Robert Blake (born September 18, 1933) is an Italian-American actor who starred in the film
In Cold BloodIn Cold Blood is a 1966 book by Truman Capote.In Cold Blood may also refer to:* In Cold Blood , a 1967 film and 1996 miniseries, both based on the book* In Cold Blood , an album by Malevolent Creation...
and the U.S. television series
BarettaBaretta is a American detective television series which ran on ABC from 1975 to 1978. The show was a milder version of a successful 1973–74 ABC series, Toma, starring Tony Musante as chameleon-like, real-life New Jersey police officer David Toma...
. In 2005, he was tried and
acquittedIn the common law tradition, an acquittal formally certifies the innocence of the accused, as far as the criminal law is concerned. This is so even where the prosecution is abandoned nolle prosequi...
for the 2001 murder of his wife, but on November 18, 2005, Blake was found liable for her wrongful death.
Blake was born
Michael James Vincenzo Gubitosi in
Nutley, New JerseyNutley is a township in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the township population was 27,362. For 2008, the population of Nutley is estimated to be over 30,000 residents....
, to Giacomo Gubitosi (1906-1956) and Elizabeth Cafone (b.
Robert Blake (born September 18, 1933) is an Italian-American actor who starred in the film
In Cold BloodIn Cold Blood is a 1966 book by Truman Capote.In Cold Blood may also refer to:* In Cold Blood , a 1967 film and 1996 miniseries, both based on the book* In Cold Blood , an album by Malevolent Creation...
and the U.S. television series
BarettaBaretta is a American detective television series which ran on ABC from 1975 to 1978. The show was a milder version of a successful 1973–74 ABC series, Toma, starring Tony Musante as chameleon-like, real-life New Jersey police officer David Toma...
. In 2005, he was tried and
acquittedIn the common law tradition, an acquittal formally certifies the innocence of the accused, as far as the criminal law is concerned. This is so even where the prosecution is abandoned nolle prosequi...
for the 2001 murder of his wife, but on November 18, 2005, Blake was found liable for her wrongful death.
Early life
Blake was born
Michael James Vincenzo Gubitosi in
Nutley, New JerseyNutley is a township in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the township population was 27,362. For 2008, the population of Nutley is estimated to be over 30,000 residents....
, to Giacomo Gubitosi (1906-1956) and Elizabeth Cafone (b. 1910). His brother was James Gubitosi (1930-1995) and his sister Giovanna Gubitosi (1932-1985).
His father was born in
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
, arriving in the United States in 1907, and his mother was an Italian-American born in New Jersey. They married in 1929. In 1930, James worked as a die setter for a can manufacturer. Eventually, James and Elizabeth began a song-and-dance act. In 1936, the three children began performing, billed as "The Three Little Hillbillies." They moved to
Los AngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the municipality of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123.445 inhabitants...
,
CaliforniaCalifornia is the most populous state in the United States, and the third largest by area. California is the second most populous sub-national entity in the Americas, behind only São Paulo, Brazil...
, in 1938, where the children began working as
movieFilm encompasses individual motion pictures, the field of film as an art form, and the motion picture industry. Films are produced by recording images from the world with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects....
extraAn extra, also called a background actor, is a performer in a film, television show, stage, musical, opera or ballet production, who appears in a nonspeaking, nonsinging or nondancing capacity, usually in the background...
s.
Child actor
Then known as Mickey Gubitosi, his acting
careerCareer is a term defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as an individual's "course or progress through life "...
began when he appeared as Toto in the
MGMMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc., or MGM, is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B...
movie
Bridal Suite (
1939The year 1939 in film involved some significant events.- Events :Movie historians and film buffs often look back on 1939 as "the greatest year in film history"...
) starring Annabella and
Robert YoungRobert George Young was an American actor, best known for his leading roles of Jim Anderson, the father of Father Knows Best and physician Marcus Welby in Marcus Welby, M.D. ....
