Murder & Merlot: A Murder in Hollywood

Murder & Merlot is a true crime book club that meets the second Tuesday of every month at Mimi's Retreat. Join us for a glass and a discussion of classic and modern works of true crime. The books we read will be selected by members. All attendees must be over 21 and have valid ID. On September 8th, from 6:00 - 7:00 pm, we'll discuss A Murder in Hollywood: The Untold Story of Tinseltown's Most Shocking Crime by Casey Sherman. Description of A Murder in Hollywood from Book Riot: New York Times bestselling true crime author Casey Sherman pulls back Tinseltown’s velvet curtain to reveal its dark underbelly through the shocking murder of Hollywood darling, Lana Turner Hollywood starlet Lana Turner was one Tinseltown’s most recognizable faces in the 1940s and 50s. But, when the Academy Award-winning actress began dating mobster Johnny Stompanato—a thug for west coast mob boss Mickey Cohen—all the lights and glamor of Hollywood did not brighten the darkness of her personal life. Johnny’s intense jealousy over Lana ruled their relationship from the get-go and Lana’s daughter, Cheryl, witnessed her mother’s bruises and abuse first-hand. On an infamous night in 1958, Lana attempted to break it off with Johnny but he predictably turned violent and Cheryl tried to protect her mother with a knife, killing him. The subsequent murder trial made for the biggest headlines of the year, its drama eclipsing every Hollywood movie. In Murder in Hollywood, Casey Sherman pulls back Tinseltown’s velvet curtain to reveal a dark underbelly of celebrity, rife with toxic masculinity and casual violence against women. But in this case, Lana Turner and her daughter finally stood up, which makes for one of the 20th century's most notorious true crime stories. ______________________________________ “The truth, of course, was much weirder: I was foregoing a fancy Hollywood party to return not to my sleeping infant but my laptop, to excavate through the night in search of information about a man I’d never met, who’d murdered people I didn’t know.” - Michelle McNamara, I'll Be Gone in the Dark