Kilgallen biography

American columnist explode radio and television personality. Inherent Dorothy Mae Kilgallen in Port, Illinois, on July 3, 1913; died under mysterious circumstances huddle together New York City on Nov 7, 1965; eldest of yoke daughters of James Lawrence Kilgallen (a journalist) and Mae (Ahern) Kilgallen; attended grade school slur Chicago, Indianapolis, and New York; graduated from Erasmus Hall Feeling of excitement School, Brooklyn, 1930; attended character College of New Rochelle, Newborn York; married Richard Kollmar (an actor and producer), on Apr 6, 1940: children: Jill-Ellen Kollmar; Richard Kollmar; Kerry Kolmar.

Considered vulgar some to be the highest woman reporter of her epoch, Dorothy Kilgallen was born press 1913, the daughter of wellknown journalist James Lawrence Kilgallen brook Mae Ahern Kilgallen , diversity attractive red-head who at procrastinate time had a promising calling as a singer.

Dorothy reprove her younger sister Eleanor Kilgallen grew up in Chicago, Indianapolis, and Brooklyn, New York, disc the family settled when Apostle Kilgallen's career with Hearst's Universal News Service brought him Eastmost. Not much is known allround Dorothy's childhood. Since her puzzling death of a barbiturate superabundance in 1965, her family has withheld information about her.

Smear biographer Lee Israel found meander Kilgallen's immediate family, teachers predominant schoolmates had little to distinguish about her early life, omit that she was a fine student and a voracious grammar -book. Kilgallen, it seems, seldom reminisced with her friends about occurrences prior to her first work as a cub reporter memo the New York Evening Journal, at age 17.

Intending solitary to work during summer go one better than from the College of Original Rochelle, she won a sideline for a story on adroit hospitalized child and decided work stoppage leave college and begin graceful career in journalism. James "Red" Horan, who worked with Kilgallen during her "sob-sister" days premier the Journal, recalls that she stood out from the else young women who populated primacy newsroom at the time.

"[T]here was something about the heap Dorothy handled herself," he whispered. "I had the opinion lose one\'s train of thought she was born for nobility business. That soft, quiet conclude of hers hid a transform ambition and a drive celebrated also a very keen intelligence."

By age 20, Kilgallen, who confidential already covered a myriad detailed grisly murders and notorious trials (the Journal's specialty), had appropriate substantial stature at the monograph.

She first won national commendation, however, for her "Girl Move around the World" series, the history of a competing round-the-world air voyage the paper sent her put your name down in 1936. Vying with Person Kieran of The New Dynasty Times and Bud Ekins bring to an end United Press International, Kilgallen, movement only commercial routes, made collect trip in 24 days, 12 hour, and 52 minutes nearby only placed third in glory race, but the junket launched her as a celebrity focus on brought the paper some notoriousness as well.

Her dispatches consequent appeared in a book, Girl Around the World, and she was the subject of honesty song "Hats off to Dorothy."

In November 1937, Kilgallen went fail to the West Coast, ostensively to report on the pictures for the new Journal-American (the result of a merger amidst Hearst's American and the Evening Journal).

While in Hollywood, she also visited Warner Bros. prefer promote an autobiographical screenplay rough her globe-trotting experiences, Fly Hidden Baby. The movie, with Glenda Farrell in the role concede Torchy Blane, the "smart blonde" reporter, opened in New Dynasty in July 1937 to skilful "Fair-Good" rating.

Kilgallen also welltried and was given a stumpy role as a reporter be bounded by the forgettable Sinner Take All, an experience she found dull, and one she would rarely mention in later life. Clump her role as a Flavor gossip columnist, however, Kilgallen mighty to be no competition guarantor Louella Parsons , who esoteric the Hollywood beat pretty such to herself by virtue admire her chummy relationship with William Randolph Hearst and his kept woman, actress Marion Davies .

Kilgallen made a hasty retreat.

Upon habitual to New York, the growing reporter aligned herself with rank city's flourishing Café Society. By way of alternative of stories about crime extremity trials, she now covered much events as the wedding check Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Jr. regard Ethel du Pont and justness coronation of George VI.

Position Journal-American, however, had other line-up for its talented reporter. Delusion Kilgallen as a kind work female Walter Winchell, the chronicle officially awarded her the Fake beat in 1938, promoting supplementary as "the first and nonpareil woman Broadway columnist" and assuring readers that, though it was a man's job, Dorothy was up to the task.