. Gubitosi then began appearing in MGM's
Our GangOur Gang, also known as The Little Rascals or Hal Roach's Rascals, was a series of American comedy short films about a group of poor neighborhood children and the adventures they had together. Created by comedy producer Hal Roach, Our Gang was produced at the Roach studio starting in 1922 as a...
short subjects under his real name, replacing Eugene "Porky" Lee. He appeared in 40 of the shorts between 1939 and 1944, eventually becoming the series' final lead character. James and Jovanni Gubitosi also made appearances in the series as extras.
During his early
Our Gang period, Gubitosi's character, Mickey, was often called upon to cry, and the young actor has been criticized for being unsubtle and unconvincing. He was also criticized for being obnoxious and whiny. In 1942, he acquired the
stage nameA stage name, also called a showbiz name or screen name, is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers such as actors, comedians, and musicians.-Motivation to use a stage name:...
Bobby Blake and his character in the series was renamed "Mickey Blake." In 1944, MGM discontinued
Our Gang, releasing the final short in the series
Dancing RomeoDancing Romeo is a 1944 Our Gang short comedy film directed by Cyril Endfield. Produced and released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, it was the 220th, and final, Our Gang short to be released. -Plot:...
on April 29.
To date, Gubitosi is one of the few living
Our Gang actors from the original series. Other notable surviving members are
Dorothy DeBorbaDorothy Adelle DeBorba is a former American 1930s child actress who was a regular in the Our Gang short subjects series from 1930 to 1933. She is of Portuguese Azorean ancestry.-Our Gang:...
,
Dickie MooreDickie Moore is a former American child actor. Besides appearing in a number of major feature films, he was featured as a regular in the Our Gang series during the 1932-1933 season...
,
Jean DarlingJean Darling is a former American child actress who was a regular in the Our Gang short subjects series from 1927 to 1929.-Career:...
,
Sidney KibrickSidney Kibrick is an American former child actor, most notable for appearing in the Our Gang short subjects series from 1935 to 1939. From 1937 to 1939, he portrayed "The Woim", the sidekick of the neighborhood bully "Butch", played by Tommy Bond.He is the brother of the late Leonard Kibrick,...
,
Jerry TuckerJerry Tucker is a former American child actor, most notable for appearing as the "rich kid" in the Our Gang short subjects series semi-regularly from 1931 to 1938...
,
Jackie CooperJackie Cooper is an American actor, TV director, TV producer and executive. He was a child actor who managed to transition to an adult career...
and
Jackie Lynn TaylorJackie Lynn Taylor is an American former child actress, notable for appearing in five Our Gang short subjects in 1934–1935. She often portrayed the sister or girlfriend of one of the boys, usually Wally Albright.-Our Gang:...
.
In
1944The year 1944 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*July 20 - Since You Went Away is released.*September 6 - Double Indemnity is released.-Top grossing films :- Awards :Academy Awards:...
, Blake began playing an Indian boy, "Little Beaver," in the
Red RyderRed Ryder a popular American fictional cowboy from the 1940s, was created by Stephen Slesinger and artist Fred Harman. Beginning Sunday, November 6, 1938, Red Ryder was syndicated by Newspaper Enterprise Association, expanding over the following decade to 750 newspapers with a readership of 14...
Western series at Republic Pictures, appearing in twenty-three of the movies until
1947The year 1947 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*May 22 - Great Expectations is premiered in New York.*November 24 : The United States House of Representatives of the 80th Congress voted 346 to 17 to approve citations for contempt of Congress against the "Hollywood Ten."*November 25...
. He also had roles in one of
Laurel and HardyLaurel and Hardy were a popular comedy team composed of thin, English-born Stan Laurel and heavy, American-born Oliver Hardy . They became famous during the early half of the 20th century for their work in motion pictures and also appeared on stage throughout America and Europe.The two comedians...
's later films
The Big NoiseThe Big Noise is a 1944 comedy film starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. It was produced by Sol M. Wurtzel and directed by Mal St.Clair. It is regarded by many film critics and Laurel and Hardy historians as being among the duo's worst films.-Plot:...
(
1944The year 1944 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*July 20 - Since You Went Away is released.*September 6 - Double Indemnity is released.-Top grossing films :- Awards :Academy Awards:...
