The Black Dahlia
Elizabeth Short’s
HOLLYWOOD
Elizabeth Short
July 29, 1924 — January 15, 1947
By Allan R. Ellenberger
Today would be the 84th birthday of Elizabeth Short, best known as “The Black Dahlia.” Her unsolved murder is still a point of interest and curiosity to people. Short spent most of the last five months of her life living in Hollywood at the following places:
BREEVORT HOTEL6326 Lexington Avenue
Short stayed at the Brevoort Hotel with one-time boyfriend, Gordon Fickling from August 20 to August 27, 1946.
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HAWTHORN HOTEL —1611 N. Orange Drive [site]
On August 28, Short stayed with friends Lynn Martin and Marjorie Graham at the Hawthorn Hotel which was located on Orange, one block south of the Roosevelt Hotel. The Hawthorn was razed many years ago; a huge apartment complex now stands on the block. |
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MARK HANSEN residence6024 Carlos Avenue [site]
Short, Marjorie and another friend, Ann Toth, moved into Mark Hansen’s bungalow, which was located across from the Hollywood First Presbyterian Church at Gower and Carlos. She stayed there from October 1 to October 9, and again from October 23 through November 13, 1946. Hansen was a successful businessman and part-owner of the Florentine Gardens, which was only a few blocks from here. Hansen was briefly a suspect in Short’s muder. The site of Hansen’s bungalow is now a parking lot for the church. |
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GUARDIAN ARMS APARTMENTS5217 Hollywood Blvd.Room 726
Room 726 at the Guardian Arms was Short’s residence from October 10 though October 22, 1946. She lived there with her friend Marjorie, and two men, Bill Robinson and Marvin Margolis. Marjorie and the two men slept in the bed while Short slept on the floor. Ann Toth later told police: “This Bill Robinson tried to take advantage of her (Short) once and he slapped her in the face and threw her out of the car. She came home crying about that. I don’t think anyone else tried anything.”
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THE CHANCELLOR APARTMENTS1842 N. Cherokee AvenueRoom 501
When Short moved from Hansen’s bungalow for the last time (November 13), she moved to the Chancellor and shared cramped quarters in room 501 (on the top floor) with eight roommates: Linda Rohr, Sherryl Maylond, Cheryll Haughlamb, Beverly Don’e, Pat Goff, Marion Schmidt, Dorothy Saffrom and Mary Louise Pappe. After Short’s death, the Chancellor’s landlady, Juanita Ringo, told authorities: “She came here for a room last November 13. That’s a bad day, isn’t it? She wasn’t sociable like the other girls who lived in apartment 501 with her — more the sophisticated type.” Elizabeth Short moved out of the Chancellor on December 6, 1946.
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During the time that Elizabeth Short lived in Hollywood, she frequented many of the area’s restaurants and night spots, including the following: (click on images to enlarge)
BOARDNER’S
1652 N. Cherokee Avenue
TOM BRENNEMAN’S [site]
1623 N. Vine Street
FLORENTINE GARDENS
5955 Hollywood Boulevard
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Tags: black dahlia, brevoort hotel, chancellor apartments, elizabeth short, guardian arms apartments, hawthorn hotel, mark hansen
Allan,
Been to Boardners…have a few friends that perform there….a great venue. Interesting that poor Eliza Short had been a patron there.
Very interesting trek you had in finding all these locations. Great post!
Anything new on that burial site of Estell Getty? I saw that you’d taken your post down about that. But the grim folks over at findagrave.com has her listed as being at Hollywood Forever. Just curious….
Thanks!
RODAN
Thanks Rodan. Estelle Getty is at Hollywood Forever, it’s just her exact location that is at question at the moment. More as soon as its confirmed.
Marvelous post, Allan; love your photos as always!
Good info!
Also check out
http://www.theblackdahliainhollywood.com
They have addresses in Miami Florida that I never saw before. Where is Hollywood Forever?
Hollywood Forever Cemetery is located at 6000 Santa Monica Blvd., between Van Ness and Gower.
I posted a video that I shot yesterday of Elizabeth’s hometown Medford MA and the places that Bette frequented as a teen.
Here is the link for the website:
http://www.JimmyMorse.com
hey there…
nice photos..
you must be following everything about her and youo must know a lot to be able to put all this together…
she’s really beautiful, too bad she diead at a very young age..
and how come the cause of her death has not yet been resolved?
she must have been a woman who goes out a lot… i mean look at all the pictures of hotels and restaurants and places she had been to..
In a Biography channel documentary it said she also lived at an apartment at the corner of Franklin and Bronson in Hollywood as well as an apt in Longbeach on Linden st.
This is the most complete and accurate site about Elizabeth Short.