William Desmond Taylor

William Desmond Taylor (born William Cunningham Deane-Tanner April 26, 1872 in Carlow, Ireland ? February 1, 1922 in Los Angeles) was a successful US film director and a popular figure in the growing Hollywood film colony of the 1910s and early 20s. He was the victim of a murder that remains officially unsolved.

Hollywood legacy

The Taylor murder, along with the Fatty Arbuckle scandal and the drug related deaths of such stars as Olive Thomas, Wallace Reid, Barbara La Marr and Alma Rubens were catalysts in the effort of Hollywood to purge itself of undesirable influences. In the future contracts would include morality clauses which would allow for contractees to be summarily dismissed if they breached them.

Related Topics:
Fatty Arbuckle - Olive Thomas - Wallace Reid - Barbara La Marr - Alma Rubens

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The 1950 film Sunset Boulevard with William Holden and Gloria Swanson featured a fictional, aging silent screen actress named Norma Desmond, whose name was almost certainly borrowed from Taylor's middle name as a way to resonate with the widely publicized scandals of almost thirty years before.

Related Topics:
Sunset Boulevard - William Holden - Gloria Swanson

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Taylor directed or acted in over eighty films, many of which are believed to be lost. In 2005 the unmarked murder site was on the asphalt parking lot of a local discount store.

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