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Bettmann-Corbis
Jean Elizabeth Spangler, a television actress, went missing in 1949.
It was one of those cases that seemed straight out of pulp fiction, a noir mystery written by one of those hard-boiled scribes who liked to surround damsels in distress with mobsters and movie stars.
Yet it was real life. And it defied solution.
Not because there were no clues. Perhaps because there were too many--all pointing in different directions.
For more, visit NBCLosAngeles.com
The damsel was aspiring actress Jean Spangler, 26, whose mysterious 1949 disappearance is still considered an "open case" by LAPD's cold case unit.
"It's absolutely a classic noir mystery," said Denise Hamilton, a former LA Times reporter turned novelist. She reveals that her mystery, "The Last Embrace," was inspired by the Spangler case.
"You have a beautiful, young starlet. Brunette. She's sultry. She's tall. She's leggy. And she's trying to make it in Hollywood," Hamilton said.
Black and white images from the Los Angeles Public Library Photo Collection reinforce Hamilton's description of Spangler, who appeared in half a dozen movies, just bit parts.
The late 1940s was a time when the studios still reigned over Hollywood, the mob ruled the Sunset Strip, and crooked politicians and police brass ran Los Angeles.
'She's a party girl'
A divorced mother of a five-year-old, Spangler was still looking for her big break, and making time for an active social life.
"She's a party girl. She goes out with a lot of people: gangsters, movie stars, Hollywood executives. They found her little black book after she disappeared, and there were a lot of prominent names in it," said Hamilton.
She was last seen near her Park LaBrea area apartment on the Friday evening of Oct. 7, 1949.
Over that weekend, a Griffith Park Ranger found a purse near the entrance to Ferndell. Inside was Spangler's ID, and also a cryptic note addressed to someone named Kirk.
"Kirk: Can't wait any longer," it began. "Going to see Dr. Scott. It will work best this way while mother is away."
Perhaps it was written in a hurry. It was not signed.
"Well, the supposition was that she was pregnant by this Kirk and that she was going to have an abortion," said Hamilton. One acquaintance said Spangler was coming to the end of the first trimester.
The most famous Kirk then in Hollywood was the actor Kirk Douglas, who had just finished filming, "Young Man with a Horn," in which Spangler had a small role.
Douglas spoke twice with LAPD investigators, insisting there was no personal relationship. Detectives believed him, and Douglas was cleared. Since abortion was then illegal, it was assumed that Dr. Scott was a phony name, and who he might have been was never pinned down.
Hamilton speculates there may have been a medical complication, perhaps it was fatal, and perhaps Dr. Scott--whoever he was--decided to hide the remains.
This was less than three years after the infamous Black Dahlia murder. The remains of victim Elizabeth Short had been surgically severed.
The Black Dahlia case has never been solved officially. And the possibility Spangler died during an illegal abortion remains a possibility never proven.
The discovery of the purse did prompt a massive search of Griffith Park. But no other clues were found. How the purse got there remains just one of the mysteries.
Detectives at the time pursued other leads. Shortly before her disappearance, Spangler had been seen partying in Las Vegas with two hoods named Frank Niccoli and Davey Ogul, henchman for LA mob boss Mickey Cohen.
They also disappeared about the same time. Like Spangler, they were never found. Perhaps Spangler got caught in the wrong place with the wrong people at the wrong time.
Possible, but never proven.
Spangler had spoken of expecting to come into some money, prompting speculation that perhaps she was planning to blackmail someone. Perhaps that someone responded by killing her. Again, possible, never ruled out, but never proven.
Finally, there were ongoing tensions with her ex-husband, Dexter Benner. After their divorce, the child custody dispute over their daughter had been fierce. Benner accused Spangler of being an "unfit mother," and the sensational headlines in the local papers gave her more name recognition than she had gotten for her budding movie career.
Spangler's sister-in-law recalls that on that fateful final Friday evening, Spangler said she was going to meet with Benner to discuss overdue child support. Detectives contacted Benner and his new wife.
