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* T A Y L O R O L O G Y *
* A Continuing Exploration of the Life and Death of William Desmond Taylor *
* *
* Issue 84 -- December 1999 Editor: Bruce Long bruce@asu.edu *
* TAYLOROLOGY may be freely distributed *
*****************************************************************************
CONTENTS OF THIS ISSUE:
Margaret Gibson's Deathbed Confession:
"I Killed William Desmond Taylor!"
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What is TAYLOROLOGY?
TAYLOROLOGY is a newsletter focusing on the life and death of William Desmond
Taylor, a top Paramount film director in early Hollywood who was shot to
death on February 1, 1922. His unsolved murder was one of Hollywood's major
scandals. This newsletter will deal with: (a) The facts of Taylor's life;
(b) The facts and rumors of Taylor's murder; (c) The impact of the Taylor
murder on Hollywood and the nation; (d) Taylor's associates and the Hollywood
silent film industry in which Taylor worked. Primary emphasis will be given
toward reprinting, referencing and analyzing source material, and sifting it
for accuracy.
*****************************************************************************
The class at Georgia Tech on multimedia "Advanced Design and Production,"
with their Fall 1999 semester class project on the Taylor case, has set up
another web site on the Taylor case at http://www.lcc.gatech.edu/wdt
*****************************************************************************
The E! cable TV channel has devoted an episode of their "Mysteries &
Scandals" series to Mabel Normand. The show was quite good, with a nice
selection of film clips and stills, and the talking heads included authors
Betty Harper Fussell, William Thomas Sherman, and Sidney D. Kirkpatrick, all
of whom did an excellent job. It was a very nice half-hour introduction to
her life and career.
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Margaret Gibson's Deathbed Confession:
"I Killed William Desmond Taylor!"
Introduction by Bruce Long
It was in 1996 that I first received e-mail from Raphael Long, whom I had
never met and is not related to me. He related a unique and fascinating
perspective on the Taylor case, and we have continued to exchange e-mail for
the past three years. The account he had given me was incomplete (omitting
the identity of the killer) so I never had mentioned it in past issue of
TAYLOROLOGY. Recently I was contacted by production companies from both The
History Channel and A&E; both were producing documentaries on the Taylor
case. In addition to my input, they wanted to know if I could refer them to
others with information about the case. I contacted Raphael Long and asked
him if he wanted me to put them in touch with him. After a few days'
consideration, he agreed, and so he was subsequently contacted and
interviewed by both production companies. He also agreed to also write a
brief account for TAYLOROLOGY, which appears below.
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What Did I know and When did I know it?
by Raphael F. Long
Over several years, I'd had a small exchange of e-notes with Bruce Long of
the Taylorology Web Site regarding various aspects of the February 1, 1922
homicide of screen director William Desmond Taylor. On September 18, 1999,
I received an e-note from Bruce asking permission to give my name and
e-address to (2) producers of programs apparently intent on reporting the
Taylor affair. I possessed unique knowledge of the crime but had declined to
say "who." On September 21, 1999, I received an e-note from a producer for
the History Channel essentially asking for my "take" in the affair. He
stated he was preparing a piece on the, as yet, unsolved murder of screen
director William Desmond Taylor. I believe he is producing a series of
productions with the inference that the perpetrators had escaped detection as
the common thread. After several exchanges of messages, I acquiesced and let
the proverbial "cat out of the bag." With the exception of immediate members
of my family and a few select friends, this had been my little secret for
almost 35 years.
A week later, on September 28, 1999, I received a phone call from a producer
for A & E. Essentially, she was seeking the same information. Although I
talked to her at length, I did not reveal who the culprit was. Not being
familiar with entertainment industry business practices, I contacted Bruce
Long again to get his take on the ethics of responding to two competing
producers. After being assured that it was acceptable to respond to both
parties, I furnished the identical information to the A & E producer.
I did not seek out these production companies, they came to me. I do not have
a book to sell or anything to gain from these productions. Other than a few
dollars to cover some incidental expenses, I was not paid by either
production company. And I most certainly don't need another "fifteen
minutes" of fame. I've done that twice in this lifetime. It's as much a
curse as a blessing.
My experience with the William Desmond Taylor escapade began in 1949. A very
kindly little old lady purchased a small house three doors down the street
from my parents' home. However, she was reclusive to the extreme. Despite
this, my mother, in her usual way with people, soon became fast friends with
the woman. We learned little except that her husband had been an oil company
executive who had been killed during the early stages of World War II. She
subsisted on his pension.
As I said, she was reclusive which is not at all unusual for residents of the
community. She seldom went out and only then to visit her doctor or the
veterinarian for her cat. She had no car. Groceries were brought to her by
the checker of the local market. She allowed vegetation to totally obscure
her small house although she kept it well watered and pruned. This would
continue for fifteen years and no one thought it the least bit unusual. It
was how she lived; so what; she wasn't bothering anyone.
One Wednesday afternoon, October 21, 1964, all of this would change. As was
my custom, I came by my parents' home around 4:30 in the afternoon. My
father was in Nevada at the time so I looked in on my mother. Arriving at
the house, I found no one around. However, there was some sort of ruckus at
the woman's house. I walked to her house and up the staircase to the rear
door. There laying on the floor was our neighbor obviously in a great deal
of pain with my mother hovering over her.
She had a heart attack. In that era before 911, my mother had called the
Hollywood Police ambulance. When she attempted to give them instructions on
how to get to the property, the officer brusquely replied "We know all that!"
Well they got hopelessly lost in the hills and took 45 minutes to arrive.
