Virginia Caroline Rappe was an American model and silent film actress. Working mostly in bit parts, Rappe died after attending a party with actor Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle, who was accused of manslaughter and rape in connection with her death, though he was ultimately acquitted of both charges.
Virginia Rappe c. 1920
Rappe's casket arrives in Los Angeles, September 17, 1921.
Casket of Virginia Rappe
The gravesite of Virginia Rappe (with incorrect birth year) at Hollywood Forever Cemetery, maintained by The Silent Film Cemetery Project
Roscoe Conkling "Fatty" Arbuckle was an American silent film actor, director, and screenwriter. He started at the Selig Polyscope Company and eventually moved to Keystone Studios, where he worked with Mabel Normand and Harold Lloyd as well as with his nephew, Al St. John. He also mentored Charlie Chaplin, Monty Banks and Bob Hope, and brought vaudeville star Buster Keaton into the movie business. Arbuckle was one of the most popular silent stars of the 1910s and one of the highest-paid actors in Hollywood, signing a contract in 1920 with Paramount Pictures for $1,000,000 a year.
Arbuckle c. 1916
Fatty Arbuckle ad from The Film Daily, 1932
Arbuckle with his and Minta Durfee's dog Luke, c. 1919
Frequent co-star Mabel Normand