They said they had been together all evening, and they never saw Spangler. Detectives believed them. Not long after, Benner moved his family out of Los Angeles to the other side of the country, re-settling in Florida. Benner lived to the age of 87. He died five years ago.
In the years that followed Spangler's disappearance, reported sightings popped up in the media--as would happen later with Elvis. But none proved out.
"We never get to the bottom of it," observed author Hamilton, while re-visiting Ferndell, where Spangler's purse was found. "At every step along the way in this case there are more questions."
Hamilton suspects we may never learn what happened to Spangler. That of course, is part of the enduring fascination.
"The Jean Spangler case is a cautionary tale for all of us," Hamilton said. And we're drawn to the darkness like moths to a flame."
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And today is different how??????????
Well, just say, The early 2010s was a time when the studios still reigned over Hollywood, the mob ruled the Sunset Strip, crooked politicians and police brass ran Los Angeles, and the press still didn't know how to report the news.
In all actuality I think this is a really interesting article. A nice break from all of the political crap that has been posted lately. I, drawing the most loose of conclusions, would point to the ex-husband. His move seemed mighty fishy.
I don't know...He certainly had the most to gain. Their daughter. But he had to know he'd be the first person they looked to. And if she were pregnant, he wouldn't have to kill her to get their daughter, he would just have to point out that she is unwed.
I like the mob angle. The two thugs disappearing at the same time, after recently being seen together in Vegas. The note was just a ruse. No one writes a note then sticks it in their purse, not something that leading. They get to the place they are planning to leave it and write it there.
Kirk? OJ wasn`t at that time was he?
Interesting.......but perhaps she was not murdered. There does not appear to be any evidence to indicate such. She disappeared, no body, no body parts, no blood, maybe she just disappeared....some people have been known to do that and never seen again, at least in that area. But they are living under an assumed name somewhere else.
Must be a slow news day, or the author of the book has connections to someone at MSNBC who is willing to publish an article related to the book to give her a little publicity. Whatever. Slow news days are always better than bad news days.
Always someone who likes to throw mud at a story. Right UMGator?
It was probably Ronnie Reagan - he was always popping starlets.
"He certainly had the most to gain. Their daughter. But he had to know he'd be the first person they looked to."
That doesn't stop anyone these days and you're assuming she was visibly pregnant.
I watch Classic Hollywood films; Her face IS familiar; Must have seen her in Kirk's film.
"It was probably Ronnie Reagan - he was always popping starlets."
lol
More like Clark Gable.
You've heard about the child that he & Loretta Young had, right? You know, the one who didn't even know he was her father until AFTER mama's death?
Her ears gave it away...
UMGator---Are you complaining because you came and read the story, because you have too much time on your hands, because you just like to complain? What exactly did you see in the headline that made you think this story would be more than it was?
Back to the story------I would vote mob hit only because there is no body and the mention of the two other men who also just disappeared. I would also hope there was evidence showing that her ex had plans to leave for quite some time. If this was just packing up and leaving on a whim why wasn't he investigated further. Granted I don't believe he would have had the ability to make the body disappear.
Cold cases are worth pursuing but in this case it should be a casual pursuit since all you will get in the end is a conclusion. If any party involved is still alive it won't be for much longer.
What a fasinating story. I wish they would be able to "find" out what happened to her. I really dislike Cold Cases where the families never learn what happened and are always left wondering. Just isn't right. Hopefully, some day they will be able to relook at this case and solve it.
It's easy to write a narrative 70 years after the fact. Most likely the police believed the people they questioned based on the preponderance of the evidence. I think the biggest guise that people make is that all crimes are solvable. It is important to maintain this thought to deter crime. This pressure can creates false accusations. It is only human nature to surmise a situation and then spend the energy proving it. DNA testing has exposed that a lot of these iron clad theories were in fact wrong. We all walk a fine line between circumstance and reality.