Meanwhile, our neighbor was highly agitated and obviously in a great deal of
pain. Apparently, she had just converted to Roman Catholicism and was deeply
concerned with the consequences of the hereafter. She wanted a priest, which
was impossible, and she wanted to confess her "sins." She then went on to
explain that she had been a silent screen actress. She further stated that
she had shot and killed a man by the name of William Desmond Taylor. And she
continued by saying that they nearly caught her and that she had to flee the
country. There were several other claims that she made which I simply don't
recall. Our only concern at the moment was in getting her immediate medical
attention. And besides, none of this made one bit of sense. This wasn't the
woman we knew for fifteen years. The idea that this kindly woman could take
a gun and shoot another human being was preposterous. The statement about
being a actress was equally unbelievable. It was obvious to me that she was
suffering under some pain-inspired delirium. At the time, I must confess my
total ignorance of the name William Desmond Taylor.
Sorry to say, our friend and neighbor never made it to the hospital, thanks,
in part, to an egotistical policeman who wouldn't accept directions. My
parents made arrangements through Callanan Mortuary for a Roman Catholic Mass
at Blessed Sacrament Church and internment at Calgary Cemetery in Culver
City. That was the end of that, or at least so we thought.
Several months would pass. Then, one afternoon, a letter arrived from an
attorney by the name of Andrew Monk. We had been named beneficiaries of the
late neighbor's estate, provided we met certain obligations of the estate.
And you can bet that the first item on the list was his fee! We also had to
come up with money for other bequests. Among those were Blessed Sacrament
Church on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, Doctor William S. Hawkins along with
his assistant, Norton V. Stouffer, of Wayfarers Animal Hospital, 2024
Hyperion Avenue, in the Silver Lake area, Karlheinz Schueller, M.D. her
regular physician, Cornelia Pearson, the market clerk who brought her
groceries since she wouldn't allow herself to be seen in the Beachwood
Village and a stipend to care for her cat, Rajah. In return, we would
receive the woman's unencumbered home, furniture, and personal property. We
borrowed the money to cover these obligations and, roughly a year and a half
later, probate closed. Meanwhile, we had gained access to the property. On
entering her home, we discovered little of consequence as she obviously lived
at or below the poverty line. What little furniture was of no value.
However, there was a miniature case resembling a trunk. It contained a
bundle of letters along with many theatrical stills of a much younger woman.
Could she have been a silent screen actress? A quick check with the Motion
Picture Academy's Library revealed that there never had been a silent screen
performer by the name of Pat Lewis.
At this point, my mother made a further observation. Apparently she already
knew of Pat's possible involvement in the murder of William Desmond Taylor.
And she only came out with it after the fact. According to mom, Pat would
come by each evening to watch television. One evening, they were watching
"Ralph Story's Los Angeles." When Ralph did a whimsical piece on the William
Desmond Taylor murder, Pat became hysterical and blurted out that she'd
killed him and thought it was long forgotten. But mother never once said a
word to any of us about this incident.
In 1964, I had neither the time nor the initiative to pursue the matter any
further. So I simply took what few materials I'd accumulated and stashed
them away hoping someday to take them up again. There was, however, a clue
to her identity. Written across the face of one of the photos was the name
"Patricia Palmer."
Isn't hindsight wonderful? Looking back across thirty-five years, I now
believe everything that woman said during her last moments of life was the
absolute truth. From her letters and papers, from her filmography and from
the public records that still exist, she was very much the central player in
the drama which took the life of William Desmond Taylor. My most compelling
evidence is an intangible. One had to see that woman, in the throes of
death, confessing her transgressions and pleading for some sort of
ecclesiastical forgiveness. It was a very emotional event. In my ignorance
of the time, I didn't understand how emotional. The story of her escape is
far more dramatic yet she paid a terrible price for her transgression.
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[The remainder of this issue is by Bruce Long, whose commentary is at the
very end.]
The Film Career of Margaret Gibson a.k.a. Patricia Palmer
Ella Margaret Gibson entered the film industry in 1912, when she
obtained a job with Vitagraph in Santa Monica, using the screen name Margaret
Gibson. She remained with Vitagraph for three years. During six months of
that time, William Desmond Taylor was acting in the same studio. Taylor and
Gibson made four films together: "The Love of Tokiwa," "The Riders of
Petersham," "The Kiss," and "A Little Madonna." In 1915 she left Vitagraph
and went to the Thomas Ince Film Company, where she made her most famous
film, playing a small supporting role in "The Coward"--the film which made
Charles Ray a star. Her next film contract was with Centaur, followed by
films for Fox and then a series of Christie comedies. In 1918 she changed
her screen name to Patricia Palmer, and returned to Vitagraph for nearly
another year, then returned to Christie for more short comedies. She had
supporting roles in two of William S. Hart's westerns, and then roles in
other comedies and westerns. Her career continued on a general decline
throughout the silent era, though she did have a very tiny part in "King of
Kings." Her final feature film credit was the FBO film "The Little Savage"
in 1929.
Her California death certificate (7053-21286) reads "Ella Margaret Arce
AKA Ella Margaret Lewis AKA Patricia Palmer." Her last occupation is
"actress," the industry is "Motion Pictures," and the last employing company
is "Keystone Productions." Her date of death is October 21, 1964; the date
of birth is listed as Sept. 14, 1894.
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[The following news item took place one month after William Desmond Taylor
departed Vitagraph.]
May 15, 1914
VARIETY
Infatuated Actor in Jail
Los Angeles, May 13.--Charles Thompson, an actor, aged 25, is in jail
here charged with the theft of $150 worth of jewelry, belonging to his
landlady.
The baubles were presented by Thompson to Miss Margaret Gibson, leading
woman of the Vitagraph Company, with whom Thompson is said to be infatuated.
