No trace of Mr. Hall has been located. He had sold and or donated all properties before Christmas of 2013. If I recall, you mentioned that he was elderly, possibly ninety years old. Those areas of the house under the mud have been probed and carefully scanned. No body showed up. We did find a shallow grave for a small Bedlington terrier that seemed to have died of natural causes recently.
Naturally, given the neighbors’ concern for Mr. Hall, we instituted a complete search of all of Mr. Hall’s financial records and found a will, of which your school is a beneficiary, as well as checking and savings accounts. All credit cards, and we also understood from a discussion with a bank officer, all of Hall’s investments, appear to have been cashed in sometime in the fall of 2012.
I wish this office could be more helpful.
Tawana Earl, Supervisor
Dept. of Housing, Los Angeles, CA 90012
CHRISTOPHER HALL LEGACY
ON DISPLAY DECEMBER 15TH, 2015
AT THE POWELL LIBRARY
U.C.L.A., WESTWOOD, CA
As was previously announced in The Daily Bruin, the papers and many other articles of memorabilia of famed Hollywood actor, writer, director, and film producer Christopher Hall left to this school will be on display beginning on December 15, 2015.
Hall, a major figure of the film industry’s much vaunted “Golden Age,” was active in film from 1935 to 1955. Among his most noted accomplishments are the Academy Award–winning films American Boys (1936), The Golds (1938), and Before I Wake (1948). As an actor, Hall began as a teen idol in a series of films with his professional colleague Sue-Anne Schiller. They formed a team known as Schiller & Hall, equal in popularity during that decade to Rogers & Astaire and Rooney & Garland.
The young Hall, however, soon moved into more serious fare, and his epic of our nation’s forgotten youth who were destroyed or lost to the Depression was a socially conscious movie with a heart and a head. It gave rise to the L.A. Cares youth shelter movement and its various outgrowths. Had Hall accomplished only American Boys as a film, he would have been seen in the same light as the creators of Boystown, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, and The Grapes of Wrath, films that now define the beginning of our nationally raised social consciousness.
By then a matinee idol and movie star in his own right, Christopher Hall’s second epic, The Golds, ended up having an even greater impact, indeed an enormous one. Written by Hall, directed by George Cukor, starring Hall, Schiller, Randolph Scott, and Marlene Dietrich and a huge, star-studded supporting cast, Hall’s eerily predictive, amazingly accurate film might be said to have raised the political consciousness of an entire American generation and then helped ensure worldwide freedom for decades to come.
Most commentators say The Golds led to the secret treaty of the governments of the U.S., France, and England in early 1939 to mitigate German power, and their secret arms buildup that led to the declaration of war against Hitler once his troops overran Czechoslovakia. Revelations of another secret alliance by Hitler and Stalin led to the Allies overrunning the Soviet Union, and eventually to the new European, All-Americas, and Anzac Union Forces taking on Emperor Hirohito in Asia. Scores of millions of lives and an entire generation are believed to have been preserved.
After two more films based on the classic novels Bleak House (New York Film Critics Award) and A Sentimental Education (American Film Critics Award), Hall turned his attention to the problem of American racism in his explosive film of Ralph Ellison’s novel Invisible Man and his controversial film about sexual tolerance in his adaptation of James Baldwin’s Giovanni’s Room.
Hall took on the ongoing capitalist exploitation of our natural resources, leading to his third Oscar-winning movie, the enormously influential Before I Wake, a film that is said to have defined and then thrust into the limelight the Save the Earth movement, which has become an international project of the greatest significance, as may be seen on the U.C.L.A. campus today.
Hall himself helped guide that and other social movements for the next twenty years, aided by his staunch cadre of famous actors, directors, and writers, among them Cary Grant, Carole Lombard, Gene Tierney, Randolph Scott, Marlene Dietrich, John Huston, and many others.