Oh, the shameful lack of knowledge today.
@Iola, people didn't have handy ballpoint pens everywhere to write little notes with back then, dear. There were expensive fountain pens some people carried in their pockets. They always leaked. Women rarely carried them in their purses for this reason. Then there were pencils. That was it.
Jean Elizabeth Spangler would have written her note where the writing tools were located. At home.
Really strange...She's in a movie with Kirk Douglas and she has a note for a Kirk? Hmmmmm. Corruption in the police department and the way the studios protected their stars back then can make bodies disappear. That's all I'm saying
There are so many possible causes of her disappearance. If she was pregnant at the time, and she was going to Dr. Scott, he was probably on a roledex at the studios. Wonder if they were looking for someone with the last name Scott. It could have been his first name.
Then, of course, there was her ex-husband and his new wife. He could have also arranged for one of her mob acquaintances to "do her in". I wonder what ever happened to her daughter, stuck in the middle of the nasty divorce.
That was one of my first thoughts: any whereabouts/news on that daughter? And she'd be over 65 yrs old by now, wouldn't she?
I guess Hollyweird is looking for a good story to dig up and try to make the people interested in it. This happened in the 40's, 20 years before I was even born.
Am I even suppose to care? NOT!
This is just a waste of LAPD time and money, I am sure they have have better things to do then pursue some ancient case like this. In a area where murder and everything else in crime is at epidemic levels they pursue some ancient crime. What a joke.
Really? I don't think the family would believe it was a waste of time and money, nor would they think it was a joke.
Tell that to the family needs closer.
"Closure" is a conclusion to a difficult crisis. "Closer" would be either the opposite of farther or if pronounced with a "z" sound, it's someone who is good at selling things.
Raymond get a hobby. It's called a cold case. Which means it sits in a file somewhere. They aren't wasting valuable tax payer dollars on an ancient case. While you peruse the internet looking for opportunities to become a troll and sulk about something with your down time, detectives take a look at cold case files with their down time. Here's hoping one day you go missing, and after 2 weeks of no leads, they just toss your file in the garbage.
Wow. That One Guy Who Calls You Stupid just pulled the words right out of my keyboard. Raymond, you really should cancel your Internet service. Apparently it's beyond your understanding and you should try a new hobby, like masturbating or something.
Raymond you are a troll, your are dismissed!!!
Yeah like giving businessmen J walking tickets for crossing at an intersection when the crossing light turned red.
@MikeyMike
I'm guessing that chocolatekat knows the difference and just mispelled closure. I'm also guessing that you're one of those kids that got his ash kicked on the playground on regular basis for being so pedantic in the classroom. I think you are closer to being a moron than you are a genius. Now we have closure.
@ginger and @MikeyMike
First, I apologize for being off-point in this post.
Actually, sometimes a misspelled or wrong word can interrupt the train of thought a reader builds as they are reading. For example, in the article, the author talks about the Black Dahlia case and how her remains were 'severed.' I actually went back and reread the paragraph to see whether I had missed something. I didn't, so apparently the author doesn't realize that the word 'severed' has an implied object. A limb can be severed from a body, but a body cannot be severed. If it is, what is it severed from?
Thus, misspelling can cause wasted time, misunderstandings, and a bad image of the author. There's nothing wrong with pointing out misspelled words. If the writer doesn't want to learn from his or her mistakes, so be it.
Seems to me silly name-calling is a bit more childish than pointing out spelling errors anyway.
I don't they have "pursued" it in a very long time. Calm down.
This is just a human interest piece now.
she's living with Elvis after being returned to earth by aliens.
@chocolatekat, The LA Dodgers may need closer, but families need closure. I don't mind when people correct bad spelling and grammar. We seem to make too many excuses for ignorance these days. And if Spangler's family has moved on by this point, I'm not sure it's worth the investment of LAPD to seek closure for them.
