Greg Merritt

In the late teens and early 20's, Fatty Arbuckle was a well known and much loved silent film comedian, making more films in a year than Chaplin. By the end of 1921, he was accused of the death of a little known actress by rape. The author examines the rise of film and Arbuckle's early life while also examining what was going on at the St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco on Labor Day Weekend, 1921. At times, going back and forth between the history and the events of the weekend was a bit confusing but overall it worked well. Once the first trial started, the book unfolded as the events did over three trials. I felt the author was extremely objective in providing all of the evidence, the events that unfolded, and the backlash to Arbuckle and his career. From the bibliography and footnotes, it was evident that a great deal of research was done. Since no one will ever know what really happened, the author does provide some scenarios at the end of the book with evidence of why or why not that scenario would work. An excellent look at the Arbuckle scandal and the results that caused the rise of Will Hays and later, the Motion Picture Production Code. I would have liked more information on what happened to Arbuckle's main accuser, Maude Delmont, who did not testify at any of the three trials. I would have liked more information on Virginia Rappe's "fiance", Henry Lehrman, who actually married another after Rappe's death but yet is buried next to Rappe. I would have liked the author to tie up the loose ends with what happened to each of Arbuckle's three wives (he did this a bit but not as thorougly as I would have liked). However, this is the most objective book I have read on this subject and highly recommend it to anyone interested in this period of film or in Arbuckle.… (more)