DISCONTINUED: Council of Science Editors Book Club discussion

At this point in the book, we have learned a lot more about Oscar and his methods. In this case, do you think Oscar and any type of bias against Arbuckle? The author states “Oscar despised the actor and the Hollywood excess that he represented”. Over the years, do you think Oscar ever accepted the final verdict, or did he continue to feel that the jury got this one wrong?

I don't think he ever accepted the final verdict, but in my opinion, the jury made the right decision. I just don't think they had enough evidence to prove his guilt. So I do think that Oscar might have had some bias on this one. On a side note, we started the new HBO adaptation of Perry Mason, and there's a character in the first episode that I'm fairly sure must have been based on Fatty Arbuckle. If I hadn't read this book, I would not have caught the reference because I wasn't very familiar with him beyond recognizing the name.

I don't know if Heinrich was biased, but I think HE believed that he was right and no one was paying attention to his evidence. He was clearly a fact-driven guy, but sometimes holds fast to one piece of evidence without looking at the bigger picture. (My side note: there was a biopic in the works with Chris Farley set to play Fatty Arbuckle, before his own untimely death. I would love to have seen that! I'm sure Farley would have nailed it and maybe softened Arbuckle's tarnished reputation for modern audiences.)

I think maybe he had bias, but I agree with Becky in that he was probably more affected by the fact that no one was paying attention to the evidence.

While reading this chapter, it stood out to me when the author pointed out how public perception of Arbuckle changed during the trial. He went from beloved celebrity to someone that the industry and the public had essentially "cancelled". It's reminiscent of more recent events.