), and the
Warner Bros.Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc. Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc. Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc. (also known as Warner Bros. Pictures, or simply Warner Bros.—the shortened form of the former official, sometimes still used, formal corporate name: Warner Brothers
movies HumoresqueHumoresque is a genre of romantic music characterized by pieces with fanciful humor in the sense of mood rather than wit. Notable examples of the humoresque style are Schumann's Humoreske in B-flat major , and Dvořák's set of eight Humoresques , of which the one in G-flat major is well known....
(1946The year 1946 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*November 21 - William Wyler's The Best Years of Our Lives premieres in New York featuring an ensemble cast including Fredric March, Myrna Loy, Dana Andrews, Teresa Wright, and Harold Russell.*December 20 - Frank Capra's It's a...
), playing John GarfieldJohn Garfield was an American actor. Garfield was especially adept at playing brooding, rebellious, working-class character roles...
's character as a child, and The Treasure of the Sierra MadreThe Treasure of the Sierra Madre is John Huston's American feature film adaptation of B. Traven's novel of the same name, in which two penurious Americans during 1920s in Mexico join with an old-timer to prospect for gold. The old-timer accurately predicts trouble, but is willing to go anyway...
(1948), playing the MexicanThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
boy who sells Humphrey BogartHumphrey DeForest Bogart was an American actor.After trying various jobs, Bogart began acting in 1921 and became a regular in Broadway productions in the 1920s and 1930s. When the stock market crash of 1929 reduced the demand for plays, Bogart turned to film...
a winning lottery ticket, getting a glass of water thrown in his face in the process.
According to Blake, he had an unhappy childhood with a miserable home life and was abused by his alcoholic father. When he entered public school at age ten, he could not understand why the other children were hostile to him. He had fights, which led to his expulsion. When he was fourteen, he ran away from home. The next few years were a reportedly difficult period in his life.
Career as an adult
In 1950, Blake joined the ArmyThe United States Army is the branch of the United States Military responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military and is one of seven uniformed services...
. After returning to Southern CaliforniaSouthern California, or SoCal, is defined as the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its population centers around three major metropolitan areas, each of which have over 3 million people; the Los Angeles Metropolitan Area with over 12 million inhabitants, the San Bernardino-Riverside...
, he entered Jeff CoreyJeff Corey was an American stage and screen actor who became a well-respected acting teacher after being blacklisted in the 1950s.-Biography:...
's acting class and began working on improving both his personal and professional lives. He eventually became a seasoned HollywoodHollywood is a district in Los Angeles, California, United States, situated west-northwest of Downtown Los Angeles. Due to its fame and cultural identity as the historical center of movie studios and movie stars, the word "Hollywood" is often used as a metonymy of American cinema...
actor, playing notable dramatic roles in movies and on televisionTelevision is a widely used telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images, either monochromatic or color, usually accompanied by sound. "Television" may also refer specifically to a television set, television programming or television transmission...
. In 1956, he was billed as Robert Blake for the first time.
In 1959, he turned down the role of Little Joe CartwrightLittle Joe Cartwright was the youngest Cartwright on the 1960s television series Bonanza. Little Joe was played by Michael Landon.-Mini biography:...
, a character ultimately portrayed by Michael LandonMichael Landon was an American actor, writer, director, and producer, who starred in three popular NBC TV series that spanned three decades...
, in NBCThe National Broadcasting Company is an American television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices in Burbank,California...
's westernThe Western is a fiction genre seen in film, television, radio, literature, painting and other visual arts. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the later half of the 19th century in what became the Western United States , but also in Western Canada, Mexico , Alaska The Western...
television seriesA television program , television programme , or television show is a segment of content broadcast on television...
BonanzaBonanza is an American television series that ran on NBC from September 12, 1959 to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons, it is among the longest running Western television series and continues to air in syndication....
. Blake did appear that year as Tobe Hackett in the episode "Trade Me Deadly" of the syndicated western series 26 Men26 Men is a syndicated American western television series about the Arizona Rangers, an elite group commissioned in 1901 by the legislature of the Arizona Territory and limited, for financial reasons, to twenty-six active members. Russell Hayden was the producer of the series and the co-composer of...
