Would you like to inspect the original subtitles? These are the user uploaded subtitles that are being translated:
1
00:00:40,855 --> 00:00:42,396
Where did this story go, and
2
00:00:42,406 --> 00:00:45,513
what really happened here?
This is a huge story.
3
00:00:46,446 --> 00:00:50,234
How did this story die, and, if
it did die, who buried it?
4
00:00:50,277 --> 00:00:55,064
These lovely girls... and you
have the finest of them... greet
5
00:00:55,107 --> 00:00:57,981
you.
And as to show you how we feel
6
00:00:58,024 --> 00:01:01,723
about you and the kind of a good
time that's ahead of you,
7
00:01:01,766 --> 00:01:06,292
starting tonight...
If they had any idea of the
8
00:01:06,336 --> 00:01:11,255
ramifications and the ripple
effect that that had on her, it
9
00:01:11,298 --> 00:01:15,345
changed her life, my
grandmother's life, mine.
10
00:01:15,388 --> 00:01:18,567
I have no idea where her life
would have gone had it not been
11
00:01:18,610 --> 00:01:20,698
for that night.
You don't believe in taking
12
00:01:20,742 --> 00:01:25,224
"no" for an answer, do you?
Don't look at me like that,
13
00:01:25,268 --> 00:01:26,617
Mr. Powell.
You scare me.
14
00:01:26,661 --> 00:01:30,055
"She's a tramp."
The whole vocabulary of bad
15
00:01:30,099 --> 00:01:34,408
woman... "Slut," "tart,"
"tramp," everything... came up
16
00:01:34,452 --> 00:01:39,717
immediately if anybody mentioned
she was raped.
17
00:01:39,761 --> 00:01:43,112
First, I was stunned.
I have read a lot about legal
18
00:01:43,155 --> 00:01:45,984
cases over the years.
I had never heard of her, and I
19
00:01:46,028 --> 00:01:48,858
was actually quite scandalized
that, number one, this had
20
00:01:48,901 --> 00:01:51,773
happened to her, and, number
two, was that why wasn't anybody
21
00:01:51,816 --> 00:01:54,253
talking about it?
Why are we sweeping this under
22
00:01:54,297 --> 00:01:57,562
the carpet?
23
00:02:07,397 --> 00:02:08,964
Aah!
24
00:02:14,492 --> 00:02:18,147
I was on deadline for my
second book, and I was at the
25
00:02:18,190 --> 00:02:21,890
part where Jean Harlow is dying.
It was the first week of June
26
00:02:21,933 --> 00:02:25,457
1937.
Look at that drive.
27
00:02:25,501 --> 00:02:29,637
All of 200 yards.
And it's a huge story.
28
00:02:29,680 --> 00:02:32,944
26-year-old, at home, dying.
Nobody knows why, nobody knows
29
00:02:32,988 --> 00:02:35,816
how.
Meanwhile, the king of england
30
00:02:35,859 --> 00:02:38,863
is abdicating his throne to
marry an American divorcée, so
31
00:02:38,907 --> 00:02:41,561
here we have two historic
stories, and, suddenly,
32
00:02:41,605 --> 00:02:44,434
something's pushing both of them
off the front pages.
33
00:02:44,477 --> 00:02:47,132
An underage dancer named
Patricia Douglas goes public
34
00:02:47,176 --> 00:02:51,528
with shocking charges against
MGM, accusing them of rape...
35
00:02:51,571 --> 00:02:54,966
That she had been raped at an
MGM sales convention party that
36
00:02:55,010 --> 00:02:58,753
she had been lured into under
false pretenses.
37
00:02:58,796 --> 00:03:01,537
Now, I kind of pride myself of
having heard about everything
38
00:03:01,580 --> 00:03:03,495
pertaining to MGM, because that's my job.
39
00:03:03,540 --> 00:03:05,195
I'm writing a book about Jean Harlow.
40
00:03:05,238 --> 00:03:07,456
I ought to know everything
that's going on at MGM.
41
00:03:07,499 --> 00:03:10,720
I've never heard of
Patricia Douglas, never heard
42
00:03:10,764 --> 00:03:14,464
her name mentioned, never seen
her name in any of the reference
43
00:03:14,507 --> 00:03:19,034
sources... any.
The editor of my book was
44
00:03:19,077 --> 00:03:21,339
Jackie Onassis.
We went out to lunch, and she
45
00:03:21,383 --> 00:03:23,560
said, "is there anything you're
interested in doing?"
46
00:03:23,603 --> 00:03:26,867
And I said, "there's a story
that I came across when I was
47
00:03:26,910 --> 00:03:29,479
doing the Harlow book, and this
is what it is."
48
00:03:29,522 --> 00:03:32,134
And I told her about all these
headlines I'd found... "Wild
49
00:03:32,177 --> 00:03:35,267
party hosted by MGM for its
salesmen."
50
00:03:35,311 --> 00:03:38,923
Patricia Douglas charges one of
them, David Ross, with rape,
51
00:03:38,967 --> 00:03:42,360
then takes her case all the way
up to federal court.
52
00:03:42,404 --> 00:03:44,146
That didn't compute.
53
00:03:44,189 --> 00:03:47,626
And why has this never appeared
anywhere since 1937?
54
00:03:47,670 --> 00:03:51,805
"Am I crazy, or is this a huge
story that no one's ever told?"
55
00:03:51,848 --> 00:03:55,679
And Jackie said, "well, if
anyone can find what happened to
56
00:03:55,723 --> 00:03:58,376
her, David, it's you."
And when you're given that kind
57
00:03:58,420 --> 00:04:00,660
of mandate from that kind of
person, how do you walk away
58
00:04:00,684 --> 00:04:07,559
from it?
59
00:04:07,603 --> 00:04:10,650
At the time the Patricia Douglas
story went public,
60
00:04:10,693 --> 00:04:14,044
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer was home to
Hollywood's biggest stars.
61
00:04:14,089 --> 00:04:15,907
Ladies and gentlemen, here
comes the thrill of the
62
00:04:15,917 --> 00:04:18,309
evening... Mr. Clark Gable.
Thank you.
63
00:04:18,353 --> 00:04:20,791
Oh, and what a lovely,
lovely, beautiful creature is
64
00:04:20,835 --> 00:04:22,618
Jean Harlow.
Thank you.
65
00:04:22,661 --> 00:04:25,100
That, of course, is
Joan Crawford, as you all know.
66
00:04:25,143 --> 00:04:27,449
Thank you.
You can probably guess from
67
00:04:27,492 --> 00:04:29,712
the cheering that it's miss Norma Shearer.
68
00:04:29,756 --> 00:04:31,396
I want to congratulate everybody in it.
69
00:04:31,409 --> 00:04:33,576
I think they're all marvelous.
Now, friends, the excitement
70
00:04:33,586 --> 00:04:36,197
breaks all bounds, as the
enthusiastic spectators dash
71
00:04:36,240 --> 00:04:38,721
forward to greet and acclaim
their favorite stars.
72
00:04:38,765 --> 00:04:42,550
MGM had its own police force,
grade school, private railroad,
73
00:04:42,594 --> 00:04:44,858
and acting academy.
Oh, wait a minute.
74
00:04:44,901 --> 00:04:46,815
In the first place, the kiss is awful.
75
00:04:46,859 --> 00:04:48,905
You know perfectly well not to bump noses.
76
00:04:48,949 --> 00:04:51,603
Presiding over it all was the
most powerful man in Hollywood
77
00:04:51,647 --> 00:04:53,780
and the highest-paid man in america.
78
00:04:53,823 --> 00:04:56,609
Ladies and gentlemen,
Mr. Louis B. Mayer.
79
00:04:56,652 --> 00:04:59,829
It was like
"the Wizard of Oz."
80
00:04:59,873 --> 00:05:03,050
You know, it's no wonder they
made the movie, because
81
00:05:03,093 --> 00:05:05,444
Louis B. Mayer was the
Wizard of Oz.
82
00:05:05,487 --> 00:05:08,316
He made everything work.
83
00:05:08,359 --> 00:05:11,014
Our fans are entitled to the best.
84
00:05:11,058 --> 00:05:16,454
I'm thankful that we can supply
what we consider fine pictures.
85
00:05:16,498 --> 00:05:19,109
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer... oh,
86
00:05:19,153 --> 00:05:23,766
oh, what a lion.
87
00:05:23,810 --> 00:05:27,290
So, here we are at the
ambassador hotel, at the very
88
00:05:27,334 --> 00:05:31,730
spot where the 282 MGM
conventioneers arrived in 1937.
89
00:05:31,774 --> 00:05:34,211
In the middle of the
great depression, MGM had just
90
00:05:34,255 --> 00:05:37,170
posted record profits, thanks to
its sales force, who sold the
91
00:05:37,213 --> 00:05:39,782
studio's movies to theaters
across the U.S.
92
00:05:39,826 --> 00:05:42,698
And now these salesmen are
getting to participate in the
93
00:05:42,741 --> 00:05:46,093
fantasy factory, and they're
being welcomed into this world.
94
00:05:46,136 --> 00:05:49,096
They're being picked up at the
train station in a private
95
00:05:49,139 --> 00:05:51,402
railcar and then taken by motorcade to the
96
00:05:51,446 --> 00:05:54,710
ambassador hotel, rented out in
its entirety for them.
97
00:05:54,753 --> 00:05:57,147
Then they're being escorted by
motorcycle police to MGM, the
98
00:05:57,191 --> 00:05:59,454
greatest film studio in the world.
99
00:05:59,497 --> 00:06:01,533
And they're being told, "we're
the greatest film studio, and
100
00:06:01,543 --> 00:06:03,719
you're the greatest film sales
force."
101
00:06:03,762 --> 00:06:07,678
So they're like part of the
royal family, and that's
102
00:06:07,722 --> 00:06:10,334
intentional.
That's what MGM wants them to
103
00:06:10,378 --> 00:06:12,859
think.
But what it feeds into is this
104
00:06:12,902 --> 00:06:16,166
idea that "we're above the law.
We can do what we want."
105
00:06:16,210 --> 00:06:19,342
In 1937, if you said to someone,
106
00:06:19,386 --> 00:06:22,563
"I'm going on a convention,"
what it's basically saying is,
107
00:06:22,606 --> 00:06:24,914
"I get to go wild.
I get to leave my home
108
00:06:24,958 --> 00:06:27,873
community, leave the social
constrictions in that home
109
00:06:27,916 --> 00:06:31,964
community, and I get to have fun
sponsored by my employer."
110
00:06:32,007 --> 00:06:35,577
You have a nice trip up?
All the boys had a good time.
111
00:06:35,620 --> 00:06:37,752
In fact, we run out of scotch last night.
112
00:06:37,795 --> 00:06:40,147
That's the setting for this
convention, because
113
00:06:40,190 --> 00:06:42,888
Louis B. Mayer says to them,
"thank you."
114
00:06:42,931 --> 00:06:46,675
And that's to show you how we
feel about you and the kind of a
115
00:06:46,717 --> 00:06:50,766
good time that's ahead of you,
starting tonight at the famous
116
00:06:50,809 --> 00:06:54,073
cocoanut grove.
"I'm going to treat you like
117
00:06:54,116 --> 00:06:55,901
kings.
I'm going to wine you and dine
118
00:06:55,944 --> 00:06:58,207
you and make you feel as
important as you are to this
119
00:06:58,251 --> 00:06:59,948
studio.
Welcome to California.
120
00:06:59,992 --> 00:07:06,041
Anything you want."
Anything you want.
121
00:07:06,085 --> 00:07:10,350
At 16, I went to work for
MGM, and I considered it was a
122
00:07:10,393 --> 00:07:11,830
windfall.
123
00:07:11,874 --> 00:07:16,183
There was an air... a constant
air... of being pursued.
124
00:07:16,225 --> 00:07:20,099
All the men tended to try to
break women down.
125
00:07:20,143 --> 00:07:24,755
These were very aggressive men.
Twice I was asked to go to be
126
00:07:24,799 --> 00:07:28,933
interviewed, and the guy got up
and said, "well, let's see your
127
00:07:28,976 --> 00:07:31,023
legs."
now raise them up a little.
128
00:07:31,066 --> 00:07:34,113
Oh, don't mind me.
I just want to see if you're the
129
00:07:34,156 --> 00:07:36,681
right type.
And you'd pull up your skirt,
130
00:07:36,725 --> 00:07:38,595
and he'd say, "turn around, honey.
131
00:07:38,639 --> 00:07:40,989
Pull it up higher."
Aw, bring them up a little
132
00:07:41,033 --> 00:07:43,817
higher.
Up, up. Yeah. Ahh.
133
00:07:43,860 --> 00:07:46,429
And then he'd say, "let's see
how you feel."
134
00:07:46,473 --> 00:07:49,041
And then he'd walk around the
desk and grab you.
135
00:07:49,084 --> 00:07:53,610
You know, uh, I kind of like you myself.
136
00:07:53,654 --> 00:07:56,962
You couldn't go to the
citizen-news and say, "you
137
00:07:57,005 --> 00:08:00,616
know, Mr. So-and-so did this to
me at MGM."
138
00:08:00,661 --> 00:08:04,794
No way, because the studios
owned Hollywood.
139
00:08:04,838 --> 00:08:08,278
I mean, this is no exaggeration.
It was one of the laws I learned
140
00:08:08,322 --> 00:08:11,454
very early on.
Even the adults were afraid.
141
00:08:11,498 --> 00:08:14,980
Everybody seemed to be afraid of
something, except the men
142
00:08:15,023 --> 00:08:17,591
that were pursuing girls, you know.
143
00:08:17,634 --> 00:08:20,114
That was the one thing that
nobody seemed to have any
144
00:08:20,159 --> 00:08:24,423
compunction about.
Eddie Mannix, Louis B. Mayer.
145
00:08:24,466 --> 00:08:27,470
There's something going on there.
146
00:08:32,693 --> 00:08:35,086
Where we are now is the Hal Rach Ranch.
147
00:08:35,129 --> 00:08:38,178
So, where we're walking on
now was a 10-acre ranch?
148
00:08:38,221 --> 00:08:41,658
I mean, this pleasant, sweet row
of houses... suburbia?
149
00:08:41,702 --> 00:08:44,357
Except it didn't look anything like this.
