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297:. Todd and West began their affair shortly after meeting on a yachting excursion to Catalina Island in 1930. The two became business partners and moved in next door to each other at 17575 Pacific Coast Highway, Pacific Palisades, California. Their relationship was described as volatile, and West was described as being controlling and possessive.
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No evidence concerning allegations against West has surfaced, and neither he nor anybody else was charged with any crime surrounding Todd’s death, although he was asked to testify for a grand jury investigation into the death. However, the bad publicity surrounding his alleged involvement in Thelma
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In
December 1935, Todd was found dead in her car which was inside the garage of Jewel Carmen, Roland West's ex-wife, who lived on the Todd estate near where West and Todd resided. An autopsy concluded that she died of accidental
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Following Todd's death and his divorce, West rarely worked and withdrew into virtual seclusion. In the early 1950s, his health began to decline, and he suffered a
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West has long been considered a murder suspect in many conspiracy theories due to the unusual circumstances surrounding the death of his mistress, actress
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311:. This theory states that he then planted her body in her garage to be found later and staged the scene to resemble an accident. The
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movies of the 1920s and early 1930s. He is however best known for his possible involvement in the death of
Hollywood actress
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caused by the exhaust of her car. Some conspiracy buffs have suggested that Todd was murdered by West aboard his yacht, the
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gained further notoriety in 1955 when its entire complement of 25 passengers and crew went missing in the South
Pacific.
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547:"Director Roland West testifying at grand jury investigation into death of actress Thelma Todd, circa 1935"
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171:(February 20, 1885 – March 31, 1952) was an American film director, known for his innovative proto-
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productions as a teenager. By his early 20s, he was writing and directing vaudeville productions.
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559:(According to the Internet Movie Database, West gave a deathbed confession in 1952 to actor
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implicating himself in Todd's death, but the confession never was confirmed independently.)
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266:. Following Todd's death in 1935 and his divorce from Carmen in 1938, he married actress
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features a character named Roland West, speculated to be a tribute to the director.
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sometime after June 25, 1946 and remained married to her until his death in 1952.
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Todd's death hurt his reputation and largely overshadowed his film work.
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to a theatrical family in
Cleveland, Ohio, he began acting in
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238:(1930) (also based on the Rinehart novel and play); and
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513:"Hollywood Historic Photos - Pacific Palisades 1949"
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Shortly afterward, he began directing films such as
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641:Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale)
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578:World Film Directors, Volume One, 1890-1945
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527:"Roland West - The Great Experimenter"
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258:Roland West's first wife was actress
247:So established was West by 1930 that
218:(dramatized on stage by Rinehart and
464:"Calisphere: Chez Roland Beach Club"
228:(1929), for which he nominated for
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488:The Life and Death of Thelma Todd
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19:For the basketball player, see
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485:Donati, William (2014-01-10).
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253:Roland West's The Bat Whispers
230:Academy Award for Best Picture
214:(1926), based on the novel by
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611:Film directors from Ohio
81:Santa Monica, California
21:Roland West (basketball)
621:Artists from Cleveland
16:American film director
453:(June 25, 1946), p. 4
216:Mary Roberts Rinehart
451:Nevada State Journal
449:Fidler in Hollywood
289:Death of Thelma Todd
132: 1918;
99:Suspect in death of
374:The Unknown Purple
358:The Silver Lining
279:nervous breakdown
189:Roland Van Zimmer
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59:February 20, 1885
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549:. December 1935.
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235:The Bat Whispers
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592:Roland West
390:The Monster
323:Filmography
295:Thelma Todd
264:Thelma Todd
201:The Monster
177:Thelma Todd
169:Roland West
101:Thelma Todd
30:Roland West
605:Categories
532:2010-05-25
438:References
335:Lost Souls
206:Lon Chaney
193:vaudeville
88:Occupation
55:1885-02-20
382:Driftwood
342:The Siren
268:Lola Lane
183:Biography
179:in 1935.
173:film noir
147:Lola Lane
406:The Dove
244:(1931).
570:Sources
430:Corsair
398:The Bat
241:Corsair
211:The Bat
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107:Spouses
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433:(1931)
425:(1930)
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369:(1921)
366:Nobody
361:(1921)
353:(1918)
345:(1917)
337:(1916)
331:(1916)
313:Joyita
308:Joyita
277:and a
275:stroke
414:Alibi
225:Alibi
187:Born
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493:ISBN
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