Timesuck with Dan Cummins - Short Suck #38: Hollywood’s Biggest Forgotten Scandal: Patricia Douglas

Episode Date: July 25, 2025

Patricia Douglas was a young dancer and an extra working in Hollywood during its so-called Golden Era when she was tricked into attending a party Tinseltown's most powerful studio, MGM, was throwing for the salesmen who were making it rich on May 5th, 1937. At this party, she was dragged into the parking lot and brutally raped by one on of those salesmen. The studio would bury her assault... but decades later her truth would finally come to light and help lead to much needed change in the movie industry.  For Merch and everything else Bad Magic related, head to: https://www.badmagicproductions.com

Welcome to another edition of Time Sucks Short Sucks. I'm Dan Cummins and today I'll be sharing the story of Patricia Douglas, who worked as a young dancer and as a movie extra during the Golden Age of Hollywood. She, like the other women she worked with, they dream big, glamorous Hollywood dreams, I'm sure. But her dream would die an especially painful and public death, the kind I sadly imagine that many other young women's Hollywood dreams have endured privately over the years. Showbiz can be such a dirty business.

Words and ideas can change the world. I hated her, but I wanted to love my mother. I have a dream! I plead not guilty right now. Your only chance is to leave with us. Your only chance is to leave with us. Patricia Dorothy Douglas was born in Kansas City, Missouri March 5th, 1917. She later moved to Hollywood around the age of 12 or 13 with her mother Mildred Mitchell who wanted to design gowns for movie stars.

She had a turbulent childhood to say the least. Patricia later said she believed her mother was married a total of eight times. After they moved to LA, her mom did open up her own shop. She did work for studios designing gowns for actresses, so that part worked out. She also designed evening wear for other women as well. According to a Vanity Fair article, Mildred made gowns for quote, high-end call girls. Patricia would grow up with a very complicated relationship with her mother. She would say, never ever was I nurtured. I think my mother was the type that wanted the child and once you had them and the cuteness was up and it was like a toy you get tired of it. Growing up she

often felt alone and ignored and one of her favorite things to do was go to the movies where she could sit in the theater surrounded by people enjoying what she was enjoying and made her feel so good to be in that atmosphere. You know made her fall in love with the movies to a degree and she began to dream of working in the entertainment business in some way shape or form. Patricia dropped out of convent school at the age of 14. She didn't drop out because she dreamt of being a movie star. But she was quote a natural born dancer And she quickly started appearing as an extra in movies, typically dancing, quote just for something to do. But she loved it.

Patricia didn't actually need to work quite yet because her mom supported her financially. Again, she was 14. Her job was, you know, mostly originally just for fun. She said she was popular with directors early on because she was a quick learner and she could help teach the other girls their parts. She told biographer David Stenn who interviewed her for a 2003 Vanity Fair article, I moved just like JLo. Stenn would also direct a documentary called Girl 27 about Douglas. She was also one of the very first people to come forward after being a victim of sexual violence in the film industry and Patricia's story

led to one of the biggest scandals in the industry in the first half of the 20th century and Sten wanted to learn more about it ended up writing not just an article but doing an entire documentary Sten called the Patricia Douglas case the biggest best suppressed scandal in Hollywood history He was able to find old newspaper coverage, unseen photos, studio documentation, legal records, video evidence hidden in an MGM vault. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Just wanted to introduce him.

Back to Patricia now. She appeared in two classic films, Gold Diggers of 1933, and so this is Africa. David Stenn wrote that young Patricia became a platonic mascot for a number of male actors while she was in the business. She would go to drive-ins with actor, musician, director, and later studio head Dick Powell. Sometimes go to bars with big stars like Bing Crosby. Patricia was again just 14 when she started doing extra work. It was common then for underage girls her age to work

on film sets and sexualized revealing costumes surrounded by much older men who definitely would hit on them. Funny that people now worry about kids growing up too fast. Not that they shouldn't. You know, some kids do still grow up too fast. But it is not a modern concern by any stretch of the imagination. And in fact, it's definitely better than a lot of previous eras in history. Some people act like, you know, prior to the last few decades of modern, you know, so-called moral decline, young women were virginal and modest and protected at all costs by all these gentlemen. Get the fuck out of here. Junior high-age girls were constantly being hit on. Sexualized, dated, often married by dudes twice their age. The good old days were rife with people that by today's standards would definitely be considered sexual predators.

You know, sadly the Jeffrey Epstein's, keep hearing a lot about him recently, of the world or anything but new. David Stenn said that in the Girl 27 documentary he would end up making about Patricia Douglas. Quote, these girls would work half naked among all male crews. And in those days, a girl who had rhythm, who knew how to move her body, was considered sexually aware and thus sexually available. A woman named Peggy Montgomery was also interviewed for the documentary. She started working for MGM when she was just 16.

And she recalled that not only was she constantly feeling like much, much older men were pursuing her, she recalled that not only was she constantly feeling like much much older men were pursuing her, she recalled that they were aggressive in their pursuit and they would try to break women down. Twice during one interview, Peggy was asked by a director to show off her legs, you know, show a little more skin just in this interview. And then he said, quote, Let's see how you feel. And he's walked around the desk, grabbed her, pulled her close up against his body, and then smiled suggestively.

Peggy said there was no point in reporting that kind of behavior. She didn't because MGM owned Hollywood. And because it was the norm. The men she would be reporting this kind of behavior to were likely not that different from the man who had manhandled her. This was quote a quote law she said she learned early on to just accept it if you wanted to work in showbiz. In the spring of 1937 Patricia Douglas was 20 years old and on May 2nd of that year she received a casting call. Patricia said she was specifically told it was for a film. She didn't think she was going to do it at

first but later changed her mind. She was still you know barely breaking into the business, she needed screen time, build up a resume, she had any shot of ever becoming a true working actress. And she was cast as quote, girl 27, kind of, that's what they told her. But some group of douchey dudes were not being honest. What she didn't know was that she and 119 other girls, 119 other girls who had also been lied to were going to an MGM party full of mostly drunk salesmen from around the country. Patricia later told Vanity Fair they never mentioned it was for a party. Ever. I wouldn't have gone. Oh God, oh God, I wouldn't have gone. At the time MGM was the world's most powerful

movie studio. Let's actually press pause on Patricia's story to learn a bit more about him. Metro Goldwyn Mayer Studios Inc. aka MGM is an American media company specializing in film and TV production distribution. It's been historically based in Beverly Hills. MGM was founded in 1924. It has been owned by Amazon. It was actually rebranded as Amazon MGM Studios since 2022 is when it was bought by Amazon, 2023 was the rebrand. MGM was originally formed when business magnate and industry pioneer Marcus Lowe combined three companies.

Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures, and Lewis B. Mayer Pictures. MGM immediately hired a bunch of well-known actors, started kicking out big budget movies, very quickly became the most prestigious filmmaking company in all of Hollywood. They kicked out some of the biggest movies in the world like 1925's Ben-Hur, 1929's The Broadway Melody, the first talkie or you know film with sound to win an academy award for best picture. They would distribute 51 films in just 1930. 1939 they would release The Wizard of Oz and Gone with the Wind, two of the most successful critically acclaimed films of all time. MGM wildly successful and you know the 1930s might have been their heyday. MGM had its own

grade school, police force, railroad, an acting academy and more. Co-founder Louis B. Mayer was in the early 1930s arguably the most powerful man in Hollywood and definitely the highest paid man in all of America. According to Vanity Fair, MGM had much to celebrate in 1937. To battle the Depression, which had already sent rivals Fox, Paramount, and RKO into bankruptcy or receivership, MGM sales executives had devised a radical scheme to restructure film rentals. Rather than charge exhibitors on a sliding percentage scale of box office receipts, which decline with each booking, the studio would set fees on a per-film basis, calculated on first-run grosses in 30 key cities.

That way, a success in select urban markets could command higher rentals once the film went into wider release. This new sales formula relied on hits, and MGM quickly supplied three all-star blockbusters San Francisco, Libel Lady and The Great Ziegfeld. The combination of box office and adjusted film rental fees spiked MGM's profits to 14 million dollars almost double those the prior year while other studios struggled to stay solvent MGM was in fiscal heaven. Mayor wanted to express his appreciation for the salesmen that made all this happen,

so he organized a convention for them and he promised quote a super special production. 282 convention goers arrived in Pasadena, California by private rail car the day Patricia received her casting card. Mayor wanted to show the salesman a good time and to treat them like royalty. David Stenn said in his documentary, in 1937 if you said to someone I'm going on a convention what it's basically saying is I get to go wild. I get to leave my home community, leave the social constrictions in that home community and I get to have fun sponsored by my employer. Lewis Mayor got on the stage on the Pasadena station to personally welcome all the salesmen saying, our fine chief of police, James Davis, remarked to

me a moment ago that I must think a lot of these men have sent the beauty that he sees before him. Mayer was referring to a group of girls at the station when he said beauty, many of them almost certainly underage He continued his speech saying these lovely girls and you have the finest of them Greet you and that's to show you how we feel about you and the kind of good time that's ahead of you anything you want What is he is he a studio head now or just like a fucking pimp? That night the salesman had dinner at the Ambassador Hotel.

Then the next day on May 3rd, 1937, they were all taken to Culver City, where MGM's general manager, Eddie Mannix, presented Lewis Mayer with a key to ceremonially open the gates of the MGM lot where some of the biggest stars in Hollywood were present and waiting. A little bit about Eddie Mannix before going forward to give you an idea of what kind of men were working in showbiz at this time. Most of the following are rumors about Eddie, but rumors considered to be very very true by a lot of people. Born in New Jersey, Eddie was reportedly connected to a number of mafiosos and he did not sever his connections to organized crime when he headed west and moved to Hollywood, where he quickly earned a reputation as a fixer.

Somebody who could make scandals go away to protect studios from losing money thanks to their stars losing their reputations. He supposedly was also the real guy who ran MGM on behalf of Mayer from the 1930s through the 1950s. When Spencer Tracy allegedly slept with Judy Garland when she was just 14 years old and he was 36, he allegedly buried it and then he used proof of this affair as blackmail to keep Spencer in line down the road. Joan Crawford supposedly made an adult film before she became famous and Mannix found that footage, locked it in a vault to protect her reputation and also again to keep her in line and keep her

doing the studio's bidding. Clark Gable allegedly ran over and killed a pedestrian when he was driving drunk one night in 1933 and Manix supposedly found a low-level MGM employee to take the fall for that. Manix was also a notorious womanizer. Some sources say he slept with hundreds of would-be starlets. The classic nefarious casting couch bullshit where if you wanted a career in showbiz you had to fuck his sleazy ass. 1959 over having an affair with his wife he supposedly shot and killed George Reeves who starred as Superman in The Adventures of Superman, a popular TV show that ran from 1952 to 1958,

and then paid off the cops to say it was a suicide. When his first wife divorced him, she would accuse him of frequent and severe physical abuse. He supposedly broke her fucking back during one beating, and actress Mary Nolan, one of his mistresses, claims she ended up getting multiple abdominal surgeries thanks to some beatings that he dished out on her. And there are so many more rumors. This dude was allegedly a monster, who just lived with virtual impunity in Hollywood,

Painehoff cops doing all kinds of shady shit, just to all kinds of people. Truly like just a gangster. A refolk to the beginning of the big MGM convention in 1937 now, a studio bulletin said, "'We want you to go back to your respective territories,' beginning of the big MGM convention in 1937 now, a studio bulletin said, We want you to go back to your respective territories, firmly convinced that Metro Goldwyn Mayer, under the leadership of Lewis B. Mayer, is bending every effort to

back up the men who provide the one connecting link with the exhibitor and through him the public. After three days of business, the salesmen were supposed to go to a Wild West show at Roaches on May 5, 1937. This was the party that Patricia Douglas and other girls had been invited to, thinking they had been selected to be in a film. And before I share what these girls really walked into, time for this week's first to two mid-show sponsor breaks. If you don't want to hear these ads, please sign up to be a space lizard on Patreon, get the entire catalog ad free get episodes early help us contribute to charities and more

