Dorothy Hale (January 11, 1905 – October 21, 1938) was an American socialite and aspiring actress who died by jumping off of the Hampshire House building in New York City.
The artist Frida Kahlo created a famous painting commissioned by Clare Boothe Luce, titled The Suicide of Dorothy Hale.
In her west coast period, she socialized with artists Miguel Covarrubias, Rosa Rolanda, Frida Kahlo, and photographer Nickolas Muray.
No longer able to maintain her high-society lifestyle, Hale began to accept the largesse of rich lovers and generous friends, such as Luce, with whom she was close.
[1] Early in 1933, she and Isamu Noguchi took a Caribbean cruise where he was introduced to many of her wealthy and influential friends from New York, several of whom commissioned portraits, including Luce for a sculpture bust.
[1] The trio stopped to see Thornton Wilder in Hamden, Connecticut, before going on to Hartford to join Fuller for the out-of-town opening of Gertrude Stein and Virgil Thomson's Four Saints in Three Acts.
[citation needed] By 1937, Hale was involved in a serious romance with Harry Hopkins, WPA administrator and Franklin D. Roosevelt's top adviser.
[1] The gossip columnists who had been reporting the engagement rumors played up the cruel jilting, causing Hale great embarrassment.
[8] The evening of her death, Hale informally entertained some friends; she had told them that she was planning a long trip and invited them to a party.
[2] After an evening on the town, Hale returned to her home at the Hampshire House at about 1:15 am, leaving a large number of friends partying at the 21 Club.
[1] She was found still wearing her favorite Madame X ''femme-fatale'' black velvet dress with a corsage of small yellow roses, given to her by Noguchi.
[14] The original cast members were Emmy Award winner Michael Badalucco, Patrick Boll, Sarita Choudhury, Laura Koffman, Sarah Wynter, and Mark LaMura.
The cast and playwright of The Rise of Dorothy Hale were featured guests of NASDAQ on October 18, 2007, to ring the closing bell.
[15] Lady Be Good: The Life and Times of Dorothy Hale, written by former NBC News producer Pamela Hamilton,[16] was published on March 31, 2021.