*****************************************************************************
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Publicity Articles on Margaret Gibson a.k.a Patricia Palmer
We have only been able to locate a few publicity articles on Margaret
Gibson or Patricia Palmer, and they are mostly very superficial.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
October 3, 1914
MOVING PICTURE WORLD
Miss Margaret Gibson
Margaret Gibson, the little Vitagraph star connected with the Santa
Monica, Cal., studio, celebrated her nineteenth birthday on Monday, Sept.
14th, by giving an open-house reception in her new bungalow, erected on the
cliff overlooking the ocean. It was in the nature of an old fashioned house-
warming, the majority of the guests being photoplayers now in the California
district.
Miss Gibson, or "Gibby," as she is most generally known, was born in
Colorado Springs, Colo., in 1895. Both her parents were professionals, which
accounted for her entering the profession when she was little other than a
mere baby. In all her life, she has never really known a home, for hotels
are far from the home usually enjoyed by a normal human being. Her longing
for a home finally induced her to enter pictures. She made her debut with
the Vitagraph company, and in less than three years has risen to a position
of stellar importance. With the thought of a home ever uppermost in her
mind, she has worked hard and saved diligently. A few months ago work was
started on her bungalow, and the grand opening, the biggest day in the
picture star's life, was her nineteenth birthday.
She was like a kid with a new toy. In the midst of her merriment she
tried to sing "Home, Sweet, Home," but it was too much for her. She wept
like a child, but from pure joy. And her many guests united in claiming it
was the most beautiful compliment any home ever received, for the little
Vitagraph star, who had never known a home in all her life, welcomed her
friends into her own home, which she had worked for and paid for all herself.
Few people ever have such a superb opportunity to realize the wonderful
meaning of that little word "home."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
September 1914
MOTION PICTURE
Margaret Gibson Wins First Prize
for Having the Prettiest Bathing Suit
When the annual bathing girls' automobile parade was held at Ocean Park,
Cal., all the swimmers around the beach started to get busy making bathing-
suits. Little Miss Margaret Gibson, the charming leading lady of the Western
Vitagraph, also got busy and, knowing the heart interest of Elks, bethought
herself to represent that grand lodge in the parade. Forthwith she went to a
fancy dressmaker and posed for a bathing suit. The suit was made of silk,
purple and white, and when the day of the big parade on the promenade came,
Margaret was the applauded one.
The first prize carried with it the honor of being the handsomest girl
with the niftiest suit, $50 and a beautiful silver and gold loving cup. Of
course this little champion of the screen had to carry off first prize, and
she did it well, too. Eddie Dillon, of Mutual fame, and W. H. Clune, the
Southern California movie magnate, were two of the judges, and they decided
right away that Miss Gibson was the winner of first prize, and it was on no
account of kindredism for being in the same business, either. It was for the
merits of the girl and her original bathing suit.
In the morning one of the city papers had the pink sheet first page
devoted to the film star, and many cartoons told the tale of the beach
parade.
Miss Gibson is studying the tango, and has become quite adept at dancing
the latest steps, which are being seen much in Los Angeles hotels and at the
beach resort dance pavilions, where the society people dance.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
November 1914
MOVIE PICTORIAL
"Gibby"
The Star Who Started a Fad
Ella Margaret Gibson didn't mean to do it--oh, mercy, not at all. But
Fate came along at the opportune moment, and that's how the fad began.
Miss Gibson is not only the youngest leading lady in the Vitagraph Stock
Company, out where the Occident waves its greetings to the Orient beyond, but
she is also just a trifle superstitious. But who, pray, among actor folk, is
not? They have their mascots, their omens, their hunches, their lucky days,
and their evil hours, and Miss Gibson is very much like all the others who
are "to the manner born." But, why not? She is the daughter of actor-folk.
Her mother possessed a voice like the gentle coming of dawn--and her mother's
father sang, and her mother's mother danced. So it was simply born in the
blood of this little actress to dote on mascots--without any thought or plan
of starting a new idea similar to the federal reserve banks.
But let us hasten slowly, because it is a treat, indeed, to become
acquainted with this little star--and she's a very pretty star, too--a
constant star, as it were--not at all like the variable kind.
She was born right beneath the towering majesty of Pike's Peak, that
looms many thousand feet above her natal city, Colorado Springs. But early
in life, Miss Gibson was on the wing. She was born and bred to the boards--
and it gets into one's blood when it is so ordained.
Now, as actresses grow older they are prone to forget their day of
original appearance in the never-ending, but always-changing, drama called
Life. But when they are young, they are not so particular about hiding their
ages--and on September 14 last Miss Gibson was nineteen--just a little girl
with a woman's ability.
Of course, when one must begin on the stage so young, one needs must
pick up an education on the gallop, which explains why Miss Gibson did her
studying in three states--Colorado, Kansas and California. This proves that
she is thoroughly western, in birth, breeding, spirit, education. But her
learning was not stinted--and, besides, she had the capacity to learn, and
that spells success.
When twelve years of age, little Miss Gibson was lisping her lines in
the "legit." Later on, she appeared in vaudeville, and before she was
fifteen she was the ingenue and soubrette in a permanent stock company
located in her own home town. During the period she was with that
organization she played not under one hundred parts. But there is a lure to
the silent drama, just as Australians tell us there is witchery to the vast
"Never-Never" that is splendid because of its terrible loneliness. What was
more natural, then, than that Miss Gibson should desert the first-hand method
of entertaining and do her acting before the busily clicking camera of the
cinematograph man?
In 1912, this lively, likely, likable and wholesome little actress was
in Los Angeles--above which hung destiny's star. When she applied to the
Western Vitagraph Company she was engaged immediately, and for a while she
played in minor parts, becoming accustomed to the camera and its limitations.
