Home of William F. Gettle, kidnapping victim, Beverly Hills, 1934

Description: Gettle was kidnapped from the grounds of his Arcadia ranch house during a party on the eve of May 9th. The kidnapping attracted a great deal of attention in the community, with Mrs. Gettle even addressing the kidnappers through the pages of the Los Angeles Times. The kidnappers demanded a $60,000 ransom for the return of Gettle, which Mrs. Gettle agreed to pay. However, before the ransom was paid, two detectives of the LAPD, Chester Burris and H.P. Gearhardt, broke the case after installing a dictaphone in the home of a bank robbery suspect. Information from the dictaphone led them to a La Crescenta home where Gettle was held. He was returned, unharmed, to his family on the eve of May 14th.
Beverly Hills home of businessman and millionaire William F. Gettle, at 723 North Linden Drive.
Caption: Text from negative sleeve: Gettle, William F. Kidnap Case
This photograph appears with the article, "Three Calls and Letter Boost Hope for Gettle: Early Return Held Likely as New Demand Sets $45,000 Ransom; Way Cleared for Payment," Los Angeles Times, 12 May 1934: 1.

Repository: University of California, Los Angeles. Library. Department of Special Collections
Local Identifier: uclamss_1429_10361
ARK: ark:/21198/zz002hb9s1
Manifest url

Rights statement: copyrighted
Rights Holder: UCLA Charles E. Young Research Library Department of Special Collections, A1713 Young Research Library, Box 951575, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1575. E-mail: spec-coll@library.ucla.edu. Phone: (310)825-4988
Rights Country: US
Funding Note: Access to this collection is generously supported by Arcadia funds.
License: This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License .