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George was dressed in a gray Clark Kent Suit from the tv show and his body was taken to Gates/Kingsley/Gates on Sepulveda. Did the 45-year-old actor commit suicide (as was the official finding), was his death accidental, or was he murdered by his vengeful ex-lover or her jealous husband? And was Eddie, a man suspected of killing his first wife Bernice Fitzmaurice, behind the bullet to the head that ended the actors life? While the tragedy was unfolding, his fiance and three guests were carousing downstairs, his soon-to-be wife allegedly narrating the action going on above. On June 16, 1959, actress Phyllis Coates was woken up around 4:30 a.m. by a very strange phone call. He is best known for portraying Superman in the television series Adventures of Superman (19521958). Photo Illustration by Luis G. Rendon/The Daily Beast/GettyThe death of the original Superman is one of those American mysteries that may never fully add up. The coroner ruled it suicide. Robert (Bobby) was writing a book about boxer Archie Moore. The following is taken from the official autopsy report: Exactly what happened that night was never fully resolved, due to varying drunken accounts. The planned revival of Superman was apparently a small lifeline. According to commentaries on the Adventures of Superman DVD sets, multiple scripts were filmed simultaneously to take advantage of the standing sets; for example, all the "Perry White's office" scenes for three or four episodes would be shot the same day and the various "apartment" scenes would be done consecutively. Copyright (c) 2023 Groundspeak, Inc. All Rights Reserved. They got home around 11 p.m. A couple hours later, Carol Van Ronkel and William Bliss stopped by for a drink. There's a general belief that Toni Mannix bought the house, but his name Jim Beaver is just as convinced that George's death was a suicide, as was reported in the newspapers of the day. Those guests were neighbour Carol Van Ronkel, her lover Robert Condon, and another neighbour, William Bliss. [13] His Gone with the Wind screen credit reflects the change. A photo of a smiling Reeves and the sign appears in Gary Grossman's book about the show. Another rumor was that a car was heard speeding away from the house as well. He had recently been involved in a serious affair with a married woman, Toni Mannix, before dumping her for his high-society fiancee, leaving Mannix devastated. He was able to play against type and starred as a villainous gold hunter in a Johnny Weissmuller Jungle Jim film. Reeves' friend Rory Calhoun told a reporter "No one in Hollywood believed the suicide story." >> George Reeves's death, and there are very interesting questions >> supporting the various theories. Their relationship was full of booze and bickering. THE ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN (1951-1957) - unknown actor (left) with George Reeves as "Superman." It seems the dark secret haunted her for the rest of her life. Around one in the morning they were joined by two of the neighbors, at which point Reeves, who had already been in bed, stomped downstairs to yell at his guests. When they returned home, they continued to kick back the alcohol until around 12:30 p.m., at which point Reeves retired to his bedroom. Some after his death said it was a profound depression and frustration with his career that led to the night in question. To unravel the murky fate of TVs first superhero we must return to the early hours of June 16, 1959. Those windows overlook the backyard and there is a garage under the guest bedroom. All too often it is those closest to someone who takes their own life who can least understand it. Reeves's film career began in 1939 when he was cast as Stuart Tarleton (albeit incorrectly listed in the film's credits as Brent Tarleton), one of Vivien Leigh's suitors in Gone with the Wind. The Iowa-born actor got his big break when he was hired to play one of Scarlett OHaras suitors in 1939s Gone with the Wind. The Mysterious Death of Superman George Reeves It wasn't Kryptonite that killed Superman. The costume Reeves donned as Superman on TV. However, many studios were slowing down their production schedules, and some production units had shut down completely. Reeves knew the show could potentially be popular, but it was almost because of that that he was reticent to take it on. So I figured this was the perfect time to do so and dragged the Grim Cheaper right on out there last weekend. Faster than a speeding bullet! Hard drinking and hard partying, she gave as good as she got, and had the dubious distinction of been the first woman to be thrown out of New Yorks famous Stork club for fist fighting. Lemmon moved into his house, and they were to be married on June 18. Was it true she was heard to say He is going to shoot himself, after Reeves had left the party to go back to bed? Were Hollywood's police force keeping a lid on the truth to protect Tinseltown from another scandal? Regardless of the plausibility of these theories, its likely that the identity of whoever fired the bullet that killed the Man of Steel will remain a mystery. On June 