But she had the artistic soul within her, and soon the multitudes of weary
men and women who attend the picture shows began to take note of her beauty
and cleverness--and they made a place in their hearts for her, where all
places must be created before a star ever exists. They do not simply decide
to be stars--and all the advertising on earth won't make them stars. It must
be deep in their hearts, and paramount in their minds, just as it was with
little Miss Gibson.
It was not long before Ella Margaret Gibson was leading lady. It was
her first love in the life of the films, and it has been her only love, in
the, in the films, because, when the story of Miss Gibson's little adventure
is recited, we cannot hold ourselves down to any professions of her not
loving elsewhere. In fact, if she did not love just a little--but let us not
hasten. There are still other things to tell.
Among the more recent successes of Miss Gibson were her leads in "The
Riders of Petersham," "The Love of Tokiwa," "The Hidden House," "Francine,"
Bianca," "Auntie," Ginger's Reign," "Back to Eden," "The Little Madonna,"
"The Kiss," "The Outlaw," "Mareea, the Half-Breed," "Out in Happy Hollow,"
"The Old Oak's Secret," as well as innumerable others. In all, this star has
been featured in a hundred Vitagraph pictures.
With the blood of the West in her veins, it is logical that Miss Gibson
should be an excellent horse-woman, motorist, and all-around out-of-door
person. She believes that buildings are all right, so far as they go, but
that the open country, with its flat reaches of plain, its towering hills,
its fresh air and general joy, is the land for girls who like the blush of
the rose in their cheeks, and a spring in their steps. That is where real
beauty is bred--and Miss Gibson is entitled to the real beauty classification-
-beautiful of features, beautiful of form--a girl in a million. This latter
is referred respectfully to the young man in the case--or should we say case?
At any rate, there was a young man--but why shouldn't there be? Today, were
it not for Miss Gibson's kind consideration, that young man would have a
credit rating as low as the tide just when it is finished with ebbing.
But again, come to think it over, what Miss Gibson did was just the most
natural thing on earth to do. She was a real "good fellow," and now
thousands of girls who have heard of the incident have decided to follow her
excellent example--because who can tell when a garter will come in handy?
There--we said it! The story hinges around a garter, and the garter
hinges around--well, a little superstition, let us say. Back in the old days
(if a girl of nineteen years is entitled to refer to "old days!"), Miss
Gibson received, as her first professional salary, a shining twenty-dollar
gold piece. And did she spend it? Not at all. She did something else with
it; something very safe and sensible, and the idea pleased her so much that
she took another double golden eagle, and did the same thing with that--and
then she had a pair of them; not that the public could ever know--because
there are some things the world could not, and certainly should not, know.
This was one of them--or two of them. And every time Miss Gibson took a
step, those gold-pieces were given a ride! They were her mascots. They
stood her in good stead as--shall we say supporters? Maybe that is it--
supporters! They brought her opportunity--or, at any rate, were with her
when opportunity beckoned. They were her constant companions by day, and
remained close to her at night.
Miss Gibson is always very considerate of her friends--be they gold-
pieces or human friends--and sometimes gold-pieces seem to be more human than
human beings, because sometimes mortals are not worth a cent, and the gold
coins are always worth a great deal--full face value, be they held captive in
dainty platinum rings or used to pay one's way. But Miss Gibson has a wealth
of loyalty within her soul. She is considerate. That is part of the
westland breeding--and the countless thousands who have viewed her work on
the screen realize that no girl could perform so well without feeling every
emotion that she portrays. We say "perform" advisedly. Acting is the proper
term, but performance of duty is deeper than acting.
Miss Gibson receives many flattering letters. All pretty little leading
ladies do. Men fall in love with them in the pictures--and girls covet their
success. But this little lady has ridden through all this empty flattery
with as much sound sense as a business man would have--because acting is her
business in life.
The others in the Vitagraph company are champions of their leading lady.
They like her--are her best boosters--because they know her best, even down
to the story of the gold-pieces. This we continually forget, because it is
the most reasonable thing on earth to keep remembering these little merits of
Miss Gibson, and we must surely include this other merit.
It was night time in Los Angeles--and the western metropolis is alive
when the sun creeps low and starts getting ready for business in China. The
gay cafes were ablaze with good cheer, music and excellent food. And at one
of the tables in the very best of these restaurants were Miss Gibson and a
young man. Who he is we profess not to know. But he was there, and he
ordered with a lavish hand. Nothing was too good for the dainty lady across
from him. He urged goodies upon her--scorned price--was the best little good
fellow in the wide, wide world. But with every bill-of-lading there should
be an invoice. The waiter handed the young man the statement of account, and
it was like the fatted calf just about the time the prodigal came home. The
fatted calf part of the story is apropos, too. And then the young gentleman,
with all the sangfroid at his command, reached into his inner coat-pocket.
He reached farther, and then a crimson hue began to mount to his temples. He
felt in all his other pockets, and his discomfiture was alarming. But the
wallet that had been had ceased to be! There he was--surrounded by plenty,
and as poor as a desert hermit!
"I'm--I'm--afraid," he stammered, but Miss Gibson understood. She has a
little way of understanding about her that is a delicious relief in a crisis
like this.
"You just wait here," she told him, "and I will be back shortly--with
the money."
It was a bright twenty-dollar gold-piece she laid in his hand--a
trembling, thankful hand, that was humid with drear anticipation of the
patrol-wagon, a stern judge, a story in the morning papers--ugh! such
complications!
But he paid the check, feed [sic] the waiter lavishly, breathed blessing
untold on his fair companion--and departed. And then, just before bidding
her good-night, he asked timidly how she made the "raise."