150
00:08:44,400 --> 00:08:47,273
MGM producer hal roach owned
the ranch where the convention
151
00:08:47,316 --> 00:08:49,839
party took place.
I asked Richard Bann, a
152
00:08:49,883 --> 00:08:53,844
hal roach historian, to show me
around the scene of the crime.
153
00:08:53,888 --> 00:08:56,053
If you were working here... if
you were Laurel and Hardy or
154
00:08:56,063 --> 00:08:58,143
our gang... because this is
where hal roach made all their
155
00:08:58,153 --> 00:09:01,895
movies, no phones, no public
transportation.
156
00:09:01,938 --> 00:09:04,149
I mean, if you're here, you're
here because you've been taken
157
00:09:04,159 --> 00:09:07,032
here.
Right.
158
00:09:07,075 --> 00:09:12,384
And this is where she claimed
she was raped... in this field,
159
00:09:12,427 --> 00:09:15,953
where he dragged her to a parked
car and raped her.
160
00:09:15,997 --> 00:09:19,087
And she was talking about the
freshly tilled soil in her
161
00:09:19,131 --> 00:09:21,088
account of the event, so it
would have been...
162
00:09:21,132 --> 00:09:23,080
The party would have been up
at the top of the hill.
163
00:09:23,090 --> 00:09:25,049
The big barn would have been where the...
164
00:09:25,092 --> 00:09:27,878
That's where the party...
They said it was held in a barn.
165
00:09:27,922 --> 00:09:30,881
So, they would have parked their
cars here, gone up to the party,
166
00:09:30,925 --> 00:09:34,494
which was held in the barn.
The girls... these dancers that
167
00:09:34,537 --> 00:09:37,366
they brought in for a "movie
call"... they would have been up
168
00:09:37,410 --> 00:09:39,672
there waiting in the barn for
something to happen.
169
00:09:39,715 --> 00:09:41,186
And they did film here all the time.
170
00:09:41,196 --> 00:09:42,970
So if you got a call saying
you were shooting at the
171
00:09:42,980 --> 00:09:44,494
roach ranch, that was completely
legitimate.
172
00:09:44,504 --> 00:09:47,681
Yes.
Go home! Go home!
173
00:09:47,724 --> 00:09:50,248
Did you hear me?
I said, "go home."
174
00:09:50,291 --> 00:09:52,414
According to the newspaper
articles, the dandridge sisters
175
00:09:52,424 --> 00:09:54,991
were there as entertainment.
Dorothy dandridge, only 13 years
176
00:09:55,035 --> 00:09:59,258
old at the time...
177
00:09:59,301 --> 00:10:01,172
Laurel and Hardy were there as
entertainment.
178
00:10:01,215 --> 00:10:07,091
This was a big event.
179
00:10:07,134 --> 00:10:12,052
500 cases of scotch and
champagne for 282 men?
180
00:10:12,096 --> 00:10:15,533
No wonder the newspapers called
it a drunken orgy.
181
00:10:15,576 --> 00:10:18,624
Yes, it is disillusioning.
182
00:10:18,668 --> 00:10:22,106
I remember two words that I
learned, and one of them was
183
00:10:22,149 --> 00:10:26,806
"rape," which was an extreme disaster.
184
00:10:26,849 --> 00:10:29,810
And the other one that usually
was in the same conversation was
185
00:10:29,853 --> 00:10:31,115
"tart."
186
00:10:31,158 --> 00:10:33,944
"Well, she's a tart.
What do you expect?
187
00:10:33,988 --> 00:10:36,903
She's a tramp."
The whole vocabulary of bad
188
00:10:36,946 --> 00:10:40,689
woman... "Slut," "tart,"
"tramp," everything... came up
189
00:10:40,732 --> 00:10:45,172
immediately if anybody mentioned
she was raped.
190
00:10:45,216 --> 00:10:48,306
I've been watching all these
movies from Patricia Douglas'
191
00:10:48,349 --> 00:10:51,351
day, and rape absolutely does not exist.
192
00:10:51,395 --> 00:10:53,441
Either she passes out just in time...
193
00:10:53,485 --> 00:10:56,749
...or he passes out just in
194
00:10:56,792 --> 00:11:01,667
time.
Or there's a handy weapon nearby
195
00:11:01,710 --> 00:11:08,935
for that "just in the Nick of time" escape.
196
00:11:08,978 --> 00:11:11,807
You would think rape would be no
laughing matter, but the place
197
00:11:11,851 --> 00:11:15,550
you see it most is cartoons.
Some creep's always after poor
198
00:11:24,865 --> 00:11:28,563
No, no, no, no, no, no!
I have you in me hands.
199
00:11:28,607 --> 00:11:30,740
Let me alone!
Ah.
200
00:11:30,784 --> 00:11:32,306
Stop it! Help!
Let go!
201
00:11:32,350 --> 00:11:35,657
Let me alone, you big brute, you!
202
00:11:35,701 --> 00:11:38,093
Drop that girl!
Okay.
203
00:11:38,137 --> 00:11:42,359
Ouch!
Wise guy!
204
00:11:42,402 --> 00:11:44,666
"The Story of Temple Drake"
is this huge exception.
205
00:11:44,710 --> 00:11:47,234
Based on the novel "sanctuary"
by William Faulkner and released
206
00:11:47,278 --> 00:11:50,324
in 1933, "The Story of
Temple Drake" is about a spoiled
207
00:11:50,368 --> 00:11:53,371
southern belle who really gets raped.
208
00:12:04,382 --> 00:12:07,427
Aah!
And even though she goes
209
00:12:07,471 --> 00:12:10,692
public in court, Temple Drake's
carried off to a happy ending.
210
00:12:10,736 --> 00:12:18,736
Be proud of her, judge.
I am.
211
00:12:19,310 --> 00:12:22,442
"The Story of Temple Drake"
is an intense movie, which is
212
00:12:22,486 --> 00:12:25,664
why so few people got to see it.
Even though the rape scene was
213
00:12:25,707 --> 00:12:28,709
painstakingly story boarded in
advance, the film was banned and
214
00:12:28,753 --> 00:12:35,543
barely seen.
Even today, seven decades later,
215
00:12:35,587 --> 00:12:43,333
it's unavailable on TV, VHS, or DVD.
216
00:12:43,376 --> 00:12:46,598
MGM was meticulous about purging
its files, but some stuff ended
217
00:12:46,641 --> 00:12:49,253
up at the university of
southern California, so I
218
00:12:49,296 --> 00:12:52,124
called Ned Comstock in
special collections, and in deep
219
00:12:52,167 --> 00:12:54,082
storage he found a Patricia Douglas file.
220
00:12:54,126 --> 00:12:55,693
Has anybody ever looked at this file?
221
00:12:55,736 --> 00:12:58,913
Not this particular file, that I know of.
222
00:12:58,957 --> 00:13:04,354
What do we got here?
This is the call sheet for
223
00:13:04,397 --> 00:13:06,921
120 girls.
Hmm.
224
00:13:06,965 --> 00:13:11,579
"May 5, 1937."
4:00 P.M. was the call time.
225
00:13:11,623 --> 00:13:14,278
"Where to report... the ranch."
It's just like it's a movie
226
00:13:14,321 --> 00:13:17,541
call.
There she is.
227
00:13:17,584 --> 00:13:19,369
Girl 27... Patricia Douglas.
228
00:13:24,025 --> 00:13:27,246
And this, they typed it up,
and she's still girl 27, but
229
00:13:27,290 --> 00:13:29,770
it's in caps, underlined...
"Pat Douglas."
230
00:13:29,814 --> 00:13:33,296
Pat.
This is from western costume,
231
00:13:33,339 --> 00:13:36,342
which was right next door to
Paramount and where you'd go to
232
00:13:36,386 --> 00:13:41,435
be costumed for a film.
"Pat Douglas... one brown felt
233
00:13:41,479 --> 00:13:46,048
large cowboy hat, one suedette
skirt, one pair of black
234
00:13:46,092 --> 00:13:48,440
side-seam boots."
So, they're dressing these
235
00:13:48,484 --> 00:13:51,444
dancers like Betty Boop.
Aah! Oh!
236
00:13:51,488 --> 00:13:54,186
They'd be like hostesses for
the conventioneers?
237
00:13:54,229 --> 00:13:56,101
Evidently, but they didn't know it.
238
00:13:56,144 --> 00:13:58,712
They would have thought they
were in some sort of western
239
00:13:58,756 --> 00:14:00,627
musical.
Yeah, these girls would get
240
00:14:00,671 --> 00:14:02,967
called by the casting directors
and go from studio to studio to
241
00:14:02,977 --> 00:14:05,337
studio, whatever the call was,
and I don't think they paid a
242
00:14:05,371 --> 00:14:07,211
whole lot of attention to what
they were doing.
243
00:14:07,243 --> 00:14:09,244
They did their musical number,
and they were done.
244
00:14:09,288 --> 00:14:12,552
Right.
This is a list of the people
245
00:14:12,595 --> 00:14:15,686
who worked at the party.
L.A. police, state police,
246
00:14:15,729 --> 00:14:18,427
Culver city police, and "our own
police and watchmen."
247
00:14:18,470 --> 00:14:21,300
So you had policemen from four
different departments.
248
00:14:21,344 --> 00:14:24,346
You have the Los Angeles city
police, the California State
249
00:14:24,389 --> 00:14:27,480
police, the Culver city police,
and the MGM internal studio
250
00:14:27,524 --> 00:14:30,831
police, and nobody ever files a
report that this girl has been
251
00:14:30,875 --> 00:14:35,358
raped.
This is a questionnaire.
252
00:14:35,401 --> 00:14:39,230
This is probably what they gave
to the 119 other girls.
253
00:14:39,273 --> 00:14:40,972
"What is your name?
What is your age?
254
00:14:41,015 --> 00:14:43,495
Do you know Patricia Douglas?
When did you first meet her?
255
00:14:43,539 --> 00:14:46,543
State in detail what you know
about Patricia Douglas' past
256
00:14:46,586 --> 00:14:49,372
reputation for morality.
Have you ever seen
257
00:14:49,415 --> 00:14:51,852
Patricia Douglas intoxicated
before or after the party?"
258
00:14:51,896 --> 00:14:54,376
They need these people to tow
the party line.
259
00:14:54,419 --> 00:14:57,597
They need them to say that she
was a tramp and she was a drunk
260
00:14:57,641 --> 00:15:00,294
and, therefore, she couldn't
possibly have been raped,
261
00:15:00,338 --> 00:15:04,082
because tramps can't get raped,
in terms of the 1937 mind-set.
262
00:15:04,125 --> 00:15:07,302
This is the pinkerton detective
agency report.
263
00:15:07,346 --> 00:15:10,480
The same day Patricia Douglas
goes public, their surveillance
264
00:15:10,523 --> 00:15:13,743
of her... they're watching her,
they're asking people questions
265
00:15:13,786 --> 00:15:16,834
about her, they're standing
outside her house all day,
266
00:15:16,877 --> 00:15:18,956
they're seeing who's going in,
who's going out, where she's
267
00:15:18,966 --> 00:15:21,359
going.
"Say, 'Patricia Douglas is a
268
00:15:21,403 --> 00:15:23,448
drinker.
Her character is questionable.'"
269
00:15:23,492 --> 00:15:25,929
I mean, this is character assassination.
270
00:15:25,972 --> 00:15:28,410
Little piece of paper from the
desk of hal roach.
271
00:15:28,453 --> 00:15:31,283
Dr. B. Dakin "treated Douglas
for G.U."
272
00:15:31,326 --> 00:15:36,069
"G.U." is "genital-urinary," and
that was a discreet term, at the
273
00:15:36,113 --> 00:15:38,811
time, for V.D...
Specifically, gonorrhea.
274
00:15:38,855 --> 00:15:41,511
Hal roach owned the ranch where
the party took place.
275
00:15:41,554 --> 00:15:44,426
Now he wants his doctor to say
Patricia Douglas had V.D.,
276
00:15:44,469 --> 00:15:47,299
because if Patricia Douglas had
V.D., she was sexually active.
277
00:15:47,342 --> 00:15:50,040
And if she was sexually active,
she was a slut.
278
00:15:50,083 --> 00:15:52,260
Nowhere in this file does it say
she wasn't raped.
279
00:15:52,304 --> 00:15:54,479
There's nothing here where
they're saying that her
280
00:15:54,523 --> 00:15:56,176
contention isn't true.
281
00:15:56,220 --> 00:16:01,573
What's here is, "we have to make
her look immoral, because if she
282
00:16:01,617 --> 00:16:04,446
is immoral, she is not rapable."
283
00:16:04,489 --> 00:16:06,491
Have you been able to find her?
284
00:16:06,535 --> 00:16:08,712
You have to believe she came to a bad end.
285
00:16:08,755 --> 00:16:13,760
From what we've just seen, MGM
went all out to destroy her.
286
00:16:13,804 --> 00:16:16,066
I do believe her.
I absolutely believe her.
287
00:16:16,109 --> 00:16:17,982
I think you've got an assault and battery.
288
00:16:18,025 --> 00:16:19,809
It's a classic assault-and-battery case.
289
00:16:19,852 --> 00:16:23,291
I have read a lot about legal
cases over the years.
290
00:16:23,335 --> 00:16:26,119
I'd never heard of
Patricia Douglas, so I did a
291
00:16:26,163 --> 00:16:29,035
little research.
In fact, I even employed some of
292
00:16:29,078 --> 00:16:32,344
the Fox News channel research
capabilities and could find
293
00:16:32,387 --> 00:16:36,478
nothing about her.
She had been completely hidden.
294
00:16:36,521 --> 00:16:38,742
She was off the legal radar screen.
295
00:16:38,785 --> 00:16:41,787
Michael taitelman's law firm
handles high-profile Hollywood
296
00:16:41,831 --> 00:16:44,703
cases, and Greta Van Susteren
analyzes them for the Fox News
297
00:16:44,747 --> 00:16:46,139
channel.
298
00:16:46,183 --> 00:16:48,620
I gave them both the
Patricia Douglas court files,
299
00:16:48,664 --> 00:16:51,884
which haven't been seen since 1937.