, which dramatized true stories of the Arizona RangersThe Arizona Rangers was an Arizona law enforcement agency modeled on the Texas Rangers. The Arizona Rangers were created by the Arizona Territorial Legislature in 1901, disbanded in 1909, and were subsequently reformed in 1957...
. Blake also appeared twice as "Alfredo" in the syndicated western The Cisco KidThe Cisco Kid is a durable half-hour western television series starring Duncan Renaldo in the title role, The Cisco Kid, and Leo Carrillo as the jovial sidekick, Pancho...
and starred in "The White Hat" episode of Men of AnnapolisMen of Annapolis is a 41-episode half-hour syndicated drama television series in anthology format which aired from 1957-1958 and was hosted by the voice of Art Gilmore. Darryl Hickman appeared four times on the program as Dusty Rhodes, a fictitious midshipman at the United States Naval Academy in...
, another syndicated series.
Blake performed in numerous motion pictures as an adult, including the starring role in The Purple GangThe Purple Gang was a mob of bootleggers and hijackers in the 1920s. Under the leadership of Abe Bernstein, the gang operated out of Detroit, Michigan, in the United States, which was a major port for running cached alcohol products across during Prohibition, since it is on the border with Canada...
(1960The year 1960 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* April 20 - for the first time since coming home from military service in Germany, Elvis Presley returns to Hollywood, California to film G.I...
), a gangster movie, and featured roles in Ensign PulverEnsign Pulver is a 1964 American film and a sequel to the 1955 film Mister Roberts. The movie features Robert Walker, Burl Ives, Walter Matthau, Tommy Sands, Millie Perkins, Kay Medford, Peter Marshall, Jack Nicholson, Richard Gautier, George Lindsey, James Farentino, and James Coco.- Plot :In this...
(1964The year 1964 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* January 29 - The film Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb is released....
), The Greatest Story Ever ToldThe Greatest Story Ever Told is a 1965 U.S. motion picture epic produced and directed by George Stevens and distributed by United Artists. It is a retelling of the story of Jesus Christ, from the Nativity through the Resurrection....
(1965The year 1965 in film involved some significant events.-Top grossing films : After theatrical re-issue
source: http://www.boxofficereport.com/database/1965.shtml- Awards :Academy Awards:*Boeing Boeing*Brainstorm...
) and other films. In 1967The year 1967 in film involved some significant events. It is widely considered as one of the most ground-breaking years in film.-Events:*December 26 - The Beatles Magical Mystery Tour airs on British television....
, he played real-life murderer Perry SmithPerry Edward Smith was one of two ex-convicts who murdered four members of the Clutter family in Holcomb, Kansas, United States on November 15, 1959, a crime made famous by Truman Capote in his 1966 non-fiction novel In Cold Blood.-Family and early life:Perry Edward Smith was born in Huntington,...
in In Cold BloodIn Cold Blood is a film based on Truman Capote's book of the same name. Richard Brooks prepared the adaptation and directed the film. Some scenes were filmed on the locations of the original events, in Garden City and Holcomb, Kansas including the Clutter residence, the site of the murders...
; Richard BrooksRichard Brooks was an American screenwriter, director, novelist and occasional producer.-Early life and Career:...
directed, adapting Truman CapoteTruman Garcia Capote , born Truman Streckfus Persons, was an American writer, many of whose short stories, novels, plays, and nonfiction are recognized literary classics, including the novella Breakfast at Tiffany's and In Cold Blood , which he labeled a "nonfiction novel"...
's non-fiction book for the film.
Blake also played an Indian fugitive in Tell Them Willie Boy Is HereTell Them Willie Boy Is Here is a movie released in 1969, based on the true story of a Paiute Indian named Willie Boy and his run-in with the law in 1909 in California.The movie was written and directed by the once black-listed Abraham Polonsky...
(1969The year 1969 in film involved some significant events.-Top grossing films : After theatrical re-issue
source: http://www.boxofficereport.com/database/1969.shtml- Awards :Academy Awards:*Anne of the Thousand Days...
