Thelma Todd
cigarette card

Thelma Todd (July 29, 1905 РDecember 16, 1935) was a popular American actress of the late 1920s and early 1930s film. Appearing in over 40 pictures between 1926 and 1935, she is best remembered for her comedic roles in films like Marx Brothers' Monkey Business and Horse Feathers. She also had roles in Laurel and Hardy's Another Fine Mess, The Devil's Brother (aka Fra Diavolo), Chickens Come Home. Thelma also had a brief part in The Bohemian Girl, in which her role was cut short due to her premature death. Image File history File links Telma_todd. ... Image File history File links Telma_todd. ... No. ... July 29 is the 210th day (211th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 155 days remaining. ... See also: 1904 in film 1905 1906 in film years in film film Events Path̩ Fr̬res colors black and white films by machine. ... -1... See also: 1934 in film 1935 1936 in film 1930s in film years in film film Events Judy Garland signs a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM). ... Actors in period costume sharing a joke while waiting between takes during location filming An actor or actress is a person who acts, or plays a role, in a dramatic production. ... 1926 (MCMXXVI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar). ... 1935 (MCMXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar). ... Groucho, Gummo, Minnie (mother), Zeppo, Frenchy (father), Chico and Harpo. ... This article contains a trivia section. ... Horse Feathers (1932) was the fourth Marx Brothers film. ... Laurel and Hardy, in a promotional still from their 1937 feature film Way Out West. ... Fra Diavolo (lit. ... Fra Diavolo (lit. ... Chickens Come Home is a 1931 short film starring Laurel and Hardy and produced by Hal Roach. ... The Bohemian Girl is an operetta composed by Michael Balfe with a libretto by Alfred Bunn. ...

Early life

Todd was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts and was a bright student who achieved good academic results. She intended to become a school teacher. However, in her late teens, she began entering beauty pageants, winning the title of Miss Massachusetts in 1925. While representing her home state, she was spotted by a Hollywood talent scout and began her career in film.   Settled: 1655 â€“ Incorporated: 1847 Zip Code(s): 01840 â€“ Area Code(s): 351 / 978 Official website: http://www. ... This article is about the U.S. State. ... A beauty contest, or beauty pageant, is a competition between people, based largely, though not always entirely, on the beauty of their physical appearance. ... 1925 (MCMXXV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar). ... ...

Career

During the silent era, she appeared in numerous supporting roles that made full use of her beauty but gave her little chance to act. With the advent of the talkies, Todd was given opportunity to expand her roles by the producer Hal Roach, who contracted her to appear with such comedic stars as Harry Langdon, Charley Chase, and Laurel & Hardy. At Roach studios, she appeared as the lead actress in a series of comedy films with actresses ZaSu Pitts and Patsy Kelly. Hal Roach originally hoped to create a female version of Laurel & Hardy with the duo of Todd & Pitts but despite a lot of effort it wasn't to be. Harold Eugene Roach, Sr. ... Harry Langdon an American silent comedian who fared badly in sound films. ... Charley Chase Charley Chase (October 20, 1893-June 20, 1940) was an American comedian, screenwriter and film director, best known for his work in Hal Roach short film comedies. ... Laurel and Hardy Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy were the members of the most famous comedy duo in film history. ... Zazu Pitts (1894-1963) sporting her famous bob hairstyle ZaSu Pitts (January 3, 1894 (?) – June 7, 1963) was a United States movie actress. ... Patsy Kelly was an American film comedienne, who was born in Brooklyn, New York on January 12, 1910. ... Laurel and Hardy Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy were the members of the most famous comedy duo in film history. ...