300
00:16:51,928 --> 00:16:56,105
As a lawyer advising someone
about whether to bring a case
301
00:16:56,148 --> 00:16:58,804
like that, you tell your client
what to expect.
302
00:16:58,848 --> 00:17:01,546
I would hope that her lawyer
told her it would be very
303
00:17:01,590 --> 00:17:04,853
difficult, you've got to have a
lot of courage, you're going to
304
00:17:04,896 --> 00:17:08,380
be raked over the coals, you're
going to be portrayed as someone
305
00:17:08,423 --> 00:17:10,989
you're not, and do you still want to do it?
306
00:17:11,033 --> 00:17:14,429
I think the mere fact that she
went forward, especially in that
307
00:17:14,473 --> 00:17:17,344
day and age, says a lot about
her character.
308
00:17:17,388 --> 00:17:20,172
What's fascinating about this
woman is that she was bringing a
309
00:17:20,216 --> 00:17:23,176
federal lawsuit... a
civil-rights claim... perhaps
310
00:17:23,220 --> 00:17:27,354
the first one... for a group of
women who were tricked into
311
00:17:27,398 --> 00:17:31,533
attending a party and tricked
into being put in a very
312
00:17:31,576 --> 00:17:35,187
dangerous situation, and then
she was raped.
313
00:17:35,231 --> 00:17:38,191
The people were sued.
David Ross was never served.
314
00:17:38,234 --> 00:17:40,628
Again, I find that hard to believe.
315
00:17:40,671 --> 00:17:46,199
To serve a guy who is working
for MGM, and presumably working
316
00:17:46,243 --> 00:17:49,376
at MGM in Illinois, should not be too hard.
317
00:17:49,420 --> 00:17:51,411
I mean, there are process
servers all over the country.
318
00:17:51,421 --> 00:17:53,545
You send the papers to the
process server, and you tell the
319
00:17:53,555 --> 00:17:55,599
process server to find the guy.
320
00:17:55,643 --> 00:17:59,648
I mean, in my wildest dreams,
the idea that the D.A. would not
321
00:17:59,691 --> 00:18:03,216
have disqualified himself, in
light of the fact that he was
322
00:18:03,260 --> 00:18:06,001
getting substantial
contributions from MGM to his
323
00:18:06,044 --> 00:18:09,222
political campaign... today,
we'd be in his front yard.
324
00:18:09,266 --> 00:18:11,300
Every time he walked out, we'd
stick a microphone in his face
325
00:18:11,310 --> 00:18:15,054
and say, "how in the world can
you possibly give this woman a
326
00:18:15,098 --> 00:18:18,884
fair shake when you've got MGM
stuffing cash in your pocket
327
00:18:18,928 --> 00:18:21,016
for your election?"
Would I have taken the case
328
00:18:21,059 --> 00:18:22,192
then?
329
00:18:22,235 --> 00:18:24,281
Who knows?
There's a lot that I imagine
330
00:18:24,324 --> 00:18:27,283
people would think about in
deciding to go up against the
331
00:18:27,326 --> 00:18:30,982
Goliath, MGM.
A crime was committed against
332
00:18:31,026 --> 00:18:34,160
her, and then what happens?
Everybody runs.
333
00:18:34,204 --> 00:18:37,207
No one will help her.
The law won't help her.
334
00:18:37,250 --> 00:18:40,079
The D.A. won't help her.
MGM won't help her.
335
00:18:40,123 --> 00:18:42,428
The doctor who examined her
wouldn't help her.
336
00:18:42,472 --> 00:18:48,304
What I find disturbing... I can
think of no reason... none,
337
00:18:48,347 --> 00:18:50,340
zero, even though I'm a
criminal-defense attorney...
338
00:18:50,350 --> 00:18:55,790
No reason at all to publish
her name, her picture, her
339
00:18:55,833 --> 00:19:00,099
address, and refer to
MGM studio, who is financing
340
00:19:00,143 --> 00:19:03,319
this 5-day extravaganza... this
drunken brawl for its
341
00:19:03,362 --> 00:19:06,931
salespeople... refer to them as
a local studio.
342
00:19:06,975 --> 00:19:10,240
If that doesn't tell you, right
from the get-go, the sort of
343
00:19:10,283 --> 00:19:14,461
community sentiment about these
cases back in the late '30s, I
344
00:19:14,505 --> 00:19:17,202
don't know what does.
MGM had one of its employees
345
00:19:17,246 --> 00:19:20,816
accused of raping this woman and
the others accused of
346
00:19:20,859 --> 00:19:24,122
participating in the scheme to
bring these people to this
347
00:19:24,166 --> 00:19:28,257
place, so of course MGM had a
huge interest in having this
348
00:19:28,300 --> 00:19:32,522
case go away.
So, I discovered the
349
00:19:32,565 --> 00:19:35,787
Patricia Douglas case inspired
another girl to come forward who
350
00:19:35,831 --> 00:19:38,136
also said she had been raped.
351
00:19:38,180 --> 00:19:41,182
Her name was Eloise Spann, and
she was a contract player at
352
00:19:41,225 --> 00:19:44,361
MGM.
She was a singer, 19 years old.
353
00:19:44,404 --> 00:19:47,493
Came forward and accused an MGM
executive of raping her.
354
00:19:47,537 --> 00:19:50,672
She became pregnant.
She had to have an abortion.
355
00:19:50,715 --> 00:19:53,586
She had been a virgin.
She went to the same lawyer that
356
00:19:53,630 --> 00:19:57,155
represented Patricia Douglas and
then saw everything unfold
357
00:19:57,199 --> 00:19:59,767
exactly as it had for Patricia Douglas.
358
00:19:59,810 --> 00:20:02,857
According to the court records,
this house is where Eloise Spann
359
00:20:02,900 --> 00:20:07,165
was raped.
Mom never talked about this,
360
00:20:07,209 --> 00:20:10,734
is what's so amazing to me.
When you called, I had mixed
361
00:20:10,778 --> 00:20:14,345
feelings.
Excuse me.
362
00:20:14,390 --> 00:20:18,960
Well, because this is not a nice
story, and this is someone that
363
00:20:19,003 --> 00:20:21,397
you love.
Jack Terry is the son of
364
00:20:21,440 --> 00:20:23,180
Eloise Spann.
When I found him, he knew
365
00:20:23,224 --> 00:20:25,531
nothing about her case.
366
00:20:29,056 --> 00:20:31,711
Very proud of what she did,
and I don't know if she thought
367
00:20:31,754 --> 00:20:34,453
she could win or not, but that
doesn't make a hill of beans.
368
00:20:34,497 --> 00:20:36,934
She went after him.
And this, at the time, would
369
00:20:36,978 --> 00:20:39,719
have been the ultimate humiliation.
370
00:20:39,762 --> 00:20:42,460
A few weeks after the attack,
miss Spann testified it was
371
00:20:42,504 --> 00:20:45,334
necessary for her to undergo an
operation to avoid becoming a
372
00:20:45,377 --> 00:20:52,123
mother.
My mother never felt well.
373
00:20:52,167 --> 00:20:55,866
And I don't know if it's from
the abortion that she had
374
00:20:55,910 --> 00:20:58,521
through this gentleman, because
I'd come home from school... I
375
00:20:58,563 --> 00:21:02,306
got off the bus, and mom would
be on the couch or mom would be
376
00:21:02,350 --> 00:21:04,745
in bed.
A lot of our dinners were
377
00:21:04,788 --> 00:21:07,224
scrambled eggs and toast.
When I first called you, you
378
00:21:07,268 --> 00:21:09,226
said, "my mother died of a
respiratory problem."
379
00:21:09,270 --> 00:21:11,403
And I had had her death
certificate, and I didn't want
380
00:21:11,447 --> 00:21:15,190
to say anything, because...
She killed herself.
381
00:21:15,233 --> 00:21:17,757
This is the coroner's report.
She hung herself.
382
00:21:17,800 --> 00:21:20,020
And your father was trying to
get the door open.
383
00:21:20,063 --> 00:21:23,589
I didn't get into it.
I... you lose your mother, and
384
00:21:23,633 --> 00:21:26,418
you only want to know so much,
and then you don't want to know
385
00:21:26,462 --> 00:21:28,593
any more.
My wife and I are religious
386
00:21:28,637 --> 00:21:34,599
people, and we just hope, when
they go before the big guy...
387
00:21:34,643 --> 00:21:36,853
That they have to pay the price
for this nonsense, because what
388
00:21:36,863 --> 00:21:42,347
they've done is they've ruined,
harmed, killed...
389
00:21:42,391 --> 00:21:46,525
Too many people.
She never would sing.
390
00:21:46,569 --> 00:21:51,442
I will hear her voice for the first time...
391
00:21:51,486 --> 00:21:57,232
Soon... today.
And I don't... i-i'm... i'm
392
00:21:57,275 --> 00:22:01,627
really anxious.
Jack's watching an old movie
393
00:22:01,671 --> 00:22:03,454
of his mother singing.
394
00:22:08,851 --> 00:22:11,812
I wish everyone else could watch
it, too, but when they heard
395
00:22:11,855 --> 00:22:15,031
about this project, the studio
which owns all her films refused
396
00:22:15,075 --> 00:22:18,469
to release any footage of Eloise Spann.
397
00:22:25,346 --> 00:22:27,827
Knowing about Eloise Spann's
suicide, I was sure
398
00:22:27,870 --> 00:22:31,266
Patricia Douglas had met an
equally tragic fate.
399
00:22:31,309 --> 00:22:34,834
Women who were the epicenter of
a Hollywood scandal didn't live
400
00:22:34,877 --> 00:22:36,052
to a ripe old age.
401
00:22:36,096 --> 00:22:37,696
Otherwise, we would have heard from her.
402
00:22:37,706 --> 00:22:40,491
Someone would have found her or
she would have found someone and
403
00:22:40,535 --> 00:22:42,973
said, "this is my story.
I need to tell this story."
404
00:22:43,017 --> 00:22:45,888
So the idea that she would be a
woman in her mid-80s that was
405
00:22:45,933 --> 00:22:49,152
still alive and just sitting
there, waiting, had never
406
00:22:49,196 --> 00:22:57,196
entered my mind.
I was... furious when I heard
407
00:22:57,682 --> 00:23:01,948
from David.
Imagine, 65 years, nobody
408
00:23:01,991 --> 00:23:05,690
knowing what happened to you
when you were young.
409
00:23:05,734 --> 00:23:10,913
And here comes some young fella,
out of the blue, and wants to
410
00:23:10,957 --> 00:23:15,962
talk to me about the case.
So, I didn't care about the
411
00:23:16,005 --> 00:23:19,921
story being told.
I kept it a secret 65 years.
412
00:23:19,965 --> 00:23:25,667
Why not go... die with it?
Who would care?
413
00:23:30,237 --> 00:23:33,588
My family always called me
"baby," I guess because I was
414
00:23:33,630 --> 00:23:36,939
the baby of the family.
For the first few months, she
415
00:23:36,983 --> 00:23:38,637
hung up on me.
You're bringing back
416
00:23:38,680 --> 00:23:41,726
memories, see, and I don't like them.
417
00:23:41,770 --> 00:23:46,427
Do you understand that?
We need it on record, is why
418
00:23:46,470 --> 00:23:49,995
we're discussing it now.
419
00:23:50,038 --> 00:23:53,390
Talk is cheap.
420
00:23:53,435 --> 00:23:56,567
She won't meet or mention
MGM's wild party, but, with her
421
00:23:56,611 --> 00:23:59,657
permission, I'm taping our
calls, because even though she
422
00:23:59,701 --> 00:24:02,704
doesn't seem to know it, this
little old lady is the key
423
00:24:02,747 --> 00:24:06,446
player in both MGM's most
shocking scandal and the biggest
424
00:24:06,489 --> 00:24:10,233
cover-up in Hollywood history.
Want Patricia Douglas on this
425
00:24:10,277 --> 00:24:11,974
show?
I would kill to have
426
00:24:12,018 --> 00:24:15,846
Patricia Douglas on my show.
I would kill to find out what
427
00:24:15,890 --> 00:24:18,285
her experience was... not the
rape, not the sordid, ugly
428
00:24:18,328 --> 00:24:21,852
details, but the system, the corruption.
429
00:24:21,896 --> 00:24:25,291
I believe my mother was
married eight times.
430
00:24:25,334 --> 00:24:29,730
She was a young designer.
She designed gowns for
431
00:24:29,773 --> 00:24:32,734
actresses, and she had her own shop.
432
00:24:32,777 --> 00:24:36,389
She worked for the studios.
She was a tiny woman, but when
433
00:24:36,432 --> 00:24:39,479
she put on heels, she was the right height.
434
00:24:39,522 --> 00:24:45,354
And she had a walk, with so much
poise, that clothes were made
435
00:24:45,398 --> 00:24:48,097
for her.
And she was just a joy to watch.
436
00:24:48,141 --> 00:24:51,447
I loved to walk behind her,
because everybody would walk
437
00:24:51,491 --> 00:24:55,103
past and not look at her, and
the minute she passed, all the
438
00:24:55,147 --> 00:25:01,109
heads would turn to look at her.
I never gave myself a thought...
439
00:25:01,153 --> 00:25:04,026
Just pride in her.
And then she kind of
440
00:25:04,070 --> 00:25:07,463
disappeared.
All she had was a mother.
441
00:25:07,507 --> 00:25:10,205
The father was long gone out of
her life, and she never had
442
00:25:10,249 --> 00:25:13,296
siblings.
Never, ever was I nurtured.
443
00:25:13,340 --> 00:25:17,474
I think my mother was the type
that wanted a child and when she
444
00:25:17,518 --> 00:25:20,999
had them and the cuteness wore
off, then it was like a toy
445
00:25:21,042 --> 00:25:27,005
you'd get tired of.
I used to go to the movies...
446
00:25:27,048 --> 00:25:30,877
For having people around me,
because, in my family, I was
447
00:25:30,920 --> 00:25:36,101
such a loner, I was ignored.
I was just there.
448
00:25:36,144 --> 00:25:39,930
So, at least, in a movie, even
though I didn't like the
449
00:25:39,974 --> 00:25:44,893
picture, there were people
around me, and I felt loved.
450
00:25:44,936 --> 00:25:47,808
So, did you have close friends?
451
00:25:47,851 --> 00:25:52,160
No.
