E293: MURDER - William Desmond Taylor (part II)

Fresh Hell Podcast

freshhellpodcast

True Crime

4.8 • 1.2K Ratings

🗓️ 8 August 2025

⏱️ 71 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In part two of our three-part look at the mysterious murder of William Desmond Taylor, we pick up with the powerful (and possibly romantic) figures in Taylor’s life, and trace the final days leading up to his death.

You’ll hear about his complex relationship with set designer George James Hopkins, the bond he shared with Mabel Normand, and how the evening of February 1, 1922, played out—including what Mabel saw, what the neighbors heard, and what the valet found the next morning.

We walk you through the shock of Taylor’s death, the chaos at the crime scene, and the bizarre claim that silent film sweetheart Mary Miles Minter had been secretly engaged to him.

William Desmond Taylor, Mabel Normand, Mary Miles Minter, silent film, Hollywood murder, 1920s scandal, George James Hopkins, Charlotte Shelby, unsolved case, Taylor murder, Paramount Pictures, Hollywood Forever Cemetery, silent movie stars, Hollywood history, classic Hollywood, true crime, film noir, media circus, famous unsolved murders, Fresh Hell Podcast

Transcript

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0:44.5	you know, endlessly screaming into the void like, hey, hey, hey, you know, that kind of.
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1:57.0	give you a recap of last week's episode part one in five sentences or less.
2:03.9	Just one thing before we started, speaking of last week, sorry for leaving the show so
2:09.6	abruptly. But I think Annie told you I had a complete power outage. We had a thunderstorm and
	...

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