Hollywood legend Lana Turner, known for her iconic roles as a seductress on screen, may have had a real-life connection to murder.
According to film historian Darwin Porter, there is evidence suggesting that Turner could have killed her violent lover and allowed her daughter to take the blame.
Turner, who passed away in 1995 at the age of 74, was notorious for her tumultuous personal life, which included eight marriages and relationships with famous stars such as Clark Gable, Rex Harrison, and Frank Sinatra.
Turner achieved fame as an actress in films like “Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde” and “Peyton Place,” for which she received an Oscar nomination.
In the 1946 film “The Postman Always Rings Twice,” she portrayed a wife who plotted to kill her husband.
But it is her off-screen life that has raised questions about her involvement in a murder case.
In April 1958, Turner's 14-year-old daughter, Cheryl Crane, fatally stabbed Johnny Stompanato, a Mafia mobster, at their home in Beverly Hills.
The official verdict was justifiable homicide, as Crane claimed she acted in defense of her mother.
However, Porter's upcoming book, “Lana Turner: Hearts and Diamonds Take All,” reveals interviews with key figures from the case that paint a different picture.
Detective Fred Otash, who passed away in 1992, reportedly admitted to tampering with the crime scene alongside Turner's lawyer, Jerry Giesler.
Otash claimed that Giesler advised Turner to let her daughter take the blame because she would not face trial as a minor.
Otash said, “I was the one who wiped the fingerprints off the knife in Lana's bathroom sink.
I was a naughty boy doing what I'm not supposed to do.”
Close friends of Turner also allegedly confided in Porter, admitting that she privately confessed to the murder.
According to Otash, Giesler urgently called for his help after discovering Stompanato's lifeless body on Turner's bed.
Otash recalled Giesler saying, “Get… right over here.
Stompanato's on Lana's bed, which looks like a hog was butchered.”
It was revealed that Turner had purchased the kitchen knife just the day before as protection against Stompanato, who had been threatening her.
When she found him in bed with her daughter, she grabbed the knife from her nightstand and plunged it into his stomach.
Despite attempts by Otash and Giesler to cover up the crime, they were eventually exposed.
However, the case against them was closed after they claimed to possess a dossier on police chief Clinton Anderson that could end his career.
Turner's affair with Stompanato began in 1957, with him pursuing her relentlessly and showering her with gifts.
He had connections to LA mob boss Mickey Cohen and was involved in various illicit activities, including blackmailing Hollywood stars.
He was also known for his violence towards Turner, allegedly raping her and threatening her with a gun.
On the night of the murder, Stompanato reportedly threatened to harm Turner.
Another one of Turner's lovers, Peter Lawford, stated that she had called Sinatra to the murder scene, but he left before the police arrived.
Porter claims that “The Rat Packers” knew Turner was responsible for the murder.
Porter's book, co-written with Danforth Prince, will be released next month, shedding new light on the dark secrets of Lana Turner's life.
Known as “The Sweater Girl” after her appearance in the 1937 film “They Won't Forget,” Turner's legacy now includes speculation about her involvement in a real-life murder case.