Ginger303,
it was clearly not a typo, and your mischaracterization of me is offensive. I don't often do this on the Newsvine, but you have been "ignored".
@Lisa-2564810- Actually the Dahlia's body was severed. She was cut in half, very cleanly with surgical precision. I do agree though that the writer of this piece did leave out a pretty important qualifier to 'severed'.
The case of the young woman in this story is quite fascinating in a base way, you know, like gritty town gossip. You have all of the sensationalism of the best crime stories; beauty, sex, hollywood elites, crime bosses, and a tragic little girl left with no mommy and no answers. Someone should write a novel.....oh.....guess they have. Nevermind.
@Raymond: Evidently you're unaware that there is no statue of limitations on murder. Cases remain open forever. When the guilty party is found, they're punished...or are you in favour of people getting away with murder?
Jean Elizabeth Spangler's surviving daughter likely has a very different POV. Her grandchildren will always wonder what happened to their grandmother. In the event it didn't occur to you, they pay taxes. So do I. I support their right to know what happened to their missing relative, even if you don't.
Cold case squads work on unsolved cases which aren't resolved within a few months of being committed.
raymond your an idiot go look at crime numbers for los angeles they are at record lows more notably violent cime is down to record lows. before you make conclusions get your facts straight you dimwit.
Lisa2564
hot diggity, another pedant has entered the ring. L2564, if a misspelled word interrupts your train of thouhgt (sic), see a doctor (still with me?) you may have ADD. your grammar lesson was enlightening only because it revealed that you don't know what you're talking about. a body can certainly be severed as most everything can be cut in two. there is something wrong about correcting others spelling as it wastes time and gives both authors a bad image. reread my post, there was no name calling. if there was, what name was called? lastly, no props for gallantly taking up chocolatekats cause? i'm very dissappointed with you Lisa. you've been an delight, let's do this again sometime.
MikeyMike
you've committed rhetorical suicide as your logic is fatally flawed. you can't ignore somebody by telling them they are being ignored. my "mischaracterization" is accurate until you show evidence that your not pedantic. your previous post speaks for itself. the irony of social media is it can be antisocial by being offensive at times. you proved this when you went after choclatekat and i reinforced it by nailing you and miss Lisa to the wall. fortunately for all, there won't be any scarring. get over it. luv ya!
What I have read is this is still open as a missing person case. That she was seen with a known gangster who was under indictment. He goes on the lamb two days later, see. Maybe he was running from the coppers, see. Maybe she was a dope and loved him. Two separate witnesses put the finger on them in El Paso Texas. The cops put the squeeze on the town, but maybe they scrammed to Mexico. Maybe they are still alive, you dirty rats, see.
I'm with Raymond on this one. 70 years...the suspect or suspects would likely be at a minimum 90+ years old and potentially over 100. Forget it...they are dead!
A little trip down memory lane....a sad trip, though.
After this much time resolving such a case would be interesting & novel but I doubt any arrests would be made
Most of the principals in that case are probably dead by now. Or in their 90's.
dig em up
LOL Mudderfly. Clone the guilty parties' DNA and then hang 'em.
David Gee............ that is hilarious! Love the idea!
LOL! You guys are nuts.
What's amazing is that except for the abortion angle NOTHING has changed. Take out the dates and remove any references to the age of the crime and it would read like a crime that took place today. It goes to show that past decades, despite some surface features, are not so far removed from the present day. Those who think "Ah, that was then" usually repeat the mistakes made in ages past. Would be nice to read something like this one day and laugh and say "Wow, that would NEVER happen"
Number of serial killers at large in the US- 50. As I see it that is unfortunately not that rare. Excuse me while I go check the locks again.
Sorry to go OT, but look how many want us to go back to those days now. We only know this woman's story because she was famous and we still don't know the end of her tale.
Closure for the daughter would be nice, if she's still alive.
I agree - kind of wonder where she is now. She'd be in her late 60's.