She became highly regarded as a capable film comedienne, loaned out to other studios to play opposite Wheeler & Woolsey, Buster Keaton, Joe E. Brown, and the Marx Brothers. She also appeared successfully in such dramas as the original 1931 film version of The Maltese Falcon. During her career she appeared in more than 130 films and was sometimes publicised as The Ice Cream Blonde. Wheeler & Woolsey famous American film comedy team of the thirties who are almost totally unknown today though their movies have survived. ... Joseph Frank Keaton, Jr. ... Joe E. Brown in the late 1920s. ... Groucho, Gummo, Minnie (mother), Zeppo, Frenchy (father), Chico and Harpo. ... // Frankenstein, starring Boris Karloff Ingagi, starring Sir Hubert Winstead Mata Hari, starring Greta Garbo and Lionel Barrymore City Lights starring Charles Chaplin Best Picture: Cimarron - MGM Best Actor: Lionel Barrymore - A Free Soul Best Actor: Wallace Beery - The Champ Best Actor: Fredric March - Dr. Jekyll and Mr. ... Actors Bogart, Lorre, Astor and Greenstreet in The Maltese Falcon (1941) The Maltese Falcon (1930) is a detective novel by Dashiell Hammett that has been adapted several times for the cinema. ...

In the early 1930s, she opened a successful cafe at Pacific Palisades, called Thelma Todd's Sidewalk Cafe, attracting a diverse clientele of Hollywood celebrities as well as many tourists. Pacific Palisades is a district within the city of Los Angeles, California located between Brentwood to the east, Malibu to the west, Santa Monica to the southeast, the Santa Monica Bay to the southwest, and the Santa Monica Mountains to the north. ...

Suspicious Death

On the morning of December 16, 1935, she was found dead in her car inside the garage of Jewel Carmen, a former actress and former wife of Todd's business partner Roland West. Carmen's house was approximately a block from the topmost side of Todd's restaurant. Her death was determined to have been caused by carbon monoxide poisoning. Todd had a wide circle of friends and associates as well as a busy social life. Police investigations revealed that she had spent the last night of her life at a party at the Trocadero, a popular Hollywood restaurant, hosted by entertainer Stanley Lupino and his daughter, the actress Ida Lupino. At the restaurant, she had had a brief but unpleasant exchange with her ex-husband, Pat DeCicco. However, her friends stated that she was in good spirits and were aware of nothing unusual in her life that could suggest a reason for committing suicide. Roland West (20 February 1885 – 31 March 1952) was a Hollywood director known for his innovative film noir movies of the 1920s. ... Carbon monoxide poisoning occurs after the inhalation of carbon monoxide gas. ... In West Hollywood, California, the Trocadero Ballroom was the center of jitterbug in the 1930s. ... Stanley Lupino (May 15, 1894 - June 10, 1942) was an English actor, dancer, singer, librettist and director. ... Lupino in 1979 Ida Lupino (February 4, 1918 – August 3, 1995) was a film actress, director, and a pioneer in the field of women filmmakers. ... It has been suggested that Suicide method be merged into this article or section. ...

The detectives of the LAPD concluded early that her death was accidental, the result of Todd's either warming the car to drive it or to use the heater to keep herself warm. While they never wavered from their view, other theories emerged during several weeks of investigations. One theory was that her on-again/off-again boyfriend, director Roland West -- known to have been very possessive of her -- had grown frustrated by Todd's flightiness and, to keep her from leaving her premises to attend another party, had locked her in the garage. According to this theory her resulting death was accidental. The Los Angeles Police Department (usually known as the LAPD) is the police department of the City of Los Angeles, California. ... Roland West (20 February 1885 – 31 March 1952) was a Hollywood director known for his innovative film noir movies of the 1920s. ...

A second theory was that Todd had turned on the motor of the car in order to keep warm and had fallen asleep. Roland West had closed the door to the garage without realising Todd was inside, and she had died as a result. (However, West denied going down the road to Jewel Carmen's home).

