The Death of George Reeves 50 Years Ago: The House

The Death of George Reeves 50 Years Ago: The House

by Armand Vaquer

Next month, on June 16, will mark the 50th anniversary of the death of television's Superman, George Reeves.



Several books, magazine articles and television programs reviewing Reeves's death have been produced over the years. Some are better than others. But the bottom line on all of them is that the death of Reeves is still "unsolved," although the evidence points to the original verdict of suicide. All conclusions from these shows and articles are just speculative.

Above, the Coroner's property receipt for the Luger that killed George Reeves.

The mystery of Benedict Canyon began the early morning of June 16, 1959. Reeves was found on his bed with a bullet wound in his head. There's no dispute over that. But there are three basic theories on the circumstances on how the bullet was fired into his skull:

1.) Suicide.

2.) An unknown assailant somehow entered Reeves's residence and fired the gun.

3.) Reeves and Lenore Lemmon got into an argument which led to a fight over the gun and it was accidentally discharged, sending a bullet into Reeves's head.

Due to the high blood alcohol levels in Reeves at the time of his death, many have come to the conclusion that the alcohol level (on top of his supposed despondent mood) led to Reeves committing suicide. I also believe that this was the cause of his death. For more (in lurid detail) on Reeves's death, go here.

The unknown assailant theory doesn't seem plausible as the home's layout would not allow for a hit-man to enter without the occupants noticing. The fight over the gun theory is possible, but no evidence has been unearthed either proving it or disproving it. Two additional bullet holes were found in the floor of Reeves's bedroom. The bullet that killed Reeves exited the left side of his head and lodged into the slanted wall/ceiling above his bed (photo below).



The Benedict Canyon Home of George Reeves

Rather than delving deeper into the theories, we will focus instead on Reeves's house. An excellent article on the layout of the home has been covered by fan Lou Koza. You can see an excellent diagram of the layout and articles by going here and here. By chance, Koza was able to go inside the home and photograph it as the then-current residents were moving out.

The house is modest by Hollywood standards. It has two bedrooms, a den and a small yard. The asking price a few years ago was around $600,000. Toni Mannix inherited the house following Reeves's death.

A few years ago, Adventures of Superman historian and writer Chuck Harter and I paid a visit to Reeves's home and to the former Eddie and Toni Mannix residence and took the following pictures posted below.

Here is a photo of the front of the Reeves house:



Here is another shot of the front of the house but from the north looking southwest:

Above, the wooden fence leads to the side and back yards of the property.

Here is a closer view of the fence and the house:



Here is a view of the side and back yards from the fence:



Before Reeves began his romance with Lenore Lemmon, he had a longtime affair with Toni Mannix, the wife of MGM executive Eddie Mannix. The first photo is of the front gate to the Mannix residence with Chuck Harter:



From the front gate, the Mannix garages can be seen (below). It was in these garages that Reeves's personal items were stored following his death. Reeves left everything to Toni Mannix. He did not change his will after his breakup with Mannix. Chuck Harter was allowed to rummage though the items by Toni's sister Florence and take what he wanted. He has the largest collection of personal items of George Reeves.



It was in this house that allegedly Toni Mannix "confessed" to a priest that a hit-man killed Reeves, although she was reportedly suffering from Alzheimer's Disease at the time.

Next: The Aftermath.