American television personality and journalist Dorothy Mae Kilgallen. She was a well-known face on television and was most recognized for her nearly fifteen years as a panelist on the game program “What’s My Line?” She was also well-known for writing the syndicated “The Voice of Broadway” column that appeared in over 140 daily newspapers. She occasionally made political comments in her essays and expressed her opinions about the nation’s organized crime. Dorothy developed a reputation for being outspoken throughout her journalistic career, which she began at the age of only eighteen. She also got into her fair share of disputes. After writing a feature story about the legendary American singer and actor Frank Sinatra titled “The Frank Sinatra Story,” she became embroiled in a dispute with him. Later, she became embroiled in a larger dispute over the Sam Sheppard murder trial case, which she claimed had “severe faults” and wasn’t conducted fairly. She also wrote down her opinions on the Warren Commission’s case report and the Kennedy assassination. In addition to these well-known instances, she also contributed to others, such as the 1934 trials of Anna Antonio and the 1935 trial of German-born carpenter Bruno Richard Hauptmann, who was found guilty of kidnapping and killing a 20-month-old baby.
Early Childhood & Life
On July 3, 1913, Dorothy Mae Kilgallen was born in Chicago, Illinois, to Mae Ahern and James Lawrence Kilgallen, a former newspaper reporter. Eleanor was her younger sister, and she lost her in 2014.
Her family relocated to New York City after her father’s business, International News Service, posted him there. After graduating from Erasmus Hall High School, she enrolled at The College of New Rochelle, where she spent two semesters before deciding to leave to pursue a career in journalism.
Career of Dorothy Kilgallen
Dorothy Kilgallen decided to pursue a career in journalism and was hired by the Hearst Corporation, the parent firm of her father’s employer’s International News Service, to work at the “New York Evening Journal,” which was owned by the Hearst Corporation.
She participated in the 1936 “race around the world,” which let her and her rivals, fellow journalists Bud Ekins of the “New York World-Telegram” and Leo Kieran of the “New York Times,” use only public transportation.
Only Bud Ekins, who finished the race in 21 days and 3 days ahead of Dorothy, beat her in that race. She chronicled every detail of her 24-day adventure in her book “Girl Around the World,” which eventually served as the basis for the plot of the Frank McDonald film “Fly-Away Baby.”
Constance Campbell Bennett, a well-known actress and one of the highest-paid movie stars, served Dorothy Kilgallen with a libel complaint, putting her in the judicial system for the first time. While residing in Hollywood, Kilgallen wrote a column on her in which he said the actress was losing her following and experiencing a fall in her career.
She subsequently began her career at the “New York Journal-American,” where she wrote her own daily column called “Voice of Broadway,” which primarily covered news about the entertainment industry and pop culture. She occasionally published her opinions on politics and organized crime, and quickly her work became so well-liked that King Features Syndicate syndicated it to 146 newspapers.
Dorothy Kilgallen joined a game show that aired on the CBS television network in 1950. She was one of the numerous panelists and quickly gained a lot of adoring followers.
She published a number of pieces in daily newspapers about the Kennedy assassination case and the Warren Commission’s handling of it. She had a lot of doubts about how the commission handled the matter and how the reports turned out. She was able to obtain a copy of Jack Ruby’s Warren Commission testimony, and she published it on the front page of the Journal American’s August 1964 issue.
Bigger Works of Dorothy Kilgallen
As a member of the ‘What’s My Line?’ panel, Dorothy Kilgallen amassed a sizable following. She appeared on the program for more than fifteen years alongside panelists Bennett Cerf, Arlene Francis, and Hal Block. She began working on the program in 1950 and continued doing so until her death in 1967.
Her regular “Voice of Broadway” piece in the “New York Journal-American” helped her establish a reputation for being an accomplished journalist. Her column got distributed to over 140 newspapers and largely featured articles about gossip and the show industry. She occasionally wrote essays on the nation’s politics and organized crime.
Disputes and scandals
Throughout her career, Dorothy Kilgallen had to deal with her fair share of controversy, the most significant of which being the Sam Sheppard murder trial. She noted that the prosecution’s case had many problems and openly questioned the trial’s verdict, which found the defendant guilty of murdering his wife at their house by beating her to death. She also wrote about the trial, and her scathing critique of how the case was handled garnered a lot of attention. Eventually, a newspaper stopped publishing her writings.
Recognition & Achievements
According to the records of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, Dorothy Kilgallen was among the first 500 individuals to be awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Hollywood Boulevard.
Individual Life of Dorothy Kilgallen
On April 6, 1940, Dorothy Kilgallen wed American stage, radio, cinema, and television actor Richard Tompkins Kollmar; the couple went on to have three kids.
On November 8, 1965, her body was discovered in her five-story Manhattan townhouse. Her father had suggested that she may have had a heart attack, but the postmortem ruled that out and determined that alcohol and barbiturates were the cause of death.
At St. Vincent Ferrer, where her burial was planned, a sizable mass assembled. Joseph E. Levine, Bob Considine, Joan Crawford, John Daly, Arlene Francis, and Ed Sullivan were among the well-known attendees.
An investigation was started in January 1966 to see if there was any foul play involved in her passing. However, it was shut down after eight months since there was no proof of wrongdoing.
Estimated Net Worth
The estimated net worth of Dorothy Kilgallen is unknown.