Hall only fully retired when his health required more treatment in 1970. He had been out of the limelight since then, and he appeared in public only once more, along with his famed 1930s costar, Sue-Anne Schiller-Streit, in 1984, to receive the AMPAS Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award.
The actor/writer/director did, however, remain open to hobbyists of various kinds for many further years, being an avid and talented collector of books, films, film posters and art, animated film regalia, popular and jazz music, sports memorabilia, and automobiles. Most of these collections now occupy entire museums, collections, or rooms in major museums and library-archives.
An Inquiry Concerning
the Irregular Occurrences and Anomalous Circumstances
Including but not Limited to the Disappearance of
Mr. Neal P. Bartram
at the Once Privately Owned now Foundation Owned
and Operated Estate of Chester A. Ingals, Known as
INGOLDSBY
STATE of WISCONSIN
District Attorney’s Office
Government Center, Building C
120 State Street
Madison, WI 53711
Wayne G. King, Assistant D.A.
To: Detective-Sergeant Annabella Conklin
Wisconsin State Police, Cold Case Department
Eau Claire, WI 54701
May 7th, 2001
Dear Det.-Sgt. Conklin,
Pursuant to our brief phone conversation yesterday, I am enclosing the surprising new material (two articles from The Junction City Intelligencer) sent to this office by local authorities regarding the disappearance of Neal P. Bartram, August 30, 2000, on the grounds of the Ingoldsby estate. As this falls within your purview as a recent but closed and thus “cold case,” we are also passing along that locality’s request “in the light of the discovery within the 1940 Time Capsule of a ms allegedly written and signed by Neal Bartram,” along with this office’s sanction, to fully and immediately reactivate the case, as a grade gl2, with financial resources commensurate to that designation.
Although a further, smaller, item in a later issue of The Intelligencer called the new-found journal a patent fraud, this was official persiflage, and by no means the truth. We wish to bring this evidence to your attention, along with several other pieces of evidence related to the as yet unsolved disappearance.
Fulton’s Point Police Chief Abner Estes has prepared a full list of materials previously collected which are enclosed for your attention. We encourage you to work up further, corroborating, or non-corroborating evidence, at your discretion.
We are confident you will be able to make some sense of all this. The D.A. is especially interested in the case as he is a second cousin to members of the Ingals Family, not unrelated to the foundation upon whose property this unpleasant predicament occurred.
Cordially,
Wayne G. King
* * *
PORTAGE COUNTY, WI
FULTON’S POINT POLICE
39000 Rte. 18
Fulton’s Pt., WI 53908
Enclosed find all items collected by this office, catalogued by Officer Jeremy Schaeffer, signed off by Chief Abner Estes.
1. Initial request made by telephone and backed up by e-mail of one A.J. Torrington, on noon of August 31st, 2000, from his office in Chicago, IL, regarding the disappearance of Neal P. Bartram, employed May 20th, 2000, as watchman and groundskeeper at the Ingoldsby estate. The gist of the request was that Torrington was Bartram’s employer and had been trying to reach him for close to twenty-four hours and had failed to do so. He’d then phoned a local who’d then driven to the site and who also failed to locate Bartram.
2. Secondary request, by letter, and e-mail by A.J. Torrington, officially requesting that the F.P. Police step in and locate
the “missing person” Neal P. Bartram.
3. Official Report of Officer Jeremy Schaeffer, dated September 1st, 2000, following his preliminary investigation at the Ingoldsby estate, made in response to the above official request.
4. Follow-up report of the expanded investigation and search of the Ingoldsby estate and Environs by Chief Abner Estes and Officer Shaeffer, dated September 3rd, 2000.
5. Request by Chief Estes to the Portage County Sheriff’s Offices for a 10-man search squad to help locate Bartram, dated September 3rd, 2000. Signed by Chief Estes.
