Arbuckle: Hollywood’s First Scandal, Part ll

At San Francisco’s Westin St. Francis Hotel guests still ask to see where the infamous Labor Day party took place over 90 years ago.

Weston St, Francis Hotel

The management is happy to oblige if the suite is unoccupied. But no one knows what really happened.

Only one thing is known for sure, and that is one afternoon in September of 1921 Virginia Rappe was screaming in agony on one bed in this suite.

Later that week she died.

The man charged with her death was Roscoe Arbuckle--Hollywood’s first one million dollar star.

I Can’t Go

It was Labor Day weekend and Roscoe’s friend and director Fred Fischbach convinced him to take a 3-day vacation. Roscoe tried to back out because he had burned himself and was in pain.

He had taken his luxury Pierce-Arrow to a garage to have it checked out. He sat on a crate to wait for the mechanic’s opinion. He did not see the acid-soaked rag and ended up with 2^nd degree burns on his bottom.

Fischbach who really wanted to go convinced Roscoe to change his mind. Roscoe, Fischbach and actor Lowell Sherman rented 3 adjourning rooms at the St. Francis--suite’s 1219, 1220, and 1221.

It was supposed to be a relaxing weekend. The three men threw a party for friends.

Uninvited Guests

Virginia Rappe

One uninvited guest at this party was Virginia Rappe. Rappe’s former boyfriend director Henry Pathe Lehrman had a long-running feud with Roscoe.

Rappe who had a tumultuous on and off again relationship with Lehreman had given an earlier scathing interview about Roscoe to a movie magazine. She called him “disgusting and crude…vulgar and disrespectful.”

Her comments contrasted with most reports given by the women that actually knew the comedian. They all considered Arbuckle to be dapper and a polite gentleman--including his estranged wife, Minty.

Minta "Minty" Durfee

At the time Rappe traveled to San Francisco it was believed that she was pregnant with Lehrman’s child and was seeking an abortion.

An Extortionist

Rappe brought two other uninvited guests with her. Her manager Al Semnacher and a woman she had just met on the trip up the coast, Bambina Maude Delmont.

Bambina Maude Delmont

It is speculated that Delmont arranged for Rappe to get the abortion before they reached San Francisco.

Delmont had a history of many run-ins with the police. She had been charged with extortion, bigamy, fraud, and racketeering.

She was known to be “a professional correspondent: a woman hired to provide compromising pictures to use in divorce cases or for illegal purposes such as blackmail.”

Among these cases were celebrities whom she had threatened to release condemning evidence about if they did not pay her.

She was the one who accused Arbuckle of raping and murdering Virginia Rappe.

The Party

Seeing Rappe and Delmont at the party, Roscoe voiced his concerns to his friends. He expressed that their “bad reputations” might cause the police to raid the party. This was a concern for they were serving bootleg alcohol--in 1921 Prohibition was being enforced.

After most of the partygoers left Rappe and Delmont remained. Roscoe went to his bedroom to change clothes so he could drive a friend, Mae Traub into town.

What happened next is hotly debated but most researchers who have tried to find the truth agree that Roscoe found Rappe in a dead faint on the bathroom floor.

Roscoe then carried Rappe to a nearby bed. Rappe requested water, so Roscoe got her a glass. When he returned, she had rolled off the bed and was on the floor moaning. He assisted her back into the bed and went to get an ice bucket.

Arbuckle felt the ice would help calm Rappe down--it did not work. Delmont entered the room and discussed Rappe’s distress with Roscoe, they both, came to the conclusion that Rappe was merely drunk.

A Turn for the Worse

Suddenly, Rappe screamed, she then tore at her clothes. According to Delmont, she said hysterically, “Stay away from me! I don’t want you near me!”

Then she supposedly turned to Delmont and said the words that later condemned the comedian. “What did he do to me, Maude? Roscoe did this to me.”

After this, the bathtub was filled with cold water, and Rappe was placed in the tub--this finally calmed her down. Fishbach and Roscoe helped her out and escorted her to room 1227.

Roscoe arranged for the hotel manager to call the hotel doctor. He was not available, so another doctor was called in. His diagnosis was she was merely drunk. The party continued and Roscoe drove Traub home.

When he returned the hotel physician, Dr. Arthur Beardslee arrived to take a look at Rappe. He gave her morphine, and she drifted off to sleep.

He returned the next day and again treated Rappe with morphine. Delmont told him that she had not urinated in hours.

Delmont them called in a Dr. Melville Rumwell, a man she knew well enough to call “Rummy.” When he arrived Delmont told him that Rappe had taken sick and that a drunken Roscoe had dragged her into a room and raped her--or had at least tried to.

Runwell found no evidence of rape and treated Rappe for pain and trouble urinating. Delmont had previously told Dr. Beardslee a similar story.

On Tuesday afternoon Roscoe checked out of the hotel--not aware of Delmont’s statements.

A couple of days later a feverish Rappe was taken to a hospital. She died there on Friday, September 9^th. The cause was noted as an infection caused by a ruptured bladder.