), a TV movie adaptation of Of Mice and MenOf Mice and Men is a novella written by Nobel Prize-winning author John Steinbeck. Published in 1937, it tells the tragic story of George Milton and Lennie Small, two displaced migrant ranch workers during the Great Depression in California....
(1981), and a motorcycle highway patrolman in Electra Glide in BlueElectra Glide in Blue is a 1973 film starring Robert Blake as a motorcycle cop in Arizona and Billy Green Bush as his partner. The movie was filmed in Monument Valley, and was produced and directed by James William Guercio . The film was entered into the 1973 Cannes Film Festival, but was loathed...
(1973The year 1973 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*The Marx Brothers' Zeppo Marx divorces his second wife, Barbara Blakely. Blakely would later marry actor/singer Frank Sinatra....
). And he played a small-town stock car driver with ambitions to join the NASCARThe National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947-48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
circuit in Corky, which MGM produced in 1972. The film featured real NASCAR drivers, including Richard PettyFor the president & C.E.O. of Maple Leafs Sports & Entertainment, see Richard PeddieRichard Lee Petty is a former NASCAR driver who raced in the Strictly Stock/Grand National Era and the NASCAR Winston Cup Series...
and Cale YarboroughWilliam Caleb Yarborough , is a businessman and former NASCAR Winston Cup Series driver and owner. He is the one of only two drivers in NASCAR history to win three consecutive championships, before Jimmie Johnson in 2006-2008...
.
But Blake may be best known for his Emmy AwardThe Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards , Grammy Awards and Tony Awards .They are presented in various...
-winning role of Tony Baretta in the popular TV series Baretta (1975 to 1978), playing an undercover police detective who specialized in disguises. The show's trademarks included Baretta's pet cockatooA cockatoo is any of the 21 bird species belonging to the family Cacatuidae. Along with the Psittacidae family and the Nestoridae family, they make up the order Psittaciformes...
"Fred, " his signature line "Don't do the crime if you can't do the time, " and a memorable theme song: "Keep Your Eye on the Sparrow, " written by Dave GrusinDavid Grusin is an American composer, arranger and pianist. Grusin has composed many scores for feature films and television, and he has won numerous awards for his soundtrack work. Although he has worked in many musical styles, Grusin is often thought of as a jazz or smooth jazz artist...
and Morgan Ames and performed by Sammy Davis Jr.Samuel George Davis, Jr. was an American entertainer.Primarily a dancer and singer, Davis was a childhood vaudevillian, and became internationally famous for his performances on Broadway and Las Vegas, as a recording artist, television and film star, and the only black member of Frank Sinatra's...
He continued to act through the 1980s and 1990s, mostly in television, in such roles as Jimmy HoffaJames Riddle Hoffa was an American trade unionist.Hoffa served as the General President of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters from 1958–1971 despite being incarcerated during the latter four years of his tenure...
in the miniseries Blood FeudA feud is a long-running argument or fight between parties—often, through guilt by association, groups of people, especially families or clans. Feuds begin because one party perceives itself to have been attacked, insulted or wronged by another...
(1983) and as John ListJohn Emil List was an American murderer. On November 9, 1971, he murdered his mother, wife and three children in Westfield, New Jersey, and then disappeared. He had planned everything so meticulously that nearly a month passed before anyone noticed that anything was amiss...
in the murder drama Judgment Day: The John List Story (1993)—which earned him a third Emmy nomination. He also had character parts in the theatrical movies Money TrainMoney Train is a 1995 American thriller film starring Wesley Snipes, Woody Harrelson and Jennifer Lopez as New York City transit cops. After losing his job, Harrelson's character plots to hijack and then rob the "money train" which hauls collected fare revenues for the New York City Subway from...
(1995The year 1995 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* March 22 - The Dogme 95 movement is officially announced in Paris by Danish directors Lars von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg....
) and Lost HighwayLost Highway is a 1997 American psychological thriller film that exhibits elements of both neo-noir and surrealism. Written and directed by David Lynch, the film stars Bill Pullman, Patricia Arquette, Balthazar Getty and Robert Loggia. Lynch co-wrote the screenplay with Barry Gifford, who also...