I do not make friends easily.
452
00:25:52,204 --> 00:25:56,468
I don't expose myself... give
them a chance to hurt me.
453
00:25:56,512 --> 00:26:01,169
Nobody gets that chance, because
I don't get that close to them.
454
00:26:01,213 --> 00:26:04,390
You want the truth?
Yeah, I want the truth.
455
00:26:04,433 --> 00:26:08,133
I don't feel anything.
I'm not impressed by what we're
456
00:26:08,176 --> 00:26:16,176
doing.
Have you ever been in love?
457
00:26:17,577 --> 00:26:22,060
No, I have never been in
love, and I have never known
458
00:26:22,103 --> 00:26:27,021
what it is to love somebody.
And do you think that was
459
00:26:27,065 --> 00:26:30,763
taken away from you by what
happened at the MGM party?
460
00:26:30,806 --> 00:26:35,247
Oh, I think that was taken
away from me because I believe,
461
00:26:35,290 --> 00:26:39,903
no matter how much I feel
towards a man, I still don't
462
00:26:39,947 --> 00:26:46,822
trust.
Doing extra work in the movies
463
00:26:46,866 --> 00:26:51,914
was not a thrill for me.
It meant nothing.
464
00:26:51,958 --> 00:26:58,183
I was quite popular with dance
directors because I was a very
465
00:26:58,226 --> 00:27:01,489
quick learner.
Once I would learn the step, I
466
00:27:01,533 --> 00:27:05,581
could help teach the other dancers.
467
00:27:05,625 --> 00:27:08,409
And how old were you when you
started doing that?
468
00:27:08,453 --> 00:27:14,634
I'd say around 14, 15.
These are underage girls.
469
00:27:14,677 --> 00:27:18,767
They were not 21.
Under the law, they're kids.
470
00:27:18,811 --> 00:27:22,032
A lot of young girls were
chorus girls and dancers, and
471
00:27:22,076 --> 00:27:25,384
the dancers were fair game.
There were more young women
472
00:27:25,427 --> 00:27:28,343
brought in during the musical
period who were really, really
473
00:27:28,387 --> 00:27:30,432
vulnerable.
474
00:27:30,476 --> 00:27:32,912
These girls... and that's
what most of them were...
475
00:27:32,955 --> 00:27:36,177
Underage girls... would work
half naked among all-male crews.
476
00:27:36,220 --> 00:27:38,962
And in those days, a girl who
had rhythm, who knew how to move
477
00:27:39,006 --> 00:27:42,182
her body, was considered
sexually aware and thus sexually
478
00:27:42,226 --> 00:27:44,968
available.
And you're always kind of
479
00:27:45,012 --> 00:27:49,451
being pursued on the set.
That's why I hated the set,
480
00:27:49,495 --> 00:27:52,453
because you were so vulnerable
and there were a lot of
481
00:27:52,497 --> 00:27:55,283
obscenities.
They were fair game.
482
00:27:55,327 --> 00:27:58,981
It was just open season all the time.
483
00:27:59,025 --> 00:28:01,680
As far as sex was concerned,
that was never explained to me.
484
00:28:01,723 --> 00:28:07,599
We never talked about sex.
It was never brought up.
485
00:28:07,642 --> 00:28:11,820
It was never, ever brought up.
My mother was too busy, I guess,
486
00:28:11,864 --> 00:28:14,911
getting married.
She seemed to be very adept at
487
00:28:14,955 --> 00:28:17,347
it.
That's it, get them up, get
488
00:28:17,390 --> 00:28:19,828
them up, get them up.
Good. Rest.
489
00:28:19,872 --> 00:28:23,136
Fine. That's fine.
That's fine.
490
00:28:23,180 --> 00:28:28,489
All the girls who worked as
dancers in Hollywood... all they
491
00:28:28,533 --> 00:28:31,883
did was work in these numbers,
these extravaganzas that were
492
00:28:31,926 --> 00:28:35,279
full of fantasy and music and
dance and, hence, romance.
493
00:28:35,322 --> 00:28:39,718
The idea that everything was
about romance is a wonderful,
494
00:28:39,761 --> 00:28:45,245
romantic notion, but what
happens when someone eyes you
495
00:28:45,289 --> 00:28:48,335
and romance isn't on his mind?
Your mother hasn't told you a
496
00:28:48,379 --> 00:28:50,250
thing.
All she's told you is, "dance,
497
00:28:50,294 --> 00:28:52,774
find romance.
If he proposes, say yes."
498
00:28:52,818 --> 00:28:55,473
But what if he propositions?
What if he doesn't propose?
499
00:28:55,516 --> 00:28:58,040
And there's a big difference.
Or what if he doesn't even
500
00:28:58,084 --> 00:28:59,912
proposition?
What if he just takes you and
501
00:28:59,955 --> 00:29:01,957
grabs you and drags you out to a car?
502
00:29:02,001 --> 00:29:04,438
And that happens, and that's
what this story is about.
503
00:29:04,482 --> 00:29:08,660
This is The Story of someone
that that happened to.
504
00:29:08,703 --> 00:29:14,186
I never thought of being an
actress or being a star.
505
00:29:14,230 --> 00:29:19,366
And did you like to dance?
Yeah, I liked to dance.
506
00:29:19,410 --> 00:29:23,282
I loved to dance.
We had these 3- or 4-hour
507
00:29:23,326 --> 00:29:26,939
phone conversations, and her TV
is always on in the background.
508
00:29:26,982 --> 00:29:29,070
And I asked her once, "what are
you watching?"
509
00:29:29,114 --> 00:29:32,771
And she said, "mtv.
I love to see these kids dance."
510
00:29:32,814 --> 00:29:35,163
And I said, "what kind of a
dancer were you?"
511
00:29:35,207 --> 00:29:39,299
And without missing a beat, she
said, "I moved just like jlo."
512
00:30:21,385 --> 00:30:26,345
She moved just like jlo, but
after 1937, Patricia Douglas
513
00:30:26,389 --> 00:30:31,612
never danced again.
I was shocked by the
514
00:30:31,656 --> 00:30:36,703
hypocrisy of stars that
everybody believed in.
515
00:30:36,747 --> 00:30:41,534
Example... Loretta Young, when
she had the baby by Clark Gable,
516
00:30:41,579 --> 00:30:45,059
said she adopted it.
As the baby matured and got
517
00:30:45,103 --> 00:30:48,759
older, it was the spitting image of her.
518
00:30:48,802 --> 00:30:52,154
There's no way she could deny
it, and she denied it till her
519
00:30:52,198 --> 00:30:57,942
deathbed to that poor girl that
she wasn't her mother.
520
00:30:57,985 --> 00:31:00,292
Loretta Young gets pregnant by Clark Gable.
521
00:31:00,336 --> 00:31:03,252
He's married, she's a staunch
catholic, so when rumors start
522
00:31:03,296 --> 00:31:05,819
flying, she stages a press
conference in her bedroom.
523
00:31:05,863 --> 00:31:09,214
Even though she's eight months
pregnant, she swears it's just a
524
00:31:09,257 --> 00:31:11,783
stomach ailment.
And when a baby girl is born,
525
00:31:11,826 --> 00:31:15,176
she deposits it in an orphanage,
waits 18 months, then announces
526
00:31:15,220 --> 00:31:17,963
she's adopting a little girl...
Her little girl, which everyone
527
00:31:18,006 --> 00:31:20,791
in Hollywood knew, but no one
dared to say aloud.
528
00:31:20,834 --> 00:31:23,707
I couldn't understand why
Patricia fixated on this story
529
00:31:23,750 --> 00:31:27,188
until I went through the
newspapers from 1937.
530
00:31:27,232 --> 00:31:30,148
And while she's on all the front
pages, buried inside is
531
00:31:30,191 --> 00:31:32,760
Loretta Young's adoption announcement.
532
00:31:32,804 --> 00:31:36,023
So while a rape victim's
crucified in the press, a movie
533
00:31:36,067 --> 00:31:39,200
star gets totally protected.
534
00:31:39,244 --> 00:31:42,290
My name is Judy Lewis, and
I'm the daughter of
535
00:31:42,334 --> 00:31:44,684
Loretta Young and Clark Gable.
536
00:31:44,728 --> 00:31:49,863
My mother said she adopted me.
And, of course, she didn't adopt
537
00:31:49,907 --> 00:31:52,213
me, because I was her natural daughter.
538
00:31:52,257 --> 00:31:55,129
She wasn't fooling anybody, really.
539
00:31:55,173 --> 00:31:59,524
Hollywood knew the true story.
I was the only one who didn't.
540
00:31:59,568 --> 00:32:03,399
When I was a little girl, I
always had a feeling that there
541
00:32:03,442 --> 00:32:08,273
was something not quite right about me...
542
00:32:08,316 --> 00:32:12,016
Because I was born with my
father's enormous ears.
543
00:32:12,059 --> 00:32:17,064
And they were enormous.
They stuck straight out.
544
00:32:17,108 --> 00:32:21,678
And my mother had me in bonnets
all the time.
545
00:32:21,720 --> 00:32:25,725
I couldn't go outside in public
without wearing these bonnets,
546
00:32:25,769 --> 00:32:29,467
and I hated them.
So, when I was 7, I had my ears
547
00:32:29,511 --> 00:32:33,603
operated on, and I had them
pinned back, so I no longer have
548
00:32:33,646 --> 00:32:37,433
my father's dumbo ears.
I went to an all-girls high
549
00:32:37,476 --> 00:32:40,348
school.
I had a friend in class with me,
550
00:32:40,392 --> 00:32:44,440
and she said, "Judy, how come
you look like your mother when
551
00:32:44,483 --> 00:32:47,921
you're adopted?"
She says, "I'm adopted, and I
552
00:32:47,965 --> 00:32:50,750
don't look like my mother."
So, of course, I went home, and
553
00:32:50,794 --> 00:32:55,101
I said, "mom, how come I look
like you when I'm adopted?"
554
00:32:55,146 --> 00:32:59,280
And my mother... without a
second's breath, she said, "oh,
555
00:32:59,324 --> 00:33:03,023
well, honey, we live in the same
house together, and you have my
556
00:33:03,067 --> 00:33:07,026
mannerisms, and it's very
natural that you, you know," and
557
00:33:07,070 --> 00:33:10,595
off it went.
And I learned about my true
558
00:33:10,639 --> 00:33:12,597
parentage a week before I was married.
559
00:33:12,641 --> 00:33:16,949
I called the priest who was
going to marry us, and I said to
560
00:33:16,993 --> 00:33:21,084
him, "I've just heard the most
incredible story that
561
00:33:21,127 --> 00:33:24,654
Clark Gable is my father, and
I'm going to confront my
562
00:33:24,697 --> 00:33:27,133
mother."
and he said, "don't.
563
00:33:27,177 --> 00:33:30,136
She won't tell you."
And I didn't.
564
00:33:30,180 --> 00:33:34,751
When I finally confronted my
mother, years later, she threw
565
00:33:34,794 --> 00:33:37,231
up.
She vomited.
566
00:33:37,275 --> 00:33:40,364
She said, "oh, well, you're
just a walking mortal sin,"
567
00:33:40,407 --> 00:33:44,455
which was a little shocking to
me at the time, needless to say.
568
00:33:44,499 --> 00:33:50,157
My mother asked me to keep her
secret from my daughter.
569
00:33:50,201 --> 00:33:56,641
So, she's asking me to carry a
lie and a secret down to the
570
00:33:56,685 --> 00:34:00,384
third generation, which I
absolutely refused to do.
571
00:34:00,427 --> 00:34:02,995
I've never lied to my daughter
about anything.
572
00:34:03,039 --> 00:34:08,174
When I can say publicly, "I am
the daughter of Loretta Young
573
00:34:08,218 --> 00:34:12,527
and Clark Gable," I'm whole.
I'm present.
574
00:34:12,570 --> 00:34:18,968
I'm... I'm here, you know?
And it's been really wonderful.
575
00:34:19,011 --> 00:34:23,581
It's a whole different life for me.
576
00:34:23,625 --> 00:34:27,846
I'm getting away from it,
what I want to tell you.
577
00:34:27,890 --> 00:34:30,848
You did talk about how
David Ross was pestering you all
578
00:34:30,892 --> 00:34:32,372
night.
He wanted you to teach him the
579
00:34:32,416 --> 00:34:35,027
shag.
Or was it trucking?
580
00:34:35,071 --> 00:34:39,075
Trucking. That's what it was.
He kept asking me to teach
581
00:34:39,118 --> 00:34:43,166
him how to truck.
That was the dance at the time.
582
00:35:40,484 --> 00:35:42,790
Kept asking you to teach him how
to dance, you realized he
583
00:35:42,833 --> 00:35:45,228
thought you were there to be his girl.
584
00:35:45,271 --> 00:35:49,319
I don't think I realized it.
I don't know whether I was naive
585
00:35:49,362 --> 00:35:51,668
or dumb.
Really, frankly, I don't think I
586
00:35:51,712 --> 00:35:55,630
gave it any thought because I'm
not a suspicious nature.
587
00:35:55,673 --> 00:35:59,328
Never entered my mind, anybody
would do me any harm.
588
00:35:59,371 --> 00:36:03,985
Whether it was a setup or a
party or anything, I don't think
589
00:36:04,028 --> 00:36:07,684
it ever entered my mind.
But he was all hands.
590
00:36:07,728 --> 00:36:13,386
We'd call it "copping a feel,"
was the word that was used for
591
00:36:13,430 --> 00:36:19,392
any excuse to brush up against
you, to put his arm all the way
592
00:36:19,436 --> 00:36:24,483
around you or anywhere where he
could touch some part of you,
593
00:36:24,527 --> 00:36:26,660
which was very disgusting.
594
00:36:26,704 --> 00:36:32,709
"Slimy" is the only word I could
think of to describe the man's
595
00:36:32,753 --> 00:36:35,625
looks.
I hate to compare him to a
596
00:36:35,669 --> 00:36:38,628
pekingese, but that's about the best.
597
00:36:38,672 --> 00:36:45,244
He had bulging eyes... very big,
bulging eyes... that almost
598
00:36:45,287 --> 00:36:48,682
dominated his face.
David Ross was never served,
599
00:36:48,725 --> 00:36:51,294
and, again, I find that hard to believe.