"Why," Miss Gibson confessed, "it was simple enough. You see, when I
was a very little girl, the first twenty dollars I earned I saved. It
brought me great fortune--and then I saved another--in the same way. They
were set in platinum buckles. But I think I had better go now. The safety-
pin isn't holding very well."
"The safety-pin?" her friend questioned.
"Why, yes, stupid," Miss Gibson flung back, as she vanished in the
doorway, "this night's entertainment has cost me a garter--!"
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
April 16, 1915
PHOTOPLAYERS WEEKLY
Margaret Gibson Leaves Vitagraph
for New York Motion Picture Co.,
under Director Richard Stanton
Ella Margaret Gibson is the youngest leading lady in the New York Motion
Picture Company. She is the star of the Western contingent located in Santa
Monica, Cal., and in spite of her youthfulness has portrayed many parts. Her
career has been brimful of interesting events, and her record of artistic
achievements is one which any actress could well envy. Miss Gibson was born
in Colorado Springs, Colo., Sept. 14, 1895, which makes her but nineteen
years old on her last birthday. Her parents were both professional
entertainers, her father being a musician and her mother a vocalist. The
father's name is Ellsbarry J. Gibson, born and raised in Iowa and emanating
from Scotch-Irish stock. The mother's maiden name was Cellia Ella Fisher,
born in Jamesport, Mo., of English ancestors. In her youth the mother was
noted for her beauty and her ability as a singer. The mother's father was
also a professional vocalist, and the mother's mother was an exceptionally
successful professional dancer. It can be readily seen that Margaret Gibson
comes by her great talent naturally. Miss Gibson's schooling, so far as
public schools are concerned, was somewhat limited, owing to the professional
activities of her parents. She attended school in Colorado, Kansas and
California, but the greater portion of her education was received at the
hands of her mother, who, because of her early life and experiences in
professional circles, realized the disadvantage under which the child of
professionals is usually educated. The professional environment in which
Miss Gibson was raised, and a prudent mother's thoughtfulness, has done more
for the little Vitagraph star, in the matter of education, than most girls
receive in many years at girls' colleges. In a semi-professional way, Miss
Gibson has been appearing on the dramatic stage practically all of her life.
Her first bona fide theatrical engagement was playing a child's part when
about twelve years old. This was in Denver, Colo. Her success was all that
could be expected. Later on, she made several tours through the western
country, playing vaudeville engagements. Before she was fifteen she was the
ingenue and soubrette in a permanent stock company located in her home town,
Colorado Springs. With that organization she portrayed nearly one hundred
different parts. Early in 1912 Miss Gibson became interested in the
possibilities of motion photography. Being employed in Los Angeles at the
time, she applied to the western Vitagraph Company and was immediately
engaged. For several weeks she portrayed minor parts in the picture, an
experience which taught her the demands of the camera. At this juncture the
regular leading lady of the company was transferred to New York, and Miss
Gibson was given an important part against the judgment of her managing
director. Her years of successful theatrical work and her knowledge of the
camera, made it possible for Miss Gibson to immediately demonstrate her right
to the position. Her success was instantaneous and emphatic. She
immediately was placed at the head of the Vitagraph western company and
continued in that capacity. She has never appeared with any other film
company.
Miss Gibson is essentially a western girl. She is a splendid
horsewoman, a skillful automobile driver and a veritable fiend at "roughing
it" in camp life. Every phase of rugged nature, with its animal life, makes
direct appeal to Miss Gibson, with the result that this famous little
Vitagraph star is simply a natural, free-from-care, modern girl, entirely
devoid of the professional conceits and jealousies usually associated with
successful actresses. Her knowledge and love of life in its natural forms,
probably accounts for the direct naturalness and simplicity for which her
professional work is justly celebrated.
Her first picture with the New York Motion Picture Co., is "The Sea
Ghost," in two reels, directed by Richard Stanton.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
April 30, 1915
PHOTOPLAYERS WEEKLY
Margaret Gibson's Press Agent had Another Rush of
Words to his Typewriter. This is his Latest Literary Outburst.
...Miss Gibson's complexion is the envy of every photoplayer in Southern
California. She attributes it to a lotion she uses, composed of native
Russian tea and Siberian vodka. This wash is used twice daily, after which a
delicate skin tonic from Hungary is applied. How wonderful skin is
maintained through continued use of a syrup made from prunes in France and
the only cosmetic which she will apply to her face comes from Germany. Each
of these toilet accessories used by Miss Gibson comes from the war zone and
every solitary item had been advanced in price. The German cosmetic has
increased to ten times its normal value.
Miss Gibson faced an awful predicament, for her radiant skin photographs
better than any make-up ever conceived by man. Her director would never
permit her to use a grease paint make-up, for her complexion gives the most
natural appearance on the screen. But with the price of all her toilet
articles raised out of all proportion, what was she to do? The answer is
that she applied the usual make-up used by her fellow workers, and then came
a long argument with her director.
This man went to the business manager, who called Miss Gibson into the
private office. He demanded to know why she was ruining the biggest feature
of her pictures. She explained about the war. He told her she must use none
but her old methods. She replied that if her complexion meant so much to
Inceville pictures, they would have to raise her weekly salary. They did so,
so now her glorious complexion is permanently assured for pictures, and every
one is satisfied except the several European monarchs who started all the
trouble.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
December 11, 1915
MOTOGRAPHY
Margaret Gibson in Centaur Releases
Margaret Gibson, one of the most beautiful women in motion pictures and
an actress of rare emotional ability, who has been playing ingenue roles in
David Horsley's productions for the past two months, has been elevated to a
featured position in one of the companies producing Centaur Features. As
such she will make her first appearance with the release of the two-reel
Centaur Feature "The Arab's Vengeance," on the Mutual program, Dec. 16.