(1997The year 1997 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*The Star Wars original trilogy's 20th Anniversary Special Editions are released.*Production begins on Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace....
). In addition, Blake starred in the television series Hell Town, playing a priest working in a tough neighborhood.
Personal life
He and actress Sondra Kerr were married in 1961 and divorced in 1983. They had two children, actor Noah BlakeNoah Luther Blake is an American television, film, and stage actor. He is the son of Robert Blake and Sondra Kerr.-Career:...
(born 1965) and Delinah Blake (born 1966).
Bonnie Lee Bakley
In 1999, Blake met Bonnie Lee BakleyBonnie Lee Bakley was the wife of actor Robert Blake.-Early life:Bonnie Lee Bakley was born in Morristown, New Jersey to arborist Edward J. Bakley and his wife, Marjorie, aka Lois Carlyon. She had three other siblings: Margery Lois Hall, Joseph, and her half-brother Peter Carlyon from her mother's...
, formerly of Wharton, New JerseyWharton is a Borough in Morris County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the borough population was 6,298.What is now Wharton was originally incorporated as the borough of Port Oram by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on June 26, 1895, from portions of Randolph...
, who reportedly was a woman with a history of exploiting older men for money, especially celebrities. She was dating Christian BrandoChristian Brando was the eldest child of actor Marlon Brando. He pled guilty to manslaughter in the death of the boyfriend of his half-sister Cheyenne. On May 16, 1990, Christian Brando shot Dag Drollet to death at Marlon Brando's residence on Mulholland Drive in Los Angeles. He was released from...
, son of Marlon BrandoMarlon Brando, Jr. was an American actor whose body of work spanned over half a century. He was named the fourth Greatest Male Star of All Time by the American Film Institute, and part of Time magazine's Time 100: The Most Important People of the Century He is widely considered one of the...
, during her relationship with Blake. Bakley became pregnant and told both Brando and Blake that they were the father. Initially, Bakley named the baby "Christian Shannon Brando" and stated that Brando was the father of her child. Bakley wrote letters describing her dubious motives to Blake. Blake insisted that she take a DNA test to prove the paternity. Blake and Bakley married November 19, 2000 after DNADeoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms and some viruses. The main role of DNA molecules is the long-term storage of information...
tests proved that he was, in fact, the biological father of her child, renamed Rose. It was his second marriage, her tenth.
Although they were married, Bakley lived in a small guest house behind her husband's house in the Studio CityStudio City is a seven-square-mile district in the San Fernando Valley region of the City of Los Angeles, California, United States. It is bounded roughly by Ethel Avenue to the west, Highway 101 to the north and east, and Mulholland Drive and the Santa Monica Mountains to the south.-Origin of...
area of the San Fernando ValleyThe San Fernando Valley is an urbanized valley located in Southern California, United States. More than half of the city of Los Angeles' land area lies within the San Fernando Valley...
.
On May 4, 2001, Blake took Bakley to an Italian dinner at Vitello's Restaurant on Tujunga Avenue in Studio City. Afterward, Bakley was killed by a gunshot to the head while sitting in the car, which was parked on a side street around the corner from the restaurant. Blake told the police that he had gone back to the restaurant to get a gun he left at the table and was there when the shooting occurred.
Arrest and trial for murder
Almost one year later, on April 18, 2002, Blake was arrested and charged in connection with the murder of his wife. His longtime bodyguard, Earle Caldwell, was also arrested and charged with conspiracy in connection with murder. A key event that gave the LAPD the confidence to arrest Blake came when a retired stuntman, Ronald "Duffy" Hambleton, agreed to testify against him. Hambleton alleged that Blake tried to hire him to kill Bonnie Lee Bakley. Another retired stuntman and an associate of Hambleton's, Gary McLarty, came forward with a similar story.
According to author Miles Corwin, Hambleton agreed to testify against Blake only after being told he would be subject to a Grand Jury subpoena and a pending misdemeanor charge. Hambleton's motives for testifying were successfully called into question by Blake's defense team during the criminal trial.