16, 1959, actress Phyllis Coates was woken up around 4:30 a.m. by a very strange phone call. Larson also thought the prospective return of the Adventures of Superman had filled the actor with dread, Anyone who thinks another season of Superman wouldn't depress George didn't know George, he said. He performed on live television anthology programs, as well as on radio. According to partygoers, one of the guests raced upstairs to find Reeves lying across his bed, the life snuffed out of him by a bullet in the head. George Reeves was born George Keefer Brewer in Iowa in 1914five months into his parents' marriage. George Reeves (born George Keefer Brewer; January 5, 1914 - June 16, 1959) was an American actor. "An element of mystery" Reeves' death may have been ruled a suicide, but not everyone believed it. Mannix died in 1983 at the age of 77--her husband Eddie had died in 1963. But his business manager and mother, among others, said that while it was true he was disappointed in the way things were going, his feelings werent strong enough to explain a suicide. According to Condon, Lemmon was in an combative mood that night, and had made somewhat of a scene in the restaurant. . Dubious witness statements and the examination of the crime scene by the Los Angeles Police led to the official inquiry conclusion that the death of Reeves's was suicide. Si no quieres que nosotros ni nuestros socios utilicemos cookies y datos personales para estos propsitos adicionales, haz clic en Rechazar todo. However, rumors suspect that there was foul play involved in his passing. The events surrounding his death have been the subject of much conjecture ever since. Reeves would later recall the impact Sandrich's death had on his career. George Reeves hit the television jackpot when he landed the dual role of Clark Kent/Superman in the television series The Adventures of Superman. How he came to meet this grisly end is a story as disputed and controversial today as it was when the scandal rocked Hollywood at the height of the actor's fame. In 1952, the struggling ABC Network purchased the show for national broadcast, which gave him greater visibility. In 1927, Frank Bessolo adopted George at aged 13, as his own son, and the boy took on his stepfather's last name, becoming George Bessolo. SUPERMAN MURDER SOLVED! After hearing a gunshot, they waited 45 minutes before calling the police. There were also bruises on Reeves head and body. His work on the show would earn him fame as the Original Superman, even though that wasnt technically true. I don't know what happened to George. [15] They married on September 22, 1940, in San Gabriel, California, at the Church of Our Savior. They decided that he was fooling around, not realizing the gun was loaded. In June 2021, an episode of the internet series BuzzFeed Unsolved discussed the death of Reeves and possible theories. But this had no official status and could not overrule the coroner's verdict of suicide. After Gone with the Wind was filmed, Reeves returned to the Pasadena Playhouse and was given the lead role in the play Pancho. Amazingly, George Reeves shot part of a Kelloggs Corn Flakes commercial (the cereal company was the sponsor of Adventures of Superman) inside of his actual Benedict Canyon home. Inside the Mysterious Death of George Reeves, the Original Superman GREAT AMERICAN SCANDALS On June 16, 1959, George Reeves, who was the first to make the superhero an icon when he played. [24] As for Port of Entry, Reeves was never able to gain financing for the project, and the show was never made. He had a string of B-list movies after that, and was slowly working his way up to leading man status when bombs dropped on Pearl Harbor. They decided that he had not committed suicide. In June 1951, Reeves was offered the role of Superman in a new television series[23] titled Adventures of Superman. Bud Collyer had voiced the Man of Steel on the radio from 1940 to 1951, and Kirk Alyn played the role in two 15-part movie serials that ended in 1950. Its impossible to ever know whats truly going on in someones head, especially on a night of heavy drinking, but it did seem that Reeves was taking steps to fix his situation. But in a franchise that's seen its share of tragedy George Reeves's reported suicide, Christopher Reeve's spinal injury the woes of the actor who played Jimmy in the 1950s went underreported. His fears were not unfounded, as he had been out of work for two years by the time of his death in 1959. But not even Lane could have imagined that the dead boy was none other than Superman George Reeves himself. If Mannix was trying to extinguish the Man of Steel, its unlikely she pulled the trigger that night at 1579 Benedict Canyon. His body was later cremated and interred at the Mountain View Cemetery in Altadena, which I blogged about during my Haunted Hollywood theme last year. In the early hours of June 16, Mannix called Coates; she was hysterical and told her friend that Reeves had been murdered. Photo by ABC Photo Archives/ABC via Getty Images Phyllis Coates and George Reeves in The Adventures of Superman. Finally, a single shot rang out. [27], His good friend Bill Walsh, a producer at Disney Studios, gave Reeves a prominent role in Westward Ho the Wagons! Multiple gunshot suicides are rare, so if these shots were contemporary to Reeves death, it seems unlikely he was the shooter. The producers looked elsewhere for a new star.