In Part lll of Roscoe Arbuckle: Hollywood’s First Scandal I share information about the lies, rumors, and Arbuckle’s three trials. 

Arbuckle: Hollywood’s First Scandal, Part l

“The day the laughter stopped was September 5, 1921.”

                                                                       --Buster Keaton

Roscoe Arbuckle with Buster Keaton

From 1914 until 1921 Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle was the silent screen eras most famous comedian. His popularity with the public made him one of Hollywood’s highest paid actors.

He was responsible for assisting the careers of future stars Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, and Bob Hope.

But one fateful Labor Day Weekend at the St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco ruined his career and his finances. Arbuckle a gentle giant who was loved for his kindness and good nature was about to be embroiled in Hollywood’s first major scandal.

Early Years

Roscoe Arbuckle’s life started like it ended with suffering. It is said he was 14 pounds at birth. His mother had a long recovery after the delivery. His father, William Arbuckle, a man of slight build immediately questioned Roscoe’s parentage and blamed the baby for his wife’s ill health.

He named the baby boy after a politician he disliked. Convinced the infant was illegitimate. William disowned Roscoe and beat him regularly. Roscoe’s mom died when he was twelve, and his hard-drinking father abandoned him.

To his credit Roscoe from then on supported himself. He first made a living by singing in local theatres—he had a beautiful singing voice. He found the audience appreciation helped him forget the cruel teasing he endured growing up because of his weight.

He moved into vaudeville where he was remarkably limber for his size. He worked as a clown, singer, and in acrobatic acts. He then climbed his way through the ranks in the film industry.

In 1909 Roscoe married a singer Minta “Minty” Durfee. Unfortunately, his drinking would end this marriage when the two separated in 1917.

Many who knew Roscoe personally stated that he never was unfaithful to Minty even after they separated. He gained a reputation after this as being “the most chaste man in Hollywood.”

Film Career

In many of the hundreds of one-reel comedies Roscoe first appeared at the Mack Sennett studio he portrayed a Keystone Cop. In 1914 Arbuckle started to direct some of the films he acted in. In 1915 he proved he could sustain his comedy in two-reelers.

As a Keystone Cop

By 1917 Arbuckle had formed his own film company with Joseph Schenck called Comique. Roscoe now had creative control over his work.

Comique turned out some of the greatest film classics of the silent era. Arbuckle left Comique when Paramount offered him one million a year.

Roscoe literary ruled Hollywood at this point—he was one of the best physical comedians of all time. Despite his size, he floated across the screen with grace. He didn’t go for cheap fat jokes—like getting stuck in doorways or chairs—his talent surpassed this.

At the time Roscoe started in the film industry studios purposely played down leading actors in their films. They would not even release their names to the public. The reason for this was the studios knew if their actors gained too much recognition, it would give them more power—then they would demand more money.

Roscoe’s immense popularity with the public broke this barrier—he literally was the first actor to gain “star power.”  

Professionally, he was known as “Fatty” Arbuckle, but in all other aspects of his life, he preferred to be called Roscoe. The studios ever after blamed him for breaking down the barrier they had so carefully put in place.

Working hard at Paramount Arbuckle went to San Francisco to rest and relax over the Labor Day weekend in 1921.

Virginia Rappe

One actress present at the party was Virginia Rappe. She was raised without a father, and at a young age, she started seeking love. Back then contraceptives were not reliable, and Rappe had five abortions by the age of 16. She also had several bouts of venereal disease. At age 17 she gave birth to a baby out of wedlock and placed it in foster care. *

Rappe attractive started modeling in her teens. She moved to San Francisco where she occasionally did nude modeling. She became engaged, but tragically her fiancé died in a trolley-car accident.

Henry Lehrman with Charlie Chaplin

Devastated she moved to Los Angeles. In 1917 she started to date a Hollywood director, Henry Lehrman. She was offered several small, unaccredited roles in pictures but her acting career didn’t take off.  It was rumored she randomly worked as a prostitute to pay her bills.

One rumor was Rappe had a reputation for bizarre behavior when she drank. Her neighbors reported that when she was drunk, she would tear off her clothes and run around claiming a man had assaulted her.

One absurd legend states she and Lehrman were kicked off the Sennett lot for being infested with lice. Sennett after this supposedly had his studio fumigated.

By September of 1921 Rappe and Lehrman had broken off their relationship.

After the Labor Day party Roscoe was amazed when he was arrested for the rape and murder of Virginia Rappe. The last time he had seen her she was drunk, acting crazy and ill but very much alive.

There have been numerous accounts written about what happened that weekend but all are based upon speculation. So I will share here what is known and why many feel Arbuckle was accused of these two heinous crimes.

* In recent years, female writers have tried to whitewash Rappe's life. I don't list her actions to criticize her--she led a hard life--I think the truth lies somewhere in the middle.

In Part ll of Roscoe Arbuckle: Hollywood’s First Scandal I share information about the party, Virginia Rappe's death, and the woman who set the scandal in motion.