Walter Winchell

Walter Winchell (April 7 1897 – February 20, 1972), an American newspaper and radio commentator, invented the gossip column at the New York Evening Graphic. He broke the journalistic taboo against exposing the private lives of public figures, permanently altering the shape of journalism and celebrity.

Personal Life

Winchell married Rita Greene, one of his onstage partners, on August 11, 1919. They separated a few years later and he moved in with June Magee, who had already given birth to their first child, daughter Walda, by the time he actually divorced Greene in 1928. He and Magee had been pretending to be married for some years by then. They never did marry because he was always afraid that the marriage license would be discovered and reveal to the world that Walda was illegitimate. Winchell and Magee successfully kept the secret of their non-marriage their whole lives. Their adopted daugher Gloria died of pneumonia at age nine. Their son Walter, Jr., committed suicide in 1968. Walda spent time in mental institutions.

Related Topics:
August 11 - 1919 - 1928 - Marriage license

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Although his obituary appeared on the front page of The New York Times, he died of cancer at the age of 74, forgotten and disgraced in Hollywood, with only his daughter, Walda, present as a mourner at his funeral.

Related Topics:
Obituary - The New York Times - Hollywood

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