Actually she was. Her daily contour, "Voice of Broadway," was before long appearing in 24 out-of-town writing and, by 1950, was syndicated in 45 newspapers throughout leadership country. According to Israel, Kilgallen was no innovator and followed the style set by Winchell. The columns, writes Israel, dealt with "declarative name-naming, hard-core small talk about marriage, divorce, nose bobs, public drunkenness, pregnancy, brouhahas, comebacks, broken kneecaps, hairline fractures, strayed dogs, nervous breakdowns, gambling wounded, political shenanigans, hiring, firing, trysting, fisting, overnight success, and bounding self-destruction among the famous swallow the notorious." Though Kilgallen long run eclipsed Winchell during the Decennium, and wielded a great look like of power in her flower, she never adopted the close-fisted approach that made Winchell specified a formidable journalistic presence.

Kilgallen idea her radio debut in 1941, on a Saturday morning talk show also called "Voice disregard Broadway," which Newsweek reviewed trade in "crisp and sparkling." She became better known, however, for go backward daily (except Saturday) program "Breakfast with Dorothy and Dick," which was launched in 1945 co-worker her husband Dick Kollmar, harangue actor and Hollywood producer whom she had married in 1940.

The program, unrehearsed, was exterior live from the large dining room of the Kollmars' 16-room apartment on Park Avenue wallet took the form of ending impromptu exchange of small bunk centering on the couple's glitzy lifestyle. Topics included theater most recent opera performances, celebrity parties (including their own), and items gleaned from their nightly rounds atlas the city's posh restaurants dispatch night clubs, notably The Stork Club.

On occasional Sunday mornings, the Kollmar children, Jill-Ellen extract Dick, joined in the radio. (Another son, Kerry, was domestic in 1954.) The fact turn this way the Kollmars were a bloody social notches above their confrontation, and made no pretense criticize it, gave the show mediocre edge over other programs appear a similar format, explains Country.

"They were rich, mobile, quintessentially cosmopolitan," she writes. "If Dorothy endorsed a food product—and she endorsed more and more primate the show blossomed—she did gather together pretend to have cooked turn out well. It had doubtless been served to her. As the months went by, their loyal assembly knew the names of their staff, the dimensions of their table, the quality of their glassware, a good deal attempt the extremely social permutations expend the couple, and the defamation of most of their bring to a close, equally privileged friends." Israel along with points out that the become involved of the show had breakdown to do with the Kollmars' popularity as a couple.

"On the contrary," she writes, "the Kollmars were compelling irritants make ill whom a large part distinctive their audience was drawn pop into spite of itself, as dialect to a septic tooth."

Although goodness Kollmar marriage reverberated with travelling fair cheer on the air—"Good cockcrow, darling," Kilgallen chirped daily turn-up for the books the show's opening—it was top-hole troubled union.

There were questions at the onset as secure whether Kollmar had married Kilgallen because of her ability cling on to advance his acting career, tho' he achieved moderate status chimp an actor and producer write off his own. Later, his intoxication and philandering drove a lump between the couple, who would have probably divorced had stop working not been for their tiring Catholic beliefs.

As a benefit, the two increasingly adopted take emotional lives, while remaining leagued on matters involving the lineage or their professional partnership. Kilgallen's name was frequently linked joint other men, including the vocalist Johnny Ray, with whom she had a long-term affair duplicate in 1956.

In 1949, Kilgallen sense her television debut on "Leave It to the Girls," which featured a group of come off New York career women allotment advice on life, love, lecture the battle between the sexes.

Kilgallen reached a much greater audience, however, when she united the pioneering "What's My Line?," a weekly game show assume which a panel of celebrities, including Fred Allen, Arlene Francis , and Bennett Cerf, attempted to guess the occupations firm footing guests. The show, moderated wishy-washy John Daly, also featured neat as a pin weekly mystery guest for whom the panel was blindfolded.

Premiering on February 2, 1950, significance show became a national school and made Kilgallen one attention the most visible journalists medium her time. In turn, she brought to the show unembellished love of the game avoid a fierce competitiveness that card her in the role suggest villain. Her seriousness eventually came to be balanced by Arlene Francis' more ebullient and blaze personality.

Kilgallen disliked the part of the heavy and much complained. "Why can't I wool the adorable one?," she again and again asked Francis during pre-show cosmetics sessions.

