Mystery Location No. 78: December 10, 2017

Third Clue: je ne sais quoi

This is 732 N. Rodeo Drive, Los Angeles, Calif. The vivacious lady who lived there was Lupe Velez, born July 18, 1908, an actress and dancer known as the “Mexican spitfire,” because of her hot, volatile temper. She began her career in Mexican vaudeville and after coming to the United States, she landed a small part in Sailors, Beware! starring Laurel and Hardy, released in 1927. She appeared in numerous B movies and the term je ne sais quoi seemed to describe her best. In 1933 she married Johnny Weissmuller, who started in the Tarzan movies, but their relationship was tempestuous and they finally divorced in 1939. She had numerous affairs with numerous men, including a long-term relationship with Gary Cooper, but his mother considered Valez loud and crude and disapproved of the relationship.

In 1944, Lupe discovered she was pregnant by Harald Ramond, though many thought Gary Cooper was the father and Cooper admitted it was possible. Ramond apparently abandoned her. Not wanting to give birth out of wedlock and feeling she was old and her days as the Mexican Spitfire were over, on the night of December 13, 1944, she decided to end her life, but she wanted to do it in a way that would ensure that she was remembered. So she dressed in blue pajamas (or a flowing white nightgown), wrote a suicide note, took 70, or 80, secobarbital tablets, and lay down on her bed, hoping to die a beautiful death. The newspapers reported that her maid found her the next morning lying peacefully on her bed, but some said this was just an official statement to cover up what really happened. According to the book Hollywood Babylon, Lupe became sick after downing the drugs that didn’t sit well with the spicy dinner she had eaten the night before and she died with her head in the toilet surrounded by vomit. The moral of Lupe’s story was explained by Roz Doyle on the TV show Frasier:

Roz: What’s eating you?
Frasier: Oh, I’m sorry. It’s just this thing with my father and this, this person he wants to hire. I thought I’d started my life with a clean slate. I had a picture of what it was going to be like, and then, I don’t know ...
Roz: Ever heard of Lupe Velez?
Frasier: Who?
Roz: Lupe Velez. The movie star in the 30s. Well, her career hit the skids, so she decided she’d make one final stab at immortality. She figured if she couldn’t be remembered for her movies, she’d be remembered for the way she died. And all Lupe wanted was to be remembered. So, she plans this lavish suicide – flowers, candles, silk sheets, white satin gown, full hair and makeup, the works. She takes the overdose of pills, lies on the bed, and imagines how beautiful she’s going to look on the front page of tomorrow’s newspaper. Unfortunately, the pills don’t sit well with the enchilada combo plate she sadly chose as her last meal. She stumbles to the bathroom, trips and goes head-first into the toilet, and that’s how they found her.
Frasier: Is there a reason you’re telling me this story?
Roz: Yes. Even though things may not happen like we planned, they can work out anyway.
Frasier: Remind me again how it worked for Lupe, last seen with her head in the toilet?
Roz: All she wanted was to be remembered. [beat] Will you ever forget that story?

The photos show the house as it was then and how it looks now. I couldn’t find a recent photo from the same angle as the original.