6. Depositions taken by the Portage County Sheriff’s Office/Fulton’s Point Police of known associates of Neal Bartram, regarding his habits and possible whereabouts. Including affidavits by the following:
A. Fulton’s Point Pharmacy owner: Mr. Joseph Weyerhauser
B. Fulton’s Point resident: Dr. Rodman Stansbury, M.D.
C. Fulton’s Point Public Library employee: Mrs. Antoinette Noonan
D. Fulton’s Point resident: Amanda Ettrick
E. Fulton’s Point resident: Ashley Sprague
F. Fulton’s Point Post Office Manager: Mrs. Beverly Freneau
7. Report by Portage County Sheriff Griffith A. Angeles, following the search, depositions, and investigation, dated October 1st, 2000.
8. Final Report by Chief Abner Estes. October 13th, 2000.
Date Signature
Date Signature
* * *
1.
PORTAGE COUNTY, WI
FULTON’S POINT POLICE
39000 Rte. 18
Fulton’s Pt., WI 53908
Received today, August 31st, 2000, 12.15 p.m. by Operator Anita Nichols, transferred to Officer Jeremy Schaeffer, a telephone call from Mr. A.J. Torrington, Attorney of the Ingals Trust in Chicago, IL, asking that this office drive out to the Trust owned estate known as “Ingoldsby” and conduct a search for the person of Mr. Neal P. Bartram, the groundskeeper and night/day watchman of the estate.
The reason given was that Mr. Bartram had not responded to Mr. Torrington’s repeated phone calls or e-mail over the past 24 hours.
Complainant further noted that he had this morning phoned Fulton’s Point Pharmacy owner, Joseph Weyerhauser, and asked him to drive out to the estate. That Mr. Weyerhauser had done as requested but had not located Neal P. Bartram.
Action taken: Officer explained that a formal report/complaint of a Missing Person could only be made forty-eight hours after he/she has gone missing. Officer advised Mr. Torrington to make such a complaint.
Date Signature
* * *
2.
The Ingals Trust
123 North Dearborn Ave.
Chicago, IL 60602
To: Chief Abner Estes,
Fulton’s Point Police
39000 Rte. 18
Fulton’s Pt. WI
September 1, 2000
Dear Police Chief Estes,
This letter, sent by e-mail and also via registered letter, is a formal complaint and report of a Missing Person, as per my phone conversation and e-mail with Officer Schaeffer to your office yesterday. I hope this makes it official now that the Ingals Trust employee Neal P. Bartram, groundskeeper and watchman of Ingoldsby, located in your jurisdiction, is missing and we wish him to be found.
I’ve tried phoning him now for over forty-eight hours. I also sent a representative, Mr. Joe Weyerhauser of the local pharmacy, out to the estate to look for him. He reported that he did not see Mr. Bartram anywhere. Bartram has never been out of communication so long.
Mr. Bartram is a Ph.D. candidate at Northwestern University here in Chicago in American History, a solid and reliable young man with the best possible record of employment and credentials. Up until yesterday, this office had no reason to doubt that he would complete his term of employment—to September 10th, 2000—competently and without problems.
As you may know, Ingoldsby is an important American architectural landmark of the past century, and it has been the Ingals Trust’s intention to seek full state landmark status for it and possibly open it as a museum. Toward that end, and to ensure that any representative from the Landmark Commission was guided about, we hired Bartram, who has provided invaluable service. He’s given us no reason to believe he would simply walk away from his responsibilities. Mr. Bartram is an intelligent, resourceful, and personable young man. We are personally concerned for his whereabouts and for his well-being.
Please institute as full and thorough a search of the estate buildings and grounds as are needed. Joe Weyerhauser has a spare set of keys. And please let us know what we can do to help in this search.
Cordially,
A. J. Torrington
* * *
3.
PORTAGE COUNTY, WI
FULTON’S POINT POLICE
39000 Rte. 18
Fulton’s Pt., WI 53908
Preliminary Report on Missing Person: Neal P. Bartram
Pursuant to the complaint/report filed September 1, 2000, Officer Jeremy Schaeffer drove to the Fulton’s Point Pharmacy to get keys to Ingoldsby from Joe Weyerhauser, whom the complainant, A.J. Torrington, assured us had a spare set of keys.