A third theory postulates she was murdered by New York gangster "Lucky" Luciano because of her refusal to allow him to involve her club with illegal gambling. Like the Roland West story, the Lucky Luciano story was in Kenneth Anger's frequently fallacious book Hollywood Babylon. Later it was alleged to be "the true story" in Andy Edmonds' book (and later TV movie) Hot Toddy. It has become the most celebrated of all theories despite the fact that there is no record of Luciano ever visiting Los Angeles, much less having an affair withTodd, or (as in "Hot Toddy") publicly threatening her at the Brown Derby. Lucky Luciano in his Rome villa, 1949 Charles Lucky Luciano (November 24, 1897 – January 26, 1962) was a legendary Italian-American mobster. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Hot toddy is a name, used in the English-speaking world (originally Scotland), for a mixed drink that is served hot. ... The original Brown Derby. ...

A fourth theory was that she was murdered by her ex-husband, Pat DiCicco, who was involved in bootlegging and prostitution and had a history of violence against women. Gloria Vanderbilt, who was later married to DiCicco, mentioned allegations that he had murdered Todd in her autobiography, Black Knight, White Knight (DiCicco was the "Black Knight" of the title). Gloria Vanderbilt, photographed by Carl Van Vechten, 1958. ...

The Los Angeles DA's department and a Grand Jury were unable to establish the true circumstances surrounding her death. The conjecture that surrounded it at the time, which has never been resolved, is an early example of what would become known as a conspiracy theory, with rumours and suppositions accepted as fact and widely divergent opinions given credence. The fact that her body was cremated caused theorists to conjecture that this had been done to destroy evidence and to prevent a second autopsy. However, by this time, authorities were satisfied with her official cause of death. Nickname: Location within Los Angeles County in the state of California Coordinates: State California County Los Angeles County Incorporated April 4, 1850 Government  - Type Mayor-Council  - Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (D)  - City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo  - Governing body City Council Area  - City  498. ... A district attorney is, in some U.S. jurisdictions, the title of the local public official who represents the government in the prosecution of criminals. ... A grand jury is a type of jury, in the common law legal system, which determines if there is enough evidence for a trial. ... A conspiracy theory attempts to attribute the ultimate cause of an event or chain of events (usually political, social, or historical events), or the concealment of such causes from public knowledge, to a secret, and often deceptive plot by a covert alliance of powerful or influential people or organizations. ...

Her death certificate states her cause of death as accidental carbon monoxide poisoning. She was cremated and, after her mother's death, her remains were placed in her mother's casket and buried in Bellevue Cemetery in her hometown of Lawrence, Massachusetts.

A segment of the History Channel series History's Mysteries reported that Roland West actually confessed to the crime, in the manner stated in the first theory stated above, i.e. that he was trying to keep her from going to the next party. Although no legal action was taken against him, allegedly due to Hollywood's elite closing ranks, West supposedly never worked again in Hollywood. Actually, West had forsworn making movies after the failure of his independently-made gangster movie Corsair, which starred Todd under an assumed name. By her death in 1935, he had been out of the business for three years. The History Channel is a cable television channel, dedicated to the presentation of historical events and persons, often with frequent observations and explanations by noted historians as well as reenactors and witnesses to events, if possible. ... Historys Mysteries is an American television show on the cable television channel the History Channel. ...

In a curious twist on her tragic story, a line of dialogue in the Marx Brothers film Monkey Business (1931) appears to predict Todd's death. Alone with Todd in her cabin, Groucho Marx quips: "You're a woman who's been getting nothing but dirty breaks. Well, we can clean and tighten your brakes, but you'll have to stay in the garage all night." While the reference is nothing more than a coincidence, it is perceived by many fans as eerie in light of the tragic events that would take place only five years later. Groucho, Gummo, Minnie (mother), Zeppo, Frenchy (father), Chico and Harpo. ... Monkey Business (1931) is the third of the Marx Brothers movies and the first not to be an adaptation of a Broadway show. ... Julius Henry Marx, known as Groucho Marx (October 2, 1890 – August 19, 1977), was an American comedian, working both with his siblings, the Marx Brothers, and on his own. ...

