Carole Landis–RIP

Posted on July 5, 2008 by lmharnisch
Carole_landis_bathroom

Above, the photo of Carole Landis published in The Times.
Carole_landis_bath_counter

 Dropcap_s_vadisomeone was kind enough to send me a scan of this photo. Here are the items on the bathroom counter: a book of matches, a comb and several bottles. It’s a bit difficult to tell, but I think a pill bottle is visible behind the large bottle in the center of the photo. If so, we have found four pill bottles so far.
Carole_landis_lhand And we get a closeup of her left hand. I noticed right away there’s no wedding ring. She had filed for divorce, so that’s not terribly surprising — but worth noting. Also notice that the bathroom appears to be carpeted.

Update: Now this is interesting. According to news reports, Landis was holding a satin ribbon bearing the Lord’s Prayer in her left hand. But I don’t see any ribbon, just a shadow from the leg of the bathroom sink. Unfortunately, her right hand is obscured.

Carole_landis_bath_top_shelf

 Of course, we’re snooping, so we’re going to look into this locking cabinet. What’s in here? On the top shelf, we find a small box and what appears to be a small pouch or portfolio-type cover with a snap.
Carole_landis_document

Carole_landis_lock

This is the item that interests me the most. On the bottom shelf of this locking cabinet, closest to her head, we find some sort of typed or printed document. Unfortunately, I can’t get any more detail by enhancing the photo. But it’s clearly a document. Presumably this is not a will as there was confusion after her death about where it was located.

What seems evident, though, is that she was using the locking cabinet to store valuables.

In fact, someone sent me another photo of the scene in which the cabinet door isn’t blocked by Detective Jones. At left, there’s the lock.

Someone who has more time than I do might find it productive to get a copy of her probate records from Los Angeles County. Because there was a legal dispute over her estate, it’s fairly likely there’s a large file that should include a detailed inventory of everything she owned when she died.

Observations? Thoughts?

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About lmharnisch

I am retired from the Los Angeles Times
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2 Responses to Carole Landis–RIP

  1. Becky's avatar Becky says:
    July 6, 2008 at 1:26 am

    The portfolio-like thing on the top shelf is commonly used to keep good pearls (it’s usually lined in silk), and the small box is about the right size and type for earrings. Perhaps she locked her jewelry in the cabinet.

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  2. Relative's avatar Relative says:
    January 16, 2011 at 3:51 am

    This is a warning for anyone who’s a fan of Carole. DO NOT buy Eric Gans awful biography or visit his creepy website. This man is no fan…he is a stalker who has harassed Carole’s family for years. He stole private family photos and now he’s trying to sell them. His book is full of disgusting lies about Carole!!! If she were alive today she would hate this man and all of her real fans know the truth about him.

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