In the quiet, affluent community of Harrison, New York, the life of Adele Mary Blood, a 50-year-old actress, came to a tragic end on the night of September 13, 1936. Once celebrated as 'the most beautiful blonde on the American stage,' Blood's final moments were marked by despair, culminating in a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head at her home on the grounds of the Westchester Country Club.
On that fateful evening, Adele's 17-year-old daughter, Dawn, returned home to find her
mother in the living room speaking with two unidentified men. Shortly after her daughter's arrival, Adele excused herself and went upstairs to her bedroom. A few minutes later, the tranquility of the evening was shattered by the sound of a single gunshot. Dawn and the two visitors rushed upstairs to discover Adele unconscious on the floor, having sustained a fatal wound from a. 52 caliber revolver. She was transported to the United Hospital in Port Chester, where she died a few hours later.
In the wake of the tragedy, Dawn informed the police that her mother had been under significant financial strain and had been worrying excessively in the two weeks leading up to her death. It was reported that a play Adele had financed and directed for her daughter that summer had been a failure, resulting in a substantial financial loss. Following her death, Adele's possessions were auctioned off, fetching a mere $1,000. The official cause of death was ruled a suicide, and there were no reports of any arrests or suspects in connection with the incident.
