Fatty Arbuckle’s Trials (1921)
When Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle's Trials for murder and rape occurred in 1921, he was among the most expensive movie stars in Hollywood. Arbuckle reserved a complex of rooms at San Francisco's St. Francis Hotel for a weekend of celebration after the signing of one of the most valuable studio agreements in history.
At one time, a youthful, unknown actress called Virginia Rappe screamed from her bed, unwell and distraught. The partygoers saw she was ill, but no one took her to the hospital, believing she was merely inebriated. Arbuckle was accused of rape and murder days later, after Rappe's death; apparently, his sexual assault (perhaps with a bottle of champagne) burst her bladder, resulting in the peritonitis that killed her.
The first two of Fatty Arbuckle's trials resulted in hung juries. Arbuckle was cleared of all allegations in the third trial due to the utter absence of evidence against him. Arbuckle's downfall, however, was due to the controversy. He was banned for a while and found it very hard to get employment once the prohibition was removed. The man was able to re-establish a portion of his old fan following – firstly under an alias, then as his genuine identity – but he never recovered his prior fame. Buster Keaton, his friend and colleague actor, stated that he died of a broken heart at the age of 46.
