When Elizabeth Short showed up in Los Angeles during the 1940s, the small-town girl had big dreams of becoming a movie star. However, she would only achieve fame in death.
The 22-year-old’s naked corpse was found in a vacant lot on January 15, 1947. Short was scrubbed, cut in half and drained of blood.
The New England hopeful was viciously mutilated and a joker’s smile was carved on her face. Short would be nicknamed “The Black Dahlia” by the press after a 1946 film noir and her killing would spark all sorts of stories and theories that continue to frighten people decades later.
Short’s death became the subject of a 2006 film directed by Brian De Palma, starring Scarlett Johansson and Hilary Swank. It also inspired FX series “American Horror Story” in 2011, with Mena Suvari playing Short.
Now, a British lawyer determined to find out how a young girl from Medford, Mass. got caught up in the dark side of Hollywood, believes she may have solved the mystery of Hollywood’s most infamous murder.
In her new book “Black Dahlia, Red Rose,” Piu Eatwell attempts to shed light on Short’s brutal demise based on legal documents from the case, letters and grand jury testimony. Eatwell even tracked down some of the last living people with direct knowledge of the events at the time, and came up with a theory:
An ex-boyfriend, who was a former mortician’s assistant, did it.
In an interview with Fox News, Eatwell said her theory was confirmed by the son of a now-deceased Los Angeles policeman who was involved in the investigation.
The alleged murderer, Leslie Dillon, entered Short’s life by way of her landlord Mark Hansen, a shady Hollywood mogul-type who seemed obsessed with the young beauty.
Eatwell claimed that like many girls seeking their big break, Short was lured by the wealthy businessman, who promised a bright future ahead.
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SOURCE: Fox News, Stephanie Nolasco
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