A nyuk on the wild side

Chicago Tribune ^ | 4/4/2002 | Jim Mueller

[ArcLight]

Imagine that the gravel-voiced, 1930s-era screen star Wallace Beery and one of New York mobster Lucky Luciano's top henchmen beat and stomped to death one of the country's most famous comedians outside a Hollywood nightclub in 1937. Imagine that a participant in the fighting and eyewitness to the murder was the man who later would go on to produce the James Bond movies.

[ArcLight]

Wow!

[jjhunsecker]

Thats a good story and I would like to more about who was involved and why. Louis B. Mayer's involvement along with MGM Studio executive Eddie Mannix was apparent in a number of cases involving MGM stars like Jean Harlow, Clark Gable, etc. In fact there was a story on Clark Gable, that he was drunk, drving a car, hit a pedestrian and killed him. He ran away from the car called the studio, Mayer and Mannix covered the whole thing up, got another MGM exec. to take the wrap in return for life time financial security for he and his family. We may never know all the studio coverups for the big stars back during the "Golden Age" of movies. I am sure a number of today's star's would like that kind of treatment.

[gcruse]

Damn. The Jean Harlow story is fascinating, too.

[Cincinnatus]

Take a look at this for something creepy: Ted Healy's caricature of Wallace Beery!: http://www.tedhealy.com/thcaricature3.jpg

[Bobalu]

Ted Healy was NOT a very nice guy
By the way, he played Jean Harlow's brother in the film 'Bombshell'

[gcruse]

Whack on forehead. I did not know that!

[gcruse]

I wouldn't call that a caricature. The features are not exaggerated. It looks like a portrait.