Thanks for listening those ads Now we return to May 5th 1937 You know the big MGM shindig where a bunch of older wealthy male execs are treating a bunch of young struggling women and girls like the pieces of meat that they clearly view them as being a description of the party written for the salesmen started quote It will be a stag affair out in the wild and woolly west where men are men. I truly feel like they were just tossing these girls out to be slaughtered. The party was to be hosted by Hal Roach, a producer, director and writer whose

Our Gang shorts were being distributed by MGM at 4 p.m. 120 dancers and several girls who answered classified ads to serve as party hostesses arrived at Howl Road Studios in Culver City, close to MGM property. These girls were dressed in felt cowboy hats, bolero jackets, short skirts, black boots. They were told they would receive a hot meal and $7.50 for the day's work. $168 in today's dollars, so how much? After putting on their makeup and getting dressed, the girls were driven by bus to Rancho Rochero, a remote studio property right several miles away. They were taken to a banquet hall where they were instructed to sit down and wait where they did for a grand total of about two hours.

The ranch was isolated at the time with no phones, no access to public transportation. Actual productions were filmed there all the time. So no one would really question why they've been called there. At 7 p.m. Lewis Mayer, Eddie Mannix, Hal Roach, other MGM officials, male actors, and all the salesmen arrived at the ranch. Also present were members of the LA City Police, California State Police, Culver City Police, and the MGM police force. David Stenn wrote, given that they had been promised a stag affair, the salesman's lust at first sight response to a bevy of young over-made up beauties makes sad and terrible sense. Delegates mistook the professional dancers for party favors and

treated them accordingly. Without telephones or transportation, the young women had no means of escape. Tricked into attendance and trapped into service service they were left to fend for themselves Patricia would say in her Vanity Fair interview You'd never think they'd pull anything like that. You're trusting with the studios. You're not expecting anything except to work in a movie That's what you're there for The men had access to an open bar of 500 cases not bottles, but cases of scotch and champagne The men had access to an open bar of 500 cases, not bottles, but cases of scotch and champagne. One of the convention goers present that night was David Ross, described as a roly-poly 36-year-old

Catholic bachelor from the Chicago sales office. Ross quickly focused his attention on Patricia Douglas. When he saw her on the dance floor, he demanded that she teach him how to truck, which was a popular new dance style at the time. Many years later, Patricia said that her first impression of Ross was that she found him quote repulsive. He was slimy with eyes that bowls like a frog. She also said she didn't have a suspicious nature at the time.

And although she found him creepy, didn't enter her mind that someone would actually do harm to her like he would do. When they started dancing, Ross made any excuse to brush up against her or to put his arm around her. Patricia said he was all hands. We called it copping a feel. After she danced with Ross, Patricia went to the restroom and told the attendant, I've got a man and he's really sticking. She wanted to get the hell away from him, but she was expected by MGM to stay and keep him entertained. It was her job.

By 10 p.m., per the later testimony of a waiter at this event, Oscar Budden, the men all became intoxicated. Budden said he heard, quote, filth in conversation and witnessed girls get up and move from the tables because the men were attempting to molest them. An 18-year-old dancer named Ginger Wyatt pleaded with actor Wallace Beery to help her

to get her away from the drunken assholes trying to grope her. He took her off the property, allegedly even punched a couple dudes on his way out. Hail Wallace Beery, good on him, he was 52 years old that night. Still not afraid to introduce some dumb drunken fucks to his fist. I love it. Patricia Douglas, unfortunately, would find no such protector and she was not able to escape.

She later believed David Ross retaliated against her, attacked her like he did because she was clearly not interested in him. Ross asked her if she wanted to try some champagne at one point. She said no, said she didn't drink. She didn't want the scotch he offered either, but he didn't listen. And Patricia later recalled, He and another man held me down. One pinched my nose so I'd have to open my mouth to breathe. Then they poured a whole glass full of scotch and champagne down my throat. Oh, I fought.

But they thought it was funny. I remember a lot of laughter. The fuck? I've truly just always hated guys like this. Right? Hated them in my teens. Hated them in my 20s and 30s. Hate them now, these fucking losers who think that they're cool, you know, by doing shit

like this. Think that they're fucking don juans when they're just gross, fucking grimy douchebags. Just sickening how many people so quickly and openly abuse somebody physically weaker than them or somebody lust after both just, you know, just because they can, just because they think they can get away with it and they want it. As soon as they let her go, Patricia went to the bathroom and vomited. She then went outside to grab some fresh air, not knowing that David Ross had followed her, that he was behind her, until he put his hand over her mouth and told her, quote, make a sound and you'll never breathe again.

Jesus Christ. He then dragged Patricia to a parking car, a parked car, in a nearby field just out of sight of the other party-goers, where he pinned her down in the back seat and then he said he told her, or then she said, excuse me, that he told her, quote, I'm going to destroy you Patricia almost lost consciousness during the subsequent attack and rape but Ross slapped her in the face really punched her and said cooperate I want you awake in the movie in my mind version of this this is when I overhear this actually I overheard it before when he when he grabbed him was walking to the car that's my overheard it and I grab his his fat ass and I throw him in the ground and I literally choke him to death. While I say something really intense, you know, probably pretty creepy, like cooperate Ross. Keep looking at me.

