Above is a photo of Lila Leeds, circa 1949. Leeds started in Hollywood as a hatcheck girl, quickly married conductor Jack Little, and eventually scored roles in films such as Moonrise, and So, You Want To Be a Detective. But her film roles paled in comparison to the lasting notoriety she achieved for being arrested with Robert Mitchum in 1948 for possession of marijuana. She spent sixty days in jail, and was released to discover that her career was over. She did manage one more film role, the ironically titled She Shoulda Said No!, but soon was forced to leave Hollywood behind. According to another notorious Hollywood arrestee, Cheryl Crane, Leeds had picked up a heroin habit while in prison, which hindered her attempts to get her career back on track at least as much as her ruined reputation. Leeds eventually died in obscurity. That was ten years ago today.
1933—Franklin Roosevelt Survives Assassination Attempt
In Miami, Florida, Giuseppe Zangara attempts to shoot President-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt, but is restrained by a crowd and, in the course of firing five wild shots, hits five people, including Chicago, Illinois Mayor Anton J. Cermak, who dies of his wounds three weeks later. Zangara is quickly tried and sentenced to eighty years in jail for attempted murder, but is later convicted of murder when Cermak dies. Zangara is sentenced to death and executed in Florida’s electric chair.