Miss Gibson's first appearance in motion pictures was made in 1912 when
she joined the Vitagraph company. She then went with the New York Motion
Picture Company, one of her appearances being in "The Coward," an Ince
production featuring Frank Keenan. In September she joined Mr. Horsley. Her
first part was that of the crippled sister in "The Protest," a Centaur Star
Feature starring Crane Wilbur. Following this she played an important part
in "Could a Man Do More?" another Centaur Star Feature with Mr. Wilbur.
Her splendid characterizations in these releases, coupled with her
unusual attractiveness, led Mr. Horsley to conclude that she merited more
than just a place in the cast and accordingly made arrangements to put her in
a stellar position.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
January 1, 1916
PHOTOPLAYERS WEEKLY
[After a minister attacked the film studios as being rampant with
immorality, members the film industry made defensive statements.]
...Miss Margaret Gibson of the Horsley studios, now playing in a five-
reel picture, "The Soul Cycle," being produced by Director Davis, makes this
statement:
"To me, it is outrageous, to read of this very rabid attack on the
motion picture people. I have invariable been treated with the utmost
courtesy and consideration by the male members of my profession. We are a
very busy class of people, and to us, art is art! We really have not time to
make anything less of it.
"It is people who find that time hangs heavily on their hands who get
into mischief. Certainly that could not apply to motion picture people, and
I desire to register a vigorous protest by the hardest working class of
people I know, the moving picture people, to the slur cast upon their women
folk!"...
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
February 5, 1916
REEL LIFE
A Five Foot Star
"Height:--Five Feet.
"Weight, 110 pounds.
"Eyes, blue; hair, golden brown.
"Favorite parts:--ingenue and 'rag' characters.
"Recreations:--expert at horseback riding and swimming, also motorist."
This is almost all, except for a few more bare, cold details of what she
had done during her short life, that the little mimeographed biography had to
tell of Margaret Gibson, the Horsley (Mutual) star of Mutual Masterpictures,
De Luxe Edition.
There is no doubt that she has just those characteristics she is
credited with. But words are such clumsy tools when it comes to catching up
the blueness of eyes, the golden glints in sun-shiny hair, the elusiveness
and the charm of manners and of personality.
If it had been a canvas that an artist had been given, instead of a
greasy sheet of copy paper on which the press agent was to jot snap judgments
of her features, there would have been a glorious girl, with wind-swept hair
and eyes the color of corn flowers. Those who have come to know her and to
look for her on the screen do not have to be told that Margaret Gibson is
beautiful.
Margaret Gibson was born in Colorado Springs, Colo., twenty years ago.
She began her schooling in her native city and continued it until she was
twelve years old, in Denver. At twelve she went on the stage, appearing on
the Pantages vaudeville circuit for over two years. In 1909 she became a
member of the Theodore Lorch Stock Company, of Denver, where she was hailed
as an emotional genius, and was cast in a wide variety of roles.
In 1912 she had an opportunity to become a member of a film company.
She took it. Perhaps her best known role, while with this company, was in "A
Child of the North." Later she was with several other companies, but left to
become a member of the Horsley (Mutual) contingent in Los Angeles, Cal.
Her first role for Mutual was in "The Protest," with Crane Wilbur, in
the role of Maggie, the poor little deformed sister.
Her second part was in "Could a Man Do More?"
It was after this that she was raised to the ranks of stardom, with the
right to demand her name in bright lights over the theatre door. Margaret
Gibson's first picture as a star is "The Soul's Cycle," a Mutual
Masterpicture, De Luxe Edition, in which she plays the dual role of a
beautiful Roman maiden and a modern New York heiress.
This new Mutual star is possessed of unusual understanding of life and
of people. It is this quality which fits her peculiarly to play the
"sympathy" roles for which she is so frequently cast. She is very young, but
she has traveled and read and studied a great deal, and has absorbed much
that many older people are very apt to overlook.
Although the pretty Horsley star is very serious-minded, she usually
seems care-free and joyous as a bird. She is very athletic, and as the prim
little biography states, she is an expert horsewoman, a swimmer and a
motorist.
In fact, the pretty actress has had a special garage and stable built to
accommodate her little green motor car and her silky black horse.
They are her two pets, she insists, and furthermore, she does not know
which she loves the most. "Don," the horse, is splendid for a ride in the
early mornings before work for the day has begun. The little green motor is
at its best in the evenings, when it can travel miles and miles through the
flower-scented air, and leave the memory of worries behind.
Miss Gibson is a cook, very much of a cook. She manages her little
bungalow herself, and the servants who take care of it for her, adore her.
One of them is an old colored mammy, who has been the little star's
personal maid for a number of years.
"Dinah," as her name is, wears a gaily colored turban and a big
enveloping apron over her expansive person, and she trails around after her
"honey," as she calls her little mistress every minute Miss Gibson is at
home.
"Dinah" is very much afraid of the camera. Several times the directors
of the Horsley studio have tried to persuade her to lend herself to the local
color of pictures, but the old mammy has always backed off and refused.
She believes that "pictures, shure am for beau'ful young ladies, but not
for old colo'ed mammies."
Little Margaret Gibson's great ambition is to do work which will make
people better and happier for her having done it. She loves to play
appealing "sympathy" parts.
"I am glad I am a picture actress," she says, "because pictures reach so
many people that the stage does not.
"I am fonder of 'rag' roles than any other type of screen portrayal,"
says the pretty little star.
"When I was on the stage, I could not really do good work unless I felt
that the sympathy of the audience was with me. I did not care to play
vampire roles.
"Of course, in working for pictures, we do not feel the response of an
audience before us, but we know, instinctively, and from years of training,
what sort of roles appeal to the public. I always want to be cast in
'sympathy' roles because I can work best then."