I want to watch you fucking die. Right? Fuck all rapists. I would a hundred percent be okay with literally having every single convicted rapist just be fucking executed. Just today. No electric chair. No lethal injection. Just you know, have people walk down the hallways in between cell blocks with fucking machine guns and just light them up. You know, clean up the mess later. No burials, just fucking burn them down to nothing in a cremation incinerator and then flush those asses just down the toilet. Unfortunately, this is not a movie in my mind and I don't get to exact any

vengeance. Patricia described how she fought Ross, started screaming. She said, I've been attacked. I've been attacked. She keeps screaming and at 1130 p.m. parking attendant Clement Soth hears her screams and then shortly afterwards he sees Patricia staggering towards him. He sees that both her eyes are swollen shut. That's how badly she's been beaten, right? In addition to raping her, he fucking slob, just you know, clearly did more than slap her. She said, my god, isn't anything sacred around here You heard her say that saw then saw David Ross fleeing the scene running his pathetic fucking ass back into the party Patricia probably to brag to his buddies. Oh, yeah, man. Fuck. Yeah, well probably a lot of high fives those kind of guys Patricia was driven to Culver City or whatever they did that time

Patricia was driven to Culver City Community Hospital they did at that time. Patricia was driven to Culver City Community Hospital which was across the street from MGM property. She's deeply traumatized but what happened to her of course, she was a virgin said she had never even gotten undressed in front of a man before. Hadn't gotten undressed in front of anyone for years not even her mom. At the hospital Patricia recalled quote, I was given a cold water douche then the doctor examined me. It's no surprise he didn't find anything. The douche had removed all the evidence. And that might have been the intention. Dr. Edward Lindquist was a physician who saw Patricia that night and he co-owned the hospital and depended

heavily on MGM for most of his business. One studio employee said that Lindquist was the studio's family doctor. Dr. Lindquist acknowledged that he could not prove it, but he conveniently believed no intercourse took place. He was already in studio protection mode. Patricia was driven home in a studio car. She slept until the next afternoon. When she woke up, she was sore all over from the attack. Her face was swollen.

She didn't go see another doctor because she was embarrassed, didn't want anyone else to see her naked. Patricia's mother never asked her what she needed to feel better. She never even got a hug rape was never mentioned almost like it never happened So sad that that's how you know so many people deal with something very traumatic something That's very inconvenient for them in some way. They just ignore it. I just never happened. No, just just bury your head in the sand Despite the fact that there were 11 officers from four different police departments present, and one officer even went with Patricia to the hospital directly after she attacked, while her eyes were swollen shut, while her face was bloody, no police report was ever filed. Two days later, Patricia returned to Roach Studios where she received $7.50,

her pay for working at the party. She said to cashier, Mod van Curen, you ought to know what happened to me so it doesn't happen to anyone else. Patricia's intention, she said at this time, was not to get a payout from MGM. She said she just wanted someone to hear her story. She wanted them to believe her. You know, she received no reply from MGM though. That fucking pig, David Ross, returned to Chicago without even a slap on the wrist. Over the coming days Patricia grew furious with MGM. With MGM, the police, the world, they were treating her like she just didn't matter. Like she was worth so very

little it was totally fine for some Chicago fucking creepy sales rep just to go ahead and beat and rape her. She went to the LA County District Attorney's Office to file a complaint against David Ross. Her mom signed the document as her court-appointed guardian because she was still legally a minor even though she was 20 years old. You know prior to 1970s in many states you were considered a minor in some ways until you were 21 years old. According to her Vanity Fair article, in an era that branded rape victims as damaged goods, the Douglas complaint was unique and historic. No

woman had ever dared to link a sexual assault to a Hollywood film studio, especially the almighty MGM. Even if a victim were to win her case in court, the stigma would wreck her name and her career. How sad is that? How pathetic that you know that people would just view a rape victim as fucking less than. Patricia did not care about any of that. She just wanted justice. She said, I just wanted to be vindicated to hear someone say you can't do that to a woman. Los Angeles District Attorney, Byrne Fitz, did not help Patricia. He was on shaky ground in his career. Six months earlier, he'd been elected to a third term despite being indicted for perjury in

a rape case involving a 16-year-old girl. He allegedly, probably, almost certainly, took a bribe to drop a statutory rape charge against a millionaire real estate promoter. Like Eddie Mannix, he was allegedly crooked as fuck. Fitz was also close friends with Louis B. Mayer, and MGM had been a top contributor to his campaign. So much corruption. So much I'll scratch your fucking dirty ass back and you scratch mine. Bud Schulberg, the son of Mayer's former partner, BP Schulberg, told Vanity Fair, Beran Fitz was completely in the pocket of the producers. The power MGM had is unimaginable today. They owned everyone. The DA, the LAPD, they ran this place.

Weeks passed and Patricia did not hear from Fitz, so she sought advice from a mob acquaintance who contacted attorney William J.F. Brown? Brown was known for his courtroom theatrics and saving his ex-wife from the death penalty after she had killed her second husband He took cases nobody else wanted and he offered to represent Patricia pro bono and he sent DA Fitz and ultimatum Investigate this case like you're supposed to or they're gonna go to the press Well Fitz thought Patricia and her attorney were bluffing, but they weren't. And on June 4th, 1937, the headlines started to roll in. Patricia's story was featured on the front pages alongside articles about the death of actress

Jean Harlow and the marriage of Edward VIII, who had advocated the British throne. Reporters legally could not use the word rape at the time to describe what had happened so instead they used euphemisms like attacked, outraged, or ravished at a quote studio orgy. The Los Angeles Daily News reported that on June 3rd 1937 Patricia Douglas submitted an affidavit with details of the attack and in the article they wrote, echoes of a wild Hollywood studio party were heard yesterday in an affidavit of Patricia Douglas, 20, film extra, who asserted she was beaten and attacked after being lured to the gathering on the pretext of promised work in a motion picture. Deputy DA Eugene Williams said he gave notice to the studio to produce the accused by Monday, June 7th, for questioning or a warrant would be issued.

MGM was not named specifically in early articles, but the studio will be named in later reporting. Papers did, however, publish Patricia's name, photo, and home address right off the rip. Not so fucked. They published her address. That's cool. You know, make it super easy for people to show up and harass an intimidator. Good job, dudes. The unidentified studio, of course, M MGM released a statement to the media that stated

We have read with astonishment the alleged charges of the girl It is difficult to make any real comment as to a situation which appears so impossible and as to which we know nothing Appears so impossible get the fuck out here behind the scenes MGM was already scrambling to cover up the scandal Appears so impossible get the fuck out here behind the scenes MGM was already scrambling to cover up the scandal Newspaper publisher and politician William Randolph Hearst wrote a letter to Lewis B. Mayer about the party which was first quoted by the New York Times in 2018 Gee whiz Lewis. Do you realize how damaging that is to the whole moving picture industry and fraternity? I'm going to do everything I can now to help the situation of course But the public will be sympathetic with a poor little extra girl

to help the situation, of course. But the public will be sympathetic with a poor little extra girl. And fuckhurst talking about doing everything he could to help the situation. Clearly he was immediately on board with doing whatever he could to help a cover-up. Papers reported that Patricia had named Dave Ross as the attacker and the two men named, excuse me, and two men named Dave Ross attended the party. Authorities sought their photographs so Patricia could ID them. On June 8th, Patricia's attorney issued a statement indicating legal procedure would be invoked in her case. And the statement read, Ravishment in all its most brutal, most lustful, most contemptible and unbelievable ferocity has been committed.