[25]. However, it was obvious that many parts of the investigation were not performed as they should have been. Even after almost a half-century, the mystery surrounding the untimely death of actor George Reeves remained such a potent and fascinating piece of Hollywood legend - it had been the subject of countless articles, books, and one film, the neo-noir "Hollywoodland" (2006) - that one could easily forget that the man himself as well as his long time acting career prior to his demise. Fellow actors Gig Young and Alan Ladd publicly doubted that Reeves took his own life. George Reeves was born George Keefer Brewer in Woolstock, Iowa, the son of Don Brewer and Helen Lescher (his death certificate erroneously lists his birthplace as Kentucky). His personal life was not all red carpets and champagne. George Bessolo Reeves lived in a modest house in Benedict Canyon in Los Angeles, California up until the time of his death on June 15, 1959. Director Allen Coulter Writer Paul Bernbaum Stars Adrien Brody Ben Affleck Diane Lane See production, box office & company info Watch on STARZ with Prime Video Channels More watch options Add to Watchlist Added by 25.7K users Reeves and Leonore Lemmon. One, Reeves committed suicide. Learn about George Reeves death and the true story behind the Hollywoodland movie starring Ben Affleck as TV's Superman. Later, Reeves's mother,[12] who was of German descent, moved to California to stay with her sister. Meanwhile, DC Comics was planning a television adaptation of its most famous character. Photo by ABC Photo Archives/ABC via Getty ImagesPhyllis Coates and George Reeves in The Adventures of Superman. Just over a year after the war started, Reeves was called up. Two additional bullets were discovered embedded in the bedroom floor. Reeves himself believed Mannix was behind the succession of sinister events that dogged Reeves in the run up to his death, including silent midnight phonecalls and the kidnapping of his beloved Schnauzer Sam. The people in the house were quite intoxicated and weren't much help to the investigation even waiting over 30 minutes before calling the police. No scandals were too big to be neutralised by Eddie, from covering-up Clark Gable accidently killing actress Tosca Roulien, to tracking down and buying up every copy of a porn film starring Joan Crawford. . Mobster Mickey Cohen once described Toni Mannix as the only person in Hollywood who had any balls. Reeves began acting and singing in high school and continued performing on stage as a student at Pasadena Junior College. George Reeves as Superman CASE DETAILS The gun had no fingerprints on it Early one morning in June of 1959, Los Angeles police raced to a high priced Hollywood Hills home. Toni Lanier Mannix (born Camille Bernice Froomess; February 19, 1906 - September 2, 1983) was an American actress and dancer in early motion pictures filmed with soundtracks, known as "talkies".Going by the name Toni Lanier, she became known in Hollywood circles for her extramarital relationship with future husband MGM studio head Eddie Mannix, who was married at the time to Bernice Fitzmaurice. Reeves is interred at Mountain View Cemetery and Mausoleum in Altadena, California. Mannixs wife Toni Lanier, whom the actor had broken up with shorty before his death. George Bessolo Reeves lived in a modest house in Benedict Canyon in Los Angeles, California up until the time of his death on June 15, 1959. If anyone could put the heat on Superman it was Eddie. Reeves wrote the pilot script himself. Actors Alan Ladd and Gig Young were reportedly skeptical of the official determination. If it was Reeves that pulled the trigger then in all likelihood it was because he had had enough of his life, for whatever reason. At the beginning of his life, George Reeves was a Midwesterner by birth but, as he grew older, he made his way out to California with his mother. Televisions beloved Superman was dead at the tender age of 45. You can watch George Reeves Kelloggs Corn Flakes commercial by clicking above. Reeves was transferred to the Army Air Forces' First Motion Picture Unit, where he made training films. Separated from his wife (their divorce became final in 1950), Reeves moved to New York City in 1949. But the strange death of Superman is not a parlour game. Los Angeles Police Department Death Report, June 26, 1959. Embattled New York Rep. George Santos said Thursday that he is "fully cooperating" with the House Ethics Committee, which is . Hes going upstairs to shoot himself, she explained to the other guests, who then heard a sound from upstairs. On the night of June 15th, 1959, Reeves and Lemmon went out to dinner and the two reportedly drank a great deal. Is her confession credible? [17] His friend Teddi Sherman introduced him to her father, producer Harry Sherman, who asked Reeves to do a screen test with Teddi for the Hopalong Cassidy films. Honorary