no signs of foul play.
While his friends couldn’t believe that he’d commit suicide or indulge in such bizarre sexual behavior. The horrific circumstances of his death smeared his reputation.
The question remains, was there someone trying to destroy Albert Dekker’s public image?….
MARILYN MONROE
Marilyn Monroe left us 60 years ago, but her life and career are still of interest to fans today.
But what’s also of interest are the circumstances surrounding Marilyn Monroe’s death. She died on August 4, 1962, at the age of 36. The official cause of death was barbiturate overdose and thought of as a probable suicide.
But there are several theories that believe there’s more to this story. There’s a strong belief that she was murdered to prevent her from speaking about her affairs that linked with powerful men such as President John F. Kennedy and his brother Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy.
There remains a belief that she had classified information about the Kennedy’s which they wouldn’t want leaked to the public. As such, they had to get rid of her.
It could be that she was indeed feeling unhappy and decided to overdose on drugs.
Are you a fan of any of these Old Hollywood stars? What do you think about their mysterious deaths?
Now, we’d like to know your opinion:
Do you think that any of these stars were killed by lone murderers? Or their murders had indeed been planned by sinisters group?
Let’s hear your thoughts in the comments.
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