Critics who have watched the work of this young star since becoming a
member of the Horsley studios are unanimous in their verdict that her career
has but begun.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
April 15, 1916
PHOTOPLAYERS WEEKLY
Margaret Gibson Shines as Youngest Film Star
Just what a star is according to the findings of astrologers is a matter
for speculation, but in the instance of a particular little body who is
brightly shining in the filmdom of Southern California, sending forth great
rays to every section of the country, a suitable definition would be blue
eyes, golden brown hair, 110 pounds, five feet in height and a wonderful
personality. Then add to it all the name--Margaret Gibson.
The sphere in which this star may be found is the David Horsley studios,
in the heart of Los Angeles, just outside of the shadows of some of the
City's tall buildings. There she will remain for a period of two years,
according to her contract, and each day her brilliancy will grow stronger,
judging from its great development of the past few months.
There is considerably more to Miss Gibson than merely being a star. She
has the distinction of being the youngest of the silent drama stars, allowing
for the difference in meaning when leading woman, featured actress and star
arises for treatment. This dainty little being has reached the foremost
position, although her life in cinema land is scarcely four years old.
She started at the bottom late in 1912. A year later she displayed
exceptional talent and was rewarded with more important work. Her excellent
understanding of the portrayal of the various parts assigned to her brought
her still higher in the art. She was given ingenue leads. Next came her
opportunity to be featured and at last David Horsley saw the possibility of
starring her, grasped it and the result is that she now rests on a brilliant
pedestal erected through her own achievements.
In many respects little Margaret--that's what those who know her call
her--is entirely different when compared with other screen stars. One of her
peculiarities, if such a term may be used, is that she just hates
automobiles. She says because they are not human and one cannot feel kindly
toward them. But horses, Mercy! She just loves them. Silks and satins are
other things which fail to attract Miss Gibson, and the happiest young woman
in the world is she when she is cast to appear in rags.
Endurance would be a fitting addition to her name. And if it wouldn't
sound too long, work might be thrown in. Both of these qualities are very
prominent in the little Horsley star. She loves her work and wants plenty of
it. Her power of endurance is remarkable. Only recently she played in three
dramas at once, changing off and on at the command of the director, working
from early morning until close to the time of the call of the milkman. One
of the pictures was in five reels and the other two, two reels each.
Starting with the release of "The Soul's Cycle" Miss Gibson became a
star. She has followed this up with wonderful portrayals of many varieties
and during the months of production she has risked her life not once, but
many times while performing in jungle scenes or out on the water. She is
willing at all times and through her beautiful disposition and personality
has won a place in the heart of all who know her. That she has an enormous
screen following is very evident when a glance is taken at her weekly mailing
list.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
May 20, 1917
NEW YORK TELEGRAPH
Christie Signs Margaret Gibson
Margaret Gibson, formerly of the Horsely studios, and lately with the
Christie Comedy company, has signed a long term contract with the latter
company and will be featured in a series of two-reel comedies.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
[Entry in the 1918 Motion Picture Studio Directory]
GIBSON, Margaret; b. Colorado Springs, Colo., 1896; educ. there and
Denver; stage career, Pantages Circuit, with Lorch Stock Co., Denver, 2 yrs.;
screen career, Universal ("Public Approval"), Horsley ("Could a Man Do More?"
"Destiny's Boomerang," "Fate's Decision," "Good-for-Nurthin' Brat,"
"Highlights and Shadows," "Jungle Outcasts"), Fox ("Island of Desire," "The
Island of Destiny"), Christie ("With the Mummie's Help," "The Fourteenth
Man," "The Milky Way," "A Lucky Slip," "He Fell on the Beach," "Local Color,"
"Skirts," "When Clubs Were Trumps"); rides, swims, drives. Hght., 5, 1;
wght, 110; golden brown hair, blue eyes.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
May 11, 1919
NEW YORK TELEGRAPH
Fay Tincher, Eddie Barry, Patricia Palmer, Harry Depp and Katherine
Lewis will be featured in the cast of "Rowdy Ann." [This short comedy is
available on home video on the "Funny Girls" tape, volume 3 of the Slapstick
Encyclopedia, available from Kino Video. Patricia Palmer is on screen for
nearly four minutes, portraying one of the heroine's college roommates.]
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
November 20, 1920
MOVING PICTURE WORLD
Patricia Palmer back in Comedies
Patricia Palmer, whom we used to see in many Christie Comedies, is back
in the fold at Christie's Hollywood fun emporium and will be seen in some new
comedies to be directed by Al Christie, Frederic Sullivan and James Clemens,
alternately. Miss Palmer dropped out of Christie's several months ago to head
a feature cast in a six-reel drama, and has been at the heavier stuff ever
since.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
[Entry in the 1921 Motion Picture Studio Directory]
PALMER, Patricia; b. San Francisco, Calif.; educ. there; stage career,
child parts for several yrs.; screen career, 2 yrs., with Vitagraph for one
yr., starring in two-reel O. Henry and Wolfville stories, ("The Canyon Hold-
Up," "The Rose of Wolfville"), with W. S. Hart in "The Money Corral," and
"Dan Kurrie's Inning " ["Sand"], featured in Christie comedies, Para-Art
("Sand"), Educational ("His Better Half," "Mixed Bedrooms," "Turkey
Dressing"), Schlesinger ("Things Men Do"), Home ad., Melrose Hotel, 120 S.
Grand Ave., Los Angeles, Calif.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
August 19, 1922
CAMERA!
