There is something unique about reading a book which has no
conclusion. The 1922 murder of Billy Taylor has never been solved. And that’s
the pleasure in this type of book; you can read it and draw your own
conclusion. Then you can read it again and convict somebody else; and never be
wrong either time.
Who killed William Desmond Taylor, the President of the
Motion Pictures Directors Association? That’s a question which has been bandied
about Hollywood since his death in 1922. What makes the case so hard to crack? Well, it
could be that so many people had so many reasons to kill him. He wasn’t a bad
man, really. Just a fellow caught up in an extraordinary place at an
extraordinary time in the history of entertainment.
Hollywood was fairly new in 1922, and author William J. Mann
paints a concise and compact picture of its history; from the first film
efforts in New York and New Jersey, to the first film studios, stars and early scandals of
Hollywood. Little has changed over the course of almost a century in
Tinseltown. The actors and actresses who died from drug overdoses; as well as
the ones caught up in sex scandals back then were just the first of a long unbroken line
of broken lives that chronicle the history of Hollywood.
There were 3 actresses involved in this scandal, which is
also the story of the rivalry between 2 ex business partners; Adolph Zukor and
Marcus Loew; who were embattled in a struggle for the control of the film
industry, from the making of the film and its distribution, all the way through to the ownership of the theaters where the films would be shown. Had the book been
only about these 2 men it would have been enough to hold the interest of the
reader.
But, even as these 2 titans raced literally to the top; both would
build skyscrapers in New York City, with theaters on the ground floor; they faced a battle of public opinion over the influence of moving pictures on the morals of the nation. Zukor’s building still survives at 1501 Broadway, although the
theater is long gone. His daughter would marry Loews son; much to the
chagrin of her father. These men were so different, yet possessed the same
desire to rule. The big difference was that Loew was compassionate and well
loved by all who worked with him; while
Zukor was detested and feared by all who worked for him. One was a tyrant; while the other was more akin to the captain
of a team.
Both men found themselves facing public outrage over the
drug use and violence which seemed to continually be pouring out of Tinseltown
in the years after the First World War and the advent of the talkies. These
were the troubles that brought about the first movie codes; issued by the Hays Office.
William Hays was an odd man, too. He was lured into the position of being Hollywood’s
first real censor from his government job, and was even paid by Zukor’s studio. Talk about the fox guarding the hen house! .
At first Hays was compliant and willing to do whatever the
studio bosses required of him to keep his $100,000 a year position. But as the
scandals became increasingly frequent, and the public outrage grew, Hays was
finally forced to take a stand on the side of the “decency leagues” and really
perform the job he was paid to do. This aspect of the book sheds light on the
history of Motion Picture Codes and how they came to be.
There is also the murder itself, which is the core of the
book. Three young actresses; Mabel Normand, Mary Minter and Margaret Gibson;
are all connected to the victim in one way or another. But the one most
suspected of the murder is the 19 year old actress Mary Miles Minter, who had been in love with the older Desmond Taylor for some time. He kept her at arm’s
length, careful not to upset the girl, while also remaining mindful of her mother; a
woman who had on occasion threatened to kill him if he did not stay away from
her daughter.
That was a pretty big request on her part, considering that
her daughter worked with the older man. It was also rumored that she was in love with Taylor herself. The
prevailing theory was that she had discovered them flagrante de lecto and
killed him. Her gun was discarded by the grandmother, who made a special trip
to Louisiana to dispose of it in the Bayou. The gun had been given to Mary’s
mother by the Chief of Police in Hollywood, who was rumored to be having an affair with her.
But there was a secret which Mr. Taylor held very close; rendering his own affair with either woman unlikely at the very least.
Mabel Normand was a recovering cocaine addict. She was aided
and befriended by Taylor, who had even gotten into some shouting matches with
the blood sucking dealers who would come to her home to leave drugs for her.
His life had been threatened by at least one of them, and so this was another
avenue of investigation.
Then there was Margaret Gibson who had a checkered past. She
had been arrested in a raid on a drug house where she was working as a kimono
clad dancer. Rumors were that this was
also a brothel. She had managed to wriggle out of a conviction, though her
reputation was already tarnished by the time of Taylor’s killing. Her
connection to him, along with the unsavory con artists and bunko operators with
whom she lived, also led the police to believe that he was the victim of
blackmailers. He did; after all; have a big secret to hide.
The author makes an analogy of the events depicted here to the
book “The Day of the Locusts.” In that book; later made into a very bad film
with Donald Sutherland; the author likens the people who come to Hollywood to prey
upon the successful ones as locusts. This group of people is composed of those
who come to Hollywood to achieve stardom but fail to attain that elusive prize,
instead becoming part of the nefarious atmosphere of Tinseltown, replete with "hangers on."
This is a very detailed book which has been extensively
annotated and researched. Not only does it explore the various aspects of the
crime at hand, it also gives a great insight into the early days of the studios
and how they merged and grew. Written in a highly entertaining fashion the book
moves along almost like a film noir story. The big difference, of course, is
that this story is deliciously real.
