Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle: Underground Brothels, Hush Money, Bootlegged Booze, and the Making of Hollywood’s Greatest Scandal

A century ago, at the birth of movie superstardom, silent film star Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle was at the center of a scandal that rocked Hollywood to its core. He was accused of a murderous sex crime so depraved that it turned the nation not only against him but against Hollywood itself. It led to the trial of the century, and a test of whether America’s elite veil of privilege could be pierced by the long arm of justice. The tide of public opinion that followed was so strong that it made Hollywood change the way Hollywood did business – at least on the surface. This episode contains themes that may be disturbing to some listeners, including sexual assault. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.