I recognize that no words, no regrets, nothing can compensate the parents nor the young girl for the injury and outrage she sustained. An injury not only to her young body, but to the beauty of her girlhood, her senses and outlook on life. An injury that took place while she was working under the orders and authority of her employer. Her physician's examination and diagnosis corroborates the brutality of the attack. Perhaps in an appropriate place, at an appropriate time, an explanation can be offered that neither excusing nor justifying may explain how the sponsors of the camouflage set where the party was held produced, authorized, managed, sanctioned, and approved a situation wherein such a terrible catastrophe was permitted to take place at the hands of a passion mad rapist.

According to Vanity Fair, now and nobody had MGM at her mercy, for even if her rape charge could be refuted, Douglas's disclosure of a stag affair costing $35,000, which would be about 785 grand today, with free flowing liquor and teenage girls would not only horrify the stockholders of Lowe's Incorporated, the corporate parent of MGM, but also tarnish both the studio's squeaky clean image and the moral sanctity of Louis B. Mayer himself. So what does MGM do now? We shall find out right after today's second of two mid-show sponsor breaks. Thanks for listening to those sponsors and now we return to early June 1937 to find out how MGM responds to Patricia's allegations of being raped at the party they

had tricked her into attending. They launch a smear campaign against Patricia to discredit her story and to tarnish her reputation. They attack the victim. MGM hired Pinkerton Detectives, the world's oldest and largest security services company in a previous time-sucked subject, to find all the girls on the guest list. During his research, David Stenn found a questionnaire that was most likely given to the other girls of the party. It asked what they knew about Patricia Douglas and instructed the girls to, quote, state in detail what you know about Patricia Douglas's past reputation for morality. Other questions were stuff like, had they seen Patricia intoxicated before or after the party? After reviewing

the archived files David Stenn said in the documentary there's nothing here where they're saying that her contention is not true. What's here is we have to make her look immoral because if she is immoral she is not rapeable. Those fuckers. In a studio sponsored interview 19 year old Virginia Lee said the so-called orgy was actually quote a jolly affair with lots of good clean fun. Grace Downs called Patricia unrefined and said she drank scotch from a cork bottle throughout the night. Sugar Guy said she once saw Patricia passed out at the Knickerbocker Hotel bar and

Patricia later told Vanity Fair, anyone who knew me knew I didn't drink and since when is getting raped good clean fun. The Pinkerton detectives were also hard at work trying to dig up dirt on Patricia. Man, the Pinkertons, they started out as good guys, but they became the bad guys on so many occasions. One internal road studios memo said, Douglas must have attempted to proposition men. Many of them must have turned her down, but can testify to her solicitation.

Oh my god. Actually, excuse me, additionally, Dr. Wirt Dakin, a urologist who previously treated Patricia for a cyst on her bladder, declined a fucking request from Hal Roach to re-diagnose the cyst as a genital urinary infection, which was a term used for gonorrhea at the time. Man, if it came out that Patricia had an STI, she would be considered

immoral, it would be clear she had not been a virgin like she had claimed, and her story would lose credibility. And how to fuck faces like Hal Roach? How do they sleep at night? June 14, 1937, Patricia identified David Ross as the rapist when viewing a photo lineup of two dozen MGM salesmen. She said without hesitation, that's the man. I can never forget that face. D.A. Burton Fitz convened a grand jury and summoned David Ross. After Ross arrived in California, he began working with Lewis B. Mayer's personal attorney Mendel Silberberg. The grand jury hearing convened June 16th 1937. Four women were called as witnesses Ginger Wyatt, Paula Bromley, Grace Downs and Dorothy Kritzer as well as two physicians, two nurses, a

lab tech and the casting director for the party. Grace Downs testified that when she received the call from Hal Roach Studios she knew it was a summons to be a hostess at a party. Dancer Ginger White, however, insisted that she thought she's being called to work on a film, but it was actually a party. According to Vanity Fair, at the grand jury hearing, Ginger Watt denied that actor Wallace Beery had helped her get away from the party, though. The rumor was the studio made it clear to her that telling the truth in that regard

would be very bad for her career. Grace Downs testified Pat was pouring them them as in whiskey, pouring them out in quart bottles. If Pat was being molested I didn't see it. She could have screamed if she had wanted to and gotten plenty of help. Lab chemist Arthur Burgess examined Patricia's underwear, said he found evidence she was attacked. However, community hospital physician Dr. Ian Lindquist said he found little evidence that Patricia had been attacked. Patricia herself would testify about the rape in detail. At one point Ross's attorney Lester Roth pointed at

her and literally said to the jury, look at her. Who would want her? Jesus Christ. Can you fucking imagine the outrage of a dude saying that today? And this is why we need to continually be outraged over this shit because if we if we aren't The Lester Ross of the fucking world will just you know start openly saying shit like that all over again. That's fucking crazy Patricia came face to face with David Ross when she walked out of court and some photographers Who apparently just lacked any and all empathy tried to force the two of them to stand together so they could take a photo It's outrageous. What is wrong with people? Patricia was so upset she ran to a window contemplated jumping through the

glass. Photographers captured her mother and her lawyer restraining her and it was national news the next day. On court Lester Roth called on parking attendant Clement Soth who recanted that he did see David Ross fleeing the parking lot after Patricia was raped. But now Soth testified, the man was much thinner. Mr. Ross's face is fat. That's the son of a bitch. You will find out here soon. The Notorious C. Crooker Studio definitely got to him. Chemist R.J. Abernathy testified that based on his examination of Patricia's clothing, he was unable to state that there was evidence of an attack. that based on his examination of Patricia's clothing, he was unable to state that there was evidence of an attack. Waiter Oscar Budden testified

about the party saying quote, I've been a waiter for 26 years and within that time I've served at hundreds of parties. I have yet to recall a party where the conduct of men was as becoming as at this one. The language used by the men was such that you would hear wherever filth is used in conversation. Well, good on him for actually telling it like it was. Waiter Henry Schultz also testified and said the men were very, very hogish and kind of second class. The men tried to force liquor on the girls.