Yes, it would be...but at how much of the taxpayers money? If she were that interested, she would have hired PIs long ago, when she was a young adult. Just my opinion.
"Closure" is so overrated and tired. Her mother's dead, and I'm sure she's realized that for almost her entire life.
Exactly when should a murder not be investigated TisEyerish? After ten years? twenty? Cops aren't looking at old cases like this constantly. The daughter does deserve to know what happened to her mother if they can find that out.
@TisEyerish, how do you know she didn't do exactly that? You assume much.
@JustTheFacts, Murder investigations stop and go cold when leads play out. When new information comes in the cases are reopened and they're reviewed with new eyes. This is how police work is accomplished.
You who are all against the resources being expended, were this your own missing loved one you'd be up in arms that the case was never solved. Your hypocrisy's delightfully ironic.
I was wondering the same thing: what happened to the daughter??
If the note was a plant, it would have been a little more detailed. And the purse would have been left somewhere more obvious/secure in order to guarantee that it would be found.
I think the body is buried somewhere the park, which has simply not been adequately searched.
Your comment makes me think of the movie, "It's a MAD, MAD, MAD World."
Look under the "W."
Third letter "O".
(Reference: AMC's The Lot)
Just remember to "watch out for the bulls, lousy stinking bulls"
One thing about the note. Everyone seems to assume Dr. Scott was a man. Back in the bad old days of illegal abortions, more than a few women performed them, and could be expected to use a fake name. Just sayin...
I know someone who had two abortions as a teenager. Her christian fundamentalist parents knew she was sexually active and yet refused to provide her with birth control because they were against it.
They loudly proclaimed how abortion was wrong and yet they took their daughter for an abortion TWICE.
HYPOCRITES.
thought provoking - perhaps you're right, and the two mob thugs did it and disappeared to escape being caught or questioned - perhaps one of the thugs was the father of her unborn child.
If this was an abortion gone wrong case, keep in mind if conservatives overturn Roe V. Wade, the back alley butchers will be at work again, and the wealthy will again have their "secret Doctors", to cover their tracks, and the poor rape victims will be at the mercy of the butchers!
Rape victims have the option of a pill that would prevent it from happening. The issue of abortions is raising because a lot of females are using this as a type of birth control. THAT'S when those in politics need to step in. If you want to go to a "butcher" the go ahead. Just die with the baby, who cares?
Agreed.
Unfortunately, there was no type of birth control in those days.
fl reader and chocolate cat you are both jackasses!
Beautiful lady...
FLreader - fact check. Women don't use abortion as their means of birth control - it is far more expensive than actual birth control, less available, quite painful, and emotionally charged. I've known a number of women who have had abortions - not a single one used abortion as birth control and for each and every one of them, it was a very difficult decision. Birth control (not abortion, but pills, condoms, spermicides, devices, shots, implants, non-surgical tubal ligations) is very widely available, affordable, and easy to use. No woman with any sanity just blithely has s e x with no BC whatsoever with the intent of just skipping merrily to the abortion clinic when the inevitable happens. Hey, I'm not a big fan of abortion myself, but whatever your stance on it is, get your facts straight. Being acurately informed only helps support your position, whatever it is.
I beg to differ...but women who collect welfare DO use abortion as a method of birth control because they are too ignorant to use any other method. Of course, if they want to increase their welfare dollars, they go ahead and have the baby and then don't bother to raise it properly, thereby perpetuating the welfare state.
Unfortunately, in my generation, and I'm in my 30's now, girls were using abortion as birth control because their parents would not let them take the pill or anything else for that matter. Parents were claiming it gave us permission to have sex. Well we were having sex anyways. And these girls were able to go to planned-parent hood and get a basically free abortion. They had a program that people could donate money or something so girls could have one without parents finding out. Your in and out in hours. One girl I went to school with did it 3 times in one damn year. She told me her sister did it until she was 18 and could get the pill on her own. So you can't say abortion is not used as birth-control. Maybe not by grown women, but by teens it was. Not sure if teen girls are still having this issue or not, (hope not), but parents in my generation seem to be repeating what their parents did to them so I assume it's the same.
