Thelma Todd
Suicide, Accident or Murder?!

Thelma Todd was a popular actress of the late 1920s and early 1930s. Born in Lawrence, MA in 1905, Todd was a schoolteacher and model before beginning her career in film. Appearing in over 40 movies between 1926 and 1935, she is best remembered for her comedic roles in films like Marx Brothers movies, Monkey Business and Horse Feathers. In the 1930s, she opened a restaurant, Thelma Todd's Sidewalk Cafe, and took up residence in a luxurious apartment above the cafe. Located near the ocean on the Roosevelt Highway at Catellammare, it became a popular meeting and eating place. It was in the garage of the Sidewalk Cafe on December 15, 1935, that she was found in her parked car, dead of carbon monoxide poisoning. Was it suicide or murder?

The Grand Jury investigation into her death yielded conflicting results. Spots of blood were found both on and in the car, and on Todd's mouth. This led to the theory that she might have been knocked out, then placed in the car by persons unknown. In support of this theory was the additional fact that her blood alcohol level was .13; enough, it was stated, to "stupefy" her. To further this theory, Todd would have had to ascend a steep flight of outdoor stairs after leaving the cafe to reach the garage, and the shoes she was wearing when her body was discovered were high-heeled sandals and were free of any dirt. Additionally, an unidentified, smudged handprint was found on the door of her car.

 
The Cafe and The Stairs

If it was murder, who might have had a motive, and was there any supporting evidence? Todd had been the victim of an extortion attempt, and had also just come through a rather acrimonious divorce that involved charges of spousal abuse. Investigators ultimately decided that neither of these occurrences were related to her death, and no other motives or suspects were revealed during the investigation.

The suicide theory was supported by the testimony of several witnesses at the Grand Jury investigation, who stated that Todd had been subject to depression, and often spoke of ending it all. It was also revealed that she was in trouble with the IRS, and on the verge of bankruptcy.

In the end, the Grand Jury ruled her death a suicide. But doubts remained, and the mystery lingers: What really happened to Thelma Todd on that December morning in 1935?

Thelma Todd Filmography

Bohemian Girl, The (1936) .... Gypsy queen's daughter
All-American Toothache (1936) .... Thelma
Top Flat (1935)
Hot Money (1935) .... Miss Thelma Todd
Twin Triplets (1935)
Slightly Static (1935)
Two for Tonight (1935) .... Lilly
After the Dance (1935) .... Mabel Kane
Misses Stooge, The (1935)
Tin Man, The (1935)
Sing, Sister, Sing (1935)
Treasure Blues (1935)
Bum Voyage (1934)
Lightning Strikes Twice (1934) .... Judith 'Judy' Nelson
Done in Oil (1934)
Opened by Mistake (1934)
Take the Stand (1934) .... Miss Sally Oxford
One Horse Farmers (1934)
Three Chumps Ahead (1934)
Cockeyed Cavaliers (1934) .... Lady Genevieve
I'll Be Suing You (1934) .... Miss Todd
Maid in Hollywood (1934)
Bottoms Up (1934) .... Judith Marlowe
Soup and Fish (1934)
Poor Rich, The (1934) .... Gwendolyn Fetherstone
Babes in the Goods (1934)
Hips, Hips, Hooray! (1934) .... Miss Frisby
Palooka (1934) .... Trixie
You Made Me Love You (1933) .... Pamela Berne
Air Fright (1933) .... Thelma
Son of a Sailor (1933) .... The Baroness
Counsellor at Law (1933) .... Lillian La Rue
Sitting Pretty (1933) .... Gloria Duval
Backs to Nature (1933)
Beauty and the Bus (1933)
Mary Stevens, M.D. (1933) .... Lois Rising
One Track Minds (1933)
Devil's Brother, The (1933) .... Lady Pamela Rocburg
Cheating Blondes (1933) .... Anne Merrick/Elaine Manners
Bargain of the Century, The (1933)
Maids a la Mode (1933)
Asleep in the Feet (1933) .... Thelma
Air Hostess (1933) .... Sylvia Carleton
Sneak Easily (1932) .... Miss Todd, Attorney for the Defense
Call Her Savage (1932) .... Sunny DeLan
Deception (1932) .... Lola Del Mont
Soilers, The (1932) .... Cameo appearance
Alum and Eve (1932)
Klondike (1932) .... Klondike
Show Business (1932) .... Thelma
Speak Easily (1932) .... Eleanor Espere
Horse Feathers (1932) .... Connie Bailey
Old Bull, The (1932)
Strictly Unreliable (1932)
This Is the Night (1932) .... Claire
Red Noses (1932) .... Miss Todd
Nickel Nurser, The (1932) .... Thelma Todd
Big Timer, The (1932) .... Kay Mitchell
Seal Skins (1932)
Voice of Hollywood No. 13, The (1932) .... Miss Information
On the Loose (1931)
Corsair (1931) (as Alison Loyd) .... Alison Corning
War Mamas (1931)
Pajama Party, The (1931)
Monkey Business (1931) .... Lucille Briggs
Catch as Catch Can (1931) .... Thelma
Broadminded (1931) .... Gertie Gardner
Maltese Falcon, The (1931) .... Iva Archer
Let's Do Things (1931)
Aloha (1931) .... Winifred Bradford
Rough Seas (1931) .... Antoinette
Love Fever (1931)
Hot Heiress, The (1931) .... Lola
Pip from Pittsburgh, The (1931) .... Thelma
Swanee River (1931) .... Caroline
Chickens Come Home (1931) .... Mrs. Hardy
Love Business (1931) (uncredited) .... Gag photo
No Limit (1931) .... Betty Royce
¡Pobre infeliz! (1930)
High C's (1930) .... Antoinette
Another Fine Mess (1930) .... Lady Plumtree
Looser Than Loose (1930)
Dollar Dizzy (1930) .... Miss Todd
Follow Thru (1930) .... Mrs. Van Horn
Her Man (1930) .... Nelly
King, The (1930)
Shrimp, The (1930)
All Teed Up (1930) .... Thelma
Whispering Whoopee (1930) .... Miss Todd
Fighting Parson, The (1930)
Real McCoy, The (1930) .... Thelma
Command Performance (1930) .... Lydia
Head Guy, The (1930)
Stepping Out (1929)
Sky Boy (1929)
Crazy Feet (1929)
Her Private Life (1929) .... Mrs. Leslie
Look Out Below (1929)
Hotter Than Hot (1929)
Snappy Sneezer (1929)
Careers (1929) .... Hortense
Bachelor Girl, The (1929) .... Gladys
Unaccustomed As We Are (1929) .... Mrs. Kennedy
House of Horror (1929) .... Thelma
Trial Marriage (1929) .... Grace
Seven Footprints to Satan (1929) .... Eve
Naughty Baby (1928) .... Bonnie Le Vonne
Haunted House, The (1928) .... The Nurse
Abie's Irish Rose (1928)
Crash, The (1928) .... Daisy McQueen
Heart to Heart (1928) .... Ruby Boyd
Vamping Venus (1928) .... Madame Vanezlos the Dancer/Venus
Noose, The (1928) .... Phyllis
Gay Defender, The (1927) .... Ruth Ainsworth
Shield of Honor, The (1927) .... Rose Fisher
Nevada (1927) .... Hettie Ide
Fireman, Save My Child (1927) (uncredited)
Rubber Heels (1927) .... Princess Aline
God Gave Me Twenty Cents (1926)
Fascinating Youth (1926) .... Lorraine Lane

Is This A Picture Of Thelma Todd?

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