The men's attitude towards the girls was very rough. They were running their hands over the girls' bodies. Anything could have happened on the grounds without anyone knowing about it. To my estimation, the party held at the ranch was the worst, the wildest, and the rottenest I have ever seen. Good on him. At least a few people valued their integrity enough to stand up to the studio. Both waiters agreed that the girls seemed quote bewildered and asked them when the shooting would start, strongly indicating that they thought they were there for a film. Waiters also testified that the party was so noisy that if any girl was attacked and

screamed she definitely could not have been heard by almost anyone present. Casting director Vincent Contiff and extras asserted that the casting call informed them that they were going to be hostesses at a party. They lied. Grace Downs testified that she was sitting at the table with Patricia Douglas and David Ross and she saw nothing improper. Paula Bromley also saw Ross and Patricia together. She testified she knew from the beginning she was you know gonna be paid to be a hostess and not to participate in a film. However dancer

Ginger Wyatt supported Patricia's claim that they were brought you know to a wild party under false pretenses. In the end, the grand jury will not indict David Ross. On June 17th 1937, the grand jury announced a verdict of insufficient evidence to prosecute and David Ross said after the verdict, no true bill. Boy that really makes me happy. I'm gonna stay away from Hollywood. If I ever go to another convention, I'll take a bodyguard along. Fucking pig. Hope he died of dick cancer. Patricia's attorney issued a statement part of which said, it appears to me and I'll take a bodyguard along. Fucking pig. Hope he died of dick cancer. Patricia's attorney issued a statement part of which said,

It appears to me and I'm sure at least that it is my conscientious conclusion that girls can be raped in Los Angeles County without reprisal to the rapers. Depended upon the identity of the men who are responsible. Right? So big fuck you to MGM. Good for him. Also called on any extras who had been subjected to similar indignities to send him their stories, and he would take their cases to women's clubs in Los Angeles to bring publicity to this terrible issue. Oh yeah. Years later, when contacted by Vanity Fair, Clement Soth's daughters confirmed MGM did get to him. They offered him any job he wanted if he would commit perjury at the grand jury hearing and not back up Patricia's story. And then he became a

driver for MGM and he worked for the studio for the rest of his fucking life. One of his daughters said he had disdain for stars and the heads of the studio but felt like he had to support his family and I guess that was the only job he felt like he could do. They also believed that their father's testimony would not have changed the outcome and that's pretty convenient. Dad sold his soul. Sold it on the cheap too. Helped the rapist go free. Added trauma to a rape victim for what? For a fucking chauffeur job? MGM thought the case was closed, but on July 14th, 1937, Patricia Douglas filed a $500,000 civil lawsuit

naming Hal Roach, Edward Mannix, Vincent Conniff, David Ross, and 50 other John Does. The suit accused the defendants of an unlawful conspiracy to defile, Edward Mannix, Vincent Conniff, David Ross and 50 other John Doe's. The suit accused the defendants of an unlawful conspiracy to defile, debauch and seduce her and other dancers quote for the immoral and sensual gratification of male guests. MGM did not issue a public statement in response but in private memos studio lawyers were calling Patricia our girlfriend. The studio was told by their insurer that they would be liable for any damages awarded to Patricia. MGM lawyers stalled the proceedings and process servers never even contacted David Ross about the lawsuit. On November 10th, 1937,

Patricia lost a second round in her effort to collect damages. Her first complaint had been invalidated and the court ruled that her amended complaint did not clearly allege any connection between the attack charged against David Ross and the party arranged by the other defendants. She was given 20 days to file a third complaint. She would. But Patricia's final attempt at the suit would be dismissed in Superior Court February 10, 1938, and then she would immediately have it filed in the U.S. District Court. It was the first time a female plaintiff made a rape of federal case, arguing that it violated

her civil rights. Man, I fucking love that she tried so hard to get some form of justice, or at least some form of recognition. MGM had a lot to lose at this time. Now on the federal level, they were, the Patricia were to win her suit. Who would sue them next? For how much? 85 million people, or two-thirds of the US population at the time, were attending theaters

every week. MGM was the top studio. Lewis B. Mayer was earning 1.2 million a year equivalent to about 30 million a year in today's currency. He was the highest paid executive in the entire US. He wanted to hold on to that position and they changed their strategy with the federal lawsuit and went after Patricia's attorney William J.F. Brown now. Brown had vowed to challenge Burden-F Fitz in the next election for district attorney. However, MGM was the biggest employer in all of LA County and a candidate could not win if they went up against the studio. And Brown seemingly gave up on

Patricia's case in favor of his political career. But he later lost 1940 primaries anyway so he did all that for nothing. He failed to appear in court three times on February 8th, 1940. The federal lawsuit was dismissed quote for want of prosecution. What a piece of shit. Patricia's mother Mildred Mitchell as her guardian could have taken Brown to court for malpractice now but didn't and there's been speculation that Mildred was given a hush money payment by MGM. No solid proof of this but but again, rumors. And how fucking dark is that if true? To take a bribe to make sure that your daughter stops trying to sue the studio that protected a rapist?

After the federal lawsuit was dismissed, Patricia Douglas faded from the spotlight, leaving Hollywood forever. She did, though, inspire other women to go up against the studio. The first, on April 29, 1938, 21-year-old Mary Eloise Spann, a contract singer for MGM, sued for five million in damages against MGM music director Milton Beecher. She charged that he lured her to his apartment and then raped her when she was 19 years old. How much fucking rape was going on back then? I have a feeling like so much.