600
00:36:51,337 --> 00:36:53,861
He's one of the luckiest guys in the world.
601
00:36:53,904 --> 00:36:57,734
Never served with this, never
charged with this.
602
00:36:57,778 --> 00:37:01,217
Now, he had to live with it, and
I don't know how he lived with
603
00:37:01,260 --> 00:37:05,176
it, but at least he didn't go to
prison forever and he didn't
604
00:37:05,220 --> 00:37:08,136
have to pay financial damages for doing it.
605
00:37:08,179 --> 00:37:12,966
The only thing I can remember
is this David Ross' face.
606
00:37:13,009 --> 00:37:16,187
Of course, it was in my
nightmare for many years.
607
00:37:16,232 --> 00:37:21,106
I could not get him off my mind
and what he had done to me.
608
00:37:21,149 --> 00:37:25,588
He took my innocence.
You can never get that back.
609
00:37:25,631 --> 00:37:30,419
You were a virgin?
610
00:37:30,462 --> 00:37:34,117
I don't like to bring it up.
But it's important for the
611
00:37:34,161 --> 00:37:36,817
story, because you were talking
about he took your innocence.
612
00:37:36,860 --> 00:37:41,212
He took it on every level.
You were a virgin.
613
00:37:41,256 --> 00:37:46,087
Yep.
I don't want to talk anymore.
614
00:37:50,699 --> 00:37:52,746
Aah!
These lovely girls...
615
00:37:52,789 --> 00:37:54,573
Anything you want.
No!
616
00:37:54,617 --> 00:37:56,140
Don't touch me!
Aah!
617
00:37:56,184 --> 00:38:01,885
Aah!
Aah!
618
00:38:01,929 --> 00:38:06,585
No! Keep away from me!
Let me out of here!
619
00:38:06,629 --> 00:38:08,369
Don't look at me like that,
Mr. Powell.
620
00:38:08,412 --> 00:38:09,762
You scare me.
Help!
621
00:38:09,805 --> 00:38:15,203
Let go!
Don't!
622
00:38:15,246 --> 00:38:18,033
Aah!
Get away from me!
623
00:38:18,075 --> 00:38:24,907
Don't touch me!
The next thing I remember
624
00:38:24,951 --> 00:38:31,436
is being in a small hospital...
One story... it's just a tiny
625
00:38:31,480 --> 00:38:36,006
place... and being given a
douche.
626
00:38:36,050 --> 00:38:40,794
And the way I remember that is
because they used cold water,
627
00:38:40,837 --> 00:38:42,317
which is not very pleasant.
628
00:38:42,360 --> 00:38:44,622
When she went to the
hospital, she wouldn't have had
629
00:38:44,666 --> 00:38:47,104
a doctor cleanse her and then
attempt to do an examination...
630
00:38:47,148 --> 00:38:50,454
A doctor whose entire business
was dependent on MGM... so the
631
00:38:50,498 --> 00:38:52,588
fix looked in at the examination.
632
00:38:52,631 --> 00:38:56,853
And, of course, at the time,
I didn't realize that that would
633
00:38:56,897 --> 00:39:00,900
erase all evidence, because I
didn't know about things like
634
00:39:00,943 --> 00:39:05,687
that.
I can't remember anything right
635
00:39:05,731 --> 00:39:08,343
now.
Do you remember seeing
636
00:39:08,386 --> 00:39:12,608
yourself on the front page?
I remember the headlines.
637
00:39:12,651 --> 00:39:15,305
How did you feel about the headlines?
638
00:39:15,349 --> 00:39:21,225
Humiliated.
I don't want to talk anymore.
639
00:39:21,269 --> 00:39:25,447
Can I stop?
Absolutely.
640
00:39:25,490 --> 00:39:29,189
He heard someone crying and
screaming in the bushes, and he
641
00:39:29,232 --> 00:39:33,150
went, and they arranged for an
ambulance to come.
642
00:39:33,194 --> 00:39:35,761
Clement soth was the parking
attendant who heard Patricia
643
00:39:35,805 --> 00:39:38,068
screaming, then saw David Ross run away.
644
00:39:38,112 --> 00:39:40,156
On the witness stand,
clement soth changed his
645
00:39:40,200 --> 00:39:43,421
testimony, saying he didn't recognize Ross.
646
00:39:43,465 --> 00:39:45,466
I tracked down clement soth's daughters.
647
00:39:45,509 --> 00:39:47,642
At first, they said they knew nothing.
648
00:39:47,685 --> 00:39:50,340
Then, 10 minutes later, they
called back with the truth.
649
00:39:50,384 --> 00:39:54,867
Daddy testified at a trial,
doing MGM a favor, and what he
650
00:39:54,910 --> 00:39:58,436
was to get in return was a
lifetime job at MGM.
651
00:39:58,480 --> 00:40:05,138
He had to perjure himself, so
when you do that, that never
652
00:40:05,181 --> 00:40:08,010
leaves you.
I mean, that's a big deal.
653
00:40:08,054 --> 00:40:11,318
He had only disdain for most
of the stars of the time and
654
00:40:11,361 --> 00:40:13,582
certainly for the heads of the studio.
655
00:40:13,625 --> 00:40:17,019
I mean, Louis B. Mayer was just
no good as far as he was
656
00:40:17,063 --> 00:40:19,630
concerned.
But he had a family that he
657
00:40:19,674 --> 00:40:21,937
had to support.
Who's to say that any of us
658
00:40:21,981 --> 00:40:24,201
wouldn't have done that?
I mean, we don't really know
659
00:40:24,245 --> 00:40:28,379
what we would have done.
It's easy to say from hindsight.
660
00:40:28,423 --> 00:40:32,818
But at the time, who knows?
Because one little testimony
661
00:40:32,862 --> 00:40:36,909
is not gonna touch those big
studio people, it wouldn't have
662
00:40:36,952 --> 00:40:40,215
changed anything.
They would have wiggled out.
663
00:40:40,259 --> 00:40:43,872
There are so many women that
this has happened to.
664
00:40:43,916 --> 00:40:46,570
It affects their whole life forever.
665
00:40:46,614 --> 00:40:51,097
And so if we can help one woman,
then it would be a good thing to
666
00:40:51,140 --> 00:40:54,274
do.
And that's why I decided to do
667
00:40:54,317 --> 00:41:00,975
this.
Here we are at the gold coast
668
00:41:01,019 --> 00:41:03,413
hotel in Las Vegas, and I am
supposed to meet
669
00:41:03,457 --> 00:41:06,416
Patricia Douglas tonight.
Her apartment's right around the
670
00:41:06,460 --> 00:41:09,854
corner, and that's why she
wanted me to stay here.
671
00:41:09,898 --> 00:41:13,989
This means a lot to me, and,
um... I've waited a long time for
672
00:41:14,033 --> 00:41:15,033
this.
673
00:41:16,600 --> 00:41:22,040
It's 8:40 now, and she said, "do
not come over before 9:00."
674
00:41:22,083 --> 00:41:26,261
I'm nervous.
If this goes well, it begins.
675
00:41:26,305 --> 00:41:31,876
If it doesn't go well, it ends.
I'm just sitting here waiting
676
00:41:31,920 --> 00:41:38,360
because I can't concentrate on
anything else.
677
00:41:38,404 --> 00:41:41,974
She does not like a man who
wears jeans, so you don't see
678
00:41:42,017 --> 00:41:45,454
any jeans on me tonight.
She also said her favorite look
679
00:41:45,498 --> 00:41:49,372
on a gentleman is a vicuña coat,
and I had no idea what she was
680
00:41:49,416 --> 00:41:52,985
talking about, and then I
remembered there was a scene in
681
00:41:53,028 --> 00:41:55,638
"Sunset Boulevard" where
Gloria Swanson takes
682
00:41:55,682 --> 00:41:58,032
William Holden shopping.
Now we need a topcoat.
683
00:41:58,076 --> 00:41:59,817
Let me see what you have in camel's hair.
684
00:41:59,861 --> 00:42:02,297
Here are some camel's hair.
But I'd like you just to feel
685
00:42:02,341 --> 00:42:03,517
this.
It's vicuña.
686
00:42:03,560 --> 00:42:05,160
Of course, it's a little more expensive.
687
00:42:05,171 --> 00:42:08,129
The camel's hair will do.
The salesman sort of leans in
688
00:42:08,173 --> 00:42:10,653
with a leer and says...
Well, as long as the lady's
689
00:42:10,697 --> 00:42:13,265
paying for it, why not take the vicuña?
690
00:42:13,309 --> 00:42:17,051
"Sunset Boulevard" was made
691
00:42:17,095 --> 00:42:21,229
in 1950, so that look is about
50 years old.
692
00:42:21,273 --> 00:42:25,365
I think she's actually listed in
693
00:42:25,408 --> 00:42:29,411
the phone book.
She's listed in the phone book.
694
00:42:29,455 --> 00:42:34,112
Just her first initial, "p," but
she's listed in the phone book.
695
00:42:34,155 --> 00:42:36,723
I looked for her for so long,
and after all that... but you
696
00:42:36,766 --> 00:42:40,467
would have had to have known her last name.
697
00:42:40,510 --> 00:42:47,822
I'm rambling.
There's so much at stake.
698
00:42:47,865 --> 00:42:51,042
There's so much... your first
meeting, it's like...
699
00:42:51,085 --> 00:42:56,655
Hello?
700
00:42:56,698 --> 00:43:00,139
She... panicked.
She couldn't do it.
701
00:43:00,182 --> 00:43:01,878
She called me on the hotel phone.
702
00:43:01,922 --> 00:43:04,534
I knew it was her because
everybody else... nobody knows
703
00:43:04,578 --> 00:43:06,274
I'm here.
They'd call on my cell.
704
00:43:06,318 --> 00:43:09,060
She wouldn't call on my cell
because it's a long-distance
705
00:43:09,103 --> 00:43:11,236
call and she won't make a
long-distance call.
706
00:43:11,278 --> 00:43:13,890
She can't afford it.
And she was really upset.
707
00:43:13,934 --> 00:43:16,371
She felt terrible.
She just said, "I can't.
708
00:43:16,415 --> 00:43:19,419
I'm so sorry. I can't."
I just kept saying, "it's okay.
709
00:43:19,462 --> 00:43:24,553
It's okay. There's no rush."
And all I'm thinking is, "if you
710
00:43:24,597 --> 00:43:28,514
go, this story goes with you."
But on the other hand, you're
711
00:43:28,557 --> 00:43:31,647
thinking, "this poor woman.
Leave her alone, David.
712
00:43:31,691 --> 00:43:34,302
Leave her alone.
Let her die with her secret."
713
00:43:34,346 --> 00:43:37,523
But you think about what she was
like in 1937, and you think,
714
00:43:37,566 --> 00:43:39,829
"well, that has to be characterological.
715
00:43:39,873 --> 00:43:43,920
That's her personality.
That can't have changed."
716
00:43:43,964 --> 00:43:47,881
Maybe this is a test on her part
to see if I'll give up and go
717
00:43:47,924 --> 00:43:52,102
away, and when she sees that I
won't, maybe next time that'll
718
00:43:52,145 --> 00:43:57,846
make a difference.
She still has a chance to find
719
00:43:57,890 --> 00:44:01,504
vindication.
And as long as she has that
720
00:44:01,548 --> 00:44:09,548
chance, then I'll be there.
What will I do now?
721
00:44:12,166 --> 00:44:14,125
I-I don't know.
722
00:44:17,823 --> 00:44:21,828
The coldest day of the year...
Temperature dropped 35 degrees
723
00:44:21,871 --> 00:44:25,571
since I landed last night.
But I'm here 'cause I finally
724
00:44:25,614 --> 00:44:27,615
found David Ross.
725
00:44:27,659 --> 00:44:30,663
He had no siblings and no
children, and there's nobody
726
00:44:30,706 --> 00:44:35,929
left who can even recall him.
This guy got away with rape,
727
00:44:35,972 --> 00:44:38,626
went back to Chicago, kept his job at MGM.
728
00:44:38,670 --> 00:44:42,282
I didn't tell her I was coming,
but I know she'll want every
729
00:44:42,326 --> 00:44:46,418
detail because it really closes
the chapter.
730
00:44:46,461 --> 00:44:53,860
Here he is, dead and buried.
And there's the proof.
731
00:44:53,903 --> 00:44:56,123
You want me to look at you, David?
732
00:44:56,167 --> 00:45:04,167
Okay.
My name is Patricia Douglas.
733
00:45:04,914 --> 00:45:09,180
It's very difficult for me to
try to remember these things.
734
00:45:09,222 --> 00:45:14,140
They've been buried so many
years... believe it or not, 65
735
00:45:14,184 --> 00:45:18,362
years... and to try, when
they're buried so deep, to bring
736
00:45:18,405 --> 00:45:23,367
them out...
Maybe it'll help young people
737
00:45:23,410 --> 00:45:25,674
not to be trusting.
I don't know.
738
00:45:25,718 --> 00:45:27,719
I hope so.
739
00:45:33,246 --> 00:45:37,556
This is the part of Las Vegas
that you don't see, right in the
740
00:45:37,599 --> 00:45:45,476
shadow of the strip.
This is Patricia's apartment.
741
00:45:45,519 --> 00:45:48,348
She sleeps in her bedroom, wakes
up at 4:00 in the afternoon,
742
00:45:48,392 --> 00:45:51,265
moves from her bedroom to her
couch, sits down on her couch,
743
00:45:51,309 --> 00:45:54,224
turns on the television, watches
television until 4:00 in the
744
00:45:54,267 --> 00:45:57,097
morning, gets up from the couch,
and then goes back into her
745
00:45:57,140 --> 00:46:00,360
bedroom, and that's her life.
It isn't that I mind living
746
00:46:00,404 --> 00:46:04,189
alone, because I'm a loner, as
you no doubt have known from my
747
00:46:04,233 --> 00:46:10,152
story now that, uh...
I enjoy being alone.
748
00:46:10,196 --> 00:46:12,938
Her favorite show is
"the sopranos," which I don't
749
00:46:12,981 --> 00:46:16,508
think she realizes she probably
relates to because her own
750
00:46:16,551 --> 00:46:20,946
experience at MGM and what they
did to her was almost like the
751
00:46:20,989 --> 00:46:24,602
mafia swinging into action.
