William R. Wilkerson: Difference between revisions
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'''William Richard "Billy" Wilkerson''' (September 29, 1890 – September 2, 1962) was the founder of the ''[[Hollywood Reporter]]'',<ref>{{cite news| |
'''William Richard "Billy" Wilkerson''' (September 29, 1890 – September 2, 1962) was the founder of the ''[[Hollywood Reporter]]'',<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/search/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000845239 |title=Hollywood Reporter |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/20071004235107/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com:80/hr/search/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000845239 |archivedate=October 4, 2007 }}</ref> the [[Flamingo Hotel]]<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/search/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000968720 | title=Vegas | deadurl=yes}} {{Dead link|date=June 2012|bot=RjwilmsiBot}}</ref> and owner of such nightclubs as [[Ciro's]]. He was also responsible for discovering actress [[Lana Turner]] across the street from [[Hollywood High School]].<ref>[http://www.lanaturneronline.com/biographical_information%20about%20Lana.htm Biographical Information<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> In 1946 he began a series of columns in the ''Hollywood Reporter'', listing suspected Communist sympathizers; "Billy's List" provided the foundation for what became the [[Hollywood blacklist]]. <ref name="Baum">{{cite news |last1=Baum |first1=Gary |last2= Miller |first2=Daniel |title=Blacklist: THR Addresses Role After 65 Years |date=November 30, 2012|work=Hollywood Reporter |url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/blacklist-thr-addresses-role-65-391931 |accessdate=20 November 2012}}</ref> |
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==Personal life== |
==Personal life== |
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===''The Hollywood Reporter''=== |
===''The Hollywood Reporter''=== |
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Wilkerson published the first issue of the ''Hollywood Reporter'' on September 3, 1930.<ref>{{cite news| |
Wilkerson published the first issue of the ''Hollywood Reporter'' on September 3, 1930.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/search/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000845237 |title=Paper |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/20071009101949/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com:80/hr/search/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000845237 |archivedate=October 9, 2007 }}</ref> He began each issue with a self-penned editorial entitled "Tradeviews", which proved highly influential. It was in these columns that he helped to initiate the "[[red scare]]" that led to the [[Hollywood blacklist]]. |
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===Los Angeles and Las Vegas=== |
===Los Angeles and Las Vegas=== |
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Revision as of 22:04, 23 January 2016
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (September 2015) |
William R. Wilkerson | |
|---|---|
| Born | William Richard Wilkerson September 29, 1890 |
| Died | September 2, 1962 (aged 71) |
| Resting place | Holy Cross Cemetery, Culver City, California |
| Occupation(s) | Publisher, businessman |
| Spouse(s) | Helen Durkin Edith Gwynn Goldenhorn Rita Ann Seward Estelle Jackson Brown Vivian DuBois Beatrice Ruby Noble |
William Richard "Billy" Wilkerson (September 29, 1890 – September 2, 1962) was the founder of the Hollywood Reporter,[1] the Flamingo Hotel[2] and owner of such nightclubs as Ciro's. He was also responsible for discovering actress Lana Turner across the street from Hollywood High School.[3] In 1946 he began a series of columns in the Hollywood Reporter, listing suspected Communist sympathizers; "Billy's List" provided the foundation for what became the Hollywood blacklist. [4]
Personal life
Wilkerson was born in Nashville, Tennessee, on September 29, 1890. He began to study medicine in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but when his father died leaving extensive gambling debts, Wilkerson quit school to support himself and his mother. He became a compulsive gambler himself, but quit when his son was born in October 1951.
Wilkerson had been in relatively poor health throughout the latter half of the 1950s due to decades of excessive smoking. He continued to head The Hollywood Reporter and write his daily Tradeviews column until his death. Wilkerson died of a heart attack on September 2, 1962, at his Bel-Air home, one day before the Hollywood Reporter′s 32nd anniversary. He is interred at Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City.
Wilkerson was married six times. His wives were:
- Helen Durkin - probably around 1913 or 1914 - probably New York or Fort Lee, New Jersey - Durkin died in the Spanish Influenza Epidemic of 1918.
- Edith Gwynn Goldenhorn - June 22, 1927 - Los Angeles, CA - August 7, 1935 - Cd. Juárez, Mexico
- Rita Ann Seward - September 30, 1935 - Las Vegas - May 9, 1938 - Los Angeles, CA
- Estelle Jackson Brown - December 12, 1939 - Las Vegas, NV - August 13, 1942 - Reno, NV
- Vivian DuBois - May 9, 1946 - Las Vegas, NV - March 14, 1950 - Los Angeles, CA
- Beatrice Ruby Noble - February 23, 1951 - Phoenix, AZ - His death
Career
When a friend won a Fort Lee, New Jersey movie theater in a bet, Wilkerson agreed to manage it in exchange for half the profits. Expanding his work in the movie industry, he became district manager at Universal Pictures under Carl Laemmle.
The Hollywood Reporter
Wilkerson published the first issue of the Hollywood Reporter on September 3, 1930.[5] He began each issue with a self-penned editorial entitled "Tradeviews", which proved highly influential. It was in these columns that he helped to initiate the "red scare" that led to the Hollywood blacklist.
Los Angeles and Las Vegas
Wilkerson opened a series of social nightspots on Los Angeles' Sunset Strip. Seeing opportunities in Las Vegas, he made key investments there as well.
Restaurants, nightclubs and hotels that Wilkerson started:
- Vendome Wine & Spirits Co. (1933)
- Cafe Trocadero (1934)
- Sunset House (1936) (haberdashery & barbershop)
- The Arrowhead Springs Hotel (1939)
- Ciro's (1940)
- LaRue (of Hollywood) (1943?)
- The Flamingo Hotel (1945)
- L'Aiglon (1947)
- LaRue (of Las Vegas) (1950)
References
- ^ "Hollywood Reporter". Archived from the original on October 4, 2007.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Vegas".
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) [dead link] - ^ Biographical Information
- ^ Baum, Gary; Miller, Daniel (November 30, 2012). "Blacklist: THR Addresses Role After 65 Years". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 20 November 2012.
- ^ "Paper". Archived from the original on October 9, 2007.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help)
Further reading
- The Man Who Invented Las Vegas by W.R. Wilkerson III (Ciro's Books Publishing, 2000 ISBN 0-9676643-0-6)
External links
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