Going to be hard to watch movies from this era and not wonder how many dudes listed in the credits were rapists and how many women listed in the credits were being raped. Eloise became pregnant, had an abortion, she was the same lawyer as Patricia, but sadly would lose her lawsuit as well. They were just so powerful. Eloise's son Jack did not know what happened to his mom until he began speaking to David Stenn decades later. Growing up, he said his mom never seemed to feel well. She was often on the couch or lying in bed and she never sang. Sadly, Eloise would die by suicide, August 23rd 1960 at the age of only 43. There were other Hollywood scandals in the news at this time. The people who

learned the real truth about many years later. When Patricia came forward initially to accuse David Ross of her rape, another story was making headlines and that was 22 year old Loretta Young, a famous actress, was pregnant. Loretta played the lead role alongside Clark Gable in the 1935 film, The Call of the Wild. Clark Gable was the baby's father, but Loretta could not admit that. Gable was married.

She was a devout Catholic. And you'll see there was another reason. She held a press conference from her bedroom when she was eight months pregnant, claimed she had a stomach bug. After her daughter Judy was born, Loretta put her in an orphanage for 18 months, Judy Lewis, and then adopted her. Judy Lewis would speak to David Stenn for the Girl 27 documentary, and she said that Loretta always told her she was adopted, but everyone in Hollywood knew the real story. Judy always had a feeling something was not quite right about the story.

She was born with Clark Gable's distinctive ears. Loretta put her in bonnets all the time, which she hated, and at age seven she got an operation to have her ears pinned back. She went to an all-girls high school, and a classmate once asked why she looked so much like her mom if she was adopted. This girl was also adopted, didn't look like her parents at all. Judy questioned her mother but Loretta brushed her off saying, well you know they lived in the same house, had the same mannerisms, and you know that's why they ended up looking alike. Uh-huh. Judy finally learned the

truth a week before she was to be married. She called the priest who was going to marry her and told him she heard that Clark Gable was her father and the priest told her not to confront her mom about that because her mom would not tell her the truth. They finally talked about it years later. Loretta threw up and told her daughter, oh well you're just a walking mortal sin. What the fuck? Asked Judy to keep the secret from her daughter, Loretta's granddaughter, but Judy refused to do that. Good for Judy. Loretta Young died in 2000 and Judy Lewis died in 2011 and in 2015, Linda Lewis, the wife of Loretta's son Christopher, stated publicly that back in 1998, Loretta had told her that Clark Gable had raped her.

She had never discussed the rape with anyone before. Loretta shared this info after she learned about the concept of date rape from watching Larry King. She previously believed it was a woman's job to physically fend off a man's advances no matter how aggressive that man was and she thought it was her moral failure that she was raped. The family remained silent about it until after Loretta and Judy had died. Man, so much for Hollywood's Golden Age. All those squeaky clean movies, huh? All right, they never cursed, never had sex on screen, so they must be wholesome, right? Nope, so much fucking dirt David Ross Patricia Douglas's rapist died in 1962 Reconnected with her now at the age of 60. I don't know if he died from dick cancer. Let's hope he did He's buried in Afton, Missouri. If you want to go find his grave and piss on it. We had no siblings. No children

Hopefully no friends was a complete fucking loser. We spent his final years alone alone, reflecting on what a fucking sad fucking pile of shit he was and miserable. Lewis B. Mayer died of leukemia, which is awesome, in 1957 at the age of 73, but it's a bummer the cancer didn't take him a lot sooner. Former MGM general manager Eddie Mannix also lived too long. He died in 1963 at the age of 72. Former DA Byrne Fitz died of suicide in 1973 at the age of 78. Couldn't take what a fucking piece of shit he was and shot himself in the head. Decades too late. Before Eddie Mannix died, he was asked about what happened to that girly referring to Patricia and he straight-up answered, quote, We had her killed. Dude was a cold

blooded motherfucker hope he hated himself Patricia stopped working in the film industry following being attacked she disappeared from media radar for decades following her trials and lawsuits after Patricia's final lawsuit was dismissed her mother Mildred purchased a liquor store some horses and some expensive furs probably with with some fucking payoff money, but then her younger husband left her and ran off with all that. And you know what? Good. Patricia lived her entire adult life with her mom except for her three marriages, three marriages that all took place in one five-year period. She had a daughter named Patty with her first husband. Patricia said she only

knew her second husband for a few weeks before they got married. Two of her husbands would end up being exposed as bigamists. She said she didn't know her mom had allegedly betrayed her until after her mom died and after she had spent the last ten years of her life as her mom's caretaker. When biographer and documentarian David Stenn found her in the early 2000s, Patricia was in her mid 80s. She was a great-grandmother living alone in an apartment in Las Vegas, housebound due to glaucoma, emphysema, and tremendous anxiety. Patricia ignored David for months, but eventually gave him

permission to record their phone calls. She admitted that at first she was nasty to Sten because he invaded her privacy, but ultimately she was thankful that he was so persistent. She finally wanted to go public again because quote, when I die, the truth dies with me. And that means those bastards win. Love that. She told David that although she was married, she never fell in love. She said that was taken away from her because no matter how she felt towards a man,

she truly felt like she could never completely trust him. At the young age of 37, she said she totally gave up on romantic relationships. Her daily routine towards the end of her life consisted of waking up at 4 p.m. watching TV in her living room till about 4 a.m. When she'd just go back to bed. She'd only leave her apartment to go to doctor's appointments. She said she didn't like to expose herself to people out in the world because it gave them the chance to hurt her.

Jesus. David Stenn said he could tell that Patricia had a tough exterior but underneath. She had a lot of love she was just afraid to give. She didn't speak about her case for decades after it was dismissed, not until she spoke with David Stenn. Her daughter and grandchildren, they had no idea what had happened to her. She wanted them to know, but only under the condition that they knew she was a nice person, she said. She didn't want them to think of her as a quote dirty woman or an easy woman. My God. Still carrying shame over being raped over 60 years later.