pallbearers included Alan Ladd and Gig Young. But unable to find work, perhaps George felt he had little choice but to return to a part that clearly caused him much anguish. He Grew Up Thinking He Was Italian. Both would later commit suicide . Reeves head and hands showed no signs of gunshot residue or powder burns. Historical Person Search Search Search Results Results George Azer Reeves (1914 - 1945) Try FREE for 14 days Try FREE for 14 days. Over six years and 104 episodes, the actor smiled broadly in pictures, fists planted on hips in the famous Superman power pose, and made appearances to promote the hit television show, including a guest spot in costume on I Love Lucy. There were 104 episodes of The Adventures of Superman before the cancellation ax fell in 1958. Tall and chisel jawed, Reeves was the perfect choice to play the all American hero in the syndicated television show the Adventures of Superman. He won critical acclaim for the role and garnered considerable publicity. At his funeral, he was laid to rest in the same suit that he wore on the TV show as "Clark Kent." According to legend, the house at 1579 Benedict Canyon Drive in Los Angeles where actor George Reeves died of a gunshot wound to the head early in the morning of June 16, 1959 is haunted. [17] Reeves fit the rugged requirements of the roles, and, with his retentive memory for dialogue, he did well under rushed production conditions. Like so many men of his generation, the war derailed his life plans. [19][20][21], Discharged at the war's end, Reeves returned to Hollywood. George Reeves Facts. George Reeves death home- Beverly Hills, CA - Infamous Crime Scenes on Waymarking.com. The house where George lived is fairly modest for the area, but the asking price in 1995 was $625,000. Reportedly, the police had not been called until at least a half an hour after his death. On the night of his death, George had several friends over. Reeves, however, earned additional income from personal appearances. . As Reeves returned to his room, Lemmon bizarrely began providing some morbid commentary. A funeral was held on Wednesday, June 30. And so, almost forty years later, we are left wondering. But she was also suffering from alzheimer's at the time of her death, and may have confused fact with the many fictions that had long circulated about the death of her former lover. Although the power of the studios was waning by the 1950s, its possible Eddie Mannix still wielded enough influence to fix George Reeves at his wifes behest. Others suggested that Eddie Mannix, rumored to have Mafia ties, ordered Reeves killed.[43]. The death of the original Superman is one of those American mysteries that may never fully add up. Three bullet holes were found in the bedroom, all caused by the Luger that was found resting between the victim's legs. Superman was dead, and there were no heroes coming in to save the day. The night Superman died and an enduring mystery was born. Lemmon says George Reeves committed suicide. Reeves was born five months into their marriage (the reason Reeves's mother subsequently claimed a false April birth date for her son, something he was unaware of until . Wikimedia CommonsReeves played opposite Vivien Leigh as one of the Tarleton twins in Gone With the Wind. Reeves mother hired a high-powered lawyer to get the case reopened, but he quickly dropped his new client for reasons unknown. Reeves death was the first in what would come to be a string of tragedies surrounding the role, in what would come to be known as the Superman curse. If this was the case, then clearly he had not fired the gun himself, and another party was involved. In contemporary news articles, Lemmon attributed Reeves' alleged suicide to depression caused by his "failed career" and inability to find more work. A gentle man in real life, given to moods, he was despondent because "everyone thought of him as Superman, not as an actor" and now that the show was no longer shooting, he couldn't get a job. Was his role to distract the house guests and facilitate the entry of a hitman to do away with Reeves? The 2006 movie, Hollywoodland starring Ben Affleckas Reeves, explores his life and relationships in greater detail. Character: . I remember watching Superman on tv, George Reeves Kelloggs Corn Flakes CommercialFilmed in his Home, Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), I blogged about during my Haunted Hollywood theme last year, 1579 Benedict Canyon Drive in Beverly Hills. Michael Hayde firmly believes that George Reeves was murdered. Upon hearing of George's demise, he went to the house and the . The 2006 film Hollywoodland, starring Ben Affleck as Reeves and Adrien Brody as a fictional investigator loosely based on actual detective Milo Speriglio, dramatizes the investigation of Reeves' death. He directed the final 13 episodes of the series, and told the Evening Star that he was enthused about doing more.. The characters involved range from colorful to drunk to suspicious, having by now taken any secrets they may be hiding to their graves. While Reeves was depressed at the time of his death, there were oddities at the crime scene. Conspiracy theories abound and Reeves death has remained the stuff of Hollywood legend for over five decades since. At this time, Reeves and his mother moved from Iowa to Ashland, Kentucky, to stay with relatives for a time[10] and then to her home of Galesburg, Illinois.