Patricia Palmer begins work with the Ranger Productions at the Long
Beach studios on completion of her present Lasky engagement.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
[Entry in the 1923-4 Motion Picture Studio Directory]
PALMER, Patricia; b. San Francisco, Calif.; educ. Calif. and Colo.;
stage experience, vaud. and stock; screen experience, 8 yrs., Christie,
Vitagraph, Paramount ("The Cowboy and the Lady," "Mr. Billings Spends His
Dime"), Cyrus J. Williams Prod. ("Things Men Do"), American ("The Web of the
Law," "The Two Hellions"). Hght. 5, 1; wght, 110; golden brown hair, dark
blue eyes. Home ad. 2324 Beachwood Dr.; phone Hollywood, Calif., 436-130.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
[Entry in the 1927 Motion Picture News Booking Guide and Studio Directory]
PALMER, Patricia; b. San Francisco, Cal. "Naughty Nanette" (FBO), Hght.
5, 1; wght. 100; golden brown hair; dark blue eyes.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
[Entry in the 1930 Motion Picture Almanac]
PALMER, Patricia: has appeared in (1929) "Little Savage," Radio
Pictures.
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Commentary by Bruce Long
Let us assume, for the sake of armchair speculation, that Margaret
Gibson's confession to Taylor's murder on her deathbed was totally true and
accurate, the true solution to Taylor's murder.
It would appear that the murder motive would probably either stem from
events which took place shortly before the murder, or else from events in
1914, when Taylor and Gibson were acting in films together.
If the murder motive stems from events which took place shortly before
the murder, then the motive appears totally lost to history, as there was no
known association of Taylor and Gibson/Palmer during that time. Newspapers
were speculating wildly about the cause of Taylor's murder, but
Gibson/Palmer's name was never mentioned, and no contemporary items refer to
any association with Taylor after 1914. Gibson/Palmer was in Los Angeles at
the time of the Taylor murder, but so were countless others.
So, let's look at 1914. Taylor was with Vitagraph for six months in
1913-14, and Margaret Gibson was at Vitagraph during that same time. They
acted opposite each other in four films, and during those six months they
were undoubtedly in additional contact with each other around the Vitagraph
lot in Santa Monica, even when working on different films.
Perhaps during that six-month association, Margaret Gibson became
totally infatuated with Taylor (just as Mary Miles Minter was later to
become), and Taylor rejected her--even though Gibson was a bigger star than
Taylor at that time. Perhaps Gibson never got over his rejection and became
increasingly obsessed with Taylor in the subsequent years. As she watched
Taylor's career and prestige climb, and her own career decline, perhaps her
resentment of Taylor's rejection grew stronger and stronger. (Must I go
bound, and you so free?) Finally, on February 1, 1922, she took action
against him.
The film "Rounding Up The Law" was released in April 1922, so it must
have been in production around the time of the Taylor murder. Patricia
Palmer was leading lady in that western film, which starred Big Boy Williams.
(The film is available on video from Video Yesteryear.) One scene in the
film was the type of scene that would soon disappear from American movies for
the next 40 years, banned by the Hays Office. It involves Palmer in the arms
of a lecherous villain; he is manhandling her and she is wrestling with him
in an attempt to free herself from his embrace. The scene is directed very
vigorously. Surprisingly, the hero does not arrive in time to rescue her;
she finally uses a gun and saves herself. Perhaps acting in this scene
served as a catalyst, enabling her to finally kill Taylor and free herself
from the obsession. All purely theoretical, but it is a remotely possible
explanation as to why she finally took action, eight years after they worked
together.
Fact: In the two years prior to the murder, Patricia Palmer had been
acting in short comedies and features for minor film companies like Aywon,
Schlesinger, Educational, Christie. But in the year following the Taylor
murder, she was given roles in two films at Hollywood's top studio:
Famous Players-Lasky (Paramount).
Was it just a coincidence? Or did someone at Paramount give Palmer
those film jobs because he knew the truth and wanted to keep the scandal
quiet? But how would someone at Paramount have known the truth? Consider:
Paramount studio manager Charles Eyton was on the murder scene early on the
morning of February 2, 1922. It is known that he removed letters written to
Taylor by Mabel Normand and Mary Miles Minter. Perhaps he also removed
correspondence written to Taylor by Patricia Palmer--correspondence which,
unlike Normand's innocent joshing letters or Minter's childish love notes,
contained threats from a fixated actress who was obsessed with Taylor. (If I
can't have you, no one will.) Eyton would have to cover it up to prevent
additional damage to the film industry: destroy the Palmer correspondence,
and give her a few jobs to help her recover. What's done is done.
As far as the movie industry was concerned, the worst possible outcome
of the Taylor case would be if Taylor's killer were revealed to be a screen
actor or actress--particularly someone who had been acting in movies for many
years--because that would cause the public to feel betrayed and turn away
from the box office (as happened in the Arbuckle case), and would increase
the power of those who were attacking the immorality of the movies.
In any event, the theory that Margaret Gibson a.k.a. Patricia Palmer
killed Taylor is a worthy chapter to the history of the Taylor case.
*****************************************************************************
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Many thanks to Bill Cappello, Billy Doyle, Annette D'Agostino, Sally Dumaux,
Joe Moore and Raphael Long, for providing some background items. If anyone
has more contemporary articles on Gibson/Palmer, please pass them along.
Additional space may be devoted to her in a future issue of TAYLOROLOGY.
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Back issues of Taylorology are available on the Web at any of the following:
http://www.angelfire.com/az/Taylorology/
http://www.etext.org/Zines/ASCII/Taylorology/
http://www.silent-movies.com/Taylorology/
Full text searches of back issues can be done at http://www.etext.org/Zines/
or at http://www.silent-movies.com/search.html. For more information about
Taylor, see
WILLIAM DESMOND TAYLOR: A DOSSIER (Scarecrow Press, 1991)
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