The Biltmore Doorman

Nov. 1, 1960: I always have my eye out for stories about doormen at the Biltmore after researching the often-repeated myth about the “noble doorman” at the hotel, tipping his cap and opening the door for the Black Dahlia when she disappeared in 1947. “He observed her trim form swinging south on Olive Street toward Sixth, the slim legs striding easily, the red heels tapping purposefully on the sidewalk,” or so the folktale says.  In fact, this story doesn’t appear anywhere in the original news coverage or in any official documents I have ever examined. It seems to have been invented by Jack Webb for “The Badge,” which is notable as the first version of the Dahlia story in which Elizabeth Short is portrayed as a downbeat drifter. Webb treats all the victims in “The Badge” with snide, superior commentary, particularly Karil Graham, who was killed by Donald Keith Bashor.