Room 1219: The Life of Fatty Arbuckle, the Mysterious Death of Virginia Rappe, and the Scandal That Changed Hollywood

Room 1219: The Life of Fatty Arbuckle, the Mysterious Death of Virginia Rappe, and the Scandal That Changed Hollywood

In 1921, one of the biggest movie stars in the world was accused of killing a woman. What followed was an unprecedented avalanche of press coverage, the original “trial of the century,” and a wave of censorship that altered the course of Hollywood filmmaking. It began on Labor Day, when comic actor Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle, then at the pinnacle of his fame and fortune, hosted a party in San Francisco’s best hotel. As the party raged, he was alone in room 1219 with Virginia Rappe, a little-known actress. Four days later, she died, and he was charged with her murder. Room 1219 tells the story of Arbuckle’s improbable rise and stunning fall—from one of Hollywood’s first true superstars to its first pariah. It explores how the earliest silent film experiments evolved into a studio-based system capable of making and, ultimately, breaking a beloved superstar. Simultaneously, it presents the sensational crime story from the day of the “orgy” through Arbuckle’s three trials. Relying on a careful examination of documents, the book finally reveals, after almost a century of wild speculation, what most likely occurred in room 1219.  “The sensational sex scandal that ended the career of one of Hollywood’s earliest superstars—and generated a tidal wave of public indignation that nearly destroyed the entire film industry—is brought to vivid life in this riveting true crime narrative.  Dispelling the salacious myths and lurid legends that have accumulated around Fatty Arbuckle’s notorious ‘wild party,’ Merritt’s book will surely stand as the definitive work on a case that has fascinated and titillated for nearly a century.” —Harold Schechter, author of The Serial Killer Files and The Devil’s Gentleman “With the probing eye of a crime reporter and the vividness of Raymond Chandler, Greg Merritt plunges us back into the 1920s hotel suite where Hollywood infamy was born. Room 1219 is the compulsively readable last word on one of the most mythologized nightmares in film history.” —James Gavin, author of Deep in a Dream “Not just an informed look through the keyhole at Hollywood’s first great scandal but also a fascinating view of the birth of the movie business and the players who helped create both the industry and the glamour. An enjoyable and instructive read.” —Howard Blum, author of American Lightning   Greg Merritt is the author of Film Production: The Complete Uncensored Guide to Independent Filmmaking and Celluloid Mavericks: A History of American Independent Film . He is a senior writer for American Media Inc. and has written hundreds of feature articles for numerous magazines. He has an MFA from the American Film Institute.