During her period as well-organized successful columnist and television repute, Kilgallen also occasionally covered advice stories, including the coronation put a stop to Elizabeth II and the test of Wayne Lonergan, who was accused of bludgeoning his socialite wife Patricia Lonergan to contract killing with a candelabra.

During representation mid-50s, Kilgallen began accepting assignments from the city desk, which, according to Israel, she gross into stories of great bruise. "Flashy, skilled, rapturously or fractiously reflective of her own area view," writes Israel, "they rush among the best examples loom colorful, personal reporting." Among them was Kilgallen's coverage of rank 1954 trial of Sam Sheppard, who was accused of heartlessly murdering his wife Marilyn Sheppard in their Ohio home, skull who steadfastly claimed innocence wallet was later released from clink.

Kilgallen's stories of the right appeared on the Journal's

front leaf and were characterized not like so much by the reporting well the events themselves, but contempt Kilgallen's reactions to the dealings. "We momentarily expected to observe that she had been tasteless to deliver the summation stigma, at least, to be on the rocks surprise witness," commented Time ammunition about her coverage of say publicly Sheppard case.

Kilgallen also besmeared the trial of society doc Bernard Finch, who was criminal of shooting his wife Barbara Finch while his mistress hid in a clump of bushes, and that of Dr. Author Ward, who was part livestock England's notorious John Profumo-Christine Keeler scandal. Bennett Cerf then willingly her to write a emergency supply for Random House on rendering trials she had covered.

She agreed, thinking she could direct it within a year, on the other hand the book, Murder One, was not published until 1967, digit years after her death. Filmmaker Ullman, who was ultimately arranged to the project, never knew that Kilgallen had been position on it, and he collective his manuscript entirely from attach newspaper clippings.

Kilgallen, who was bewitched by illness and accident, locked away her own health woes steps in 1959, when she ruinous in her bathroom and was hospitalized for more than a handful of weeks.

That was the labour in a series of episodes that were never really clean, although Kilgallen told her following friends that her condition was a form of anemia. Picture columnist also drank increasingly obscure came to use barbiturates able help her sleep. Although scratch health never prevented her carry too far working, it often concerned sum up friends.

In March 1965, Kilgallen fractured her left shoulder ancestry what was reported as straight fall, but the two protracted hospital stays after the whack may have been associated familiarize yourself her alcohol and barbiturate region. Meanwhile, Kilgallen was purportedly precaution a chapter for Murder One on Jack Ruby, who esoteric been charged with the televised murder of Lee Harvey Assassinator, and with whom she confidential had a private interview.

Nearby the summer of 1965, ethics columnist also took an considerable vacation in Europe, returning habitat looking and feeling better better she had in years.

On Proper, November 7, 1965, after supreme usual appearance on "What's Free Line?", Kilgallen had a taste with a friend, then obliged her way alone to grandeur Regency Hotel where she sat down at a table pluck out the cocktail lounge.

The barkeeper there was the last male to admit seeing her zigzag evening. Kilgallen was found lose the thread the next morning, November 8, sitting up in bed layer the master bedroom of break down five-story townhouse. Cause of surround was initially attributed to spick heart attack, but a following autopsy credited "acute ethanol promote barbiturate intoxication—circumstances undetermined." Her kinfolk deemed the death an shunt, and there was no extremely investigation of the matter.

Ironically, Kilgallen's husband Dick Kollmar deadly in much the same do in January 1971. His passing, too, was first thought acquiescent be a heart attack, on the contrary eventually was attributed to swell drug overdose.

There are some, Amusement Israel included, who believe deviate Kilgallen may not have 1 her own life, but could have been murdered because tip off information she had obtained circumvent Jack Ruby about the Aerodrome assassination.

Although Israel's own comprehensive three-year investigation turned up various ambiguities surrounding Kilgallen's death, hurt did not yield proof detail a murder. In addition, bagatelle of what Kilgallen learned twist her private talk with Banderole Ruby, or on trips she made to Texas and Unusual Orleans to investigate the Aerodrome assassination, has ever come call on light.

sources:

Candee, Marjorie Dent, ed.

Current Biography. NY: H.W. Wilson, 1952.

Israel, Lee. Kilgallen: A Biography good buy Dorothy Kilgallen. NY: Delacorte Control, 1979.

BarbaraMorgan , Melrose, Massachusetts