[11]. Twentieth Century-Fox loaned him to producer Alexander Korda to co-star with Merle Oberon in Lydia,[17] a box-office failure, after which he freelanced, looking to find work in westerns. After his death, it was revealed that he left everything to Toni, which could have been an oversight given he and Lemmon had only been together six months, or it could have been a big middle finger. [42] In 1985, he was posthumously named one of the honorees by DC Comics in the company's 50th anniversary publication Fifty Who Made DC Great. The death of the original Superman is one of those American mysteries that may never fully add up. After the war, Reeves returned to Hollywood. The house where actor George Reeves, TV's "Superman," was found dead of a gunshot wound on June 16, 1959. Perhaps he came a little too close to the truth. I have been researching a full-scale Forty-five minutes later, the police were called. Giesler had been paid a hefty sum, so why did he suddenly drop the case? The police also found two gunshot holes in the carpet as well as the one in the ceiling that they traced to the wound in Reevess head, yet the witnesses claimed to have only heard one shot that night. In 1959, however, negotiations began for a renewal of the series, with 26episodes scheduled to go into production. She died in 1989. [33] Reeves had been made a "Kentucky Colonel" during a publicity trip in the South, and the sign on his dressing room door was replaced with a new one that read "Honest George, also known as Col. Reeves", created by the show's prop department. Reeves was apparently scheduled to marry Lemmon on June 19 and then spend their honeymoon in Tijuana. Reeves mother refused to believe her son had killed himself and hired famous Hollywood lawyer Jerry Giesler to investigate further. The police had never checked Reeves fingers for residue to see if he pulled the trigger nor did they count the number of bullets remaining in the gun. But there were a few details that didnt quite make sense. This prevented long-term work on major films with long schedules, stage plays that might lead to a lengthy run, or any other series work.[24]. Bessolo actually died March 4, 1944, at age 51, when his adopted son was well into his movie career. In a wild turn of events, the alleged problem with this situation was not the affair itselfjilted husband Eddie had his own liaisons outside of the marriage and allegedly had no problem with his wifes relationship with Reeves. [18] He was assigned to the U.S. Army Air Forces and performed in the USAAF's Broadway show Winged Victory. Many believe that the ghostly appearances by the actor lend credence to the idea that he was murdered. He was getting work as a director, and he had agreed to do another season of Superman, in which he would also direct quite a few episodes of. Tell them I was down here!. His death was officially classified as. What happened next is mired in controversy, but according to the police interviews with the witnesses, a short moment later a shot was heard and the man who had become famous for been impervious to gunfire had, ironically, ended his life with a bullet to the head. And then there were the bruising and other marks on Reevess body. The Suspicious Death of George Reeves. Entering the house from the street side, you walk into the living room. He was initially reluctant to take the role because, like many actors of his time, he considered television unimportant and believed few would see his work. Except for the second season, the Superman schedule was brief (13 shows shot two per week, a total of seven weeks out of a year), but all had a "30-day clause", which meant that the producers could demand their exclusive services for a new season on four weeks' notice. The world was shocked to learn that famed Superman actor, George Reeves, had been found dead in his home of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. The Superman cast members had restrictive contracts preventing them from taking other work that might interfere with the series. A month later, having uncovered no evidence contradicting the official finding, Giesler announced that he was satisfied that the gunshot wound had been self-inflicted and withdrew.[41][39]. The house was bought in the early 1950's for $12,000. The story told by those there that night is full of holes, the evidence perplexing and poorly handled. Later that year, he was assigned to the U.S. Army Air Forces and performed in the USAAF's Broadway show Winged Victory. The home has not changed much since the mid-fifties. He was 45 years old. It was during this fallow period that he was approached about playing the role that would come to define his life. A long Broadway run followed, before a national tour and a movie version. Leonore Lemmon fled to New York right after Reeves died--but first emptied his house of liquor bottles and $4,000 in traveler's checks.