We gotta remove the stigma over women's sexual activity. And this helps illustrate why. Having sex does not make a woman dirty any more than it makes a man dirty. Right, what a bunch of fucking silly, stupid bullshit perpetuated by usually dumb old men. Nobody in the world really knew Patricia for most of her life because she kept her secret to herself for so long. She called herself

quote a walking zombie who glided through life. Patricia told Vanity Fair before you found me I was getting ready to die. I'd buy less food. I wasn't planning to be around long. Now I don't want to go. Now I have something to live for and for the first time I'm proud of myself." Man, that last line really fucked with my allergies when I first read it. For the first time I'm proud of myself. Wish I could go back in time, give her a better mom, find her a better man. You know, she should have been so proud of herself for having the fucking balls to stand up to the evil empire that was MGM. In the Girl 27 documentary, Patricia's daughter, Patty

Minter, described her strained relationship with her mother. She said at the age of two she suffered a ruptured appendix, had to stay in the hospital for a long time, which was very upsetting for her mom. When she got out, I guess her mom couldn't handle her needs. Her mom was just a mess and Patricia sent her to go live with her great-grandma for a while. When they were reconnected, Patricia would just sleep all day. They would eat dinner together. She would watch TV all night long. She didn't really leave home, didn't have any friends. She knew her mom was just so depressed, but didn't know why. Patricia admitted she had no closeness with her daughter.

Patty also said that Patricia's third husband was mean and devious. He took baths with Patty, wanted her to quote, do things to him, but she was supposed to keep secrets. That's fucking cool. He's a pedophile. She was afraid of what would happen if she didn't listen to him. Patty had a feeling she was being put out as a sacrifice to keep the man's interest in Patricia. Patty dreamed of having a stable family. She later did get married, had four kids, became a stay-at-home mom. She would reconnect with her mom at the end of her life. After Patty read the Vanity Fair article, she called Patricia to tell her that she was proud of her.

And she said her mom was silent, fighting back tears, I'm sure. And they never ended up talking about it more than that. Man, the butterfly effect from that one traumatic night, so much damage. Wonder what kind of mom Patricia would have been had that never happened to her. Patty visited her mom, Patricia, November 11th 11th 2003 as she was dying in the hospital.

The Vanity Fair article about what had happened to her had come out over eight months earlier. Patricia didn't look at her daughter or say anything. Patty told her just to go to the light, go find her mom, and she did. She died later that night. In the subsequent documentary Girl 27, Patricia said the truth would be her vindication because the truth always wins no matter how much time passes. The truth will always come out. I don't know if I believe that but I want to believe that. I hope to believe that. Patricia's Bravy was a very early precursor to the Me Too movement, which was founded in 2006 by Tarana Burke to support survivors of sexual violence. Tarana is an activist, a former youth worker, worked mostly with children of color.

During a youth camp, she met a girl named Heaven who asked her to speak to her, excuse me, privately. Heaven told her that her mother's boyfriend had been sexually abusing her. Burke sent the little girl to a female counselor who she thought could help her better and was later haunted by that decision. Burke wrote, As much as I loved her, I could not muster the energy to tell her that I understood that I connected that I could feel her pain. I couldn't help but release her shame or impress upon her that none of it was her fault.

But most of all, I could not find the strength to say out loud the words that were ringing in my head over and over again. I just watched her walk away from me, visibly struggling to recapture those secrets and tuck them back into their hiding place. I watched her put her mask back on her face and return to the world. And as I stood there, I couldn't even bring myself to whisper the words circling my mind and soul. Me too.

Whew. Me too movement has increased awareness of the issue of sexual harassment and sexual abuse of women in the workplace. The movement went global October 15th 2017 when actress Alyssa Milano posted a viral tweet. She posted a photo that said, Me Too, suggested by a friend. If all the women who've been sexually harassed or assaulted wrote Me Too as a status we might give people a sense of the magnitude of the problem. Milano wrote in her tweet if you have been sexually harassed or assaulted write me too as a reply to this tweet and within 24 hours she got roughly 12 million responses. It's fucking wild and

heartbreaking and sadly not surprised at all. That same month, New York Times, the New Yorker reported that dozens of women accused film producer Harvey Weinstein of rape, sexual assault, sexual abuse over a period of 30 years. Over 80 women in the industry came forward to share their stories about that fucking pig of a human being. Weinstein was dismissed from his studio, the Weinstein Company, expelled from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scientists, other professional associations. 2018, he was arrested and charged with rape and other offenses. 2020, or 2020, excuse me, he was found guilty of rape and a criminal sexual act since 23 years in prison. His conviction was overturned in 2024 due to procedural errors, but then found guilty again just last month

in a retrial in New York, so, York, so hopefully he'll die in a cell. According to the Times Up Legal Defense Fund, which supports individuals who have experienced sexual harassment or retaliation at work, over 70% of workers who report abuse are retaliated against in some way. Me Too would go beyond Hollywood, thankfully, become a worldwide movement across all industries, but there's still much work to be done to support people who report sexual assault or sexual harassment in the workplace. Actresses such as Jessica Chastain and Rose McGowan, they were going to praise

Girl of 27 and specifically the telling of Patricia Douglass's story and have spoken about how much, you know, what she did, you know, meant to the Future Me Too movement. You know, she didn't get justice for her attack, but because she spoke up, because she fought, because she agreed to share her story again decades later, shortly before she died, she did help get justice for others. In the end, she didn't let the bastards win, and she got to die at peace with her daughter, and she got to die feeling proud of herself. And I hope she's resting in peace, and I hope David Ross is not.

And that's it for this edition of Time Suck Short Sucks. If you enjoyed the story, check out the rest of the Bad Magic catalog. Be for your episodes at Time Suck Mondays, noon Pacific time. New episodes of the now long running paranormal podcast, Scared to Death, Tuesdays at midnight with two episodes of nightmare fuel, some fictional horror thrown into the mix each month. Thank you to Olivia Lee for her initial research and actually for picking this topic. I didn't know about it. I didn't know about Patricia's story. And thank you to Logan Keith polishing up the sound of today's episode. Please go to BadMagicProductions.com for all your bad magic needs

and have yourself a great weekend.