James gandolfini... such a
752
00:46:24,645 --> 00:46:27,387
wonderful actor, such a compelling force.
753
00:46:27,431 --> 00:46:30,912
She doesn't leave her
apartment, and the only time
754
00:46:30,956 --> 00:46:33,914
she'll leave is for a doctor's appointment.
755
00:46:33,958 --> 00:46:39,225
I'm very private.
I don't expose myself... give
756
00:46:39,269 --> 00:46:42,272
them a chance to hurt me.
I'll never forget the first
757
00:46:42,315 --> 00:46:45,927
time I went into that apartment.
I was so nervous.
758
00:46:45,971 --> 00:46:48,755
He was so formal.
He was so sweet.
759
00:46:48,799 --> 00:46:53,239
I remember I opened the door,
and the back of the couch faced
760
00:46:53,283 --> 00:47:01,283
me.
I was so nasty to him.
761
00:47:02,814 --> 00:47:05,424
And I saw this figure with
her back to me, sitting on the
762
00:47:05,468 --> 00:47:08,950
couch.
I was so nasty to him...
763
00:47:08,994 --> 00:47:12,563
'Cause he invaded my privacy
that I thought was so secure.
764
00:47:12,606 --> 00:47:16,000
And she was just sitting
there, and I knocked on the
765
00:47:16,043 --> 00:47:19,177
door, and she said, "come in."
She had this great, low,
766
00:47:19,220 --> 00:47:23,138
gravelly voice.
So I hang up on him.
767
00:47:23,182 --> 00:47:28,230
But he persisted, thank god.
And I walked around like
768
00:47:28,274 --> 00:47:31,973
this, and I thought...
"What do I do? What do I do?"
769
00:47:32,017 --> 00:47:34,105
And I just... I just...
Impulsively, I just sort of
770
00:47:34,148 --> 00:47:36,456
threw my arms around her and
hugged her, and I said, "I'm
771
00:47:36,500 --> 00:47:38,850
really glad to meet you," and I
think she was taken aback.
772
00:47:38,893 --> 00:47:42,984
She went like this a little,
but... then she settled into it.
773
00:47:43,028 --> 00:47:47,032
He courted me.
He sent me flowers.
774
00:47:47,075 --> 00:47:52,166
Uh...
At first, she was so hard and
775
00:47:52,210 --> 00:47:57,347
tough and shellacked, and then I
knew it was a veneer, but to get
776
00:47:57,390 --> 00:48:01,699
inside of it and to see this
person bloom and so much love
777
00:48:01,742 --> 00:48:06,833
inside of her that she was
afraid to give...
778
00:48:06,877 --> 00:48:08,923
Bless your heart.
She ate terribly.
779
00:48:08,967 --> 00:48:11,926
I mean, her diet... I don't even
know how to describe her diet.
780
00:48:11,970 --> 00:48:14,840
She basically didn't eat, and
she always used to say, "how can
781
00:48:14,884 --> 00:48:16,974
I be such a fat old broad and
never eat?"
782
00:48:17,017 --> 00:48:22,676
He's got some bad faults.
He's bossy.
783
00:48:22,720 --> 00:48:26,723
And he likes his own way.
And he's pretty adamant about
784
00:48:26,766 --> 00:48:30,204
that... getting that... too.
But then so am I.
785
00:48:30,248 --> 00:48:33,383
I go to kfc because she says
that's the best coleslaw she's
786
00:48:33,426 --> 00:48:35,514
ever eaten.
She said, "you can't get better
787
00:48:35,558 --> 00:48:37,691
coleslaw anywhere in the world
than at kfc."
788
00:48:37,735 --> 00:48:40,213
So I said, "well, would you like
me to get you some?"
789
00:48:40,257 --> 00:48:42,913
And she said, "oh, would you?"
And I said, "well, you know I
790
00:48:42,956 --> 00:48:45,394
would."
I have my way, and I make him
791
00:48:45,437 --> 00:48:48,398
think it's his.
You know, we women can do those
792
00:48:48,441 --> 00:48:51,487
things.
I started to clean toilets,
793
00:48:51,530 --> 00:48:55,011
and I said to her, "this gives
you an idea of how I feel about
794
00:48:55,054 --> 00:48:58,232
you, that I'm sitting here
scrubbing your toilet."
795
00:48:58,276 --> 00:49:04,195
If you'd seen how I fought him...
796
00:49:04,238 --> 00:49:07,546
And look what I would have lost.
I guess I love her.
797
00:49:07,590 --> 00:49:11,594
I mean, she's... she... when you
care about someone, you want to
798
00:49:11,637 --> 00:49:14,379
do anything you can for them
that they want.
799
00:49:14,423 --> 00:49:18,601
You'll never meet anybody like him ever.
800
00:49:18,644 --> 00:49:21,908
I wish we could do his story.
All right, let's skip me.
801
00:49:21,952 --> 00:49:24,389
No.
This is you. It's your show.
802
00:49:24,433 --> 00:49:32,136
We're over now with me.
What's throwing the shadow here?
803
00:49:32,179 --> 00:49:34,444
Don't worry.
You're not the cameraman.
804
00:49:34,487 --> 00:49:36,401
You're the star.
Don't you worry.
805
00:49:36,445 --> 00:49:39,186
Well, I mean, it's different.
Don't you worry.
806
00:49:39,230 --> 00:49:45,454
She's got you lit.
It's not on me? Why not?
807
00:49:45,496 --> 00:49:50,110
Oh, look... now she's
Marlene Dietrich.
808
00:49:53,592 --> 00:50:00,425
The battle's not over, and
until I am vindicated publicly,
809
00:50:00,469 --> 00:50:07,387
where everybody knows the true
story of what really happened...
810
00:50:07,431 --> 00:50:10,782
I won't be.
The doors are open now, and the
811
00:50:10,826 --> 00:50:15,571
gloves are off.
If I have to fight, I'll fight.
812
00:50:15,614 --> 00:50:19,356
If you have to take me to court
in a wheelchair or on a
813
00:50:19,399 --> 00:50:22,011
stretcher, I'll go.
814
00:50:24,536 --> 00:50:30,673
I was called... by the studio.
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer... oh,
815
00:50:30,716 --> 00:50:34,110
oh, what a lion.
And I was told to report to
816
00:50:34,153 --> 00:50:38,506
western costume company because
I would need a costume for the
817
00:50:38,549 --> 00:50:41,509
film they were doing.
And that was the words that were
818
00:50:41,552 --> 00:50:44,338
used... "This film they were
doing."
819
00:50:44,382 --> 00:50:46,515
Snap into it, girls.
You're five minutes late now.
820
00:50:46,558 --> 00:50:49,648
I didn't notice there weren't cameras.
821
00:50:49,692 --> 00:50:56,262
I was trusting. I was dumb.
I'd never been around bad
822
00:50:56,306 --> 00:51:01,485
people, so I didn't know one
when I saw one.
823
00:51:01,529 --> 00:51:06,838
I've always... been fortunate
enough that I could trust
824
00:51:06,882 --> 00:51:14,019
anybody.
But you couldn't trust this man.
825
00:51:18,720 --> 00:51:25,510
Slime.
Pure slime.
826
00:51:25,554 --> 00:51:29,078
He wanted me to teach him to dance.
827
00:51:29,121 --> 00:51:31,123
I didn't want any part of him.
828
00:51:33,952 --> 00:51:39,871
And we got back to the table,
and there was...
829
00:51:39,915 --> 00:51:47,139
Pitchers... pitchers.
One of them had something bubbly
830
00:51:47,183 --> 00:51:51,710
in it...
And the other one had a terrible
831
00:51:51,754 --> 00:51:56,062
odor, and they said that was scotch...
832
00:51:56,106 --> 00:51:58,063
In fact, we run out of scotch last night.
833
00:51:58,107 --> 00:52:02,198
...and that the other one was
champagne.
834
00:52:02,241 --> 00:52:04,593
Champagne, champagne, and more champagne!
835
00:52:04,635 --> 00:52:08,856
The only way I'd ever seen
champagne was in a movie, where
836
00:52:08,899 --> 00:52:11,555
they pop it and it foams all over.
837
00:52:11,599 --> 00:52:15,603
And to see it in a regular
838
00:52:15,646 --> 00:52:20,651
pitcher was such a comedown,
mentally, for the way I had it
839
00:52:20,695 --> 00:52:28,136
pictured.
And they said, "do you want to
840
00:52:28,179 --> 00:52:30,443
taste it?"
And I said, "no. No.
841
00:52:30,487 --> 00:52:33,795
I don't drink."
And that other one that smelled
842
00:52:33,838 --> 00:52:36,536
so awful... "Well, that's
scotch."
843
00:52:36,580 --> 00:52:40,889
"Well, how can anybody drink
something that smells that bad?"
844
00:52:40,932 --> 00:52:44,240
"Well, it's delicious.
Taste it."
845
00:52:44,283 --> 00:52:49,113
"No, I don't want to taste it."
So, when I wouldn't drink, they
846
00:52:49,157 --> 00:52:53,944
poured some champagne and some
scotch into a glass, and one of
847
00:52:53,988 --> 00:53:00,038
them held my nose and the other
one poured the liquor all over
848
00:53:00,082 --> 00:53:07,655
me and down my throat...
And almost the whole glass.
849
00:53:07,698 --> 00:53:12,876
So, right away I had to go
outside to vomit, and I could
850
00:53:12,920 --> 00:53:20,920
hardly walk.
I don't want to talk anymore.
851
00:53:31,722 --> 00:53:36,335
I want to remember this because
I want everybody to know what it
852
00:53:36,379 --> 00:53:41,775
feels like to be violated.
And then, in other ways, I don't
853
00:53:41,818 --> 00:53:45,780
want them to know, 'cause it's a
horrible feeling.
854
00:53:45,822 --> 00:53:51,742
No. Leave me alone.
And when Ross was... i'm
855
00:53:51,786 --> 00:53:54,701
sorry.
I have to use the word
856
00:53:54,744 --> 00:54:01,359
"attacking."
I cannot use the other word.
857
00:54:01,403 --> 00:54:09,403
He'd said that...
He wanted to destroy me.
858
00:54:09,672 --> 00:54:16,549
I don't know why he would want
to destroy me.
859
00:54:16,593 --> 00:54:24,593
Oh, I'm getting cold chills.
860
00:54:25,514 --> 00:54:27,517
Oh, god, I'm cold.
861
00:54:32,869 --> 00:54:37,091
He was slapping me in the face...
862
00:54:37,134 --> 00:54:40,790
To keep me awake...
'cause he wanted me to
863
00:54:40,834 --> 00:54:45,316
cooperate, and I was fighting him.
864
00:54:45,360 --> 00:54:49,450
I was screaming, "I have been attacked!
865
00:54:49,493 --> 00:54:56,588
I have been attacked!"
And then someone... I think it
866
00:54:56,632 --> 00:55:01,594
was the...
man in charge of the parking
867
00:55:01,638 --> 00:55:07,775
lot... called to me.
They brought me home in an
868
00:55:07,818 --> 00:55:12,517
ambulance, and I went to sleep,
and I didn't wake up until...
869
00:55:12,561 --> 00:55:17,653
The next afternoon.
My eyes swelled up, and besides
870
00:55:17,696 --> 00:55:23,180
that, I was extremely sore,
ladylike, in my extremities, is
871
00:55:23,224 --> 00:55:27,794
the only way I can think of to say it.
872
00:55:27,837 --> 00:55:32,276
And then my family... I don't
know why they didn't mention it.
873
00:55:32,320 --> 00:55:35,844
The pictures in the paper were
never mentioned.
874
00:55:35,888 --> 00:55:42,678
How did I feel? Was I sore?
Do I... is there anything I need
875
00:55:42,721 --> 00:55:46,725
to make me feel... nothing.
A hug would have been nice, I
876
00:55:46,769 --> 00:55:52,122
imagine, but I never got that.
It was never mentioned.
877
00:55:52,166 --> 00:55:56,257
It never happened.
That's the only way I can figure
878
00:55:56,300 --> 00:55:59,477
out.
The way my family handled it was
879
00:55:59,520 --> 00:56:04,482
to ignore it.
It didn't happen.
880
00:56:04,526 --> 00:56:09,487
I did want him punished.
I could not get him off my mind
881
00:56:09,531 --> 00:56:17,104
because he took my innocence,
because I was a virgin, and he
882
00:56:17,147 --> 00:56:25,024
left me...
With horrendous memories of my
883
00:56:25,067 --> 00:56:30,986
first time.
And believe it or not, it
884
00:56:31,030 --> 00:56:35,686
affected the rest of my life physically.
885
00:56:35,730 --> 00:56:41,954
I was a frigid... woman, and I
never changed.
886
00:56:44,218 --> 00:56:52,218
It was a packed courtroom.
This district attorney said to
887
00:56:52,442 --> 00:56:58,797
the jury and the courtroom,
"look at her," and he said it
888
00:56:58,841 --> 00:57:00,973
with such disgust.
889
00:57:01,016 --> 00:57:07,109
"Look at her.
Who would want her?"
890
00:57:07,153 --> 00:57:12,941
And it changed my entire life.
And I often wonder if that
891
00:57:12,985 --> 00:57:18,339
man... if it ever bothered him
that he had done that to another
892
00:57:18,382 --> 00:57:22,516
human being or if he realized
what he had done.
893
00:57:22,559 --> 00:57:25,345
And then when you leave the
courtroom, reporters push you up
894
00:57:25,388 --> 00:57:27,913
against David Ross, who's shown
up with Louis B. Mayer's
895
00:57:27,956 --> 00:57:31,917
personal attorney to call your
charges "absurd and ridiculous."
896
00:57:31,960 --> 00:57:38,227
Oh, it was so horrendous.
I believe I just gave up.
897
00:57:38,271 --> 00:57:41,709
I didn't like my life, and I
wanted to get out of it.
898
00:57:41,752 --> 00:57:46,234
And then you have a vague
memory of trying to jump out the
899
00:57:46,278 --> 00:57:49,979
window.
I remember seeing a window at
900
00:57:50,023 --> 00:57:54,114
the end of the corridor... we
were way up high... and running
901
00:57:54,157 --> 00:57:57,899
towards it.