Thelma Todd has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6262 Hollywood Blvd. A band plays on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. ...

Thelma Todd & Charles K. Gerrard in Another Fine Mess

Image File history File links Charles_Gerrard. ... Image File history File links Charles_Gerrard. ... Gerrard (Leopold Ambrose Plumtree) & Thelma Todd in Another Fine Mess - 1930 Charles K. Gerrard, also known as Charles Kavanagh (20 December 1883 - 1 January 1969) was a Irish-born, American motion-pictures actor, and the elder brother of actor and film director Douglas Gerrard. ... Another Fine Mess is a 1930 short comedy film starring Laurel and Hardy. ...

Filmography

Features:

• Fascinating Youth (1926)
• God Gave Me Twenty Cents (1926)
• Rubber Heels (1927)
• Fireman, Save My Child (1927)
• Nevada (1927)
• The Shield of Honor (1927)
• The Gay Defender (1927)
• The Noose (1928)
• Abie's Irish Rose (1928)
• Vamping Venus (1928)
• Heart to Heart (1928)
• The Crash (1928)
• The Haunted House (1928)
• Naughty Baby (1928)
• Seven Footprints to Satan (1929)
• Trial Marriage (1929)
• House of Horror (1929)
• The Bachelor Girl (1929)
• Careers (1929)
• Her Private Life (1929)
• Her Man (1930)
• No Limit (1931)
• Command Performance (1931)
• Swanee River (1931)
• The Hot Heiress (1931)
• Aloha (1931)
• The Maltese Falcon (1931)
• Broadminded (1931)
• Monkey Business (1931)
• Corsair (1931)
• The Big Timer (1932)
• This Is the Night (1932)
• Horse Feathers (1932)
• Speak Easily (1932)
• Klondike (1932)
• Deception (1932)
• Call Her Savage (1932)
• Air Hostess (1933)
• Cheating Blondes (1933)
• The Devil's Brother (1933)
• Mary Stevens, M.D. (1933)
• You Made Me Love You (1933)
• Sitting Pretty (1933)
• Son of a Sailor (1933)
• Counsellor at Law (1933)
• Palooka (1934)
• Hips, Hips, Hooray! (1934)
• The Poor Rich (1934)
• Bottoms Up (1934)
• Cockeyed Cavaliers (1934)
• Take the Stand (1934)
• Lightning Strikes Twice (1934)
• After the Dance (1935)
• Two for Tonight (1935)
• The Bohemian Girl (1936)

Short Subjects: 1926 (MCMXXVI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar). ... 1927 (MCMXXVII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar). ... The Noose is a film adaptation of the Willard Mack play The Noose, which was released in 1928, and stars Richard Barthelmess, Montagu Love, Robert Emmett OConnor and Thelma Todd. ... Year 1928 (MCMXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar). ... Abies Irish Rose is a Broadway play by Anne Nichols about a Catholic girl who marries into an Jewish family. ... 1929 (MCMXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... No Limit was a 1931 film musical starring Dixie Lee, as Dotty Dodo Potter. ... 1931 (MCMXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link is to a full 1931 calendar). ... The Maltese Falcon is a 1931 film adaptation of the novel of the same name by Dashiell Hammett. ... This article contains a trivia section. ... Year 1932 (MCMXXXII) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link will take you to a full 1932 calendar). ... This Is the Night is a 1932 comedy film directed by Frank Tuttle, based on a play written by Henry Falk. ... Horse Feathers (1932) was the fourth Marx Brothers film. ... 1933 (MCMXXXIII) was a common year starting on Sunday. ... Fra Diavolo or The Devils Brother is a 1933 film starring Laurel and Hardy. ... Sitting Pretty is a 1948 comedy film which tells the story of a family who hires a man with a mysterious past to babysit their children. ... Palooka is a 1934 comedy film based on the comic strip by Ham Fisher. ... 1934 (MCMXXXIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... Hips, Hips, Hooray! is a 1934 slapstick comedy film starring Bert Wheeler, Robert Woolsey, Ruth Etting, and Thelma Todd. ... 1935 (MCMXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar). ... The Bohemian Girl is a 1936 feature film version of the operetta The Bohemian Girl by Michael William Balfe. ... 1936 (MCMXXXVI) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ...

