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Cult Liter with Spencer Henry

147: The Mysterious Life of Theda Bara-Hollywood's First Vamp!

Cult Liter with Spencer Henry

Spencer Henry | Morbid Network | Wondery

True Crime, Exhibit C, Society & Culture, Comedy

4.95.4K Ratings

🗓️ 2 August 2021

⏱️ 40 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Happy Monday Cult Babes! This week we are discussing the fascinating life of Theda Bara, the original Hollywood Vamp, and how her public persona ended up tying her to a 1918 moidah trial! Theda was one of the first stars of the silent film era, and pre-dates Marilyn Monroe as one of the first risqué personalities.
Check out my new show OBITCHUARY wherever you’re listening!
Sponsors:
Better Help: Visit betterhelp.com/spencer for 10% off your first month!
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Follow: @cultliterpodcast on Instagram
Sources:
https://www.thesun.co.uk/fabulous/4550226/the-creepy-story-of-theda-bara-hollywoods-first-vampire-actress-who-received-1000-marriage-proposals-and-even-had-fans-kids-named-after-her/
https://forward.com/culture/film-tv/389807/theda-bara-hollywoods-first-vamp/
https://www.ripleys.com/weird-news/theda-bara-hollywoods-famous-vamp/
https://www.harpersbazaar.com/culture/film-tv/g31916339/old-hollywood-star-rules/
https://www.thesun.co.uk/fabulous/4550226/the-creepy-story-of-theda-bara-hollywoods-first-vampire-actress-who-received-1000-marriage-proposals-and-even-had-fans-kids-named-after-her/
https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2018/10/31/mysterious-theda-bara-screen-vamp/1830609002/
https://forward.com/culture/film-tv/389807/theda-bara-hollywoods-first-vamp/
https://www.factinate.com/people/facts-theda-bara/
https://wednesdayswomen.com/theda-bara-first-creation-of-hollywoods-sultans-of-spin/
‘Theda Bara A Biography of the Silent Screen Vamp with a Filmography’ By: Ronald Genini



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Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Hey, Prime members, you can listen to Cult Leader Early and add free on Amazon Music. Download the app today.

0:30.0

Hello and welcome back to Cult Leader. I'm your host with the most, your Cult Leader, Spencer, Henry.

0:43.0

Cult Babes, what an exciting few weeks we've had. Last week we were joined by Tina Major, you know, and it was so much fun getting to sit down and tell stories with a guest.

0:53.0

It really got me thinking, who else would be a fun Cult Leader guest? And I'm not thinking even true crime world. That's on the back of my mind. I'm thinking who is so entertaining that I think would just be fun to sit down with.

1:06.0

So I have a few ideas, you know what I really want. I want to get a real housewife on here because that's where my head's at lately.

1:13.0

And I know, okay, it's basic of me, maybe, perhaps, but my real housewives journey is honestly a recent development. I watched that thing on Hulu. Everyone was talking about it called the hustler in the housewife about Erica Jane and her husband Tom Gerardi, who's like the famous LA attorney lawyer, whatever.

1:32.0

And so after I watched that, I was like, okay, well, and then I was watching it with Madison. And of course she starts telling me all this real housewives gossip because she's into all of that. She's a total bravo, holic. I think that's what they call them.

1:45.0

I was like, you know what? Let's watch it. So we started watching just the most recent season of real housewives of Beverly Hills. And I am hooked. Okay. I mean, it's not my proudest moment, but I'm hooked. I love it.

1:58.0

I shouldn't be adding discretion if I'm like, I'm trying to get one of them on my show. But you know, I mean, it's entertainment. It's something to dissociate with. I watch obviously a lot of very dark things and every once in a while, you need a palette cleanser.

2:10.0

I think we can make it happen though. I feel like some of the housewives have podcasts. I've heard inklings in the past. We're going to try actually. I think one of my friends was on Heather DeBros podcast. I think she's from Orange County.

2:23.0

If we're going to get into more of like the spooky guest, I think it would be really cool to get someone from like a good horror franchise. Imagine if we got like, Nev Campbell. Imagine it.

2:36.0

Nev fucking Campbell from the scream franchise. That would be insane. I would I would lose my mind probably more on brand than a housewife. But hey, I've got range here. There's no rules with cold leader.

2:48.0

We get up a real housewife in the cold. Why not? But Nev Campbell would be sick. You know, it'd be really cool to like tell the story of Sydney Prescott as if we were just telling a cold leader story and then actually having Nev Campbell on for part of it.

3:02.0

I don't know. I think we can make it happen. Even if I have to I'll buy like 30 cameos from Nev Campbell. I'm just like, can you say this specific thing?

3:10.0

There's work around. There's a way that this can happen. All right. Let's see. Follow along online at cold leader podcast. If you want to see pictures and whatnot from each week's episode and you can listen right and review my new show obituary, wherever you listen to podcast, which now has I think we have five episodes out now, which so fun. So exciting. Also a good palette cleanser. If you need like a break from true crime or you're like holy shit. What did I just listen to?

3:38.0

I need something to laugh at laugh with. They're laughing with us not at us obituary is a great one. This week's story is probably so random because I highly doubt any of you would have expected this. This week's story is just everything that I love. We've got a Hollywood starlit vampires. And of course, we've got a moita.

4:02.0

Now typically I tell my stories in a format that sort of builds up to the moita, but this week we're going to actually go in and kind of start and end with it. It'll it'll make sense. I promise. This is because I first want to even talk about how I learned about this case. All right. What sucked me in because I guarantee you guys are going to be like, yes, tell me everything. We have inklings of like a Maryland Monroe before there was a Maryland Monroe. So if you like the Maryland Monroe episode, you're probably going to find that this has a pretty similar.

4:30.0

But she predates Maryland Monroe, the gal we're talking about today. I was researching something for an episode of obituary and in doing so, you can imagine I come across some real interesting news articles and factoid I'm researching one night. Do you want to picture it?

4:49.0

Sitting on the couch in the living room. The lights are low. Hotdog is sitting next to me. I'm just, yeah, you I'm talking about you. Wait, real quick sidebar. I promise I'll get to the point. But hotdog I've I've made a grave mistake. Hotdog I taught her how to how with me. So we've been howling together, which I thought was just like a one time fun thing we would do.

5:15.0

But I've created a monster anytime hotdog wants attention now she starts like trying to how it's so cute. She's not she's not a talkative dog. She doesn't really she's a bark a lot. She doesn't make a lot of noises. She's always just kind of chill in or sleeping. That's why I can like I you probably see if you follow me like I bring her everywhere with me because she just kind of chills.

5:36.0

But now she's she's wanting to talk I'll hear her just talking in the other room the other day she I woke up and she was already like she like hopped out of bed when I went to make my coffee and she was already sitting in the office and I was like, okay, I guess guess we're getting straight to work today. Huh hotdog. She's sleeping right now. Little precious angel. So anyways, I'm sitting in the living room one night researching for a bit.

5:56.0

I'm just perusing the internet surfing the web as the kids say when I stumble across the following headline data bar a Hollywood vamp. I thought Hollywood vamp tell me more in the picture was this rave-in-haired woman wearing dark eye makeup posing nearest skeleton. It was glamorous and macabre and I wanted to know more about her.

...

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