That's all I can remember.
902
00:57:57,943 --> 00:58:03,731
I just wanted to get it over
with, whatever it took.
903
00:58:03,774 --> 00:58:07,386
My own daughter, my
grandchildren have no idea.
904
00:58:07,429 --> 00:58:14,785
They're gonna be astounded to
find out that I was in this...
905
00:58:14,829 --> 00:58:22,314
"Scandal" 65 years ago.
But I'd like them to know it,
906
00:58:22,357 --> 00:58:28,190
but only under the condition
that they knew...
907
00:58:28,234 --> 00:58:33,804
That I really was a nice person.
I wasn't this dirty woman.
908
00:58:33,848 --> 00:58:36,981
I wasn't an easy woman.
A rape victim is looked upon
909
00:58:37,024 --> 00:58:40,289
as someone who brought it on
herself, and that is what makes
910
00:58:40,333 --> 00:58:44,032
it so different from other
crimes, is the woman feels
911
00:58:44,076 --> 00:58:47,774
dirty.
She feels cheap, trash.
912
00:58:47,817 --> 00:58:52,954
I thought, "well, if I had a
child, I could give my love so
913
00:58:52,998 --> 00:58:55,522
freely and it would be reciprocated.
914
00:58:55,565 --> 00:58:59,308
There would be no judging me.
They wouldn't... they would
915
00:58:59,352 --> 00:59:03,312
think I was wonderful no matter
who I was or what I looked like
916
00:59:03,356 --> 00:59:05,401
or what I did or what I had done.
917
00:59:05,445 --> 00:59:07,489
It would be mine."
918
00:59:07,533 --> 00:59:10,928
When I was about 2, I had a
ruptured appendix, and I was in
919
00:59:10,972 --> 00:59:13,627
the hospital a long time.
It was very upsetting
920
00:59:13,670 --> 00:59:17,021
emotionally, and she didn't like
having that kind of emotion.
921
00:59:17,064 --> 00:59:20,155
When I got out of the hospital,
she sent me to live with my
922
00:59:20,199 --> 00:59:24,159
great-grandmother, and I don't
remember seeing her for years.
923
00:59:24,203 --> 00:59:28,816
She slept all day, and then she
ate a big dinner and watched TV
924
00:59:28,859 --> 00:59:31,992
and then stayed up all night long.
925
00:59:32,036 --> 00:59:35,170
I didn't expect her to iron my
clothes or cook a meal or go to
926
00:59:35,214 --> 00:59:39,522
my school or talk to my teachers
or... anything like that.
927
00:59:39,566 --> 00:59:41,915
I don't know what she did.
I guess she was asleep.
928
00:59:41,958 --> 00:59:48,183
I have a daughter that's...
Well, let's say we don't get
929
00:59:48,227 --> 00:59:51,317
along.
She gets along with me for her
930
00:59:51,360 --> 00:59:55,799
friends' sake, I think, so that
when they say, "my mother," then
931
00:59:55,843 --> 00:59:59,628
she can be able to do it, too.
But otherwise, there's no
932
00:59:59,672 --> 01:00:02,675
closeness there.
I always wondered why she
933
01:00:02,718 --> 01:00:07,028
couldn't seem to leave the house
and she never had any friends.
934
01:00:07,072 --> 01:00:11,206
Because I was so alone.
Did your mother ever talk to
935
01:00:11,250 --> 01:00:13,599
you about sex?
Oh, no.
936
01:00:13,642 --> 01:00:17,516
No.
As far as sex was concerned,
937
01:00:17,559 --> 01:00:22,389
that was never explained to me.
I never had a mother-daughter
938
01:00:22,433 --> 01:00:24,219
talk.
I never had that.
939
01:00:24,263 --> 01:00:29,180
So I married a man and used the
expression "as a stud."
940
01:00:29,223 --> 01:00:32,705
I had a beautiful daughter out of it.
941
01:00:32,748 --> 01:00:37,231
He wasn't worthy...
And she's just like him.
942
01:00:37,275 --> 01:00:42,932
She was stifled emotionally,
and then physically she stifled
943
01:00:42,976 --> 01:00:46,676
herself.
My second husband... I think
944
01:00:46,720 --> 01:00:51,507
I knew him no more than three
weeks, maybe two.
945
01:00:51,551 --> 01:00:58,861
He had never been married, and
because of my low self-esteem,
946
01:00:58,905 --> 01:01:02,214
he was a challenge.
I only lived with my mother
947
01:01:02,257 --> 01:01:09,872
by herself, with a husband, a
stepfather, once, just for a
948
01:01:09,916 --> 01:01:13,179
short amount of time.
It was when I was 9.
949
01:01:13,223 --> 01:01:18,620
And then my last husband...
He married me when he wasn't
950
01:01:18,664 --> 01:01:22,276
divorced and told me he was divorced.
951
01:01:22,320 --> 01:01:25,583
He was kind of scary.
Because they wanted sex, and
952
01:01:25,626 --> 01:01:29,631
the only way they could get it
was to marry me.
953
01:01:29,675 --> 01:01:34,026
So they became bigamists.
Two of them became bigamists
954
01:01:34,069 --> 01:01:38,204
just to be able to have sex.
He was mean.
955
01:01:38,248 --> 01:01:43,557
He was... devious.
He'd do things...
956
01:01:43,601 --> 01:01:47,823
Behind her back.
He'd take a bath with me, and I
957
01:01:47,867 --> 01:01:50,478
was scared not to do what he said.
958
01:01:50,522 --> 01:01:56,528
And... he wanted me to do things
to him, and...
959
01:01:56,571 --> 01:01:59,486
You know, it was our little
secret, of course... you know,
960
01:01:59,530 --> 01:02:02,882
that old deal.
But I just had a feeling that I
961
01:02:02,925 --> 01:02:07,408
was almost being...
Put out as a sacrifice to keep
962
01:02:07,452 --> 01:02:10,584
his interest in her, in being there.
963
01:02:10,628 --> 01:02:13,022
So I never dated again, and I blew it.
964
01:02:13,066 --> 01:02:19,419
I was about 35.
But you can never miss what
965
01:02:19,463 --> 01:02:22,683
you've never had.
All I ever wanted, I remember
966
01:02:22,728 --> 01:02:25,469
growing up, was to have a real family.
967
01:02:25,512 --> 01:02:29,081
I mean, I've been the typical
mother, stay-at-home mom...
968
01:02:29,124 --> 01:02:34,217
Brownies, girl scouts, room
mother... for my four kids.
969
01:02:34,260 --> 01:02:38,526
Come on through.
You're a good girl.
970
01:02:38,570 --> 01:02:40,517
This one sucked my thumb all the
way to the hospital after she
971
01:02:40,527 --> 01:02:42,530
was born.
972
01:02:42,574 --> 01:02:46,359
Their stalls are always open.
Doors are never shut.
973
01:02:46,403 --> 01:02:51,713
I think they're happy horses.
I went to visit my mother one
974
01:02:51,757 --> 01:02:55,586
time, to Las Vegas, and my
daughter was with me, and she
975
01:02:55,629 --> 01:02:59,285
had mentioned in a telephone
conversation, "you don't know
976
01:02:59,329 --> 01:03:02,897
me."
so, very innocently and very
977
01:03:02,941 --> 01:03:07,641
calmly over dinner, I said, "so,
mom, tell me about yourself.
978
01:03:07,685 --> 01:03:11,689
What was your childhood like?"
And, I mean, you could almost
979
01:03:11,732 --> 01:03:15,301
see the hair on her neck go up.
She just started breathing heavy
980
01:03:15,345 --> 01:03:18,479
and got all flustered and,
"what, are you interrogating
981
01:03:18,523 --> 01:03:20,567
me?"
and then I said to my daughter
982
01:03:20,611 --> 01:03:25,050
later, "does that give you any idea...
983
01:03:25,093 --> 01:03:28,053
Of the way I grew up, my
childhood?"
984
01:03:28,096 --> 01:03:31,578
She says, "that's just bizarre."
985
01:03:31,622 --> 01:03:34,102
She took me to my first gay
bar when I was 19.
986
01:03:34,146 --> 01:03:36,453
When I finally told her, she's
like, "oh, god!
987
01:03:36,496 --> 01:03:39,239
Thank god one of you is!
Grandma always knew you were a
988
01:03:39,283 --> 01:03:41,284
queen."
989
01:03:41,327 --> 01:03:45,418
I don't want my grandchildren
to be embarrassed because they
990
01:03:45,462 --> 01:03:48,943
don't know the real story.
They don't know anything.
991
01:03:48,987 --> 01:03:51,772
Everything was a secret.
We never knew anything.
992
01:03:51,816 --> 01:03:57,387
So, I'd like them to know the whole story.
993
01:03:57,430 --> 01:03:59,172
No, that was what she told me.
994
01:03:59,215 --> 01:04:01,347
Mom, you look gorgeous.
Bye. Love you.
995
01:04:01,391 --> 01:04:03,394
Love you, too.
996
01:04:06,918 --> 01:04:11,139
You were saying to this day
you can't watch a movie where
997
01:04:11,183 --> 01:04:16,448
there's a rape.
It conjures up memories.
998
01:04:16,492 --> 01:04:18,538
Five decades after
Patricia Douglas is raped,
999
01:04:18,582 --> 01:04:21,585
"the accused" is released.
Here's a movie about a rape
1000
01:04:21,628 --> 01:04:24,805
victim who takes her case to
court and wins.
1001
01:04:24,849 --> 01:04:28,113
The wonderful thing about
this movie is that it forces you
1002
01:04:28,156 --> 01:04:30,333
to see the human ugliness in all of us.
1003
01:04:30,376 --> 01:04:33,640
One actress wins an Oscar.
The other actress goes public
1004
01:04:33,684 --> 01:04:35,902
with the fact that she has been raped.
1005
01:04:35,946 --> 01:04:39,516
I wouldn't allow the audience
to go to this film and say,
1006
01:04:39,559 --> 01:04:43,041
"well, this is just a movie.
This doesn't really happen."
1007
01:04:43,084 --> 01:04:46,609
No, I'm here to say that it does
happen and it really does happen
1008
01:04:46,652 --> 01:04:50,264
to people all over the world,
and I think it affected me
1009
01:04:50,308 --> 01:04:54,008
greatly and I think it will
continue to affect me the rest
1010
01:04:54,052 --> 01:04:57,447
of my life.
But I cannot watch...
1011
01:04:57,490 --> 01:05:02,799
Any movie where they show an
actual person being attacked,
1012
01:05:02,842 --> 01:05:07,194
and by that, I mean a physical attack...
1013
01:05:07,238 --> 01:05:10,676
Involving sex.
I cannot watch...
1014
01:05:10,720 --> 01:05:15,029
To this day.
And, like I said, it's been 65
1015
01:05:15,073 --> 01:05:20,034
years.
So, after the grand jury sets
1016
01:05:20,078 --> 01:05:23,690
David Ross free, you file a
federal rape case... apparently
1017
01:05:23,733 --> 01:05:26,388
the first one ever.
Then nothing happens.
1018
01:05:26,431 --> 01:05:28,738
Why did this landmark case go away?
1019
01:05:28,782 --> 01:05:34,483
I have no idea.
That is completely vague.
1020
01:05:34,526 --> 01:05:38,139
The way it ultimately ended,
to me, suggests that something
1021
01:05:38,183 --> 01:05:40,706
occurred... something that was
not right.
1022
01:05:40,749 --> 01:05:42,709
No, I went to the lawyer he told me.
1023
01:05:42,752 --> 01:05:45,408
I couldn't tell you the name.
William J.F. Brown.
1024
01:05:45,451 --> 01:05:48,235
My name is Kelly Brown.
My father went into his own
1025
01:05:48,280 --> 01:05:51,500
practice, criminal law, which he
thoroughly enjoyed, and did that
1026
01:05:51,543 --> 01:05:53,545
till his retirement.
1027
01:05:53,589 --> 01:05:58,158
This case was dismissed in
state court, was refiled in
1028
01:05:58,202 --> 01:06:01,466
federal court.
It sat for three years and was
1029
01:06:01,510 --> 01:06:04,730
dismissed by the court for lack
of prosecution.
1030
01:06:04,775 --> 01:06:08,734
He was very flamboyant in the
L.A. lifestyle and always smoked
1031
01:06:08,778 --> 01:06:11,563
a cigar.
In this instance, there's a
1032
01:06:11,607 --> 01:06:16,003
document dated February 8, 1940,
which references a February 5,
1033
01:06:16,047 --> 01:06:20,138
1940, case having been called
for the third time and no one
1034
01:06:20,181 --> 01:06:22,226
showed.
I would go downtown with him
1035
01:06:22,269 --> 01:06:23,880
a lot.
He'd like to take me to court.
1036
01:06:23,923 --> 01:06:28,450
Her lawyer did not show in
federal court on three
1037
01:06:28,493 --> 01:06:31,192
occasions.
But it was something that
1038
01:06:31,235 --> 01:06:34,543
kind of turned me off to the
law, I think, a little bit, that
1039
01:06:34,586 --> 01:06:38,024
it was just a lot of deals being
made, and, I think, more so in
1040
01:06:38,068 --> 01:06:40,157
those days.
The only reason you don't
1041
01:06:40,200 --> 01:06:42,942
show up at a trial call is if
you've settled the case and
1042
01:06:42,986 --> 01:06:45,555
you've got a settlement
agreement done, let's say, and
1043
01:06:45,598 --> 01:06:48,600
you don't care that the case is
gonna get dismissed because it's
1044
01:06:48,644 --> 01:06:51,124
been resolved.
But from what I understand,
1045
01:06:51,168 --> 01:06:54,824
there was no settlement, and so
if there was no settlement and
1046
01:06:54,867 --> 01:06:58,392
this case was pending in federal court...
1047
01:06:58,436 --> 01:07:01,526
They punked it.
It would be a little harder
1048
01:07:01,570 --> 01:07:05,312
to get away with those things in
our decades than it was then.
1049
01:07:05,356 --> 01:07:07,837
For the lawyer to have
dropped the ball and to have
1050
01:07:07,880 --> 01:07:10,317
allowed the case to be
dismissed... I mean, I think
1051
01:07:10,361 --> 01:07:12,537
that is malpractice.
