Carole's Final Year & Last Recording

Carole had spent the Winter of 1947 working in England. When she returned to California in March of 1948 she immediately filed for divorce from her fourth husband Horace Schmidlapp. She hired attorney Jerry Giesler and told Horace all she wanted was the house and her personal belongings. The reason for the divorce was because she had fallen in love with married actor Rex Harrison. Their affair was a secret until March 16 when Walter Winchell wrote in his column that Rex would be Carole's next husband. During the Spring of 1948 she had a photo shoot with Robert Freude in Hollywood. These would be her last professional pictures. On Sunday, March 28, she hosted an Easter party for her family. Unfortunately she was having some health problems due to the dysentery she had contracted during the war. Her nephew Walter said that when he saw her she looked sick and had lost a lot of weight. Carole attended an all women's baseball game in April of 1948 where she met with the players. Then on May 4 she went to the premiere of Letter From An Unknown Woman. Sadly this would be her final public appearance.

Carole photographed by Robert Freude in 1948

Carole at a women's baseball game in April of 1948

A few weeks later she put her Pacific Palisades home up for sale and signed on to star in the Eagle-Lion film The Amazing X. During the month of June she spent most of her time preparing to move and finalizing her divorce. She also spent many evenings with her lover Rex Harrison. In late June she sent a letter to her longtime friend Freda. Carole wrote "I am getting ready to start a new picture in about two more weeks. I have sold my house here and am clearing up a lot of personal mattes before returning to England in the middle of August." On July 2, 1948 she went shopping in Beverly Hills with a friend. She bought more than $300 worth of new clothes. Carole told her friend "I've never been so happy in all my life. The sun's shining. It's a wonderful day!". That same afternoon she ran into writer Crawford Dixon on Rodeo Drive. When he asked her about marrying Rex she replied "Oh, I'd love to marry him but you know how those things are." Crawford said that she looked happy and vivacious. Later that day she went to Star Records at 6525 Sunset Boulevard to make a recording for her fans. Tragically just three days later Carole would be found dead after taking her own life.

Carole's final public appearance on May 4, 1948

You can listen to Carole's final recording here ...

Carole's final recording from Star Records