He did and told the officer he’d been at Ingoldsby the previous day on Torrington’s phoned request and had “looked around” for over an hour but “had touched not one thing” and had not found the M/P Neal Bartram.
Officer Schaeffer drove to the estate. One key opened the smaller door on the side of the sliding metal main gates between the brick walls that lead into Ingoldsby. Weyerhauser told us that the M/P lived inside the brick gate-house, a two-story structure similar to the brick walls and housing a garage with lawn and grounds equipment. Above it, a two-room apartment with bath in which the M/P had resided while employed there.
Apartment seemed lived in, and had various personal items in the bathroom and bedroom apt for a student. Clean and neat. No sign of a break-in or violence. Laptop computer open but turned off on main table amid school texts, notebooks, pens, etc. No signs of a struggle.
Officer drove around gate-house. Nothing looked out of place. Officer drove the half mile to the main house and garages. All doors were locked. No signs of break-in or violence. Footprints made by basketball shoes around various doors–to the extensive garage, main entry of house, side doors, etc.–exactly matched sneaker sole Officer found in apartment belonging to M/P. Nothing unusual.
Officer entered garage, an extensive structure containing 12 antique automobiles. All neat, swept, polished, well kept. No sign of break-in or struggle. Officer entered main house. Most rooms are empty or contain a few pieces of furniture covered by sheets. All sheets are sealed beneath with tape. Officer searched for any not sealed or looking odd or newly sealed. None found. Officer opened every cabinet, closet, refrigerator, freezer, etc., door in the house. No signs of break-in or struggle. No sign of M/P.
Officer walked around main house in widening circle through bushes. No signs of violence or struggle. No sign of M/P. After four hours Officer concluded M/P was not in main buildings, garage, nor central area of property and that there were no signs of struggle.
Date Signature
* * *
4.
PORTAGE COUNTY, WI
FULTON’S POINT POLICE
39000 Rte. 18
Fulton’s Pt., WI 53908
Follow-Up Report on Missing Person: Neal P. Bartram
Pursuant to the complaint/report filed September 1, 2000 and following Officer Jeremy Schaeffer’s Preliminary Investigation and Report, Police Chief Abner Estes drove to the Fulton’s Point Pharmacy to get keys to Ingoldsby from Joe Weyerhauser, and heard him repeat what he told Officer Schaeffer the previous day.
As did Officer Schaeffer, Chief Abner Estes drove to Ingoldsby and checked the gate-house and attached garage, then to the main part of the estate, including the multi-car garage and main house. Found no signs of break-in, violence, or struggle. Chief Estes did a walking search of the area around the
estate and failed to find the M/P.
Action taken: as the general area surrounding the house is close to fifteen acres, some of it brush, forest, and scrubland, we believe a general search party will be needed. Meanwhile, this office will call on six people known to have associated with the M/P tomorrow and begin taking depositions from them.
Date Signature
* * *
5.
PORTAGE COUNTY, WI
FULTON’S POINT POLICE
39000 Rte. 18
Fulton’s Pt., WI 53908
TO: County Sheriff Griffith A. Angeles
Portage County Sheriff’s Office
172 Elm Street
Portage, WI 53901
RE: Reports on Missing Person: Neal P. Bartram
September 3, 2000
Dear Sheriff Angeles,
Enclosed please find copies of a complaint/report of a missing person along with reports by myself and Officer Schaeffer after preliminary and secondary investigation of this M/P.
Bartram is a Ph.D. candidate at Northwestern U. in Chicago, and there appears to be no earthly reason why he’d just vanish. No reports of hitchhikers on any interstate or intrastate highways fit his description. He seems to have lifted off the face of the earth.
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