On April 22, 2002, Blake was charged with one count of murder with special circumstances, an offense eligible for the death penalty. He was also charged with two counts of solicitation of murder and one count of murder conspiracy. Blake pled not guilty to all charges. Caldwell was charged with a single count of murder conspiracy and also pled not guilty. Three days later, the Los Angeles District Attorney's office announced they would not seek the death penalty against Blake should he be convicted, but prosecutors would seek a sentence of life in prison without parole.
After Blake posted US $1 million bail, Caldwell was released, but a judge denied bail for Blake. On March 13, 2003, after almost a year in jail, Blake was granted bail, which was set at US $1.5 million, and he was allowed to go free to await trial. Blake was placed on house arrest during this time.
Acquittal
On March 16, 2005, Blake was found not guilty of the murder of Bonnie Lee Bakley and of one of the two counts of solicitation of murder. The other count was dropped after it was revealed that the jury was deadlocked 11-1 in favor of an acquittal. Los Angeles District Attorney Steve CooleyStephen Lawrence Cooley is a veteran prosecutor who was elected as Los Angeles County's 40th District Attorney on November 7, 2000. He succeeded Democrat Gil Garcetti. He was sworn in for his second term on December 6, 2004. Cooley was elected to a third term on June 3, 2008...
, commenting on this ruling, called Blake a "miserable human being" and the jurors "incredibly stupid." Blake's defense team, led by attorney M. Gerald SchwartzbachM. Gerald Schwartzbach is an American criminal defense attorney.-Early Life and Career:Schwartzbach, the youngest of three children, was born in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. After attending Washington & Jefferson College, he graduated from George Washington University Law School in 1969.He began...
, and members of the jury responded that the prosecution had failed to prove its case. Trial analysts also agreed with the jury's verdict. On the night of his acquittal several fans celebrated at Blake's favorite haunt, Vitello's.
Civil case
Bakley's three children filed a civil suit against Blake asserting that he was responsible for their mother's death. On November 18, 2005, the jury found Blake liable for the wrongful deathWrongful death is a claim in common law jurisdictions against a person who can be held liable for a death. The claim is brought in a civil action, usually by close relatives, as enumerated by statute...
of his wife and ordered him to pay US $30 million. On February 3, 2006, Blake filed for bankruptcyBankruptcy is a legally declared inability or impairment of ability of an individual or organization to pay its creditors. Creditors may file a bankruptcy petition against a debtor in an effort to recoup a portion of what they are owed or initiate a restructuring...
. Expressing disbelief that Blake was found liable by the jury in the civil trial, Schwartzbach (Blake's attorney in the criminal trial) vowed to appeal the jury verdict.
Civil trial verdict appeal
According to the Associated Press, Schwartzbach filed the appeal brief on February 28, 2007. The AP also reported that an LAPD Internal Affairs investigation has been opened regarding the lead detective in the murder case, Detective Ron Ito. The complaint, filed by Schwartzbach and civil trial witness Brian Allan Fiebelkorn, alleged that the detective failed to investigate leads that persons other than Robert Blake could have been responsible for the murder of Bonnie Lee Bakley. Fiebelkorn testified that associates of Christian BrandoChristian Brando was the eldest child of actor Marlon Brando. He pled guilty to manslaughter in the death of the boyfriend of his half-sister Cheyenne. On May 16, 1990, Christian Brando shot Dag Drollet to death at Marlon Brando's residence on Mulholland Drive in Los Angeles. He was released from...
may have been responsible for the murder of Ms. Bakley. A defense theory of who may have been involved in the conspiracy to kill Bonnie Lee Bakley was laid out in a defense motion filed during the criminal trial proceedings.
Verdict upheld
On April 26, 2008, an appeals court upheld the civil case verdict, but cut Blake's penalty assessment in half. (Blake's attorneys had protested that jurors improperly discussed the Michael JacksonMichael Joseph Jackson , known as the "King of Pop", was an American musician and one of the most commercially successful and influential entertainers of all time...
and O.J. Simpson verdicts during deliberations of his case, but the appeals judge ruled that such discussions were not improper.)
External links