Zee, don't ya just love it when men chime in about how and what women do for birth control?
Interesting to note the predictable way most conservatives respond to abortion. Initially they could care less because it doesn`t affect them until they have a pregnancy themselves, it`s at that point where the wealthy have "miscarriages" in lieu of abortions. Just another example of the hypocritical way they profess to care for the unborn, at least until it becomes born to society, then they exclaim how their mothers are like "alley cats" unworthy of any support. It`s a strange "god" such ilk appeal to for justification, one that appears to favor the powerful over the relative poor. It`s simple really, the rights of the born supercede the rights of the unborn, even to the point of a womans personal choice for or against abortion for whatever reason they choose.
TisEyerish,
Welfare hoes don't abort. That's like throwing money out the window.
But U R probably right about the "having them & not raising them properly".
"the wealthy have "miscarriages" in lieu of abortions"
When I was a kid, no body had abortions (If they did, they didn't talk about it), they had that procedure known as a "DNC". Nowadays, no body has DNC's (if they do, they don't talk about it), but women DO have abortions.
Hum...........Something seem odd about this?
First off it's a D and C, Dilation and Curritage..... the DNC is the Democratic National Committee..... secondly, abortions are not always the choice of the woman, my mother, for example got pregnant (early 1960 before abortion was legal) and my stepfather insisted she get an abortion because he didn't want any more kids. She was a stay at home mom with no job skills (common in that day) and no other means of support buy her husband. He took her to a "back room abortionist" and several days later she hemoragged (sp?) and almost died.
If men had babies instead of women abortion and birth control would be legal and free, you better believe it....
MplsMinn-I believe the condom has been around a while.
Though you do not reference to which "pill" you are referring to (birth control or the morning after pill, aka plan B), I assume you are referring to Plan B. You do realize it's not 100% effective, right? And also, it's quite expensive. If I remember correctly, it runs about $60-$70.
First of all people don't get more welfare for more kids these days. I've worked at the department of human services for over twenty years. Doesn't happen. There is also a four year limit on cash assistance. Food stamps will increase with more kids but that's on a card and is harder, though not impossible, to get cash from unlike the old days where actual paper food stamps were traded for half of their face dollar. Samantha, I am 40 and I don't know what kind of nightmare school you went to but kids when I went to school were also having sex and I know of three who had babies and if others had abortions I didn't know of it since it was considered private and shameful. I got my first birth control at planned parenthood and I have never had an abortion. Birth control works if it's used correctly. I don't judge people having abortions and it needs to be kept legal without the butchers. I have never met anyone who had more than one abortion and like other posters have stated it wasn't an easy decision for them.
MplsMinn, there was birth control available before the advent of the pill. Condoms were readily available as were diaphragms, both of which were used with a reasonable amount of success at preventing an unwanted pregnancy. If a woman was finished with her child-bearing, sterilization was also available as a permanent form of birth control.
Samantha: During the generation you're talking about (ours), parents may not have been allowing the pill or other things, but, condoms were always readily available, and discreetly so, for adolescents. They were handed out at local health departments anonymously, with no permission from parents needed.
And TisEyerish: I have known women on welfare (who are good mothers, by the way, just struggling to make ends meet) and not one of them has had an abortion. There are women I have known NOT on welfare that HAVE had abortions. The social status doesn't really matter, abortions have happened in every "class" of person. The money people have doesn't decide the kind of person/parent they will be. Way to project your prejudice onto others of women on welfare.
FlReader, are you talking about the "morning after" pill? I do believe that the far right want to do away with that. Also, in the interim, they are trying to make it illegal, if not already, for females under a certain age (not sure if it is 16 or 18) to use it without parental consent. Many of these girls have poor relationships with their (frequently) over strict parents. Many of these parents are unaware that their "pure, little angel" is a tramp.