• Players at Play (1929)
• Unaccustomed As We Are (1929)
• Hurdy Gurdy (1929)
• Snappy Sneezer (1929)
• Hotter Than Hot (1929)
• Look Out Below (1929)
• Crazy Feet (1929)
• Sky Boy (1929)
• Stepping Out (1929)
• The Head Guy (1930)
• The Real McCoy (1930)
• The Fighting Parson (1930)
• Whispering Whoopee (1930)
• All Teed Up (1930)
• The Shrimp (1930) (also appeared in Spanish version)
• The King (1930)
• Dollar Dizzy (1930)
• Looser Than Loose (1930)
• Another Fine Mess (1930)
• High C's (1930)
• Chickens Come Home (1931)
• The Pip from Pittsburgh (1931)
• Love Fever (1931)
• Rough Seas (1931)
• Let's Do Things (1931)
• Catch As Catch Can (1931)
• The Pajama Party (1931)
• War Mamas (1931)
• On the Loose (1931)
• The Voice of Hollywood No. 13 (1932)
• Seal Skins (1932)
• The Nickel Nurser (1932)
• Red Noses (1932)
• Strictly Unreliable (1932)
• The Old Bull (1932)
• Show Business (1932)
• Alum and Eve (1932)
• The Soilers (1932)
• Sneak Easily (1932)
• Asleep in the Feet (1933)
• Maids a la Mode (1933)
• The Bargain of the Century (1933)
• One Track Minds (1933)
• Beauty and the Bus (1933)
• Backs to Nature (1933)
• Air Fright (1933)
• Babes in the Goods (1934)
• Soup and Fish (1934)
• Maid in Hollywood (1934)
• I'll Be Suing You (1934)
• Three Chumps Ahead (1934)
• One Horse Farmers (1934)
• Opened by Mistake (1934)
• Done in Oil (1934)
• Bum Voyage (1934)
• Treasure Blues (1935)
• Sing, Sister, Sing (1935)
• The Tin Man (1935)
• The Misses Stooge (1935)
• Slightly Static (1935)
• Twin Triplets (1935)
• Hot Money (1935)
• Top Flat (1935)
• All-American Toothache (1936)

1929 (MCMXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Unaccustomed As We Are, was a 1929 comedy short film starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy, also featuring Mae Busch, in the first of several appearances as Mrs Hardy, Edgar Kennedy, and Thelma Todd. ... 1930 (MCMXXX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link is to a full 1930 calendar). ... Chickens Come Home is a 1931 short film starring Laurel and Hardy and produced by Hal Roach. ... 1931 (MCMXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link is to a full 1931 calendar). ... Year 1932 (MCMXXXII) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link will take you to a full 1932 calendar). ... 1933 (MCMXXXIII) was a common year starting on Sunday. ... 1934 (MCMXXXIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1935 (MCMXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar). ... 1936 (MCMXXXVI) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Further reading

• Andy Edmonds. Hot Toddy. Futura (1989). ISBN 0 7088 4709 0
• James Robert Parish The Funsters . Arlington House (1979).

See also

• Haunted Hollywood

Roosevelt Hotel from Hollywood Boulevard. ...

External links

• Thelma Todd Photo Gallery
• Thelma Todd at the Internet Movie Database
• Thelma Todd Club
• Thelma Todd's Photos & Gravesite
• Paulist Productions Page For Todd Building Contains pic and brief text concerning her death and the building her cafe was located in, still standing today.