The lawyer's behavior is
1052
01:07:12,581 --> 01:07:14,539
deplorable.
The lawyer should be arrested.
1053
01:07:14,583 --> 01:07:17,933
My understanding is that this
lawyer that represented her
1054
01:07:17,976 --> 01:07:21,154
ultimately ran for the district
attorney of L.A. county.
1055
01:07:21,198 --> 01:07:24,549
He ran for district attorney.
And I don't think you win an
1056
01:07:24,593 --> 01:07:27,857
election in the 1930s for the
district attorney of L.A. county
1057
01:07:27,900 --> 01:07:31,295
without the support of MGM, the
biggest employer in L.A. county.
1058
01:07:31,338 --> 01:07:34,167
It almost seems like MGM had
a lock... a lock on the
1059
01:07:34,211 --> 01:07:36,648
community.
The movie industry was huge
1060
01:07:36,692 --> 01:07:39,999
in those days, and...
1061
01:07:40,043 --> 01:07:44,351
You know, they were in bed with
a lot of the city officials.
1062
01:07:44,395 --> 01:07:47,353
In both the state case and
the federal case, the first
1063
01:07:47,397 --> 01:07:50,270
order of business was the
appointment of a guardian ad
1064
01:07:50,314 --> 01:07:53,099
litem... her mother.
So, Mildred Mitchell essentially
1065
01:07:53,143 --> 01:07:55,885
controlled the litigation and
made decisions in the
1066
01:07:55,928 --> 01:07:58,234
litigation.
Not only did her mother have
1067
01:07:58,277 --> 01:08:01,455
a legal obligation to pursue the
claim for her as the guardian,
1068
01:08:01,499 --> 01:08:04,370
as her mother, but you would
think she would also have a
1069
01:08:04,414 --> 01:08:06,330
moral obligation.
This is your kid.
1070
01:08:06,373 --> 01:08:08,374
This is your daughter.
She was raped.
1071
01:08:08,418 --> 01:08:11,378
The mother...
Pulled the plug.
1072
01:08:11,422 --> 01:08:13,118
And her mother sold her out.
1073
01:08:15,948 --> 01:08:19,734
Patricia Douglas took a risk,
and she really, especially in
1074
01:08:19,777 --> 01:08:23,564
that day and age, stepped up to
get this out there, to stop it
1075
01:08:23,607 --> 01:08:27,481
from happening to other people,
to vindicate her rights, and to
1076
01:08:27,524 --> 01:08:30,005
have her mother and her
lawyer... to have it unfold the
1077
01:08:30,048 --> 01:08:33,138
way it unfolded is a miscarriage
of justice.
1078
01:08:33,182 --> 01:08:36,447
It's hard to even think of a
sort of David and Goliath story
1079
01:08:36,490 --> 01:08:39,581
more than this one, except for
in the end, David didn't win
1080
01:08:39,624 --> 01:08:41,670
this.
Patricia Douglas didn't win this
1081
01:08:41,713 --> 01:08:44,889
case in the end.
MGM successfully did.
1082
01:08:44,933 --> 01:08:47,545
They had the D.A.
they had the newspaper.
1083
01:08:47,589 --> 01:08:51,200
They had the one witness who
could corroborate... suddenly he
1084
01:08:51,243 --> 01:08:54,856
can't remember what he said at
first, and suddenly he's given
1085
01:08:54,899 --> 01:08:58,599
this great job at MGM forever.
They had the doctor, they had
1086
01:08:58,642 --> 01:09:00,992
the hospital, they had her lawyer.
1087
01:09:01,036 --> 01:09:04,648
MGM even had her own mother.
The fix was in.
1088
01:09:04,692 --> 01:09:08,043
Mildred Mitchell used her
hush money to buy a liquor
1089
01:09:08,086 --> 01:09:11,438
store, horses, furs, and a
younger husband who abandoned
1090
01:09:11,481 --> 01:09:15,006
her and took it all with him.
He walked out with everything
1091
01:09:15,050 --> 01:09:17,531
my grandmother had and left her
way in debt.
1092
01:09:17,575 --> 01:09:20,795
Except for her three brief
marriages, Patricia Douglas
1093
01:09:20,838 --> 01:09:23,493
lived her entire adult life with
her mother.
1094
01:09:23,536 --> 01:09:27,105
She swore she had no idea about
Mildred Mitchell's betrayal, but
1095
01:09:27,149 --> 01:09:30,543
I sensed on some level she'd
always known the truth and was
1096
01:09:30,587 --> 01:09:32,894
punishing both her mother and herself.
1097
01:09:32,937 --> 01:09:37,638
I never understood it.
It was like a symbiotic
1098
01:09:37,681 --> 01:09:40,684
love-hate thing.
She couldn't leave her mother,
1099
01:09:40,728 --> 01:09:42,774
but she was mean and angry at
her all the time.
1100
01:09:42,818 --> 01:09:48,997
My mother said one time, about
10, 15 years ago, "you just
1101
01:09:49,040 --> 01:09:53,653
don't know what's gone on."
And I said, "well, don't you
1102
01:09:53,696 --> 01:09:57,048
think whatever it was, it's time
to let it go?"
1103
01:09:57,092 --> 01:09:59,790
I said, "my god, you're 75 years old.
1104
01:09:59,834 --> 01:10:03,664
She's 95. Let it go."
"Oh, well, you just don't know."
1105
01:10:03,707 --> 01:10:06,492
There's no question
Mildred Mitchell felt guilty.
1106
01:10:06,536 --> 01:10:09,757
She went from totally neglecting
her daughter to waiting on her
1107
01:10:09,800 --> 01:10:13,021
hand and foot.
She was always acting like
1108
01:10:13,064 --> 01:10:17,547
she had to take care of the
baby, making special meals.
1109
01:10:17,590 --> 01:10:22,160
I mean, she did everything.
And my mother was just nasty to
1110
01:10:22,204 --> 01:10:25,163
her.
We didn't get real close till
1111
01:10:25,207 --> 01:10:28,340
she got helpless and I took care of her.
1112
01:10:28,384 --> 01:10:31,996
Then I felt needed.
I'd say the last 10 years of her
1113
01:10:32,040 --> 01:10:37,698
life is the only time I could
say I really loved my mother.
1114
01:10:37,741 --> 01:10:45,401
I haven't told this to anybody.
And do you feel vindicated
1115
01:10:45,444 --> 01:10:49,839
now?
No.
1116
01:10:49,884 --> 01:10:54,191
What will it take to make you
feel vindicated?
1117
01:10:54,235 --> 01:11:02,235
What will it take to make me
feel vindicated?
1118
01:11:03,071 --> 01:11:07,770
I want it in black and white.
66 years after first seeking
1119
01:11:07,814 --> 01:11:10,381
justice, Patricia Douglas
agreed to come forward once
1120
01:11:10,425 --> 01:11:12,428
again with her story.
1121
01:11:12,471 --> 01:11:16,736
Vanity Fair magazine called
me and assigned me to photograph
1122
01:11:16,779 --> 01:11:19,826
Patricia Douglas for their Hollywood issue.
1123
01:11:19,870 --> 01:11:22,177
She was a bit overwhelmed.
I showed up with three photo
1124
01:11:22,219 --> 01:11:24,656
assistants and somebody to do
her hair and makeup, and she
1125
01:11:24,700 --> 01:11:26,746
avoided direct eye contact.
1126
01:11:26,789 --> 01:11:31,098
She was definitely in this kind
of cave situation, and, like
1127
01:11:31,141 --> 01:11:35,624
when you enter the cave of some
kind of caged animal, she was
1128
01:11:35,667 --> 01:11:39,542
very protective of her space.
Patricia sat in the same place
1129
01:11:39,584 --> 01:11:42,806
on the same couch every day.
That was kind of her throne.
1130
01:11:42,850 --> 01:11:46,287
You see her medications and you
see her calendar, which she's
1131
01:11:46,330 --> 01:11:49,768
filled in with all kinds of
notes about talking to David and
1132
01:11:49,811 --> 01:11:53,425
all these kind of personal items
that are kind of her lifeline to
1133
01:11:53,469 --> 01:11:57,037
the real world.
1134
01:11:57,080 --> 01:12:02,259
I read the article.
I called her, and I said, "I am
1135
01:12:02,303 --> 01:12:05,915
so proud of you.
I cannot believe the strength
1136
01:12:05,959 --> 01:12:10,528
and courage that you have and
that you had to do that and to
1137
01:12:10,572 --> 01:12:14,229
follow through like that.
I am so proud of you.
1138
01:12:14,272 --> 01:12:19,146
It was just amazing."
And I said, "I don't know why
1139
01:12:19,189 --> 01:12:22,584
you ever would not have told me
and shared that with me."
1140
01:12:22,627 --> 01:12:26,936
I said, "I just... I am just
really proud of you."
1141
01:12:26,980 --> 01:12:31,853
And I got nothing but silence.
I mean, she wasn't even gonna
1142
01:12:31,898 --> 01:12:35,510
respond to that.
And...
1143
01:12:35,553 --> 01:12:38,208
She never did talk about it to me.
1144
01:12:38,252 --> 01:12:43,735
I was thinking that I'm almost 85...
1145
01:12:43,779 --> 01:12:48,828
And I really should...
Start thinking about dying.
1146
01:12:48,871 --> 01:12:52,048
I called the hospital, and I
said, "I understand my mother is
1147
01:12:52,092 --> 01:12:54,660
in the hospital."
And they said, "yes, she's been
1148
01:12:54,704 --> 01:13:00,143
here for several weeks."
And I said, "I had no idea."
1149
01:13:00,187 --> 01:13:05,149
And I said, "how is she doing?"
And they said, "she's not doing
1150
01:13:05,193 --> 01:13:07,411
well."
and I said, "do you think I
1151
01:13:07,455 --> 01:13:09,632
should come?"
She says, "yeah, you better
1152
01:13:09,675 --> 01:13:12,852
hurry."
how could I help but do good
1153
01:13:12,895 --> 01:13:17,900
if I exposed what they did and
that I changed it in my own
1154
01:13:17,944 --> 01:13:23,340
little way...
That I'm part of that?
1155
01:13:23,384 --> 01:13:31,384
I'd like to be proud.
And now I'm near to tears.
1156
01:13:33,349 --> 01:13:38,051
And I talked to her, and I
said, "I'm here," and...
1157
01:13:38,094 --> 01:13:43,490
I don't know if she wouldn't or
couldn't talk to me, but she
1158
01:13:43,533 --> 01:13:47,582
didn't look at me.
She didn't say anything.
1159
01:13:47,625 --> 01:13:52,194
And so I guess I wanted to think
she couldn't.
1160
01:13:52,238 --> 01:13:56,590
So I just told her, you know,
"go toward the light and go be
1161
01:13:56,633 --> 01:13:59,986
with your mother."
Patricia Douglas died later
1162
01:14:00,029 --> 01:14:04,338
that night.
She was 86 years old.
1163
01:14:04,381 --> 01:14:06,427
It was her wishes to be cremated.
1164
01:14:06,470 --> 01:14:09,952
We said, "we want her cremated."
"Do you want to buy this urn or
1165
01:14:09,996 --> 01:14:12,476
that urn?"
I said, "I don't want to buy an
1166
01:14:12,520 --> 01:14:14,435
urn.
I don't want these ashes.
1167
01:14:14,478 --> 01:14:16,740
My mother is gone.
She is not here."
1168
01:14:16,784 --> 01:14:20,267
It's like, "what do you want to
do with this car after you've
1169
01:14:20,310 --> 01:14:23,791
junked it?"
And I said, "just a cardboard
1170
01:14:23,834 --> 01:14:26,837
box," so he showed me a
cardboard box for $25, and I
1171
01:14:26,881 --> 01:14:30,232
said, "that's ridiculous."
I said, "I can go to the grocery
1172
01:14:30,276 --> 01:14:33,322
store and get a cardboard box.
These are ashes we're talking
1173
01:14:33,366 --> 01:14:36,238
about."
and, I mean, they just were
1174
01:14:36,282 --> 01:14:38,588
appalled.
I called the New York Times
1175
01:14:38,632 --> 01:14:41,896
to let them know she was gone,
and they refused to run an
1176
01:14:41,940 --> 01:14:44,595
obituary.
Here's the e-mail they sent me.
1177
01:14:44,638 --> 01:14:47,902
"David, we did not run a
Patricia Douglas obituary.
1178
01:14:47,946 --> 01:14:50,601
Her story is compelling, and you told it.
1179
01:14:50,645 --> 01:14:53,386
For an obituary, we need
something more... a significant
1180
01:14:53,429 --> 01:14:56,259
legal ruling that grew out of
her case, a news pick of some
1181
01:14:56,303 --> 01:14:58,086
sort.
She was a wronged woman who
1182
01:14:58,130 --> 01:15:01,264
never got her day in court and
vanished from the scene until
1183
01:15:01,308 --> 01:15:03,787
you found her.
That story is not an obituary."
1184
01:15:03,831 --> 01:15:05,964
Nobody knew who
Patricia Douglas was because
1185
01:15:06,007 --> 01:15:08,705
everyone did everything he or
she possibly could to make sure
1186
01:15:08,749 --> 01:15:10,620
we didn't know who Patricia Douglas was.
1187
01:15:10,664 --> 01:15:14,060
There's a huge part of me that
doesn't see her as a tragic
1188
01:15:14,103 --> 01:15:17,105
victim but as a hero.
She had guts. She was tough.
1189
01:15:17,149 --> 01:15:20,283
She was willing to fight.
She was a kid, but she was
1190
01:15:20,327 --> 01:15:22,981
willing to still take on the establishment.
1191
01:15:23,024 --> 01:15:30,249
That's my vindication...
Is the truth.
1192
01:15:30,292 --> 01:15:35,732
The truth always wins.
It comes out no matter what, no
1193
01:15:35,776 --> 01:15:40,911
matter what you do or how many
years go by or how you lie or be
1194
01:15:40,956 --> 01:15:44,654
lied against.
The truth's gonna out.
1195
01:15:44,698 --> 01:15:47,961
And I guess that's my vindication.
105900
Can't find what you're looking for?
Get subtitles in any language from opensubtitles.com, and translate them here.