Thank you Zee for trying to educate those who blame all ills of our society on the "poor". I know a lot of poor people who are not on welfare or food stamps; they work 2 to 3 jobs just to make sure that their children are fed and they don't use abortion as birth control. Abortion at Planned Parenthood is never free and never subsidized by government. 97% of work done at Planned Parenthood are aimed to save women's lives, improve women's health and PREVENT the need for abortions.
as much as LA has been torn up and bulldozed and modernized, good luck finding any remains now or clues ! maybe Howard had something to do with it - that being Multi-Billionaire Howard Hughes, but, I'll never tell.
she was asking for it. that dame got what she deserved. the 40's , the war the babes the crime and the good times. just like yesterday.
While interesting from a whodunit mystery perspective, I hope the LA police aren't spending a lot of time on this or other 70+ year old cold cases.
It might make a good novel. Work out a likely ending, get the right author, I'd buy it.
For family members this case is a big deal and closure of what really happened to this young mother/woman. Anyone who has had a family member taken away feels incomplete like a piece of themselves is missing also....She is Important ....lets hope resolution will come.
I suggest you pay for the investigation, then. There are plenty of newer cases that need a second look. Most of the principals involved have probably long since died. "Closure" is a very overly-used word these days. There comes a time when "acceptance" is necessary to move on with one's life and, hopefully, her daughter reached that stage many years ago.
Yeah, it's just not going to happen. All anyone can do is write about it. Hence, this article.
TisEyerish, I believe you are a troll. If this case was something from the 1800's or older then sure, your words would be reasonable. Not untill all living relatives are passed does case deserved to be ignored. I hope your life would be worth it to someone out there is you went missing. If not then I feel sorry for you.
I have read this and.......I have solved the case!!!!
It was the Butler!!
The Butler is always involved someway in these old movies.......
Julianna Margulies look alike, yea?
I was thinking the exact same thing!
I'd say it was either the mob angle or the ex-husband . Interesting that she was linked to Kirk Douglas though wonder what he has to say.
Not much has changed since then. The ex-husband still gets the blame. Poor guy.
It might have been the doctor too, performing a botched back alley abortion, who knows. The ex-husband had a lot to gain from this (no more child support payments to her, full custody of the child), and the fact that he moved his family suddenly after the interrogation does seem a bit suspicious.
Kirk Douglas may have been a friend to her, rather than the guy who impregnated her and/or murdered her, as some may think. He may have been the one person she trusted to tell about her pregnancy and she may have been preparing to drop off a note to him mentioning this doctor's visit before meeting her demise.
The mob guys disappearing at the same time is interesting, I wonder if the killer arranged to have them all killed at the same time for some reason. This is a very interesting case, I hope they find closure for this beautiful woman's family.
Personally, I am going with the abortion that went bad, and the body was disposed of. I find the case interesting and just because it is old does not mean it is a waste of money. There is no statute of limitation on murder, but with each passing year the liklihood of the responsible person being alive dwindles. It would be nice to know if only for the peace of mind of the family.
She's maybe occupying Las Vegas, or at least a hole somewhere in the desert outskirts.
thar article made me ask more questions than it did answer them.. another mystery that will never truly be solved. all the people that were involed or that did know something about it are probably dead now so whats the point?
It seems to me that some over paid sack of crap fat cop has nothing better to do. If they have not solved ANY and ALL outstanding cases in LA then they dare not waste time on useless ventures such as this. If they have time to work on idle issues like this and "Where is Jimmy Hoffa" then we need to start a RIF.
Detectives make damn good money and should not be allowed to waste time on 60 year old cases. My tax dollars are paying for this?!
aceman-563344: Hey, a**hole, unless you live in LA, then your tax dollars are not paying for it. And that "over-paid sack of crap fat cop", as you so lovingly call him (or her), is just doing his (or her) job. Cops don't get to pick which crimes they solve, they get told. I'm not sure what exactly you consider "damn good money", but most cops earn every damn cent of it and deserve a lot more.
