In Paris, Olive and Jack embarked on their second honeymoon at the renowned Hotel Ritz.
The couple indulged in the luxuries of the city, rubbing shoulders with celebrities like Marcel Proust and the Fitzgeralds.
While Jack had to leave for London temporarily, Olive remained occupied with numerous friends and extravagant parties.
When Jack returned, they continued to explore the opulent side of Parisian life.
One fateful night, after returning to their hotel in the early morning hours, Jack became the sole witness to a tragic incident that unfolded inside their room.
As Jack lay in bed, his wife entered the bathroom to take medication for her headache.
Suddenly, Olive exclaimed, “Oh my God!”
Alarmed, Jack rushed to her side only to find her holding a bottle of toxic mercury bichloride, which she had mistakenly ingested.
He immediately called for a doctor, who swiftly pumped Olive’s stomach and rushed her to the hospital.
Tragically, she lost her sight and her vocal cords corroded, leading to her death five days before her 26th birthday.
The media, fascinated by Hollywood’s power couple, sensationalized the incident.
Headlines questioned whether Olive had committed suicide, if Jack had poisoned her, or if Parisian nightlife was to blame.
Columnists criticized Hollywood as a den of debauchery and lawlessness.
Fans mourned the loss of their “angelic” beauty, painting her as a victim of the film industry’s immoral ways.
Despite a Paris physician ruling Olive’s death as an accident, the circumstances surrounding her demise left a lingering shadow over Hollywood.
Olive, born Oliva R. Duffy on October 20, 1894, in Charleroi, Pennsylvania, had humble beginnings.
Leaving school at 15, she worked as a shop girl to support her widowed mother.
Despite marrying at a young age, Olive yearned for a life in the big city.
Described as truly beautiful, with golden ringlet curls and porcelain skin, Olive caught the attention of New York City when she won a modeling competition for “The Most Beautiful Girl.”
Her picture in the papers led to her introduction into Hollywood society, with artist Harrison Fisher dubbing her “The Most Beautiful Girl in the World.”
Olive soon auditioned for Ziegfeld Follies, a popular showgirl chorus, where she became adored and showered with expensive gifts.
Her reputation as an angelic figure grew, with one journalist describing her as such.
She divorced her first husband on grounds of desertion and cruelty.
Hollywood beckoned Olive, and she made her screen debut in the Beatrice Fairfax film series in 1916.
Later, she signed an exclusive contract with Triangle Pictures, moving to California and immersing herself in various aspects of film production.
During this time, she fell in love with actor Jack Pickford, brother of Mary Pickford, and they secretly married.
Their relationship was passionate yet tumultuous, with Jack’s infidelity and eventual contraction of syphilis causing further strain.
Tragically, the mercury bichloride that poisoned Olive was a medication used to treat Jack’s illness.
News of their marriage brought intense media scrutiny, delving into their affairs, parties, and even suspicious car crashes.
The public craved every detail.
As Olive’s contract with Triangle came to an end, Selznick Pictures offered her a new deal.
She starred in eight films per year, releasing a new movie every six weeks.
Among them was “The Flapper,” her most successful film, which depicted the rebellious spirit of 1920s youth.
However, it was overshadowed by the tragic events that unfolded at the Paris Ritz on August 20, 1920.
Olive’s death marked the end of Hollywood’s golden age and signaled the beginning of the Roaring Twenties.
It became the first scandal to expose Hollywood’s dark side, leading to the inclusion of morality clauses in contracts.
Despite the industry’s sordid reputation, fame-seekers flocked to Hollywood, hoping for overnight success.
The city’s population surged as people were captivated by its alluring yet disturbing spectacle.
A 1922 New York Herald editorial painted a bleak picture of Hollywood, describing it as a community of dissolute actors and actresses immersed in vice.
For years to come, Olive Thomas’ mysterious tragedy continued to captivate people’s imaginations.
Although most of her films have been lost or destroyed, she will forever be remembered as the star at the center of Hollywood’s first major scandal.
