Wednesday, May 16, 2007

Hotel St. Francis, San Francisco


Of course, I only found out why it was so famous after we'd already moved in and gotten ourselves situated. Apparently, our suite was the one in which Fatty Arbuckle, the famous silent movie star, murdered Virginia Rappe, a D-list actress. He was acquitted of the murder in trial (she probably died from complications resulting in a botched abortion) but it ruined his career. If you'd like to read more about it, click here.

And he's not the only one that made our room famous:

"The notorious (and most requested) Suite 1221 proved still more unlucky for singer Al Jolson, who died while playing poker there in 1950. The Al Jolson Society held a seance in the hard-luck suite, hoping to lure their hero. Jolson was a no-show, yet there are some staff members who believe that he, Arbuckle and Barrymore all haunt the halls. "