Boy Aceman, you're as dumb as Raymond (see comment earlier on this page). Is it mentioned anywhere in the article that this case is still being actively investigated? Good lord. You two need to masturbate each other.
aceman: Actually, police officers don't make the kind of money you seem to think they make...
And, just because cases are old does not make them any less important to solve than a murder that happened last week. Wait until something like that happens to someone you love and see how many years you would be willing to figure out what took place.
If she was last seen with those two mobsters and they dissapeared too.........Duhh????
I agree. Two mobsters that she hangs around happen to go missing at the same time. It doesn't take genius to figure that out. That, or that is one heck of a coincidence.
What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. Plenty of unmarked graves in the outskirting desert.
Have to agree on this one...and it could have been she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time!
OK, Here you go!!!
It's Obama's fault..................
I Knew it!
Has to be Bush's fault, he came before Obama. ( pun intended). And Pelosi is the daughter. And betty Ford is the grandmother. How many other people can we witlessly involve?
Methinks nobrent and brent guthrie are related. perhaps Siamese twins? Joined at the toes.
Wait, that was under the Truman administration so the guilty party is, DRUM ROLL PLEASE! J. Edgar Hoover! A woman hating control freak who had a perpetualthing about the mob and blackmailing people.
Seed planted, have fun guys!
I'm going with the abortion gone bad angle. It seems to me that it would be easy enough for the Doctor to have a mortician in his pocket "just in case". They cremated her. No body, no evidence. too many crematoriums around to go sifting thru the ashes.
I'm leaning toward the ex-husband. He said she was an un-fit mother. What better way to prove it than to write the note and put it in her purse to make everyone think she was a loose woman wanting an abortion and frame a famous actor in the process. Then he got the daughter, moved away and lived happily ever after. Of course his new wife was going to say he was with her that night, no woman likes the ex-wife or wants to be the next one to disappear.
I am with you on this. I wonder if the 2nd wife is still alive. Bet she knows some secrets.
The ex-husband did not want to pay child support, I can see that. But 'murder' points to much stronger motives . . . someone who did not want the evidence of dalliance to continue to a full-term pregnancy and live birth. Murder of an inconveniently pregnant but stunning young woman is the crudest form of birth control, but not a mob specialty . . . they wouldn't care. This leaves actors and politicians as the most likely culprits.
Or a "made man" who was getting serious about her and found out that, or saw her with these other mobsters and presumed, she was stepping out on him.
Considering the ties between entertainment/the Mob/Las Vegas the lady who was a tramp (Mob view of an actress) and the two mobsters are together under the Las Vegas desert.
But, like the article stated, there are a plethora of realistic possibilities in this case.
The idea of killing an ex-wife for monetary gain or to retain custody of children as as old as Methusalah. Men have the money and power and don't want to give that up or have that power challenged. A woman who has the audacity to attempt to leave the marriage and take their own children is more challenge than most men can bear, and most men who believe they can get away with killing that woman will try to do so. She is dead and her little girl went back to live with her violent father. There are a million ways to dispose of a dead body. Soon enough everyone stops asking questions and goes on about other business. A life has been lost and someone has gained money and/or power over something they wanted. It's a very old story. An ancient story, as a matter of fact.
To Liza Null:
Such venom. Where in the article was it stated that the ex-husband was violent? I find nothing in your rant that indicates you even read the article.
It only mentions that he accused her of being an unfit mother. That doesn't make him violent. If anything it would suggest that he is caring and considerate for his childs future at that time...
At Nitro...
If he was so caring about the child's future, why didn't he pay his child support on time. Most of the time the spouse or ex spouse is the first one investigated when someone disappears or is murdered.
"The most famous Kirk then in Hollywood was the actor Kirk Douglas, who had just finished filming, "Young Man with a Horn,"
Now that's funny.
What is it with society and pretty women? "Use once and discard?"