Follow Us
The Christian Science Monitor's books blog, Chapter & Verse, featured a Q&A with Greg Merritt, author of ROOM 1219: The Life of Fatty Arbuckle, the Mysterious Death of Virginia Rappe, and the Scandal That Changed Hollywood. Go behind the scenes and learn more about silent film star Fatty - and Merritt's research - here.
ROOM 1219: The Life of Fatty Arbuckle, the Mysterious Death of Virginia Rappe, and the Scandal That Changed Hollywood was positively reviewed in The Shortlist section of The New York Times Book Review. "Merritt’s account of the crime (if there was one), the three trials and the people involved is admirably evenhanded, meticulously researched and compelling."
In this Q&A, Greg Merritt, author of ROOM 1219: The Life of Fatty Arbuckle, the Mysterious Death of Virginia Rappe, and the Scandal That Changed Hollywood, discusses how he was drawn to Arbuckle's story, the advent of Hollywood superstardom, and what bearing Arbuckle's trials had on the film industry.
ROOM 1219: The Life of Fatty Arbuckle, the Mysterious Death of Virginia Rappe, and the Scandal That Changed Hollywood was positively reviewed in the Boston Globe. The reviewer says, "Film historian Greg Merritt gives readers a deeply textured portrait of a long-ago Hollywood."
Click here to read the full review.
ROOM 1219: The Life of Fatty Arbuckle, the Mysterious Death of Virginia Rappe, and the Scandal That Changed Hollywood received a starred review in the September 13th Xpress Reviews of Library Journal. The reviewer says, "This great read makes its subject easy to understand, while also providing a peek at Hollywood in its early years."
Read the full review here.ROOM 1219: The Life of Fatty Arbuckle, the Mysterious Death of Virginia Rappe, and the Scandal That Changed Hollywood was positively reviewed in the San Francisco Chronicle.
The reviewer says, "Greg Merritt has superbly detailed the drama of Arbuckle and Rappe's lives and their impact on the film industry" and "Merritt has written a gripping account of two short lives made eternally famous by scandal, and he gives keen insights on the Hollywood of an earlier era and a hungry public's ever-increasing desire for more on the 80-year-old case. It is a book well worth reading."
Click here to read the full review.
ROOM 1219: The Life of Fatty Arbuckle, the Mysterious Death of Virginia Rappe, and the Scandal That Changed Hollywood was featured on Flavorwire.com in an article entitled "10 Classic Hollywood Scandals That Would Make TMZ Blush."
ROOM 1219: The Life of Fatty Arbuckle, the Mysterious Death of Virginia Rappe, and the Scandal That Changed Hollywood was featured in an article on the Boston Herald blog "Hollywood & Mine." The article says "Room 1219 is a fascinating new book, bursting with first-rate, cobweb-cleaning research and source notes..."
Click here to read the full article.
ROOM 1219: The Life of Fatty Arbuckle, the Mysterious Death of Virginia Rappe, and the Scandal That Changed Hollywood was reviewed in the July 29th issue of Shelf Awareness. The reviewer says "What Merritt brings to an old story is a look beyond the scandal, showing how it became a contemporary symbol of Hollywood's immorality—and a defining moment for the film industry."
Click here to read the full review.
ROOM 1219: The Life of Fatty Arbuckle, the Mysterious Death of Virginia Rappe, and the Scandal That Changed Hollywood was positively reviewed in Publishers Weekly. The reviewer says "Lovers of film history, media studies, and true crime will enjoy the parallels between the film boom of the early 20th century and the tech boom of today."
Click here to read the full review.
ROOM 1219: The Life of Fatty Arbuckle, the Mysterious Death of Virginia Rappe, and the Scandal That Changed Hollywood received a starred review in the June 15th issue of Kirkus Reviews.
The reviewer says "[Greg] Merritt displays great compassion for all involved, especially the two principals, both of whom have suffered at the hands of both formal and informal biographers," and calls the book "the definitive account of one of Hollywood's most notorious scandals."